Prepare your rods, master your bait, and get ready to have a reel good time. This is Umihara Bazooka, the arcade-ish spin-off to the Umihara Kawase series. Not gonna lie, the title lures me into this game and what mysteries it beholds. So let's dive in and fish for answers. (Click on "Read More" to read the full review.)
Look at this image above you. This image was taken on September 8th of 2020. The culmination of a Tuesday night, dedicating my evening to a final gauntlet of exercise after a long day of work. The grind of retail wage-slavery still wore at me to the point where I had to have eaten immediately after getting home, and yet I was determined. I was going to beat this beast back and claim my victory. It was late into the night, just shy of midnight, but I had to beat it. And in proper JRPG Fashion, after two phases of boss battle in a grueling battle of endurance, I had done it. Awash in exhaustion and post-exercise afterglow, I sat down on my bed and watched the credits roll.
I had beaten Ring Fit Adventure. Now, let me tell you about the journey of getting there.
My initial plan for this review was to have it released two weeks ago, on the 13th of November. My reasoning was largely symbolic, as the 11th is the anniversary of the Armistice which ended the first half of the greatest and most impactful war in human history thus far. However there ended up being other reviews and delays which had to be taken which ended up messing with my schedule and plans; but at least I was able to give a somewhat symbolic gesture with releasing this review the day after Thanksgiving.
This year is coming to a close, and it has truly been a trying year. Next week will begin my December break and this is to be my last review of the year. To that end, I can think of no more proper send-off for this year than to speak on a film that I not only enjoy but deeply respect for what it sought to accomplish.
Released on the anniversary of the 100th year following Armistice, They Shall Not Grow Old brought Peter Jackson's filmmaking talents to bear against the memories of the First World War. Utilizing revolutionary digital effects and restoration techniques, Jackson and his team sought to bring the lives and tribulations of soldiers from both sides of the trenches into vivid detail. What WingNut Films shows is both stunning in its humanity and in its horror and as we give thanks for all that we have, perhaps we can use this occasion to also give thanks to those souls who are with us no longer.
You know how some gamers swear that a game is good because they spent a ton of money on it? (*Cough* The people that bought the Double Dragon 4 Collector's Edition *Cough*) Well, today's game is a very expensive one to find and it's a tokusatsu game. So, going by that logic that means that this game should be a twenty out of ten game that only the game collecting gods should experience. This is Kamen Rider for the Super Famicom and I have huge doubts that this game will be worth spending a king's ransom on. Let's see shall we? (Click on "Read More" to read the full review.)
You probably saw the title and went, "ooh a shooter game!" Well, while it has guns in the game and yo can technical shoot them, it is more of a puzzle game. While the title tells you about how you will disassemble them, It doesn't tell you that you have to put it back together. This is where it being a puzzle comes in as every little screw has to go back in its right hole.
Hey everyone,
Just wanted to give you all a little heads up regarding the lack of article this week and the plans for Film Reviews going forward into the new year.
My review of Clear and Present Danger was originally going to be released yesterday, but sudden delays and unexpected prior commitments made that date impossible. In addition, I've been thinking long and hard about changing up the structure of my film reviews and this latest review was the straw that broke my back as it were.
And it largely has to do with the points system I have been using. For those of you who have been following my reviews for the past couple of years, you would know that I split the reviews into four specific categories for consideration: Visuals, Soundtrack, Characters, and Story. And when it comes to actually score the film, these points work out fantastic and with little issue. I have no desire to remove the point system on its own.
But where I have been growing dissatisfied with articles is in my splitting up of my review to talk about each category specifically and independent of each other. I just don't personally think of films in that divided and isolated way and it has begun to seriously impact my emotional conveyance of the quality of films.
As a writer and critic, I feel motivated to give you guys the best possible portrait of my opinions on any subject I discuss, and in my editorials and more free-form articles, I feel like you all get a better grasp of my humor and thought-process on any particular subject. So I want to adopt a similar approach to reviews going forward with the hopes that my emotions and enthusiasm will be better conveyed.
I already employ a similar style with my Literary Recommendations, this will simply extend, with modification, the format to Film and TV reviews. But in order to do these things, I will need to switch up my expected schedule for the rest of the year.
So my review of Clear and Present Danger will be pushed to the 8th of January, 2020, being the first film review of the new year. Next week will be my experimentation with the new format with a review of the 2019 documentary They Shall Not Grow Old before I join the rest of the Emerald Rangers in taking December off, with a special Christmas editorial being the last article of the year.
I want to thank all of my readers for sticking with me through this absolute pisser of a year and hope that my new style will help to better entertain and inform.
Here is a short lived Improv Comedy show I have found memories of, only lasting 12 episodes + the pilot. Airing from fall 2004-2005 on WB and Comedy Central, this show was created by Drew Carey after Whose Line is it Anyway had finished its run and the show easily felt like a continuation as it featured several of the same games and cast. So, click "read more" and let us take a look back at this failed experiment.
Games which use social engineering have been done before, but they are few and far between. Other notable entries into this niche sub-genre are Trouble in Terrorist Town and Spy Party. Now along comes a little game called Among Us. This mobile game, now ported to Steam, utilizes social engineering, fast matches, solid online play and low cost access ability to make the perfect storm.
Welcome back to another edition of Let's Talk...
I have spent the last few weeks intermittently reviewing the 1990s Tom Clancy film adaptations, with plans to conclude the series by reviewing Clear and Present Danger next week. However whilst reviewing this series, I was struck upon a particular thought. The possibilities of adapting the entire Jack Ryanverse into a film or television series, ala the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
This has been a thought that has long dominated my mind, with the current reviews only being a further impetus for my thought experiment. Could such an adaptation occur in today's cinematic climate? What alterations might have to be made in order to forward such an adaptation? What restrictions might exist that could hinder such an adaptation?
Over the past few months, there have been reports that the current owners of Power Rangers, Habro, are cutting ties with Toei, as in they will no longer use Sentai footage. Supposedly, their contract with both Toei and Nickelodeon is expiring which would mean that Power Rangers Dino Fury, (which is set to air in 2021) would be the last traditional encarnacion. While I have no way to confirm or not if this will happen, if raised a good question about how Power Rangers could work as a stand alone. So, click "read more" and I will give my take.
There's a lot of puzzle games out there on Steam. A lot of them are crappy, a lot of them are pornographic, and a lot of them are both. There are quite a few good ones on there too, but sifting though the crap to get to one can be a difficult task. However, Pepper's Puzzles could be one of those diamonds in the rough. Then again, that bar is set so low on Steam, even roadkill can jump over it. (Click on "Read More" to read the full review.)
The Saints Row series is a timeless classic that has done a great job filling the void in the very long gap between Grand Theft Auto games. The second in the series is the earliest game available on multi platforms, so most PC gamers start here unless you are ready to dust off that X-Box 360 and order a copy of the original game.
Hey everybody!
I hope that you have managed to keep yourselves in high spirits and good health given all the anxiety and stress that this last week has likely given quite a few of you. I know that I personally had some serious anxiety attacks as thoughts of the election have continued to pervade the back of my mind. Thankfully, some R&R and loved ones has ensured that I am in decent mental form for you all and enabled me to focus on providing you all with a different kind of article this time around.
Up until now, my style of articles have been of four general varieties: Reviews, Countdowns, Editorials, and Literary Recommendations. Today's article is going to be a variation of Editorials that I'm calling "Let's Talks". Whereas my editorial articles are usually me trying to discuss a specific point or debate a topic that I'm focusing on in that article, Let's Talks will be much lighter in tone and more free-form. Let's Talks have no objective or point beyond me talking about some topic on my mind, be it a review or a rant, etc.
And for my very first Let's Talk, the recent election drama has brought my mind to one of television's greatest Presidents. So we are going to talk about just how great of a show The West Wing was and what I liked and missed about it.
In "celebration" of the 2020 election, I have decided to play a presidential election flash game. Free to play HERE. This game has nothing to do with Biden or Trump, which is fitting because I am in no position to write a proper political article. Anyway, let's click "read more" and see what this quick little game has to offer.
When it comes to getting Kamen Rider game released in English back in the day, we got the short end of the stick. Out of the many Kamen Rider games released in Japan, we only saw so few. We got a pretty decent arcade game (which you can read my review of that right here) and a very lousy Sega Mega CD game. Oddly enough, the Sega Mega CD game got rated T in America. Sure, most of the Kamen Rider games are lousy and I've reviewed a few of those stinkers here. Some of them are surprisingly decent and should've been released outside of Japan. This is one of those Kamen Rider games. This is your captain speaking! Today's gaming cruise ship voyage takes us to Kamen Rider SD: Shutugeki!! Rider Machine! A game released for the Nintendo Super Famicom. (Click on "Read More" to read the full review.)