Im into Square soft , Square enix and Capcom games..

• 13Jul 07

  resigning

  im resigning for maybe a few maybe couples years...j/k maybe a moth or 2? problems..

  Upcoming person?

  Idk who he is but theres a new guy named BloodGears and he just trips on blogging...So does another person this ones a girl I think? GunBullet?

  There slogan together is something like

  " Divided we stand, United we soar..." I like it...

  -Legacy-

  • Posted Jul 13, 2007 7:30 pm PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 4Jul 07

  Level 10

  When I make it to level ten I can't wait to show you all my vids i made...I got I - VII and VII seems like my hardest but crappiest I seems like when I try hard I make it look crappy?

  • Posted Jul 4, 2007 2:16 am PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 12Jun 07

  Level 3 Reached!

  Wow, Am I doing pretty good as my 4th day here? I had a good time last night! A fricking party...Afterwards we played Halo 3 beta and then just Halo 2 live also...Then I went home and played Saints Rows..I made a new game instead of going to a Theater becaus eI love the kick arse beginning? For some reason Im having a Save problem though So that file didn't save? I saved like 2 times before I quit last night?

  Enyways, Imma play Final Fantasy or something I feel like playing Classic games? And beating Final Fantasy 1 all the way up to 12? Even the side ones That I had to go to Japan and get? I don't understand the words yet so Im taking a Japanese and Chinese class? Along with Malay or whatever? next year? I thinkn its are trip to Tokyo no wait thats my vacation!

  I'll get a blog on that..

  Peace

  • Posted Jun 12, 2007 5:20 am PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 11Jun 07

  [ F i n a l - F a n t a s y ] [ V I ] [ A d v a n c e ]

  Final Fantasy VI Advance is a great port of an excellent role-playing game, and it's one that shouldn't be missed. The Good: Large cast of unique characters; compelling story; fantastic soundtrack; excellent-looking graphics, artwork, and world design; lengthy campaign full of interesting quests, dungeons, and side stories. The Bad: Combat can become tedious and repetitive.

  Nintendo and Square Enix have saved the best for last. After bringing enhanced ports of four of the first five Final Fantasy games to the Game Boy Advance, it's time for the last of the 2D Final Fantasy games to make the transition. Final Fantasy VI was first released in the US in 1994 as Final Fantasy III, but regardless of what you want to call it, this game is an unequivocal masterpiece and is arguably the pinnacle of the series. Everything about this game, from the beautiful soundtrack to the diabolical villain, makes Final Fantasy VI an unforgettable experience. It was an amazing achievement when it was originally released, and it's just as impressive today, almost 15 years later.

  
  Instead of focusing on a strong central character, Final Fantasy VI features a large ensemble cast.

  The story in Final Fantasy VI isn't especially original, but it's delivered so well that you'll want to relish each and every plot twist, character introduction, conflict, and line of dialogue. It takes place in a world that was nearly destroyed 1,000 years ago during a legendary war involving magic. In the aftermath of the war, the power of magic was lost. As a result, people started to develop technology to replace magic as the primary facilitator of "the good life." The technology certainly isn't rudimentary, but it's not quite what you would call advanced. The world has a very dingy, industrial feel, with locomotives, zeppelin-like air ships, and lumbering mechs. As is the standard in role-playing games, there is a powerful empire amassing strength and expanding its reach in an attempt to rule the world. Of course, an overbearing empire needs more than technology to assert its dominance over the masses, so Emperor Gestahl decides to revive magic and use it as a source of ultimate power. You play as a ragtag group of adventurers who team up with a rebel faction known as The Returners. You set out to put an end to the empire before Gestahl and his forces destroy the world.

  The main arc of the story is interesting, but what makes this game so enthralling is all of the ancillary details, character backgrounds, and memorable scenes. This is the largest, most diverse cast of playable characters in any of the numbered Final Fantasy games. Each of the dozen-plus playable characters has a unique special ability, which means you'll have a very different experience depending on how you build your party of up to four adventurers. Sabin, the monk in training, has special blitz attacks that you perform by inputting specific button combinations. Gau is a feral child who was raised among wild animals, so he can learn and use the special techniques used by enemies you encounter. Edgar is a technology buff and can use powerful tools such as chainsaws and drills to inflict major damage on enemies. There's a lot of variety to the special abilities of each character, so no two parties are ever alike. Beyond the battle screen, each character also has a distinct personality and backstory, which goes a very long way in making the game feel much more personal and compelling than it otherwise would be. Although this game is rated E10+, it's not at all a lighthearted fantasy. There's no blood or cursing, but there's plenty of death, grief, and destruction to make for a very dramatic and mature story.

  There are a number of memorable and endearing characters in Final Fantasy VI Advance, but the unrivaled star of the show is the villain, Kefka. He's one of Emperor Gestahls top generals and his ambition is matched only by his madness. He's a sort of insane clown with a god complex, reminiscent of Jack Nicholson's portrayal of The Joker in Batman. Kefka is a complete lunatic, but he's the kind of villain that you will love to hate. Also, his maniacal laugh is one of the greatest sound effects in any video game.

  One of the most apparent changes made in bringing Final Fantasy VI to the Game Boy Advance can be found in the dialogue and other text. Much of the original text has been updated, so if you've played this game on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System or the PlayStation, you'll notice many familiar lines have been changed. The dialogue changes are all perfectly reasonable, and much of what is said actually makes more sense now that it's been updated. However, purists and those who remember the original game fondly might find the changes to be a bit off-putting at first. Additionally, some of the spell, item, and skill names have been changed, but again the changes are mostly for the better.

  The gameplay in Final Fantasy VI might feel antiquated if you don't have any previous experience with 16-bit era RPGs. When you're exploring a network of caves, traversing the wide-open spaces of the world map, rushing into a burning house to save a child, or even plummeting over a towering waterfall, you'll frequently be drawn into random battles...very frequently. Sometimes you'll end up fighting off a group of half a dozen enemies, only to take three steps and end up having to fight the same group of enemies yet again. The constant battles can get tedious, although the unique abilities of each character do make the combat at least slightly more involved than simply hitting the attack command over and over again. In addition to their special abilities, almost every character can learn and use magic by equipping magicite, which is the essence of magical creatures known as espers. There are dozens of different types of magicite to collect, and for Final Fantasy VI Advance, a handful of new ones have been added that weren't in previous versions of the game. This magic system lets you further customize your party, so you can turn an apparent brawler into a powerful mage or healer if you so choose.

  Aside from the many, many battles, the rest of the game is spent partaking in typical role-playing activities. You can visit towns to chat with the common folk, barge into houses to loot treasures, tour the world in your very own airship, and go shopping for new items and equipment. There are also some less conventional sequences that break Final Fantasy VI out of the fetch-quest rut that so many other role-playing games fall into. In one scene, you have to eat dinner with the Emperor and carefully choose which questions to ask, and in another you have to memorize lines and put on an impromptu performance as an opera singer while fending off a mischievous octopus who's trying to disrupt the show. There's a lot of variety to be found in Final Fantasy VI Advance, but the gimmicky sequences come together well with the rest of the game and never overstay their welcome.

  Adding to the charm of Final Fantasy VI Advance is the great ****and artwork that highlights the visual presentation. The deformed character sprites are small and pudgy, but each one looks distinct and has enough animations and expressions to be surprisingly emotive. The hand-drawn enemy sprites aren't animated, but they all look fantastic, especially some of the huge, imposing bosses. The world has a cohesive look that is full of fine details, even on the relatively small screen of the Game Boy Advance. There are even some pseudo-3D touches that look primitive by modern standards but are a nice touch nonetheless. The Game Boy Advance hardware does a mostly excellent job of bringing the visuals to life, although there is the occasional touch of slowdown during some of the more spectacular battle animations.

  
  Its name may have changed, but this special boss still spells doom for the unprepared.

  The soundtrack in Final Fantasy VI is an eclectic mix of everything from somber melodies to thundering tribal beats. Longtime Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu created some of his best music for this game, with some memorable standout tracks like the overworld theme and the music for the opera scene. The only problem is that the Game Boy Advance hardware just can't do the soundtrack justice. It still sounds great, but this is the kind of music that you want to hear loud and clear, and that's not possible on the GBA. The music has also been rearranged slightly, so you'll notice some differences if you've played previous versions of the game. The battle theme in particular sounds a bit distorted, which is especially unfortunate because you'll hear it so often.

  Final Fantasy VI Advance is a great addition to the extensive library of Game Boy Advance role-playing games. The game has been well adapted to the platform, and most of the minor changes add up to make an already great game even better. It could easily take you around 40 hours to finish the game, but there are plenty of areas to explore and side quests to complete to keep you playing. There have also been some extras added for this version of the game, including a quicksave function that lets you suspend your game, a bestiary, a music player, and a bonus dungeon that you can unlock later in the game. They are small additions, but they at least give people who have already played other versions of this game another reason to visit it again. Whether you've played it before or are just curious about how the series has evolved over the years, Final Fantasy VI is a ****c game that shouldn't be missed. The fact that you can now take it anywhere only sweetens the deal.

  • Posted Jun 11, 2007 6:01 pm PT
  • Category: Games

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 10Jun 07

  [ D e v i l - M a y - C r y ] [ 3 ]

  Anyone who perseveres long enough to learn the ropes will probably agree that Devil May Cry 3 is one of the best PlayStation 2 action adventure games since the original. The Good: Excellent, fluid combat system, once you get the hang of it; spectacular visuals, especially the cutscenes; open-ended character building system gives replay value. The Bad: Ridiculously, unreasonably difficult at first; not much variety of environments; fair amount of backtracking.

  Get ready for some action that's so good it's liable to make you gnash your teeth and possibly smash your controller. Devil May Cry 3 is an appropriate about-face for the most memorable of Capcom's more recent franchises, one that started with a bang back in 2001 but flubbed its second outing two years ago. Now Devil May Cry is back, once again featuring the irreverent, inhumanly strong half-demon Dante in the starring role, and it easily presents the series' most challenging adventure yet. Devil May Cry 3 packs in a deep, outstanding combat system, plenty of spectacular story sequences, and lots of flair. Unfortunately, it's unbelievably, unreasonably difficult at first. Think of the most punishing game you played in the last several years. Now, imagine the second or third level of this game being even harder than that. Overcoming Devil May Cry 3's near-vertical learning curve could prove extremely frustrating, to the point where some players will justifiably give up after repeatedly failing the first few missions. That's really too bad, because anyone who perseveres long enough to learn the ropes will probably agree that Devil May Cry 3 is one of the best PlayStation 2 action adventure games since the original.

  
  Fighting the forces of hell ought to be hard. But this is crazy.

  The game's difficulty comes from a variety of factors, one of which is a fundamental disconnect between how Dante is as a character and how you actually need to control him while playing. In story sequences, Dante comes across as a reckless show-off who's practically immortal. In an early cutscene, he willingly lets a group of demonic enemies run him through with their blades, just to spite them. Unfortunately for you, such tactics don't actually work during gameplay, where you'll quickly discover that Dante is actually very easily killed. Another more important lesson takes longer to sink in: Throwing yourself at danger is going to get you killed 100 percent of the time. Again, this is especially true when first starting out, since besides not really knowing how to play the game, you'll start out with a short life meter (a few quick hits will kill you), none of the powerful weapons and abilities you'll acquire later on, and no continues. Devil May Cry 3, which bills itself as a "stylish crazy action" game, projects Dante's own carefree, incorrigible personality, suggesting a level of pick-up-and-play appeal that's actually nonexistent. It's debatable whether or not this is an inherent design flaw, but there's no denying the game drops you off in the deep end right from the start.

  Other much more concrete aspects of gameplay also make the early going as tough as it is. For example, there aren't any difficulty settings to choose from at first, and, as a matter of fact, the default difficulty mode here is actually the Japanese version's "hard" mode, which could only be accessed after finishing that version of the game. Whoever at Capcom second-guessed the recently released Japanese game's design and made it even more punishing made a terrible choice that nearly ruins this version. Thankfully, after Dante gets killed a few times, the euphemistically named "easy" difficulty setting is unlocked. Do yourself a favor: Swallow your pride, and start over in easy mode, which you'll find really isn't that much easier but should be surmountable if you've finished other action games that are generally considered to be hard.

  It'll initially seem very difficult to avoid getting hit in Devil May Cry 3. You can't withstand many hits, and unlike in similar games, you don't get some sort of invulnerability grace period after you've taken damage. So if five enemies attack you at once, you'll take all five of those hits and will probably die. You're going to die often, whether you like it or not, and at first, you might be inclined to blame this on the third-person perspective and the controls, both of which cease being issues eventually but are likely to give you some serious headaches in the first few hours. You can make Dante automatically attack nearby foes using his guns or his sword, or you can hold down R1 to lock onto a specific enemy. When you're locked onto and facing a foe, you can execute lateral rolls to get out of harm's way...but you must do so by pressing to Dante's left or right on the analog stick rather than to yours, which takes a while to get used to in the context of this game's hectic battles. If you don't perform the move correctly, you'll make Dante jump up instead of roll to the side, and you'll probably get hit. By default, Dante has no other defensive maneuvers to speak of, so any natural inclinations you might have either to retreat from attacks or try to guard against them will be brutally rebuffed.

  
  Dante's different fighting **** lend more depth to the game. But do the right thing, and stick with the trickster ****at first.

  One of Devil May Cry 3's interesting features is that it initially lets you choose from one of four different fighting **** for Dante. These don't completely change the gameplay or anything, but they do encourage a different approach depending on which ****you choose. It's possible to switch **** between missions and at certain points during missions, but since you gain experience and eventually new abilities as you keep using a single **** it pays to focus on one at a time. Specifically, it pays to stick with the default "trickster" ****on your first play-through, even though it doesn't seem nearly as appealing as the tougher-sounding "swordmaster" and "gunslinger" **** ("royal guard," a defensive **** isn't a good starting choice either).

  Again, the difficulty partly comes from simply not understanding the crucial nuances of the gameplay at first, which is something the game's optional tutorial screens do very little to address. You'll be inclined to either charge your enemies using the flashy slashes afforded by the swordmaster ****or blast away at them using the gunslinger's fancy shooting. And in either case, you'll get murdered repeatedly. Instead, you should be fighting with utmost caution, keeping your foes at bay, carefully observing their patterns, and avoiding attacks by using the trickster ****s incredibly useful starting ability to execute an invincible dash in any direction. Nothing says "trickster" like dodging a giant scythe.

  • Posted Jun 10, 2007 9:26 pm PT
  • Category: General

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 10Jun 07

  [ D e v i l - M a y - C r y ] [ 2 ]

  Video Review

  GameSpot's own Giancarlo Varanini gives the straight story on the sequel to Capcom's stylish action title. watch download In the end, Devil May Cry 2 is a big disappointment, and it just isn't all that entertaining.

  For every problem that's fixed or improved, a new problem appears--this seems to be the unintentional and unfortunate theme of Devil May Cry 2, a sequel that had an opportunity to improve upon an already excellent formula introduced in its predecessor but has unequivocally squandered it. Nearly every single improvement made in Devil May Cry 2 has some adverse effect. The environments, for example, are indeed quite larger than those in the previous game, but they lack the high level of detail and personality of the original Devil May Cry's environments, and many are so generic that they could've been used in just about any other action game. Likewise, Dante has a few admittedly stylish and easy-to-control new moves, but they are almost completely worthless and serve no purpose other than to improve your stylish action rating, which is quite unnecessary in the grand scheme of things. Additionally, Capcom has given Dante a partner named Lucia, whose levels are mostly identical to those on Dante's disc except that they're either in reverse or chopped in half, making her quest even shorter than Dante's incredibly short journey. Ultimately, it's just disappointing to see such an uninspired sequel that simply goes through the motions of being an action game rather than taking advantage of concepts introduced in its predecessor.

  
  Dante is back, but he's changed.

  The lack of personality in Devil May Cry 2 starts with the characters. What's most disheartening is that Dante, who also happens to be the son of a legendary warrior, is almost completely devoid of any charisma. This is the same character who mocked an enormous magma spider, who had been impaled on a sword only to purge himself of it and live, and who said "let's rock, baby" and sported a pair of guns named ebony and ivory. None of these personality traits are conveyed until very late in the game, and even then they're only small windows onto Dante's former self. Lucia doesn't really have time to develop a personality since her portion of the game is so short, and what you do learn of her past is such a hackneyed piece of video game lore that you probably won't care anyway. These characters do cross each other's paths at different points in the game, since both are trying to find a set of relics that are also sought by a man named Arius, who hopes to use them to gain control over the world.

  
  Both Dante and Lucia have some pretty slick moves.

  While their stories branch ever so slightly, Dante and Lucia are mechanically the same character, though one is slow but strong while the other is quick but weak. Both characters have somewhat identical aerial and long-range attacks, only Dante uses firearms while Lucia relies mainly on throwing daggers or other sharp objects. In addition, they can both turn to their melee weapon (which is either a large sword if you're Dante or a pair of small, sharp blades if you're Lucia) when an enemy gets too close. Lastly, these two characters also have the ability to turn into a devil, which gives them added special abilities (such as flight), new attacks, and better strength and defensive capabilities. Armed with only this information, you can get through all of Devil May Cry 2, including both discs, in about four or five hours. You don't need to pull off cool moves like running on walls or falling toward the ground headfirst with guns blazing, since a high ****rating doesn't factor into whether or not you'll beat the game. In fact, most of the fights in the game (particularly the boss battles) are easily won by relying on either character's basic skills. Many of you will undoubtedly enjoy trying to execute different combinations and make them look as cool as possible, but by the time you reach the middle of either character's game, you've seen just about all they can do, and it can quickly become tiresome to try to use fancy combinations repeatedly, when standing in a corner and using long-range attacks is much more effective. That's part of what can make Devil May Cry 2 so boring.

  • Posted Jun 10, 2007 9:22 pm PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 10Jun 07

  [ D e v i l - M a y - C r y ]

  Devil May Cry has successfully captured the twitch-based, relentlessly free-flowing gameplay style of so many classic 2D action games.

  Capcom's notion of what's cool--a concept on which its PlayStation 2 action game Devil May Cry was built--may not find complete synergy with today's gaming audience. In fact, much of Devil May Cry's aesthetic presentation is rooted in stereotypical gothic and cheesy '80s metal imagery. But beneath that overstated surface is one of the most interesting and generally entertaining 3D action games in recent years. Perhaps for the first time in the 3D action genre, Devil May Cry has successfully captured the twitch-based, relentlessly free-flowing gameplay style of so many classic 2D action games.

  In Devil May Cry, you assume the persona of Dante, the half-human, half-devil son of a legendary dark knight known as Sparda. A powerful and malevolent ruler of the underworld, whom Sparda vanquished 2,000 years ago, has awakened and, although Dante doesn't quite know it at the game's onset, he--like his father--has been chosen to defeat this evil being. At his aid, at least for portions of the game, is a beautiful woman named Trish, who invites Dante to Mallet Island, a gateway to the netherworld. The game's story, and much of its script for that matter, draws heavily from tired clichés and presents generic plot points. But as Dante descends into the grimy underworld--a great place for blasting a wide variety of demons--it becomes clear that you must accept the game's formulaic story to fully appreciate the fine-tuned gameplay that it veils.

  Perhaps Devil May Cry's greatest gift, in gameplay terms, is its highly intuitive control scheme. It is one of those rare games in which simply moving the character around the screen and performing various attacks is innately entertaining. Blasting Dante's dual handguns, which are amusingly named Ebony and Ivory, in rapid succession or double-jumping through some of the game's open areas is simply a lot of fun. Throw in a variety of opponents, including everything from hovering marionettes to ruthlessly persistent, lava-spewing demon spiders, and Devil May Cry becomes one of the most entertaining action games in gameplay terms alone. In practice, the responsive controls mean that the more adept you are with the game's control scheme, the quicker you're able to dispose of the demonic enemies. Once again, like classic 2D action games, Devil May Cry rewards the skillful game player.

  Devil May Cry has been cleverly designed, in harmony with the fast-paced gamplay and control scheme, to challenge the player with a steadily increasing learning curve. The gradual unlocking of a variety of weapons and moves, which are secured by bartering mystical red orbs that are collected by disposing of evil souls, means that in general, your strength increases in precise concert with the game's overall difficulty level. Dante is superquick and is able to perform a myriad of attacks, but his enemies are powerful and are generally highly skilled at disposing aspirant demon hunters like our hero. This is another essential success of Devil May Cry, as it keeps you involved in the flow of the game and is constantly challenging without becoming frustratingly so. Devil May Cry will challenge even the most capable game player, while its easy automatic mode, which is unlocked after you finish the first mission, makes the game accessible to players of varying skill levels. In either case, both the intensity and the difficulty build gradually, as the game culminates almost predictably in an epic and multitiered final battle.

  The final stages, although still quite entertaining, also produce the game's few failings. Without giving away the ending, it's safe to say that the game loses its direction, branching into a variety of different genres, some quite unnecessary. The game's final sequence almost feels forced and artificial, as it strays from the game's general course. Also, despite the drawn-out conclusion, Devil May Cry's difficulty level reaches a plateau near the end and isn't nearly as challenging as it could have been.

  Another issue that some may have with Devil May Cry is its fixed camera angles. As surprising as it sounds, Devil May Cry began its life as a Resident Evil game, and although it has grown out of the confined conventions of the survival-horror genre, it has retained the static cameras of Capcom's zombie-infested series. Like in Resident Evil, you'll sometimes find yourself blasting away at unseen enemies who are outside the camera's view. Also, at times--although this is relatively infrequent--you will find yourself battling the analog stick and reorienting your sense of direction after a quick camera switch.

  • Posted Jun 10, 2007 9:18 pm PT
  • Category: Games

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 9Jun 07

  [ F i n a l - F a n t a s y ] [ V ] [ A d v a n c e ]

  Many English-speaking Final Fantasy fans may now experience what they've missed out on for years in this relatively obscure but thoroughly excellent installment of the classic role-playing series. The Good: Deep, open-ended gameplay that influenced many of the best Final Fantasies; lengthy, challenging quest has the signature epic feel of the series; this version features some exclusive, new content and an improved localization; high replay value. The Bad: Abundance of random battles and the need to level up can feel a bit tedious; the dialogue tries too hard to be funny in a few spots.

  If you grew up playing 16-bit games for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, then you're probably familiar with Final Fantasy II and Final Fantasy III. These were some of the defining role-playing games of the early 1990s and featured surprisingly deep storylines and interesting characters, as well as plenty of tough battles and great presentations. At the time, though, it wasn't apparent that there were a bunch of Final Fantasy games that came in between these and the original for the 8-bit NES. The middle child of the 16-bit Final Fantasy era has now finally arrived on the Game Boy Advance, nearly 15 years after it was first released in Japan. Playing Final Fantasy V Advance will be a revelation to some fans of the series. After all, this is the game that introduced many great gameplay concepts and went on to be featured prominently in later, better-known games, such as Final Fantasy Tactics, Final Fantasy XI, and more. Sure enough, the game holds up well even by today's standards, offering up a lengthy and challenging quest. You'll also be able to sink your teeth into lots of interesting gameplay.

  
  Final Fantasy V lets you freely switch between many character ****s, or "jobs," which opens up the gameplay in some exciting ways.

  This version of Final Fantasy V isn't an exact translation of the Super Famicom original because it's intended to be a faithful adaptation with some key enhancements. For example, it features a new English translation from the original Japanese; this localization is different from the one found in the version of Final Fantasy V included with 1999's Final Fantasy Anthology for the PlayStation. Most of the dialogue is nicely done and succeeds at giving the main characters of the story their distinct personalities. The script has a few too many unnecessary attempts at humorous pop-culture references, but for the most part, it's very good. The visuals look just as you'd expect from a 16-bit game. If you remember playing Final Fantasy II or III in their heyday, this game will look instantly familiar. While some of the graphics are pretty plain, there's a lot of personality in the main characters. Some of the monsters and other foes you'll face still look great. Final Fantasy V Advance also features an updated soundtrack that sounds very true to the ****of the ****c games in the series--a ****that Final Fantasy has held onto even as the series' graphics rapidly evolved. What's more, this version of the game features some new content found later on in the adventure, most notably some new job types for your characters. A bestiary and a music player are a couple of other extras.

  The Final Fantasy series is known for the quality of its storytelling, but this is an area in which Final Fantasy V Advance doesn't hold up remarkably well. You'll still be in for a number of surprises and some almost disarmingly emotional moments, though the premise is pretty simple. When the wind crystal suddenly shatters and causes the wind in the world to simply stop, Princess Lenna Tycoon sets off to discover exactly what happened. It's not long before she's joined in her quest by an adventurer named Bartz, an amnesia-stricken old man named Galuf, and a feisty pirate named Faris. This unlikely quartet is quick to unite as a team despite having so little in common. And together, they set off to try to prevent the world's other elemental crystals from shattering. Their journey will wind up spanning much more than just the world they know. They'll travel the land by land, sea, and air, from town to town and dungeon to dungeon, in what's a typically epic Final Fantasy adventure. The main characters don't seem all that likable at first, and aspects of the story that were probably inventive at the time now seem predictable or trite. However, this is still a more sophisticated tale than what can be found in most of today's games.

  
  The game's audiovisual presentation isn't fancy by today's standards, but it still has plenty of charm.

  The gameplay of Final Fantasy V Advance is the best part about it. It's so good that it compares favorably even to the recent chapters in the series. While the game is rife with the random encounters that have always been common to Japanese role-playing games, your ability to freely choose between a wide variety of job types for your characters really opens up the game and creates the potential for lots of interesting, unique combat tactics. Your characters will earn new job types during the course of the game. Thus, their ability to freely switch from, say, being a knight to being a monk is justified in the context of the story.

  It's hard to say enough good things about the job system. For starters, it gives you the freedom to completely change your characters' strengths and weaknesses at any time. So if you get stuck trying to beat a particularly tough boss opponent, you can experiment with some completely different tactics. The job system also offers some really exciting variety by featuring just about every cool character archetype that the Final Fantasy series has ever seen. So you're not just stuck with basic ****s, such as knights, mages, and thieves; you also get berserkers, mystic knights, ninja, samurai, rangers, dragoons, chemists, beastmasters, and more. Some of these job types seem noticeably less useful than others, though, partly because some are better suited to supporting roles while others are great at dishing out damage. But in the end, it's fantastic to have all of that variety. And one of the best parts is that each character has a unique look for each of the different job types. It's as if each character has this huge wardrobe of completely different outfits.

  The job system is all the better because it essentially gives you two experience tracks to consider for each character. Your warriors all grow stronger from gaining experience after each victory, but they also earn ability points that are used to unlock new powers for their current job. Each job has its own unique abilities, some of which are valuable enough to offset inherent weaknesses in those jobs. However, what's really intriguing about this system is that you can mix and match different abilities with different job types. The result is an open-ended character development system that lets you form a diverse and powerful squad. You can have a monk who is capable of dealing tremendous bare-fisted damage or casting some of the most powerful black magic spells. You can also have a ninja whose speed not only makes her quick to dish out pain but also quick to heal or revive injured comrades. Or you might want to equip a summoner with a dragoon's spear so that he can attack without penalty from the rear ranks while conserving magic power for a devastating area-effect attack. Suffice it to say, there are a lot of exciting possibilities to explore.

  If there's any downside to this system, it's that it gives you a lot to think about and manage. The game doesn't force you to stick with any particular job types, but you'll naturally want to explore them all before settling on what seems like an ideal combination. On top of all that, Final Fantasy V Advance can feel quite punishing because you can look forward to plenty of powerful opponents who can defeat your characters or even the entire party quickly. Thankfully, the combat system has a nice, fast feel to it because this game comes from an era before Final Fantasy slowed down the pace with lots of big, ostentatious special effects. If your party is suitably equipped, you can breeze through most random encounters in seconds.

  
  Like any great role-playing game, Final Fantasy V Advance can keep you happily busy for many, many hours.

  Final Fantasy V Advance includes a quick-save feature that lets you easily pick up and play the game in brief stretches. Playing a little at a time, however, might cause you to forget what it was you were supposed to be doing when you come back to the game. Otherwise, you can save your progress on the world map or in key points that are scattered about the dungeons. The game is fairly linear overall, but the world feels quite expansive. There are also a lot of secrets to explore and hidden items to discover off of the beaten path if you choose to invest the extra time and effort. Even though the presentation quality certainly isn't up to the level of newer Final Fantasy games, the depth of play is definitely there.

  There's no good explanation for why Final Fantasy V was never released on these shores in the first place because it surely would have been as well received as the other 16-bit games in the series. Be that as it may, consider this a clear-cut case of "better late than never." The sign of a ****c is when you can approach it years and years after it originally came out and enjoy it because it still plays great--not for nostalgia's sake. Final Fantasy V Advance is such a game. In spite of its humble stature as a Game Boy Advance rerelease of an old game, those who like Japanese role-playing games shouldn't miss it.

  • Posted Jun 9, 2007 7:48 pm PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 9Jun 07

  - L e g a c y -

  Well, I've got Halo 2 for pc and Im kind playing Halo 3 ebat alot...Recently I've also been trying to beat the Capcom series of Games and It's becoming a Total Success with 2 years of Progress, I just need to beat the Resident Evil series of Capcom...I've beaten 1 up to Nemesis so far..And I've already played Resident Evil 4, So it's coming along great for me! I'll get some picture in soon on all my Capcom games and then show you My full Collection of Final Fantasy games, I have every game for every console even though I don't have a Nintendo DS lite yet? Nor a Gameboy, I only have the Psp as my only Handheld gaming device, I've gotten my Ps, Ps2, Ps3, Xbox, X360 Elite, Wii, The really old Nintendo, Nintendo SuperNes, Nintendo 64, Oh, Yeah well.I sorta still have more handheld from the very 1st Gameboy to the Game boy color. My GBC, is Yellow..Along with my Pokemon Stickers and others? Lawl.

  Enyways, Yeah I migth have some pictures up soon..I've picked this game up today though! Tom Clancy'sGhost Recon Advanced War Fighter 2

  It truely is a little old..Just a little. I fell inlove with its Online play, Along with this game, Tom Clancy's Rain bow Six VEGAS!!!

  It is truley a nice xbox Live game! I also have the other ones...Of course, I forgot to mention Im also this kinda gamer along with Medal of Honor games.

  • Posted Jun 9, 2007 12:10 am PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 8Jun 07

  Tiberuim Troopers!!!

  I just got done wtahcing I tottally 100% thought Mike had it! He gota little too antsy and could have waited a little longer...EnywaysCongratZ to Albert! I mena he kind ahad it anyways...I mena he got that base since David didn't come...I only wished I could have joined the game from the start! Sadly I didn't know about this site...But, any new games I might play in a tourney

  • Posted Jun 8, 2007 4:48 pm PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 8Jun 07

  Killzone [ P s 2 ]

  It's tough to top the current crop of established action games with a brand new franchise, but that hasn't stopped Sony and developer Guerilla from trying with Killzone, a new story-driven first-person shooter developed for the PlayStation 2. The game features a fairly lengthy single-player campaign, an interesting story and art direction, and a fully developed online multiplayer mode. But Killzone's recipe for success falls flat once you actually delve into the game, where you'll encounter an array of minor technical issues and an unfortunate lack of overall refinement. It's a functional shooter, but with a couple of extra coats of paint, it could have been a whole lot better.

  
  Repel an attack by the invading Helghast--or die trying--in Guerilla's Killzone.

  Killzone's premise is one of its strongest points, though the story itself isn't told particularly well and fails to expand upon its most interesting aspects. At some point in the future, humankind colonized space, and a militant splinter group broke away and settled on the planet Helghan. These colonists were slowly changed by their new world's atmosphere over a period of years until they effectively became an entirely new race: the Helghast. After a bitter war and subsequent period of isolation, the Helghast forces rebuilt themselves and began a new assault on humanity, starting with the nearby world of Vekta. It's up to you, of course, to fight off this invasion and stop the Helghast from realizing their plans of dominion.

  After a nicely done intro that teases you with the novel idea of humankind fighting an interstellar war against a dark version of itself, the game spends little time exploring the origins of the Helghast or the nature of this conflict, instead focusing blandly on the four playable characters and their immediate struggle to repel the invasion. Like most of the game, the plot progression gets the job done coarsely, but one less argument between Rico, your heavy-weapons specialist, and Hakha, your half-Helghast special operative, would not have been missed in favor of a little more exploration of the genuinely appealing backstory.

  The single-player campaign in Killzone is spread across 11 missions, each broken up into multiple parts, and it basically pits you against legions of Helghast soldiers in many different environments. You'll travel from a bombed-out city to an industrial-docks area, from the jungle to the desert, from a snowy mountain region to an orbital defense platform that's key to the Helghast invasion strategy. So yes, there's a lot of variety in the game's backdrops. Unfortunately, there's not such a great range of enemies to fight. The vast majority of your opponents are basic Helghast grunts, occasionally joined by other Helghast grunts who look slightly different and fight with shotguns or rocket launchers rather than the standard-issue assault rifle. This sameness in enemy design isn't utterly damning but doesn't really do much to enliven the action, either.

  
  Killzone's fundamental strengths are unfortunately undermined by its shoddy execution.

  The game's combat, ostensibly its biggest selling point, can be exciting at times. Sort of. Occasionally you'll get to take on a tank with a rocket launcher, repel a beach assault from a fortified position, or perform some other unique, mission-specific action. More often it's simply running from point A to point B, firing at every Helghast in sight until you hit the right switch, blow up the right box, or reach the right area to advance the mission to the next event. The arsenal--which includes assault rifles, a sniper rifle, a shotgun, a vehicle-killing rocket launcher, grenades, and other genre mainstays--doesn't really pack much of a punch. The shotgun, with its horribly slow rate of fire, is rather ineffectual; the sniper rifle's aiming system is too loose; and the assault rifles are only sporadically accurate (and while this inaccuracy might be realistic, it isn't particularly satisfying). The guns do their killing properly but with little panache.

  Thankfully, some variety is provided by the presence of four playable characters. In addition to Rico and Hakha, you have Capt. Templar, the all-around good guy, and Luger, the sultry female assassin. These two share a romantic past, and the other two hate each other, but that's about as far as the relationships are developed. Fortunately, the gameplay benefits more from the extra characters than the storyline, since you'll be able to choose your character and thereby alter the gameplay somewhat before most missions. Luger has a silenced semiautomatic weapon and thermal vision and can sneak through some passages the others can't; Hakha, with his Helghast heritage, can enter some areas without setting off enemy defenses; and Rico can sustain more damage than the others and comes equipped with a true monster of a machine gun that tears enemies to ribbons. On occasion, your choice of character will actually change some of your objectives or the path you'll take through a given mission, which introduces an obvious element of replayability, if you decide to go through the campaign again. That doesn't seem likely, but as you fight your way through the game for the first time, you'll at least notice a few interesting superficial details.

  • Posted Jun 8, 2007 2:57 pm PT
  • Category: Games

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 8Jun 07

  Final Fantasy X

  Video Review

  Few games demand attention as much as a Final Fantasy game does. Many PlayStation 2 owners have been waiting for this game with baited breath. Does the game live up to what they've been hoping for? Greg Kasavin will answer that question and more in this video review. watch    download If you've been waiting for the definitive role-playing game for the PlayStation 2, here it is.

  
       Square's Final Fantasy series is one of the longest running, most prolific, most critically acclaimed lines of games ever. That means each new installment in the series needs to be exceedingly good--since the company has outdone itself on so many occasions, millions of fans expect each new Final Fantasy to be even better than all its predecessors. Whether they truly end up better is the subject of never-ending debate among Final Fantasy fans, but one thing is certain: Each new Final Fantasy game is a momentous occasion.

  
  Final Fantasy X features a brand-new cast of characters...

  It's been crystal clear for months that Final Fantasy X would be no exception. Countless screenshots, movie files, and bits of information have propagated all over the Internet, revealing the game's stunning good looks and much of its back story. Of course, it isn't enough for Final Fantasy X to look good--since it's Square's first role-playing game for the PlayStation 2, it's reasonable to expect Final Fantasy X to improve upon every aspect of the series beyond just the graphics. The good news is that, by and large, that's exactly what it does. Overall, Final Fantasy X is a remarkably well done role-playing game that offers plenty of just about everything that's ever been good about the series. At the same time, it takes the series in interesting new directions and refines many of the series' most important elements, such as the turn-based combat and the character-advancement system. Perhaps even more importantly, Final Fantasy X weaves an engrossing, memorable story filled with a number of great characters. Beyond that, it's a very challenging game that's even longer than most any of its predecessors and is certainly longer than most other PlayStation 2 games. If you've been waiting for the definitive role-playing game for the PlayStation 2, here it is.

  Recent games in the Final Fantasy series have followed a tried-and-true formula, and for the most part, Final Fantasy X follows it too. That is, like its predecessors, this isn't a game you can play for a few minutes at a time. Much of the game revolves around epic, drawn-out battles between your party of characters and Final Fantasy X's gigantic, villainous monsters. Much of the game consists of your having to watch lengthy noninteractive story sequences, in which the game's plot gradually unravels in the conversations between Final Fantasy X's protagonists. Much of Final Fantasy X is purely optional--though the game will take you no fewer than 40 hours to complete the first time through, you could easily spend twice as long exploring some of its late-game side quests and searching for suitably rewarding secrets. Not every player will be willing or even prepared to spend this much time with the game, and it's more than likely that not everyone will even be able to finish the game, either. So if you're a hard-core fan of the series and are wondering whether Square is loosening the reigns, dumbing Final Fantasy down to make it accessible to an even broader audience, then rest assured that's definitely not the case.

  
  ...and a refined version of the series' signature turn-based combat.

  On the other hand, if you haven't played much Final Fantasy before, then don't feel too intimidated by Final Fantasy X. It's easy to get into and includes plenty of good tutorial information built right into the game. As long as you're ready to commit some time and energy to it, then Final Fantasy X is a perfectly good place for new players to get acquainted with the series. Like all Final Fantasy games, this one's plot is completely unrelated to any of its predecessors, although series fans will appreciate all the subtle references to the previous games.

  The visual ****of Final Fantasy X most closely resembles that of Final Fantasy VIII for the PlayStation, which was the first game in the series to give its characters a more lifelike appearance instead of a cartoonlike one. The hero of Final Fantasy X is Tidus, a teenager all decked out in decidedly garish clothes and sporting bleached, feathered hair. Unlike many Final Fantasy protagonists, Tidus apparently isn't a shy, stoic youth, but rather an outgoing, cheerful person. You might not take a liking to him right off the bat--he's a jock and can be a bit arrogant--but in time, you'll find him to be suitably endearing and to have the same kind of surprising depth that's characterized past Final Fantasy heroes.

  • Posted Jun 8, 2007 12:42 am PT
  • Category: General

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 8Jun 07

  1st Blog

  Well, Im a Gamespot user..Officially...

  Well, Lets get started...I'll do My 1st review today also along with that 1st game and first friend and add onto a 1st union...ok..For my 1st day on my 1st website ever! Im new to this..So I might ask alot of questions..Image how long this took to type..

  • Posted Jun 8, 2007 12:36 am PT
  • Category:

  • Comment
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg