So hai
【 THE TIME CAPSULE MEME】
THE FANFICTION LOVE MEME
Not much important going on, so let's talk about games because what the hell else do I talk about anyway.
Modern Warfare 2. Honestly... I'm pretty disappointed in the 'controversial' "No Russian" mission (check it on YouTube if you don't know what I'm talking about). There is something undeniably unsettling about it, but somehow it lacks the power that it SHOULD have. Otherwise, the campaign is short but solid-- yes, it's pretty silly when you think about it and the grounded narrative of COD4 was definitely better put-together, but it's got a lot of enjoyable set-pieces and Infinity Ward still does a great job of keeping the player integrated in highly cinematic moments rather than just encouraging passive viewing, so what else do you need, really.
Online multiplayer is still as good as it ever was, and a lot of the perk alterations and balancing issues have been refined this time around. Something I think that makes shooters so much better online than fighting games is that-- and admittedly MW2 is probably the best example of this-- not only is there a lot of flexibility for individual play styles (wanna hide undetected in an elevated spot and pick people off from afar? You can. Wanna dart around the field knifing bitches? You can. Wanna charge in/hang back and shoot/flank/hide in the grass and nail unsuspecting passersby? Absolutely you can.), but there's also a consistent system for REWARDING YOU FOR PLAYING. You get XP points for pretty much anything you can do, which help you level up and grant you access to better stuff, and sticking with individual weapons allows for more flexibility with those weapons (for example, get enough kills with a undermounted grenade launcher? Get a shotgun attachment. Do the same with a silencer? Get a thermal sight).
At the end of the day, there's a clear display that your 4 hours or whatever have actually GAINED you something (immaterial as it might be), while with something like Street Fighter IV you can spend the same amount of time and still have no Battle Points to show for it. Not to mention with some of the same you can easily go a dozen rounds without winning ONCE, whereas in a shooter you're at least guaranteed a few kills.
Also, let's talk about Assassin's Creed 2. Or rather, why you're NOT playing Assassin's Creed 2 when you could be RIGHT NOW GO GO GO. The first game was, to be charitable, 'highly divisive'-- one of those 'love it or hate it' titles, owing to an imperfect design (for the record, I was one of the latter). For the excellent freerunning, there was repetitive gameplay. For its slick, clever conspiracy-ridden story, there were too many overly long cutscenes. For its imaginative hooks, there was that epically bad ending. Well, Ubisoft Montreal definitely learned their lesson and delivered what is absolutely one of the best games of the year.
Everything has been refined and pushed up to 11, and while the open-world gimmick has been lost (somewhat), it makes up for it with a rich, engrossing and wonderfully told story. The framing device is a clever bit of soft science meets Dan Brown, and the story proper set during the height of the Italian Rennaissance is nothing less than a treat-- like "The Count of Monte Cristo" remade for history buffs. Nevermind that so much effort and attention has gone into authentically crafting this point in time as a game that it's easily one of the most beautiful and organic game worlds in years, or that there are plenty of historical figures to meet and greet (Lorenzo de Medici, Catherine Sforza, and fucking Leonardo da Vinci for starters), or that Ezio is the best male lead in years (owing to having a lot of depth and being considerably more dynamic than most). All you need to know is that YOU GET TO PUNCH OUT THE FUCKING POPE, and how many games let you do that shit? NONE THAT'S HOW MANY.
Also, anyone with a PSN account needs to play Flower now, while it's still 5 bucks. Granted, there's not much of a 'game' here in the traditional sense (no scoring, no game overs), but for a fine example of the medium as an art form it's pretty damn good. It's not only gorgeous and soothingly simple, but there's a rare subtlety in its 'message' and an undeniable uplifting beauty in its final stage. It's "Fantasia: The Game," and that is definitely a good thing.
THE FANFICTION LOVE MEME
Not much important going on, so let's talk about games because what the hell else do I talk about anyway.
Modern Warfare 2. Honestly... I'm pretty disappointed in the 'controversial' "No Russian" mission (check it on YouTube if you don't know what I'm talking about). There is something undeniably unsettling about it, but somehow it lacks the power that it SHOULD have. Otherwise, the campaign is short but solid-- yes, it's pretty silly when you think about it and the grounded narrative of COD4 was definitely better put-together, but it's got a lot of enjoyable set-pieces and Infinity Ward still does a great job of keeping the player integrated in highly cinematic moments rather than just encouraging passive viewing, so what else do you need, really.
Online multiplayer is still as good as it ever was, and a lot of the perk alterations and balancing issues have been refined this time around. Something I think that makes shooters so much better online than fighting games is that-- and admittedly MW2 is probably the best example of this-- not only is there a lot of flexibility for individual play styles (wanna hide undetected in an elevated spot and pick people off from afar? You can. Wanna dart around the field knifing bitches? You can. Wanna charge in/hang back and shoot/flank/hide in the grass and nail unsuspecting passersby? Absolutely you can.), but there's also a consistent system for REWARDING YOU FOR PLAYING. You get XP points for pretty much anything you can do, which help you level up and grant you access to better stuff, and sticking with individual weapons allows for more flexibility with those weapons (for example, get enough kills with a undermounted grenade launcher? Get a shotgun attachment. Do the same with a silencer? Get a thermal sight).
At the end of the day, there's a clear display that your 4 hours or whatever have actually GAINED you something (immaterial as it might be), while with something like Street Fighter IV you can spend the same amount of time and still have no Battle Points to show for it. Not to mention with some of the same you can easily go a dozen rounds without winning ONCE, whereas in a shooter you're at least guaranteed a few kills.
Also, let's talk about Assassin's Creed 2. Or rather, why you're NOT playing Assassin's Creed 2 when you could be RIGHT NOW GO GO GO. The first game was, to be charitable, 'highly divisive'-- one of those 'love it or hate it' titles, owing to an imperfect design (for the record, I was one of the latter). For the excellent freerunning, there was repetitive gameplay. For its slick, clever conspiracy-ridden story, there were too many overly long cutscenes. For its imaginative hooks, there was that epically bad ending. Well, Ubisoft Montreal definitely learned their lesson and delivered what is absolutely one of the best games of the year.
Everything has been refined and pushed up to 11, and while the open-world gimmick has been lost (somewhat), it makes up for it with a rich, engrossing and wonderfully told story. The framing device is a clever bit of soft science meets Dan Brown, and the story proper set during the height of the Italian Rennaissance is nothing less than a treat-- like "The Count of Monte Cristo" remade for history buffs. Nevermind that so much effort and attention has gone into authentically crafting this point in time as a game that it's easily one of the most beautiful and organic game worlds in years, or that there are plenty of historical figures to meet and greet (Lorenzo de Medici, Catherine Sforza, and fucking Leonardo da Vinci for starters), or that Ezio is the best male lead in years (owing to having a lot of depth and being considerably more dynamic than most). All you need to know is that YOU GET TO PUNCH OUT THE FUCKING POPE, and how many games let you do that shit? NONE THAT'S HOW MANY.
Also, anyone with a PSN account needs to play Flower now, while it's still 5 bucks. Granted, there's not much of a 'game' here in the traditional sense (no scoring, no game overs), but for a fine example of the medium as an art form it's pretty damn good. It's not only gorgeous and soothingly simple, but there's a rare subtlety in its 'message' and an undeniable uplifting beauty in its final stage. It's "Fantasia: The Game," and that is definitely a good thing.