I-n-j-i-n

Ooh... wow.. I just watched the 1997 movie of Dog of Flanders and it just kept striking daggers into my chest. I don't think I've seen a tragedy that just keeps going at it like it does. Such a beautiful movie. Definitely not recommended if you're feeling down though. It'll probably break you down.

The new shooter game Trigger Heart Excelia looks pretty good but it seems pretty steep in price ($10). Apparently it's a bullet hell game much like the doujin/fan games online. The difficulty can be pretty crazy but it only goes into a relatively short level 1 though. I think it looks pretty good, but the price..

I can't agree with Macross even on a jest. It had a pretty archetypal story, but it's still one of the best done ones of its type even way back in the early 80's. Also, some of its animation still holds well even by today's standards. That and the entire world it's based on (I agree Minmay is a slut/idiot/dolt along with that manwhore Kaifun). Actually, the show seemed to have a lot of characters to hate but I almost think that was the whole point. Which is funny since the biggest chauvinist in anime, Roy, was actually one of the most likable. That and just about every spinoff not named Macross II and Macross 7 were amazing. And BTW, Slayers will be getting a sequel apparently. I sort of can't believe it's happening, but I'm so glad the franchise is moving forward again.

Thanks for ignoring every single thing I had to say about it.

Are you serious? I thought Darker than Black was one of the biggest pretentious and shallow anime since Evangelion. The end part didn't make any sense to me either. I admit it was well made, but just didn't have substance to me. That and the constant deus ex that never went explained nor did it even make much sense. And it's hard to even listen to the Yoko Kanno influence in the music. Probably one of her weakest soundtrack works.

The only game controller that was complicated was the horrible Virtual Boy controller that never made use of its features and the Colecovision thinggy with the 40 buttons on top with a knob. I think if you find a 360/PS3/Saturn style controllers to be 'complicated', you have no business playing a game to begin with. I couldn't care less about the 'casual/semi-no-gamer' demographic. Screw them. Yes, yes we do. Even simple controllers should lend itself to precise movements and freedom of gameplay. If one gets bewildered by just that, again, I wonder if one is even suited to even play a game to begin with. The vast majority of gamers have lived by such 'complex' control schemes. I definitely don't think it's some unnecessary luxury for the most part. It's usually the lousy and badly designed games that can't make a logical sense out of control schemes anyway. People seem to mention the triggers, but I think the four triggers are probably one of the most intuitive features on a controller. Face buttons just doesn't work as well for shooters where you have an actual trigger to pull on. And I really can't name too many games that made things more complicated with it. You play FPS games nowadays, and you'd instinctively know that one of them will be a grenade or in other games, left or right lean, etc. It's just intuitive. I don't see what's the problem with it other than the myths the casual gamers heap upon it.

I always will equate music/rhythm games' practicality to something like Sudoku. Sudoku is the number puzzle game that doesn't use math, but increases awareness of numbers and logic tremendously. I think the analogy with music games is there. It's not going to make you a better musician, but perhaps better prepared to deal with the rhythm and rhyme of music via coordination and timing. Playing Sudoku won't make you a Math whiz, but may prepare you to be one.

I hear it could be a 'second video tape' or something. I wish it was a more of direct sequel and that could still be true. I'm amazed that the movie will get a sequel even after all the people who are criticizing it. Like some others have said, I think the critics are either idiots or missing the point of the movie.

Totally-from-leftfield videos are.... hard to describe but always pretty fun. I guess it's typical if you combine Japan with Youtube. They have literally gotten Youtube/NicoNico crazy in the last year. My favorite anime running right now + my favorite platformer ever: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7S2m5lOUm8g

If you set Ninja Gaiden (or at least Ninja Gaiden Black) on Hard mode, which is the optimal way to play it, you can get around 7 enemies on screen at once. But it never felt quite as chaotic as NG2 apparently is. As for Lost Odyssey, I was always on the fence about it but now I think I must buy it from all the rave reviews it's getting. I have no qualms if the game is painfully stereotypical of JRPGs either. And I almost forgot the Sakaguchi/Uematsu duo ever existed. 10 years or so since FF7 is really a long time.

I can't get enough of the false subbing. Something tells me the best one is yet to come. I'm tired of the videos that show custom arenas that is fully fenced in so characters go up to 999%. That gets old.

And that proves, what exactly? 50% is just a ridiculous number in terms of actual sales. I think it'll definitely move the industry if that remained a permanent number. At the rate the price is slowly coming down with the actual discs. A $5 difference for some discs is not insurmountable. Okay, so to me, a $70 game could use a 100% price cut and it won't be enough. right. And of course, I'm only saying all that in terms of the general viewpoint of price drops in the general public. And the public tends to be pretty easily moved by lower pricing. That, and premium DVD sales haven't really dropped even with their typically ridiculous pricing (many of them going past the $25 threshold).

I think we'll have to wait and see the actual game in motion though. The quality of videos were beyond atrocious and the supposedly "HD" videos were just normal resolution videos that were upconverted. This sounds ironic of one of the most beautiful action games ever made (Ninja Gaiden Xbox), but Ninja Gaiden has always been about the actual gameplay and it looks like it'll get more chaotic and frantic, which is actually a good thing for the franchise. Still waiting for the inevitable demo that is teasing everyone in the GDC page..

I think the weight feels comfortable for the 360. Its bulkiness needs to be a bit grounded unlike the much slimmer PS3 controller. In that sense, I actually like both controllers' weight. The wired 360 controller really is noticeably lighter too. As for Jellycar and other XNA games, they do feel like internet/Newground games ported to 360. I think Jellycar has potential, but it looks like the most barebone technical demo of a game and not even close to being finished. I got a weird Katamari + LocoRoco hybrid feeling from it.

It's either Marth improved or just that Sheik was apparently downgraded. She doesn't seem as strikingly fast as she used to.

Holographics are way too further into the future to think it is really competing against Bluray right now. Let's get realistic here. If people are easing into HDTVs right now, then it'll take at least a generation longer until even more advanced technology. While Bluray is most definitely going to catch up within the next five years as the conversion of HDTVs hits higher. HDVs sounds like a great idea, but there really are no TVs to cater to it and I think it'll be a very tough sell to put something out right after they did so with HDTVs. I think HDTV can stay for around 15-20 years before HDVs start sounding like a successor. As for movies costing over $15, I think there are plenty. And like I said in discussions like these, most DVDs that comes with any extra features (really, the only reason to even buy them IMO) usually costs over the $20 threshold now. And many Bluray discs I've seen recently were around that range too, so I don't see what's the big deal with the difference in price. It's also reasonable considering Bluray is the ultimate theater experience right now compared to any other format out there. Comparing new release DVDs with full extra features and Bluray, the difference when both launches is around $5. That is really not much to speak of to me. Actually, I'd rather jump in on the best viewing experience possible for $5 more instead of getting the inferior experience for $5 less.

I don't know about the PS3 controller. It's serviceable, but the 360 is as best as it can get ergonomically IMO. I do think the PS3 has the better digital pad though. As for other games, I think it's a plus that most games comes out in 360 sooner or just released side by side with PS3. And there are a few PC/360 exclusives out there so it's not like all of them will convert to the PS3. I think that'll become more unlikely as Microsoft decides to rein them in instead of letting them loose on their nearest competitor.

Wasn't it like that since Melee?

The Penny Arcade guys apparently are pretty frustrated at the difficulty of Professor Layton puzzles. I guess it's typical for non puzzle gamers. Also, I find myself stuck with Advance Wars Day of Ruin in my DS at all times again. I always keep thinking I'm going to hate the next Advance Wars but end up playing it all the time. I love the quick and easy online play, but I hate how you can't buy stuff and stock up on insane powers like with Advance Wars DS.

Lots of two's with 360 this year. Gears of War 2, Fable 2, Ninja Gaiden 2 and Too Human and maybe next year, Mass Effect 2. But I can't complain since all these games should be worth the money unless Fable developers lies about its potential again. And I'm about to DL Jelly Car. Looks pretty... funky. Lots of strange games on XBLA nowadays. Which is good.

I'm not surprised at all. It's a mature anime, a boon for American release. Mushishi is like the X-files without the British accented girl/comedic-foil. Mushishi can tend to be very slow and toned down, so it can come across as boring for some. I loved it but I thought it was slow too. I don't think 5cm has a manga because it was an anime original. Also, another great simple-story + great atmosphere movie (a full length this time) is Piano no Mori. Very straightforward but very relaxing. I only said this like three times or so in this thread alone. H&C is more like a collegiate anime (yes, it's becoming a subgenre) + romance. I think true slice of life is more meandering and nonsequitur/episodic like Aria is. As for other collegiate anime, there's Moyashimon and Nodame Cantabile. I think they were all made for the same TV station. Speaking of collegiate theme, it tends to be more serious and adult-oriented because it's based on colleges. Sounds shallow, but it's true. With highschool anime, you get the usual school fare, the bullying, school trips, the gym meets, etc. It tends to be more eccentric for college based shows. Boxing anime wise, Ashita no Joe is the best and the most classic one. I wouldn't be surprised if Million Dollar Baby was at least in part inspired by it. I don't think there is a concerted fansubbing effort for it yet though. Ippo is also ridiculously better on manga form.

I just think y'all are being way too oversensitive on someone new (aka noob). If you can tell that much from the writing style.

If the new disc format had the space of Bluray and the features of a HDDVD, then I think it'll be a no brainer to convert then. It's like they're unlocking features of the Bluray they can use like how developers used to do with the PS2 and PS3. This is so ironic.

Some people mentioned cohesion, but when did a Mario game ever need one? Even Mario games were all over the place and none of it really made a lot of sense either. I think that's the beauty of fan games actually. You don't need to worry about selling it and marketing it. The hodgepodge of fan games is its charm as I see it. I'm sure some would disagree anyway.

I think the best single track was Metal Gear 1 remix. That has to be one of the most catchiest spy-tune in gaming. Most of the mixes are great, though I think they over do them sometimes (Do we really need silly Capcom OST style voice overs for Metroid tracks? No we don't).