I think I speak for all of us when I say I'm willing to put up with totalitarian regimes so long as it occurs exactly like dystopian cyber punk fantasies.
Some of this will just be the shameless quoting of another topic on another messageboard.
Anyway, it ain't no Silent Hill, but it's better than nothing. Actually, I'm not exactly in a place to judge, having never played them myself, but judging from the other topic post:
Quote:The Silent Hill games tend to get more praise because of the more varied and absolutely creepy atmospheres that they create, but the FF series has bigger and more frequent scares.
I prefer subtle, creepy, and unnerving atmospheres/plots, but again, better than nothing. Jump-out scares will frighten you for a minute. Creepy and unsettling scares will keep you tense for days, if captivating enough. I seek dread, damn it!
Quote:Like the previous Fatal Frame games, it's being developed by Tecmo. But this time they're teaming up with Grasshopper Manufacture and Suda 51. Not only that, but they're partnering with Nintendo who will be publishing it. IGN says there's an unconfirmed rumor that Nintendo actually purchased the Fatal Frame name to keep the rest of the series exclusive.
Looks like REmake, with its pre-rendered backgrounds and all (you can have pre-rendered backgrounds with real-time lighting, right?). Anyone play any previous iterations? How was it?
From the IGN preview:
Quote:Shibata Makoto as director, Keisuke Kikuchi (longtime series producer), and even Suda 51 – best known for Killer 7 and No More Heroes – serving as a second director for the game.
The hell? They need 2nd-directors now? Killer7 is indeed good, and I hear No More Heres is good as well, so this is good news.
Quote:Since you're constantly running from ghosts, and since ghosts aren't exactly scared of melee or projectile weapons, Fatal Frame – as the name suggests – equips you with a unique soul-capturing camera. Known as the Camera Obscura, Fatal Frame's only weapon forces you to risk life and limb to get the perfect shot of advancing ghosts. While the main game is done primarily in third person view, you'll need to bring the aging camera up into first-person mode, and then focus in your shots face-to-face with the ghouls themselves. Based on how well the shot is executed (size of ghost, position of ghost in the frame, and action the ghost is doing at the time), a certain amount of damage is done. Put yourself out on the line even further, and capture a "Fatal Frame" shot seconds before the enemy attacks.
When I first read this paragraph, I was turned off. So, it's a combination of Resident Evil and Pokemon Snap? Greeaaaat... Then again, imagine trying to take a snapshot of a ghost just as it's inches away from grabbing you. If pulled off correctly, this has great pants-shitting potential. It does sound a little gimmicky, though. At least it should make some interesting usage of the wiimote. You could hold it sideways and eye-level to take pictures.
Quote:The game is out to scare you, and as such there are tons of horrific images, extremely uncomfortable scenarios, and extremely moody worlds. It'll be a "Mature" rated game without question. Fatal Frame will also bring a level of depth and maturity we don't normally see on Wii, as the stories are usually about double the length of a standard Resident Evil game, and feature tons of upgrade items, side quests, and backstory for those looking for a fully realized world.
Good, good. Hopefully that'll help the fact that it's a game where the focal point (har har) is taking pictures of ghosts.
They have a video (the third iteration of the game for PS2 to give you an idea), but it started out non-work-safe, so I probably shouldn't watch it now.
Synopsis: In the near future, the development of colonies on the moon and other outerspace endeavors has led to a build-up of debris floating around the Earth. To remedy this problem, the Debris Section was formed. Their task being to collect harmful debris and remove it from orbit in order to keep ships and satelites safe. In other words, outerspace garbage collectors.
First Glance: A hard-scifi series that takes a serious and realistic look at space and space travel.
Impressions: Planetes is one of the few anime series...no, scratch that. Planetes is one of the few works of scifi that isn't a book to show a realistic and serious depiction of space and what it's like to actually be there. Newtonian physics are proudly on display and there's no giant robots or impossibly talented heroes to muck things up.
Space is a dangerous place. One mistake and you can die or get others killed. And even avoiding mistakes can cost you your life, such as spending too long out there and getting cancer. We also get to see the effects that being born on the moon can have. The series even depicts what happens to third world countries that are rapidly being left behind. Very few scifi series have ever gone this far in setting up a realistic and believeable world. This is the closest thing that television has come to 2001: A Space Odyssey, though the two aren't exactly similar in other regards.
As far as the characters go, there's quite a few to choose from. Some are merely there for a little comic relief from time to time, while others play key roles in revealing some aspect of life in space. The two main characters, Tanabe and Hachimaki, can be either interesting or annoying, depending on what your tolerances are. Tanabe sees everything in a positive light and always tries to do her best, along with spreading her belief that love solves all problems. Hachimaki tends to see the bad in everything and is often grumpy or disinterested regarding most things. Their best scenes are probably in the last few episodes, but don't let that deter you because their are plenty of other interesting characters that show up along the way.
The animation is really good and, as I said, depicts outerspace very well. As in, things that are put into motion stay that way unless acted on by another force. I wouldn't say that it's the best I've ever seen, but it's among the best I've seen in the past few years certainly. The art style compliments the animation and tone of the series very well, so that's another plus.
Conclusion: There's really not much I bring up about this series that would be a negative. In my book, it's one of the best out there and certainly near the top as far as science fiction goes.
Score 4.5/5
Specs: 26 episodes available as part of perfect collection.
Synopsis: Angel Cop tells the heart-warming tale of a cop named Angel who fights terrorists in the far-flung, ultra-violent world of future where corrupt businessmen are conspiring with the Jew-controlled United States to dump nuclear waste all over the place and also there's cyborgs and people who inexplicably have psychic powers.
First Glance: Much in the same way that an infant can recognize its mother just based on her face, you too can recognize Angel Cop based solely on its over-the-top violence, laughable dub, and incomprehensible storyline.
Impression: Angle Cop is, in a word, bad. But it goes much deeper than that. This is not the bad that often crops up in Scifi Channel Oringinals, but rather the deep, lurking bad that hides in dark shadows and slithers out at night to feast upon the innocent and unaware, all the while seeking some host with which to manefest itself in thereby spreading its terrifying influence into the world at large.
I could speak volumes about the laughable dub which oftens substitutes random epithets for meaningful conversation [If this is justice, then I am a banana!; The doctor said this gun would break my arm if I used it. Oh well, here goes!; ect.], the liberal dosage of ultraviolence where even the least powerful guns are likely to cause impossible large fountains of blood to spray forth from gaping wounds and half-removed heads, the random use of four-letter words, the incomrehensible storyline that jumps from one basic story element to the next without any apparent cohesion, or even the impossible-to-root-for good guys, but let's talk about the reasons why you should watch Angel Cop. Oh wait...that's what I just did.
Conclusion: I love Angel Cop, it's so bad.
Score: LOL/ROFL
Specs: Six episodes from 1989. DVD and VHS releases are both out-of-print, but the VHS collection can be found for cheap on Amazon.
Synopsis: A traveler named Kino goes from country to country, never staying in the same place for more than three days. Her only companion is a talking motorcycle named Hermes. Together they bear witness to the many facets of human nature and desire, only taking direct action when there's no other choice available. It is not their place to pass judgment, but merely to observe.
First Glance: Surrealistic fable from the director of Serial Experiments Lain? Sign me up!
Impression: Kino's Journey is surreal, yet filled with real human emotions, desires, and ideals. It's depressing at times, yet strangely uplifting. The world here is ugly and terrifying, yet exhilarating and often very beautiful. We are presented with different human philosophies and emotions in the form of various "countries" that each have something about them that is different from that last. Like the country that so strongly desires that to have their own unique culture that the purposefully make up new customs to try and entertain travels, not knowing that their practice of making new customs has itself become a custom. Or the land where war has been completely abolished, but where peace comes at a cost. Or a land where only "safe" books are allowed. The list goes on from there.
This is not a show that you watch to be entertained or in order to watch thrilling action, though it does offer some of that. No, this is a show you watch in order to take a peek into what makes humans human, not with the all excess baggage of one who has a vested interest but from the calm and detached view of one who merely wants to observe new things and new places.
The art style and music are the technical highlights of the show. The art style because it helps to give us so many new and different and fantastic places that we've never seen before, with each new country has its own personality. The backgrounds have an almost storybook quality to them, which goes along with the fable-like quality of many of the episodes. The music is also very well done and fits in very well, especially the haunting flute solo from episode two.
The animation in Kino's Journey is a bit limited in its range and there are very few scenes that show more than the movement of a few characters, making obvious the show's low budget. Nevertheless, it's not an action series where this kind of detailed and elaborate animation is needed and so the show does not suffer from this deficiency.
Conclusion: If Mushishi requires patience to get into, this requires you to be almost a saint. It's not standard anime fare by any means and if you're not hooked by episodes four, you probably won't ever be. However, if you can manage to stick with it that far and watch the show from the standpoint of desiring to watch something new and intelligent, it's hard to find a better series than Kino's Journey.
Score: 5/5
Specs: 13 episodes across four volumes and a thinkpak release.
Lately a series of public service announcements have been finding their way on Canadian airwaves. They deal with safety in the workplace and preventing accidents. A noble cause indeed, but I'm not sure I like the direction the government has taken with these PSAs. Below is my initial reaction over MSN to the first one I ever saw. It aired after an Oilers game:
Quote:11/17/2007 10:17:00 PM Dave Jeff || DUDE
11/17/2007 10:17:02 PM Dave Jeff || WHAT THE FUCK
11/17/2007 10:17:04 PM Dave Jeff || THAT COMMERCIAL
11/17/2007 10:17:06 PM Dave Jeff || DID YOU SEE THAT SHIT?!?!
11/17/2007 10:17:11 PM Dave Jeff || OH
11/17/2007 10:17:12 PM Dave Jeff || MY
11/17/2007 10:17:13 PM Dave Jeff || FUCKING
11/17/2007 10:17:13 PM Dave Jeff || GOD
11/17/2007 10:17:33 PM Jeff || Dave no but we're probably on different cbc channels
11/17/2007 10:17:34 PM Jeff || Dave but LET ME GUESS
11/17/2007 10:17:38 PM Jeff || Dave I THINK I KNOW WHICH IT IS
11/17/2007 10:17:47 PM Jeff || Dave is it that fuckign commercial where that bitch burns herself with grease?????
11/17/2007 10:17:51 PM Dave Jeff || Yeah!
11/17/2007 10:17:53 PM Jeff || Dave hahah
11/17/2007 10:17:56 PM Jeff || Dave fuck i can't watch that shit
11/17/2007 10:18:06 PM Jeff || Dave i saw it for the first time last weekend on the oilers/flames game
11/17/2007 10:18:18 PM Jeff || Dave and my dad and i were like... what.. the fuck???????/
11/17/2007 10:18:18 PM Dave Jeff || I saw it for the first time now and I'm gonna have fucking nightmares
11/17/2007 10:18:24 PM Jeff || Dave i was like
11/17/2007 10:18:31 PM Jeff || Dave they don't need to show that on public television
11/17/2007 10:18:35 PM Dave Jeff || Uh, no
11/17/2007 10:18:38 PM Jeff || Dave and i havent watched that commercial since
11/17/2007 10:18:41 PM Dave Jeff || A simple "be careful" will suffice
11/17/2007 10:18:52 PM Dave Jeff || That was just fucking horrible
11/17/2007 10:19:02 PM Dave Jeff || I dont' think I've ever seen anything so graphic in my entire life
11/17/2007 10:19:24 PM Jeff || Dave not even that time you watched all that 'gag on my cock' porn
11/17/2007 10:19:47 PM Jeff || Dave all that puking must've been awful
11/17/2007 10:20:04 PM Dave Jeff || Dude I've seen some pretty nasty shit in my day
11/17/2007 10:20:17 PM Dave Jeff || But that commercial is something that's gonna fucking
11/17/2007 10:20:21 PM Dave Jeff || Haunt me
How did I miss this? It was one of my favorite shareware games of the mid '90s, and it's still a great game (for the well-done story, long script, great characters, funny parts, sad parts... it all just works. Not for the quite average gameplay, though. The actual gameplay is nothing special.). Awesome game, play it!
![[Image: 31cf.jpg]](http://imagesocket.com/view/31cf.jpg)
![[Image: 5908.jpg]](http://imagesocket.com/view/5908.jpg)
![[Image: 429b.jpg]](http://imagesocket.com/view/429b.jpg)
