Assassin's Creed III: Liberation - Review (Vita)

Let’s be serious here - The Vita is a struggling handheld. In my opinion, there are only 2 games worth having (3, if you count Gravity Rush, which I hear is good): Mortal Kombat and Assassin’s Creed: Liberation. Personally, I think that the Vita is a great system, but the fact that Sony priced it so high crippled it as soon as it was released. That being said, Liberation is THE reason you should own a Vita.

Let’s get into it.

Story: 9/10
As with ACIII, the story takes center stage in Liberation. It follows the first female protagonist of the series, Aveline de Grandpre, one of the last members of the Louisiana sect of the assassin order, as she liberates African slaves from captivity during the same time period featured in ACIII. Some have complained about the story’s simplicity, but I rather enjoyed the tight, compact story offered in Liberation. It was a good change of pace from the regular, politically-fused, complicated plotlines of the console games. Also, Aveline is more of an interesting character than Connor – so much so that I find myself torn between who should take the leading role in a sequel. Perhaps both could share center stage? There are rumors…

Visuals: 8/10
For a handheld title, Liberation has the best graphics seen yet. Colonial-Era New Orleans is captured beautifully here, but the ambition of bringing a true Assassin’s Creed game to a portable is its own downfall. Because of the size and scope of the playing area, the framerate can get pretty chuggy at times. Contrary to what a lot of other reviews and players say, it is by no means unplayable and is otherwise quite pretty.

Sound: 9/10
While the sound design is nowhere near its console big brother, Liberation’s music is its shining achievement. Winifred Phillips, new to the series, perfectly captures the “bayou” feel of the game, all the while bringing in the epic flourishes AC is known for . In no way does Phillips ever copy or “rip off,” but she seems to draw several influences from classic videogame soundtracks to create something quite unique by mixing traditional game scoring techniques and flairs of the cinematic. Like the console game, the soundtrack is available for download at www.amazon.com and is mandatory for folks like myself that love videogame music.

Gameplay: 8/10
Thankfully, all the changes to ACIII’s gameplay (the annoying “mini-games”) have been replaced by a system which allows the main character, Aveline, to switch between 3 different personas: The Lady, The Slave, and The Assassin. Switching between these personas limits her abilities as far as combat and free running, but grants her options for certain situations. By switching to the slave persona, she can infiltrate areas such as plantations without detection. If in the Lady persona, Aveline can charm her way past guards. The Assassin persona is exactly what you think it is: Aveline dons here brotherhood gear and gains the normal assassin abilities seen throughout the series, but also gains a considerable amount of notoriety and has a higher rate of detection. While this system is an excellent concept, it is unfortunately under-utilized except when the story dictates that you change personas.
There are a few things which use the features of the Vita’s touch screen and pad, but nothing which either detracts, or adds to the experience.

Controls: 5/10
Remember in the ACIII review where I talked about my ‘B’ button having problems? I have the same problem with the Vita’s equivalent (circle button), only here it’s 10x worse. I very seldom was able to land a counter and was forced to rapidly tap ‘circle’ in order to deflect enemy attacks. This made the combat in the game extremely frustrating throughout and is why the score is so low. Other than that, the control scheme and overall gameplay is exactly the same as its console counterpart, save for the new persona system.

Is Assassin’s Creed: Liberation worth the full price? Yes. Not only is it worth full price, it’s also worth owning a Vita for, as this is the best game for the system. A top-notch story, great graphics for a portable, and amazing music easily outweigh the gameplay and control issues. Also, it might be a good idea to pick this up if you’re an Assassin’s Creed fan – if nothing else but to see where the series is about to go now that Desmond’s story has come to a close.

Final Score: 8/10

-Josh

I can't take credit for these screenshots. These were taken from Google Images because of the difficulty in taking screenshots of the Vita.

Assassin's Creed III - Review (PC)

This is going to be a “nitty-gritty” style review, in that I will assume anyone who reads this is already somewhat familiar with the Assassin’s Creed series.  The review is based on my playthrough of the PC version.

Differences between the PC and console versions:
Basically, it all comes down to graphics. The Xbox360 and PS3 versions are identical. Both contain some pop-in and the framerate tends to chug when there are too many citizens or enemies on the screen at once. The Wii U version, while otherwise identical to its console brethren, has an odd problem with the depth-of-field effect present through most of the game. It tends to make the background elements look weirdly stretched, rather than just “blurry” when the camera is focused on characters during cut-scenes. That’s not a slight towards the Wii U, it’s just a minor hiccup in that particular port.
The resolution is the largest and most noticeable difference between the console and PC versions. The consoles are locked at 720p (even the Wii U port), while the PC port is capable of displaying in 1080p and runs at a smooth 60 frames-per-second, as opposed to the console’s 30 (approx). I don’t mean to sound like a PC elitist, but if you have a PC capable of running the game as the developers intended, the PC is the definitive version of the game. And hey, at this point within the first few months of the game’s release, it’s $10 cheaper (on Steam).

Let’s get into it.

Story: 9/10
The story was definitely the best part of the game, but it came with a price: The main character, Connor, is kind of bland. I remember playing ACII for the first time and thinking the same thing about Ezio, but by the end of the game, the character had gone from a spoiled rich kid to a noble, honorable warrior and an overall likeable guy. Connor has no such story arch. The character stays completely one dimensional throughout the entire game. Connor is always focused on one particular goal (which I won’t detail for fear of spoilers) and absolutely nothing else. He’s also a jerk and comes off as really stupid and ignorant at times. Part of his character is that he IS, indeed, ignorant of his surroundings because of being thrust into an unfamiliar world, but some of his personal decisions made him seem… well… dumb. Harsh criticism towards a videogame character, I know. Hopefully Ubisoft will take the same route as ACII and release more games with Connor as the protagonist. Maybe then we’ll see him grow more as a character.
Aside from the mediocre main character, the story is really good. The Colonial setting provides a lot of intersections with history in which the player crosses paths with real-life figures such as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Paul Revere. Finding out how they all play in to the huge “end-of-the-world” plot of the present is definitely interesting to see. And again, aside from the main character, ACIII has some of the most interesting characters I’ve ever seen in a videogame, particularly the villains.
The overarching story set in the present day and featuring Desmond Miles is wrapped up very cryptically, but I believe that it falls in line with the series’ previous entries. What the next game’s plot will be is only briefly hinted at during the epilogue, but it seems as though the series could be going in a pretty interesting new direction.

Visuals: 8/10
The graphics are like the rest of the games: gorgeous. The team behind the AC games has an unmatched ability in creating an open-world environment which feels as though it was plucked directly out of the past. From the Crusade-Era “Holy land” of the original game to the recent game’s Colonial American battlefields, the series always has striking visuals.
With that being said, the art direction is a little bland. That’s no fault of the developers to a certain extent, it’s just the time period in which the game is set. For the past 3 games in the series (ACII, Brotherhood and Revelations), the setting has been in and around Italy and Istanbul. While it could be that I’m simply partial to the beautifully elegant Italian/Roman architecture of those games, ACIII falls a bit short. Story-wise, the mid/late 1700s setting works great, but for a game, I feel it perhaps should have had a different setting.
The “frontier” areas which connect all the various cities and towns are all beautiful, albeit a bit void of any purpose save for small side-quests.

Sound: 10/10
Hands down, this is the best sounding game you’ll ever hear. I’ve never really taken notice of the sound design within a videogame, but in ACIII, sound is constantly driving the atmosphere. Whether it’s the bustling streets of New York and Boston, the wilderness of the frontier and homestead areas, or the ocean waves during Naval combat, the sounds of the game immerse you, I guarantee, as no other game has before.
Along with the sound is ACIII’s music. In my opinion, and no disrespect to original series composer, Jesper Kyd, Lorne Balfe has created the best score of the entire series. Like many of Hans Zimmer’s apprentices (Klaus Badelt), Balfe manages to have the same disease: He’s better than Hans Zimmer. I strongly recommend picking this score up on www.amazon.com where it’s available as a digital download. You won’t regret it.

Gameplay: 6/10
I found the gameplay to be quite unfocused at times. The game constantly changes up your control scheme and play-style throughout its entirety. One minute you’re doing your normal assassin routine, the next you’re riding on horseback while yelling at 3 groups of soldiers to fire their cannons at redcoats in a “tower defense” mini-game.
And that’s essentially what most of the game felt like to me: A series of mini-games with normal Assassin’s Creed gameplay sprinkled in. You spend more of your time with these diversions in gameplay than you do being sneaky and “assassin-ing.”
Most gamers probably welcome these types of constant gameplay changes since it has been stated that the series tends to be “boring and repetitive.” This is a claim that I can agree with if talking about the first game, but I believe Ubisoft rectified the problem with the sequels from ACII through Revelations. In all fairness, it’s probably a good thing that Ubisoft did, in fact, change things up a bit to keep the series fresh, I just felt like the change ups seemed rather forced at times.

Controls: 6/10
Control is kind of wonky every now and then. Connor will sometimes get locked into position and unable to move. This becomes extremely frustrating when having to jump from rooftop to rooftop, or tree branch to tree branch in order to escape guards, or take out a target within a time limit. Although it could have been because I was playing on PC with an Xbox360 controller, it seemed like my ‘B’ button would occasionally stop working. This usually happened when I was engaged in combat and had to use the button to counter an enemy’s attack. I would hit the button to counter, but absolutely nothing would happen and Connor would just stand there like an idiot, resulting in a musket being driven into his face. Again, this could have just been a PC related issue or a problem with my controller, though I haven’t had this problem with any other games using the same one (including other AC games).

For the most part, I felt that Assassin’s Creed III was a decent entry in the series. It was good, but it certainly didn’t live up to the standards which I believe were set by ACII.
I always like to give an “is it worth $60,” or “full price verdict” and here it is:
Is it worth retail price? Maybe.
If you’re a fan of the series, full price is definitely worth it, but if not, wait till the price comes down around $30. Frustrating (at times) controls/gameplay and a main character that has about as much personality as a rock, might turn potential fans off if they haven’t spent time in the AC universe before. Only spend the full price of admission if you absolutely cannot wait to see how the Desmond Miles portion of the Assassin’s Creed series comes to an end.  

Final Score: 8/10

-Josh

By the way, I take credit for these screenshots. All were done by me from my PC except the boxart and video/music. I'm slowly inching my way to fancier things! 

Blast From the Past - Pt 2

 Let's talk tutorials, shall we?



The old man says, "Back in my day we didn't have tutorials. You'd put the game in the system, turn it on (which immediately brought up the game, by the way), and there you'd be at the title screen, often with the first level already in the background. You'd hit one button, and you'd be in the game. None of this signing on with certain profiles, or making all sorts of adjustments to the controller or volumes or whatever. Title screen, and hit a button. That was it, and then you were in the game and you had to figure it out. No on-screen prompts. No "non-playable characters" telling you in some maybe-clever-maybe-not way what to do. Nope. Your character was there, a goomba was walking directly towards him, and you'd better figure out how to use that d-pad and those two buttons or the height-challenged plumber was toast. And as for the purpose of the game, the goal, whatever you want to call it, there was no need for a stinking tutorial. Your character was on the left of the screen, enemies were coming from the right, and there was a counter. Obviously you need to go right and reach some sort of goal before the timer runs out. We didn't need some snarky voice-acted polygonal "NPC" to tell us anything so utterly obvious. Tutorials...good grief."

Obviously video games have gotten more complex over the years, and with that complexity most would argue has come the need for tutorials. (Although there were some games back in the day that could have benefited from some sort of tutorial...I'm looking at you NES Rambo.) Objectives aren't always as obvious as they were back in the day. And certainly we have more buttons to deal with.

It seems to me that there's one thing a tutorial absolutely must do, and two things it really needs to do. It must actually show the player how to play the game. If it doesn't do that, then whatever it may be, it isn't, by definition, a tutorial. And it really needs to 1) be entertaining, and 2) not take the player out of the game narrative (if said game has one).

Game developers, in my experience, tend to do pretty well with the "show the player how to play the game" bit. But the other two elements...well, those seem more hit and miss. And I can see why. The mechanics of a game may be great fun in the game proper, but that's no guarantee that they'll be fun when being explained for the first time. Pushing Z to target an enemy, and then hopping around it before making a deadly strike is fun when out on the field. But if the enemy is just a block, and the environment is just an empty room, then hey, listen, it isn't so enjoyable. Making the tutorial fun requires some creativity. And preventing it from taking the player out of the game requires even more. Unless it's a zany, slapstick, fourth-wall breaking, tongue-in-cheek kind of game (I'm looking at you Mario RPGs, save the first one, I'm not looking at you, you can go about your business), you can't just have a character say "Push the A button to jump, Lara." That wouldn't make any sense to her. A button? She doesn't have an A button? And it's not like she's never jumped before in her life. Why is he deciding now that she needs to have basic movements like jumping, running, and opening doors explained to her? What is he talking about? Is he referring to her rear end in some way? That's it, she's got to get to the bottom of this. "What do you mean, push my A button?? No, I'm serious. What did you mean by that??" And the tutorial is derailed, with game characters suddenly talking about suing each other for harassment.

So in my first real Blast from the Past article, I'm going to offer a few observations on how I think Ubisoft did with the tutorial for Assassin's Creed, as well as some general comments on the game so far.

One thing that's clever about Assassin's Creed, and it really helps with the challenges of tutorial making, is that it's sort of a game within a game. Granted the Animus is not presented as a game system, per se. But you know what I mean. By having most of the game take place within the virtual world of Desmond's genetic memories, certain limitations of video games can be dealt with in an in-universe way. For example, in the first level you eventually make your way to the assassins' fortress. On your way to talk with the boss man you pass a tall tower. At the end of the level the tower comes into play, as you climb up it, and dive off a platform. But the game designers don't want you doing that when you're first going into the fortress. Rather than just placing an inexplicable invisible wall between the player and the platform, or having some random obstinate NPC standing in front of the tower and telling you that you can't go up, you need to talk to the boss, the game designers have the off-limits area become glitchy and hazy, as though for some reason the Animus is unable to allow Desmond to access that portion of the memory. Even the staple of gaming, the health meter, gets an in-universe explanation (the sync bar).

Applying such possibilities to the tutorial only makes sense, but this doesn't make the results any less enjoyable. When playing through the tutorial, I couldn't help but think about the tutorial in Metroid: Other M, as it's arguably the most modern core game I've played up until now. So I'll be referencing it for comparison here.

So how do you smoothly, in a way that makes sense from a story standpoint, introduce a tutorial? If the character is doing something he/she has never done before, the task is a bit easier, as both the gamer and the game character are doing something new. If the actions are supposed to be old hat, it gets more tricky. Other M falls into the latter category, and the designers dealt with the issue by having Samus test out her suit to make sure everything is working after her big battle with Mother Brain (who, oddly, didn't sound like Audrey II). Assassin's Creed is in the first category. Desmond has never been in an Animus before, so from a story standpoint a tutorial (the doctor and the Animus itself even call it that) makes perfect sense. Again, the game within a game set-up helps.

There is still deluge about pushing certain buttons to accomplish certain tasks, and I don't recall seeing buttons on the Animus. But at least the buttons are referred to in ways that make sense in-game (left hand button, as opposed to X button or square button).

In terms of the fun factor of the tutorial, both AC and Other M use the in-game technology the game characters are themselves using to make things more interesting that they otherwise would be. With Other M, it's the fact that Samus is in a training room with some holodeck tech in it. Virtual enemies are made to appear, giving her a chance to test the power suit. In AC it's our first look at the virtual world created by the Animus, with the blue, hazy, computer-y (that's a word) backdrop and the faceless people Desmond gently pushes, shoves, and assassinates. In both cases, art style (visual and aural) are integral.

It terms of effectiveness, both tutorials serve their function, although I had a bit more difficulty with the AC tutorial. However, that's probably more due to my playing it on the PC. I'm using an XBOX 360 controller, but the game's default button mapping doesn't correspond to what the HUD makes you expect. So it says use the head button to look around, and yet what should be the head button doesn't do jack. It took me a minute to figure out what was happening. But then the process of remapping the buttons is frustrated by the fact that the computer doesn't i.d. the buttons with their face names (X, B, L, etc.), but with totally non-descriptive numbers. But that was a minor issue that was fairly easily remedied.

One last thing. How long should a tutorial be? It's not something you can put a number on, but when one is too short or too long, you can feel it. I've found that for me the best tutorials are the ones that give me a firm grasp of the basics, but leave some moves to be explained later. The tutorial in Assassin's Creed does this well, I think. I wasn't sick of the tutorial when it ended. But I wasn't also like, "Come back! I need you!" About the only thing it didn't cover that I wish it had was the parkour stuff. But that's a minor quibble.

Well, there it is, my take on the tutorial from Assassin's Creed. See you tomorrow to talk about some about the ethical dimension of the beginning of the game.


Still trying to access my own memories, let alone some ancestor, I remain,
 - Nic


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Josh's Inner Dorkdom Journal - Episode 4

Christmas time! I got an Nvidia Geforce GTX680 videocard (which came with a free copy of Borderlands 2!), Assassin's Creed III (PC), Battlefield 3 (PC) and Assassin's Creed: Liberation (Vita). Not too shabby… Not too shabby, indeed.

I’ll have my reviews of the ACIII games up later tonight. Honestly, the review for ACIII was the hardest I’ve ever had putting thoughts into written form. There were some minor conflicts I had with the game, but overall, I loved it. Been digging hard on some Assassin's Creed. Steam has been running their Holiday sale for the last couple weeks and I re-bought ACII through Revalations. I also bought the soundtracks for ACIII and Liberation from Amazon and the AC Encyclopedia from the Ubiworkshop. Now all I need is a super cool hoodie and a hidden blade…

Other games I got on Steam over the last couple weeks and my initial impressions:
Alan Wake – Played this before on the Xbox, but the PC version is prettier. Very interesting survival horror game.
Dear Esther – A unique first person game in which you walk around an island. No enemies. Just you, an island and a guy narrating. As boring as that sounds, it’s quite interesting. Check it out if you get a chance.
Lone Survivor – A side scrolling post-apocalyptic game done in a 16-bit style. Pretty cool, but I haven’t played it much yet.
Ys: Origins – Cool, anime-style, action/rpg. Nuff said.
Dragon Age: Origin – A fantasy Bioware game. Great so far.
Manhunt – Had this back in the day on the PS2. Awesome, brutal, disturbing game that’s definitely not for the kiddies.
Prince of Persia – Haven’t played yet.
RPG Maker VX Ace – Not a game exactly, but an engine with which to create your own 2D RPG. Great program. Couldn’t pass up since it was on sale for $30. The regular price is $70.
Sim City 4 – The most complicated Sim City game I’ve ever played! My city went bankrupt in 2 hours due to all the things that have been added to the game.
Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition – The hardest game I’ve ever played… but also one of the most addicting. If I ever beat it, I’ll do a review.
Street Fighter X Tekken – Not a great fighter, but was on sale for $5.
I know this one was a bit short, but Assassin's Creed is the ONLY thing I’ve been really diggin’ on this week.

See ya next week! Well, except for the reviews tonight.
-Josh

Blast From The Past - Pt 1

Happy New Year everyone!!

Nic here. This is the first in what will be an ongoing series of mini-articles chronicling my experiences diving into the broader world of 4-5 year old 'core' gaming.

OK, let me break that down a bit. I'll begin by giving some background/context. I'm what you might call a Nintendo gamer. I can count the number of non-Nintendo video game systems I've owned (PC's excluded) on one hand. And remember, I only have four fingers on my entire body. Specifically, I've had three: an Atari 2600 (yes, I'm old), a PS2 (which Josh convinced me to purchase when Dragon Quest VIII came out), and an XBOX (given to me by a friend...and I've never even turned it on). On the Nintendo side of things, I've owned: an NES (with World Class Track Meet....ironic, isn't it?), an SNES (the best overall game console of all time from my perspective), an N64 (with memory expansion pack), a Gamecube (mine was black....that's what I've got for this parenthetical...sorry), a Wii (umm...it was white?), a Gameboy Advance (it was like a portable Super Nintendo....awesome), a DS (red), a DSi XL (a giant brown one), a 3DS (red) which I traded for a 3DS XL (also red).

This is not to say I never enjoyed games on non-Nintendo systems. Far from it. In the 16-bit days one of my best friends had a SEGA Genesis, and I thoroughly enjoyed many of the games he had for it (the Phantasy Star games, Mickey Mouse and the Castle of Illusion, Sonic 1 and 2, and others). In the 32-bit and 64-bit days I enjoyed, or in some cases just told myself I enjoyed, some PS1 games that friends of mine had (or I had on PC). In the I don't know what-bit era, there were some games on the PS2 and XBOX that looked good. And in the current generation, same thing regarding games for the PS360 (see what I did there? I saved myself some typing by combining the names of the two systems....except that I then explained it, typing far more characters than " and XBOX3").

If you're familiar with the course of gaming over the past couple of decades, then you know what happened to my pool of available games, especially on consoles. In two words: it shrunk. In the days of the SNES, that system was where it was at in terms of game variety (and pretty much everything else too). You wanted platformers? BAM! Mario, Mega Man X, Cool Spot, Bubsy, etc. Fighters? BAM! Three million varieties of Street Fighter II (with perspective simulating ground, take that Genesis), Mortal Kombat (with sweat, take that Genesis), Clay Fighters, etc. You want major franchises? BAM! Mega Man, Castlevania, Madden, Zelda, Metroid, Mario, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Contra, Earthworm Jim, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, etc. What about puzzle games? BAM again! In those days a person with a Nintendo system could play all sorts of high quality titles in all sorts of genres. But as things progressed from the N64 down to the Wii, that changed. Certainly there were what we today might call "casual" or "expanded audience" titles available on such systems. But there were also much loved high quality "core" games also (Goldeneye, Star Fox 64, Rogue Squadron I-III, Metroid Prime 1-3, Call of Duty: World at War, Viewtiful Joe, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, numerous Sonic games, several Zelda games, Resident Evil remakes and new entries, Super Smash Bros., etc.). I owned and enjoyed many of those. It's just that the number of "core" games, as a percentage of all titles available, seemed to go down as time went on. And increasingly new major "core" franchises skipped Nintendo consoles altogether. What that means for Nic is I didn't play them.

Here are some games/franchises that I, living at the beginning of 2013, have never played, or never played more than a few minutes of: any of the 3D GTA games, any Metal Gear other than The Twin Snakes, Gears of War, Assassin's Creed, Mass Effect, Batman, Ninja Gaiden (except the DS game), Transformers, Elder Scrolls, Parappa the Rappa (I threw that one in to see if you're paying attention...but I'm sure you are...well...really I'm not sure....there's no way for me to know...so...I gotta believe!), many of the Resident Evil games, and bunch that I don't even know exist.

So you might say that, in a sense, much of "core" gaming has advanced on without me, even though I've still been active in playing video games.

Smart folks out there might notice that a few of those franchises I listed have finally found their way onto a Nintendo console (most of them with their third game, coincidentally). And that brings us to these articles.

I now can purchase games like Assassin's Creed III or Mass Effect III. Indeed, I have purchased one of them (A.C.), and hope to purchase another (M.E.) in the near future. But, as I just noted, those are each the third game in their respective franchises. Playing the third game in a series without playing the first two might still be an enjoyable experience, but certainly it would be better to play 1 and 2 before 3.

Which brings us to the wonderful world of Steam. Folks, if you like gaming, and have a decent computer, give Steam a look. While I'm sure there are downsides to it that the bitter folks on the Internet gather together and whine about, what I know is that I got Assassin's Creed, Assassin's Creed II, Mass Effect, and Mass Effect II for a few cents shy of twenty dollars. That is pretty excellent.

And so I -- a guy who's been 'stuck,' I suppose you might say, with games available on Nintendo systems...a guy who enjoys video games (it matters not if they are 'core,' 'casual,' or something in between, only if they are fun) but has been in something of a game time warp -- am going to for the first time really play some icons of modern gaming. And, in these articles I'll be sharing my thoughts with you as I do.

I'm sure at first they'll consist of things like, "where are all the warp pipes?" and, "why is everything brown?" and "oh, the hero character I'm playing as did something morally ambiguous or evil and I don't like it," and "all these characters have voice acting??? How can that be done, Tom? It can't!" But eventually I'll acclimate some, and then, who knows, maybe I'll share something interesting.

I'll be starting with the Assassin's Creed games. So I'll see you next time from inside the Animus!

 - Nic


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Josh's Inner Dorkdom Journal - Episode 3 (UPDATES)

Not much to talk about this week. Finally got through finals, so I’m out of school (but not work) for about 4 weeks. Having to deal with that, I haven’t had much time for dorkly-type things.
There is something I would like to address, though:
The War Z.

Haven’t heard of it? Let me fill you in.

Around this time last year, Bohemia Interactive released a PC exclusive game called Arma II. Supposedly the most realistic military shooter ever created (albeit with an extremely complicated control scheme), everybody nowadays recognizes it for its extremely popular mod: Day Z. Created by New Zealand game designer and former soldier Dean Hall, Day Z is a game of absolute survival. Set in a zombified Russian town/countryside, Day Z pits players against one another online in probably the most realistic post-apocalyptic environment ever created for a game. The player is forced to do things even as ordinary as eating and drinking just to stay alive, all while dodging bullets from other players who want to take these items of sustenance for themselves. Oh yeah, you’ve got to deal with zombies and you only get one life.

Because of the Day Z mod, Arma II and its expansion pack (Operation: Arrowhead) became one of the Steam service’s top selling games and remains so even now. Presently, Dean Hall and his team of developers are working on a standalone version of Day Z that will incorporate new features, better controls and all around improvements to what many consider to be an already outstanding expansion. That being said, it’s no wonder that there would be developers who would want a piece of the zombie survival action.

About 6 months ago, I heard about a game being developed for the PC entitled, The War Z. Well, the title was kind of familiar, but the article I was reading in Game Informer magazine assured me that this was, indeed, a different game. The screenshots in the magazine looked vastly superior to Day Z’s graphics and the promises of certain features sounded as though they might be superior as well. The article culminated with the claim by the developer (Hammerpoint Interactive) that the game would be released before the standalone version of Dean Hall’s Day Z mod. To a certain extent, they were right.

Last week, I received the newest issue of Game Informer which had yet another article about The War Z. After reading it, I decided to look up the game and see what its development progress was. I was led to the game’s official website which stated that one could access the alpha version of the game for around $20.

Before spending money on the game, I thought it best to see how the game was being reviewed by other players. What I found was not very encouraging. According to The War Z users, the game was basically a Call of Duty-style free-for-all with zombies scattered around the map and that most of the features which the developers had claimed would be included were not yet implemented. I decided to wait until the full release to give the game a try.

Fast forward to about 2 days later. I log into my Steam account and what do I see in the featured games list? The War Z for $14. The game was done?! I was just about to click the “add to cart” button when my brain, suspecting possible foul play, got the better of me. I headed over to The War Z forums and checked if Hammerpoint had, in fact, finished the game. The truth was, they had not. Page after page in the forum warned people of buying this supposed “Foundation Release.”
What was a “Foundation Release?”

The “Foundation Release” would be a basis for Hammerpoint to build onto the game over the coming months via patches as users played the game. According to The War Z users, the developers had released the alpha version (a version which 2 days ago cost $20 from their official website) on Steam with nothing on Steam’s site indicating that this was not a full release. The term “Foundation Release” is, even now, nowhere to be seen on Steam’s page for the game.

Remember when I mentioned the “superior to Day Z screenshots” above? Turns out that, according to several users, and even one of the developers, these screens were actually “mock-ups” in an attempt to show what the game will look like once it’s finished. I can understand doing this, but with the way The War Z looks at this stage and having been released in full on Steam, it would be extremely hard for the developers to simply “patch in” vastly superior graphics. The missing features (i.e. rentable servers, world building, etc) could be easily patched in, but even then, using screenshots and listing these features on Steam’s page for the game is nothing but false advertisement.

Is this Steam’s fault? I would say, no. I believe, like many others, that this is a scam by the developers to cash in on the popularity of Day Z and, on false pretenses, take the gaming public’s money. I think that Steam believes that this is an actual, finished product rather than an alpha build. The thing that most The War Z users are afraid of is the fact that this means the game is less likely to be updated and developed into the title that was promised.

In my opinion, the game should be removed from Steam until the developers make good on the promises of these missing features and updated graphics. I think that the game could have enormous potential and be a worthy competitor for Day Z, but with these kinds of shenanigans, Hammerpoint Interactive may have shot themselves in the proverbial foot.

That’s all I’ve got for now, but if you want more information on The War Z, go to www.thewarz.com But be warned, you won’t be getting what is advertised. The developers may promise that the game will eventually get to the point of what you see on their website, but with a supposed full release already on Steam, the chances are pretty slim.

UPDATE: It seems as though Hammerpoint has done some damage control. Just a little while ago, the Steam page was edited to more accurately reflect what a user will get after downloading the game. If I get a chance, I will post some before and after screenshots of the Steam page later tonight.
UPDATE 2: The War Z has been removed from Steam. Gaming justice prevailed!

Source: www.ign.com

-Josh

Josh's Inner Dorkdom Journal: Episode 2 (The Wii-U)

I know I said I'd probably update this article/journal every Monday, but I'm just too excited about this to wait until then...


So after very little convincing, I caved and bought a Wii-U. Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!!!!

To answer one simple question, "Is it good," the answer is no... It's amazing! Not since the days of the Super Nintendo have I fallen instantly in love with a console. Sure, you have to do ALOT of waiting around upon first booting up the system due to a massive update, but it's well worth your time. As soon as I took the gamepad out of the box, I knew there was about to be some major magic goin' on. The thing was weighty. It felt as though it were well-built, something that can't, in my opinion, be said about the last few Nintendo consoles. When I picked it up, I felt more like I had just bought the most monstrous hand-held ever built... and this was just the controller!

I bought New Super Mario Bros. U as my first game and man is it nice to finally see Mario in glorious HD quality! Not only does the system display HD visuals, but it displays TRUE 1080p resolution, something of which the other two consoles cannot say. Even though both consoles claim to support 1080 resolutions, they, in fact, don't. 720p is the standard when it comes to gaming on consoles. The consoles only really "support" 1080, for movies (Blu-Ray / high-def cutscenes) and things like that.

As I mentioned in the last episode, I've been buying lots of games off of Steam for my PC, alot of which are games that I already own on either Xbox360 or PS3. The differences between The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim running at 720p on the Xbox and 1080i on a pretty high end PC are astonishing.  People who have never experienced a videogame in 1080 are truely missing out. Colors are more vibrant, black levels are... well... "blacker" and the overall image is just alot smoother than what console gamers are used to. This alone puts the Wii-U at the head of the pack when it comes to being THE console to own this generation.

Only problem is... this generation is almost over. It's been rumored (rumors that are highly likely) that the next systems from Sony and Microsoft will be revealed sometime in 2013 and release in 2014. If Nintendo would have released the Wii-U back in 2006, there would be no question that they would be back on top of the the console market, which is where they should have been all along. I seriously hope that the Wii-U does well, but how well it will perform when the next two powerhouses are released remains to be seen.

That's about all I've got for now, folks. I'm gonna leave it to Nic to write up a full-fledged review on the console itself. Just remember, kids: If you buy a Wii-U, you'll be playing with power! Wii-Power!

Wow, that really doesn't work. It was alot better back in the 90s when you could say, "SUPER power!"

-Josh

Josh's Inner Dorkdom Journal: Episode 1

With this article/journal, I’ll be giving my opinions on current things that I’m digging on or excited about, as opposed to doing full-blown reviews (probably save those for later). I don’t know how often this thing will get updated, but I hope that a new episode will be available every Monday. Think of these as sort of “Facebook-style status updates about dorky stuff.”

1. Mass Effect 2 Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I purchased a crapload of games on Steam for PC because of their “flash sales.” These sales would pop up every day for 4 days, usually only lasting for about 5 hours. Over that weekend, I downloaded approx. 8 games for less than the price of a full retail title. Among the games I bought were: Portal 1&2, Doom 3: BFG Edition, Trine 1&2 and Mass Effect 2. Without a doubt, Portal 2 was one of the best gaming experiences I’ve had in a long time, but as of right now, I’m REALLY digging on ME2. Every single mission in that game is like playing a fully fleshed out episode of Star Trek!

2. The Walking Dead Who’s NOT digging on The Walking Dead? Mid-season finale was Sunday… very sad to have to wait 2 months to see the rest.

3. Mortal Kombat I know I said in my Tekken Tag 2 vs. DOA5 opinion piece that I was going to Tekken, but I realized shortly after that article that I will never be on the level I want. People have been playing Tekken for over 10 years and the games have used pretty much the same systems for all games, so I decided to stick with Kombat. I’m already pretty decent at the game, so why not just put my efforts into new characters and learn more of the cast? My mains in the game have been Kitana and Sub-Zero for quite some time, but I decided to put some time into playing Kabal, Sonya, Cyrax, Raiden and Smoke. Thinking about going to Final Round in Atlanta again this year, but probably won’t unless my training partners can attend as well. Watched the NEC13 MK9 tournament this past weekend. Congrats to Obs/EMP REO for winning in not only MK9, but MK2 and UMK3 as well. My favorite MK player and fellow Sub-Zero main, Tom Brady, also made an extraordinary showing.

4. The Amazing Spider-Man and The Expendables 2 Watched these on Blu-Ray this weekend, Spider-Man for the 2 nd time. Man, Spider-Man was excellent – made me tear up quite a bit due to its awesomeness. That’s right, folks. Spider-Man made me cry like a woman. Shut up. The Expendables 2 was… ok. In my opinion, it’s not as good as the first film from a plot standpoint, but it was more humorous. It had some super corny dialogue. Stallone’s speech’s about not getting close to people made me kinda cringe at the awfulness. Ah-nold and Chuck Norris’ cameos were awesome! I was really surprised that Van-Damme played a villain, though.

5. The Wii-U This here is a console that I still don’t know what to think about. I’ll probably get one this summer so I can play Nintendo franchises in glorious HD quality, but what the system will mean to me beyond that remains to be seen. As it stands now, there’s no reason for me to rush out and buy the system. There are no launch games that interest me aside from New Super Mario Bros. and there have been no announcements for future titles that make me feel like I have to rush right out and buy it. We’ll see.

All for now.
-Josh

Call of Duty: Black Ops II Multiplayer Review

I can’t help but, for the most part, feel ripped off every time a new Call of Duty title is released. It seems as though, after World at War, the series took a downturn and each title has gotten progressively worse. Is Black Ops II worse than Modern Warfare 3? Honestly, it seems about the same gameplay-wise, but due to some new mechanics, it definitely has the edge over its predecessor.

Perhaps the largest addition to this iteration of COD is the “Pick 10” system. In the past, your load out of weapons and perks consisted of a primary weapon, secondary weapon, grenade, tactical grenade and one each of 3 different perk types. BO2 takes that old system and completely throws it out the window. With the Pick 10 system, you are allotted 10 slots to put whatever you wish into your load out. For example, here’s my main load out that I use:

Primary Weapon: AN-94 Attachments: Target Finder, Fore-Grip, Silencer Perk 1: Blind Eye Perk 2: Cold-blooded Perk 3: Engineer, Dead-silence Wildcards: Perk 3 greed, Primary Gunner

Notice that in my load out I have a total of 10 items. Since I normally don’t use grenades of any type, I sacrificed those to give myself more options on my perks and primary weapon. I also got rid of my secondary weapon to free up one of my 10 slots. This is by far the best equipment system that COD has ever used. It is also the only good thing I can say about the game.

The 4 companies involved in the production of COD (Infinity Ward, Treyarch, Sledge Hammer, Activision) understand marketing and their fanbase extremely well, so they know that whatever they release, people are going to buy it. I’ve fallen victim to this on multiple occasions (MW2-BO2. That’s 4 games). I always hope that the franchise will either return to the glory days of COD4 and W@W or simply improve, but I continuously get burned. Because people keep buying the crap heaps that Activison shovel to them on a yearly basis, they refuse to innovate. Couple that with the fact that the games have been running on the exact same game engine for the past 5 years and you’ve got nothing but pure mediocrity.

These companies seem to have lost sight of what made them great in the first place (kind of like Square-Enix with Final Fantasy). What I’ll do here is show you COD’s lack of progression since COD4 in 2007. Ready? Here we go.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare – Infinity Ward Weapons: Well, duh. All “modern weapons.” M16s and the like. Each load out would consist of a primary and secondary weapon. The primary weapon could be equipped with 1 attachment such as a red-dot sight, or a silencer. Secondary weapons consisted of pistols and rocket launchers. Perks: COD4 was the first game to introduce the perk system. The player used 3 different types of perks that increased his/her abilities in some way. Only one per type could be equipped. Kill Streaks: 3 types. 3 kills=UAV, 5 kills=Airstrike, 7 kills=Helicopter Maps: Various sizes, all fairly balanced. Online play: Extremely good. Sure, there was lag, but it was nothing like what the series would eventually encounter.

Call of Duty: World at War - Treyarch Weapons: Same as COD4, only WWII based. Perks: Same as COD4, but with slightly different names assigned to certain perks. Kill Streaks: 3 Kills=UAV (Recon Plane), 5 Kills=Mortar strike, 7 Kills=Attack Dogs Maps: I may be biased to this game in particular since it’s my favorite, but in my opinion, W@W had the best maps of the entire series. And some of the largest. Having large maps meant that sniping could be somewhat useful. Online play: Extremely good depending on what gametype one played. The Hardcore game modes were the most balanced. Core modes were a bit imbalanced and could be extremely frustrating due to hit detection and lag compensation issues.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Here’s where things start to go south) – Infinity Ward Weapons: Unlike the previous 2 games, MW2 allowed the player to put more than one attachment on their weapon by using a certain perk. Perks: More perks were present this time around. Still used the 3 type system. Kill Streaks: Ugh. MW2 allowed the player to create custom kill streak load outs. Rather than use the simple 3, 5 and 7 method, player would have the option for how many kills they would have to get before earning a kill streak. By using a certain perk, the player could even set it to get his streak reward one kill earlier. MW2 also introduced the care package, a kill streak that when earned would send a box from the sky containing a random streak reward. MW2 was very kill streak heavy and this is what started the imbalance trend. Maps: The maps in MW2 were decent, but when having to deal with CONSTANT kill streaks flying around the map, the level of fun and actual skill involved was significantly decreased. Online play: Due to the above mentioned imbalances, online play was far too hectic and resulted in a lot of frustration for players (myself included) used to the 2 previous games.

Call of Duty: Black Ops - Treyarch Weapons: Same as MW2 Perks: Same as MW2 Kill Streaks: Same as MW2 (noticing a trend here?) Maps: Far too small. Few large maps. Most were medium to small sized. Online play: Same as MW2, but with a little less emphasis on kill streaks.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – Infinity Ward/Sledge Hammer Weapons: Same as MW2 and BO. Perks: Same as MW2 and BO. Kill Streaks: Same as MW2 and BO. (Yup. There’s a trend, for sure.) Maps: No large maps. All medium to small. Online play: Same as MW2 and BO. Game, as a whole, seems as though it’s just a map pack for MW2.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II - Treyarch Weapons: New pick 10 system. Great addition. Perks: Mostly new perks. Kill Streaks: Same as MW2, MW3 and BO, only instead of earning streaks by kills, one now earns them from game score. Maps: Same as MW3. Online play: Same as MW2, MW3 and BO on the lag level. The kill streaks are toned down significantly from the last 3 games because of being harder to earn.

What I’m basically trying to get at here, is that Activision basically keeps giving players the same game year after year with small updates. The same can be said for most EA sports games. Is Madden ’11 that much different than Madden ’12? No. There are a few extra modes and options, but the game is basically the same thing people have been playing for years. I’m all for the “if ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality, but the additions COD has received over the years have done nothing but make the game increasingly worse. Will COD ever get better? Not, unless the game buying public stops buying the games year after year.

In closing: Is Call of Duty: Black Ops II worth the $65 price tag? Absolutely not. Don’t believe the hype, people. Places like IGN are paid extremely well to review huge selling titles favorably (I believe it got over a 9.0 on there). My advice is to steer clear of this one. Trust me, unless you feel like paying $65 for some new, mediocre, maps and a new equipment system, you’ve already played this game… 3 times before.

Final score: 3/10

-Josh

Mario and Link team up....along with Maxwell?

WB Games announced today that the Wii U version of Scribblenauts Unlimited will include playable Scribblenauts versions of Nintendo characters (Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi, Link, Zelda, Epona, and a goron). Scribblenauts Unlimited will be available for Wii U on launch day, November 18.

I'm a big fan of Scribblenauts, and the Mario and Zelda franchises. So this excites me.

It's funny, Gamestop's Facebook page had a tease about it beginning Monday. Their banner had an image of Maxwell (main character of Scribblenauts) flanked by two bulbous shadowy areas. The text asked "Who's playing with Maxwell?" Folks in the internet had figured out who the shadows were within a matter of hours. And I for on am glad they were right.

 Without a magic notepad, I remain,

 - Nic


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Wii U Launch Thoughts

Given that the Wii U launch is just a hair over a month away, I figure it's past time that I, the resident Nintendo fanboy, weigh in on the September Wii U press conference and all the information that was revealed (and what information wasn't revealed). We're planning on doing a podcast about the Wii U launch in the coming weeks, so think of this as just a discussion of the major points.



Release Date
Most folks were thinking November. Nintendo had confirmed that it would come out before year's end, so anytime from September to December was technically possible. But several indicators pointed to November. Nintendo would certainly want to have the system on shelves for Christmas shopping. A December release would miss out on far too much of that shopping season. On the other hand, it seemed unlikely that Nintendo would have a press conference in September and release the system the same month, or even the one after it. And last but not least, Nintendo's two most recent consoles launched in November, so history was pointing to that month.

But when in that month? Answers to that question were a bit more varied. A lot of folks were betting on a Sunday (again, looking back to the launches of the Gamecube and Wii). But even banking on that (which turned out to be smart), which Sunday would be the one? The 25th would miss Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year. The 4th and the 11th were championed by some, but others thought those dates might be a bit early. Thus, a significant number of people, myself included, were guessing November 18th as the most probable date...if one were to guess. And they/we were right.

I'm fine with that date. It's coming out the week of Thanksgiving, allowing it to almost herald and usher in the 2012 Christmas shopping season.


The Price
Watch out folks, Nintendo is trying some modern approaches. Indeed, many were surprised to learn that Nintendo will be offering two different SKUs on launch day: the basic bundle (MSRP $299) and the deluxe bundle (MSRP $349). The basic bundle is what it sounds like: the system, one gamepad (both in white), a sensor bar, power cables, an HDMI cable, and 8GB of storage space. The deluxe bundle includes everything in the basic (except the hardware is black), 32GB of storage instead of 8, a cradle for the gamepad, a charging stand for the gamepad, stands for the console itself, and a pack-in game (Nintendo Land, which I'll talk about later).

Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime explained in interviews that his company is always focused on maximizing purchase value for the consumer. The decision to offer two SKUs is a part of that. Why force people to pay for a game they aren't interested in? Why force people to pay for more storage space when they'd rather hold off and purchase the space (via SD cards or external hard drives) when they need it? This reasoning seems quite sound to me.

So what do I think of the prices? I think they're good. You don't want to go too cheap, because then the consumer will get the impression that the system isn't new/advanced enough to warrant a purchase. But you don't want to go too expensive, because then people won't buy it and you'll have to do price drops and play catch-up for the life of the console (I'm looking at you, PS3, which cost the same as a small country when it launched). $300 and $350 seem just about right.

The public seems to agree. Within a week or so of preorders opening, all major retailers were sold out. The deluxe bundles were the first to go (likely the stronger showing of Nintendo Land at this press conference over the one at E3 helped convince people that the game itself would be worth the extra fifty dollars, not to mention the extra storage space and charging cradle). And the basic bundles followed shortly after.


The Games
At last check, the Wii U will have 23 titles available for it...on launch day. Twenty-three titles is a fairly nice number for launch window (i.e., the first three or so months of a console's life). But for launch day, that's not bad at all. Here's a list of them, with the caveat that the list is subject to some change:

 Call of Duty: Black Ops II
 Skylanders Giants
 Transformers Prime
 Wipeout 3
 Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two
 FIFA Soccer 13
 Tekken Tag Tournament 2
 New Super Mario Bros. U
 Ninja Gaiden: Razor’s Edge
 Nintendo Land
 Sing Party
 Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed
 Warrios Orochi 3 Hyper
 Darksiders II
 Assassin’s Creed III
 ESPN Sports Connection
 Just Dance 4
 Rabbids Land
 Your Shape: Fitness Evolved 2013
 ZombiU
 Scribblenauts Unlimited
 Game Party Champions
 Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition

I'd say that's a pretty good launch day line-up. There's a lot of variety and balance here, in several different ways. You have both first party and third party games (with third party titles actually outnumbering first party). You have 'core' games (Batman, Ninja Gaiden, Assassin's Creed, Darksiders, Call of Duty, ZombiU, Tekken), 'casual' games (Just Dance, Game Party Champions, Sing Party), and games somewhere in the middle. You have family friendly titles (Scribblenauts, NSMB U, ESPN Sports Connection), and more mature titles (Ninja Gaiden, ZombiU, etc.). You have platformers, first-person shooters, third-person action/adventures, sports titles, racing titles, music titles, and health titles. There really does appear to be something for everyone.

And I have to point out that for the first time since 1996, a Nintendo console is launching with a new Mario game ready to go. Some may argue that that isn't as big of a deal now as it used to be, but the fact is Mario titles still sell like crazy. So this should not be dismissed offhand. And on a personal level, a Mario title launching with a new Nintendo console brings up warm feelings of nostalgia for me.


The Controls
The centerpiece of the Wii U is, at least initially, the new gamepad. Reaction to it has been mixed. As usual, there are folks who almost seem to be looking for some negative spin to put on it (it's not an actual tablet like an iPad and that's stupid of Nintendo and confusing for the consumer, it's not a real advancement in game design as there's not much you can do with a second screen, etc.). Then there are those who attack it not on the conceptual level, but the technological level (it should have allowed for multi-touch, it's too light, some developers say it's laggy, etc.).

I'm going to reserve complete judgment until I get my hand on one. But I can analyze the conceptual criticisms right away. And I'm just not seeing them. Yes, it isn't a tablet, so you can't take it to Wal-Mart or the grandparents' house. But that's what you have a portable for (whether a tablet, a phone, or a real gaming device like a 3DS or Vita). And if you can't see possible innovative uses for a full-buttoned controller with a touch screen, motion sensors, front and rear facing cameras, NFC capability, and speakers, then all that demonstrates is you're not creative when it comes to game design.

As for the technical issues, while I like multi-touch, I don't think its absence is the end of the world. And, personal preference here, if the choice is between multi-touch capacitive or more precise stylus-friendly single-touch resistive, I'll take the latter every day of the week and twice on Sundays. For gaming, I think resistive is the way to go. And also, everything in the world doesn't have to be like flipping Apple (a rant for another day). Things like weight are a matter of personal preference, and I've heard some people say they think the weight is just fine. Lastly, regarding latency, reliable sources (such as Ubisoft's Michael Ancel) have publicly stated that the latency on the tablet is nearly non-existent. To be more exact, Ancel says the delay is only 1/60th of a second. Barring serious fighting game gamers (Josh), such a small delay is of no consequence.


Nintendo TVii
Coming completely out of nowhere was Nintendo's new entertainment hub/index. Not a media service itself, rather it integrates existing services, and adds new levels of social interaction to them.
On the first part of that, in a nutshell Nintendo TVii takes all the media sources a particular user has (Netflix, Hulu, cable/satellite, etc.) and combines them into one searchable database. So, say you want to look up Castle. It will let you know all ways you can watch it (old episodes on Netflix, new episode next Monday on ABC, recorded episodes on your TiVo). For on-demand sources, you can immediately play the episode. This all happens from the gamepad, and appears quite user friendly.
As for the second part, during live programming the gamepad displays a live message board of sorts, where people can comment in real time on what's happening. Screenshots even appear from time to time. With sporting events, the gamepad displays a live, interactive recap of the game (think ESPN's game tracker).

This is a significant move for Nintendo, as they are expanding their focus from just games to other forms of entertainment. I for one am intrigued by it, and am looking forward to watching some University of Alabama football with live gamepad interaction.


The Remaining Questions
In typical Nintendo fashion, the September press conference left some questions unanswered. Perhaps the biggest ones deal with Miiverse, the new social network service that apparently is significantly integrated into the Wii U itself. A few tidbits of info and a few screenshots and video snippets are all we have. Some folks are up in arms about this. I, on the other hand, am perfectly content to learn more about it when Nintendo is ready.

Well, I think that's it for now. Again, hopefully we'll have a podcast dedicated to the Wii U launch in the coming weeks.

Until next time,

 - Nic


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If It's Not One Thing...

Sorry for not delivering on the content so far. I really hate this, as I was serious the other day about getting serious about posting content.

But my family and I have been moving for the past few days. Between the run up to the move, the move itself, the aftermath, and other things happening, I've had very little time.

And then there's this: So we have DishNetwork. We love DishNetwork. They have great channel packages, great quality HD, and an excellent DVR.  They also have this service called "Dish Mover" for when you move and want to keep using Dish (hence, the appropriate named service). It's quite convenient.

Monday was the offical move day, and thus the day of the Dish Move. The technician came, installed the actual dish in the new place (not an easy feat, given the foliage in the area), and hooked it up to our reciever, with the aforementioned DVR, which was filled to the brim (if harddrives have such things) with copious amounts of programming, including new episodes of the shows I'm going to review--episodes I had not yet watched (that's important to the story). The tech said that sent we'd now be picking up signal from different satellites than we had been, the occasional "complete signal loss" messages we were seeing were normal, and would end by the next day. You probably know where this is going. They didn't end. Rather, they stayed pretty steady. New episodes of shows were recorded throughout the week, although often they were so glitched up as to be unwatcheable (and creepy). So today I called them up, and let them know about the situation. They offered to send out a tech this afternoon. I took them up on that. And long story short, he determined that the reason for our low signal was that our almost-six-year-old reciever was malfunctioning and needed to be replaced. My first thought was, "And there goes our DVR recordings."

Indeed, they're gone. They're all gone, folks. Clone Wars. Voltron Force. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Thundercats. Castle. NinjaGo. The Looney Tunes Show. The Big Bang Theory. NASA Channel stuff. And a bunch of other shows/movies y'all either don't care about or would mock me for having.

So, I'm going to try this again, begining with episodes airing tomorrow. Hopefully our shiny new Dish reciever will cooperate.

Now recieving programming from satellites at orbital locations 110 W, 119 W, and 129 W, I am still...

 - Nic


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Tekken Tag Tournament 2 vs. Dead Or Alive 5 Opinions / Mini-Review

On release day, I got my hands on a shiny new copy of Dead Or Alive 5 for the Xbox 360. Not the shiniest copy, as that title goes to the Collector’s Edition (art book, soundtrack, a tin case, etc). I intended to purchase the CE, but unfortunately, it was a Gamestop PREORDER exclusive. Why is “preorder” in all caps? Because Gamestop, at least on their website, never stated that it was, in fact, a preorder exclusive. I had to find that out by calling around to several stores within driving distance, only to hear the clerks say, “Um… yeah… the collector’s edition is only for people who preordered.” Lame. Lame, indeed.

So anyway, I had a friend pick the game up for me on day 1. After spending a few days with the game, I really don’t know what to think about it. This is not my first DOA. I’ve played all of ‘em, but this is my first DOA during my newfound appreciation for learning fighting games.
Since Mortal Kombat 9’s life signs appear to be fading from the tournament scene and there’s not a sequel on the horizon, I decided that it was time for me to move on to another fighter. Sure, there are games like BlazBlue and that new Persona Arena game out there, but I’m not exactly sure about those. Any new fighting game seems overwhelming when trying to learn it, but anime based fighting games, while fun on a casual level, just seem much too overwhelming to me when trying to learn them. That and, on a competitive level, I’m just not that interested.

DOA 5 and Tekken Tag 2 were both released within 2 weeks of each other. A decision had to be made: Would I choose DOA 5 or TTT2 as my main fighting game? After having spent some time trying to learn both games, I have come to my conclusion. I figured the best way to shed some light on the reasoning behind my decision would be to basically give a mini-review and comparison of each game.

Round 1…. Fight!
Graphics: Believe it or not, I’ve actually heard this being debated a lot. Personally, I think both games are about the same on the visual level except for one thing: The stages. I’m not really that impressed with Tekken’s stages, but DOA’s are gorgeous. Stage features, such as being able to knock people through walls, are not that important to me (something which both games have), but I do like the stages to be somewhat lifelike. At least, I like them to have an exciting feel. One of the stages in TTT2 is literally just a street. You can make out some faded buildings in the background, but that’s about it. There are some pretty stages in TTT2, but that’s just an extreme example of how bland they can sometimes be. DOA, on the other hand, has one particular stage where you are in the middle of a middle-eastern war zone! Quite cool. Dead Or Alive 5 wins.

Round 2…. Fight!
Art Style / Characters: (To use a quote from MK9 Pro, Tom Brady) “Let’s be serious here:” Who doesn’t like hot women? Well, I’m sure there are quite a few ladies out there who just raised their hands, and probably some dudes, as well. If ladies aren’t your thing, don’t worry, there are guys in both Tekken and DOA, but you can’t deny that both Namco and Team Ninja/Tecmo have an affinity for the ladies. Especially Tecmo with the bouncing… well… you know. Anyway, the art style for both games is pretty phenomenal. Both are on the quasi-anime side when it comes to character design, with Tekken’s being slightly more realistic, but that’s to be expected from 2 Japanese developers. TTT2 boasts 50+ characters while DOA 5’s roster consists of approximately 25. All the characters from both series have unique designs and personalities, so both games are visually appealing on the character front. Draw.

Round 3…. Fight!
Fighting System / Gameplay: Here is what really sets the two games apart. Both are 3D fighters, so there is some degree of similarity between the two such as side steps, whiff punishing, etc.
Tekken system – In Tekken, your most basic objective is to play mind games with your opponent. Since high damage combos are usually done by starting with a launcher (a highly unsafe move that can usually be punished after it’s blocked), you spend most of your time trying to trick the other player into falling for it. This is usually done by “poking” the other player with low attacks which might make them crouch-block in order to avoid taking damage. When he/she crouch-blocks, they become vulnerable to mid attacks such as launchers. That doesn’t mean you should predominantly use low attacks during a match, though. You need to mix up your strikes and keep the opponent guessing so you can get that big damage. Sometimes though, an entire Tekken match will consist of nothing but poking. If both players are 100% on their game, this is not entirely uncommon.

DOA system – As stated above, in a sense, I’m kinda new to DOA. Before trying to learn the basics of the game, I read a lot of people’s comments on it saying that it’s nothing more than a “guessing game.” My thoughts were, “But isn’t every fighting game essentially a guessing game?” DOA uses a “hold,” or counter system, in which you can stop an opponent’s attack and counterattack by doing a certain input. The problem is that that you have to do the RIGHT input. As with most fighting games, DOA uses 3 hit levels for attacks: High, Mid and Low. If your opponent throws out a high attack, you can counter it by pressing diagonal up and back along with the hold button (usually X on ps3 and A on 360). Good so far? Just wait… If they throw out a low, you press diagonal down and back and the hold button. For a mid attack, press back plus hold. If your opponent throws out a mid kick, not a punch, but a kick, you press forward and the hold button. These are 4 options in which you have to guess to avoid taking damage. Not only do you have to guess what hold to counter with when your opponent attacks you, you are also able to pull off these holds during combos as long as you’re being hit while touching the ground. This means that even though you might be setting up massive damage in a combo, if your opponent guesses right, they can stop your combo and you take damage. You also have to deal with what is referred to as “the triangle system.” The triangle system is basically a form of rock, paper, scissors in which Strikes beat Throws, Throws beat Holds and Holds beat Strikes. This leads to even more guessing. When you add Offensive Holds (holds which go through strikes) from all the game’s grapple (wrestler type) characters, the game’s fighting system just starts to seem like a huge mess. Tekken Tag Tournament 2 wins.

The Winner: We’ll call it a draw.

While guessing, or “making reads” as the fighting game community tends to call it, is a part of every fighter to a certain extent, DOA in my opinion, relies on guessing much too heavily. The fact that if I do a combo on someone and they just happen to guess the correct counter hold to an attack I’m throwing out, leaving me at a disadvantage and unable to retaliate, is kind of wonky. Yes, you have to guess at times in Tekken, but it’s really only in one particular situation: getting off the ground.

Knocking people down is monumentally important in Tekken games. After a knockdown, you are able to pressure the opponent by throwing out an attack while they’re grounded. The flip side is that the opponent has “wakeup” options, as well. Because of the “crush” system (which is in both DOA and Tekken), if the opponent wakes up with a low, something like a jump kick will usually beat that attack. Most of the time, this results in getting launched all over again. The difference with DOA is that you must guess correctly all the time. Not just when on the ground or pressuring a grounded opponent.

Does all this guessing make DOA 5 a bad game? Absolutely not. It’s just not a game that I would want to play seriously and learn all of its intricacies. There is a competitive DOA scene out there, but it’s a pretty small one. One has to wonder if this is because DOA is considered by the majority as “unbalanced,” or if DOA players just have it figured out and the rest of us aren’t smart or good enough to play it. Depending on whom you asked, you’d probably get both responses.

Mortal Kombat is the first fighting game that I ever decided to learn and master. I had a lot of fun over the past year and a half with my experience playing the game, but it’s time to move on. Shortly before I competed at Final Round in Atlanta, I started to get into Tekken 6. I even considered entering it, along with MK9 and Soulcalibur V, but decided instead to focus only on MK. Now that MK has begun to die down, I believe I’ll just stick to my guns and continue on with Tekken Tag Tournament 2. DOA is a great and very deep game which I will continue to play on the side, but it’s definitely not for everyone. It’s most certainly not a game I would want to play on a tournament level.

My overall scores for the games: Dead Or Alive 5 – 7.5 Tekken Tag Tournament 2 – 9.0

-Josh

Clone Wars Interviews

News-A-Rama has three short video interviews with the three Jedi leads on The Clone Wars. Though there's nothing really revelatory here, it's good to see the three of them showing their enthusiasm for the about-to-start-its-fifth-season animated show.

Matt Lanter Interview

James Arnold Taylor Interview

Ashley Eckstein Interview


Less than three days to the premiere!

 - Nic

The Avengers Impressions

Tomorrow (Sept 25th), The Avengers arrives on Blu-ray to the delight of  millions of people. In light of this...and in light of the fact that we never did one...I thought now would be a great time to offer my informal review/impressions of the wildly successful superhero ensemble movie directed by TV's Joss Whedon.

Warning: Past this point there be spoilers.





Of all the films I saw this summer, all of them were enjoyable, quality entertainment. And given that they were so different from each other in terms of story, tone, and style, it's not really possible to compare them. But, I can say that out of all of them, I enjoyed The Avengers the most. Here's why.


The Fun
I've always been a fan of movies and TV shows that have a sense of fun about them. Perhaps it's because I cut my media watching teeth (that's a weird image, if you think about it) on properties like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Back to the Future. While each of those had their heavy moments, they also had a general air of fun about them. Old Jedi masters hitting droids with sticks, archeologists cracking wise while cracking whip, and time-traveling teenage guys kissing their teenage moms without vomiting. I've noticed that this sense of fun often comes at the expense of some realism. Just think about it. Were these characters really in these situations, their more realistic responses would probably be less fun to watch (indeed, if someone really traveled through time and kissed his mom, would he not at least get sick to his stomach if not full on ralph right there).

This summer we had two major superhero movies (sorry Spiderman, you're too soon of a reboot in my eyes). Both I found to be excellent and enjoyable, but only one I found to have that sense of fun. The other, while a fine film, is not a motion picture I would describe as "fun." ("It was such a fun moment when Bane was beating the mess out of Batman in the sewer. And the part when the military wouldn't let Blake save those kids...awesome!" Yeah, that doesn't sound right.) And note that in describing it people often talk about its sense of realism.

There is a time for everything. I'm glad TDKR is the film that it is. The 'realistic' take on Batman has made for a great trilogy of films. But I'm also very glad that Marvel continues to imbue its films with a sense of fun.

Much of the credit for the fun in The Avengers in particular is due to writer/director Joss Whedon. While he has been known to avoid fun like the plague at times (the 6th season of Buffy, the last two seasons of Angel, etc.), by in large he's a guy who knows how, and is inclined, to include levity into what he produces. Fortunately, he was true to form with this film. From dialogue (his responsibility as a writer), to pacing and delivery (his responsibility as a director), The Avengers is a movie that will make you smile.

Of course, a lot of credit must also go to the actors (and the CG artists for The Hulk). The script gives each one of our leads a chance to shine in the fun department, but it is up to the actors and actresses to realize that potential. And they deliver in spades. From deadpan moments ("He's adopted"), to subtle ones (Steve slipping Fury a ten), to more direct ones ("Doth mother know you weareth her drapes?"), to slapstick (The Hulk), it all works wonderfully.

After the film premiered and from its opening weekend made insane amounts of money, The Avengers related images started popping on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. One of my favorites was of the four principle actors (Downey Jr., Evans, Hemsworth, and Ruffalo) pointing intimidatingly at the camera. The fan-added caption was, "Your move, Batman." You know, why am I describing it to you? This is the stinking Internet. Here's the picture.



It made me smile that a fun movie was doing so well, and that there were others out there who felt the same. (I'm assuming people liked that photo for that reason. But I guess it could be that they were fueled by Batman or DC hate.)


The Story
Sometime ago there was a 'meme' going around where you take film and succinctly and without passion describe its plot. I think it was popular because even great films sound incredibly boring and/or stupid when described that way. ("A farm boy joins forces with an old man, a smuggler, and his large dog in order to destroy a large weapon." Or take the sequel: "A farm boy turned war hero unwittingly kisses his sister, who later kisses a smuggler. The boy then has a fight with his dad." Or take the third installment: "Gold bikini." Ok, that last one still sounds fun to a lot of folks).

Let's do that with The Avengers:
A group of people (a strong man, a rich guy with a robot suit, a long-haired alien, an angry man, a bow hunter, and a spy) working for the government must stop arguing and come together to stop the long-haired alien's adopted brother from using a stolen block to destroy a city and maybe conquer Earth with a borrowed army of ugly monster aliens.

Sounds kind of silly, doesn't it? Boy, that was fun.

But I think the 'meme' also points out something very interesting about the films/shows/novels that we enjoy. While the general story certainly matters, the magic is usually found in the details—characters, dialogue, nuances in plot, pacing, visual and audio design (except in novels of course). The Avengers typifies this very well. It's the interactions between characters, the memorable bits of dialogue, the iconic design of our heroes, the stirring music of Alan Silvestri, the individual journeys of the characters, etc. that make all the difference.

A little bit on that last point. Most of the main characters have their own mini-growth arcs. Steve Rogers is assimilating into the 21st century. Tony Stark has to conquer his ego and learn how to work well with others. Bruce Banner has to demonstrate to himself that he really can control the Hulk. Black Widow has to let go of the guilt of her past. Hawkeye has to stop being controlled by Loki (ok, that one is more of a major plot point). Nick Fury has to finally and fully put his faith where his heart knows he should (i.e., The Avengers) regardless of personal consequences. And that man over there has to beat his Galaga addiction. It's those things that take what is otherwise a fairly straightforward story into something more engaging.


The Style
I think in many of my reviews, I'll have a section like this where I give my take on some of the nuts and bolts features of any film.

-  Story: Already talked about it.
-  Dialogue: On the whole, very good I felt. All the characters were given their proper 'voice,' and the words flow naturally most of the time.
-  Acting: Everyone nailed it.
-  Editing and Pacing: Everything was good here, I thought. It wasn't rushed, nor did it drag anywhere for me. The action scenes were kinetic, but not spastic. The 'tender' moments were given the screen time they needed.
-  Music: I'm a huge Alan Silvestri fan. I think he's one of the best composers working today. Though this wasn't my favorite score of his (the BTTF scores still hold that spot), I thought it was good. There weren't any cues that jumped out at me during the initial viewing (the way, say, The Asteroid Field did in ESB), but the main theme is very nice. It's simple, especially in comparison to the great movies themes of the past, but it is effective. You just can't beat a good french horn lead.
-  3D: This was a post-production 3D conversion, rather than being shot in 3D (like TRON: Legacy). Conversions are a mixed bag. One might even call them a box of chocolates. You know....cause you never...know.....what you're gonna get. Ahem, anyway, converting a 2D movie to a 3D movie is a little bit of science and a whole lot of art. It takes talented people to do such work. I've been fortunate, in that I've seen four 2D to 3D converted films (The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, The Phantom Menace, and The Avengers), and they've all been done well. I saw The Avengers in IMAX 3D, so I had a very good look at it. There were a few places where I could tell it was a conversion (at the time I only suspected it, as I did not then know whether it was shot in 3D or converted). But on the whole, it was very well done. My wife is afraid of heights, and the fight on the carrier with Iron Man, Cap, and some goons made her very uncomfortable. So...mission accomplished I guess.


What I Didn't Like
This is The Inner Dorkdom, where we like things. But that doesn't mean we think everything we like is perfect. There were a few things about the film I either didn't like, or thought could have been done in a way that would have been more satisfying...at least for me.

I start with the villains. Loki already had a film wherein he was introduced and explored. As a result, although there are a few gaps, we as an audience already understand his motivations pretty well. (Although I was a bit surprised by the menacing off-kilter demeanor he shows here, as it was a change from the more cool and calculating vibe he gave in Thor.) So I'm not talking so much about him as I am the other villains. The vulturri, or the hibachi, or the cardigans, or whatever they were called. We know little about them, other than they want the Tesseract, and are willing to make a deal with Loki to get it. (Incidentally, here's a bit of 'fridge logic' I had: Ok, so Loki comes through a wormhole to Earth to get the Tesseract. The impression I got was that the wormhole was created by the Tesseract. So, why couldn't the krelshie come through and get it themselves? Why did they need Loki to do it? Maybe I just missed it.) We figure these aliens are bad news, as they support Loki's desire to conquer Earth. But beyond that, they are a total stinkin' mystery. The teaser at the end of the film suggests they'll get their exposition in the next Avengers film. But I wonder if a bit more of that in this film would have made it that much more satisfying.

Second, the "let's bicker in the woods" scene. Don't get me wrong, I found the scene enjoyable, and it setup the idea that these heroes won't just come together and be like all BFFs and stuff. But the logic of it seemed a bit strained to me. Why would Stark go after Thor? According to him he, unlike everyone else, did his homework. You'd think that would include at least some info on Thor. So why would he fight him, especially if that meant leaving Loki unguarded? On my second viewing I noticed Stark's justification: it doesn't matter if Thor is good, if he takes Loki there's no clue where the Tesseract is. No offense to anyone, but this seems a bit weak to me. Why would Stark think Thor would just take Loki and leave the people of Earth in the lurch? In his earlier time on Earth, the Norse god demonstrated a strong concern for Earthlings, so for him to take Loki and leave wouldn't make sense. But on a positive note, I can't help but wonder if this scene was also setting up certain ways these three can work together, ways that aren't paid off in this film but might in future installments (Thor can charge up Tony's suit, Thor's hammer + Cap's shield = impressive shockblast).

Third, the "let's all bicker on the boat" scene. Don't get me wrong, I understand the need for the scene. And by in large I thought it was pretty good. Steve would be annoyed by Tony's showboating attitude. Tony would be annoyed by Steve's boy scout attitude. Bruce would be on edge about the whole 'you made a cage for me' thing. Nick would be flustered at these guys attributing to him bad motives and/or the worse judgment in the history of mankind, apparently. But there were a couple of moments where it felt a little forced to me. The standout one for me was when Thor, who'd been pretty level headed up until this point, chimed in with something to the effect of, "You humans are so puny." Whaa? Where'd that come from?

Fourth, the politics of the whole "we were making weapons with the Tesseract" subplot. I thought the buildup, i.e., the hinting that S.H.I.E.L.D. was up to something fishy, could have been executed better. In particular, it felt a bit forced and stumbling. For example, why would Banner have thought Loki's "a warm light" comment was meant for Stark? I'll grant that Banner could have surmised that Loki had learned some things about S.H.I.E.L.D. activity, like them trying to use the Tesseract to make clean energy, from Hawkeye and Selvig. Banner might even have speculated that they told him that Stark, who wasn't working with them, was involved in clean energy research. But why would Banner think that Loki was trying to tell Stark something? That is, unless it was to get him to turn on S.H.I.E.L.D., in which case he'd clearly be baiting him (which appears to be exactly what he was doing) and they'd be wise not to bite. Then, aside from the buildup, there's the unanimity of their opposition to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research, and the way they express it. Steve lived before the atom bomb, so I don't see it as a foregone conclusion that he'd be on the anti-nuke train that's popular in some circles in 2012. Tony having a problem with it is totally believable and expected, but the way he objected didn't add up. He said sarcastically that the whole 'have weapons of mass destruction as a form of deterrent' thing has worked out so well in the past. Granted it hasn't been absolutely flawless...but, yeah Mr. Stark, it actually has worked well in the past. The Cold War ended without a single nuclear strike. I would think that a guy whose business used to be weapons would know that. Again, I'm not saying he'd be in favor of what S.H.I.E.L.D. had done. It just seems to me he'd have a better objection. And finally, after the ambush on the carrier, when Steve is trying to 'rally the troops,' he comments that Nick Fury has the same blood on his hands that Loki does. Now, I'm no expert on Captain Steve Rogers. But it seems to me that a man from the 1940's wouldn't look at things that way. Nick Fury had not killed those 80 people in two days, Loki had. Certainly Fury's actions were a link in the chain of events they found themselves in, but he didn't kill those people. Back in Steve's day personal individual responsibility was something people emphasized. And they weren't post-modern in their thinking either. So although I can definitely see Steve acknowledging that Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s actions contributed to the choices Loki had made, I can't see him blaming Loki's atrocities on anyone else but Loki.

And lastly, there's the matter of Bruce's inconsistent, in my view, ability to control The Hulk. From the first time we see him, the focus is on not making him angry (we wouldn't like him if he were angry). Folks seem to be preoccupied with walking that fine line with him. And he doesn't shy away from reminding us how dangerous and unpredictable "the other guy" can be. Then the attack on the carrier goes down, and sure enough, Dr. Banner loses it and the Hulk nearly kills Black Widow. Then, as the battle in New York starts up, suddenly all that is different. Bruce tells them that his secret is that he's always angry, and then, at will, transforms into the Hulk and takes orders from Cap just like the rest of them. In the words of the great philosopher Goofy, "som'th'n wrong here." It looks to me like there's a missing step in there. Perhaps the answer would have been found in a scene that ended up on the cutting room floor.

But these things weren't enough to in any way ruin the movie for me. As I say, it was my favorite film of the summer, and I look forward to more movies set in the Marvel universe.

Feel free to comment!

 - Nic


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I Am Not A Crook

So, almost none of you know this, but for a few months now I've been working on my own set of stories, set in my own fictional universe. I'm trying to blend some of my favorite genres (science fiction, fantasy, and a few more) into something that I hope will be original, entertaining, fun, and even thought provoking.

At this point, many of my characters will wield bows. One of the main female protagonists, herself a bow wielder, I'm currently envisioning wearing an outfit of green and brown.

So JJ Abrams and Jon Favreau come out with the show "Revolution" wherein the female lead, a bow wielder, looks like this:

Great, now  people will think I'm just ripping off an NBC show.

Thanks a lot McFlares-A-Lot and Happy Hogan!

 - Nic


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And So We Begin Again

Ok folks, it’s here! TV show premiere week. Although there have been a few already, and a few stragglers will be coming in the next few weeks, this is the week that majority of new shows are premiering, and existing shows are returning with new episodes. Given that we are only three guys, and we don’t have the time or inclination to watch some of those shows (I’m looking at you, The Mob Doctor), we won’t be reviewing every episode of every show. However, the shows that we watch regularly, we will hopefully review regularly.

My hope is that beginning today we can turn over a new leaf here at The Inner Dorkdom. We know, because we’re nerds and users of the Internet ourselves, that what folks want is regular content. And that’s something we clearly haven’t been providing.

Here’s my pledge: This far, no further! The line must be drawn here!

Some of the shows I personally intend to cover: Castle, The Big Bang Theory, The Clone Wars, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Voltron Force (when it returns), TRON Uprising (when I get caught up on what I’ve missed), and Transformers Prime (when I get caught up on what I’ve missed). Hopefully there will be more.

So, until tomorrow at the latest, I remain…

 - Nic

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!!! If The Man In Black On Lost Had No Clean Clothes One Day AndBorrowed A Shirt From Jacob, Would He Still Be "The Man In Black"?Huh? !!!

Wow, my trip to "The Island" was great. I found Jack's rotting corpse, didn't press the button in "The Swan" station, and successfully extinguished that annoying bright light in that cave because it was keeping me up at night. It was a great vacation and I have to say that "The Smoke Monster" is really quite nice when you get to know him. I have missed everyone and I hope to keep up the pace I set before on this site and bring you all great stuff going on in the world of entertainment. I can only explain my recent absence as a result of a time displacement anomaly that caused me to become unstuck in time and then chased for hours by "The Others". Luckily, I was rescued by "The Doctor" in the Tardis and given an Ood for my trouble (not sure what to do with the Ood). Unless I need to assist in a new war with the Daleks I should be back for the foreseeable future. We have lots of stuff to catch up on and I'm going to give it a go starting this weekend. I hope to have a book review, a movie review, Marvel news, video game reviews, and my thoughts on the Wii U (it's complicated). So stick around and hold on to your butts, because I'm making this up as I go along.

Todd "I Visited The Lost Island And All I Got Was This Lousy Ankh" B.

(Hasn't everybody secretly dreamed of a fanfic between Lost and Dr. Who? What? Nobody?.... Wow, what planet are you people from? Sheesh!!)

Avengers Re-Assemble!

Just in case you didn't know, The Avengers is returning to theaters this Labor Day weekend. We're definitely going to try and see it again.

Ok...that's all I got.

 - Nic


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An Overview of Christopher Nolan's Batman Trilogy

Disclaimer: Sorry about the lack of spaces that may be present in this article. For some reason, the blogger program messes up sometimes and removes them when I post from my phone. Also, watch out for MAJOR SPOILERS below!!!

Batman. Who doesn’t love Batman? Well, I’m sure there’s somebody out there that just absolutely hates the Caped Crusader, but that ain’t me. Of all superheroes, Batman has always,by far,been my favorite.

On opening weekend,The Inner Dorkdom saw Christopher Nolan’s final installment of his Batman trilogy,The Dark Knight Rises… and we were,and I speak for all of us, pretty much blown away. Not sure how Todd feels on this,but it is probably mine and Nic’s favorite of the Nolan trilogy.

The first film in the trilogy,Batman Begins, did a lot for Batman as a character. For the first time on the big screen,we were finally treated to a version of Batman that was nearly perfection in comparison to his comic book counterpart. No more nips on the batsuit,no more tilted camera angles that attempted to mimic the old ‘60s Adam West show,no more ‘Ah-nold.’ Just Batman… well… mostly Bruce Wayne. And here lies the most identifiable difference between the comics and the Nolan films: Identity.

In the comics,there is no question that Batman is the true personality and Bruce Wayne is just a costume that Batman wears in public. Batman is a personality that is, even in adulthood,still haunted by the death of his parents,leading him to be a cold,calculating individual with a one-track mind for catching crooks. Sounds weird, huh? Well,in all honesty,Batman’s a weird guy,but I think that’s the magic behind what makes the character so intriguing. The Nolan films use a different take on this in that Bruce (Christian Bale) doesn’t exactly want to be Batman forever (hey,wasn’t that a movie?). Batman is never really played up as the true identity of the man. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing,it’s just different. It’s almost as though Bruce’s desire for vengeance is over by the end of Batman Begins. Other than wanting to maintain peace in Gotham City,that’s pretty much where it ends for him. Having the main personality being Bruce Wayne,and the way Nolan depicts it,is actually quite interesting.

With that being said,Batman Begins is actually MORE interesting when Bruce isn’t in the batsuit. All the stuff where Bruce is training with Ducard/Ras Al-Ghul (Liam Neeson),having flashbacks in which he is determined to take revenge for his parents directly by killing Joe Chill,or his many scenes with Alfred (Michael Caine) and Lucious Fox(Morgan Freeman) all make Bruce an extremely interesting character in contrast to the bat-crazy/insane (hehe) Batman of the comics. Not that I have anything against his comic portrayal,as I find both equally interesting.

The second film,The Dark Knight,is however,BATMAN’S film. Well,it’s also the Joker’s (Heath Ledger) film,but I think a lot of people lose sight of just how much is going on with Batman/Bruce Wayne. Bruce has his sights on Gotham’s new District Attorney,Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) because,quite frankly,he’s in love. No,not with Harvey Dent! In Begins,Bruce is given a love interest in the form of his childhood friend,Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes),who at the end of the film tells Bruce that she can only be with him when he stops wearing the tights. At some point in the year between Begins and The Dark Knight,Rachel has plastic surgery which makes her look like Maggie Gyllenhaal and starts dating Harvey Dent. With an almost sense of single-mindedness,Bruce attempts to recruit Harvey to take his place. Not as Batman, but as Gotham’s law abiding,non-vigilante protector. This will give Bruce the opportunity to hang up the cape and cowl, start a relationship with Rachel and live happily ever after… That is,until the Joker shows up.

Like most people,it is my belief that Heath Ledger gave the absolute best portrayal of the Joker ever seen; not only in the films or television,but within the comics as well. The Joker in this film is not the typical clown/mastermind as seen in previous media; instead,he is a representation of anarchy itself. The Joker allies himself with the mob bosses and crime lords of Gotham City not because he wants to get rich,but simply because he enjoys causing havoc; particularly for Gotham’s protector.

I also love Aaron Eckhart’s Harvey Dent/Two-Face. The transition from potential hero to enraged villain is done exceptionally well. My only complaint is that **SPOILER** Nolan decided to kill him off at the end of the movie. This seems to be a trend in Nolan’s Bat-verse: The primary villain always dies. Well, except for the Joker. Here’s something to think about: What exactly DID happen to the Joker at the end of TDK? Last we see him,he’s strung up, laughing maniacally and waiting for the cops to come get him. Did he get away? Did he get thrown into Arkham Asylum? Did he fall to his death? We’ll never know,I suppose. One thing I’ve always thought is that there might have been more scenes toward the end of the film involving the Joker,but due to Heath Ledger’s death, they were either never filmed,or not completed. Who knows?

Unlike most people,I don’t think that The Dark Knight hung the moon. I think it’s a great film and it borrows elements from one of my favorite Batman graphic novels, The Long Halloween (Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale),but it’s not,in my opinion,the epitome of film greatness. The movie is,and I’m no film editor,cut very strangely. The Dark Knight tells a big story in 240 minutes,so in order to fit such a grand tale into a movie,quick cuts must be made. While this would seemingly quicken up the pace,it feels as though it slows it down. There are several points throughout the film that I felt would’ve been more impactful had the camera lingered just a bit longer than it actually did. Some of the scenes at the beginning of the film are a prime example of this. I remember sitting in the theater watching it for the first time and thinking,“This thing is gonna go on forever!” But after having watched it multiple times since it’s Blu-Ray/DVD release,the pacing seems to work much better. The same thing basically happened to me with Revenge Of The Sith. And now that just happens to be my favorite Star Wars film. (And on that note,a lot of people leave the site because they disagree so strongly with that statement.)

**SPOILER ALERT!!**

Now that all those people are gone because they think that ROTS is a terrible movie, let’s get into The Dark Knight Rises. Like I mentioned earlier,this is probably my favorite of the trilogy. Until some of the latter trailers,I really wasn’t interested in the plot elements that were being presented. Bane as the main villain? Catwoman? Both of these characters have never really interested me that much in the comics. I dug the whole Knightfall comic storyline back in the day,which introduced Bane,but he was portrayed more as just a really strong bad guy (when he took his drugs) that had enough fighting knowhow to take Batman down. Catwoman,just never appealed to me. I’m also not one to read spoilers on the internet,so I had no idea of the measures that were being taken with the plot of the movie.

Then Todd explained some of it to me.

After he told me that the movie takes place 8 years after TDK and Batman hasn’t been around since then,I was sold. The idea that Harvey Dent’s death,the loss of Rachel Dawes and the havoc of the Joker just ran Bruce down was extraordinary.

The Dark Knight Rises proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Nolan trilogy is about Bruce Wayne,not Batman. It’s about a man who does what he does because he has to rather than because he wants to. When he’s called upon,he answers,unlike the Batman of the comics that goes on nightly patrols,searching for crime to bust.

I think Nolan’s main point with TDKR (and the entire trilogy,for that matter) is the fact that one man can only do so much. In the comics,one of Batman’s major villains either escapes,or is released from Arkham on a month to month basis. While this makes for good reading,it’s not very realistic. Sure,crime is an ongoing problem in society,but Batman doesn’t exist to do the job of the police by handling domestic disturbances,ATM robbers and the like. He’s there to take down threats that are too large for the cops to handle. Threats like the Joker,Two-Face,Ras Al-Ghul/The League of Shadows and Bane/Talia/The League of Shadows. If those threats existed in the real world with that amount of frequency,there probably wouldn’t be a whole lot of people left living in Gotham!

**HERE ARE THE MAIN SPOILERS!! IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THE DARK KNIGHT RISES YET,STOP READING!!********************* ****************************** ***************

The Dark Knight Rises sees Bruce/Batman face his largest threat yet: Gotham’s total annihilation. Basically,the gist of the movie is Catwoman/Selena Kyle (Anne Hathaway) shows up,Bane (Tom Hardy) shows up and threatens the city,a GCPD cop named John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) convinces a retired Bruce to become Batman again, Bane breaks Batman’s back and puts him in a hole while he terrorizes the city with the threat of a nuclear bomb,Bruce has to let his back heal,Bane lets loose the criminals of Gotham and cuts off the entrances/exits to the city by blowing up all its bridges (except one),Bruce heals and climbs out of the hole,Bane is revealed to be an exiled member of The League of Shadows and is working for Ras Al-Ghul’s daughter Talia, Batman returns to the city and defeats Bane,takes the nuclear bomb out into the ocean to let it detonate (“Sometimes you just can’t get rid of a bomb!”),seemingly dies,and turns over the mantle of The Batman and the bat-cave to John Blake, who’s birth name turns out to be Robin. Whew!

Oh and Bruce lives,by the way. Don’t get scared.

I left out a lot of the details,but that’s the general idea of the film. All in all,it was a fitting and satisfying end to a great superhero trilogy that was,in my opinion, much more efficiently executed than The Dark Knight. Will there be a sequel featuring John Blake as the new Batman? I doubt it. It’s more likely that Warner Bros. will reboot the franchise using a different director’s take on the material. I think this is an extremely bad idea,but it’s,of course, not my call to make. I’d rather see this new version of Batman and what his character could bring to the table. Plus,I thought Gordon-Levitt’s character was one of the most interesting in the film. Seeing him as Batman could potentially take the series in a really cool,interesting new direction.

That about does it for this overview of Chris Nolan’s Batman films. I’ve seen and heard a lot of people criticizing the films (particularly the newest) for taking certain liberties with the comic source material, but this is not the comics. Comic Batman is not Nolan Batman. This is an entirely different take on the character,just like Frank Miller does his own take with his Batman within the comics he authors. Nolan has done an excellent job of bringing Batman to the big screen and grounding him in reality. Not only did this help the Batman franchise remain relevant, but it also increased the relevancy of movies such as The Avengers and comic book based movies in general.

I realize that I didn’t spend a ton of time on the newest film,but I’m not very good with straight up movie reviews. If you want the official Inner Dorkdom review,Todd has written a great one up that should be available a few posts below this. Also,a cousin and friend of Nic’s did a pretty great review which should be the post directly below this one.
Hope you enjoyed it!

-Josh