Paddling in a Cyberlake
[Most Recent Entries]
[Calendar View]
[Friends]
Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in
duckroll's LiveJournal:
[ << Previous 20 ]
| Thursday, July 17th, 2008 | | 4:38 pm |
Xam'd: Lost Memories
In a surprising turn of events, Sony Computer Entertainment, Aniplex and BONES have collaborated to present the first PSN Exclusive animation series. Xam'd: Lost Memories is currently only available on the North American Playstation Network Video Store, at 2.99 USD for a Standard Definition rental, and 3.99 USD for a High Definition rental. Both rentals are valid for two weeks from the point of purchase, but will expire 24 hours from the moment you start playing the file. Since I'm a huge fan of BONES, I went ahead and rented the first episode in HD. Clocking at 1.5 gig, the 24 minute 1080p episode with 5.1 sound is possible the best digital rental that I have ever seen in terms of pure quality. Too bad it only lasts for a day. ( So anyway, let's check out episode 1 ) Current Mood:  satisfied | | Wednesday, March 5th, 2008 | | 1:23 am |
Soma Bringer Review
I haven't posted in ages, but I'm still alive! Anyway, Soma Bringer finally came out on the DS last week, and I've been giving it lots of attention. It's nice to finally have a new game with Mitsuda music, a Soraya script and Takahashi taking charge of the project. It turned out way better than I expected too, so yay! I wrote a review, so I thought I would share it here too. ( Read more... ) Current Mood:  cheerful | | Thursday, May 17th, 2007 | | 1:26 am |
Xbox360 reliability woes...
So I guess it had to happen some day... After 8 months of hard work, my Xbox360 has finally found itself accepted into the Dead 360s Gentlemen's Club. All I was doing was downloading a XBLA game too, so it's really kinda random. I'm mostly mad at the hassle it's going to cause me to get it sent for repairs and and then monitoring when it comes back. Oh well... In other news, just as I'm more or less done with Grim Grimoire, my local store tells me Odin Sphere is in! They got the preorder artbook too, I'm so happy. Grim Grimoire was really fun and pretty excellent for a console RTS. Lots of cute designs, great music, a nice story and awesome controls. I'm really looking forward to what Vanillaware can do with Odin Sphere. ^_^ Current Mood:  annoyed | | Monday, April 16th, 2007 | | 2:20 am |
Gurren Lagann Episode 3 wins!!!!!!
Holy crap it's been quite a while since someone has captured that much well timed animation, action, humor, and hot-blooded drive all in a single episode. It was truly impressive to behold, especially since the previous episodes had great moments but mostly stayed within a traditional pacing. In this episode they completely let loose and it's thrilling from beginning to end. The humor and randomness is true to Gainax's style of insanity and it's just one excellent scene after another. What makes it even more surprising is that this is a guest episode by Xebec directors, which really shows how much they've grown in quality and consistancy. :D
Current Mood:  ecstatic | | Saturday, April 7th, 2007 | | 10:16 pm |
| | 11:43 am |
Spring Anime Preview Part 1 (of 2)
Okay so I finally got off my ass and did half of the shows I've seen this season. Expect the rest sometime in the next 2-3 days. Enjoy! :D
Current Mood: content | | Friday, April 6th, 2007 | | 11:18 pm |
Updates to resume really soon!
Some of you might know that I just recently went on vacation to Japan with some friends. It was really cool but now I'm down with the flu. :-(
I've also been keeping up with the Spring anime season that just started this week. There'll be an update really soon covering my detailed thoughts on the new shows this season, and shortly after there should be pics and stories from my vacation. I know I've been neglecting this for a looooong time now, and don't expect the updates to continue forever because I'm so lazy with blogs (or anything lol) but there should be good stuff while it lasts! :D Current Mood:  sick | | Tuesday, August 16th, 2005 | | 11:02 pm |
I wuv Keys!
Thank you so much! Just shoot me an email anytime with the bill! :D  Current Mood:  bouncy | | Monday, August 15th, 2005 | | 10:06 pm |
Returning Soon!
Okay I know I've been completely neglecting this LJ for more than a month... Regular updates will resume soon! I promise! On that note, I've been trying to track down a good complete collection of Wong Kar Wai's movies on DVD. So far I've found the Region-1 WKW Collection release which has As Tears Go By, Days of Being Wild, Chungking Express, Fallen Angels, and Happy Together. I also acquired the In the Mood for Love Criterion Collection and I'm waiting for a Criterion release of 2046. Unfortunately for Ashes of Time I've had no luck finding a remotely decent DVD. Every DVD release in every region seems to be screwed up one way or another, some even worse than others. Anyone know if there's a good European release for the movie maybe? Thanks! ^^; Current Mood:  awakeCurrent Music: Faye Wong - Dream Person | | Monday, June 27th, 2005 | | 10:52 pm |
| | Monday, June 20th, 2005 | | 12:45 am |
| | Friday, June 17th, 2005 | | 12:38 am |
Why the hell did I get..... this?
You are MS DOS. Often seen peeking out from around corners, you are shy but indispensable.
I'm not shy! And now I feel so outdated! ^_^;; On another note: I'm still alive and hopefully will resume updates regularly soon. Soooooon! Current Mood:  busy | | Saturday, May 28th, 2005 | | 11:04 pm |
Namco x Capcom is eating my soul....
I really want to take some time this weekend to write about my final thoughts on Shadow Hearts 2. Unfortunately I picked up Namco x Capcom shortly after I finished it and now I'm hooked on that. Having to read tons of unvoiced Japanese text while playing long strategy-style missions with literally dozens of characters and enemies on the maps at the same time, with each battle being a button-mashing combo-stringing beatemup minigame results in me being rather tired after 1-2 missions. Maybe tomorrow I'll write about SH2 and talk about what I've been watching. Unless Namco x Capcom eats my soul first... ^^;; Current Mood: ObsessedCurrent Music: Subarashiki Shin Sekai - Flair/Yuzo Koshiro | | Tuesday, May 24th, 2005 | | 5:12 pm |
Cellphones can't swim...
I'm a moron. Left my phone in my jeans the night before and threw the entire thing into the wash. Now I think it's dead... Argh. I was just laughing at a friend a few months back for doing the exact same thing, I wanna hang myself now. :( Current Mood:  depressed | | Sunday, May 22nd, 2005 | | 4:29 pm |
My thoughts on E3
Inspired by Tempy's post on his E3 thoughts I felt I should summarized how I felt about what was shown too. I wasn't there either, but these days coverage online is more than enough if you're willing to surf around. :D I'll only be posting my comments on games since I feel hardware debate and criticism is really pointless and the only place for that would be on message boards or IRC where it's just fun random conversation. Gaming should first and foremost be about the games so I'll talk about thost that interest me, on consoles I plan to own or already own. Sorry, no DS here. ^_- Next-Generation StuffPlayStation 3 - Impressive specs, but very little shown that got me excited since they were all trailers and nothing was really playable. Maybe TGS will be more interesting in this aspect, after all the PSP had a really shitty showing at E3 last year too. Xbox360 - Man Microsoft really screwed up all their presentations on this. The impression most people will get is that the system has a bunch of game that don't look too good and those games that do look good won't be released anywhere near launch. That aside, there were some titles that really impressed me:
Chrome Hounds - From Software knows robots well and this game looks just as solid. Promise of network online play and tons of destructable enviroments is a definitely plus.
Gears of War - I'm a big fan of third-person shooters with focus on enviromental interaction and proper aiming. This title from Epic Games looks graphically impressive and the gameplay looks fun as well. Definitely interested in picking this one up.
Kameo Elements of Power - This was only shown behind closed doors but what was shown was indeed graphically impressive. Not too sure about the gameplay though, looks like a dumbed down Beyond Oasis with much more focus on crappy combat. :(
Frame City Killer - Namco's GTA "clone" on the Xbox360. The enviroments are huge and filled with life in the city with NPCs moving around and so on, so it's definitely a good tech demo. Unfortunately the gameplay looks to be absolute crap with bad aiming and dumb close combat. Hopefully they'll actually make the game a playable experience by release instead of just being a pretty tech demo simulating a living city you can shoot around in.
Nintendo Revolution - Hahahaha. Not sure what to say. I'll buy it just because there'll definitely be a Zelda on it in the future. Being able to download and play any old classic for a few is a big plus too (Sin and Punishment PLEASE!), but that aside they didn't really show anything at all... meh. Current-Generation StuffPlayStation 2
Kingdom Hearts II - Looks completely awesome. I loved the first game but it had obvious flaws, but it seems Square Enix really put thought into improving those aspects. The Gummi Ship segments look awesome now, like Panzer Dragoon stages, and the combat and stage design also seems to be greatly improved in the game. Pirates of the Carribean is a big plus, and sort of makes up for the lack of news regarding new worlds (many of the worlds are instead being revisited in different ways) so I'm really hyped for this one now.
Shadow of the Colossus - The game concept itself is something that really appeals to me, sadly the demos shown at E3 seem to imply the game has a long way more to go in development before it can be released. The framerate looks rough and in general it feels incomplete and choppy. Hoping for the best though, since Ico was neat!
Okami - I'm a huge fan of Kamiya (RE2, DMC, VJ) and with him directing this new Clover IP, I'm all there. The game looks stunning in motion and the gameplay seems fun and original. It really goes to show that if you have the right art design and some great original ideas, you don't need to push a system to it's limits to show off awesome stuff. :D
Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence - I *LOVED* MGS3 and this is a godsend. Online play + MG MSX + MS2SS MSX + 3rd Person camera + Peepshow Mode + Demo theatre + Duel mode + more more more = ducky gives Kojima another 60 bucks. ^_^
Xbox
Ninja Gaiden Black - I finished the original Ninja Gaiden and really liked it, it's good to see that they're touching it up and making a "ultimate" version of the game on the Xbox as a send-off before moving on to next-gen. I'm looking forward to the improved difficulty, improved camera and shitloads of new bonus missions, but I hope I don't have to resort to shaming myself by being a Ninja Dog just to complete it! Shouldn't be a problem though, I don't think Ninja Gaiden was all that hard anyway. ^_^
Gamecube
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - Zelda is the reason I started playing videogames, it was the first game I ever got for the NES and I've played every Zelda game I could get my hands on since. This new entry looks really stunning and it continues to evolve as I expect from the team. Old items are given new usage and puzzles continue to look fresh and interesting yet familiar. I can't wait for Winter 2005!
PlayStation Portable
Virtua Tennis - Nothing much to say here, looks as good as it did on the DC, but it's portable. Virtua Tennis is the only sports title I play so I'll be picking this up. I hope they add online play by the time it's out though, I would love to be able to play with friends over the net.
Guilty Gear Judgement - I like Guilty Gear but if as indications show this is based on the Isuka engine I'll be passing. On the other hand if it actually has proper controls for the side-scrolling mode this time and the Versus mode isn't broken, I'll be picking it up. I hope Arc Systems at least adds some new plot elements in the side-scrolling mode since it would be a waste of 20 stages otherwise.
Current Mood: cheerful | | Wednesday, May 18th, 2005 | | 7:52 pm |
Revenge of the Lucas Videogame Movie
Sorry about the lack of updates but I've been kinda caught up in the pre-E3 hype so I've been following the news and feeds instead. ^^; Caught Revenge of the Sith today, and it was okay. Better than the previous two, still feels like a videogame style movie instead of a narrative piece. Tons of pretty CGI but nothing terribly original. Good action sequences, some silly moments as expected. I'm just glad it's all over and I don't have to spend any money on anything Star Wars ever again. So now that it's all over here's how I feel about the entire "saga" in retrospect. Star Wars Episode I: 7/10 - Rather disappointing and terribly unoriginal but some cool fights. Kid Skywalker is annoying. Star Wars Episode II: 6.5/10 - Paced completely like a bad Acclaim videogame and way too long. Lame plot tie-ins and terrible directing on the emotional scenes. Star Wars Episode III: 7.5/10 - Feels more like a Treasure videogame this time, 2 long action packed stages with varients in the action and then it's bossrush all the way to the end. Somewhat entertaining even though there was almost no narrative plot. Star Wars Episode IV: 8/10 - Great adventure sci-fi movie with cool characters and a good mix of action and drama. Star Wars Episode V: 8.5/10 - Han Solo rocks, Darth Vader rocks, Han Solo rocks even more when frozen in rock. Star Wars Episode VI: 7/10 - Ewoks must all die, Leia showing skin is pretty cool, Boba Fett's a loser, Han Solo rocks. Current Mood:  indifferent | | Tuesday, May 10th, 2005 | | 5:16 pm |
Kingdom of Heaven
I caught Kingdom of Heaven last night and it was really good. I know many people who felt the movie was insensitive and/or racist and/or historically incorrect but I really don't understand where they're coming from. It was a solid "epic" action war movie set in the time of the Crusades (the second one I believe) and it was everything I expected from a Ridley Scott movie. The action was excellent and the writing/acting was top notch. As a Catholic myself I can't understand taking offense in the movie unless you're in denial of your own history, as it would be akin to a Germany taking offense in a movie about the horrors of the Nazi regime in WW2. Sure the movie wasn't 100% historically accurate, but what is? The most important thing is the movie did not set up to tell a "moral" or to make a "point" about something controversial, it was simply a movie set in a historical era with really cool designs and it sets out to create an entertaining tale with awesome characters and great action sequences. I go to the movies to be entertained mostly and I definitely was last night. Current Mood: satisfied | | Monday, May 9th, 2005 | | 12:38 am |
| | Sunday, May 8th, 2005 | | 7:50 pm |
Eureka 7
Eureka 7 Episode 4 - Watermelon It seems they've "fixed" the opening animation this time round, and with more effort than just removing the pencil-marking indicating the background cel. Comparison pics attached within. :) As for the episode itself - we have both a foreshadowing of events to come as the high council members of the governing body take a serious interest in the recent turn of events surrounding the Gekkostate and Renton, and a nice introduction to Renton's new life on the Gekko-go. As usual the show is well-written and beautifully animated, and we get a good mix of humor and drama. With the introduction of a potential villain character in the story now and a better understanding that the stakes might be higher than Renton expects, the plot should be headed in very interesting directions very soon. :) ( Read more... ) Current Mood:  moody | | Friday, May 6th, 2005 | | 11:39 pm |
Anime stuff
Trinity Blood really disappointed this week and I'm starting to think it's really too much to hope for Gonzo actually doing two good shows in a season. Speed Grapher on the other hand continues to speed ahead as one of the best new shows this year. ( Read more... ) Current Mood:  sleepy |
[ << Previous 20 ]
|
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
duckroll's journal
happy
giggly