July 9, 2007

Mood: Opinionated
Playing: Ninja Gaiden
Listening to: Attention by The Academy Is…

I’m aware that there are some people baying for my blood due to my prolonged inactivity. Well, no worries, I’m back to cast Resurrection on my blog. Awaken, and carry forth my words to the far reaches of the universe! Or just to my friends and family, thats OK too. For those who know me, I’m easily distracted and whenever I’ve wanted to write a post I ended up surfing deviantART or watching television. Curse me and my short attention span. An example would be the 10+ tabs I have open right now, some on webcomics, some on blogs and others on GameFAQs. I can’t focus on any tab for longer than 3 minutes, apparently. The information age can be quite overwhelming.

Anyway I’m here today to write a long, ranting media review. What’s that you say? It’s basically a personal critique on all the music, movies, games, books and other media I’ve listened to/watched/played/read/telepathically absorbed/consumed over the last few months which are conspicuously devoid of any posts whatsoever. Reading this would probably save you a bit of cash on movie magazines. Also I’d like to add that this will be full of spoilers of whatever content these media contains, so you have been forewarned…

Movie: Pirates of the Carribean: At World’s End
Well, the third in a series of swashbuckling adventures. Most people watch it for Captain Sparrow, fight scenes and naval battles. Which is what the movie excels in. What it does not excel in is the overly convoluted plot, and it really does get confusing to follow halfway through the film. The sudden changes of setting and characters moving from ship to ship made me lose track of things too many times. Also, what was with the portrayal of Singapore? Were they doing their research at all? A dark, foggy village on stilts over open water? Rough and tough immigrant pirates of various races who spoke English at that time? Come on, if they think movie audiences are this guillble, it is clearly an insult to our intellect. Overall it acts as a commendable thriller with a heavy budget, but with most Hollywood sequels these days, it falls short of the potential grand finale it could’ve been.
Score: 76%

Book: Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The first time I read this book I was too young to appreciate its full meaning and simply skimmed on the outside of the story: a tale of an Indian boy’s survival upon a lifeboat that he shared inhabitance with a Bengal tiger. Rereading it again, I begin to understand the deeper parts of the book, as well as getting a glimpse into the reason why it won the Man Booker Prize in 2002. Upon finishing the book again, I was left with the distinct feeling that I had only chanced upon the tip of the iceberg, but at least this time I was aware that more still lies below the surface. It looks into the nature of a person left isolated from civilisation for too long, to the point where he may have become the very tiger he was afraid of. If you don’t understand what I mean, I can only suggest reading the book firsthand. Perhaps you may begin to comprehend it too.
Score: 92%

Game: Granado Espada
From the director of Ragnarok Online comes a new Korean-made MMORPG, but it sets itself apart by its setting. It is based upon a fantasy world that takes themes from the European baroque period as well as borrowing heavily from the Spanish conquistadors and their culture. Visually, this produces a stunning backdrop for a game and breathtaking characters with superbly detailed costumes. I have to applaud it for its visual style, rivalling even Guild Wars for its immersive cultural setting. Gameplay wise, it begins to show a few chinks in its armour. The three character party system was exciting at first but became somewhat frustrating due to character management issues in tight situations. It’s simply more attention consuming to play three characters at once. Also, the constant grinding and the repetitiveness of the quests became excruciatingly monotonous to a casual gamer like me. I don’t play Flyff or MapleStory for that reason.

As for the soundtrack, it has an impressive repertoire lined up. Music from multiple Korean artistes and composers, e.g. SoundTeMP, contributed varied tracks that were memorable and catchy. There were classical themes that suited the setting as well as techno or dance tracks for those who want to get their blood pumping during battle. The best part was the Jukebox system which allowed players to choose what track they would like to listen to, making the endless grinding a bit more bearable. Voice acting was done tastefully, and had different recordings for individual skills, which is more effort put into the game than many generic titles available today.

There were also multiple chain quests which form a sort of overarching storyline, which does reflect the conflicts in the world of the game. This allows players to fit in nicely into the overall culture, as well as providing key characters that can join your party and be playable. This is also a change from the many mediocre MMORPGs nowadays, especially many of the lower budget Korean games. Another thing which piqued my attention was the fanservice in the game, for both male and female players. Plunging necklines on dresses, revealing attire and topless male fighters marauded the streets. And the female characters always seem somewhat…Bouncy. No! Wait! I was referring to their personalities! What kind of ideas were you getting? Anyway, to this extent, it has done well to attract people of all orientations…

Fun while it lasted, but I’m hearing rumours of it going Pay-to-Play, and I might stop if it really does happen.
Score: 80%

Movie: Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer
Bleargh. I’m not sure why I watched this thing again. Maybe because the trailer looked freaking cool, because of the Silver Surfer and his plethora of abilities. After I watched the movie, I realised that the footage of the Surfer in the trailer was pretty much showcasing all the good parts already. The plot was so bland I could hear brain cells grinding to a halt all around me. Why focus on Mr. Fantastic’s wedding troubles when you could be watching the Surfer swoop through buildings and pound the Human Torch into the ground, from beyond the atmosphere? (The Human Torch was the only other saving grace, by the way.) Basically, too much talk, too little action, and would have liked far more epic battles instead of useless scenes where characters milled about and disagreed with each other. The scene where Johnny Storm collects all of their abilities and beats the stuffing out of the Surfer was one of the highlights, but sadly still does not bring this movie up to par with anything else on this list.
Score: 56%

Game: Phantom Dust
Well, I haven’t finished it yet but am halfway through. This title for the XBox is a success in its own right, but much like its fellow Psychonauts (both were published by Majesco, which is suffering financial trouble) Phantom Dust was not as well received as it deserves to be. As to its genre, I can only vaguely begin to categorize it, as it has themes from RPGs, third-person shooters and card-based combat a la Kingdom Hearts - Chain of Memories. When I say card-based I mean being able to prepare a “deck” of abilities and then bring them into battle, where they will spawn randomly. This kind of tactical action gameplay is actually quite exciting and requires some thinking before charging into battle. The controls are pretty fluid and the gameplay is generally well varied, with a huge range of over 300 abilities. The actual combat experience feels a bit like scenes of FF VII Advent Children, with energy blasts flying left, right and centre and fully destructible environments. That part was fun to experiment with. You can destroy bridges, blow the ground apart from under your enemy’s feet, create craters all over the place and throw desks and crates with telekinetic powers. As about surreal as Psychonauts, except much more serious.

And that brings us to the plot of the game. The game is about a post-apocalyptic world, where a mysterious particle-like substance called Phantom Dust floats around in the air and has the effect of erasing humans’ memories when exposed to for longer than 15 minutes. Thus the survivors of mankind is forced into a pathetic survival below the ground, and the world above has been claimed by odd humanoid monsters and entities that are a mystery to humans. However the dust grants some humans supernatural abilities, somewhat like a cross between magic and psychic powers. You can channel elemental energies to obliterate enemies or create psychic blades that tear apart the opposition (my personal favourite).

The plot is dark, clothed in mystery and unknown intentions. Allies end up backstabbing you for many reasons, whether intentionally or against their will. Your own past is obscured as you have no memories to call your own, only those which you forge yourself in the heat of battle against sinister foes. If you don’t get it already, I’m telling you to go buy this game! Yes, I’m talking to you, B. Yap…
Score: 90%

This post is getting uber long, and I still have a handful of more reviews to write. Plus it’s getting late and dreaded chemistry homework awaits. I will have to postpone this till later, so until then, whenever it may be, fare thee well, and check back often.

~ by blazerknight on July 9, 2007.