Me dressed as Alex from Clockwork Orange on Halloween. NVGR, just a funny pic I
found on my computer. I may post more random stuff in my posts, if I remember to do so.

Anyway, to update on my last post, I'm past Magus in Chrono Trigger and in Zeal at the
moment. However, video game activities are put on hold until after the semester is
through, which means that for two weeks I'm FIU's bitch supreme. Well, at least I can
finish Apollo Justice and continue Crisis Core when no one is looking.

So I picked up Baroque for the Wii yesterday, despite the bad buzz that Nintendo Power
gave it. It's an Atlus game and since I could use a couple of games on the Wii anyway, I
preordered it along with Arcana Heart (damn Gamestop and their stupid delays!) and
Persona 3:FES.

As I was there, I remembered that Metal Gear Solid 4 is going to have a special edition,
much like any game of repute these days. I also remembered that Soulcalibur 4 is coming
out around the same time. This financial raping reminded me of how shittty the release
schedule of video games tends to be.

Normally, I complain of this problem in the fall, when every publisher decides that it would
be a great idea to release their games around the time that Nintendo, Microsoft, or Sony
decide to unleash their massive titles. While this can sometimes work out just fine (Call of
Duty 4), this tends to lead to financial ruin and the loss of potentially good titles to the
bargin bin (Beyond Good and Evil).

The summer used to be a lull in the release schedule, when crap was mostly delivered
while an occasional gem washed up in my game shop (Persona 3 being a recent example).
Now, summer is getting a veritable ton of great releases with MGS 4 and SC4, along with
Ninja Gaiden 4 and several others that I don't remember off the top of my head.

With all these games getting released at the same time, how are gamers supposed to keep
up? Do they, or do they end up like me with a massive pile of shame that gets looked at
wistfully every week? I know that you don't have to get the game the second it comes out.
Waiting is indeed an option. Think of this though. Even if you do wait to pick it up, what's
to say that there won't be another grade A or B title that'll take your attention away from
the product you waited for. The way games are released now seems to only lead to
massive losses for most companies. I'm probably missing something in the equation, but it
seems like maddness to me.

A last note, somebody has probably already noted this, but what is it about the fourth titles
of series this year? CoD4, MGS4, SC4, Street Fighter 4, Devil May Cry4, Grand Theft Auto
4, Apollo Justice, Final Fantasy 4 DS. With the amount of quality in these titles, 4 should be
my new lucky number!