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6-25-04,
3:56 AM
Fifteen
million dollars is not money. It's a
motive with a universal adaptor on
it.
Music:
New Order - Turn My Way
Can't get enough of that New Order
album.
First, big props, as they say in the
streets, to Travis for getting me a
copy Paper Mario. I don't
know why I ignored it when it first
came out, but it's been extremely
addictive. Speaking of addictive,
I've also got my hands on Mario
Golf which is one of the best
golf games I've ever played. More
specifically, it's the best golf
game with pipes and mushrooms I've
ever played. I've also been trying
to play more Jagged Alliance 2,
sparked after hearing the
announcement that both Jagged
Alliance 3 and Jagged
Alliance 3D are in development
(Yes, two separate titles), but for
some reason it has grown fond of
making my computer freeze and reset
itself. I'm also trying to find time
to fit in playing Front Mission 4.
I wish sitting on my ass and playing
video games was a paying job, I'd be
the top in my field.
The
sketch comedy movie, now dubbed
Men of Inaction, ambles ever
closer to taking some kind of shape.
Right now it looks fairly
tetrahedron-ish.
-K.
throw the
wizard in the lake
6-21-04,
1:32 AM
I gotta
get a drink. Sobriety's killing me.
Music:
DVDA - What Would Brian Botano Do?
Updated the What to Think section. I
know it's late, so what?
I've
been told that picture is supposed
to be me.
Going to open up a new section of
the site soon, it'll be exciting.
I'd tell you what it is, but isn't
this tension great?
Well, time to get to sleep, I've got
a lot of reading to do tomorrow,
then class, and then, taking
Theron's suggestion, watching the
miniseries of The Shining
because I was too lazy to plow
through the 700+ pages of the book
that I need to have read by Tuesday.
UPDATE: Okay, I don't
think this warrants a full update,
so I'll just tack it on to this one.
Someone came up with a link to
high-res
videos of the F.E.A.R. E3
presentation and you guys
need to check them out. They're big,
but now at least you'll know what
I'm talking about when I say it just
might be the scariest game ever
made.
-K.
fuddle duddle
6-14-04,
12:52 PM
He likes
you because you're still alive.
Music:
New Order - 60 Miles an Hour
So,
I finished off Thief: Deadly
Shadows a couple days ago and
despite having one of the most
abrupt and anticlimactic endings
ever it was still an extremely
enjoyable experience.
Set in an ever-expanding medieval
city where magic and technology wage
a daily battle for control, you play
Garrett, the world's greatest thief.
Contracted by the Keepers, a secret
society of sorcerers that controls
the city from behind the scenes and
Garrett's former trainers, he must
perform a series of assignments to
help prevent the prophecies of an
impending Dark Age from coming true.
The atmosphere is one of the
greatest draws to the series,
because they created with almost
infinite care and detail. Magic,
steam works, and electricity come
together perfectly in a fantasy
setting unlike you’ve seen before.
The two major warring groups, the
Pagans and the Hammerites, each have
their own unique style, dialect, and
history. None of these things are
particularly important to the core
gameplay and any lesser company
probably would’ve cut corners, but
the game is worth playing simply for
the setting. (Side note: While I
don’t mind the Hammerites, I made it
my duty to kill as many Pagans as
possible, simply because of the way
they speak. For example, if you’re
too loud, you’ll usually hear one
say something like “Who be makers
them noisings?” Upon hearing phrases
like this, my blood boils and my
hunger for death grows.)
At its most basic level, the game is
all about stealth. You’re no mighty
warrior, you’re a thief, as the
title suggests, so taking on every
enemy you see face-to-face is a
quick way to lose. You’ll be
spending much of your time playing
the game skulking among the shadows,
moving behind peoples’ backs and
striking only when necessary. The
setting also helps to separate this
from other stealth titles, and where
the challenge lies, obviously you
have no radar or thermal vision to
help you locate enemies. You have to
take it slow, stalk your enemies,
and stay out of the light.
Obviously, those looking for a
straight-up action game shouldn’t
apply.
The greatest addition this game
brings to the series is a new degree
of freedom to allow you to explore
the city and its districts, break
into and rob various homes and
businesses, as well as individuals.
The loot you collect through the
course of the game can be sold at a
number of fences for gold, which in
turn is spent on tools and weapons.
The locales are nice and varied,
ranging from castles to caverns to a
ship infested with the undead. Each
level is complex and finely crafted
to allow multiple paths to your
objectives, some more sneaky than
others, such as leaping to an open
window or finding a hidden tunnel.
It should be noted that one of the
levels later on in the game is one
of the most frightening experiences
ever committed to any media, as I
had a feeling of dread that wasn’t
evoked by any of the Silent Hill
titles or even the granddaddy of
interactive terror, Clive
Barker’s Undying. This is due
with no small credit to the audio;
the subtle gusts of wind, the
whispering of someone unseen, a
sudden loud thump from behind you,
all helping to establish the tension
that you’re being followed. As I
learned from Penny-Arcade, the main
audio man, Eric Brosius, not only
worked on the previous titles in the
series, but also System Shock 2,
which also ranks high on the list of
scariest games ever. If you want the
full effect, you’d better be wearing
headphones. (Note: ION Storm, who
developed the game, is made up of
many former Looking Glass employees,
who created both the Thief
and System Shock series.)
It’s a lengthy ride for this kind of
game, as it took me several days and
long play sessions to get through it
all, so you’ll be playing this for
quite some time, and it is top-notch
throughout. That is, until you reach
the end. I won’t say much, other
than it consists of a tense game of
hide and seek that takes place
across the city, but while I was
expecting a large climax to this, it
just sort of ends.
Everything ties up nicely and they
could easily just call it a trilogy
and be done with the series, but I
can only hope that they continue.
The ending is only a small qualm in
a game that is outstanding in every
conceivable way. All ION Storm
messed up in the sequel to Deus
Ex has been made up for in this
entry into another beloved series,
which I’d say is an early contender
for Game of the Year.
(½ Adam Sessler out of 5)
And with that finished up, I
really don't have anything all too
current to play. For some unknown
reason, I dug out my Nintendo 64 and
hooked it up once more, rekindling
my love for some of these classics.
Super Mario 64 and
Goldeneye have been getting some
attention, but mostly I've been
playing The Legend of Zelda:
Ocarina of Time, picking up
where I left off, which was about
twenty minutes into the game. I
don't know why I didn't give it more
time, because I bought it and pretty
much just let it collect dust, but
it's been brilliant so far. I have a
feeling, with used N64 games being
so cheap, I'll be taking a trip to
EB soon. I miss Blast Corps,
I did actually kind of like Doom
64, I'm told Paper Mario
is great, Mario Kart 64
is calling my name, I could use a
fun golf game like Mario Golf,
I want to find out if
Conker's Bad Fur Day is really
as good as they say, I wonder if
they have Ogre Battle 64,
I'm sure I'll be craving
Majora's Mask once I finish
Ocarina of Time.
I need money.
-K.
banana phone
6-12-04,
4:46 PM
You've
got a lot of guts. Let's see what
they look like.
Music:
The Beatles - Help
Updated the What to Think section.
Finished up Thief: Deadly Shadows
earlier this morning, I'll muster up
the strength to write a review of it
later. Very enjoyable, even if the
end was a bit lacking.
Don't know what else to say other
than that... I've screwed up my
sleeping hours again and woke up
some time around 4 AM.
That's it... Yeah, let's see you do
better.
-K.
sanitized for your protection
6-11-04,
8:57 AM
Before I
started doing drugs, I had so many
problems. Now I only have one.
Drugs.
Music:
Rob Dougan - I'm Not Driving Anymore
So,
literally minutes after I posted the
story about Interplay being shut
down, it's been reported that
they've acquired the workers
compensation insurance they needed
and are back in business. However,
this also comes with the news that
French company Titus Interactive
filed for bankruptcy. Titus
is a majority shareholder in
Interplay, though CEO Herve Caen
says the bankruptcy "doesn't affect
us in any way, shape or form."
There's a dead man walking with
major denial issues.
I'd like to direct all of your
attention to these
two
clips from a game I mentioned
during E3, F.E.A.R. Due out
for release in 2005, it's already
looking mighty impressive and it's
something to watch.
Lastly, I need my own place, can
any of you front me the $200,000 for
one of the
lofts at the City Museum?
-K.
it was a
baby
6-9-04,
9:32 AM
Remember, no matter where you go,
there you are.
Music:
Brian Tyler - The King's Highway
Don't really have a whole lot to
talk about, but I'm doing this so I
can keep putting off this homework
I'm supposed to be getting to. Since
I'm taking two literature classes,
normally stretched out over the
course of a regular semester,
crammed into two months I guess I
should've expected that there would
be plenty of reading involved.
Through the course of this day I
should be reading the first five
chapters of my American Humor
textbook, a pair of handouts
containing a handful of short
stories, and the first half of
The Exorcist. I should also
mention that I've been up since
around 8 PM yesterday, only getting
about five hours of sleep.
I
got my hands on a copy of
Planescape: Torment, still
considered by many to be the
greatest CRPG created. Made by Black
Isle Studios of Fallout fame,
it was made way, way back in the
dark ages of 1999, and for some
reason, much like Fallout, I
have avoided it until years after
its release. I've been playing
through it for a few hours and it's
good enough so far, with a wry sense
of humor I really wasn't expecting.
For example, you're immediately
partnered up with a wisecracking
floating skull that speaks with a
cockney accent. I'll probably put it
on hold so I can finish up Thief:
Deadly Shadows, which has also
been very, very good.
I really had no intention of getting
Planescape until the news broke
that Interplay (Publisher of all of
Black Isle's titles) has been shut
down after California labor
investigators discovered that the
company was without workers'
compensation insurance and they also
had not been paying their employees
for weeks. As a penalty for
its infractions, Interplay was fined
$1,000 for each employee on the
payroll, which resulted in a $79,000
fine. But wait, that's not all, add
that figure to the $179,000 the
company already owes the state in
back taxes and the $432,000 in
unpaid rent it owes its landlord,
Arden Realty, who is reportedly on
the verge of evicting the company.
Also, they are being sued for
$156,000 in back Baldur's Gate
royalties by BioWare. CEO Herve Caen,
taking a cue from former Iraq
Defense Minster
Sultan Hashim
Ahmed, remains confident they
will make it out okay and denies
they have been shut down. Yeah, you
know you're hot stuff when your
stock is selling for less than fifty
cents a pop.
This isn't something to be sad
about, ever since former CEO Brian
Fargo left the company Interplay
went downhill; they started pumping
out crap games and hoarding as much
profit from the developers as they
could. They also killed Black Isle
Studios not too long ago, destroying
the work that was already going into
making Fallout 3. However,
with them going bust that usually
means a fire sale on their
intellectual properties, which would
include the Fallout series.
I'm just crossing my fingers it
doesn't end up in the hands of Eidos
or EA, I'm praying that BioWare has
the means to snatch it, or even
Troika (founded by ex-members of
Black Isle).
I guess I should go do my
homework.
-K.
its a
delicious day outside lets go fry
some pork
6-7-04,
8:32 AM
Oh
Benson, dear Benson, you are so
mercifully free of the ravages of
intelligence.
Music:
Paul Oakenfold - Ready Steady Go
So, can you believe it was just
ten years ago that OJ Simpson killed
Nicole and Ron? Oh, I'm sorry, I
mean 10 years since that
unidentified man who has yet to be
caught and whom the police have no
leads on killed Nicole and Ron. Of
course, how silly of me.
I guess he felt like celebrating,
because good ol' Juice was out and
about doing interviews, pitching
television ideas, and overall acting
like an evil prick that got away
with murder. If there wasn't reason
enough that we should rise as one
and slay him, let me give you a run
down on what he's said these past
couple days:
-
"There are times I am angry at
her [Nicole Brown Simpson],"
Simpson told Van Susteren.
"There are things that she could
be doing with the kids better
than I, you know? When, it's
emotional stuff, especially with
my daughter, I am angry with
her."
Sweet merciful Christ, is there any
way we can put this in the
dictionary next to the definition of
callous? Yeah, it sucks that she's
not around to be taking care of
those motherless kids but that's
what happens WHEN YOU FUCKING
KILL SOMEONE.
-
About Nicole's sister Denise,
whom Simpson claims profited
from the murder: "I am sure the
income is down on the foundation
that she works for--which, I
would imagine makes her income
go down," he said. "I don't
think anyone's bills have been
paid more than Denise's from
what came from the trial."
I know, it sure is a bitch that
the money you had to pay for
brutally murdering another human
being might be going to some
charity to help the victims of
domestic violence. He does have a
point, though, he could've used that
money to "look
for the real killer."
-
Simpson also took time during
the Fox interview to hype a new
reality show he wants to do.
"It's a takeoff on something
called Punk'd, an MTV
hidden-camera show featuring
Ashton Kutcher pranks on
celebrities," he explained to
Van Susteren. "It's me doing
gags as Juice...what they call
'juicing' people."
Boy, sounds like a winner to me.
I'm sure the censors wouldn't have a
problem with the title, either. I
can readily imagine what an episode
of this megahit would be like:
Man is walking down a sidewalk.
O.J.: Excuse me,
sir!
Man stops and turns.
Man: Yes, can I help
you?
O.J. stabs the man
repeatedly. After the screaming
stops and O.J. makes sure the man
is dead, O.J. turns to face the
camera.
O.J.: (excitedly)
Looks like someone got JUICED!
If he wants to be on
television, maybe he should wait and
hear my idea for a television show:
David Juicer (O.J. Simpson) and Jake
Ginny (Robert Blake) are two men
wrongfully convicted of the murder
of their wives. They end up as
cellmates in prison who later break
out and attempt to clear their names
by finding the real killers, who
always somehow end up leaving no
clues or evidence to follow. Special
guest appearances by John & Patricia
Ramsey and Gary Condit. Gin and
Juice, look for it this fall on
Fox.
Sigh.
How this idiot
manchild beat the justice system is
beyond me, but he has high hopes
that others of his celebrity
criminal brethren will be let off
the hook:
-
Simpson also made light of Kobe
Bryant's rape charge saying,
"When I was a kid growing up,
just about every girl said 'No,
' once. They had to because
you'd think they were a slut or
something. In my opinion, 'date
rape' and 'stranger rape' are
two different things entirely.
Any adult who has an active sex
life understands that you can't
have sex that way without both
parties helping out. It's
impossible." The 56-year-old
also rubbished Jackson's sexual
abuse charges insisting, "I just
have never seen that in him. I
think Michael is just an
affectionate guy toward kids. I
think the credibility of the
parent, the mother, will
probably set him free."
Yeah, I'm sure he's
had some experience with women
saying "No," usually followed by "I
don't want to die." He later went on to
say that Adolf Hitler was
misunderstood and quite a nice man
in private, evolution is a cruel
lie, and that Earth is flat.
-
Asked by Couric what he's told
his kids about their mother's
death, Simpson says, "[It's]
something we've never really
spoke about...Never, ever."
Well, I'm no
professional, but I think the best
way to council his children would be
to read to them from the book
Daddy Hurt Mommy and Now She Isn't
Coming Back by popular
children's author Karen Katz.
-
Couric also asks Simpson how he
is treated by the public after
all these years. "They seem to
embrace me," Simpson replies,
"[because they feel] I defeated
our system in some way, shape or
form...Sometimes it's almost at
a hero's level."
If by "embrace" he
means "they want to embrace
my severed head to the top of a
pike," then I'll go along with that.
Yes, O.J., you're a hero, just
like... You know what? I can't even
come up with a joke for this one.
This is a man that is so nefarious
and evil that he rivals most
fictional movie monsters, and he's
calling himself a hero. I feel like
he has detonated a moral nuclear
warhead and now everything that is
good and decent in this world is
being vaporized.
I really hope you are all as pissed
off as I am about this so I can
justify this rant, because I'm so
angry right now that I have to go
sit in the living room and squeeze
my head as hard as I can until I
pass out or the pain stops.
-K.
kids, kill your dad, he is evil and
insane
6-5-04,
11:58 PM
The
defense department regrets to inform
you that your sons are dead because
they were stupid.
Music:
Lalo Schifrin - Enter the Dragon
Updated the What to Think section.
Okay, I really want to get this
sketch movie off the ground this
summer. Anyone who wants to be
involved, we need to have a meeting
soon and start coming up with more
concepts, flesh out the good ones,
and sell the bad ones to MadTV.
I'm going to head up to Webster some
time and figure out what the policy
for renting equipment is, but it's
definitely starting to look very
do-able.
That
is all.
-K.
sham bam
bamina
6-1-04,
3:36 PM
I'm only
paranoid because they want me dead.
Music:
Richard Cheese - Creep
News
from last month has been sent off to
the archives.
It's
so very, very fun to go without
power for nearly 48 hours. The rest
of the family managed to use up all
the remaining battery power on my
GBA SP quickly, so I wasn't left
with much to do. Reflecting on how
much we depend on electricity to get
us through daily lives is fun for
about five minutes when you realize
"Why the fuck am I thinking about
this?"
So,
before I was left without power, I
did manage to play through the
recent
Thief:
Deadly Shadows
demo
and was pleased
with it despite the obvious dumbing
down of the series for the console
crowd. It shouldn't be too
surprising since the developers, ION
Storm (Not the one that used to be
headed by John Romero), did the
exact same thing with Deus Ex:
Invisible War. Fortunately, they
must have learned their lesson,
because it is not nearly as
terrible. I do recommend checking
out the first two games in the
series before jumping into this one,
though, not that there's any
continuing storyline you need
information from the first two games
to make any sense of, just that
they're classics and much better.
That
is all for now.
-K.
crunchy not smooth you bastards
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