As I prepared to make myself a delicious cinnamon/raisin bagel sandwich, thoughts about the DMC remake coming this way invaded my head and compelled me to write a little something on the subject. I’m not gonna bother with precise data or anything of the sort, just a few observations and opinions on the whole series of games that came after DMC. When I first became acquainted with the Devil May Cry series way back in the early parts of the new millennium, I thought this game was the tits. It was fast-paced, unforgiving, but most importantly, it was innovative. Innovative in the sense that up ‘till then we hadn’t had a game that offered us such fast, acrobatic and precise action. Sure, there were games like Zone of the Enders that were pretty fast and action packed, but this was different. It felt like a hack-and-slash game whose combat system actually offered you something more than spamming the attack button and occasionally unleashing a special. You COULD have done that, but there actually were combos and other things to keep things fresh and pretty and not boring.

Eventually, as the game gained popularity and praise and such, other similar games started popping up. The biggest example we have of such a game is the God of War franchise. These series of games also boasts and impressive combat system and manage to tell an interesting, albeit simple story to boot, unlike DMC. But that’s exactly my beef with the developers. I loved the first GoW because the plot was simple and there were few characters. It was just a killfest. Once we reached GoW3, however, we had a whole bunch antagonists whose defeat didn’t feel all that satisfying because I only interacted with them about 2-5 minutes before my fight with them. Were the fights huge and impressive? Yes. But they lacked a certain something that can only be gained from defeating a hated enemy. DMC, on the other hand, just let you know that you were hunting demons and you were supposed to take out the biggest one at the end. And it worked, because you had these hard boss battles coming out of nowhere, but you didn’t feel like it was supposed to be a huge accomplishment, just a really satisfying battle. And they were.

Now, on to my final point. Bayonetta.

This is the most recent game in the vein of Devil May Cry, by its makers, too, if I recall correctly. This game came out at a moment when a lot of other games were trying real hard to give their audience an engaging storyline while attempting to keep the gameplay up to par. The makers of this one, however, said “Storyline? What’s that?” and proceeded to take a piss over the concept of it. However, this game a big success. Why? Because it was fun. Before I bought this game, I had relied on trophies and achievements to make me get the most out of my games, because I couldn’t stand playing a lot of them more than once (and sometimes not even that). But I got my hands on a cheap copy a few months ago and by god, it was the most fun I ever had thus far with this style of game. There’s no upgrade system, no fancy implements, nothing. Just your combos, and few extra weapons to switch it up now and again.In other words, mindless fun.

In short, my final statement is this: I want more games that are just that. Games. As great as it is that games are turning into an art form, if you sacrifice the fun parts of it, what good are they as games? That’s right, I’m talking to you, Heavy Rain.

And that’s all I have to say today. Thank you for reading this far if you did.

Well, in light of my recent fixation with the Counting Crows song “Mr. Jones” and my recent case of the blues, I put myself to thinking, and I felt compelled to put these thoughts on record somewhere, for some odd reason. The song ‘Mr. Jones’ has been analyzed to hell and back and we all know it’s about wanting to be famous and not lonely and all that jazz. On a personal note, it helps rid me of the blues because I’m losing the family members that I care about the most like they’re in a rush to get off this crappy place. But that’s neither here or there, I guess. The brunt of my long-winded discussion with myself  boiled down to the following, and yes, it all falls down on this one song, because I get fixated on stuff like so: I think the sentiment behind the song fits this generation quite nicely. Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, etc. Everyone’s trying to get recognized, everyone’s trying to meet more people, everyone wants to be known outside of their small day-to-day realities. I’m not nitpicking or anything, not saying it’s good or bad, just… saying. I dunno, there wasn’t even a point to this line of thought, it’s just one of those things that gets in my head at these hours of the day and won’t let me sleep until I turn it around for a while.

In return for bearing with me, a picture of a cat http://zef.me/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/med_funny-cat.jpg

Well, this is a special treat. I don’t really feel up to the task of reviewing a concert, but I also feel the need to introduce this band to audiences outside of my lovely little island. So here goes…

Puya is a metal band that incorporates traditional Puerto Rican instrumentation into their music, achieving an interesting and generally awesome product. Now, the concert experience is the same as every other Puya concert there will ever be or has been. The sheer energy these guys bring onstage and transmit to the crowd is staggering. The concert wasn’t even sold out, but the couple hundred or so people that attended just made the most of it and rocked their souls out. Of particular note during their concerts is the mosh pit. These concerts are infamous for having near-deadly moshing, yet even as these people break each others’ noses and jaws, you can see the happy looks on their faces from the great time they’re having. This particular concert was actually one of their least packed ones and the mosh pit was lacking in energy at times, but it was still a solid performance on part of the band, who do their best at energizing the crowd when they need it so the party goes on. It doesn’t feel like I wrote a review on the concert itself, but there’s just no point in doing so, because all of them truly play out the same, and every time they’re just damn awesome.This is the band’s MySpace page, so you can check out their stuff if you don’t already know about them http://www.myspace.com/puyamusic .

The only thing that disappointed me about this night was the merchandise. For $10 they were offering a USB device with their latest CD and a DVD they’d been talking about releasing for years, and when I finally plug it in, it’s a 5 song album with an .flv file. Kind of a letdown, but it’s all good in the end, I guess. Also, I have a fucking awesome shirt for all my troubles.

Rock on, my fellow headbangers.

In the wake of so many reviewer just dragging this game through the dirt, I’ve decided to write one myself to even the scales a tad. I’m not gonna glorify it, but it’s not a terrible game like every reviewer worth their salt keeps making it out to be. The thing you have to keep in mind before you evaluate the game is that it was developed by Team Ninja. Now pause, think it over, and evaluate. What games is TN know for? DOA and Ninja Gaiden. At first, Metroid and Ninja Gaiden-style gaming seems like a match made in heaven, but frankly, people should have expected some issues with this mix. Metroid is known for allowing you to just go crazy with exploration and go about your quest in whatever order you desire and/or are able to. Ninja Gaiden is pretty damn linear. Adding to that, the action styles are pretty different as well. Ninja Gaiden’s action works for it precisely because it’s linear and you want to get as much blood and gore before you’re forced to move on to the next area. With Metroid’s constant backtracking and exploration, all that fighting would get pretty tiresome after a while, which frankly it does, but you can choose to ignore most of these battles, and enjoy the killing at your leisure. After all, this isn’t Castlevania, where killing enemies allows you to level up, so there’s nothing to be accomplished by clearing out every single room every single time. Now, the controls. I don’t think I’ve come across anyone who hasn’t disliked the controls greatly. They say they’re awkward, clunky, uncomfortable, etc. Frankly, I think they work quite well, and even then, as with every other game, you get used to them over time, dammit, so quit your bitching already. I will, however agree that having to point at the screen just to fire missiles, and not being able to move while doing so was a stupid idea that could have been improved easily. In terms of visuals, it’s very pretty and frankly, I’m amazed that TN showed considerable restraint with Samus’ cutscenes by not showing her jiggling all over the place as is their manner with their female leads. Now, on the part that everyone feels breaks the game entirely, the story and the effects it has on gameplay. The fact that you technically play the entire game with all of your arsenal available to you from the start, but Samus chooses not to use it all until another character authorizes it doesn’t bother me at all. It’s better than some unlikely Deus Ex Machina plot device that just strips you of all your powers at the beginning of the game. There is, of course, that infamous instance in which you run through the mandatory lava stage and you don’t activate your Varia Suit until you’re allowed to… almost near the end of your momentary stay in the environment, after which it becomes pointless until you backtrack for items and the next plot point. THAT was stupid, but the rest of the time, it’s acceptable, at the very least. I hate to nitpick, but you gotta keep in mind that in the game, Samus is interfering with a Galactic Federation operation and as such, she must adhere to the CO’s orders, or be jailed or whatever. So really, the arbitrary refusal to use her arsenal makes sense in context, which is a nice, if mildly annoying touch. Finally, the voice acting. Oh, the voice acting. Once again, this is TN we’re talking about, so I wasn’t expecting masterful work, and so it wasn’t. It was acceptable, and while everyone hated Samus’ monotone reminiscing, I’d have to say it was… acceptable in context, again. She’s a damned bounty hunter who spends much of her time alone on alien planets killing shit. I don’t expect her to be an eloquent or emotive speaker, even if it wouldn’t kill her to emote a little. But that’s just me.

Overall, I’d say it’s a decent and enjoyable game, not deserving of either praise or hate. It’s no Metroid: Prime, but I have a feeling that any other Metroid games on modern consoles will hardly be.                                                                                     7.5/10

I just gave my blog a slight makeover and some minor color changes to try and see what works. Would anyone be so kind as to give me some feedback on how it looks? And by that I mean, does the font and backgrounds hurt your eyes, or is it comfortable to read? Thanks in advance.