Blog #1: No duh your PSP won't survive a disaster

So, the first blog in a new system of...restrictions, I guess. Excitement overwhelms me. And the topic is...natural disasters. Great. This article is a stretch, but it works. So, game systems and natural disasters. Fairly obvious to me, but it seems some are stupid enough to think their PSP/PS3/Wii/DS could survive tornados/hurricanes/earthquakes/world blowing up. The article discusses how the DS is more probable to survive a disaster than the PSP, due to the design. (It was at this point that I realized I was supposed to not summarize the article, but kept it anyways.) The PSP has been able to live through things, as can most game systems, but natural disasters? Please, who would believe that? Well...morons I guess. This would be comparable to a guy saying, "Don't worry buddy, you cat will survive being lit on fire and thrown over a clife. He's durable." That would also be stupid. Much moreso though. Okay, so, moral of the story: don't be stupid. Seriously, don't. Otherwise smart people like me will laugh at you. Actually, that entertains me... On second thought, go ahead and be stupid.

What Rock Band Can Help You Do Musically (kotaku.com)

(more kotaku stuff) So you've probably heard of Rock Band. Or Rock Band 2. Or Guitar Hero. Or Audiosurf. Or any music game...meh. Many people have said that playing with plastic "instruments" gives none of the real feel of playing an instrument. Well, that's mostly true. If you played Guitar Hero, and then tried a real guitar, you'll notice there aren't 5 brightly colored buttons that you press. On a real guitar, there are like 200 buttons. For this issue of real vs. fake, Harmonix boss Alex Rigopulos said, "First of all, in Rock Band the singing gameplay is really singing, and the game feedback on the singer’s pitch really does help people become better singers. And while the drumming gameplay isn’t an exact replication of real drumming, it’s certainly a sufficiently close simulation that players develop skills which they can directly apply to real drumming. I am continually seeing people migrate from Rock Band onto real drums naturally." But, as I mentioned before, the guitars are really not similar. Overall, in list of most realistic for instruments: microphone>drums>guitar/bass.

Street Fighter IV controllers (kotaku.com)

(Having not gotten any of my magazines in a while, so...back to articles on kotaku) Okay...heard of Street Fighter IV? Or any Street Fighter game? Or...a fighting game? If you've ever played a fighting game in an arcade, you've most likely seen the button layout and joystick. Those big red buttons that glare so harshly when you lose. Anyways, Street Fighter IV is coming out soon, a game that many are looking forward to. It is similar to the old games, but has a new art style and online play, and is coming out for the PS3 and 360. In case you're one of those arcade-addicts who refuses to play a fighting game without the arcade layout, don't worry. You're in luck (...lack of humor today). In Japan, Hori has developed an arcade controller for SF4, one for the PS3 and one slightly different one for the 360. The 360 one has just 6 buttons, while the PS3 has eight buttons and a turbo that enables 20 presses-per-second button presses....I could make a joke about that, but...meh. The 360 one will cost ¥7,980 (US$89) while the PS3 one will cost ¥9,800 (US$110).

Oh man...so tired (Reviews, part 2)

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...ugh, now I'm really getting tired. See all the z's? That means I'm tired. Ok, Chrono Trigger, for the DS. This was a GREAT game on the Super Nintendo, but then came the PS version, which was just not as good. Chrono Trigger is an RPG about a group of time-traveling adventurers. OH, but see BACK THEN, that was COMPLETLY ORIGINAL. Never been done before. This remake for the DS, is actually true, and great. This is everything the original game had, but slightly more. In a good...great way. The game got an A+, and a Gold Award. Okay, the next game = terrible. Okay, average...but terrible in my opinion mostly because I hate football. (If anyone didn't know that, I'd actually be fairly surprised.) Tecmo Bowl: Kickoff, for the DS, is a remake of (I believe) a SNES game. It was cool at the time, but now...well, short answer: No. Long answer: Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo. To start off with, the game has terrible music. Also, there are unneccesary changes to the game that only worsen it. The game got a C, C+, and B-.

Oh man...so tired (Reviews, part 1)

Ugh...these blog posts are really starting to get annoying. Okay, first up is Valkyria Chornicals. (Hope I didn't talk about these before.) This game is a PS3 exclusive and is a tactical-rpg. If you don't know what that is, sorry, there's nothing to compare this game to. This game is already really unique as it is. This game is praised for being extremely varied, and for it's beautiful visuals. The game combines tactical game play with third person action, with role-playing elements as well. One flaw of this game though is that there can be too much text at certain times, and with a lack of many cutscenes, that can be annoying. The game got an A-, and got the Gold Award. Next, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, another PS3 exclusive. Hearing the word Naruto in here may make some go, "OMGOMGOMGOMG! I LOVES NARUTO!!!!!" but it may also make others go, "LOL! NAURTO IS STOOPID!." I'm perosnally somewhere inbetween the two. This is a fighting game for the most part, but also occasionally an adventure game. The fighting system is fairly intricate, and is pretty fun. The game also has great graphics, and a fairly good story mode. The game got a B.

(Insert creative/funny thing about reviews here) Part 3: The Awesome

Finally, we move on to part 3, the awesome. First up, Prince of Persia. In case you've been living under a blah blah blah blah, then you know who the Prince is. He is arrogant, self-centered, funny, and amazingly acrobatic. Oh, and he also had an emo phase, but let's not talk about that. These games have always had the elements of amazing acrobatic stunts, fighting, and in the recent games, the ability to control time (to an extent). Now, in the new game, you still have all that, except for the time control, but it is all somewhat different. Now, you have a sidecick named Eleka, the Prince is not the same Prince as before, and the battles (all of them) have become thematic and intense events. Overall, the game is really fun, but gets too automated at times. This game got a B, B+, and A-. Finally, the last review for this magazine, RESISTANCE 2. Awesome game! Resistance 2 is from the developers of Insomniac, who created great games like Ratchet and Clank, and is a first-person shooter completly exclusive to the PS3. Now, if you've read some of my previous posts, you might be thinking: "Gadzooks!!! A FPS that Tanner likes???" Or something like that. This game has amazing bosses, and an insanely addictive Co-Op and online mode. Oh, and it also has a competitive mode, but who cares about that? Also, the single-player has epic bosses, which is great, because most FPS' don't have any bosses, which sucks. In addition, there are cool weapons, epic bosses (oops, said that), greatly-designed levels, and a great ending. The game got a A+, A, and A-.

(Insert creative/funny thing about reviews here) Part 2: The Good

Okay, so in part 2 we move on to the good games. First up is Call of Duty: World At War. The game: is fun. Way too similar to Call of Duty: 4, but still fun. But this game has zombie nazis! The single-player of this game is fun, somewhat brutal, and way too difficult at times. Also, the single player just isn't as good as Call of Duty 4's campaign. Also, the multi-player isn't as good as CoD4. It is still a solid game though, most likely worth a rental. That is, unless you're me and don't really like shooters that much. The game got a B, B-, and B-. Next, Sonic Unleashed. This game is definitely the game I have been looking forward to more than anything all year. More than Resistance 2, Fallout 3, Little Big Planet, and Silent Hill: Homecoming. And that's saying a lot. This game is AWESOME. After the flop that was Sonic The Hedgehog 2006, which personally I think could have been a great game if they didn't insist on getting it out so soon, this game is showing that Sonic Team and Sonic are moving ahead, quickly too. This game, using the new "hedgehog engine" has brought new speed to Sonic. Also, a nighttime combat and platforming part is added, using the Werehog (a transformation of Sonic), similar to that of God Of War. This game is divided into 3 parts: Sonic 40%, Werehog 40%, and Hub Worlds 20%. All of these parts are great, but the hub worlds can be annoying at times. Some flaws of this game are a little too much Werehog and a occasional bad camera. The game got a B+.