Revenge of the 2.5D Complex

yeah, think I had the right idea before

pixelphile — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 07:11:45 GMT

Done with LJ. Journal will no longer be updated.

Just about everyone I talk to here, I have on AIM, and the rest... well, for way too many people I know, LJ these days is less a place to constructively talk about things and more of a place to just bitch. Myself included. All that time I HAVEN'T been posting on LJ? That was me living a happy and fulfilling life! :D If I'm going to be doing the writing thing, then viewing and/or posting nearly anywhere on this place just is not conducive. Complete and utter mojo killer.

And the scant few people left whose updates I really do like checking up on here... I should probably just talk to you on AIM more.

How sad is it that I WANTED ALL THESE GUYS IN THERE :D

pixelphile — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 22:15:39 GMT

Seriously, this video says what I'm all thinking.

On the plus side, so glad i managed to sell my Special Edition since, thanks to the inclusion of Phoenix Wright AND the star of one of my favorite games of all goddamn time, I'm obligated to buy Ultimate.

Hey, maybe this time it'll have good netcode? ^^;

Man, I wanted to come back with something HAPPY

pixelphile — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 04:48:48 GMT

http://www.andriasang.com/e/blog/2011/07/19/mega_man_legends_3_cancel/

Um... um...

(searches for something happy)

Don't worry, guys! Capcom still has you covered with great upcoming content like Dragon's Dogma and DmC

dammit :\

Oh fuck, did I let the paid account run out? :D

pixelphile — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 16:56:15 GMT

...if so, not much seems to have changed. Except man, my friendslist is a ghost town

Where y'all at? I see a rotation of maybe five people now! I don't believe in Facebook (or any recursive social networking service for that matter) and I'm hesitant to do the Twitter thing because I think words are actually good things that should be used

But yeah--if anyone's still tuned to this channel, let me know. Even so, I may need to look into a new broadcast venue :)

So. Young Justice.

pixelphile — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 03:15:54 GMT

We're 8 episodes in. Let's see how it's doing, shall we?

Writing: Shit
Characterization: Even Worse Shit
Animation: Pretty Good Shit

Episodes So Far
Episode 1 - Sweet
Episode 2 - Also Sweet
Episode 3 - Slightly Misogynistic Shit
Episode 4 - Unlikable Character Shit
Episode 5 - Even Less Likable Character Shit
Episode 6 - Mostly Eye Candy; Otherwise, Shit
Episode 7 - Not Quite As Shit
Episode 8 - Disjointed Shit We're Not Made To Give A Damn About

The Roster So Far
Robin: I Hacked Your Shit
Superboy: Angsty Emo Shit
Miss Martian: HEL-LOOOOOOO BULLSHIT
Kid Flash: Superfast And Pretty Stupid Shit
Speedy: Some Kinda Asshole Shit
Artemis: Badly Executed Secret Villainess Shit
The JLU We've Seen So Far: See Speedy. Double goes for Superman.
Aqualad: ...AWESOME

Oh God, Team Weisman, what the fuck are you doing. YOU HAD A FLAWLESS TRACK RECORD BEFORE NOW. This is bar none the worse DC Animated thing in history (Dini-onward, anyways). This includes The Batman.

Technical Difficulties

pixelphile — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 15:03:55 GMT

You know, so far 2011's been a whole lot better to me than 2010. There've been so many things I want to talk about--shows watched, games played, experiences had...

...yet I can't get motivated to blog about them one bit. Same with editing these podcasts in the backlog, honestly. Which sucks cause I want to keep talking, and I want to keep going with the podcast series. But every time I try to sit down to do one or the other, that little voice in the back of my head keeps going, "wait, what's in it for us?" And then I go back to just writing fun stuff or watching TV.

There was a time when I'd put 100% into anything I did regardless of potential return. Past experiences have jaded me so :\ This happen to anyone else?

Um... bear with for the time being, I guess.

Marvel vs. Capcom 3

pixelphile — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 02:18:53 GMT

FUCK.

ALBERT.

WESKER.

rest of the game is pretty awesome

They did it.

pixelphile — Sun, 13 Feb 2011 00:26:59 GMT

Mother of everything, it looks like they actually did it

my heart... it SWEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLS

Hyperdimension Neptunia

pixelphile — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 15:11:38 GMT

Pros:
- Crossover
- Metafiction
- Fourth wall humor
- Sega saves the universe
- Battle system faster than FFXIII???!?!?!?

Cons:
- PS3 exclusive
- Idea Factory is involved
- Game's cast might actually be worse-designed visually than Arcana Heart's, a feat which I previously thought impossible

Thoughts:
...hmm. Maybe.

pixelphile — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 07:42:04 GMT

Dear entire Internet:

Seeya.

Call me up when you decide to stop bombarding me with how much you hate everything you get your hands on.

I have no time or patience for it anymore.

Time to start making up for 2010!

pixelphile — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 08:24:16 GMT

Last year:
A really, really bad sentai and no Power Rangers.

THIS YEAR:

Welcome back, super sentai. It just ain't the same without y'all.

I got all 7 Chaos Emeralds!

pixelphile — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 20:48:59 GMT

After 5 years, I once more have a computer that's good for more than text editing!

What it's made of

How it feels

Presiding Hard Drive

Senior Hard Drives

Covert Agent Drives

Yeah, that's it, I think. I might actually be able to get back down to business now. Multiple ones, in fact. Yay. Only intensive thing I've thrown at it so far is Dungeon Fighter Online, which has gone from full-minute-loadup and choppy speeds to blink of an eye loadup and super smoooooooooth. Pixel is pleased.

Huge and gigantic thanks to neochaos, chaos_r, max_the_black and spacemantis for their invaluable advice and help. I'm a software guy. Terrible with hardware. Absolutely terrible.

...if this thing breaks down in a year, it's y'all's fault. ;)

<3

pixelphile — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 06:09:49 GMT

Be still my heart. I never thought they'd do it. I'm so damn happy they're doing it.

(please no timesink/grindy bullshit. ff13 up to ch. 11 did this perfectly. i'll even allow towns within reason. and keep the fighting fast.)

(locked because dosetsu aside, i haven't seen anyone not hate on 13 yet :\)

more movietime

pixelphile — Sun, 16 Jan 2011 21:45:59 GMT

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
This is a good movie! It is also entirely needless. I'm always of the mindset that movies based on video games should use cinematography to enhance the sparseness most videogames bring to the table in terms of atmosphere, character, narrative and choreography, all of which are often rightfully eschewed in their home medium for the sake of function.

The problem is that Prince of Persia as a video game series is already a kickass story-based game series with tons of character development, excellent narrative, voicework, atmosphere, stunts, whatever. And it plays great! Even the BAD installments are pretty good! So the movie has to live up to the games first, then surpass them. It does not. It's still a good movie, but... there's no reason for it to exist in its current form unless you're just allergic to game controllers.

(Dear Ubisoft: Where the HELL is my sequel to PoP 2008 already)

The Social Network
Redboxed it. Watched it. Liked it so much I kept it an extra night to watch it again.
At its heart this is a dialogue-heavy movie like the ones Kevin Smith makes, except a lot more mature (full disclosure: I like Kevin Smith movies). As such, the words move a mile-a-second and I have to turn the English subtitles on to keep up. Business espionage at the college level. A very fun digest. It's funny how the trailers for this sorta tried to swing it as some sort of action-thriller. Hahahaha NO. This is mainly college kids squabbling at each other back and forth. But squabbling at each other with wit.
And Justin Timberlake is actually pretty good in this! Who'd'a thunk.

The Green Hornet
Didn't expect to see this, but my errands ran later yesterday so I missed the showtime for Tron: Legacy. Ah well, I hope it's still running next week.

This movie be weird, yo. As someone who actually likes Will Ferrell, seeing a budget version of him onscreen for two hours ain't exactly my idea of fun--and that's exactly what Seth Rogen is. He and the guy who plays Kato do everything they can to bring the movie down. Like, everything. I swear, it's like Bizarro Rush Hour. I actually had a couple of Scott Pilgrim "I want to punch you through the fucking screen" moments.

...and yet, I recommend this. The movie leans into its nonsense and comes out the other side being a pretty good watch. The way the story is told ("two guys who don't know what the fuck they're doing and are actually pretty terrible people decide to be heroes"), everything is acounted for by the time it's over. And it's funny completely in spite of itself. I was amused the entire time, but at the same time sorta feel dirty for it! If you haven't seen Kick-Ass... well, go see that first, then see this.

Next time--I think I've finally managed to get into a long-running TV franchise that I previously just couldn't! Will decide after I watch a couple more episodes...

Quotage #3

pixelphile — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 12:22:29 GMT

"The problem for me is more about the stigma attached to gaming itself. And the gaming community is the one that perpetuates that stigma.

Gamers will get mad at each other over the slightest thing. If there's anything more embarrassing about being a gamer, it's that I belong to a community of people that, for the most part, hate each other over trivial affairs. Someone may despise me with a passion because I'm Horde and not Alliance. Someone may refuse to talk to me because I've been enjoying my PS3 more than my 360 lately. Someone will call me stupid for dabbling in Modern Warfare. Someone will call me a "no-lifing faggot" when I do better than him, then consider himself king of the world when he beats me, paying no heed to the hypocrisy.

It's screwed up and it needs to stop. Sadly, chances of that happening are nil. These same people are some of the loudest, most outspoken, most stubborn people you'll ever meet. They also couldn't give two shits about how their actions reflect on their subculture.

Yay, gamers.

- Kotaku commenter "Anti-Fanboy" in response to this article

(said article, I feel is moot since HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS of people are qualified to call themselves "gamer" now. what it refers to is a much smaller gamer subsect than, say, even 10 years ago, which can now be effectively called "weirdos.")

( i say this as a proud weirdo.)

decisions

pixelphile — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 05:44:49 GMT

I have $200 in best buy gift cards. What the hell can I buy with this?

Current Candidates

A piece of a new computer
Chances: Medium
Pros:
- Processors are expensive! This would make them free.
Cons:
- I really do not trust myself with putting a PC together. Hardware and I have historically not gotten along--I'm a software man and a gigantic klutz to boot.
- Besides, it seems that if I wanna go barebones, I can't order a system with no processor in it. Which is annoying as hell. Has anyone ever ordered a system from Ava Direct? I've been eyeing them...

The entire released-thus-far run of Pokemon Diamond & Pearl on DVD
Chances: Medium-High
Pros:
- The season that made me give a damn about Pokemon one last time! (I've seen Black & White. Count me out. ^_^)
- I'd have money left over, maybe $60 or so.
- Dawn & Zoey in beautiful DVD quality. The Wallace Cup saga, too! spacemantis understands why this is important.
Cons:
- $20 per 18 episodes.... wait, actually, that's pretty damn good! Never mind

A PlayStation 3
Chances: Low
Pros:
- I'd finally have the complete run of this gen's game systems and not have to use Wanderer's.
Cons:
- I'd need $100 extra
- plus games to play on it outside of Valkyria and this Move I have here
- PLUS I need a display because SONY IN THEIR INFINITE WISDOM HAS NO WAY TO PIPE THIS THING INTO A MONITOR DESPITE CRAMMING THE KITCHEN SINK INTO THEIR SYSTEM ARGH

LESSON LEARNED:
Next time, ask for generalized non-store-attached gift cards. Like from Visa or something.

YES.

pixelphile — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 05:24:23 GMT

Good call, GEL. Excellent call, even.

Just got finished with Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. I think it's just ended up in my all-time top ten.

The jokes were good! The pacing was fast! The characters were lovable! The messages were perfect! THE GEEKY GIRL WAS ENCOURAGED TO PUT HER GLASSES ON. That NEVER HAPPENS.

I... I really can't find anything I didn't like about this. Anything I could have latched onto, the movie made likeable by the time it was over.

...did this movie make any money?

Quotage #2

pixelphile — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 00:24:54 GMT

"Bad taste in games is as damaging as piracy."

- Someone who likely doesn't have much fun with their games

pixelphile — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 23:32:38 GMT

Quotage #1

pixelphile — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 17:56:49 GMT

"I want the [video game] industry to get more confident about itself and its role in the media world. I want gamers to stop worrying about what movie critics think of us, stop worrying what the media at large thinks of us, and society at large thinks of us. And I want us to have the confidence to understand that we are awesome. Games are awesome. Being a gamer is awesome. Being a nerd is awesome. All the things that I grew up with, all the things that we were passionate about as gamers are awesome... I want the industry to start feeling more confident and games to start feeling more confident about what we are without needing anybody else's approval."

- Ken Levine, Creative Director, Irrational Games (Bioshock series)

You know what?

pixelphile — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 04:08:32 GMT

Tomboys.

Monsters vs. Aliens

pixelphile — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 05:40:43 GMT

...ugh. mads wins. Now this is the Dreamworks I remember.

Ow. Ow. OW. Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow ow.

Every tired and ultra-time-worn joke and pun perfectly timed, perfectly executed, perfectly mind-numbing throughout a perfectly execrable script. Maybe 5 minutes of this didn't make me want to punch the writer, soundly and repeatedly, until my arms gave out. I could actually pinpoint the moment where said writer gave up.

As a writer, it is one of my greatest fears that I end up producing something this... lame.

Apologies in advance to anyone this entertained, but this was clearly not for me. :(

(It should be noted that I enjoyed Shark Tale on a very basic human level. I say this to stress the fact that I am easily entertained. Not hard to please!)

EDIT: THIS MOVIE HAD SIX WRITERS??

Karate Kid

pixelphile — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 06:03:46 GMT

Before I watched that crazy Dragon movie, I rented the Karate Kid remake, another previous season's movie I'd been anticipating, but had missed in its theater window.

That movie wasn't in theaters long. Should have taken that as a sign.

First off, the flick is 2.5 hours for some reason. Secondly, the first hour is borderline atrocious. We're talking, "Last Airbender, come back, all is forgiven" atrocious. Like they just plopped Jaden Smith into the waters of Acting(tm) and said "flap your hands real hard!" Boy, does he flap. It's downright embarrassing.

Karate Kid is a movie about really weak Riley Freeman undergoing culture shock after moving to China, running into bullies who prove martial arts is better than da streetz, and having to beat China at its own game after some training from Jackie Chan. A decent premise, but all the child actors stink up the joint, with Jaden leading the charge.

The one exception is the Chinese loli who serves as the foundation of the romance subplot, who I have dubbed Asian Hit Girl. Asian Hit Girl is going to be a stone knockout in about 10 years, but watching her doing anything--and doubly so watching her and Jaden acting out a romance plot clearly written for highschool seniors--makes me feel all sorts of creepy.

However, once the movie stops fawning over just how mean China is to Jaden Smith, it actually gains some legs. Jackie is aging like crazy but still has just enough charm left to carry a movie (though seeing him beat up six kids in a street fight shows just how far we've all fallen). The training sequences have their desired inspiring effect. The romance with Asian Hit Girl is surprisingly well-executed despite its creepiness. Even Jaden himself (very) slowly learns how to act. By the end I was cheering for him as much as Asian Hit Girl was.

So... I don't regret the dollar I spent to rent this, but man, it was close. The movie's first hour needed some serious work. Chaos says the movie was heavily edited for showing in China to remove pretty much all of the Chinese bullies' antagonism. I wonder if that might've been more enjoyable just cause that would've meant less solo!Jaden. You gotta work reeeeeeeeeeal hard for me to wish I was watching The Next Karate Kid, but this amply pulls it off.

Will someone tell me...

pixelphile — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 07:23:52 GMT

...how in the living holy fuck did something as godly as How To Train Your Dragon come out of fucking Dreamworks

EDIT: For future reference, I do not consume media at Internet speed. Hell, I just can't anymore. So yeah, if I'm "late" to something, just let it slide? ^^; Thanks.

Instead of a Giant Game of the Year List

pixelphile — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 06:49:27 GMT

I'm going to post this link instead, which jives with my overall philosophy on the whole practice. It's nice in theory, but ultimately I always found it futile. S'why I used to do the Fanservice lists. I'd still do them if. Y'know. I got to play as many games as I used to.

Though if y'all must know:

- Tatsunoko vs. Capcom UAS (first balanced vs. game since... ever. Made all the srk.com money matchers cry cause they had to learn more than one tactic to consistently win. capcom is listening to them for mvc3. i weep.)
- No More Heroes 2 (unfinished. doesn't matter. glorious.)
- Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (Sumo Digital solves every single problem I've ever had with post-SNES Mario Kart. Too bad no one noticed.)
- Goldeneye 007 (pointer FPS controls + actually interesting game = FINALLY)
- Mass Effect 2 (loved the heck out of it... but more so exploring the story than the actual act of playing it.)
- Final Fantasy XIII (I love this fucking game, I don't care who knows it. I love playing it, I love the characters, I love the plot, I love the battle system, I love the speed, I love the world design. Its only fault was not sticking to its guns 75% of the way in. If this is the "nadir of the FF series", then dammit, Square needs to go EVEN LOWER.)
- Valkyria Chronicles 2 (You will see weaboo crying that the series is no longer on the grorious PS3 uber-machine. These are the largely same weaboo that didn't buy the first game until it was deemed a "collector's item." BTW, this game is leagues better than the first in every way but cosmetics. And I LOVED the first. The first of two Overworks games released this year. Someone loves me.)
- Sakura Wars SLML (changed my outlook on life. also, for about 30 hours, my sexual orientation. Only Overworks, man.)
- Sonic Colors (Guys! I get it! You like the Mario! Hell, I like it sometimes too! BUT WE'RE ALLOWED TO LIKE OTHER STYLES OF PLATFORMERS TOO. THERE IS MORE THAN ONE. And Colors rocks the house. If I rage on Galaxy 2 so hard, it's only because I've historically received twice as much shit from everywhere about having fun with a damn Sonic! Live with it! I have to!)
- Bayonetta (I don't use the word "pure" often. I will for this. GOTY if I bothered.)