Entertainment
You know, I'm glad I don't watch TV.
Why? Because that would be one more thing I'd miss over here!
Well, not really. We're just a week behind is all. But, I tell
ya, that's one less thing I have to cry over. I've been trying to
keep it real, even over here. Luckily, I can still watch the new
movies that are out (somehow, we manage to get all the movies at the right
time), and video games usually aren't a problem. Role-playing games...
don't get me started. AD&D is the ONLY thing they carry in Guam!
Every book store I've gone too has no RPG stuff, save a few AD&D books!
No disrespect to TSR, but COME ON! Where's my White Wolf stuff!
I'm suffering over here! Vampire Revised 2nd Edition came out in
October and I DON'T HAVE IT!!!! Do you know how much that makes me
ANGRY?!!!
Anyway, now that we've established
that I am no longer able to enjoy RPG's (grumble grumble), let's move on
to what I CAN enjoy.
Movies
Vampires
Okay, everyone knows I like cheesy movies. Everyone
also knows I like vampire movies (however few there are nowadays).
Therefore, I must think cheesy vampire movies are great! And what
should I think about Vampires when I hear that it's about vampire
hunter's led by James Woods? Cheesy vampire movie! All right!
This movie did NOT disappoint me. It didn't try
to be some big box office hit or an academy award winner. It was
what it was, and for that it was great. I really liked James Woods
in this movie, too. He gave the movie it's much needed humor.
But he wasn't a goofy vampire hunter, he was actually a really cool character.
It was his matter-of-fact manner of joking around that made it just right.
Even if you're not a fan of cheesy vampire flicks, see
it just to hear James Woods say:
"Come on, padre... my nuts are on fire."
Very Bad Things
Honestly, I thought this movie was going to be better.
It started out pretty good, but then the "dark humor" factor really set
in and it went from mildly funny to not at all. In fact it was down
right morbid. By the end, I was wishing I'd seen Home Fries.
This is a Very Bad movie.
The Siege
I thought this was actually pretty good. It had
it's slow points, but all in all it was okay. Bruce Willis and Denzel
Washington... I never thought it would happen. Unfortunately, they
didn't encounter each other much. I was hoping to see Die Hard versus
Malcolm X. Wishful thinking, I guess.
Enemy of the State
I was really surprised by this movie! I thought
it was going to bite, but it was actually really good. It'll really
make you think twice about speaking freely over the phone... or anywhere
for that matter. It's a thrill-ride kind of movie as it tends to
be mostly fast-paced. It wasn't so much the presence of Will Smith,
but that of Gene Hackman that made the movie all the more grand.
I recommend this movie highly. I don't know if I could watch it more
than twice, though.
Mulan
Okay, this is old already... but I loved this movie,
believe it or not. To date, it is my favorite Disney film.
There are plenty of reasons for that, as well. Mulan was significantly
different than its older siblings due to the techniques used to make it.
This was also the very first of the Disney animated features to come out
of the Florida studios (Disney World) instead of the LA studios.
Ever since the birth of the Florida studios, Disney had basically done
the majority of all the films in LA and gave all the scenes no one wanted
to work on over to Florida. After years of patience and proving themselves,
the Florida studios finally got their chance to do an entire feature, and
they chose to do Mulan.
When they began work on the film, they decided to use
the more simplified art forms that had been used to make the old Disney
classics. Techniques such as simplifying the backgrounds to a monochromatic
cell rather than spend three months on one background that no one will
pay attention to anyway or go for computer animation to complicate something
that's so trivial. Of course, they had to stick a computer animation
scene (it seems to be the mandatory for Disney nowadays to have at least
one computer animated scene in each of their features), but the majority
of the art was rather simple.
The number of songs in the movie is rather low compared
to other Disney films. It's hard to say whether this is a good thing
or not--the music was really good and I would have liked to hear more,
but I'm glad they didn't over-do it. I am so glad they didn't make
the villain sing, though. He was really cool.
I could go on, but I need to hit some other topics.
In other words, I'll shut up now.
You've Got Mail
I haven't seen Sleepless in Seattle, so I'm not really
sure if this is just another rehash of it. Nevertheless, You've
Got Mail is a pretty good movie. Internet relationships have,
from the conception of cyberspace, been the subject of criticism, wonder,
and countless jokes. This movie has them all. What if the person
you casually pass on the street was already the love of your life?
Interesting, eh? Give this one a shot.
The Prince of Egypt
I have to give this some deserved respect. At first,
I had believed this was going to be a holier-than-thou glamourization of
Christian/Bible history. "Not so," said Hollywood. History
held some pretty scary events and this movie didn't spare the more disturbing
aspects of the Bible. Trust me--no Sunday school teacher would take
their students to this one. But it's pretty accurate, so they can't
say that it gives Christianity a bad image. After all: it's in the
Bible! This is Dreamworks's first non-CG animated feature, and it's
a great first step. While not having the goofiness of most Disney
films (no talking animals... sorry, kids), it does possess a number of
stars and a well-done score. Definitely a surprise hit in my book.
Video Games
Mega Man Legends
This game would have been really nice if it weren't for
one thing: the controls are horrible. It's not until the very end
that you really get used to the controls, and even then it's pretty iffy.
If the controls had been tweaked, the game would have been less frustrating.
Everything else was good, though. At a lot of points,
it started to remind me of Mario 64, though (that's a bad thing.
I hate Mario 64). The story scenes were rather humorous, however.
I felt like I was watching an anime sometimes (that's a good thing).
I was told that the plot would become more serious by the end... sadly
it didn't. It was still pretty cutesy. Either way, it was a
good game. It's different than all the other Mega Man games but there's
still a lot for nostalgia's sake.
I beat this game in: 2 days
Difficulty: Medium
Graphics: Good
Music: Dumb
Voice Dubbing: Good (much better than the other
Mega Man dubs)
Plot: Okay
Who should buy it: If you're the kind of person
that takes a week to beat Mario 64, then this game will last you for quite
a while. However, if you get frustrated easily by lack of proper
response in control (in other words, if you tend to throw your controller
on the ground when you lose), maybe you ought to just rent it. As
for hidden items and other secrets, there should be enough to keep you
busy for a week longer.
Parasite Eve
This is a pretty good game. It's sort of a cross
between Final Fantasy 7 and Resident Evil. It has the normal RPG
features of gaining experience, upgrading weapons and armor, finding lots
of stuff, and talking to people. It breaks from the traditional RPG
mold with a unique battle system and the fact that you only have one character
throughout the entire game. In battle, you are free to move around,
so whether or not an enemy hits you is dependent on your own dodging skills.
Some enemies' attacks are just impossible to avoid, though.
The story is kind of a sci-fi horror mix. Parasite
Eve, interestingly enough, is actually a novel. The author must have
been the Japanese version of Michael Crichton, because the plot seems a
lot like something he'd write. The game was based on the book, obviously.
Once you beat the game, you are able to access a game
called EX Mode. This is essentially the same game only quite a bit
harder in a lot of areas. But the main difference is the ability
to visit the Chrysler building. Should you have the time and patience
(and the firepower) to go through all 77 floors and defeat the final boss
at the top, you'll be treated with the real ending. Only problem
is that each floor is a complex maze and every tenth floor holds a boss.
So this basically means that you're looking at a 77-level game! Good
luck!
I beat this game (on normal mode) in: 2 1/2 days
Difficulty: Medium... in EX Mode: Hard
Graphics: Very good
Music: Very good
Plot: Good (it became rather strange and somewhat
dissapointing towards the end)
Who should buy it: If you liked FF7 and Resident
Evil, this should be something good. The concept is new and pretty
enjoyable. If you're looking for a long-term challenge, then this
might be a good buy. That Chrysler building is going to take forever,
no matter how you look at it. After you beat that, I'm not sure how
long the replay value will hold up. It's still a good one.
You'll definitely want to rent it first, though.
Tenchu
This game has a lot of really good features. I
really love the music, the game plays very intelligently, and it offers
a lot of challenge. It has it's share of faults, though. The
controls might take a little while to get used to and the American version
is a lot harder than the Japanese version. You could conceivably
just run through every level and win the game really quick, but that's
not the point of the game. The name of the game is stealth, and if
you can pull it off, you're a true master. It will take you quite
a while to master the art of stealth, though, as many of the levels tend
to be extremely harsh and unforgiving. The game also rotates each
level on three ways of enemy and item placement, so to truly master this
game, be prepared to spend at least a month.
A very good game, but the storyline gets out of hand
towards the end. It goes from being a ninja in the world of corrupt
feudal lords and blades of honor... to the stereotypical battle against
hell and all that jazz. I do recommend it, however.
I beat this game in: 4 days
Difficulty: High Medium
Graphics:Very Good
Music: Excellent
Voice dubbing: Good (not great... but there is
a code that let's you switch to Japanese voices)
Plot: Okay. Started cool, became weak.
Who should buy it: This game can actually last
you for quite a while. The main reason for such replay value is the
fact that it's nearly impossibly to master the art of stealth! Plenty
of cool secrets, too! Now all we need is a better plot, and then
maybe it could rival...
Metal Gear Solid
This... is the greatest game ever made. That's
all there is to say. I won't go into full details... but if you want
to know what I really think, just visit my homepage and check out my tribute
to MGS. If you own a Playstation, then you owe it to yourself to
buy this game. If you don't own a Playstation, but you like video
games... then you obviously suck at choosing systems. And I pity
you.
I beat this game in: 4 days (it would have been
2, but the disc I rented was scratched right near the end)
Difficulty: Medium
Graphics: Very Good
Music: Wonderful!
Voice dubbing: Wonderful!
Even better than the Japanese voices (I've never said THAT before, either!)
Plot: Wonderful! MGS justifies
the label "interactive movie."
Who should buy it: YOU!! Everybody!
The quicker this game makes money, the quicker Konami will bless us with
the next Metal Gear! Hideo Kojima is a god among video game designers!
---
You may notice that I did not list any Nintendo 64 games
here. It should be obvious that the reason for this is because there
are no good N64 games out right now. N64 sucks. Sorry, kids,
but it does. Face facts. However... I have always been a fan
of the Legend of Zelda series. I admit that I have not played
Ocarina of Time as of this writing. Therefore, I will rectify my
statement:
There are no good N64 games out right now... but Legend
of Zelda:Ocarina of Time, may turn out to be the exception. Nevertheless,
even if this new chapter in the Zelda series turns out to be the absolute
BOMB... it will still not make me want to blow good money on a bad investment
like the N64. Period.
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