It's been a long time...

Hello people who like games! I haven't updated in a while, but that doesn't mean I've stopped playing games full stop. In fact, I think the reason why I've stopped updating is because I have been preoccupied with too much games. Ok well not too much games, more like three games, but three of probably the best games I've played in a long time. So here's a review of the three games I've been playing.

Red Dead Redemption:

You know playing Red Dead Redemption is akin to travelling to the countryside after living a long time in the city. It's a breath of fresh air, an escape from the hustle and bustle of city life and the stars at night are a lot more prominent. Not just in a literal sense, but it's wholly refreshing to see the tried and true formula set in an entirely different setting, so points for Rockstar for trying something new. And it's through this that Red Dead Redemption feels a lot more involving than Grand Theft Auto. Where long trips to missions in GTA sometimes felt like a bit of a grind, Red Dead Redemption invites the player to hop on their horse and explore a western, and indeed, entirely new setting. The sun is bright and often the land is often barren, save for random events such as an escaped convict or a fire fight between the authority and bandits. But through this, it allows the player to take in the world around them, making it, in my eyes, a true 'open world game', where you whistle for your horse, hop on and ride off into the sunset. Brilliant stuff.

Valkyria Chronicles

I have nothing but praise for this game. Thanks to my co-op partner Selina for letting me borrow the game, for letting me experience this game because it is awesome. Set in a sort of steampunk setting, gameplay is a hybrid between third person shooter and turn based strategy which results in a load of fun. Depth is evident as well, with different classes of soldiers in order to combat different types of situations. Throw in some awesome cel shaded-water painting graphics and it's the formula for awesomesauce! LOVE IT!!

Super Street Fighter IV

Just a bit of a story before I start. When my family came to Australia in the summer of 1993, they had to live with my cousins for a while until they found their own home. My cousins were addicted to Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, and my dad was always exposed to the soundbites of Hadouken, Shoryuken, Yoga fires and the points noise whenever you won a battle. He always recounts this memory, and adds that 'You (myself Jared) were still in your mother's stomach'. With that in mind, here's Super Street Fighter IV

Super Street Fighter IV, the game which has ignited a passion in me that will never ever be rivalled again. So let's start with the game itself. Online has been fixed somewhat to add new modes, and lag is less present, so playing with Americans halfway across the world isn't something problematic. The addition of ten new characters looked to fix the problem of the usual ryu/ken/sagat matchup but it seems people have been sticking with their guns. Never gets old focus attack dash cancelling through their fireball spams to get in their face and unload a bread and butter crouching medium punch into flash kick. Sweetness!

It may be the same game, but Super Street Fighter IV has grabbed me like no other game has grabbed me before. The day I decided to do a search on guile strategy guides is the day my street fighter experience changed forever. A whole competitive street fighter scene, where an alien like language has now managed to infuse itself into my everyday talk. Let this be a reminder, flash kick has no priority, but linking it from a crouching medium punch makes it all the more safer.

And the scene itself. Names like Daigo Umehara, Justin Wong, Gamerbee and John Choi, players with awesome skills, who for me, are the gaming parallels of sporting legends such as Roger Federer and Michael Jordan. All this would've never been possible, if I didn't decide to pick up Super Street Fighter IV on that day, and expose myself to something that has changed my gaming world perhaps forever. It is for this reason, that Super Street Fighter IV is one of the best games of the year.

Before I end this post however, I'd like to say that my once partner in crime Selina has now become my co-op partner. With this, I hope that our escapades such as fighting mass armies during the three kingdoms era, hopping around the Mushroom Kingdom trying to save Princess Peach, or simply just rocking out to some tunes in Rock Band brings many many joyous times. Thanks a bunch Selina for being my co-op partner!

Jared

Sometimes I wished...

that the world ended with me. And that I still had my copy of The World Ends With You. What a great game.

Germany Vs Australia

After a performance that sent shockwaves throughout the Footballing World, Australia come up against much stronger opponents in the form of Germany. A top of the table clash that will be a telling tale in where both sides are in terms of form and more importantly, their chances in winning the World Cup. Stay tuned...

KICK OFF

4th minute - GOAL for Mario Gomez. Disastrous start for Australia, after Gomez slots in a rebounded shot from Schwarzer. 1-0 Germany

13th minute GOAL for Tim Cahill. Equalizer! Tim Cahill has four for the tournament after he volleys a cross from Bresciano into the goal. 1-1.

24th minute - Header by a German forward fizzes past the post. Still 1-1.

38th minute - A chance for Kennedy to add to his goals for the tournament after a breakaway. Shoots straight at the keeper which results in a corner...1-1

HALF TIME

Australia starting to take control towards the end of the half. Both sides with chances to take the lead but a combination of good defending and poor finishing leaves the scores deadlocked. Stay tuned...

SECOND HALF

47th minute - Early in the second half and Kennedy rises high for a header. Past the keeper but past the post too.

57th minute - GOAL for Scott Chipperfield. Contentious penalty after Kewell breaks into the box and is brought down as he attempts to score. Chipperfield sends the keeper the wrong way. 2-1 Australia.

65th minute - Australian defense almost made to pay for laziness. Gomez' shot bounces off the crossbar, oh so close.

76th minute - GOAL for Harry Kewell. Quick counterattack by Australia and there is no one defending for Germany. One on One with the keeper and Kewell has his first goal for the tournament. 3-1.

89th Minute - Germany still desperate to salvage a goal. Gomez comes up with another shot but once again it bounces off the post.

FULL TIME Australia 3 - 1 Germany

Both sides in it until the penalty was given. From that point it looked like the Germans were playing catch up. Another goal to Australia and it looked clear from that point. Germany also guilty of not taking their chances when it counted. The Australians clear at the top of Group D and guaranteed a spot in the round of 16! Celebrations ahead!

Australia Vs Scotland

Jared Araniego here providing updates on Australia's first match in the 2010 FIFA (Virtual) World Cup. Can Australia build some confidence with a good performance against Scotland? They're gonna need it in their next games against Germany and Croatia. Stay here to find out...

THE MATCH STARTS!

9th minute - GOAL to Tim Cahill after a quick breakaway. 1-0

19th minute - GOAL to Tim Cahill. Exchange of passes, Cahill takes a shot just outside the box, keeper can get a finger to it but not enough and it goes in. 2-0

23rd min - yellow for C.Moore

27th min - GOAL for Mark Bresciano after a combination of good passing and lacklustre defence allows him to calmly a slot a goal into the bottom left corner. 3-0

35th min - GOAL for Josh Kennedy. Bad marking and defending allows Kennedy to get into some space, shoots pass the keeper into the goal. 4-0

40th min - GOAL for Josh Kennedy. Counterattack catches Scotland off guard, no reply to quick passing and Kennedy scores. 5-0

44th min - Australian defence caught napping with McFadden latching onto a cross from Miller, providing the first real test for Schwarzer. Rebounds off the post and tipped away by the Australian Goal keeper. Corner.

45th min - A red card for Naysmith caps off a horror first half for Scotland. Australia with a chance to score another goal going into halftime.

45th min - GOAL for Mark Bresciano. A free kick for Bresciano pays dividends with the aussie scoring a spectacular goal. 6-0

45th min - Own Goal for Scotland. Can it get any worse? A mix up at the back ends with Caldwell kicking it into his goal. Oh dear..7-0

HALF TIME 7-0 to Australia.

Well the scoreline tells the story. 7-0 to Australia. One side completely dominating while the other side is playing the worst football imaginable. No way back for Scotland from here...

SECOND HALF STARTS

46th min - GOAL for Josh Kennedy. HAT-TRICK! Again bad defending from Scotland and quick passing from Australia results in yet another goal. 8-0

57th min - GOAL for Josh Kennedy. Four!! It's Arshavin all over again. Martin Tyler thinks the game is over after that goal. I thought it was over in the first half. Each to their own I guess. 9-0

68th minute - Rare chance for Scotland as Schwarzer tips away a header from one of the forwards. Corner…

74th minute - GOAL for Fletcher. FINALLY Scotland gets on the board after a mix up between goalie and defender. Thrown straight to one of the forwards, passed to Fletcher and he takes the chance. Any hope of a comeback though? 9-1

75th minute - GOAL for Josh Kennedy. Right from the kick off, Australia catch Scotland napping and a few passes later, Kennedy's in for his fifth. 10-1.

89th minute - GOAL for Tim Cahill. Him and Josh Kennedy will be fighting for the match ball, because they've both got Hat-Tricks. 11-1

FULL TIME AUSTRALIA 11 - 1 SCOTLAND

I don't think anyone expected such a smashing performance from Australia. Dominating a lackluster Scottish side that didn't have any answers.

Can Paul the Octopus predict this result?

So what do you do when you don't have the official FIFA 2010 World Cup game? You attempt to make the World Cup in the next best thing, which in my case is FIFA 10.

Yes I know Japan isn't there along with some other teams, so I'm gonna have to make do with what I have. Of course I'll be playing as Australia, cause there isn't a Filipino team. C'mon guys! Make yourself a powerhouse of Football!!

Wish me luck!

First Impressions: Portal

Whenever I get a new game, I'll post up my initial thoughts of it, and will reflect on it by the time I finish the game. Will my opinion of the game change? Who knows.

You know what they say, better late than never! Almost three years after it captivated gamers across the world, I have finally jumped onto the Portal bandwagon. And it's not hard to see why it was one of the games of 2007; Portal is awesome in the face.

Most games force you to sit down for extended hours without breaks, punishing you for taking a minute time out. But not Portal, here is a nifty mod of Half Life 2 which is full of physics puzzles that gradually stretches the brain with each passing level. It doesn't punish you for taking a break, and I already get the feeling that I'll return to the game to try a new solution. And it's really smart and fun! The gradual progression eases you into the idea of shooting portals to move cubes onto pedestals to open doors and manipulating the path of rays to hit the intended target. IT'S GENIUS!

glaDos, the computer who directs you throughout the game, is quite eerie! While attempting to be comforting, she comes off as a robot's attempt at being a mother, not being able to comprehend the fine line between loving and creepiness

"Well done. Remember, the Aperture Science 'Bring your daughter to work' day is the perfect time to have her tested"

So yeah, Portal so far = awesome awesome awesome!

Music, emotion and Final Fantasy VII

Part of the appeal of Final Fantasy VII is the way it manages to tug onto those emotional chords deep within the gamer. Mind you this was in 1997, when the Playstation was beginning to hit its stride, 3D graphics were all the rage and the Virtual Boy had bitten the dust. Most games nowadays still fail to achieve the same powerful effect it's bigger brothers film and TV achieve, while 13 years ago FFVII made gamers across the world reach for their supply of tissues, gushing over the SPOILER ALERT death of Aerith.

But how? How did then Squaresoft manage to achieve what was almost the impossible in video games, that is, evoke feelings of joy, sadness and anger in a player from a game? Was it the graphics? Sure it was cutting edge for the time, but look at the game now; one could make the argument that Cloud and co. are the long lost brothers of lego men.

It was the music. Here I am, at 12:14 in the morning listening to the OST and remembering all the great moments from the game. Show me a cutscene of the game sans the soundtrack and it'll fail to have the same impact.

I've never been good at describing music. If I were to attempt to talk about time signature, pitch and tone, it probably wouldn't make much sense. The music of Final Fantasy VII doesn't require me to describe it though. It sings a melody, striking deep emotional chords in me that most gaming soundtracks nowadays fail to achieve.

Remember the meeting with Aerith in the church? It's a sentimental scene not because of the graphics, but because of the music. Every other element; story, graphics is conducted by 'Flowers blooming in the church'. It evokes a sense of tenderness between Cloud and Aerith, and the rest of the game design elements follow.

What Squaresoft (now Square Enix) do really well however, is manage to manipulate the choice of music and its intended meaning in FFVII. It's one thing to go and make a beautiful song for a touching scene, but to use that beautiful song and place it in a scene of absolute despair and sadness. Let's take the obvious example of Aerith again. As I said before, I'm no good at describing music, but 'Aerith's theme' is perfect for the character; going in tandem with the sweet, serene nature of the flower lady.

And then the infamous death scene. Sephiroth rains down from above and stabs her. In the moments before, a dark, foreboding song is in the background. Silence ensues, then 'Aerith's theme' plays. This theme, evoking emotions of calmness and serenity, clashes with what the gamer sees: death, sadness and loss of hope. To further iterate my point, there's a clash of the ears and eyes, with a song that's so beautiful, so touching, used in a scene that's of utter shock and sadness. Through this clever, and almost sinister manipulation of song meaning, Squaresoft had created one of the most powerful moments in video game history.

Do games nowadays fail to use their soundtracks effectively? No, game soundtracks have progressed far beyond the midi file, with large scale orchestras being the norm for triple A games. It's just the use of music in games is far too conventional, often getting left behind in favour of other aspects of game design. Music in Final Fantasy VII is different though; while managing to create an already perfect soundtrack, it didn't just use it as music for the game, but something that is integral to the game itself. The end result? A 13 year old game that still manages to make gamers across the world cry, cry and cry again.