Yeah it's been over a whole month since PAX Prime 2011. Sorry I didn't post my return way sooner, but 2 things happened:
-There was an Asura's Wrath Scream Booth (pics to prove) where anyone can unleash their inner rage. I tried this on the first day there, and well 2 screams nearly made me lose my voice, so I couldn't speak normally for a good 3 weeks. Yeah it was painful, but it was worth it since I had a bad summer and I want to let it all out.
-College semester started not too long afterwards where I've been hitting the books like mad.
So I won't guarantee you day-to-day coverage of the whole event, but I can give you guys my montage of what I filmed. And don't forget pictures here. So stay tuned and by next week hopefully I'll have the montage on my YouTube channel.
See you all then.
Friday, September 23, 2011
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Preview: PAX Prime 2011
The nights are getting longer, summer’s almost over, and college is right around the corner. But before I bid adieu to this summer, there is one more task I must accomplish: PAX Prime 2011. To be honest, this is my first time attending any convention ever. This event has it all; video-game industry booths marketing their next big titles to the public eye, internet celebrities swimming in a sea of nerds and geeks meeting their fans, panels and concerts ready to rock the day and night away, and many more surprises I’m bound to experience. With my handy photo and video cameras charged and completely free of memory, I’m going to catch just about every minute there. This isn’t a list of games/panels I’ll try to play/watch, but more of a lineup I’m hoping to get a glimpse to see. Here are the games I’m hoping to see while at PAX Prime 2011.
Prey 2 – This is a sequel I was shocked to be announced earlier this year. My hype is iffy at this point. Teetering from hoping to be good, to hoping it won’t be a cash-in title to catch the craze of First-Person Shooters. I’ve been hearing the plot has been going some changes since its announcement. At first, it was gonna set the same time as the first Prey, but now it seems that it’ll take place sometime afterwards, with the main character of the first game interacting with the new protagonist a certain times throughout the story. Sadly Bethesda, the studio backing up Prey 2, will only be showing the game on an hourly basis, which means I’ll have to wait in line to catch 10 – 15 minutes of gameplay. It’s a downer, but that’s better than showing nothing. Hopefully it’ll gain some hype and prove to me it isn’t a cash-in title.
League of Legends: Dominion – This Free-to-Play game created by the same team who made Delta of the All-Stars (DotA) has been getting lots of attention. A friend of mine introduced me to the game 2 months ago, and while it was a bumpy start I found my stride and found 2 potential main-stay characters. Riot Games will be at PAX Prime to not only helm a tournament and handing out free skins for a few champions, but also to show the next game mode in LoL, Dominion. From what I’m hearing this will be a capture-a-territory match where one team must capture a territory from the opposing team, and must defend it from said-team. I’ll definitely give it a shot and ask the developers if my characters will be saved from getting the “treatment” (aka nerfed down).
Bioware – This year’s PAX Prime has Bioware having five booths dedicated to them and I can’t blame them since they have two big titles coming out in the next six months. The first one is Mass Effect 3. This is one of my most anticipating titles, and while it won’t be releasing this year, seeing the game at PAX will hopefully convince me that Bioware needs to leave the game in the oven a little bit longer. Maybe it’s due the fact it’ll have features that can be used through Kinect, Microsoft’s motion sensor for the Xbox 360, and probably are gonna show just how useful it is. Another game that is also in the works is Star Wars: The Old Republic. A Star Wars MMO developed by the same team who started the Knights of the Old Republic franchise that has been in the making for quite some time. This might be the first MMO that I will buy and try it out since it looks like to be different from the rest of the MMOs out there in the market.
Twisted Metal – This pick is on a whim since David Jaffe, the man behind the beloved franchise and creator of another loved title, God of War, will be the keynote speaker for PAX Prime, and not to mention Sony has a few booths, which is ironically next to Microsoft. Ever since its announcement at E3 2010, I’ve been patiently waiting for this next installment. Taking the formula of using a vehicle of destruction and taking out anyone in your path, into a multiplayer with more variety than Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch, smells like a recipe for success. Aiming for that same dark-tone that was in Twisted Metal: Black by making some of the iconic characters more human can a benefiting reward if done properly and with Jaffe at the helm I hope this game won’t fall into the category of suckage. I’m not holding my breath for it to be there, but if it is, I’m going to wreck some carnage.
Dead Island – The zombie genre has been on a roll. It seems like dozens of movies and video games (along with a TV show or two) have been catching the craze, and while its run is staring to dry out, one particular game has been getting a lot of buzz, Dead Island. It takes the First-Person-Shooter aspect of Left 4 Dead, the free-roam sandbox and customizing weapons of Dead Rising 2, and a hint of realism (i.e. a bar-meter where every action you do drains and slowly refills like swing bats or shooting guns), and you get Dead Island. What I like about this game is that not only it puts you an environment that what would like if the zombie apocalypse starts, but you can enjoy this experience with three of your buddies. It’s placed in a very un-expecting booth (Square Enix booth), but if the game is amazing as everyone says it is, I have to see Dead Island for myself to believe it.
Capcom – Let me get out the bad news first, Capcom won’t have Asura’s Wrath nor they probably won’t be talking about any new game, but at least they have plenty of fighting games to have the public to give a shot at. Street Fighter X Tekken will be there to give fans of both fighting games a chance to play. This isn’t anywhere near my radar but I’ll give it a shot to see if I have what it takes to play it. Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 is gonna meet with praise or extreme loathe since this game is set to be released six months after its predecessor, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3. The main reason why is because it’ll have 12 new characters (two who were originally going to be DLC), and a new mode for online, and that’s it. As of now they’ve showed off four characters, and I don’t know if Capcom will be showing off two more at PAX Prime. It’s very likely since the last convention they went to, GamesCom in Europe, introduced two characters there, and with release date approaching, it’ll be unwise to not show off more at PAX Prime. As for everything else, there are two Resident Evil games and Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, but my hype for those games are little to nothing.
I could name a few more, but my time to get ready for PAX Prime is slowly draining and I need to get moving. When I get back I’ll have pictures and videos of my experience. I’ll present the videos in a V-Log like style through my YouTube channel. I’ll see you all when I get back. Laters!
Prey 2 – This is a sequel I was shocked to be announced earlier this year. My hype is iffy at this point. Teetering from hoping to be good, to hoping it won’t be a cash-in title to catch the craze of First-Person Shooters. I’ve been hearing the plot has been going some changes since its announcement. At first, it was gonna set the same time as the first Prey, but now it seems that it’ll take place sometime afterwards, with the main character of the first game interacting with the new protagonist a certain times throughout the story. Sadly Bethesda, the studio backing up Prey 2, will only be showing the game on an hourly basis, which means I’ll have to wait in line to catch 10 – 15 minutes of gameplay. It’s a downer, but that’s better than showing nothing. Hopefully it’ll gain some hype and prove to me it isn’t a cash-in title.
League of Legends: Dominion – This Free-to-Play game created by the same team who made Delta of the All-Stars (DotA) has been getting lots of attention. A friend of mine introduced me to the game 2 months ago, and while it was a bumpy start I found my stride and found 2 potential main-stay characters. Riot Games will be at PAX Prime to not only helm a tournament and handing out free skins for a few champions, but also to show the next game mode in LoL, Dominion. From what I’m hearing this will be a capture-a-territory match where one team must capture a territory from the opposing team, and must defend it from said-team. I’ll definitely give it a shot and ask the developers if my characters will be saved from getting the “treatment” (aka nerfed down).
Bioware – This year’s PAX Prime has Bioware having five booths dedicated to them and I can’t blame them since they have two big titles coming out in the next six months. The first one is Mass Effect 3. This is one of my most anticipating titles, and while it won’t be releasing this year, seeing the game at PAX will hopefully convince me that Bioware needs to leave the game in the oven a little bit longer. Maybe it’s due the fact it’ll have features that can be used through Kinect, Microsoft’s motion sensor for the Xbox 360, and probably are gonna show just how useful it is. Another game that is also in the works is Star Wars: The Old Republic. A Star Wars MMO developed by the same team who started the Knights of the Old Republic franchise that has been in the making for quite some time. This might be the first MMO that I will buy and try it out since it looks like to be different from the rest of the MMOs out there in the market.
Twisted Metal – This pick is on a whim since David Jaffe, the man behind the beloved franchise and creator of another loved title, God of War, will be the keynote speaker for PAX Prime, and not to mention Sony has a few booths, which is ironically next to Microsoft. Ever since its announcement at E3 2010, I’ve been patiently waiting for this next installment. Taking the formula of using a vehicle of destruction and taking out anyone in your path, into a multiplayer with more variety than Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch, smells like a recipe for success. Aiming for that same dark-tone that was in Twisted Metal: Black by making some of the iconic characters more human can a benefiting reward if done properly and with Jaffe at the helm I hope this game won’t fall into the category of suckage. I’m not holding my breath for it to be there, but if it is, I’m going to wreck some carnage.
Dead Island – The zombie genre has been on a roll. It seems like dozens of movies and video games (along with a TV show or two) have been catching the craze, and while its run is staring to dry out, one particular game has been getting a lot of buzz, Dead Island. It takes the First-Person-Shooter aspect of Left 4 Dead, the free-roam sandbox and customizing weapons of Dead Rising 2, and a hint of realism (i.e. a bar-meter where every action you do drains and slowly refills like swing bats or shooting guns), and you get Dead Island. What I like about this game is that not only it puts you an environment that what would like if the zombie apocalypse starts, but you can enjoy this experience with three of your buddies. It’s placed in a very un-expecting booth (Square Enix booth), but if the game is amazing as everyone says it is, I have to see Dead Island for myself to believe it.
Capcom – Let me get out the bad news first, Capcom won’t have Asura’s Wrath nor they probably won’t be talking about any new game, but at least they have plenty of fighting games to have the public to give a shot at. Street Fighter X Tekken will be there to give fans of both fighting games a chance to play. This isn’t anywhere near my radar but I’ll give it a shot to see if I have what it takes to play it. Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 is gonna meet with praise or extreme loathe since this game is set to be released six months after its predecessor, Marvel Vs. Capcom 3. The main reason why is because it’ll have 12 new characters (two who were originally going to be DLC), and a new mode for online, and that’s it. As of now they’ve showed off four characters, and I don’t know if Capcom will be showing off two more at PAX Prime. It’s very likely since the last convention they went to, GamesCom in Europe, introduced two characters there, and with release date approaching, it’ll be unwise to not show off more at PAX Prime. As for everything else, there are two Resident Evil games and Dead Rising 2: Off the Record, but my hype for those games are little to nothing.
I could name a few more, but my time to get ready for PAX Prime is slowly draining and I need to get moving. When I get back I’ll have pictures and videos of my experience. I’ll present the videos in a V-Log like style through my YouTube channel. I’ll see you all when I get back. Laters!
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
August, or as I call it "Sunday"
It’s August, the month where it’ll be very dreadful month for me. For one, after this month I’ll be back into college for the 4th year and get into a degree (AA English), a very good friend of mine will be heading back to Idaho to continue his college run there, and have one last enjoyment weekend when I (hopefully) will be at PAX Prime, one of gaming’s biggest convention where not only nerds like myself get to play games and tourneys, but panels will happen, concerts will be blasting, and game companies will be flocking over there to show their games before the fall/holiday season arrives. So why am I posting all of this on my on-and-off blog?
Since it’s almost half a year since my last English class, I feel like I need to brush up on my writing so when December comes around, I won’t be scrabbling around my room on how to turn my “F” grade to an “A”. So every week throughout this month, I’ll shoot the shoot about whatever’s on my mind, whether it’ll be a subject I have lightly touch upon or something that’s been on my nerves for quite some time. This is an effort for me to get back into writing and to prepare for my next English class so I won’t flunk at a level I’m in. Whether these posts happen between now to next week we will see. Wish me luck and I’ll see you all soon…and not in months this time. :)
-James
Edit: It seems now like just about everyone is on formspring, isn't it? Well I've joined the club, so if you have any questions fire away there.
Since it’s almost half a year since my last English class, I feel like I need to brush up on my writing so when December comes around, I won’t be scrabbling around my room on how to turn my “F” grade to an “A”. So every week throughout this month, I’ll shoot the shoot about whatever’s on my mind, whether it’ll be a subject I have lightly touch upon or something that’s been on my nerves for quite some time. This is an effort for me to get back into writing and to prepare for my next English class so I won’t flunk at a level I’m in. Whether these posts happen between now to next week we will see. Wish me luck and I’ll see you all soon…and not in months this time. :)
-James
Edit: It seems now like just about everyone is on formspring, isn't it? Well I've joined the club, so if you have any questions fire away there.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Surprise!
I'm back from beyond the place called Life. Things have been stale here since my post of the Zombie-Apocalypse story-thing. The reason why is because College was in the way, and something personal in my life was struck upon, so for a good time then, I couldn't write if my life depended on it. In case you missed it below, I posted a review of Evangelion 1.11: You are (Not) Alone for everyone to see and read, and later on (for real this time), I'll write a review of 2.22, which it finally got in the mail and I'm just bubbling in excitement to see. Ta ta for now.
Movie Review: Evangelion 1.11 You Are (Not) Alone
Evangelion 1.11 You re(Not) Alone is the first of the four-movie project made by GAINAX Studios, the same team who worked on the famed TV series and movies of the same name. The project was originally dubbed Rebuild of Evangelion as it’s meant to be a redone of the whole series condensed 4 full-length films w/ plenty of tweaks and new faces, but after watching 1.11 at the rate the movie is going, this might be more of a sequel than a remake. There are plenty of evidences lying around the movie that might stand up to my argument as to whether or not this is a continuation of the one of most popular anime franchises around. Does this movie live up to fan’s expectations and doesn’t alienate its new found fans, or is this just another great anime poorly done for the anime studio’s show pony?
Story
To those who are new to Evangelion might be confused at where this takes place, but as a fan, the movie takes place between Ep. 1 – 6. The movie starts off in a abandoned city of Tokyo-3 for an alien life form known as The Angels (no not the angels of Christian mythology or the Los-Angeles Angels), named the 4th Angel (sorry I can’t remember the name exactly), is approaching the city and even w/ the might of UN’s forces and a N2 mine (Atom Bomb x2) they couldn’t stop it. Meanwhile a young teenage boy name Shinji Ikari is waiting for his pickup in the form of Misato Katsuragi. When the two left un-scathed, Misato takes Shinji to the facility underneath Tokyo-3 known as NERV Headquarters where not only he is met by father (head honcho of NERV) whom he despises, but is ordered to be the pilot of a building-sized mecha call Evangelion Unit-01, aka humanity’s last line of defense against The Angels, even though he never had any kind of training nor never see the mech till now. Scared out of his wits, Shinji doesn’t comply to pilot Unit-01, but after The Angel is directly above the HQ and sees another Eva pilot who can barely stand on her own two feet, he swallows his pride and takes the helm as Unit-01’s pilot. From there on, we are introduced to the ¾ of the main cast who are staying on this crazy train of sadness, pain, and questions of why must Shinji and the other pilot, Rei Ayanami, have to pilot the Evas and stop The Angels at all cost, not to mention character development between Shinji and Misato that was lightly touched upon in the show. Hardcore fans would recognize that there have been changes like the filter that were around in Ep. 1-6 are completely removed to make sure the story is more filled out. They would also see noticeable changes that questions them right up to the end of the movie where the every last scene may give away at where the story is heading. I won’t give it away, but let’s say if you have a hardcore fan as a friend who sees the scene for the first time, they’re gonna gasp in awe of what transpires and will be anxiously waiting for the release of Evangelion 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance.
Presentation
The animation is hard to re-create the imagery that the TV series developed because for its time, it was really great animation that captures the imagery of the Evangelion universe. But that doesn’t mean it sucks in 1.11. In fact I say it’s impressive, if not better, than the TV series. The scene where we see the computer projected synchronization between Shinji and Eva Unit 01 is really good. It’s very well shown than the TV adaptation’s take which it looked like a diagram techno-babble. The highlight goes to the battle between Shinji and the 5th Angel since Gainax had no limitations, the animation of the Angel’s attack is spectacular and made it more menacing than its original form. Music-wise, series composer Shiro Sagisu brings the scenes to life w/ incredible beats a new mixes like Angel Attack. He did a pretty good job on TV and End of Eva, but here, he takes his scorings to a whole new level. It’s just to see these battles and emotional scenes portrayed more incredible thanks to his composing. Since I own 1.11, I only get to listen to the dub, and it’s pretty good there as well. Most of the original cast is all accounted for (Spike Spenser as Shinji, Alison Keith as Misato, Colleen Clikenbeard as Ritsuko, etc.), but w/ one or two replacements. Kensuke is now voiced by Greg Ayres, aka the-man-I-sometimes-mistaken-as-spike, and replacing Wendee Lee as Rei is Briana Palencia. Both actors do spectacular on portraying their roles, but whenever I hear Greg, I’ll always remember him as Kaoru from Ouran Highschool Host Club, and of course Negi from Negima. As for Briana, I have to say she puts a little bit emotion into Rei than Wendee did, which is a plus on my book. We might know what Rei’s fate is, but at least she’ll convince newbies out there that she is more than human.
Writing
The reason why some people hate the TV series and End of Eva is because the production on them quick, so Series Director Hideaki Anno had to make the story as quick as he could back then. Now, he has all the time in the world to flesh out the characters, setting, and plot to be looked over by old and new fans. It was easy to pick on where each scene is taking place since they follow to the TV series to a T w/ new and altered scenes, except for Episode 4 which is good they left it out. In short, cramping 5 episodes into an hour-and-a-half film might not be difficult here, but it’ll be a challenge for 2.22. Some say that the relationship between Shinji and Misato is heavier than the TV series, but I think it’s not escalated into somewhere we see them kiss like how they did in End of Eva. Shinji’s emotion of not wanting to pilot Eva Unit-01 is what drove Misato to show him why he has to stop the Angels to a certain length, and that’s it. Hopefully my theory is correct as the movies progresses.
Final Verdict
Evangelion 1.11: You are (Not) Alone is something both Evangelion fans to watch, and for new comers to see why this series is so popular. The visuals are amazing, the acting is great, the music is fantastic, and the pace is well-thought-out. As a critic, it is well put-together, and it’s something worth watching, but as a fan, you’ll might get confuse on some things like why is the sea red, and why is *spoiler removed*…but hopefully things will be explained in 2.22, 3.0, and 4.0 if they’re gonna call it that. I give it 5 crying-Shinjis out of 5. See you all later in the review of Evangelion 2.22: You Can (Not) Advance.
Story
To those who are new to Evangelion might be confused at where this takes place, but as a fan, the movie takes place between Ep. 1 – 6. The movie starts off in a abandoned city of Tokyo-3 for an alien life form known as The Angels (no not the angels of Christian mythology or the Los-Angeles Angels), named the 4th Angel (sorry I can’t remember the name exactly), is approaching the city and even w/ the might of UN’s forces and a N2 mine (Atom Bomb x2) they couldn’t stop it. Meanwhile a young teenage boy name Shinji Ikari is waiting for his pickup in the form of Misato Katsuragi. When the two left un-scathed, Misato takes Shinji to the facility underneath Tokyo-3 known as NERV Headquarters where not only he is met by father (head honcho of NERV) whom he despises, but is ordered to be the pilot of a building-sized mecha call Evangelion Unit-01, aka humanity’s last line of defense against The Angels, even though he never had any kind of training nor never see the mech till now. Scared out of his wits, Shinji doesn’t comply to pilot Unit-01, but after The Angel is directly above the HQ and sees another Eva pilot who can barely stand on her own two feet, he swallows his pride and takes the helm as Unit-01’s pilot. From there on, we are introduced to the ¾ of the main cast who are staying on this crazy train of sadness, pain, and questions of why must Shinji and the other pilot, Rei Ayanami, have to pilot the Evas and stop The Angels at all cost, not to mention character development between Shinji and Misato that was lightly touched upon in the show. Hardcore fans would recognize that there have been changes like the filter that were around in Ep. 1-6 are completely removed to make sure the story is more filled out. They would also see noticeable changes that questions them right up to the end of the movie where the every last scene may give away at where the story is heading. I won’t give it away, but let’s say if you have a hardcore fan as a friend who sees the scene for the first time, they’re gonna gasp in awe of what transpires and will be anxiously waiting for the release of Evangelion 2.22 You Can (Not) Advance.
Presentation
The animation is hard to re-create the imagery that the TV series developed because for its time, it was really great animation that captures the imagery of the Evangelion universe. But that doesn’t mean it sucks in 1.11. In fact I say it’s impressive, if not better, than the TV series. The scene where we see the computer projected synchronization between Shinji and Eva Unit 01 is really good. It’s very well shown than the TV adaptation’s take which it looked like a diagram techno-babble. The highlight goes to the battle between Shinji and the 5th Angel since Gainax had no limitations, the animation of the Angel’s attack is spectacular and made it more menacing than its original form. Music-wise, series composer Shiro Sagisu brings the scenes to life w/ incredible beats a new mixes like Angel Attack. He did a pretty good job on TV and End of Eva, but here, he takes his scorings to a whole new level. It’s just to see these battles and emotional scenes portrayed more incredible thanks to his composing. Since I own 1.11, I only get to listen to the dub, and it’s pretty good there as well. Most of the original cast is all accounted for (Spike Spenser as Shinji, Alison Keith as Misato, Colleen Clikenbeard as Ritsuko, etc.), but w/ one or two replacements. Kensuke is now voiced by Greg Ayres, aka the-man-I-sometimes-mistaken-as-spike, and replacing Wendee Lee as Rei is Briana Palencia. Both actors do spectacular on portraying their roles, but whenever I hear Greg, I’ll always remember him as Kaoru from Ouran Highschool Host Club, and of course Negi from Negima. As for Briana, I have to say she puts a little bit emotion into Rei than Wendee did, which is a plus on my book. We might know what Rei’s fate is, but at least she’ll convince newbies out there that she is more than human.
Writing
The reason why some people hate the TV series and End of Eva is because the production on them quick, so Series Director Hideaki Anno had to make the story as quick as he could back then. Now, he has all the time in the world to flesh out the characters, setting, and plot to be looked over by old and new fans. It was easy to pick on where each scene is taking place since they follow to the TV series to a T w/ new and altered scenes, except for Episode 4 which is good they left it out. In short, cramping 5 episodes into an hour-and-a-half film might not be difficult here, but it’ll be a challenge for 2.22. Some say that the relationship between Shinji and Misato is heavier than the TV series, but I think it’s not escalated into somewhere we see them kiss like how they did in End of Eva. Shinji’s emotion of not wanting to pilot Eva Unit-01 is what drove Misato to show him why he has to stop the Angels to a certain length, and that’s it. Hopefully my theory is correct as the movies progresses.
Final Verdict
Evangelion 1.11: You are (Not) Alone is something both Evangelion fans to watch, and for new comers to see why this series is so popular. The visuals are amazing, the acting is great, the music is fantastic, and the pace is well-thought-out. As a critic, it is well put-together, and it’s something worth watching, but as a fan, you’ll might get confuse on some things like why is the sea red, and why is *spoiler removed*…but hopefully things will be explained in 2.22, 3.0, and 4.0 if they’re gonna call it that. I give it 5 crying-Shinjis out of 5. See you all later in the review of Evangelion 2.22: You Can (Not) Advance.
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