Terminator Salvation is 2 hours of post-apocalyptic human versus Machine warfare, and yet the size and scope never achieves what James Cameron did in that two minute and thirty-four second Judgment Day battle scene before the title sequence.
Spoilers ahead…
Quantic Dream released some new Heavy Rain footage. I can imagine the Limited Edition version will include a folded-up poster and those shades. I’d much rather have his necktie though – I can wear a tie for many different occasions; wearing sunglasses at night is just dumb stupid.
The vids shows off more of the QTE’s, something I despise in action games. I still have no idea what the fight between Leon Kennedy and Krauser looks like because I had to watch the bottom of the screen for those goddamn button presses, and Heavenly Sword’s is an exercise in burning off my patience. Heavy Rain is looking like it can fix the stagnation by having the button presses appear and then move with incoming/oncoming danger. It’s an elegant system since you can watch the action and have a greater sense of reacting to the action as opposed to waiting for the button presses to appear in its reserved screen estate.
Although I wonder why the baddie feeds Norman to the car munching machine instead of simply feeding him a bullet.
Filed under XP
Why is it that every time someone announces they are creating a trilogy, the second installment is always referred to as the “Empires Strikes Back” of the series? Have we become so unimaginative that we’re going to stick with what works till our sun goes to heaven and plummets us into a cold hell?
Would it be such a terrible idea to play with the curve? Make the first the downer, the second a further downward spiral, and the third would conquer the uphill battle. Or we can take the mirror image and kill all the heroes. If we increase the number of works where the villains win, then in the future we are more likely to be at the edge of our seats when our hero hangs off the edge of a cliff.
Filed under XP
The first teaser for Mass Effect 2 tells us that Spectre Shepard is killed in action. A couple months later, the game’s executive producer says Shepard “better not be [dead].” Then last week, a Pre-E3 vid was released, showing what to me looks like Shepard walking through a Normandy with hull issues, as in “What the hull happened to the bow of the ship?”
I hope Shepard dies. And stays dead.
Filed under XP
Open your eyes, and find comfort in this new destination of yours.
Welcome, fallen one. Your expression leaves little doubt about your confusion. You have questions, concerns, and curses in reserve. Yes, we know all about you. Your vices glow just as bright as your virtues but your selflessness we are not concerned. Those thoughts you believed safe from judgment – since they were never acted upon – were disrupting enough to catch His attention. These disruptions, we see potential we can use to further His cause, to have our own dark materials.
What’s this? You shake your head and damn His ideals as though you are a hero deserving that some kind of wonderful from high above? You believe yourself radiant enough to cast away all shadows from the world. Do not hide from yourself. Deep inside your heart lies a persona you wish could be unleashed, but fear of the consequences keeps it shut in. You desire pleasure even if varied in its disguises. To be challenged, to be center of attention. To succeed where others failed. To impress with your reaction time. To protect that which is the precious weaker and to kill those who think you unworthy. Give into excess and project your other truth onto the masses. Show them your silence was only a build up. And when silence is broken your echo will conquer all.
So you’ve decided to become instrument to higher kind? Do not think since you’ve devoted yourself to atrocities in His name that you will be regulated to cannon fodder. If we wanted it so, He wouldn’t have sent me to instruct you.
So let us begin.
Those screams you hear – the agony, the fear, the hate – they are the cries of thousands and thousands of Dead, tightly packed in the formation of a giant sphere. The ones toward the center can do nothing but inhale the stench of compact. The ones decomposing the outer layer can reach out and touch faith – at least they think they can. They can tear each other apart hoping to escape the prison that has no bars, but our powers here in darkness always keep the Dead clustered in the Sphere’s influence.
And here are His Spheres. It’s your destination to protect them.
We have many like you. Though they tore the feathers from your wings we have our own devices that allow us flight. It takes time to get used to the implants, but for now, you will have a Demon to control. Recently we have noticed Angels do not attack Demons directly anymore; they go straight for the Spheres. And even when they destroy a Sphere, they sheath their weapons and fly back to Paradise. They leave us to our failure in the belief that our inadequacies will pierce far deeper than swords. It isn’t enough that we win this war during this cycle. We need to show our enemies exactly what returning the favor can do.
I have no doubts that when I assign you a Demon and leave, you will immediately be attacked by Angels. Given the wealth of players in this war, and your untested worth, you will be greeted an Angel a time. Most likely your first will be just like you – fresh from the Gates, unwavering in devotion yet unsteady in grip.
The Angels will be relentless in delivery of their truth. Make certain yours is louder.
Filed under Ficbits
I don’t care for Achievements (or Trophies or whatever else they’re called) for the same reasons others don’t: they are nothing more than certificates given to everyone who participated. I don’t care about others seeing what games and achievements I have. You want to compare gamerscores? Go right ahead. I’d rather stroke myself to a pornstar giving head.
I recently began Dawn of War 2, and to my surprise and dislike, I had to sign in with my Live account. Now, I can live without Live. It does nothing for me – because I hardly play online, because I hardly ever venture to the Marketplace even for free shit.
And recently I noticed that DoW2, a game exclusively for my PC monitor, carries over to Xbox Live on my television. I find this odd and a bit disconcerting because even though they are both using a Microsoft service, I’d much rather keep my console and PC experiences separate. But this isn’t my main concern.
When I noticed DoW2 through my Xbox I also noticed a stat Live tracks: the last time I played a particular game. I’m really not sure why this bugs me. I don’t care if people look through my library. I don’t care if people know what I’m playing at the moment. But the last time I played a particular game? Why would anyone need to know? What is the value in this?
“So I see you haven’t played GTA IV in a while.”
“Go fuck yourself.”
Filed under XP
Wanting to re-watch the latest Depeche Mode music for Wrong on their official site – because I only recently discovered the HD button on youtube – I see their new album Sounds of the Universe is available now to be bought and loved. Or torrented and loved. I didn’t torrent it. I swear. But I didn’t iTunes or Amazon it either so I guess they lose anyway.
I’m gonna skip the poetry and flat out say I don’t like buying stuff from iTunes mainly because I like my music files to be compatible without conversion with my Cowon player. What iTunes does right is its Just For You. I’d say a good 70% of the music I currently have on my player came from Apple’s recommendations. And today I just added another band to my set list.
I:Scintilla makes the kind of music I love; the kind of music I want blasting from my headphones after watching an action movie in a theatre. The instruments are bang loud without being obnoxious like a Rob Zombie movie and never overpower Brittany Bindrim’s clear and aggressive vocals, which never reach chalkboard-scratching screams like some other female singers. Their bio on the official site says they have similar sounds to Garbage, Curve, and The Birthday Massacre; I’m not familiar with Curve, but the other two have kept me entertained during commutes.
There is nothing in the way of music videos – just Live shows, but the audio is still decent.
Filed under XP
Planets devastated
Mankind’s on its knees
A savior comes from out the skies
In answer to their pleas
Through boiling clouds of thunder
Blasting bolts of steel
Evils going under deadly wheels
He is the painkiller
This is the painkiller
Filed under XP
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