Anime Sentinel blogs on Anime, Manga, Video Games and More.

An Anime Fan First

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Tue, 08 May 2012 01:41:00 +0000

Covering what I love, when I love it

Hobbies change, interest and likes change. Recently, over the past few months, I’ve undergone one such change which has seen an unexplainable shift in a few of my hobbies, mainly my moving away from gaming as much. I still love to spend hours lost in a fictional world but both job and the joy of parenting not to mention street hockey and jiu-jitsu have led to my shift. My focus is now turning back to anime and away from both video games and manga. Why? Good question and one I find a difficulty to explain. I found myself covering games I did not truly love or enjoy, it felt like a business and the whole reason I began writing was to express my joy as a fan. I began contradicting myself, trying to play as many games as possible to cover the entire market and I got away from the joy I found as a fan. I’ve now shifted back to playing games I truly love, Batman: Arkham City for example, and will cover these titles but as a fan again. Novels are also gold for me, especially the new Halo books which create such salivation for Halo 4 it’s hard to contain.

Manga is a little easier to talk about. It’s gone big time digital and I’m loving my Viz digital but not having full books to hold, read and review makes it tougher to cover. Groups like Tor provide solid content but with Tokyopop going the way of the dodo, well the landscape is reduced, sadly. Comics are covered, again as a fan, but more in the graphic novel collection format to get full story chunks, solid stuff.

Finally there is anime which I have so much I want to cover and the digital aspect is a god send here. Being able to watch online just allows for more availability and a broader range or reading. No media request, just go online and watch 3-5 episodes. So much fun.

So what I’m getting at is I feel refreshed. I’ve got anime, some games and novels that I feel I need to share my thoughts on and freeing myself of ‘must cover’ really helps also. No longer do I feel pressured into covering things, I do what I like which seems to me is what AnimeSentinel is all about. I’m a fan first, always have been and while my overall hobbies shift and change what I’ve found is my love for anime has not. I may not post as often but when I do it’s all about the things I enjoy … or that appall me so much I gotta slam them J

Madoka Magica vol. 1 Blu-ray Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 02:10:00 +0000

It’s a magical girl adventure but with a bit of darkness and maturity to it

Magical girl anime, where little girls with big eyes, out of proportion bodies (big heads folks) gain magical powers and fight evil all while looking cute with fantastical transformations and some kind of cute mascot character. That’s the formula for magical girl anime and its front and center in Puella Magi Madoka Magica vol. 1 on Blu-ray and DVD combo from Aniplex yet there’s something a bit different about this tale. Is it the crisp animation or haunting music … maybe the darker tone … let’s take a look.

Story – Madoka Kaname, typical 8th grader with an extraordinary future. While her life is nothing special things soon change when a girl seen in her dreams seems to appear in real life. Homura looks just like the girls from Kaname’s dream and it seems there are ties much larger than just looks. Soon both Kaname and friend Sayaka are wrapped into a new world of magical girls; they are recruited but will be called upon to pay a price. Will the two accept entry into this new world or do the dangers presented make it impossible?

While there is a larger cast Kaname is front and center. She’s a likeable character and keeps herself grounded without being an annoying magical girl, and that’s the real kicker, she does not want to be one. There is real danger, death even, and it’s here that Madoka Magica separates itself form other anime of this type. The story centers around young magical girls but has a maturing and darkness not seen in the genre very often, if at all. This maturity makes volume 1 a very intriguing watch and one that’s not made for kids that’s for sure.

Animation and Art Style – Love the art style. The characters are not revolutionary or groundbreaking and they do sport the magical girl look but without all the mega happiness and sweetness. The characters remind of When They Cry or Pandora Hearts and anime that portray a more realistic looking group of young ladies. Yes, big eyes are front and center but the overall look and feel is solid, ground in reality with the magical looks sporting the right amount of … magic and colored themes. The settings are fairly solid also but it’s the other world that is freaking sweet. It’s like watching an anime come to life on top of a living painting, just incredible to see in HD. The pacing and flow of animation is solid and well done and the jumps from light and friendly to dark and scary are quite good.

Voice Work and Music – The girls sound like many a magical girl cast with the super peppy and happy member to the dark and brooding, all well done with proper emotion coming across but the music … oh the music! It feels so very much like .hack// with haunting tunes and melodies that paint the picture of a twisted world, of evil and all things bad. Combine the solid other world animations and style with this musical track and anime fans get served a visual and audio feast.

Miscellaneous – Loving some bonus content here. The soundtrack CD, composed by Yuki Kajiura, is phenomenal. The haunting and moving tracks are unique and set a sometimes creepy mood, very nice! The postcard set, poster and stickers in the limited edition only enhance the package and allow fans to show they happiness with the franchise. No special collection would be complete without an art book detailing character design and episodes … included also.

Overall Madoka Magica re-invents the magical girl anime with a dash of maturity and darkness. It shares similarities with anime such as .hack//Sign, Pandora Hearts and When They Cry from design to tone and setting. This viewers was pleasantly surprised at the non-super-sugar-all-is-good magical girl anime was watchable and quite well done. Looking for something new then give this one a try, but for magical girl fans know this; it’s darker and a bit more mature than other magical girl shows.

.hack//Quantum on Blu-ray Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 02:21:00 +0000

Still going strong, the latest .hack// entry is short but oh so sweet!

The .hack// franchise began on PlayStation 2 as a combination of game, anime and card game and it’s fake MMO gameplay may have been ahead of its time. The concept would be great as a real MMO with downloadable anime episodes, online components and scanned in card game pieces but oh well, such is the laments of a .hack// fan. While the past cannot be re-written the present sure as hack can be enjoyed, this thanks to FUNimation. The latest OAV anime .hack//Quantum is everything to love about this franchise in a few condensed episodes. From beautiful animation with the solid .hack// design and music this is one enriching anime. Here’s what’s to love …

Story – The World is still going strong with multitudes of players including friends Tobias, Mary and Sakura. The trio is inseparable at school and online as they adventure and enjoy all the adventures and trappings of The World until they stumble upon a guilds battle with The One Sin and everything changes. Picking up an item dropped by Hermit, a small cat-like player, plunges the trio into an adventure where friends fall into comas and the world changes all its rules. It’s only by chance that Sakura holds the key to salvation but will her efforts and those of many players help the world to survive.

So much more to the story than this folks, but to tell more would ruin it. Central to the tale is Sakura and Hermit and they are as deep and enjoyable as any .hack// character before and they each have a less drab persona than some of .hack// previous protagonist. Truly enjoying the story is helped by having a story background but not needed as the stage is set quite well. It’s a quick story that shows how great it is by making viewers want more but this is the MO of .hack//. It gets viewers, gamers, all excited and weaves a grand story and always leaves room for more.

Animation and Art Style – The established look of .hack is front and center with character designs based on some legendary players and settings well established in the games and prior anime. There is a cartoony feel that fits but doesn’t detract from the seriousness of the overall story. The quality of the anime in HD is pure eye candy, very nice.

Voice Work and Music – The music is solid and while it does not carry the haunting feel of the original Sign series it is still worthy of purchase at any import store or site. The characters sound great and deliver another solid .hack// experience but nothing is wow; that’s draw dropping, but it’s all solid … all very solid.

Miscellaneous – It’s still going. Learning that Quantum was hitting our shores brought so much joy to this gamers heart and makes me long for the day when we finally get a true console MMO for .hack//.

Overall .hack// is the anime/game/manga/book franchise equivalent of Jell-O. There’s always, always room for more. Quantum is rock solid, great in HD with a quick and engaging tale that touches on so many points from the past with design and imagery that will bring back fond memories. For anime fans and gamers alike; .hack//Quantum is totally worth checking out.

The Darkness II Xbox 360 Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 23:48:00 +0000

It’s not the continuation expected but The Darkness II is enjoyable for gamers and comic fans alike.

The original The Darkness introduced games to hit man Jackie Estacado. A character established in Top Cow’s comic of the same name, and quite badass at that, but an interesting choice for a gaming experience. The Top Cow universe is not as tenured as Marvel and DC but it is rich with plenty of backstory and memorable characters (Witchblade!). The first game introduced Jackie in a fairly Top Cow universe free world where he and his powers shine and the experience was quite solid and fun. Fast forward to The Darkness II and besides a new developer there were also some story, pacing and graphical tweaks that just detracted from the original. What am I getting at? Let’s shed some light on this …

Gameplay – It’s bloody, oh so bloody, it’s bloody and gory and fun! There were parts of The Darkness that felt very sneaky and almost assassin like but in part 2 Jackie just rips it up. There is an unbridled fury unleashed and nothing is spared in the environment as Jackie goes on his linear path through familiar foes as well as a few new ones while constantly dealing with the death of Jenny from the first game. This is what annoys the most; such a killer and wielder of such power is still moping about the death of his girl which is just not what this comic fan remembers (correct me please). Jackie was a womanizer and having a love interest is great but driving the story from here … come on! Give us some more Top Cow interest, which would be hot!

Graphics – No gripe here as the game takes a very comic feeling shaded approach this time around. A game like Batman: Arkham City feels so familiar as it’s a continuation of the first game, refined and perfected, but where that was the same team continuing the same story, The Darkness II is like a guest artist stepping in with his own unique take on franchise. It works, especially with the gameplay pacing and source material. Cookie cutter baddies I don’t understand in this day and age, but whatever.

Sound – Solid voice work brings to life the emotion wanted in the story and accents keep it on the stereotype side of funny … overall well done. The background music also delivers the goods but there is overall nothing to really grab gamers and make an MP3 request necessary. No super memorable tunes here folks.

Design – As a single-player gamer the main mode is a bit short but the feel and power, different ways to kill makes the second play through solid. Can’t comment too much on any other mode besides single-player but as a fan of the comic and the first game the design is well done as it’s not just an extended version of the first.

Miscellaneous – Sorry, just can’t do it. This gamer did not want to connect with Jackie and his emotions, no matter how violent the boy gets the inner turmoil about Jenny just felt out of place knowing the source material. This killer can bring it and while touching in the first game the relationship with Jenny just feels like a bit too much.

Overall knowing comics will helps fans enjoy The Darkness II. Where Arkham City is like an extension, improved in so many ways, of Arkham Asylum; The Darkness II is like a new creative team (writer, artist, etc) stepping in for their take on said comic. It happens all the time, there are runs of artist and writers tied to a series and this comic game is no different. There is enough backstory for gamers to get familiar with what happened till now and the experience is very enjoyable especially as a rental. There are some technical hick-ups but it’s an overall solid and fun first-person romp … just don’t expect the next Halo or Battlefield.

Insights of a Burned Out Gamer

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:44:00 +0000

When hobby becomes burden; Step Back!

I've been blessed; able to work in an industry I love, to watch anime, read manga and play games that I’m more than happy to spend my cash on yet I hit a wall. When too many titles piled up and deadlines needed to be met, the love and desire I have for this content began to feel too much like a task, like a job I did not enjoy. So what did I do … took a step back, actually a few months of stepping back. After 5+ years of posting weekly I just stopped. It was odd but gave me a relief and allowed me to reconnect with what I loved thanks to games like Halo: Anniversary and Batman: Arkham City as well as anime like Fairy Tale and Rosario Vampire. I’m reading Halo novels, getting into the digital manga space, it’s quite nice.

I share this as I’m looking to get back into the game, not as heavy as before but from a ‘what I enjoy’ standpoint. What good is a hobby with little to no monetary benefit if it leaves one miserable and tired? It’s no good folks because life is too short, time too short to spend doing things that just don’t bring joy. Have I rediscovered what thrilled me about gaming and anime, still trying to answer that but I am getting the itch to share my thoughts again but maybe tone it back quite a bit.

As I’ve thought about this, played games without thought of how I’ll write about them or watched anime and not judged the voice work I started to realize how many things in life we just don’t take a step back from. Plowing ahead with no true insight into where we are going is not the way to go. The journey is such a joy so don’t miss it. Game for the love of it, not for trophies or accolades, ones gained with no joy. Watch and read as an escape but not just for completion. It’s good to step back and look at the grand scheme. What are you missing out on? Is it time with the kids, the spouse or a nice workout? Hobbies should be a joy and fun but not all consuming and should not affect your mood. I was close to this point.

Am I back; no, I’m not but I am getting there. Relationships need work and mine with gaming and anime is being worked on but is far from gone. I hope to chat about some of the sweet anime and games, hobbies and sites, which I truly enjoy to share with those sporting likes that are similar. Heck, I may even rant on about my favorite sports teams (:O) also, why not, it’s my blog. Welcome to 2012, a new beginning.

Tekken Blood Vengeance DVD Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 00:21:00 +0000

A showdown of three generations yet to be seen in-game

Tekken, going back to its days on the PlayStation, has always provided excellent story elements and animation that show off a variety of serious and humorous characters that move the franchise along from generation to generation. Gamers now get a chance with Tekken: Blood Vengeance to see these stories unfold independent of the game, the computer generated quality unfolding in a full length film giving more story and background to some very memorable characters. Ling Xiaoyu is the star of this feature but make no mistake the Mishima boys steal the show. What’s to love Tekken fans, let’s take a look.

The Story – Jin and Kazuya continue their family blood feud as both race to investigate the M Cell, the key to their devil powers and eternal life. The target of their investigation is high-school student Shin Kamiya, a student who disappeared from Mishima Technical academy. Siblings Nina and Anna Williams take up their boss’s desires and enlist both Ling and Alisa Bosconovitch in the hunt for Shin. The two girls encounter their target and one another and form a friendship that exceeds the boundaries of their orders and forces them to question their programming and trust in their instincts. As the secrets to Shin’s past come full circle the three heads of Mishima face-off in an epic battle. The Tekken universe continues to roll and this time no tournament is needed for these battles to unfold.

Animation and Art Style – The character design carries over from the original games with familiar settings and battle styles. The CG feels much more fluid. This feels like an extension of the source material which should please fans. The battles are great with tons of action but overall the encounters are few for an anime based on a fighting game. The end sequence where the Mishima family battle make up for the overall lack of battles with one epic throw-down.

Music and Voice Work – Sadly the background music does not incorporate enough of the games fight sequences. The voice work also lacks polish with characters showing a level of emotion that is either lacking or over the top. For the franchise it’s on par with the course but would have been well served to be upgraded even at the risk of changing character known sounds. It would have also been nice to see more Japanese audio mixed in as seen in the game cut-scenes. Not horrible but it comes up a bit short for a feature film.

Miscellaneous – Where does this all fit in the Tekken canon? There are appearances by other Tekken universe characters but not nearly enough and while the story works it just does not make sense overall as tied into the game storyline.

Overall Blood Vengeance, like the Tekken comics, allows fans to get deeper into the story behind Tekken, but where is the entry? Knowledge of the franchise helps but is not needed to enjoy the film. Would have been great to see more fighting in an animated feature based on a fighting game … know what I mean?

Star Wars: The Blueprints Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 00:18:00 +0000

The design of an entire galaxy and it fits perfect on your coffee table

Debate Star Wars vs. Star Trek all you want but there has always been one area dominated by Star Trek and that’s the availability of their universes schematics, their blueprints. From the Enterprise to Deep Space 9, the Trek franchise has made the real world details and measurements available to uber fans and now Star Wars is getting into the game in a big way. Star Wars: The Blueprints is the first ever collection of the original blueprints created for the Star Wars saga. This is not just a series of copied pages, it’s a hard bound and numbered gem that brings to life the work of those behind the scenes, the artist, engineers and designers who crafted the droids we love to the fighters we wanted to pilot. Locations and concepts are shared showing off how the galaxy was crafted. So what’s to love, let’s take a quick look …

More than just tech specs – Calling this just a collection of blueprints is a complete joke. Yes, there are a large number of highly detailed blueprints but the layout is so much more. Blueprints can fold out for large ships such as Jabba’s sail barge while the reader is treated to intro paragraphs on each blueprint with concept art and set layout. This folks is the entire package

That's no moon … it’s a book! Over 330 pages with a 15 inch by 18 inch size, this book is no joke. The quality of paper, biding and case is gorgeous and well done and unlike all those one-off Star Trek ship blueprint packets this collection is the Death Star of creative books. Simple amazing and awesome in size there is nothing not to love about the scope and scale of this collector’s item.

Overall this book shows off what a true fan you are, that is if it’s sitting in your house. The amount of detail, complete picture of concept to creation and implementation gives insight into one of the most beloved film franchises ever. With a rich history and no end in sight to new ideas (Clone Wars) the Star Wars universe is as alive as ever so why not get a piece of its legacy to share with friends and enjoy for all its intricate detail.

Q3 2011 gaming report – Nintendo 3DS, DS and Sony PSP

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 02:07:00 +0000

Is there anybody out there? Handhelds, hello, hello?

Next-gen consoles fared quite well in a traditionally news focused, slow product release window but the same cannot be said for the handhelds. The DS never needed to be pushed aside but it was by the 3DS, which frankly overestimated its sales potential. A high price point and limited range of top level, must have games put up a few big roadblocks in the way of a system that was not the different than the already solid DS. Most gamers, kids especially, cannot justify the cost and it was noted as the price dropped and sorry-for-that games were offered to gamers who did jump in at high cost. A costly mistake that has allowed sales to drop.

In the same boat of misery is the PSP. While never truly hitting its potential there are quite a few solid games for the powerful system but the new Vita being announced and the Sony Ericsson Xperia released the little steam PSP could have gained is being eaten from the inside. Throw into the equation the power that smart phones are hitting and it’s easy to see why even the most hardcore gamer may no longer carry around their PSP and why gamers may abandon development.

So a sad time to reflect upon the state of handheld gaming but there is hope. The Vita looks amazing thus far and integration with smart phones is not a bad thing as games are going well outside the casual realm but while Sony can see some light there has to be worry about the DS/3DS especially with the crazy controller for the WiiU potentially being a system in itself (guessing here, no confirmation). So how was the quarter … sad, just sad.

Nintendo 3DS/DS – Not sure it makes sense to list the DS anymore which is a shame. The 3DS was not a necessity with the user base of the DS and now developers will shift some of their attention away from a handheld many gamers own.

Bit.Trip Saga – Solid retro action but this will go over many a young gamers head for its lack of graphical power. Great for adults.
Star Fox 64 3D – It’s what the original version was but a bit cleaner looking and sadness sets in when we used to consider this a great game.
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Overclocked – As Persona is unique and fun on the PSP so too is the Shin Megami Tensei series on the 3DS. Great for RPG fans but again, it misses much of the DS audience.
Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions - A collection of classics that work great in 3D or 2D, does not matter when two franchises offer up three truly unique gaming challenges.

PSP – One title worth its weight and that’s Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 2 - Innocent Sin. The PSP is long for the scrap yard but Atlus has been keeping this underutilized system rolling with yet another Persona release. If more publishers used the PSP like this gamers could have caught up on all the great Japanese PS2 era titles never to hit our shores.

Overall the health of the handhelds is failing and failing fast. The 3DS is looking for new hooks and ways to capture gamers but is missing one key ingredient … games. The PSP is done, so here’s to waiting on the Vita. Both systems get an incomplete for different reasons. The 3DS gets an extension in order to get some Q4 games rolling and resolve its sales issue while the PSP waits for its new Vita iteration … evolution.

Q3 2011 gaming report – PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 14:12:00 +0000

It’s good to be a gamer with Gears and Deus to play

The leaves are turning and falling and there’s a nip in the air as the chill of winter begins its approach. Yes, Fall is here and while not every part of the country receives the same excellent, chilly weather they do receive the same load of games, more targeted the games of Q3 2011. The dog days of Summer star July and August with September bringing up the rear on a heavy vacation time where gamers (gasp!) go outside and get their yearly dose of vitamin D via the sun. A slow time for gamers; yes and no. It’s a great window to catch up on those top level games going back to the last holiday seasons and to begin the ramp up to the holiday shopping and gaming season.

Much like the weather this is a transition time in the game industry. Thanks to firmware updates as well as downloadable content both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 remain strong well into their product cycle and when streaming/downloadable movies and social media also become stronger so does the life of these systems. So much potential is still untapped and with add-ons being success, Kinect, and having potential, Move, well, there is much remaining for these two systems. The same cannot be said for the Wii. The announcement of the WiiU and a much more open development window for third party developers (meaning they get to handle the hardware/software to create solid launch games) means the Wii is in its twilight. Prices will drop, quality games will continue to decline and the system will quietly fade into quite a successful existence. Heck, a price drop may put this in even more homes as the games are still addictive even lacking true HD.

All of this said, how did the quarter stack up for each system? System exclusives are reduced to exclusive windows while only first party developed games are truly locked down as exclusive so what’s left over? Some pretty solid and fun games actually, games that may end up under the Christmas tree this year even with an early release. Let’s take a look and see how these folks graded out.

Multi-System – Developing the same game on both systems (360, PS3) makes sense with differentiation coming in downloadable content and sometimes release timing. This continues to be the strongest segment of new games even in this slow time. Thumbs down to the very promoted X-Men: Destiny which felt just … blah.

Deus Ex: Human Revolution – It’s Square Enix at its finest. Bladerunner meets Metal Gear Solid and so much more in a sci-fi first/third person game where the choices presented to the gamer guarantee options and unique gameplay experiences. Lofty expectations as the prequel to a PC classic but dang did Human Revolution deliver.
Dead Island – A new take on survival horror and the zombies it creates as gamers must team-up in one of the better presented games of its ilk.
Driver: San Francisco – For a franchise that started with a novel approached the Driver series has developed into an almost GTA lite in many aspects.
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine – It’s badass, just plain badass to jump into the role of a badass space marine (seeing a trend here). The action is quite easy to pick up and place but not for the young of age.
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron – With visuals and audio that are video game crack it’s a game that must be played in HD even if the gameplay itself is somewhat unspectacular.
Catherine – Gorgeous and engaging best describes the tale of Vincent and his two ladies but the repetitive, very challenging and mostly visually the same puzzle segments gets old.
Galaga Legions DX – A solid reshaping of how Galaga is played and a download that fans old and new can enjoy. Well done title.
BloodRayne: Betrayal – Insane difficulty and touch controls ruin what is one beautiful and stylistic download. For gamers looking for a bit of punishment, not a bad download by any stretch, just really, frustratingly hard.

PlayStation 3 – Quite a few unique titles but enough to measure up to Microsoft’s monster? Let’s see.

Child of Eden – The formerly 360 exclusive gets the Move treatment
Rochard – A solid if not under promoted download where gravity gets groovy.
Resistance 3 – Solid presentation and graphics mix with a tale that has slowly eroded in much the same manner as humanity in-game. What should have been an epic conclusion just feels a bit forced from the story standpoint.
Disgaea 4: A Promise Unforgotten – More of the same crazy action and humor so if you’re a fan be happy, if not and if Disgaea has never turned you on, well this is not the place to start.
No More Heroes: Heroes' Paradise – The cover is awesome. It’s essentially what Wii owners already have but could have been so much more. A rare instance of opportunity missed being listed.
Bleach: Soul Resurreccion – A great Bleach adventure that’s finally next-gen. Ok, so it’s the second console Bleach in the states but for fans it’s a pleasure to play with tons of characters and settings from the anime and lots to unlock. The art style is rock solid.

Xbox 360 – One exclusive for Microsoft but it’s a doozy that will get Game of the Year consideration.

Gears of War 3 – Marcus Fenix is back with more locusts to kill, and something else and this time the ladies are coming along for the kill. One of the premiere franchises on the 360 makes this a solid three months all by itself for mature 360 owners.

Nintendo Wii – An odd

Bit.Trip Complete – Retro (near) perfected on the Wii. The end of the Wii is in sight so be sure to pick up this diddy.
Sesame Street: Ready, Set, Grover! – Simple controls and solid looking characters make for a fun kiddie adventure. It’s not long or very re-playable for adults but this was made for kids, the type of kids who watch the same show over and over, who play the same song over and over and love it.

Overall it was a solid quarter for both the PS3 and 360 that clock in with a B+ and A respectively. Yes the multi-platform titles help but there has to be an A given to 360 thanks to Gears 3 alone. The Wii is another story clocking in with a D that shows it’s lack of unique titles … any good titles really.

Laddertop vol. 1 Manga Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 01:15:00 +0000

Specialized children, an alien gift and they mysteries around both

Laddertop vol. 1 from Tor offers a bit something different from the normal manga. It reads in a western manner and puts the focus on mystery in this first volume with much being introduced from story to characters. Nothing new here but manga make or break themselves in the first few volumes and this tale is no different. So how do the children of Laddertop fare … let’s take a look.

Story – The aliens known as the Givers came to earth and, while never showing themselves, left a tremendous gift. Four towers known as Ladders stretch 36,000 miles from the Earth’s surface into space and help to provide energy to the planet. To service these ladders children are selected from the elite Laddertop Academy as only children can fit into the spaces where maintenance is required. It’s been 25 years since the Givers granted this gift and left and the latest recruits are introduced to the ladders. Roberta Holten is one of these recruits but her encounter with the Scan machine which selects the children changes everything. The technology is still largely unknown to humanity and when Robbi does her Scan a new symbol appears and visions begin, odd dreams with a hidden message. As Robbi joins the workers on the ladder she must not only adjust to her new setting but these visions and what message they hold. Were these gifts truly given with nothing expected or is the time coming for humanity to pay their due?

The basic concept in Laddertop is easy to swallow from a manga standpoint. Aliens provide gift to lesser race but what are the hooks, what’s the catch? This is strongest point for Laddertop, the mystery of the gift, what it really means and how it unfolds. This is the core ‘good’ and it works with Robbi and her vision but then there’s other stuff that gets in the way. Robbi’s best friend, her fellow recruits and the obnoxious cast of characters present. There are forced family issues and over-the-top annoying politicians take away from what is a very interesting sci-fi story. Get past the annoying and there remains one solid manga.

Art Style – Besides some of the forced human issues (abusive father, bullying) the art is the one thing holding back a compelling story. It’s manga but fits no discernable category and its American left to right reading panels and obnoxious designs just detract and will turn off fans looking for solid art to go with the story.

Miscellaneous – Not too much to add other than this is a manga taking a chance from a less traditional publisher, meaning not as many titles as a Viz or Bandai.

Overall Laddertop offers a solid story with a few annoying characters and art that’s not quite tier-2 in design but it’s different. The strongest point for Laddertop is its mysterious story and what these aliens left behind. Would I recommend it … only if readers are done with the usual shojo and shonen tales and wanting something a bit sci-fi and new.

FUNimation Entertainment Acquires .hack//Quantum

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 01:10:00 +0000

Finally, more .hack anime action hits with Quantum from FUNimation

The news is quite simple and anime fans can get mega excited as more .hack// is on its way thanks to FUNimation. Back at the beginning of the month it was announced that FUNimation will be hooking up all angles of the anime .hack//Quantum. The latest series is based on the .hack// role-playing games created by Bandai Namco Games. It’s three OVA episodes and looks hot. Here is a look at the story so check out the site and the sweet promo art.

“Tobias, Mary, and Sakuya are way into the world’s largest online fantasy role-playing game known as The World R:X. Together, they form an inseparable group, grinding toward the break of day and running dungeons in search of the artifacts of adventure. But when the trio becomes lost in this virtual labyrinth, a chance encounter with the mysterious entity known only as Hermit will change their lives forever. There’s an eerie darkness spreading across The World, and once you stumble in, you may never make it out.”

El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron on PS3 Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 01:07:00 +0000

Taking down renegade angels has never been this beautiful

A religious game that did not get tons o’ panties in a bunch??? It’s true as El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron delivers plenty of angel toppling action but does it in such an over the top stylistic manner that one cannot help but admire the beauty. The tale of Enoch is both beautiful and confusing yet still a game to be played by any gamer with an HD screen screaming for full use of its colors. Pretty, not even close to describing it folks so let’s take a look.

Gameplay – A third-person action game, El Shaddai puts gamers into the boots of Enoch as he does Gods work taking down the seven renegade fallen angels who have corrupted humanity and put all existence on a path to a cleansing flood. The story sets the stage for and action game that takes place in both third-person and from a 2D side-scrolling angle. Gamers and level up abilities and a variety of weapons acquired during the tale al-la God of War or Devil May Cry. Levels are massive as gamers tak on various levels of the fallen angels tower. It’s a straight forward game from the gameplay standpoint.

Graphics – If gamers simple popped in El Shaddai and watched then the game would be dang near worth the purchase on this alone. The varied style, colors and settings are unlike any collection, mixture seen in a game before and puts this puppy in the games as art category. The size and scope it dizzying at times, the sense of scale amazing and in a class all its own. Want pretty? Get El Shaddai.

Sound – Haunting but not in the gothic Castelvania style but rather a tweak I’m-in-church way. Where the visuals are strong and enthralling so too does the music wrap in the gamer.

Design – The levels are quite amazing and range in style even with how linear they are. From the graphic look it’s a wonderful design setup and if any games designers were on … something, this is it. The game leaves a lot to be desired in its goals as it’s stories design is as confusing as any game in a long, long time. A mixed bag folks as the design is both hit and miss here.

Miscellaneous – The story makes no sense. At its core this is a tale of Gods agent going to Earth to capture fallen angels who are corrupting humanity and all to keep a cleansing flood from washing away the corrupted. The way this tale unfolds, the setting, timeline and relationships is a jumbled mess. Such a failure of direction hurts what is a beautiful looking and sounding game.

Overall there is good, great and bad in El Shaddai. On one hand gamers get a game with great visuals wrapped with enthralling audio and good gameplay that’s cookie cutter third-person linear and sadly badly told story that is too confusing to tie the whole story together. A rental at best.

Trigun: Badlands Rumble on Blu-ray Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 22:38:00 +0000

Vash is back to face the consequences of his past actions

Trigun: Badlands Rumble is a sweet visit from an old friend that will leave fans wanting more and feeling far from full. Trigun along with series like Cowboy Bebop, hooked many a current anime fan and while the original series is starting to show its age this movie, Badlands Rumble, shows that an older franchise can be fired up again even if it’s not a large scale epic movie made during the anime’s original run. This is what makes Badlands Rumble very unique. The series ended years ago so seeing a movie now rewards those fans and instead of riding a hot anime wave this movie may actually help create interest in the original series. That being said it’s a fun flick to watch so let’s take a look at its parts.

Story – Twenty years ago Vash the Stampede, the humanoid typhoon, saved a bandit and set off a series of events that bring him to Macca City. Gasback, betrayed by his gang and setup to be captured is on the hunt for his old gang and he’s about to come face-to-face with Vash again twenty years after their first encounter. As Gasback looks for vengeance he is also being hunted by Amelia, a girl with a pained past Gasback caused but neither Amelia nor Vash will find it easy getting close to Gasback with a bodyguard like Wolfwood on duty. As Gasback seeks vengeance an entire town is at stake and the choices of the past must be confronted. Nobody said trying to save every life was easy; a painful lesson Vash lives with every day.

Badlands Rumble moves along at a quick pace and feels more like an extended, polished episode of Trigun rather than a larger feature film. The story has a few twists and turns but at its core it’s what it says. Vash saves/spares Gasback years earlier only to find he must confront the consequences both good and bad. He and Amelia are the centers in this film along with Gasback while Wolfwood and our two favorite insurance gals are along for the ride. Vash is his usual goofy self somehow getting out of trouble with minimal violence while Amelia comes across as the trouble tough girl quite well. The relationship the two forge is natural where it could have felt forced, quite a feat in a shorter timeframe. Overall it is an extended episode with some emotional ties and a ton of fun action. Fans will leave Badlands Rumble reminiscing about the Trigun series while those new should know they are getting just a taste of the excellence that was and still is Trigun.

Animation and Art Style – Polished, bright and vivid. The look and feel of Trigun is unique and BR looks and feels like the updated animation fans would expect. The action is great and over the top at times while (again) reminding of the original series. The overall quality is not on that ‘wow’ level many movies based on series are but that may be to the time since Trigun ended and advances in animation. It just feels a bit below the top budget anime movies.

Voice work and Music – Western styled music, a staple of the series, returns along with a cast of voice actors that know their stuff. There are zero complaints on the audio front.

Miscellaneous – Been a long time Vash, nice to see you again. The fun playful voice to serious and sad. Playfulness of one so burdened … it’s nice to revisit with Vash so many years after the end of Trigun and for this fact fans of Trigun should be happy.

Overall Trigun: Badlands Rumble is exactly what fans of the franchise should expect, a safe and familiar story that fits like a familiar pair of slippers. Nothing new or flashy, just comfortable with great voice action, solid action and animation and a story that gets the job done. For fans with no knowledge of Trigun, Badlands Rumble is a great way to see just a snippet of what the franchise is all about without the full 20+ episode commit. Rock solid, best watched with a 12-pack of donuts.

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No More Heroes: Heroes Paradise on PS3 Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 23:02:00 +0000

Wanna be a crazy, sword swinging assassin? Suda 51 brings it to the PS3 with No More Heroes: Heroes Paradise

Original and made 100% for the PlayStation 3; No, but No More Heroes: Heroes Paradise does offer plenty to gamers who tripped along to Suda 51’s other adventures from Killer7 to Shadows of the Damned. The original adventure seen in No More Heroes 2 is here along with some decent Move support and a handful of gameplay tweaks but what else? Why should gamers looking for this unique style of gameplay venture outside of Shadows of the Damned (which was designed for PS3)? Let’s take a look.

Gameplay – Win a beam katana online, become an assassin, kill the top 10 assassins to become #1. Yup, this is what Travis Touchdown is firing up his hog to set out and accomplish in a third-person hack-n-slash adventure that’s earned its Mature rating. An update to No More Heroes 2 released on Wii, Heroes Paradise brings the gameplay of the original to PS3 gamers and will see fans spending hours slicking of heads, watch blood flow, body parts fly and zaniness ensue. The action is way over the top, like a gory movie that moves beyond violent to humorous and over the top, just like Suda 51 wants. Collecting cards, power ups and moving through levels feels like an old-school arcade game at times. It’s fun … until gamers have to take on boring side-missions. Boring compared to missions which cumulate in boss battles where tactics are needed and there are no pushovers from 10 on down. So third-person running around while hacking and slashing with Travis’ katana in either traditional controller mode (boring) or with Move (sweet!). An added bonus are the online leader boards where gamers can rack up the highest score possible and brag to their friends, if they have any.

Graphics – Cel-shaded and pretty, an upgrade from the days on the Wii. The looks don’t seem to push the PS3 too much when compared to other cel-shaded titles but it looks good and very vivid. Body parts fly and blood flows in ways that can only be described as over the top and seen in crazy Japanese movies such as Robo Geisha or Vampire Girl vs. Frankenstein Girl (the humor, bloodletting is similar) and it works. The games characters look great and so unique from moves to weapons and outfits while the levels and cloned henchmen are just blah and bland. The game suffers at times with glitches that are out of place but overall it perfectly shows off the crazy attacks and effects needed.

Sound – Some very familiar anime vets can be heard voicing all the assassins and they deliver perfect over the top performances that fit, they just fit the zaniness. The music keeps the pace moving and if fun while the effects at times will remind gamers of being stuck in a pinball machine or the 8-bit era of gaming with re-used pieces. The best sound is most def that which comes from Travis and his fellow assassin conversations, hands down.

Design – Perfectly flawed. Using the Move feels great and while it take a bit of getting used too it’s the only way to play to feel the head-lopping-off joy that is No More Heroes. Putting in side-missions to earn money feels like going to work to make money to buy the game to enjoy at home … why? Why make gamers do RPG-wanna-be side-missions instead of letting them just get to it? Questionable design that folks did wonder about on the Wii, but not much of a change here even with that feedback.

Miscellaneous – Konami taking the time to bring this puppy up to date and release on the PS3 is great to see and there are a few other titles from Wii that need the same treatment. They are mature, third-party developed games and I’ll leave it at that, you fill in the games.

Overall gamers looking for some crazy, almost arcade feeling action that is way over the top in violence, style and fun, go play No More Heroes: Heroes Paradise. It’s not a huge revamp from the original but for gamers yet to experience Travis Touchdown’s adventure it’s a hell of a fun ride. With so many games putting realism front and center it’s a joy to take a humorous, bloody trip with Suda 51’s gory little creation.

Tiger and Bunny Episodes 1-4 Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 02:41:00 +0000

This duo is dynamic and puts a whole new spin on super heroes

Clocking in with over 20 episodes to date Tiger and Bunny on Vizanime.com offers plenty of action and humor at a price that can’t be beat (free online folks, let’s do this thing). It’s an action hero anime with a game show/contest twist which reminds very much of Ratman with its sponsored heroes yet bridges a gap between traditional anime heroes and American comic book super heroes. Let’s take a look at the first four episodes which would be the average number on the first DVD of a new series and see just how this series sets up and why action, shonen anime fans as well as comic book fans should take a look.

Story – Crime is a show, or rather the popular show Hero TV follows a group of sponsored super heroes as they fight crime, accumulate points and build their brands while doing what’s good for the city. Each hero is unique in powers and appearance from Rock Bison’s strength, Fire Emblem’s flash, Dragon Kid’s youth, Origami Cyclone’s getting into picture (?), Sky High’s all around heroism, Blue Rose’s sexy frost to Wild Tiger’s time-limited powers and old-school sense of justice. The heroes gain points for capturing criminals, stopping crimes, saving civilians and avoiding too much collateral damage. The criminals they fight, encounters they have are real. New to the fray, entering in dramatic fashion to save Wild Tiger, Kotetsu, is Barnaby Brooks Jr. A new hero for a new age; one who shows his face and reveals his identity and will forever change the hero landscape as he’s soon teamed up with Kotetsu in the first hero duo. Kotetsu’s days of being Wild Tiger are over and now he must adjust to being part of a duo while trying to maintain his sense of right and wrong. For Kotetsu it’s not all about right and wrong, it’s about saving lives as he was once taught long ago.

These heroes each possess special, internal powers besides those provided by their sponsors (in the form of suits, etc). They are NEXT, a name given to humans showing unique and sometimes scary powers for which they are sometimes treated like outcasts. As Kotetsu joins Barnaby viewers are shown the power of NEXT in a flashback to Kotetsu’s own childhood and the present with another child. These two concepts are very American, mutants (NEXT) and super heroes, but Tiger and Bunny pulls them together quite well. While the first few episodes set the stage for the world, introduce all the main players it’s episode 3 starts to show the depth of these supposed perfect heroes revealing a bit more about Barnaby while episode 4 begins the delving into the other hero process starting with Blue Rose. So the stage is set, changes introduced, main characters laid out and sub-characters begin to get introduced. Not bad for four episodes and the main ‘bad buy’ if these is one, is yet to be introduced … or has he?

Animation and Art Style – The city is detailed and as much a character as any of the heroes which is excellent since the situations the heroes finds themselves in always impact the settings. A very detailed city that seems more like a giant hero sandbox. The sponsored hero outfits are a cross between NASCAR and European Football. They match each hero yet seeing a corporate logo splashed across them is quite unique. The use of softer colors, browns, in line coloring offers a distinct look that makes Tiger and Bunny look unique and polished, a look that pops off the screen in HD (hook up PC to HD, you’ll see). Each character design is also unique with powers matching the look. Sky High for instance really reminds of the Rocketeer. The suits worn by Barnaby and Kotetsu are very cool and match their names. The design detail in faces is also outstanding from Kotetsu’s angry and frustrated looks to the big, pouty lips seen on some, not all, but some of the ladies. Even the Dennis Rodman wanna-be Fire Emblem is unique and colorful. The series looks work well and the action is right up there with heroes doing their thing and the pace mixing well between action and story development.

Voice work and Music – Opening tune is catchy and not overly aggressive, just a chilling upbeat tune that suits Tiger. The in action music fits the mood but does not stand out. Voice actors, in Japanese, deliver their lines with great emotion and sound fresh and highlight the audio components of Tiger and Bunny.

Miscellaneous – Mentioned before, the use of more American style heroes with sponsor’s works well as does the use of NEXT, mutants for us Westerners. They seem strong and somewhat perfect but these heroes have flaws and conflicts of their own. Seeing these emotions play out while maintains their hero status and sponsorships are quite fun and unique.

Overall Tiger and Bunny, the first four episodes at least, offer much promise. Its great action mixed into a unique premise where heroes are sponsored, crime is a sport and those with unique abilities are seen as outcast. Throw in good voice work and excellent animation and this is an anime that hero fans of all types can dig into. Who’s your favorite hero? Which trading card would you buy?

Jetpack Joyride for iPhone Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 23:21:00 +0000

Addictive gameplay that changes goals constantly and keeps gamers wanting more.

Jetpack Joyride is as addictive as any game on the iPhone … period. Crafted by Halfbrick, those of Fruit Ninja fame, Jetpack is a simple to play game with plenty of hooks and changes that keep the action rolling. The action will test gamers touch screen skills and with plenty of unlockable content there are hours to be spent, let’s take a look at what Jetpack Joyride has to offer.

Gameplay – Endless running is what gamers will do, until they get hit by a missile, zapped or cut down via laser. Gamers assume the role of Barry Steakfries (yum) who starts every game by bursting through the wall (where’s the Oh Yeah! call?) strapping on a jetpack and running. The pace picks up and gamers must avoid angled and rotating electric lines, missiles and lasers shooting at varying levels in order to, well to run. Using the jetpack Barry flies up or drifts down while collecting coins, tokens and vehicles boosts. Coins are used to purchase upgrades to jetpack and appearance while the tokens can be cashed in or used to spin for a bonus (extra life, coins, etc). The vehicles range from a flying bird machine to a teleporter to a motorcycle and even a dragon, all very cool with difference control schemes. So what’s the objective, well it varies. Gamers are presented with three goals at a time to complete, gain stars and grow in rank. The challenges get rough but gamers can purchase their solution (but where’s the fun in that). This is the joy of Jetpack as the challenges are random and change each and every game, once completed of course. Oh, make sure to submit your name to climb the online leader boards.

Graphics – Simple as expected with a nod back to games of Nintendo past. The side scrolling action never fumbles or looks back and each vehicle is unique and detailed. The items to purchase show well on Barry and will make gamers feel unique and tied to their jetpack stealing avatar. Easy to see and navigate menus don’t take away from the experience one bit.

Design – Brilliant in its simplicity and goals. The same level over and over would kill but the random coins, vehicles, lasers, missiles and objectives are quite well done. Gamers will spend hours trying to scrape Barry’s head on the ceiling for 1,000 meters … yeah it gets weird but is very enjoyable. The ability to purchase the solution to objectives means gamers can pass on those plain ridiculous or impossible for-them goals such as anything involving the transporter.

Miscellaneous – its one dollar, $1, 100 cents … great value for a game even more addictive than Fruit Ninja, one that’s stealing my time from Angry Birds.

Overall Jetpack Joyride is addictive and a great value. Great gameplay with a randomness to keep it fresh yet a skill level not to be scoffed at. Leader boards and tons to purchasable goodies and achievements await in what is indeed the next great mobile game … must have folks, must have.

Dylan Dog: Dead of Night DVD Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 22:35:00 +0000

A fun romp in the land of vampires, werewolves and zombies … oh my!

Dylan Dog has a long history, longer than most comics/graphic novels and his most recent iteration, from Dark Horse comics, made its way to theaters in 2011 in the form of Dylan Dog: Dead of Night. This telling of the supernatural detective is easy for those unfamiliar with the franchise to jump in and enjoy but how is it for fans of the source material? Let’s take a look at both sides.

The Story – In New Orleans the dark things in the night have to be moderated, investigated from vampire to werewolves, ghouls and all things in between and there is only one man for the job, or was. Dylan Dog is a moderator, a paranormal investigator who has been appointed to oversee the crimes of the paranormal world. The loss of his loved one has caused him to give up this line of investigation and take up normal private eye work (husbands cheating on wives) until a stolen relic puts the potential for war front and center. Dylan dives back into his old world to find out about this relic, why it’s important to both humans and vampire and he must now come to terms with a precious life lost in the past and how this impact his present situation. With the help of his newly zombified assistant Marcus, Dylan must race the clock to not only avoid a vampire/werewolf war but also the revival of a much deeper, darker, more ancient evil.

First, this is not a direct transcription to screen of Tiziano Sclavi’s Italian comic. It takes place in New Orleans, not the UK and the character of Groucho is replaced by a comedic Marcus. Some of the back-story remains, Dog losing a past loved one, but the rest should be enjoyed as a side-story to fans of the franchise, not canon. Dylan is more a super hero type of character, like the detective fighting and solving crimes vs. the brooding, darker investigator fans know. Dylan is more a Dark Knight than Detective if using Batman as a comparison (no he’s not swinging around folks). The trailers and story told to viewers is not quite what’s delivered and while the back-story does fill in gaps as the story progresses it just feels like this would be a great pilot/premier for a longer running SyFy show (like Sanctuary).

The Acting – Brandon Routh (he is Superman folks) does a splendid job in his role as Dylan as he’s weighed down by past atrocities and losses but his reasoning for getting back into the detective business is a big … blah. Routh is not the Dylan Dog diehard fans of the comic may expect but he delivers Dylan as an almost emotionless detective. Anita Briem overacts at times and her role towards the end of the film is a bit ‘really’ but someone needed to be the love interest right? As for the rest of the cast, Sam Huntington as Marcus delivers over the top humor due to his … change and he is by far one of the most enjoyable aspects of Dylan Dog. Taye Diggs as Vargas, head vampire, feels likes Blades younger brother and his ambitions are well delivered even if the formula of young vampire vs. old regime vampire is a bit played out. Dylan Dog was not created to wins anyone an Academy Award but these actors do a solid overall job of bringing this would to life and making it enjoyable for viewers.

The Action – With such a sweet mixture of baddies the action never quite builds to the levels viewers would hope or expect. The pace moves along at a mid-level, not too fast, not too slow but it feels just a bit off, again knowing the source material and where the action could have gone. Even the final scene leaves the viewer wanting more, not more story but more in the sequence.

Miscellaneous – While Routh may not be game for doing a cable show, the possibility of Dylan Dog as a SyFy or other cable show is there. With tons of back-story, from the Italian comic, and the cheaper production cost associated with monster and paranormal based shows, this would be a great, an outstanding actually, show that would hook goth and monster fans from here to the UK and beyond (just set the show in the UK with a more original Dylan).

Overall Dylan Dog: Dead of Night is an enjoyable movie for non-fans of the franchise with decent action that never quite hits the pace it should. For fans of Dylan Dog, the offering is a bit off since there are departures from the source material that were made to fit the American audience (like Keanu Reeves as Constantine). A great rental for horror, paranormal, monster and SyFy produced movies but beyond that only the most die-hard comic fans should buy.

Sesame Street: Ready, Set, Grover! Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 01:41:00 +0000

An interactive game that parents will enjoy letting their kids play

What? Elmo is not the headliner? Indeed this is the case with Sesame Street: Ready, Set, Grover! on the Nintendo Wii … sort of. While the game is titled after Grover, Elmo is front and center on the game case as well as in-game but kids won’t care. Grover, Elmo and Abby guide younger gamers on a Wii adventure full of get-up-and-move mini games that will teach and entertain kids. Having played with twin 3-1/2 year olds, let’s take a look at what RSG has to offer.

Gameplay – Two modes of play are available the first a challenge mode, the second a free play mode accessing all the activities found in Grover’s challenge. Grover’s challenge is made up of the mini-games found in free play, or play games, mode. Stretch with Abby and Grover, jump and duck, catch cans and learning to dance are just a few of the activities found in RSG. The games require only one controller, held sideways, and movements are simple to follow and fun to master. Once younger gamers get the concept there is no stopping them. Jump, duck, count, learn nutrition and hygiene as well as controlling one’s body movements. There are many activities for kids and when taught by Elmo, Grover and Abby, kids pay attention more than they would to an adult trying to show them the same (proven fact folks, proven fact).

Unless it’s absolutely necessary the included Grover slipcover for your Wii-mote is not the best fit. It does not line up as neatly as seen on the box and does not simplify controls as much as touted. Give the young ones in your life some credit that they can target 1 button with 1 number on it from a set of others, but that’s just one fathers opinion.

Graphics – Being a Wii titles the quality is not super to look at especially in HD but these computer generated models of Elmo, Grover and Abby move and act like the puppets they are, meaning they do what they do in the shows. The menus and navigation is bright and vivid full of shapes and colors to help teach and guide. The instruction is easy to see and follow and it feels like an interactive episode of Sesame Street. RSG was not created to set new standards in how games look but what it does deliver is a solid looking kid’s game.

Sound – The characters, in both English and Spanish, deliver instructions with clarity and encouragement with enthusiasm. There is really no background music to touch on and the effect sounds are minimal. The use to two languages is great and offers parents options many games do not.

Design – While there are not hundreds or even tens of games the ones provided do accomplish quite a bit of teaching and having seen young children watch the same episode of educational shows over and over there is no harm in playing the same teaching games over and over. The fact children laugh and have fun while learning is plain awesome and the interaction between on screen characters and the players is quite nice to see. A well designed educational learning game that could spell more life for the Wii and soon to be marked down further Wii systems. Imagine these games in preschool teaching kids the movements but also to share with fellow classmates. When a parent can begin to think of games in the classroom, well that’s good design.

Miscellaneous – The parent’s area is invaluable for its tracking of play time, success rates on games and setting play timers all tied to three available settings. Manage the times invested because even an education game with movement is no substitution for going outside and playing.

Overall the landscape of games for younger gamers is littered with crap (yes, I said it). Many games dumb down kids games and don’t offer true education or fun experiences but that’s not the case with Ready, Set, Grover! Younger gamers get to interact with three of their favorite Sesame Street pals in quick, easy to play and complete mini-games while taking on the same challenges in a story mode with Grover. Seeing how easily two 3-1/2 year olds got in and play, laughed and wanted more is a testament to the games design especially since they’ve never picked up a game of any type before.

Beyblade: Metal Fusion vol. 3 DVD Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 23:32:00 +0000

Seven more episodes of Beyblade add up to training, training and more training.

Volume 3 of the Beyblade: Metal Fusion on DVD takes a break from the battling action of past episodes and puts the focus on back-story for characters and on training. The only way to get stronger is to train but why should gamers and anime fans care, let’s take a look at the latest Metal Fusion.

The Story – As Gingka heads back to his village and is pursued by his friends. As they seek out Gingka both Kenta and Benkei lose to a mysterious blader named Hyouma wielding the beyblade Aries. As the group arrive at Koma Village they just missed Gingka who has traveled to the top of the snowy mountain overlooking the village. He changes for the better upon his arrival back and reunites with his friends. The group upgrade they blades through some routine maintenance then they enter a new event where the winner will be granted a wish by sponsor WBBA. Gingka, Kenta, Benkei and Kyoya all participate and after amassing some impressive victories Gingka has a new mysterious opponent with double his win total. Who is this new opponent and how will injuries slow down the team? The battle rages on.

So the main blader Gingka continues his travels and looks to get stronger after losses in prior episodes. This DVD is a transition DVD, a break in the story. The first few main story arcs have passed, first battles are over and the main characters take a step back to experience growth in strength, training and allow the introduction of new characters that setup the next arc to come. This DVD does exactly this as Gingka and his group each get stronger and the next battles do indeed get underway so as a viewer if you’ve been on this ride, continue, but for those new take time to get caught up.

The Animation and Action – The animation retains the more kid friendly angle with large clothing and the expected personas of trainers/players. It’s bright an vivid with environments that could be used in any of the major anime of this genre (Pokémon for example). The battles and training are over the top and intense and while the stuffy adult may think ‘really?” the fun adult and kids will dig the action as it last long enough not to feel like it’s dragging. The animations and characters are crisp and sharp and look quite good in HD. Beyblade shows a polish shared by its other longer running compatriots Yi-Gi-Oh!, Pokémon and Digimon.

What’s It Mean to Gamers – This exposes itself to two types of gamers. Those who play the video games and those who play with physical, real, beyblades. It brings an added, extra dimension to both of these ventures as they both center around (the video games) and include pictures of (the physical beyblades) the characters from the anime. It’s more depth and development to the pastime these fans have invested in.

What’s It Mean to Anime Fans – Another fun, kid targeted anime that adults can enjoy and kids will dig. It pack some intense action and is not all about friendship and good things, there are some true bad guys and goals here and the story, while not War and Peace, is solid and moves along the action. These are the marketing anime folks that help and allow companies to bring over the other lesser known titles that the more seasoned anime fan wants.

Overall Metal Fusion volume 3 continues the action of the first two volumes but is so deep in story that those new to the series should start earlier. The action picks up and this is a more transition based volume as there is training and revelations that set the stage for epic battles to take place in volume 4. A rock solid, underrated and under-appreciated anime indeed.

Tenjo Tenge manga vol. 1 Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 01:38:00 +0000

More brutal and mature than the anime … yup and then some

Viz Media’s Sig Ikki line of manga has delivered one hell of a thrill ride in the manga version of Tenjo Tenge. The anime was plain awesome even if its ending left viewers wanting more and actually needing more (lots of loose ends not tied up) but there is now hope for the manga to deliver the goods, the full tale but how is it? Oh! Great’s combative excellence is in full swing and it shows quite a similar path to the anime and is plain great … if you liked the anime, a must have. How does the story line up and what about the art? Let’s take a look.

The Story – Soichiro Nagi and Bob Makihara, two first years at Todo Academy and these two brawlers are about to find out they won’t be able to establish alpha as easily in this insanely brutal school of fighters of all disciplines. An encounter with the leader of the Juken Club, Natsume, leaves Soichiro looking up at her younger sister Aya … in the buff. An odd first encounter but one which leads to both Soichiro and Bob joining the Juken Club in order to gain the strength they’ll need to survive in this unique school, especially after the monstrous Executive Council targets them for discipline, a punishment which extends to Bob’s girlfriend. As the five member Juken Club trains a hidden power inside Soichiro presents itself as does a family trait in Aya that is more dangerous than any member of the Executive Council and knowing this a trap is set. A battle for their lives begins, at a bowling alley of all places, and each member will need to reach into their souls for the will and power to survive.

This is how the story unfolds in the anime also but the pace feels a bit faster. Soichiro and Bob meet Natsume, then Aya, get involved in bad things, join the club, train and a big battle begins with multiple members of the executive council which ends volume 1. The big difference is the graphic attack on Bob’s girlfriend but otherwise it’s a great telling of the action fans of the anime should expect. For those new this is a great, action packed series that moves along at a great clip. The action is a high school based fighting series but what separates Tenjo Tenge from other series is the great cast of characters. Aya and Natsume are as alluring and deadly as any action heroine while both Bob and Soichiro are funny while full of potential. The rest of the cast, large as it is, is also as unique and different; a great story indeed.

The Art – Poster worthy as these are great looking characters. Anime in look, but a mature anime where the ladies are curvaceous and busty while the boys are ripped and ready to rumble. The clothing style in cover art as well as story would sell very well as not only the characters but their dress is stylish and bad ass. The focus of each panel is more about the characters, their emotions and actions as the background blends in and only partially receives detailed treatment. The action is the star here folks and Tenjo delivers in droves.

Miscellaneous – Staying with the art them, the included colored pages, fold out poster are delicious. This really shows off the awesome style that Oh! Great brings and that should attract the majority of shoppers to this book in-store or online. A great look to attract wrapped around an excellent story that delivers the goods.

Overall the anime was great but it’s easy to say the manga is just as good, if not better. The story flows and character design shines. It’s a mature book with some graphic scenes so beware younger readers, but manga and anime are not just for kids. This is a book for an adult that’s as great as any action movie, novel or show out there so take it for a spin if martial art is your thing.

Bleach: Soul Resurreccion on PS3 Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 23:35:00 +0000

Ichigo and crew make a spectacular next-generation debut

THANK THE HIGHER POWERS!!! NIS America has finally given Bleach fans a next-generation game and one to be proud of. How does such an insanely cool, action packed anime with a slew of games not have a great gaming adventure yet in the States till now? A mystery indeed, but one that need no longer be pondered as Bleach: Soul Resurreccion is out and quite fun to play. What does Ichigo has in store for fans and can noobs jump into an established franchise this far into its storyline? Let’s try to answer those questions now.

Gameplay – Soul Resurreccion is a third-person, hack-n-slash action game where gamers assume the role of Ichigo and other various members of the Bleach universe. Gamers level up their characters in the main story mode which is littered with side missions that remind of an action-RPG and gaining new skills seen in the anime just make it all the more appealing for fans of the franchise to keep playing. The battles unfold between Soul Reapers and the baddies, Arrancars, in story mode as well as mission mode (to level up) and an online ranking system called Soul Attack. There is a character map to help gamers customize, to a degree, how their characters advance, a nice piece of creativity seen in more standard RPG’s. Collecting soul points will become addictive. The ability to unlock new characters and master more than just button mashing combos keeps the action fresh through the numerous missions; it’s well done when a Bleach skin could have been slapped on the Dynasty Warriors engine, well done NIS. An action adventure with RPG elements, a great story and license with plenty to unlock … and it controls great, this is a winning formula.

Graphics – While the cel-shaded environments are beautiful there is a level of shading and polish seen in the anime and other anime games that is missing in this Soul Reaper adventure. The game looks outstanding as each character is dead-on their anime persona but there is just something a bit lacking. The special moves and attacks are flawless and look great with all the signature moves fans could want included and the environments leap to life, pulled from the anime and manga; they look outstanding.

Sound – The soundtrack does not offer much in terms of memorable tunes and the lack of the sweet opening and closing themes from the anime is a shame. The voice work is solid as the anime voice cast does their thing quite well and the Japanese cast just seems, well they rock. Music not so great, voice cast is great so it’s a bit of give and take on the sound front.

Design – Licensed games are interesting as the character design, especially for an anime, is already set but this one is pulled off excellently. The game looks solid and while last that certain something in the shading department the likeness of characters, their movements, attacks and design is just plain solid. Translating the world of Bleach into a game that keeps gamers hooked with upgrades, missions and leveling up is rock solid. The game remains fresh and appealing even hours in which is quite an accomplishment for a title with so much already set on the design front from the source material.

Miscellaneous – Three downloadable episodes, 190-192, come with the game and offer a glimpse into what Bleach is all about. More can be seen over on VizAnime.com for free if gamers don’t mind reading a bit of subtitles.

Overall Soul Resurreccion is a great title for fans of Bleach and a solid title for action adventure fans looking for some hours to kill. The design is great, characters and voice work memorable and action is rewarding. Like Naruto, Bleach how now entered the fray of next-gen anime based titles that deliver the goods.

Halo Cryptum: Book 1 of The Forerunner Saga Impression

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 01:34:00 +0000

Before the Spartans or Covenant there were the Forerunner’s. Who and what were they? Time to find out in Halo Cryptum Book 1

Author Greg Bear takes Halo fans into the world of the Forerunner’s. How could a civilization, so advanced, disappear from the universe leaving only their massive weapons? Encounters with the Flood will do that but how exactly did this threat and ensuing war play out? A young Forerunner will help answer these questions.

The Story – 100,000 years before the Earth/Covenant war, the Forerunner civilization dominated every other civilization in technology and knowledge. Each Forerunner was born to a specific caste, their lives already determined with learning and growth ahead. Like with every civilization there are the rebellious the curious and Bornstellar makes Eternal Lasting is one such Forerunner. His thirst for knowledge about the past is outside his dictated Manipular duties. As part of the highest political and powerful rate Bornstellar must follow his role, yet he can’t which leads to his fascination with Precursors artifacts. Punished by his father, Bornstellar is sent to live with the lower rate of Miners yet he continues his hunt and stumbles on a slumbering war legend, the Didact, with the help of two primitive humans. Soon Bornstellar finds himself on a journey which uncovers political issues within the seemingly perfect Forerunner society and the threat of a mysterious power, The Flood. Who, what is The Flood and how are they to be defeated? The humans managed to push back the Flood but were in turn defeated by the Forerunners, their knowledge lost. How will Bornstellar play into this new game where Warrior ranks play their own agenda while utilizing the powerful, Lifeworker created, Halo’s meant to house life? Curiosity has changed Bornstellar’s fate and with it the galaxy will also change with ripples across the ages.

Confusing at first, riveting a bit later. Like Forerunner names, jumping into this story of new terms and history will require readers to slow down and digest. Learning about the history of a historic civilization is interesting but by the time readers get into the book by a few chapters things do begin to take off. Bornstellar’s initial chapters round out his character and present setting but once the Didact wakes its full speed ahead as events begin to build and even more about the Forerunner society is revealed. The references to the Human/Forerunner war will leave readers wanting more and once the first ‘Halo’ species shows up, well the mind begins to speed ahead to the games. The book starts off very alien when compared to other Halo novels but the political intrigue helps it take shape and common threads brings it together in time for the final chapter. Greg Bear does a fine job of creating one unique world free of constraints from the established Halo canon then brings it back home with the official canon.

Why Halo Fans Should Care – Learning more about not only the Halo’s as weapons but seeing the fall of the Forerunner society is a must for all Halo fans. The universe is based in the legacy this civilization left and learning about them, and in turn their Precursors heritage really builds out this universe. In much the same way Star Wars uses the Old Republic to build out their universe so too does Cryptum begin to build out the long lost past of the Halo universe. It’s not all about Master Chief or even Spartans and the Covenant, it’s about a galaxy of stories and events, one that is deeper than gamers could ever have imagined when first stepping foot on the Halo with Master Chief.

Overall Greg Bear has done a fine job with this tale, the first in the Forerunner saga, which builds the pillars and fills in the colors that are the core of Halo. What happened to this race, what is the Flood and how will this all affect the Halo universe gamers know and love? That’s the joy of reading and for this alone Halo fans need to read Halo Cryptum.

Remnant Knights and FUNimation Septemberfest

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 01:28:00 +0000

Remnant Knights unleashes Septemberfest along with FUNimation, 7-Eleven and Alienware.

So first GameSamba partners with FUNimation to promote it’s free, flagship MMORPG Remnant Knights and now they’re giving away lots of free stuff to their members. This new promotion loops in two new sponsors to join FUNimation. Both Alienware and 7-Eleven join the fray in what is being called Septemberfest and while the action began back on the first of September it continues through the end of the month, so check it out. There are daily and weekly prices as well as an Alienware Laptop grand prize with plenty of DVD’s up for grabs. All the details are below and on the official site so see if this floats your boat and give it a try.

"7-Eleven, Alienware, and FUNimation sponsor online gaming giveaway event, Septemberfest, from GameSamba

Everett, Washington – August 30, 2011- Online, free-to-play video game publisher, GameSamba proudly announces its fun filled end of summer event, Septemberfest. Thousands of prizes will be awarded to players actively playing GameSamba’s titles, ranging from Slurpees®, energy drinks and corndogs at 7-Eleven locations (North America) to the much coveted FUNimation prizes including Blu-ray and DVD box sets of their most popular series. Prizes will be given out daily and weekly, leading up to the granddaddy of all prizes: an Alienware M11x gaming laptop. The laptop will be given to the player who captures the funniest moment or “sickest frag” in a screenshot, which will be voted upon by a combination of the GameSamba Community, sponsors, and GameSamba staff.

"We are really excited to join forces with these awesome brands", said Reed Albertsen, Brand Manager at GameSamba. "We worked hard to bring prizes that are relevant to our players and fans. Free stuff is great, but free stuff from these sponsors is a perfect fit."

Septemberfest begins September 1st and runs until the grand prize winner is announced on October 7th, with daily prize giveaways ending the 31st of September. It all kicks off with a sale on GameSamba’s virtual currency, Sambas, during Labor Day Weekend.

To take part in Septemberfest and to play all of GameSamba’s games for free, sign up on gamesamba.com. In addition, you can find more information on the month long event on the official Septemberfest page."

Batman: Arkham City – The Album track list revealed

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 01:19:00 +0000

This ain’t no bat dance, it’s Batman: Arkham City – The Album

Batman: Arkham City is almost here and just announced is the official album, not soundtrack, but rocking album of music inspired by the game. It sounds intriguing and one has to wonder how much exposure were these artists given to the new game to be inspired in their tunes? Check out the official info below and track/artist list, solid!

"Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, WaterTower Music and DC Entertainment today announced Batman: Arkham City – The Album will be released in conjunction with the highly anticipated forthcoming videogame Batman: Arkham City. Featuring 12 new original tracks by Daughtry, Panic! At The Disco, Coheed and Cambria, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, and more (full track list below), Batman: Arkham City – The Album will be released on October 4th, two weeks prior to the game’s North American release on October 18th. The Batman: Arkham City Collector’s Edition of the game will include an album download along with additional bonus content.

The artists featured on Batman: Arkham City – The Album approached their contributions to the album with their own unique interpretations of the stories surrounding Batman. The result is an eclectic mix of dynamic, atmospheric songs for an album that will appeal to fans of both the artists and Batman: Arkham City. Coheed and Cambria frontman Claudio Sanchez said, “I write in a very conceptual format with the stories that surround Coheed and Cambria, but Batman has a much larger, defined history and rules that go along with it. My goal was to find universal themes from Batman’s existing history to help give the lyrics legs and dimension so that the song could live within that world.”

Check out the track listing below:

1. Panic! At The Disco - Mercenary

2. Coheed and Cambria - Deranged

3. The Duke Spirit - Creature

4. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Shadow On The Run

5. Blaqk Audio - Afterdark

6. The Raveonettes - Oh, Stranger

7. ††† (Crosses) - The Years

8. The Damned Things - Trophy Widow

9. Daughtry - Drown In You

10. The Boxer Rebellion - Losing You

11. Serj Tankian - Total Paranoia

*Bonus Collector’s Edition track

12. A Place to Bury Strangers - In The Shadow

The highly anticipated videogame will step out of the shadows and onto store shelves for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Games for Windows PC and the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system. Published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and developed by Rocksteady Studios, Batman: Arkham City builds upon the intense, atmospheric foundation of Batman: Arkham Asylum, sending players soaring into Arkham City, the new maximum security “home” for all of Gotham City’s thugs, gangsters and insane criminal master-minds. The sequel introduces a brand-new story that draws together a new all-star cast of classic characters and murderous villains from the Batman universe, as well as a vast range of new and enhanced gameplay features to deliver the ultimate experience as the Dark Knight."

Images: Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Impact

noreply@blogger.com (James Fleenor) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 01:10:00 +0000

Just because Naruto on PSP is predictable does not make it boring

Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Impact continues the growing ninja’s adventures on the PSP while throwing in quite a tale of Sasuke’s journey, his point of view. Large scale battles and insane boss encounters await fans of the franchise that dives right into the Shippuden storyline. Its fan base is well established and this game is right in your wheelhouse fan boys, you know who you are.