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Wednesday, December 1, 2004 8:30:16a: *
Let me say a few words about December's AMV of the Month, which is a beautiful rendition of one of my favorite Christmas carols, the traditional Carol of the Bells set to footage from the Love Hina Christmas special. The video is done by Cosmos Studios. Love Hina, as you all know, isn't exactly unique among romantic animes, but what it does it does well. The same could be said for the AMV. The Carol is a perennial favorite among electronica enthusiatsts because it sets a darker, anticipatory mood for the end of the season; the end, and specifically its culmination. The video takes the story and condenses it-- it's no substitute for watching it, but it gives you a good idea of where things are going. I'm proud to feature it this December as AMV of the Month.
I've decided that I cannot let my loss of a job dominate my online presence. One of the key elements to dealing with a loss is being able to deal with it, accept it, and move on. Of course, I've been too busy wallowing in my own misery to continue with an uninterrupted, accurate report of what I think. So I give you the front page back, once again home to my thoughts. I'll put a link to an updated professional-type overview later this week.
I spent this Thanksgiving with my family in Cuba, New York. I have a somewhat... unique relationship with my sibling. My sister and I fight almost invariably once we get together. Sometimes it takes a while, sometimes it's immediate. But despite our little quarrels, we never once have even contemplated taking our arguments to a greater level. In that way I'm grateful for her. I'm also grateful because despite the flak I may give her, she's a practical and responsible young woman who will almost certainly outstrip me in terms of long-standing success. Well, here's hoping, anyway.
My parents are another matter entirely. Through every hardship, struggle, and torment I've been through or put myself through, they have stood by me and helped me keep an eye on the big picture. And in return I look back and I don't see a single thing I've done for them that has even come close to repaying the love they have shown me. Not to say that love of that kind requires or even expects recompense. But, in all things, you must give greater than you receive. Maybe I just don't see it. But sometimes the love they show me is so great it hurts me to even think of being without it for even a second.
We are coming up on what people call the most wonderful time of the year. For eleven months our world is dark, gloomy, depressing, and full of hate. But every December we live our lives in anticipation of the coming of... something. It doesn't matter what, really, we're waiting for-- just as long as we know it's coming, and we can stretch our patience out just a little bit longer. This is the season of advents, of waiting and of expectations. Our waiting will be rewarded in time.
For some people the waiting is eight days. For others it's twenty-five. Others still have been waiting since they day they were born. Many of us stopped waiting when we found out Santa's beard was attached by elastic and he smelled like Uncle Frank. Still others are waiting even now. You know why I still am waiting? Bells.
Every year for as long as I can remember my mother has cherished these kinda cheesy plastic blinky bells in the front window of our house. They're wholly ordinary and some might even call them a symbol of the commercialization and secularization of Christmas-- just plain ol' cheap red plastic covering randomly-timed light bulbs, with some vinyl holly near the electric plug. In any other house they would be uninteresting and at best a novelty. My mother has loved setting up these bells, probably since before I was born. And you know what? I love them too. I love seeing the way my mother's face lights up on the day after Thanksgiving when we pull the bells out of the box from the cellar, When I still lived at home-- and even when I go back-- I love just sitting there int he dark of the dining room, with the multi-colored lights of our tree sparkling beside me, but the constant flickering of the bells before me. Their song is infinite and silent, the carol they sing known only to themselves and expressed only in the solemnity of the light that they cast forth. It is what helps to define the season for me.
I know that right now those bells are blinking in the dining room window, and I know that regardless of what happens-- regardless of if I am there permanently or only visiting on my way to my next destination-- when I come home for Christmas every year they will be there. So it is, I suppose, with everyone who has a home to come back to on Christmas Day. They remember that special tradition that is theirs and theirs alone. And for many of us, that tradition is part of what helps us to stretch our patience just that little extra bit further.
As I said before, this is a season of light; a time when the world is reborn in the grace of that which is watching over all of us. I wish all of you reading this the happiest of holidays, no matter which one or ones you celebrate, and a new year full of hope, of dreams, of victory, of joy, of sorrow, of time, of patience, of success, of peace, of unity, of rest, and of life. Please be safe.Wednesday, December 1, 2004 3:42:05p: *
So. Back to video game news.
Penny Arcade raises an interesting point about the reliability of the research done by groups such as the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility when they release their lists of the "ten worst (most violent) video games available". While I am compelled to agree that games such as Doom 3, Manhunt, and GTA: San Andreas do contain inordinate amounts of violence and gore, it is only because those games do contain that much violence. As always, context is everything, and in the case of each of these games it is what differentiates the games from interactive "Faces of Death" videos. It is also, shamefully as always, completely ignored by these so-called research foundations.
Setting aside the fact that Gunslinger Girl vol.2 isn't available in the United States (and furthermore that no plans to localize the game are even in the works), the story behind the game sets the stage for the horrific scenes of violence which ensue-- making the point that while each of these atrocious acts are indeed deplorable, they are also necessary and necessitated by the very circumstances which are set forth. (For those of you who may be unfamiliar with Gunslinger Girl, I'll give a brief summary: An Italian police force uses drugged and cybernetically-enhanced adolescents to handle dangerous and/or impossible counter-terrorism missions. Within this organization one officer and his "fratello" (partner) work to uncover the truth behind the program and free the girls from their horrible and ultimate fate. If you haven't yet, I urge you to grab Volume 1 of the manga-- it's been out for about a year.) Sometimes extreme measures are required to serve a greater good.
I make no statements saying that these games are intended for children; on the contrary, they are rated M for a reason, and retailers (such as I once was) do the best we can in trying to convince intractable parents that Hitman is simply not appropriate for his or her eight-year-old. Nonetheless it is not correct for an organization to condemn a game while clearly not having actually had any experience with the full context of the game (although I would hope that the ICCR would have employed a Japanese-literate researcher to examine GGv2, I wouldn't put money on it). That's why I keep my fool mouth shut. I haven't played GTA: San Andreas, Doom 3, or pretty much any of the games on their list. That does not grant me license to run off at the mouth about how evil or corrupting they are, that they were shat from Satan's flame-licked rectum directly into the hands of our children, or anything about these games save my opinion that I don't want to play them. We have a right to free speech but we have an obligation to responsible speech.
Thus, it is with this responsibility in mind that I say this to the parents of the world: Stop your god-damn useless-ass "parenting" which consists of sitting the kid down in front of the TV while you go off and do whatever it is you're doing instead of parenting the kid (which, now that I think about it, is probably running these stupid campaigns against perfectly legitimate hobbies). You want to take control of your kid's habits? You tell him what's right and wrong and guide his decisions, instead of telling me, a responsible 25-year-old young man with a college degree, what I can and cannot play.
I feel better. Oh, wait, there's just one little bitty thing more-- the ICCR lists themselves as having a "campaign on video games". Sounds a little too jingoistic to me, and definitely gives the wrong impression. Maybe what you want to say is a "campaign on free speech in electronic entertainment". That sounds like a more accurate description of what you want to do.
Speaking of free speech, let's talk a little bit about the Electronic Arts thing, which you may have noticed up there. I'm loath to outright condemn any software company of having despicable practices, considering my own position (i.e. not working for any software company as of yet), but hearing the testimonies that have been put forth in the past month it is hard to believe that they may be of spurious origin. Now don't get me wrong-- I would certainly have given body parts, mayhap even my own, to have been offered a position at EA "back in the day". When I was fresh out of school I spammed my credentials to every software house with a U.S. presence and beyond, not receiving even a single reply back. In a way I suppose that worked out for the best. I was forced to develop my web-based skills, and have become quite proficient with a few languages I'd never even touched in school. So it's not like people aren't willing to go into the industry-- from the moment a kid picks up his first controller, one of the prevalent thoughts in his mind is usually "it would kick so much ass to be one of the guys who makes these".
I just feel, as do a lot of other people, that they should be held to the same standards and subject to the same rules that people in other industries are. Admittedly I would imagine that the backlash would be much less if it were revealed to be some other developer who was employing these atrocious practices-- among them forced unpaid overtime, no comp time for said overtime, and constant pressure by managers to achieve unreasonable deadlines-- the backlash against that developer might be less, but since it is EA-- home of the cookie-cutter annual sports game, the parade of nearly-identical sequels, and the low-creativity fast-cash-in title-- I think gamers are more than a little outraged.
Let's look at it like that, then. At my esteemed place of work (NetJak), we recently reviewed Madden NFL 2005. It received a 5.6 out of 10. Prior to that, NBA Live 2005 received a 5.5, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban received an even 5. In each instance the game was the sequel to a title released almost exactly a year before (two years if you don't count Quidditch World Cup), and in each instance the games all had the same complaint-- "it offers nothing substantially new from last year's version". So let's see-- EA is pushing their developers to the breaking point and beyond to produce... average? Middle-of-the-road? Blah?
Let me take a quick side-track here and say this: I don't doubt that the working conditions of developers in Japan would be any better or worse than the US, but the fact remains that no matter where you are, almost anything with that much effort put into it would have to accomplish something reasonably better than "average", that is unless some external force of incompetence somehow influenced and negated these gains. It's inconceivable to think than 80+ hours a week on the part of twenty-odd programmers for the better part of a year would amount to merely "meh." compared to last year's effort. If you ask me, it's the outrage that EA is breaking the rules and still coming up with less than the phenomenal results you would expect from such effort which is fueling the fury of gamers everywhere. At least, that's the way I see it.
Granted, every once in a while EA produces something absolutely stellar-- witness their 007-licensed games, the Sims franchise (love it or hate it, it opened up gaming to a whole new sector of the population), and the absorption of Maxis and Westwood in general-- but that is not enough. EA's motto is "Challenge Everything"-- many gamers have taken it to have an unspoken remainder of "including the State of California's labor laws". Granted also that I have no first-hand experience of the conditions save what is referenced in the blogs which you can easily look up on Google-- look for ea_spouse, Robert Schubert, or Joe Straitiff-- so by all rights I should not even have said anything like what I just have. But if the allegations are even remotely true, it makes very little sense. Which is the only point I wanted to make-- that if EA really is doing this, why? For what purpose? What could EA be working on which demands so much attention if the results are as resoundingly pathetic as Madden 2005 et al have been?
To this end, and partly because there's nothing worth playing out right now anyway, I am joining my esteemed colleague's call for a boycott of Electronic Arts games this holiday season. It might be a little late, but this is the best time to do it. If you want to get the message across to EA that they can't get away with pushing hard for sub-standard games, then this is the way to do it. Don't buy any EA games this season; don't even play the ones you do have if they have an online component-- it's the old question, "what if they ran a server and nobody came?". Pretty soon I'll have a list of substitute games up, but as far as sports titles go you really can't go wrong with Sega Sports' ESPN-licensed titles (ESPN NHL 2K5 in particular).
I also encourage the use of the "EA No Way" web badge in forum signatures and other display places, and won't mind if it's direct-linked from my server. Reference it using the URL http://www.thefurryone.net/avatars/eanoway.jpg. You don't even have to make mention that it's on my server. My little holiday gift to you.
GameSpot is relaying a Namco press release which indicates a ramped-up level of support for both of Nintendo's handhelds (I touched on this Wednesday evening in the forums). The DS is going to get Xenosaga and Mr. Driller-- both titles which I felt were underappreciated the first time around-- while the GBA gets Ace Combat, Pac-Man Pinball (!), Mr. Driller 2 (!!), and Klonoa: Dream Tournament Champion (as Max so eloquently put it, *splurt*). Come to think of it I really wondered why Namco waited so long to localize Mr. Driller 2 and Klonoa. Mayhap some kind soul reading this would care to enlighten me why we were denied our lovable fuzzy-eared freedom fighter for so long.
GameSpy, naturally, continues to be retarded. So let's not talk about them.
I picked up word from one of my esteemed places of work (in this case, RPGamer) that Square-Enix has been a bustling hive of activity. Not only are they hard at work on FF 12, Dragon Quest 8, and Radiata Stories, they've also found time to give us a glimpse of a new title called Code Age. If you ask me, based solely on the little blurb of translated text from the preview ("One fish evolved its eyes to seek for light. / Another fish evolved its mouth to seek food and to survive. / Mankind escaped from evolution by crawling out of the water and reshaping its environment."), I'd say it sounds an awful lot like one of Enix's old quirky projects from the SNES days-- anyone else getting E.V.O. vibes from the report or is that just me?
I would be excited about Growlanser Generations if I could remember what the heck made me interested in it in the first place-- three years ago. Supposedly it ships today. Meh. I've grown out of the phase of fandom where I would wait eagerly on the words that come from websites' mouths regarding release dates, and send nasty letters to other sites when word of a delay came down. I think I stopped caring about delays shortly after Lunar 2.
I never did give my impressions of Metal Gear Solid 3, so let me sum them up for you: If you liked MGS2, you'll want to play through this game. Rent it first, though, so you can beat it once and get your story fix. Then once it hits the bargain bins, go ahead and buy it. I bought it, of course, then after finishing it took it back for an even trade on Final Fantasy: Dawn of Souls. That game, hopefully, will get me through the long bus ride to New York or help me survive the long bus ride back.
Which reminds me. I have to finish packing. I'll be out of touch for the next 48 to 72, kiddos. Those of you who know how can always reach me the way you usually do, but don't be offended if I don't respond right away. Anyway, we'll talk on the flip side...Tuesday, December 7, 2004 8:37:30a: *
Good morning, folks. I have precious little time to discuss matters regarding gaming, and sadly I'll also have to skimp on my New York City trip report until such time as I can actually sit down and type it, but what I do have is as follows. Mea culpa; I promise I'll write up the NYC trip sometime tonight, probably from Sharon.
Anyway. EA is rife, nay, practically diarrheaic with news this morning; perhaps it's in an attempt to sway public opinion away from the whole "worker abuse" thing, and naturally I ain't buyin' it. Still, it's worth noting that a new Command & Conquer game is in the works, Battle for Middle-Earth is out now, and they are resolute in spewing forth the same NASCAR game next year as they did every other god damned year. However...
Gamespot is reporting on a leaked memo from deep within the heart of Mordor EA, penned by a senior VP of human resources, the claims they know about the flak they're getting from all sides. Furthermore they've made a couple comments on possible solutions-- reclassifying some job descriptions as being eligible for overtime and suchlike. Note that this memo of course does not make any mention of comp time that is already due employees. And let's just overlook the facts that a) any such changes won't come until April 1, '05, and b) EA is known for breaking promises to its employees, if the initial complaints are to be believed. My position still stands until I hear from someone on the inside what's been done-- preferably from their hotel room while on vacation, but then again who knows.
You know, I got my hopes up when I read that U2's frontman Bono may have purchased a controlling stake in Eidos. Then, when it was denied, I sorta sank down a bit. But still. If it were true I can guarantee you that the Tomb Raider games would probably have better soundtracks. It may even force them to have better gameplay. Ah well.
KOTOR 2 is also out for the Xbox, for those of you who posess such a beast (I'm talking to you, Aaron). Megaman X8 has also made its debut, as well as Growlanser (for reals this time). Pretty soon we should see a couple more DS titles and Mario Party 6. Oh yeah, speaking of Aaron, what's that GBA game which comes out today? Kingdom something or another? If it's based on that kinda creepy miniseries by Stephen King, it might not go over too well-- oh, wait, Kingdom Hearts. Riiiiight. Gotcha.
Well, I have business to attend to. Later, folks. Hopefully good news is on the way.Thursday, December 9, 2004 9:33:26a: *
Morning, folks. On a lark I swung over to DMG Ice just to see if the dust had settled further, and, well, it had. But among the less-dusty pieces was news that Mythri-- a GBA game I've been following for... wow, has it been six years now? It was originally supposed to be a GBC game-- has lost its publisher and still resides in limbo. This is getting a bit unnerving.
No news regarding work for me, but I do have two reviews lined up for the 'Jak. I should be getting those ready to go in a day or two, as soon as I have more experience with FF 1&2. I've been concentrating more on Pokemon FireRed in an attempt to actually get some use out of Pokemon Box-- I should have the Elite Four finished off soon enough assuming I get some time to sit down and play. Also, as a little side project, I've picked up that newfangled Kingdom whatsit mentioned the other day and should have impressions on it later. Right now I'm not terribly thrilled by it, but it's a serviceable title and an interesting take on the KH story. Best thing about it, so far, anyway, was seeing Aerith, Yuffie, Cid, and Squall again. Pez: Aerith still looks OMG SUPAR HOTT, even in pixels. Just for your continued education.
Later, kiddies. Have to hit the road. I should be back in Erie this evening for the DDR event. Oh! Speaking of Bemani, Pop'n Music 12 AC just hit over in Japan. I've not had much time to look into it but I'm sure we'll be hearing more.Wednesday, December 15, 2004 10:08:05a: *
Our resident firebrand, Rick, put up a very enlightening piece on Spike TV's Video Game Awards over on Netjak. My only printable comment on this is that I hoped to high heaven he TiVo'd Earthsea, so that the night's expenditure of electricity wasn't a total waste. Myself, I'd been seeing ads for this while at my folks' house watching reruns of CSI, and was very releived to know I'd be back at my place when it went down (in both senses of the phrase) so as to remove all temptation of me actually watching it. Rick's review reminded me at once why I don't have cable and more importantly why I don't miss cable. Well, not too much anyway.
Minor setbacks in the job hunt. Folks in the Circle know what happened; for the rest of you, let's just say "you can't always get what you want". For example, a straight answer.
Huh. NekoMachi's giving a 403 Forbidden error. I hope there's nothing wrong over there, Ewen.
On a related note, good luck to Greg Dean and his move.
You're probably here for game news, aren't you? I'll get to that-- lots to discuss, but first my impressions of Pokemon Box: Pokemaniacs, you need this. If you don't have a second GBA lying around, that is. Which, given the title Pokemaniac, you probably do. So you probably don't need this. Still, it's a nice complement to the series and lets you store your critters in between runs through the game. I'm thinking I'll be "borrowing" some of my FireRed dealies for use in my run through Sapphire. Just as soon as I get back home and can commandeer my sib's GBA.
EA apparently responded to allegations that they shaft their employees by shafting gamers, too-- they've signed an exclusivity deal with the National Football League to ensure that Madden is the only game in town for the next five years. That's right, kiddies-- best grab up those copies of ESPN NFL 2K5 right now before they become hot items; Sega would be foolish to pass up an opportunity to not update their rosters as time goes on. After all, 2K5 is an officially licensed product, and in order to get that deal they must have also secured the rights to offer updates according to official changes, right?
So the PSP is out, in Japan at least. Unlike the DS, I didn't quite get a chance to get my paws on this, so everything I have here is second-hand. However, it looks like the machine has a few problems-- swaths of dead pixels, atrocious battery life, buttons falling off, and projectile discs. You heard me, the machine ejects the game discs if twisted at a certain angle. Sony has produced a 0, pocket-sized thing that apparently if it doesn't work as a game machine, it can be used as an offensive weapon. The days of the taco are over, we now have a new contender for "thing you would least want to be seen dead holding"-- coming up ahead of "another man's wing-ding" and "the N-Gage" is "The PSP".
Many of you folks will call me a biased fanboy. To this I say: I am considering the purchase of a third PS2, just so I can play CD-based games properly without losing the ability to play FFXI or imported games. If I were an anti-Sony fanboy I'd point out that I've only had to buy one Gamecube, but I'm not. Actually, the more I think about it, I'm convinced I ought to re-obtain an Xbox once they come down in price a little. I ditched it when I heard True Fantasy Live Online was cancelled, and quite frankly I'm none too impressed with Live anyway, but Halo 2 is looking tempting and I'd rather not play it on my gimped laptop. We shall see. This all hinges on a job first.
Or heck, I could put up a donation thingy if I was really intent on whoring myself out. But, like I said, I'm not. No ads on this site, ever, and no donations unless it's life or death. That's the promise I made back in the day and I intend to keep it. Well, all right, life, death, or E3.
There's not musch else to say in regards to games so I'll make a few final remarks about movies... I caught National Treasure the other day and was simply blown away. It's without a doubt one of the most interesting and exciting movies I've seen in a while-- there's some action, which is to be expected from a Bruckheimer movie, but it's more intelligent that people give it credit for. Think Indiana Jones without the whip and with Gil Grissom's knack for making connections. There were previews for a couple other flicks-- Elektra looks watchable, at least, and Vin Diesel's vehicle The Pacifier looks like it's at least a 15, but certainly not a natural 20. (Rick, you're right-- picking on superstars is fun!) Seeing "The Ring Two" on the release list disappoints me, and I have to be excited for "Miss Congeniality Two" just because it has Sandra "HOLY CRAP I WANT HER SO MUCH" Bullock, even if the idea sounds a little, uh, unorthodox. Of course, then there's my birthday present-- Episode 3. We'll see if that one means I'll be a happy fuzzy or an angry fuzzy.
I've rambled long enough. Later, folks.Monday, December 20, 2004 3:13:48p: *
I've got oh so much to talk about, folks, and precious little time to mention it in. First and foremost, however:
Attention People Directed Here By a Resume or Job Application: I am currently experiencing difficulty with my home telephone service. If you need to contact me for any reason, I encourage you to do so at my cell phone number, which you should have received with my resume. Thank you.
Next, I'd like to talk a brief bit about the latest dish on EA. They're in negotiations to purchase a significant stake in Ubisoft. I'm beginning to think that someone ought to do something about this Electronic Arts company as they might not be playing fair. Just a hunch.
I don't have a problem with corporate expansionism. The first priority of a company must always be to generate revenue for its stockholders, but this comes with a catch-- you have to do it while playing by the rules. It does no good to secure multi-hojillion dollar deals only to be busted a week later for doing something flagrantly illegal. That's all I want to say, really-- I'm thinking of picking up Beyond Good & Evil, but if I wait too long it will wind up on my no-no list.
GameSpot announced their Best of 2004 winners recently, which was a lot of fun as Metal Gear Solid 3 won for Best Story. As it rightfully should have-- the stealth action was a good draw but it was really about the underlying spy-thriller. Katamari Damacy also picked up a few awards including Best Original Music. I'm probably going to play that some more later on just 'cause the music is so catchy-- I can still hear the tunes in my mind while I type this.
It's nothing spectacular, really, but I've found myself quite attached to Pokemon Colosseum. Being a few months late didn't help me any in the pocketbook department, but they have lessened the blow in terms of the game's flaws-- the single-player campaign isn't exactly compelling, and it can be a minor nightmare to level up critters to the exacting standards required for the battle-only challenges. That said, the title offers a solid experience and a chance to see some familiar faces. I do kind of wish the annoying staticy-sounding Pokemon noises would have been replaced by now, but meh.
Finally-- well, really, the last thing I have time for right now-- I'm preparing myself for what is now going to be known as the TFO.net 2005 North American Tour. With the beginning of the year approaching I'm looking to plan as much travel now as I can before things get booked up, and so I know what events to schedule vacation for (in the unlikely event that I do find a job). First order of business is raising the roughly one grand needed for E3. Expect a page to come up soon, featuring progress bars and the like.
Later, folks. I need to see a man about a phone.Friday, December 24, 2004 10:30:00a: *
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Today we will all undoubtedly be gathering to celebrate the holidays and new year with our loved ones, friends, and family. Myself, I'll be on my way home in a few hours to spend some time with my parents and sister.
It's a true miracle, what happens at Christmastime. Even if you're not a Christian, you can't help but get caught up in the spirit-- the feeling of the season, when people come together, regardless of color, creed, or history. These few days every year we look back at all the things that happened since the last celebration, and we pause to take in what it all was. On Christmas Day we are thankful for the good that happened, and on New Year's Day we resolve to correct the bad. And all the while, the hard edge of life is softened just a little bit-- just enough so that you understand just what a wonderful gift the rest of the world really is.
It's a week, typically like any other. But a week that brings people together and helps them to become closer and more attached. To create, reinforce, or renew connections from one person to another, and to cherish the connections we do have. And it is for these connections that I am eternally grateful.
Chance and circumstance have not been kind to me this year. I regret, of course, that I have no gifts to offer my friends save the gratitude and joy they bring me, and I hope that they can see this and understand it. One day I will make it up to you folks, but for now please accept this as my appreciation for all you have done for me. You took me in and showed me that no matter how bad things get, there will always be people to stand beside me and say, "Stay with it, and things will turn around soon". So thank you, everyone. I am in your debt beyond any repayment.
I offer you all my most sincere and humble wishes for this holiday season, regardless of which observance you honor. May your days be merry and bright, and may all your dreams come true tonight.