So, I've been reading a lot lately. I've talked about that a few times. Well, I finished The Hunger Games, and then started the Song of Ice and Fire series (also known as Game of Thrones). It took me a little over a week to read the first one (A Game of Thrones), and I started the second one (A Clash of Kings) on ...Friday, I think...? Anyways, it's a pretty enjoyable series, and I am genuinely intrigued by it, but I'm having the hardest time reading it. I think it's because each chapter is told from a different point of view, and 99% of the time, the POV of the next chapter has nothing to do with the POV of the previous chapter. And almost every chapter ends with some sort of cliffhanger, big or small. And then the next chapter picks up somewhere completely different, often times with the "cliffhanger" having been resolved off-screen, and it turns out it was not a big deal. It just kind of bothers me a little bit, and it gives me no real ...desire to finish the chapter and get to the next chapter to see how this plot line resolves or expands. And because you get POVs from most of the main characters, you tend to like most of the characters. Even though most of the characters are enemies, or at the very least rivals. It both destroys the drama, and makes it more real. Which is a hard thing to do. Also, on occasion, it feels a little like a porno. Not THAT often, but often enough that I will feel uncomfortable reading it while I'm subbing. But it is a good series, and I am enjoying it. I'm just having a hard time getting through it.
Which brings me to what I've been doing all night! Writing! I've had this kind of fantasy world living in my head since high school. Junior year, at least. So, it's been a while, and I've always intended to write it down, but every time I get started, I get frustrated with myself for not having thought out everything. So this time, before I start writing the plot, I'm trying to figure everything out. History of the world, mythology and religion, how magic works, politics, character histories, everything. Aside from a little bit of mythology, I haven't really thought about this stuff before, so it's been really enlightening. I've had the characters and basic interactions down for a while, but with everything I've made up tonight, I'm going to have to change a few things. Which is fine, just little tweaks. I'm actually really excited about the direction that this project is taking this time through. I'm not sure if I'm going to try to get this published or if this is just going to be for fun, but this will also require me finishing it, and I don't have the best track record of finishing my projects, unless they are food- or class-based. Wish me luck on finishing this one!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Day 7
I'm probably going to stop the "Day Number" title. It makes it easy to title these ...very few blogs, but it also means that I'm acutely aware of how little I post, and that makes me self-conscious.
Anywho, I've been reading a lot lately, because being a substitute teacher allows for a lot of free time, and I can't rightly watch TV while making sure 20 high schoolers don't rape and murder each other. So I read. I finished The Wheel of Time series for the 2nd time total (as in, I've read every book at least twice. Some of them a few more.) The next book on my reading list was The Game of Thrones, however, because it is now on TV, that means that lots of people want to read it. And I don't really want to buy the series until I know that I'll like it, so I want to get it from the library. So...at the moment, the first book is actually waiting for me at the library. However, when I first put it on my list, I was 32nd in line for it. So in the meantime, I read the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Which was surprisingly excellent.
If you didn't watch the movie (and I believe that statistics state that you didn't...) you kind of know what it's about. The 1st series stars Percy Jackson, and his friends, who are all (or mostly) demigods, half-human/half-god children of the Greek gods. It's a very averagely written series that is totally engrossing. Reading only while subbing, and in between plan periods, lunch, talking to students, and actually teaching, I read about a book in a day in a half. Rick Riordan is the author, and there are 5 books in the first series, all of which are told in 1st person perspective from Percy. He (Rick, the author) is also writing two other series, Heroes of Olympus (which is technically a sequel series to Percy Jackson and the Olympians, in that it uses the same characters and locations, and expands upon them, adding in Roman mythology to the existing Greek) and The Chronicles of Kane (which is Egyptian themed, and takes place in the same universe as the Olympus series, which they subtly reference, but takes mythology from a slightly different angle). Heroes of Olympus and The Chronicles of Kane are each only 2 books into a 5 book planned series (which means that there are 2 H.o.O. books and 2 C.o.K. books, for those of you that are slower), but all three series are pretty good reads for people who (like me) where big mythology dorks in their earlier years.
Right now, I'm working through the Hunger Games trilogy. My old roommate recommended it to me a while ago, and I put it on my list, but it took me a while to get to. It also had a huge waiting list at the library, so one day while I was in Wal-Mart, I noticed that they were selling it for less than $7, so I went ahead and got the first book. I was still reading The Chronicles of Kane, so I didn't get to it for about a week, but as soon as I started it, I couldn't put it down. The first book was super good, so when I finished it, I went to Walmart and bought the other two. I had mixed emotions about Catching Fire. I felt like it introduced a whole lot, but I also felt like it moved at a snail's pace. I haven't finished Mockingjay yet, but...I'm struggling with it. I made a mistake by thinking about the Twilight series, and now my brain won't stop making comparisons between Katniss, Peeta, and Gale, and Bella, Jacob, and Edward. I feel like Katniss from the first book was full of personality and spark, but third book Katniss just feels ...bland. Her whole life revolves around Gale and Peeta in the third book, and...that's it. She sleeps and worries about her two boys...just like Bella. The first book was excellent, but after that, I just feel like the series has dragged. I mean...it's still good, I'm still reading the books, and I plan on seeing all of the movies, but my brain will not delete the Twilight comparisons.
So yeah. Between that and playing more Dragon Age, that's really all that's going on in my nerdy world right now. What are you reading right now?
Anywho, I've been reading a lot lately, because being a substitute teacher allows for a lot of free time, and I can't rightly watch TV while making sure 20 high schoolers don't rape and murder each other. So I read. I finished The Wheel of Time series for the 2nd time total (as in, I've read every book at least twice. Some of them a few more.) The next book on my reading list was The Game of Thrones, however, because it is now on TV, that means that lots of people want to read it. And I don't really want to buy the series until I know that I'll like it, so I want to get it from the library. So...at the moment, the first book is actually waiting for me at the library. However, when I first put it on my list, I was 32nd in line for it. So in the meantime, I read the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Which was surprisingly excellent.
If you didn't watch the movie (and I believe that statistics state that you didn't...) you kind of know what it's about. The 1st series stars Percy Jackson, and his friends, who are all (or mostly) demigods, half-human/half-god children of the Greek gods. It's a very averagely written series that is totally engrossing. Reading only while subbing, and in between plan periods, lunch, talking to students, and actually teaching, I read about a book in a day in a half. Rick Riordan is the author, and there are 5 books in the first series, all of which are told in 1st person perspective from Percy. He (Rick, the author) is also writing two other series, Heroes of Olympus (which is technically a sequel series to Percy Jackson and the Olympians, in that it uses the same characters and locations, and expands upon them, adding in Roman mythology to the existing Greek) and The Chronicles of Kane (which is Egyptian themed, and takes place in the same universe as the Olympus series, which they subtly reference, but takes mythology from a slightly different angle). Heroes of Olympus and The Chronicles of Kane are each only 2 books into a 5 book planned series (which means that there are 2 H.o.O. books and 2 C.o.K. books, for those of you that are slower), but all three series are pretty good reads for people who (like me) where big mythology dorks in their earlier years.
Right now, I'm working through the Hunger Games trilogy. My old roommate recommended it to me a while ago, and I put it on my list, but it took me a while to get to. It also had a huge waiting list at the library, so one day while I was in Wal-Mart, I noticed that they were selling it for less than $7, so I went ahead and got the first book. I was still reading The Chronicles of Kane, so I didn't get to it for about a week, but as soon as I started it, I couldn't put it down. The first book was super good, so when I finished it, I went to Walmart and bought the other two. I had mixed emotions about Catching Fire. I felt like it introduced a whole lot, but I also felt like it moved at a snail's pace. I haven't finished Mockingjay yet, but...I'm struggling with it. I made a mistake by thinking about the Twilight series, and now my brain won't stop making comparisons between Katniss, Peeta, and Gale, and Bella, Jacob, and Edward. I feel like Katniss from the first book was full of personality and spark, but third book Katniss just feels ...bland. Her whole life revolves around Gale and Peeta in the third book, and...that's it. She sleeps and worries about her two boys...just like Bella. The first book was excellent, but after that, I just feel like the series has dragged. I mean...it's still good, I'm still reading the books, and I plan on seeing all of the movies, but my brain will not delete the Twilight comparisons.
So yeah. Between that and playing more Dragon Age, that's really all that's going on in my nerdy world right now. What are you reading right now?
Sunday, October 23, 2011
The Sixth Night
I have to tell you guys about this super awesome nerdy dream I had. It's a dream, so it obviously didn't really make too much sense, but that in no way limits its awesomeness. First off, the dream was a mix between Harry Potter and X-Men, using elements of both universes. From Harry Potter, most of what was used was the movie version of Apparating and Disapparting. The version where they just kind of turn into smoke and fly around. That one. And Voldemort. From the X-Men universe was the X-Men themselves, obviously. They were kind of like the Order of the Phoenix from the HP universe. Also, there was some sort of character crossover. James and Lily Potter were instead Cyclops (Scott Summers) and Phoenix (Jean Grey), who in my dream were played by John Krasinski and Jenna Fischer (Jim and Pam from The Office). They did have a newborn (boy, I think, and would assume, but I'm not entirely sure about that).
Anywho. The dream opens kind of the same way the movie flashes back to Lily and James dying. Lily/Jean is putting the child to bed, and James/Scott is in the other room, being nervous. Jean comes to talk to Scott about how this Secret Keeper thing is probably not a good idea, and they would be safer with their friends (The X-Men/Order of the Phoenix) around. Scott agrees, so Jean goes to prepare their departure. Suddenly, the front door gets blasted down and who should float through but VOLDEMORT! Before he can raise his wand, Cyclops optic blasts him, not doing any real damage, but stunning him long enough for Scott to find Jean, who already has the baby and is ready to leave. Jean insists they go together, but Scott says that he'll be fine, they need to protect the baby. Jean agrees and she and the baby Disapparate out of their house, while Scott goes to confront Voldemort again. Voldy has recovered when Scott reenters the room, and they kind of duel for a little bit until Voldemort realizes that Jean and the baby are gone. He's about the kill Scott, but Scott Disapparates as well, but he uses the ghosty movie version, so he lingers around the house watching Voldemort wreck it trying to find a clue as to where the family has gone. After Voldy gets pissed and is done trashing the house, he leaves, and so Scott finally leaves to go to the other safe house that they had installed (the X-Mansion, I'm assuming, but I don't know for sure because...)
The dream shifts to Jean and the baby, who have materialized in some sort of shopping center. I don't know why she popped up here, but she did. She starts to run towards wherever it is that she's going, when suddenly, KABOOM! There's an explosion behind her. DEATH EATERS! There were a couple just hanging around who happened to notice her. She's got her baby in her arms, so she can't use magic to defend herself (why she doesn't just telekinesis the SHIT out of them is beyond me, but whatever), so she just runs away. Suddenly, there's another explosion, but this time where the Death Eaters where standing. Dazzler apparently was here as well, ready to defend Jean. Jean waves a thank-you to Dazzler, and keeps running while Dazzler stands her ground to kick some Death Eater ass. Then the dream went into a chase scene, with Jean running through the shopping center, trying to escape the Death Eaters, while things explode and fall down all around her (I'm assuming that Dazzler is doing some of the damage). Anyways, Jean finds her way outside again, and Cyclops comes driving up in a school bus (I don't know why). Jean and the baby climb aboard and hightail it outta there, leaving Dazzler and the Death Eaters behind. I feel like I should mention that it is also winter, and not a Tennessee winter. Like...an England winter, with snow everywhere, and it's dreary and overcast all the time, and is frequently below freezing, if not zero.
Cyclops is hauling ass in the school bus, but it's a school bus, so...there's only so much ass he can haul. Plus, there are other people on the road. (Also, I think this scene MIIIIIIIIGHT take place in Farragut, where I live now, so bear with me) He comes up to the Campbell Station/Parkside Drive intersection (which is a four-way light intersection, with like...six lanes on each road. It's a fairly large intersection.) He's trying to turn left from Campbell Station onto Grigsby Chapel, but there's this douchebag car in front of him that won't go, even though it's still a green turn signal. So he maneuvers that bus around the car, and ends up on Grigsby Chapel. He's driving for a little bit, and is about to turn onto Smith, when there's a TRAFFIC JAM! He can ALMOST turn, but not quite, because he's driving a fucking school bus and those bitches are HUGE. Luckily, Jean is right there and can levitate the front of the bus into a more turning-friendly position. She does so, and the family sets off down Smith Road, until ANOTHER TRAFFIC JAM. There is no real way to drive out of this one, so the family pulls over and ditches the bus. When they get off the bus, a group of X-Men Apparate to them (I guess the bus was some sort of mystical cloaking device? I dunno). Storm, Iceman, Shadowcat, Colossus, and I think Havok and Polaris are all there. And maybe Wolverine. But the group of them work their way from Smith Road onto Union road, and are walking along with no trouble. Someone senses something sinister (alliteration, yay!), so Storm and Iceman working together quickly create this blizzard. Cyclops yells at them, saying that any Death Eater with any sense will immediately be able to tell where they are now, because really, how many localized blizzards are there in the world, especially when there's a known weather controller in a hunted group of heroes. Storm explains that the center of the blizzard is a few miles down the road, and that's where all the Death Eaters will think they are. Cyclops is like "okay, whatever, it's not like you can undo this now" and they start to continue on their trek, when SUDDENLY a caped figure stands in their way. The X-Men assume battle positions, and before they can determine if it's Voldemort or Magneto (because Magneto is an ally, therefore a good thing), I woke up...
Also, after the Jean Grey shopping scene, there was this bizarre scene with Emma Frost, Storm, Iceman, Batman, and ...someone else, where they go to confront ...someone, and their abilities only activate when they twirl about in an anime girl fashion, so...there was that scene too. Which I chose not to include in this narrative because 1. Storm was a white girl with brown hair in that scene, 2. Batman has no business being anywhere near the X-Men, as he is a DC character, and they are a Marvel franchise, and 3. It made no fucking sense. Yay dreams.
So anyways, that was my super awesome dream. I sat with it all day yesterday, and I'm going to sit with it again today and see if I can't find a logical conclusion, and maybe write it out for National Novel Writing Month in November. If I do, I'll try to post chapters here so whoever wants to can critique me.
Anywho. The dream opens kind of the same way the movie flashes back to Lily and James dying. Lily/Jean is putting the child to bed, and James/Scott is in the other room, being nervous. Jean comes to talk to Scott about how this Secret Keeper thing is probably not a good idea, and they would be safer with their friends (The X-Men/Order of the Phoenix) around. Scott agrees, so Jean goes to prepare their departure. Suddenly, the front door gets blasted down and who should float through but VOLDEMORT! Before he can raise his wand, Cyclops optic blasts him, not doing any real damage, but stunning him long enough for Scott to find Jean, who already has the baby and is ready to leave. Jean insists they go together, but Scott says that he'll be fine, they need to protect the baby. Jean agrees and she and the baby Disapparate out of their house, while Scott goes to confront Voldemort again. Voldy has recovered when Scott reenters the room, and they kind of duel for a little bit until Voldemort realizes that Jean and the baby are gone. He's about the kill Scott, but Scott Disapparates as well, but he uses the ghosty movie version, so he lingers around the house watching Voldemort wreck it trying to find a clue as to where the family has gone. After Voldy gets pissed and is done trashing the house, he leaves, and so Scott finally leaves to go to the other safe house that they had installed (the X-Mansion, I'm assuming, but I don't know for sure because...)
The dream shifts to Jean and the baby, who have materialized in some sort of shopping center. I don't know why she popped up here, but she did. She starts to run towards wherever it is that she's going, when suddenly, KABOOM! There's an explosion behind her. DEATH EATERS! There were a couple just hanging around who happened to notice her. She's got her baby in her arms, so she can't use magic to defend herself (why she doesn't just telekinesis the SHIT out of them is beyond me, but whatever), so she just runs away. Suddenly, there's another explosion, but this time where the Death Eaters where standing. Dazzler apparently was here as well, ready to defend Jean. Jean waves a thank-you to Dazzler, and keeps running while Dazzler stands her ground to kick some Death Eater ass. Then the dream went into a chase scene, with Jean running through the shopping center, trying to escape the Death Eaters, while things explode and fall down all around her (I'm assuming that Dazzler is doing some of the damage). Anyways, Jean finds her way outside again, and Cyclops comes driving up in a school bus (I don't know why). Jean and the baby climb aboard and hightail it outta there, leaving Dazzler and the Death Eaters behind. I feel like I should mention that it is also winter, and not a Tennessee winter. Like...an England winter, with snow everywhere, and it's dreary and overcast all the time, and is frequently below freezing, if not zero.
Cyclops is hauling ass in the school bus, but it's a school bus, so...there's only so much ass he can haul. Plus, there are other people on the road. (Also, I think this scene MIIIIIIIIGHT take place in Farragut, where I live now, so bear with me) He comes up to the Campbell Station/Parkside Drive intersection (which is a four-way light intersection, with like...six lanes on each road. It's a fairly large intersection.) He's trying to turn left from Campbell Station onto Grigsby Chapel, but there's this douchebag car in front of him that won't go, even though it's still a green turn signal. So he maneuvers that bus around the car, and ends up on Grigsby Chapel. He's driving for a little bit, and is about to turn onto Smith, when there's a TRAFFIC JAM! He can ALMOST turn, but not quite, because he's driving a fucking school bus and those bitches are HUGE. Luckily, Jean is right there and can levitate the front of the bus into a more turning-friendly position. She does so, and the family sets off down Smith Road, until ANOTHER TRAFFIC JAM. There is no real way to drive out of this one, so the family pulls over and ditches the bus. When they get off the bus, a group of X-Men Apparate to them (I guess the bus was some sort of mystical cloaking device? I dunno). Storm, Iceman, Shadowcat, Colossus, and I think Havok and Polaris are all there. And maybe Wolverine. But the group of them work their way from Smith Road onto Union road, and are walking along with no trouble. Someone senses something sinister (alliteration, yay!), so Storm and Iceman working together quickly create this blizzard. Cyclops yells at them, saying that any Death Eater with any sense will immediately be able to tell where they are now, because really, how many localized blizzards are there in the world, especially when there's a known weather controller in a hunted group of heroes. Storm explains that the center of the blizzard is a few miles down the road, and that's where all the Death Eaters will think they are. Cyclops is like "okay, whatever, it's not like you can undo this now" and they start to continue on their trek, when SUDDENLY a caped figure stands in their way. The X-Men assume battle positions, and before they can determine if it's Voldemort or Magneto (because Magneto is an ally, therefore a good thing), I woke up...
Also, after the Jean Grey shopping scene, there was this bizarre scene with Emma Frost, Storm, Iceman, Batman, and ...someone else, where they go to confront ...someone, and their abilities only activate when they twirl about in an anime girl fashion, so...there was that scene too. Which I chose not to include in this narrative because 1. Storm was a white girl with brown hair in that scene, 2. Batman has no business being anywhere near the X-Men, as he is a DC character, and they are a Marvel franchise, and 3. It made no fucking sense. Yay dreams.
So anyways, that was my super awesome dream. I sat with it all day yesterday, and I'm going to sit with it again today and see if I can't find a logical conclusion, and maybe write it out for National Novel Writing Month in November. If I do, I'll try to post chapters here so whoever wants to can critique me.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Day 5
I love video games. Anyone that knows me can tell you that. And one of my favorite series has always been the Final Fantasy series of games.
It all started when my brothers and I downloaded an SNES emulator on our home computer. It came with some 150+ games, including a couple of Final Fantasy games (II-the English version of IV, Mystic Quest, and 5-which was in Japanese because it had never been released in the States). I discovered II/IV and DEVOURED IT. It was such a great game, with compelling characters, lots of choices weapon- and magic-wise, and an elaborate plot. I played Mystic Quest, and it was alright. Nothing to write home about, though. And I tried to play 5, but...it was in Japanese, so...it was quite difficult to play.
Years later, VII came out, and my family bought that. It had similarly compelling characters, and lots of great everything. Unfortunately, I quickly became attached to a character that dies at the end of the first (of three) discs, so ...I had a really hard time playing beyond her death, and to this day, I still haven't finished the game.
Then VIII. I didn't really like the magic Draw system, although I did really enjoy the GFs. I didn't really like the fact that there was no armor or accessories to equip, just the weapon, but I made do. The playable characters weren't quite as compelling, and there was this big whole side story that I wish had had more impact on the main story, but it was still a better-than-average game.
IX was my favorite, after IV. It was a "return to simpler times" the developers tried to tell everyone. 7 and 8 had been more sci-fi, and 9 was a return to magic/fantasy. The characters could have used a bit more development, but they all had storylines. I really liked the return of the class systems, and it was a very dramatic plot with a lot of locations to visit, and an interesting (albeit tedious) delivery subplot.
X is where it started to go downhill for me. It was the first final Fantasy game with voice acting, and ...it was shoddy. They had some talent (Tara Strong and Billy ...West, I think is his name), but OH MY GOD some of the voices were AWFUL. The class system was back, kind of, but it was flawed somewhat. You had 7 characters. In the early part of the game, you had to constantly rotate between 5 of these characters in order to defeat even the most basic of enemies. A 6th character to heal, and a superfluous 7th character. I didn't really like the plot, or the mini-games. The characters were pretty annoying (I thought), and I just didn't really enjoy a whole lot of the game. However, it did have a well-defined history, and a few bright spots randomly interspersed throughout the game.
Then it spawned this God-awful sequel. Charlie's Angels, Final Fantasy style. It was...not good. And 10 was not a good enough game to deserve a sequel, when every other game before was SO MUCH BETTER.
I never played XI because it was an MMORPG, and if I'm going to play on a team, I'd like to have some semblance of control over them.
XII was...also not good. The battle system was ...just awful, and there was no real distinction between the characters, aside from what they looked like. They could all use the same abilities and weapons. The player character is not the main character, and the whole plot is just a small chunk of a larger story, but...you don't really see that story. You hear about it, but your party's quest is not the world-saving, bad-guy-conquering quest that it should be. And you have to walk EVERYWHERE. Yeah, it doesn't sound that bad, until you do a quest in one remote corner of the world map, and find out that your next quest in the the opposite side. You don't have access to your airship right then, and you're all out of Teleport Stones. You have to WALK THE WHOLE WAY. It takes like a half hour to walk from one map to the next, which means it takes you THREE HOURS to get to the next place. Sure, you could go find another Teleport Stone, but that'll take you so far out of the way that you might not think it's worth it.
XIII has been the most recent (I think. XIV might have come out, but that was another MMORPG so I'm not going to play it). I haven't finished it yet, and truth be told am in no hurry. It's another not that great game, I think. You have 6 characters, who each excel in 3 job classes. The upgrade system is costly and annoying, both abilities and weapons. The game is very linear for the first two-thirds, and then suddenly BAM! Wide open space. Complete with every third monster being too hard for you to kill, so you get your ass kicked. Quite frequently. Which wouldn't be that bad, if you could change your lead character in battle. Which you can't do, so if your lead character dies, GAME OVER. Doesn't matter if your teammates are still alive and can revive you. Nope. YOU DIE. I'm not a big fan of this game. Which brings me to the point of this blog post...
Why the FUCK does Square-Enix do shitty things with their awful games, and NOT A GOD DAMN THING with their good games. 10 got a sequel. 13 is getting a sequel. and 10 is being fucking REMADE for the PS3. 12 got a pseudo-sequel. Granted, 4 got a sequel (15 years later...), but 5 (which wasn't that great, but wasn't terrible), 6 (which was actually pretty good and epic), 7, 8, and 9 were all much better than 12 and 13. And 6, 7, 8, and 9 were all better than 10. And...nothing. 7's mythology has been expanded with a sequel movie, and spin-off FPS game, and a prequel, but a remake would be excellent.
So here is my open letter to Square-Enix...
Dear Square-Enix,
I used to really enjoy your games. But ever since you added voice acting, I feel like your games' quality has been falling. Immensely. And throwing shitty sequels onto already shitty games doesn't make either of them better. Even remaking shitty games might make them better, but why not just remake an already good game that every single one of your fans wants. It'd be so much easier. You don't even really have to do anything to the remake. Just update the graphics. That's ALL YOU HAVE TO DO. Add voice acting if you want to. But that's really it. Please stop doing dumb things, because pretty soon, you will lose me as a fan. Sure, one less person buying your shitty games is nothing, but soon there will be two. Then three. Then ten. Then fifty. Step up the quality now, or you guys will be wishing you had.
Sincerely,
A Nerdy Gay who really used to believe in you guys
It all started when my brothers and I downloaded an SNES emulator on our home computer. It came with some 150+ games, including a couple of Final Fantasy games (II-the English version of IV, Mystic Quest, and 5-which was in Japanese because it had never been released in the States). I discovered II/IV and DEVOURED IT. It was such a great game, with compelling characters, lots of choices weapon- and magic-wise, and an elaborate plot. I played Mystic Quest, and it was alright. Nothing to write home about, though. And I tried to play 5, but...it was in Japanese, so...it was quite difficult to play.
Years later, VII came out, and my family bought that. It had similarly compelling characters, and lots of great everything. Unfortunately, I quickly became attached to a character that dies at the end of the first (of three) discs, so ...I had a really hard time playing beyond her death, and to this day, I still haven't finished the game.
Then VIII. I didn't really like the magic Draw system, although I did really enjoy the GFs. I didn't really like the fact that there was no armor or accessories to equip, just the weapon, but I made do. The playable characters weren't quite as compelling, and there was this big whole side story that I wish had had more impact on the main story, but it was still a better-than-average game.
IX was my favorite, after IV. It was a "return to simpler times" the developers tried to tell everyone. 7 and 8 had been more sci-fi, and 9 was a return to magic/fantasy. The characters could have used a bit more development, but they all had storylines. I really liked the return of the class systems, and it was a very dramatic plot with a lot of locations to visit, and an interesting (albeit tedious) delivery subplot.
X is where it started to go downhill for me. It was the first final Fantasy game with voice acting, and ...it was shoddy. They had some talent (Tara Strong and Billy ...West, I think is his name), but OH MY GOD some of the voices were AWFUL. The class system was back, kind of, but it was flawed somewhat. You had 7 characters. In the early part of the game, you had to constantly rotate between 5 of these characters in order to defeat even the most basic of enemies. A 6th character to heal, and a superfluous 7th character. I didn't really like the plot, or the mini-games. The characters were pretty annoying (I thought), and I just didn't really enjoy a whole lot of the game. However, it did have a well-defined history, and a few bright spots randomly interspersed throughout the game.
Then it spawned this God-awful sequel. Charlie's Angels, Final Fantasy style. It was...not good. And 10 was not a good enough game to deserve a sequel, when every other game before was SO MUCH BETTER.
I never played XI because it was an MMORPG, and if I'm going to play on a team, I'd like to have some semblance of control over them.
XII was...also not good. The battle system was ...just awful, and there was no real distinction between the characters, aside from what they looked like. They could all use the same abilities and weapons. The player character is not the main character, and the whole plot is just a small chunk of a larger story, but...you don't really see that story. You hear about it, but your party's quest is not the world-saving, bad-guy-conquering quest that it should be. And you have to walk EVERYWHERE. Yeah, it doesn't sound that bad, until you do a quest in one remote corner of the world map, and find out that your next quest in the the opposite side. You don't have access to your airship right then, and you're all out of Teleport Stones. You have to WALK THE WHOLE WAY. It takes like a half hour to walk from one map to the next, which means it takes you THREE HOURS to get to the next place. Sure, you could go find another Teleport Stone, but that'll take you so far out of the way that you might not think it's worth it.
XIII has been the most recent (I think. XIV might have come out, but that was another MMORPG so I'm not going to play it). I haven't finished it yet, and truth be told am in no hurry. It's another not that great game, I think. You have 6 characters, who each excel in 3 job classes. The upgrade system is costly and annoying, both abilities and weapons. The game is very linear for the first two-thirds, and then suddenly BAM! Wide open space. Complete with every third monster being too hard for you to kill, so you get your ass kicked. Quite frequently. Which wouldn't be that bad, if you could change your lead character in battle. Which you can't do, so if your lead character dies, GAME OVER. Doesn't matter if your teammates are still alive and can revive you. Nope. YOU DIE. I'm not a big fan of this game. Which brings me to the point of this blog post...
Why the FUCK does Square-Enix do shitty things with their awful games, and NOT A GOD DAMN THING with their good games. 10 got a sequel. 13 is getting a sequel. and 10 is being fucking REMADE for the PS3. 12 got a pseudo-sequel. Granted, 4 got a sequel (15 years later...), but 5 (which wasn't that great, but wasn't terrible), 6 (which was actually pretty good and epic), 7, 8, and 9 were all much better than 12 and 13. And 6, 7, 8, and 9 were all better than 10. And...nothing. 7's mythology has been expanded with a sequel movie, and spin-off FPS game, and a prequel, but a remake would be excellent.
So here is my open letter to Square-Enix...
Dear Square-Enix,
I used to really enjoy your games. But ever since you added voice acting, I feel like your games' quality has been falling. Immensely. And throwing shitty sequels onto already shitty games doesn't make either of them better. Even remaking shitty games might make them better, but why not just remake an already good game that every single one of your fans wants. It'd be so much easier. You don't even really have to do anything to the remake. Just update the graphics. That's ALL YOU HAVE TO DO. Add voice acting if you want to. But that's really it. Please stop doing dumb things, because pretty soon, you will lose me as a fan. Sure, one less person buying your shitty games is nothing, but soon there will be two. Then three. Then ten. Then fifty. Step up the quality now, or you guys will be wishing you had.
Sincerely,
A Nerdy Gay who really used to believe in you guys
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Day 4
So...it's been awhile. Oh well. You've lived, and will continue to. I moved, and it's been stressful.
So yeah, I moved. From home sweet home Nashville to home sweet home Knoxville. Why? Several reasons. I'm a certified teacher, and have been looking for a teaching gig lately. I had applied in Nashville and surrounding areas, Knoxville, Memphis, and Chattanooga. School starts in August, and my lease was up in July, but I had to give a 30 day notice to my apartment manager if I was going to move out at the end of my lease. I wasn't sure if I'd have a teaching job, and where it would be, so to be safe, I thought it was best to not get a new place in Nashville, because I'd had friends find out the day/week before school started that they got a job. So...I planned to moved home, in the hopes that I would find out about a job in July, and wouldn't actually HAVE to move home. But alas. No go. So I'm home, and still looking for a full-time job. BUT I'm subbing for now, in the hopes that I'll save up some money and be able to move out soon.
But I've been gaming a whole lot! I played through Dragon Age: Origins and all of it's DLC, and Dragon Age II and it's DLC. Then I started a new game, playing a different race and class. Then...I got bored and watched all of Eureka that was available on Netflix. And then Parks & Recreation. And then I started Dollhouse (which I got addicted to real fast!) And then I saw that Final Fantasy XIII is getting a sequel and decided that I need to power through it at least once, so that's what I'm working on right now.
Oh yeah, also, I'm in the Knoxville Opera Chorus for La Traviata, so...if you're in Knoxville you should come see me at the end of October!
So yeah, I moved. From home sweet home Nashville to home sweet home Knoxville. Why? Several reasons. I'm a certified teacher, and have been looking for a teaching gig lately. I had applied in Nashville and surrounding areas, Knoxville, Memphis, and Chattanooga. School starts in August, and my lease was up in July, but I had to give a 30 day notice to my apartment manager if I was going to move out at the end of my lease. I wasn't sure if I'd have a teaching job, and where it would be, so to be safe, I thought it was best to not get a new place in Nashville, because I'd had friends find out the day/week before school started that they got a job. So...I planned to moved home, in the hopes that I would find out about a job in July, and wouldn't actually HAVE to move home. But alas. No go. So I'm home, and still looking for a full-time job. BUT I'm subbing for now, in the hopes that I'll save up some money and be able to move out soon.
But I've been gaming a whole lot! I played through Dragon Age: Origins and all of it's DLC, and Dragon Age II and it's DLC. Then I started a new game, playing a different race and class. Then...I got bored and watched all of Eureka that was available on Netflix. And then Parks & Recreation. And then I started Dollhouse (which I got addicted to real fast!) And then I saw that Final Fantasy XIII is getting a sequel and decided that I need to power through it at least once, so that's what I'm working on right now.
Oh yeah, also, I'm in the Knoxville Opera Chorus for La Traviata, so...if you're in Knoxville you should come see me at the end of October!
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Day Three
Ugh. Moving sucks.
In the vein of recommending things to people, allow me to take a minute to recommend the video game series Dragon Age. It's actually fairly well known, so it's not like I should need to push TOO hard to get people to play it.
Do you remember/have you heard of Knights of the Old Republic from BioWare? Dragon Age is essentially that, but more Lord of the Rings-y than Star Wars. I mean...Knights of the Old Republic IS Star Wars, while Dragon Age is just kind of similar to LOTR.
In Dragon Age: Origins (which is the very first game), you create your own character, choosing sex (Male/Female), race (Human, Elf, or Dwarf), class (Warrior, Rogue, or Mage, although Dwarves can't be Mages), and then origin story (Human Noble, City Elf, Mage, Dalish Elf, Noble Dwarf, and Commoner Dwarf). And then you create your character and play! It's really fun, I promise!
You play through your origin story, and then all six origins come together and the game starts. Your character becomes a member of a league of warriors called Gray Wardens, who are sworn to defend the world from darkspawn and the Blight. Throughout the game, you can recruit various characters into your little army, and they can be fairly awesome. You can customize your teammates ALMOST as much as you customize your own character. You and all but two (possibly three) of your teammates can have two specializations within their class, and after you get them, you can change their stats, armor, skills, talents/spells, and everything. It's a bit to take on, but still fun.
You get:
Alistair- Human Warrior, Templar
Morrigan- Human Mage, Shapeshifter
Leliana- Human Rogue, Bard
Sten- Qunari Warrior, no specialization
Wynne- Human Mage, Spirit Healer
Oghren- Dwarf Warrior, Berserker
Zevran- Elf Rogue, Assassin
Dog- Mabari Warrior, no specialization
Shale (Downloadable Extra Character)- Golem Warrior, no specialization
But...it is lots of fun, and I am a bit too distracted to go into too much more detail, but it is a really epic game, and it's really fun, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys Sword and Sorcery kinds of RPGs, like I do.
In the vein of recommending things to people, allow me to take a minute to recommend the video game series Dragon Age. It's actually fairly well known, so it's not like I should need to push TOO hard to get people to play it.
Do you remember/have you heard of Knights of the Old Republic from BioWare? Dragon Age is essentially that, but more Lord of the Rings-y than Star Wars. I mean...Knights of the Old Republic IS Star Wars, while Dragon Age is just kind of similar to LOTR.
In Dragon Age: Origins (which is the very first game), you create your own character, choosing sex (Male/Female), race (Human, Elf, or Dwarf), class (Warrior, Rogue, or Mage, although Dwarves can't be Mages), and then origin story (Human Noble, City Elf, Mage, Dalish Elf, Noble Dwarf, and Commoner Dwarf). And then you create your character and play! It's really fun, I promise!
You play through your origin story, and then all six origins come together and the game starts. Your character becomes a member of a league of warriors called Gray Wardens, who are sworn to defend the world from darkspawn and the Blight. Throughout the game, you can recruit various characters into your little army, and they can be fairly awesome. You can customize your teammates ALMOST as much as you customize your own character. You and all but two (possibly three) of your teammates can have two specializations within their class, and after you get them, you can change their stats, armor, skills, talents/spells, and everything. It's a bit to take on, but still fun.
You get:
Alistair- Human Warrior, Templar
Morrigan- Human Mage, Shapeshifter
Leliana- Human Rogue, Bard
Sten- Qunari Warrior, no specialization
Wynne- Human Mage, Spirit Healer
Oghren- Dwarf Warrior, Berserker
Zevran- Elf Rogue, Assassin
Dog- Mabari Warrior, no specialization
Shale (Downloadable Extra Character)- Golem Warrior, no specialization
But...it is lots of fun, and I am a bit too distracted to go into too much more detail, but it is a really epic game, and it's really fun, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys Sword and Sorcery kinds of RPGs, like I do.
Friday, July 15, 2011
Day Two
I'm terrible at updating. This is something you will learn, and while I make no promises (or even moves) to update more often, I will at least say that I'll try.
Anywho. I've been doing a read through of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan (and Brandon Sanderson, but...I don't like his parts that much). Robert Jordan started the series, wrote the first 11 books (and a prequel!), and then died before finishing the series. One book left. So the publishers and Robert's wife picked Brandon to finish the series, but there was so much story left to be told that Brandon broke the last book up into three more books. Well...it's still one book, just being published in three volumes. And each "volume" is the size of one of the regular books. So...three books. That is 15 books, plus a guide to the series that has been published so far.
Guys, this is excellent reading. I've read each book before, but never back-to-back like I am this time. It's so weird the stuff that I pick up on now that I KNOW what happens, and how long he(Robert) has been foreshadowing some of this stuff. The prequel wasn't written/published until after the ...6th(?) book, but even it has foreshadowing, and not the *hint hint nudge nudge* kind. The "Oh wait. Really? This character has been this way for the whole series? I'M FOURTEEN BOOKS IN. HOW HAVE I NOT NOTICED?!" kind of way. There are multiple theory sites, and a Wiki, and a few blogs, and multiple websites all dedicated to keeping track of everything that happens in this series, all the characters, interactions, love connections, prophecies, EVERYTHING. It's so wonderful, and a continuity nerd's wet dream (read: mine.) I'm one of those people who finds something with a complicated backstory (but one that still makes sense) and just DIVES in. It's one of the reasons I love comic books, and HATE it when they "reboot" everything, or declare that "nothing will be the same." Because shit like that caused everything to mess up in the first place. But that is another post for another time.
Back to the Wheel of Time. I'm going to try to give you a bare bones rundown of the series and major characters, but ...well...if you ever start reading, you'll understand. Needless to say, SPOILERS. I mean...it's stuff all happens (or is seriously set in motion) in the first three books, but still SPOILERS.
There are five (later six, arguably eight or 9) main characters. Rand al'Thor is the MAIN main character, the prophesied savior of the world, but also someone who is supposed to pretty much destroy the world while trying to save it. The Dragon Reborn. There's a metric shit ton more backstory and development to him, but I'll just say that he's a Savior/Jesus character, and kind of a slut.
Mat Cauthon and Perrin Aybara are the other two legs of the main male character tripod. They and Rand are ta'veren, which in the world they inhabit means that they are people who the world does actually revolve around. Things have a habit of going their way, even if they don't see it that way. For our purposes, being ta'veren means that they are Main Characters (as the Xanth series would say) and therefore too important to die. Yet. If I were going to classify them as D&D characters, Rand would be a Warrior/Mage dual-class (first Warrior, then added Mage, you'll see.) Mat is a fairly typical Rogue, but uses a spear-type weapon instead of any real Rogue-y weapons. Also, he's really really REALLY lucky. Perrin is a ...Warrior/Ranger, I guess...dual-class (but like...actually dual-classed, like every race except humans can be.) He's a hulking brute who has an animal connection (and is my favorite character of the males...).
Ah, the females. Firstly, there is a slight dispute as to which females are considered "main" characters. Wikipedia lists three, I would consider arguments for two more, but for the first book, there are really only two. The third cameos in the first book, and doesn't really become a presence until the second book. Same with one of the extra two. The last extra doesn't even show up until the third or fourth book, but she's still fairly important. Anywho, the two females are Egwene al'Vere and Nynaeve al'Meara. Egwene is Rand's first love interest, and an (eventual) Aes Sedai (which are the female magic users of this world). Nynaeve is the village Wisdom (the female equivalent of the Mayor politically, but also the town doctor kind of person), and also an (eventual) Aes Sedai. I can't say too much more without giving things important plot details away, but I will say that Egwene is my favorite character of the females.
The other one, and the extra two, are Rand's other love interests (I TOLD you he was kind of a slut!), and all interesting characters. There aren't uninteresting characters in this whole series. Robert Jordan is just an excellent craftsman like that. And there are also a metric shit ton of secondary characters, and minor characters, and mentioned characters, and you can very easily get lost and sidetracked, but IT IS A WORTHWHILE READ. I PROMISE. I started this series ...sophomore year of high school, and I graduated college in Dec 2009, and am STILL in love with this series, and am constantly fascinated by it. Seriously, check it out. At least the first 11 books, and the prequel/the ones that Robert Jordan wrote. Because Brandon Sanderson has done an admirable and unenviable job of closing out the series, but there is just a significant tone change that I personally don't like that much. However, I am so dedicated to the series that I'll finish it out, even if it turns into Twilight-level garbage.
Wheel of Time, Robert Jordan.
prequel- New Spring
#1- Eye of the World (also published as two books From The Two Rivers and To The Blight)
#2- The Great Hunt
#3- The Dragon Reborn
#4- The Shadow Rising
#5- The Fires of Heaven
#6- Lord of Chaos
#7- A Crown of Swords
#8- The Path of Daggers
#9- Winter's Heart
#10- Crossroads of Twilight
#11- Knife of Dreams
#12 volume 1- The Gathering Storm
#12 volume 2- Towers of Midnight
#12 volume 3- A Memory of Light (not yet published)
Seriously. Go read them. They're about 800 pages per book, but SO WORTH IT.
Also...I'll probably do a few posts about the series as I blog more, so...you'll know what I'm talking about.
Anywho. I've been doing a read through of the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan (and Brandon Sanderson, but...I don't like his parts that much). Robert Jordan started the series, wrote the first 11 books (and a prequel!), and then died before finishing the series. One book left. So the publishers and Robert's wife picked Brandon to finish the series, but there was so much story left to be told that Brandon broke the last book up into three more books. Well...it's still one book, just being published in three volumes. And each "volume" is the size of one of the regular books. So...three books. That is 15 books, plus a guide to the series that has been published so far.
Guys, this is excellent reading. I've read each book before, but never back-to-back like I am this time. It's so weird the stuff that I pick up on now that I KNOW what happens, and how long he(Robert) has been foreshadowing some of this stuff. The prequel wasn't written/published until after the ...6th(?) book, but even it has foreshadowing, and not the *hint hint nudge nudge* kind. The "Oh wait. Really? This character has been this way for the whole series? I'M FOURTEEN BOOKS IN. HOW HAVE I NOT NOTICED?!" kind of way. There are multiple theory sites, and a Wiki, and a few blogs, and multiple websites all dedicated to keeping track of everything that happens in this series, all the characters, interactions, love connections, prophecies, EVERYTHING. It's so wonderful, and a continuity nerd's wet dream (read: mine.) I'm one of those people who finds something with a complicated backstory (but one that still makes sense) and just DIVES in. It's one of the reasons I love comic books, and HATE it when they "reboot" everything, or declare that "nothing will be the same." Because shit like that caused everything to mess up in the first place. But that is another post for another time.
Back to the Wheel of Time. I'm going to try to give you a bare bones rundown of the series and major characters, but ...well...if you ever start reading, you'll understand. Needless to say, SPOILERS. I mean...it's stuff all happens (or is seriously set in motion) in the first three books, but still SPOILERS.
There are five (later six, arguably eight or 9) main characters. Rand al'Thor is the MAIN main character, the prophesied savior of the world, but also someone who is supposed to pretty much destroy the world while trying to save it. The Dragon Reborn. There's a metric shit ton more backstory and development to him, but I'll just say that he's a Savior/Jesus character, and kind of a slut.
Mat Cauthon and Perrin Aybara are the other two legs of the main male character tripod. They and Rand are ta'veren, which in the world they inhabit means that they are people who the world does actually revolve around. Things have a habit of going their way, even if they don't see it that way. For our purposes, being ta'veren means that they are Main Characters (as the Xanth series would say) and therefore too important to die. Yet. If I were going to classify them as D&D characters, Rand would be a Warrior/Mage dual-class (first Warrior, then added Mage, you'll see.) Mat is a fairly typical Rogue, but uses a spear-type weapon instead of any real Rogue-y weapons. Also, he's really really REALLY lucky. Perrin is a ...Warrior/Ranger, I guess...dual-class (but like...actually dual-classed, like every race except humans can be.) He's a hulking brute who has an animal connection (and is my favorite character of the males...).
Ah, the females. Firstly, there is a slight dispute as to which females are considered "main" characters. Wikipedia lists three, I would consider arguments for two more, but for the first book, there are really only two. The third cameos in the first book, and doesn't really become a presence until the second book. Same with one of the extra two. The last extra doesn't even show up until the third or fourth book, but she's still fairly important. Anywho, the two females are Egwene al'Vere and Nynaeve al'Meara. Egwene is Rand's first love interest, and an (eventual) Aes Sedai (which are the female magic users of this world). Nynaeve is the village Wisdom (the female equivalent of the Mayor politically, but also the town doctor kind of person), and also an (eventual) Aes Sedai. I can't say too much more without giving things important plot details away, but I will say that Egwene is my favorite character of the females.
The other one, and the extra two, are Rand's other love interests (I TOLD you he was kind of a slut!), and all interesting characters. There aren't uninteresting characters in this whole series. Robert Jordan is just an excellent craftsman like that. And there are also a metric shit ton of secondary characters, and minor characters, and mentioned characters, and you can very easily get lost and sidetracked, but IT IS A WORTHWHILE READ. I PROMISE. I started this series ...sophomore year of high school, and I graduated college in Dec 2009, and am STILL in love with this series, and am constantly fascinated by it. Seriously, check it out. At least the first 11 books, and the prequel/the ones that Robert Jordan wrote. Because Brandon Sanderson has done an admirable and unenviable job of closing out the series, but there is just a significant tone change that I personally don't like that much. However, I am so dedicated to the series that I'll finish it out, even if it turns into Twilight-level garbage.
Wheel of Time, Robert Jordan.
prequel- New Spring
#1- Eye of the World (also published as two books From The Two Rivers and To The Blight)
#2- The Great Hunt
#3- The Dragon Reborn
#4- The Shadow Rising
#5- The Fires of Heaven
#6- Lord of Chaos
#7- A Crown of Swords
#8- The Path of Daggers
#9- Winter's Heart
#10- Crossroads of Twilight
#11- Knife of Dreams
#12 volume 1- The Gathering Storm
#12 volume 2- Towers of Midnight
#12 volume 3- A Memory of Light (not yet published)
Seriously. Go read them. They're about 800 pages per book, but SO WORTH IT.
Also...I'll probably do a few posts about the series as I blog more, so...you'll know what I'm talking about.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Day One
First Post!
Why am I starting this blog? Not because I live such an entertaining life that I feel the need to chronicle it for everyone to see.
Mostly because I have tons of seemingly random interests that only a handful of people that I know in person share, and I'm hoping that maybe this will be a great way to meet people with those same interests.
So what are some of these interest? Comic books and superheroes, video games, sci-fi and fantasy, supernatural shiz, the like.
Want to know more? STAY TUNED. More to come.
Why am I starting this blog? Not because I live such an entertaining life that I feel the need to chronicle it for everyone to see.
Mostly because I have tons of seemingly random interests that only a handful of people that I know in person share, and I'm hoping that maybe this will be a great way to meet people with those same interests.
So what are some of these interest? Comic books and superheroes, video games, sci-fi and fantasy, supernatural shiz, the like.
Want to know more? STAY TUNED. More to come.
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