The lights are on
Veteran Member - Level 14
Konami’s cutesy vampire platformer has always been on the peripheral of my gaming radar. I had made a loose connection between the publisher’s iconic monster-mashing action game, Castlevania, but the relation remained tenuous to me until co-worker Kyle Hilliard emerged from the Game Informer vault holding the bright purple Game Boy box for Kid Dracula. More
Konami’s cutesy vampire platformer has always been on the peripheral of my gaming radar. I had made a loose connection between the publisher’s iconic monster mashing action game, Castlevania, but the relation remained tenuous to me until co-worker Kyle Hilliard emerged from the Game Informer vault holding the bright purple Game Boy box for Kid Dracula.
Last night around 2:00am I finished Mass Effect 3 after weeks of dodging spoilers. As the credits rolled I absorbed everything I had done in the final pivotal moments of the game. I also reflected on all the controversy and general hullabaloo that has been stirred up by petitioners and angry fans since the game’s release. I’ve finally caught up on all the drama, and I have to say I’m happy with the ending.
Note: This blog post contains Mass Effect 3 spoilers. More
I’ve finally caught up on all the drama, and I have to say I’m happy with the ending.
Like many of you fine folks, I do everything I humanly can to keep up with all the awesome games continually vying for our attention. Most gamers find no trouble carving out hours upon hours of time to play awesome triple-A releases like Mass Effect 3. Heck, not more than a day passed before the first Mass Effect fans began crying out about the ending of the game. So what are gamers who’ve had a busy couple weeks supposed to do while the masses of gamers organize petitions and raise money in an effort to get Bioware to change the ending? We try to finish the damned thing as quickly as possible without getting anything spoiled. But that can be much easier said than done, especially when you’re me.
Note: This blog post contains no spoilers. More
What are gamers who’ve had a busy couple weeks supposed to do while the masses of gamers organize petitions and raise money in an effort to get BioWare to change the ending? We try to finish the damned thing as quickly as possible.
Something I like to do when I'm tired of listening to metal and video game music independently is listen to 8-bit metal. Surfing YouTube you can find an 8-bit version of nearly everything you've ever heard in your entire life. Don't believe me? Here's an 8-bit version of the Family Matters theme song. Yeah, I told you so. And you thought getting the regular Family Matters theme out of your head was hard. Anyway, something I inevitably do while listening to simplified, NES-esque (NESque?) versions of these songs is to imagine what games, or more specifically, what moments in games they would accompany. Join me, if you will, on this aural adventure. More
Join me as I hypothesize what specific game, genre, or video game moment this 8-bit Metallica should be in.
Last night I finished reading Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the original vampire novel from 1897. My interest in picking up the book was linked directly to the ending of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, my longtime interest in Castlevania in general, and my fascination with classic movie monsters. Discovering his renowned literature via a video game is not likely the way Stoker intended folks to enjoy his novel, but I’m happy I got around to it. Now I’m not only a fan of Castlevania’s iconic last boss, but an enthusiast of Dracula proper. My appreciation of the Count has me thinking he deserves to be more than a recycled enemy. More
I’m not only a fan of Castlevania’s iconic last boss, but an enthusiast of Dracula proper. My appreciation of the Count has me thinking he deserves to be more than a recycled enemy.
If you read my previous blog you know that I was worried about returning to World of Warcraft. I've done it, and now I want to tell you about my first eventful day back in Azeroth. More
If you read my previous blog you know that I was worried about returning to World of Warcraft. I've done it, and now I want to tell you about my first eventful day back in Azeroth.
I've played World of Warcraft on and off since it launched in 2004, but tt's been more 'off' since about two weeks after Wrath of the Lich King's release in November of 2008. The recent release of Cataclysm has me thinking, though. I'm strongly considering resubscribing to Blizzard's stupidly-addictive MMO. But... I'm scared... More
I'm strongly considering resubscribing to Blizzard's stupidly-addictive MMO. But... I'm scared...
As I settled into my seat at the theater last night at midnight, my expectations for Scott Pilgrim vs. the World were high. As a fan of the comics and a lifelong gamer, Edgar Wright had a lot of work to do in order to win me over. No movie has ever made me so happy to be a gamer, and few films transpose the source material to the big screen so faithfully. It’s simply the best video game movie ever made. More
No movie has ever made me so happy to be a gamer, and few films transpose the source material to the big screen so faithfully. It’s simply the best video game movie ever made.
WARNING: Spoilers approachLast night I successfully completed Final Fantasy XIII. After nearly 50 hours of invested game time, I faced off with Orphan, saved Cocoon, and reunited Snow with Serah and Sazh with Dajh. Before the ending credits began rolling I realized I was lacking the sense of elation, of absolute relief and accomplishment, that I have associated with beating past Final Fantasy games. I’ve come to realize that Final Fantasy XIII may be my least favorite game in the series. More
Check out my spoiler filled summary of why Final Fantasy XIII just didn't do it for me.
I love horror. I love horror movies, books, games, and even those stupid Halloween CDs I listened to as a kid. Over the years I’ve been exposed to so much dismemberment, evisceration, and blood splatter that I’ve become desensitized to nearly everything. Horror is like a drug. I keep going back for more hoping to relive the last heart-stopping moment. Most of the time my quest for terror ends in disappointment, but sometimes… even the most hard-boiled horror gamers can be rattled.One such moment was in Silent Hill 3… More
Even the most hard-boiled horror gamers can be rattled by one special moment.
What would you expect to see when you pop in a video game about dolphins? Adorable squeaking sounds? Maybe some rainbows and beach balls? These are all reasonable answers, especially for the Sega Genesis era of sugary, kid-friendly games. Such is not the case for Ecco the Dolphin, however. With Ecco, you’re dealing with f*cking alien tornadoes and time travel. More
Compiling a list of the top 200 games of all time is an undertaking. Favorites are missed, sequels are argued, and friendships are strained. Naturally, some games that I thought would be shoe-ins for the top 200 ended up on the floor of the GI vault, discarded until reconsidered for another list. I chose to scoop up those abandoned titles and pay tribute to them in the form of a list. My list. These are the 10 games I thought should have been in the top 200. More