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This Blog Includes a FFXII Demo
Written by ScottAG
posted November 13, 2005
The official Dragon Quest VIII website has finally been updated, and there’s a bunch of new videos and shit, showing off some gameplay and the newly orchestrated soundtrack. I received the game a few days ago, and I have to say, for someone who has never played or cared about the Dragon Quest/Warrior games, this latest installment is fantastic.
Level 5 should be hailed for what they’ve accomplished with the game’s visuals. The environments are absolutely gorgeous and the characters/enemies have such incredible animation and fluidity; it’s fun just to look at this game. Many fans were worried about the changes Square-Enix made to the North American version, and although I’m not a long time fan of the series, I think I can safely say that each and every change (save for maybe the spell names) was done for the better. The voices are hilarious, the new menu and interface looks clean, fun, and still appropriately old-school, and the now fully orchestrated soundtrack blows my mind. I can’t imagine what a long time series fan might experience when first hearing the classic DQ theme almost exploding onto the scene as the game opens and goes to the title screen.
I’m really hoping this title does well over here in the western market; Square-Enix has gone to such lengths to make it standout amongst the overwhelming number of holiday titles popping up in stores every week. I commend their efforts.
Oh yeah, and the FFXII demo is kick-ass too. Matsuno is the fucking man.
Thy next foe is...
- Written by ScottAG
- posted November 1, 2005
Shadow of the Colossus has got to be one of the best games I've played in recent years. I wish I could take it with me to work and play it on one of my portable systems. Just the thought of slaying titans of mystic origins on-the-go provides me with a high that only morphine can top.
I wonder, though, if I could somehow sneak a PS2 into my office. Using my projection screen to display the game, I could perhaps claim that SotC inspires my artistic talents, aiding me in my spiritual search for the proper angle I need to take next on my current storyboard. As if each spurt of oily black blood that comes rushing from a newly placed sword stab in a Colossus’ head arouses an idea – no – an image, one that represents the very fabric of my existence. In this marvelous spectrum of mine own cerebral, I can see it; the reason for life, the purpose for all mankind, its essence so vibrant and full of wonder that it brings alive the primal artistic thoughts that would make even Dali himself shit his pants in excitement.
Then, right after that epiphany, I can finally sit down and get to work; carefully sketching the cartoon man sitting on a couch, throwing a beer at his wife. And that perfect angle you see right before the toss, that magic moment when all things come together with such a brilliant chemistry, that is the kind of extraordinary element that one can only siphon from the pure-magical-harmonious-beautiful-whatever-the-fuck energy that emits so gracefully from SotC.
I mean, shit, I managed to get a foosball table in here.