So it's about that time for more of my most wanted sequels in gaming. This one is not super old, but old enough to be annoying that there hasn't been a sequel for this series in quite a while, I am of course talking about the Blood Omen/Soul Reaver series. I miss it, I love it, I want some more of it.



It has been almost 9 full years since we were given the amazing game that is Legacy of Kain: Defiance. That's WAY too long for more action from the wraith Raziel or the vampire Kain to be wreaking Havoc, whether it's against each other or others. I have been a die hard fan of this series since Soul Reaver on my Dreamcast (I never heard of Blood Omen on PS1 until way later, I played it before Blood Omen 2 came out however). This series was one of the reasons I bought a PS2, since I got Gamecube AND Xbox before a PS2 but thanks to the WWE Smackdown series, Silent Hill 3, and Soul Reaver 2, I eventually bought one.

Sony has never been my first choice for gaming. I mean I love many of their games but not enough to get them right away. I've owned a PS3 for over a year now and have maybe 9 games... I've had a 360 since 4 months after it's release and have over 160 Xbox 360 games... that's some crazy math. But there's just something about this series that makes me go crazy and play it for hours and hours.

Perhaps it's the crazy powers Kain possesses in Blood Omen 2, or Raziel's ability to shift between realms, but there's something about these 2 characters that makes me enjoy their games. So I ask the question that's on all of our minds... Where's my friggin' sequel?

Defiance had a great ending, and maybe there wasn't much left to say afterwards, but I still want more. I mean Kain has been around for hundreds of years! Can't we have a Blood Omen 3 that takes place during some point between Blood Omen 2 and Defiance? And what about Raziel? He's also been around a long time? Why not a prequel before Raziel became a wraith? The possibilities for a sequel are there and could be potentially endless. But let's not forget, Kain had other vampires under his control, so why give all the love to just Kain and Raziel? That whole series could be fleshed out much more in terms of characters and the storied lives of Kan and Raziel.

So I say to you Eidos or whoever the hell owns the rights to this series, do something with it! A decade is way too long for a series that made most of us forget how crazy vampires could be, or how cryptic a wraith can be. Ii this series gets a sequel, be it Blood Omen 3, or Soul Reaver 3, or Defiance 2... I would go absolutely insane and would definitely buy it on day 1.

I have decided that every Sunday, I am going to write a fun new blog about sequels. As gamer of 25 years, I have seen quite a few things throughout the years. One thing I love is sequels. Now call me crazy, but I just can't stand it when you have a great series and then all of a sudden you don't see another game for 15-20 years, or ever again for that matter. You all know my love for Gladius 2 so I will not go into detail about that, same goes for a hopeful Lost Odyssey 2.

So starting here, now, and every Sunday from here until further notice, in my first edition of "Where's my Friggin' sequel," we are going to talk about Kid Chameleon.



This May 28th marks the 20th anniversary of Kid Chameleon and all I can say is Where's the love? This was my 2nd favorite Sega Genesis game of all time (You cannot beat Toe Jam and Earl) and such an amazing and under appreciated game. Kid Chameleon had just over 100 levels with branching paths, he has crazy super powers obtained by grabbing different masks such as a hover board, knight armor, and a friggin' tank that shoots skulls. Also, he has shades and a leather jacket. If he's this bad ass as a kid, imagine how cool he's look older?

My question is this... Why has there not been a sequel in 20 years? I mean Casey, Kid Chameleon himself, entered the virtual world to save kids who were trapped inside the game just for losing. With technology the way it is today, a sequel could easily be made from the ashes of the story. I mean you break a hole in the virtual world and save all the people... so why not make good old boss Heady Metal find his way out into the digital world and perhaps make him affect the real world, leaving only Kid Chameleon to save the day yet again. Tons of new helmets could emerge, many more varied levels, not to mention the insane graphical achievements we've made in the last 20 years. I'd almost prefer it if they made him older and perhaps Heady Metal escapes using wireless or 3G or some crap just a thought.

If you have not played this game, whether it's from a ROM, Virtual console, Sega Classics Collection, or any other way then do yourself a favor and play this game. Kid Chameleon is challenging, the different paths cause your adventure to change each time, great graphics for the Sega Genesis generation, insane enemies and super powers, and a simple and straightforward story where the hero comes to save the day. Ad in the fact that for its time the idea of being trapped in a video game... while you are PLAYING a video game is not lost on me. As a kid it made you feel as though you WERE Kid Chameleon and you couldn't rest until you defeated Heady Metal and won the game.

So Sega, do not let Kid Chameleon fall into obscurity. Let Sonic the Hedgehog rest for a while, he's been running for far too long. Since you aren't doing so well, how about giving some of your other characters a moment in the spotlight to maybe regain your momentum. Until next week everyone.

- GrimmTrixX

We've all done it. You get a game, play the hell out of it, but then something in the back of your mind says "hey you, you should totally get all those achievements." You then say to yourself, "But why? Gamerscore is just a number and it'll take hours to get done" to which your mind replies "JUST DO IT ALREADY!" That didn't happen to you? Oh, well maybe that's just me, but sometimes I just get so into a game I cannot rest until have 100% in it. I don't get this way for PS3 games and their trophies, just Xbox Live Achievements. Maybe it's because I wasn't into sports as a kid so the appeal of getting as Trophy is lost on me. I do, however, like to achieve things.

I, GrimmTrixX, want to, and will earn, every Halo game achievement legitimately and without boosting. I would rather miss out on some achievements in this series than earn them by boosting. I am NOT knocking anyone who has and/or will boost to get them, not at all. This is just my personal preference and goal for myself. Boost all you want, I've been tempted to but haven't yet.



I have been a Halo fan since a few months after it's initial release on Xbox. I got my original Xbox about 3 months after it came out, and my fist 2 games were Dead or Alive 3 and Halo. I bought Halo because "meh this game looks kind of cool" knowing nothing about it. Little did I know, 11+ years later, I would be addicted to the game and the Halo Universe as a whole.

Ever since Halo: Combat Evolved I was hooked on this series, before it even became a series. I love sci-fi stories and I just got all wrapped up into it. I used to do 12-16 player LAN parties with my friends and even used Xbox Connect which allowed you to play Halo": CE online because it tricked your Xbox into thinking it was system linked. Halo:CE is still my most favorite game. I've beaten it on normal, heroic, and legendary solo, but also legendary on co-op and while it was super hard, that was an achievement to myself that I had to do, even though no proof is able to be seen.



My first and only 100% in Halo so far is with halo 3:ODST. This doesn't really come as a surprise, as it is the easiest game in which to get 100%. But I played for hours and the 2 vidmaster achievements SUCKED. Two times I had a disconnect trying to get one of the achievements that takes a minimum of 2.5 hrs to get, but I finally got it on the 3rds time. But that's one down and 4 to go.

So this goes on down the line through out the Halo series to my point in time as it is right now. With Halo 4 coming November 6th, 2012 I made a solemn vow: I want to legitimately earn every single Halo achievement in Halo 3, ODST, Halo Wars, Halo Reach, an Halo Anniversary. I don't know WHY I feel I have to do this, but regardless the feeling is there and I must follow through.



About a few months ago I started focusing on Halo 3. My main reasoning behind this was, how much longer will Halo 3 be playable online? So I trudged through, slowly but surely getting some here and there until now I have 1 achievement left: "Save This film," which means I have to get a Perfection (15 kills no deaths) in a Slayer match on a Mythic Map. Yikes. Now I am not a horrible Halo 3 player (pay no attention to my Halo 3 rank as I have demolished it with constant backing out of matches to get the achievement) but never in my life have I gone Anything and 0, let alone 15-0. So this is a tough one. I haven't really tried at it much though, since I was too busy trying to get friggin Orbital to show up so I could try and get 2 Deaths from the Grave. Now after I write this blog I am going to play Halo 3 for a little bit in a vain attempt at this. Will I be successful, who knows, but I will try.



Alongside this Halo 3 madness, however, lurks Halo Reach. I had about 20 achievements left but I have since knocked them down to an attainable 7 and here they are:
- Make It Rain: Purchase an item for a Lt. Colonel in the Armory
- Totally Worth it: Double Kill from the Grave on any map
- You Ate all the Chips: Collect all flags in matchmade Stockpile on a Defiant Map
- Candy from a Baby: Capture 2 flags from an enemy capture zone in Stockpile on a Defiant Map
- Don't Touch That: Do not let the enemy touch the Flag in 1-flag CTF on a Defiant Map
- Paper Beats Rock: Assassinate a player after using Armor Lock on a Defiant Map
- All Alone: Be the last man standing in Infection on a Defiant map
- Stick it to the man: Stick and kill the flag carrier on an Anniversary map

That's it. That's all she wrote. This is all I need to have 100% in Halo: 3 and Reach. So here are my problems/hurdles I am encountering. Now, some won't be too hard thanks to Squad DLC existing and occasionally a flag match shows up, but the sad thing is, in other playlists, NO ONE ever picks Stockpile. Also, hardly anyone uses Armor Lock and, while I'm at it, no one picks flag in anniversary maps. So I am almost at somewhat of an impasse. The double kill from grave is one that will just happen in a random FFA match as will the "Make it rain" achievement since that just comes with time. But the rest could be hit or miss.

But my deadline is not until November 5th, the day before Halo 4. So I think I could be done in 6 months. I still have every Anniversary achievement to get as far as single player goes (it sucks I JUST beat Halo 1 on Legendary about 6 months ago), as well as a handful of Halo wars offline achievements, but they can be done at any time, unlike the online achievements which become harder as time moves forward.



Anyone else do stuff like this sometimes before a new game comes out? Also before October I need to beat Assassin's Creed 1, 2, Brotherhood AND Revelations since I own them all but honestly I made it halfway thru AC1 and haven't gone back. I want to, but I keep getting sidetracked. But with how amazing Assassin's Creed 3 looks, I will do it. I have also had a hankering to beat all of the resident evil games before RE6 comes out (even though I've beaten them all before), but it all depends on Halo.

So if anyone sees me online, my gamertag is GrimmTrixX. I am not looking to boost in Halo, as so far I have earned every single Halo achievement legitimately, no boosting. Hell I got the first 1000 Halo 3 achievement points before they added any extras from the DLC maps, but sadly I slacked on the others and am making up for it while I still can. If you want to play with/against me, I'll be jumping around from Squad DLC, to Anniversary Classic/BTB/FFA with a single goal to get achievements. Don't give them to me, I just might need help controlling the vote to get stockpile and flag matches so I can even try to earn them.

Hey! Tell me your stories about achievement hunting in the comments! I only hunt the games that call to me such as Dead Rising, Halo, and Lost Odyssey, but I have fun with other games as well. I'd love to hear if you guys have had similar experiences in Halo or other games! And I am off to attempt some more Halo 3 and/or Reach Achievements. Damn I gotta get going on Halo: Anniversary! 0%? For shame.

So I decided I'll bite. Everyone here's gotta have at least ONE of these 10 facts" type blogs, right? Isn't it some unwritten rule under the TOS? In any event, I figured why the hell not bare my soul and tell you some unknown things about me, mostly pertaining to gaming.



10.) My first video game system was Atari at age 4: Now that I am almost 29 years old, I will have had 25 years of gaming under my belt. On my 4th birthday my dad gave me his Atari 2600 (I later got my own Atari 7800). I didn't hit NES til about age 5 or 6. But after all these year, here I sit, still a gamer and I love it. It's so weird to start with a 1 button joystick, and now have 14 or so buttons on a controller.



9.) The only Zelda games I have beaten are Link's Awakening and Ocarina of time: Now you all know my dirty secret. While I love the Legend of Zelda series, these are the only 2 games I have completed from beginning to end. I've literally played halfway through LoZ1, Majora, Wind Waker, and even link to the past, but have never finished them. I don't know what it is, if I lose interest or get sidetracked with other things, but its true. My goal this summer is to chronologically beat every Zelda game now that we have an official chronology from Nintendo (and I own every single Zelda game there is to own in their original format). But again, only time will tell, and also only time will permit me to attempt this feat.



8.) I don't like Gears of War or Mass Effect: Ok.. you're allowed to murder me if you wish, but just keep in mind, not everyone loves the same games. As someone pointed out in one of my other blogs, they hated Enchanted Arms, while I love that game. To each his/her own I guess right? I tried, I really did. I liked GoW1, but GoW2 multiplayer... I don't know, something about it I didn't enjoy. I mean I like Horde mode enough, but the story bores me, I don't like the short and stocky/overly muscular style of the characters, and all I hear is Bender when Marcus talks because I am a die hard Futurama fan so I just can't take him seriously. I keep expecting him to say "hot diggity daffodil" or "bite my shiny metal ass". Mass Effect... I don't know, maybe I'd like ME2 and 3, but ME 1...where your character can't get better with a weapon after using it more often if I want to use Adept and have omniblade type stuff is dumb. I wanted to have the cool powers but also use weapons. I cannot use the handgun the WHOLE game alongside the powers. I want my cake and to eat it too since.. you know.. why have cake if you can't eat it? At some point I'll trudge through (since I own Gow1 and 2 and I own ME 1 and 2) as I'm sure they get better, but right now, I am not into it.



7.) I almost won the Blockbuster Video tournament in my area as a kid: When Blockbuster video did one of their first tournaments, I entered. The tournament was on sega genesis and SNES but you could only enter 1. SNES had Donkey Kong Country. They had a special cart that went from level to level and the object was to collect the most bananas. For 3 weeks the tournament ran and the first 2 weeks I had the high score. But apparently the rules were the highest score overall after the 3 weeks won, it was NOT cumulative. Now I was a kid so I had no clue, my dad still beats himself up over not reading the official rules. I lost by like 20 bananas, which I probably could've beaten but I didn't think anything of it because I thought it was cumulative.



6.) I used to work at Game Crazy for 5 years: Back in 2005 a Game Crazy opened up half a mile from my house. I was working at CVS at the time and I took a $1 pay cut to work at Game Crazy. While the management sucked and corporate office idiots were a bunch of non-gaming morons, the atmosphere was awesome. We could play games in downtime, customers could try ANY game they wanted except for M rated games (but if kids weren't in the store we allowed it), we got TONS of free stuff from preorders gifts (but at my store at least, we only took them if all preorders were fulfilled; hand to God). We ran tournaments in street fighter games like Capcom vs SNK 2 (which we also played on a daily basis for years along with SF3: Third strike). We also were addicted to DBZ Tenkaichi 1 and 2 for the longest time. But in those 5 years I got tons of games which I mention at my #1 fact about me. Also, when Game Crazy closed, I technically transferred to Hollywood video since in my branch they closed the video side almost 2 months after Game Crazy. I wanted to stay until the end since I started at this job on the 4th day the store was open, and I stayed until its final day. Thankfully I did this because we could hold things the WHOLE time. I got about 30-40 games and 20 movies for $0.80-1 each, all new except for a few used but perfect condition games and rental movies, and I got about 50 strategy guides for FREE. That's my greatest moment in video game deals. lol



5.) I have a Bachelor's Degree in Graphic Design: It took me 7 years since I took a break in between and also have a certificate in web design/animation from the now defunct Gibbs College. It's one of those things where you know you want to work with video games in the future but aren't sure what to choose. I chose Computer Science, but hate programming. So I figured Art was the way to go, I mean I liked to draw so I said what the hell. So I got my Bachelor's degree in Art with a focus on Graphic Design... and I am doing nothing with it. I've come to the realization I love talking about and playing games, but when it comes to programming or trying to artistically draw things, they don't come out how my brain sees them and I just don't feel it. I wish I did more focus on journalism or writing, which I am trying to get into by blogging a lot more all over the internet. Practice makes perfect right? So while my ultimate goal is to work for a reviewing website doing articles and reviews, I will start from the bottom and work my way up like everyone else.



4.) I had a college radio show for almost 3 years: You heard me right, my first 2 and a half years of going to Rhode Island College, I had a radio show. For a year and a half I had a co-host and our show was called TrixX and Patricide (her name was Patricia). Then I went solo, keeping my radio/online moniker of TrixX (But known as GrimmTrixX on AOL and eventually on Xbox live when that first started). I did a metal show from 8pm-10pm and some semesters it was 10pm-12am. I loved it and am thinking about bringing that back in the fall since Alumni can have radio shows too. I am trying to get a video game music show instead, but I don't know if they allow it due to rights to songs and also companies give them music to play sometimes. If not maybe I'll stick with a revival of my metal show, but this time as my current and now forever online alias, GrimmTrixX.



3.) Chris Cornell is my all time favorite musician: I have been a fan of Soundgarden since the release of Superunknown. That album is what got me into rock music and eventually metal as well. But Chris Cornell has an awesome range in his voice which makes him my favorite artist. I have all of his solo stuff as well as Soundgarden, which is my all time favorite band. It took about 15 years but I saw Soundgarden live on their reunion tour in Mansfield, Massachusetts and I had seats maybe 15 rows from the front and was dead center. I knew all the words to every song they played and they played EVERY SINGLE song I wanted to hear, even the obscure ones like "4th of July" and "Slaves and bulldozers. This was the last concert I went to... and personally.. I want it to be the final concert I EVER see, except for maybe Soundagrden tour for the new album they're working on! Hell Yes!



2.) I am addicted to the Star Trek Universe: I don't go around dressing like Starfleet captains or anything but I do love the Star Trek Universe. I was recently Spock for Halloween. I had to literally force myself to stop watching TNG and DS9 because I've seen both series 4 times each. That's not including watching them as a kid, that's just counting watching my complete series DVDs over and over. Thank god for Star Trek the Animated Series filling in my star trek fix for now since it's the only star trek series I haven't watched yet. But if you want to talk Star Trek, I am your man.



1.) I own over 2350 different video games: Yes, you heard correctly, I am a video game collector. Working at a video game store (Game Crazy R.I.P.) for 5 years helped my sickness for collecting to grow exponentially. I own every system from Atari 2600-PS3. Sure there's some I don't own like jaguar, colecovision, intellivision, 3DO, CD-i, Neo Geo, and the rest, but I own every mainstream system there is/was (except Vita but I will eventually). I have hundreds of video game strategy guides and art books, as well as other random video game paraphernalia. I am hopelessly addicted to collecting and playing games. My collecting speed has diminished the last couple years due to Game Crazy closing back in 2010. Also not being a millionaire kind of stops you in your tracks, but I do still get games when the deals are amazing thanks to www.cheapassgamer.com. My collection is mostly made up of old school games, but the system that I own the most games for is PS2 at 269 games with NES games at a fairly close second with 236 games.



So yea, there's some food for thought if anyone was curious to know a little bit more about me and my video game nerdiness, amongst other things. Also, Poets of the Fall is an awesome band. That is all.

There are many out there who play games that the media is sure to let them know about. Well I have a short list for everyone of games that you may or may not have played, but totally owe it to yourselves to find and dominate them. These are in no particular order, and the list could easily be longer, these are just what popped into my head right now. Yes many of these games are turn based RPGs, a style I prefer. That doesn't make them any less awesome.



10.) Enchanted Arms (Xbox 360): When this game came out, it had a little bit of controversy. It wasn't anything major, but one of the main characters, Makoto, is gay. I worked at a Game Crazy back then and you wouldn't believe how many people would NOT buy this game based on that alone. The guy isn't even in the majority of the game! Anyway, the game is grid and turn based and has a bit of a "pokemon" essence to it. As you play you gain golems, which are the name for all the monsters/characters you can get to aid you in your party. The grid has 12 squares on both your side and the opponents side. Some attacks have different patterns such as straight line or 2 rows back, things like that. You go through the game following the story, all while finding amazing creatures to join your cause, as well as other main story characters. I still have never beaten it, but am going back to it soon.



9.) Lost Odyssey (Xbox 360): I need a sequel for this game to be made. This is the epitome of the turn based style and I wish many other games would follow suit. The fact that the immortal characters can learn abilities of their friends just by battling along side them is a concept I enjoy. Granted after my 146hrs in the game, my level 99 guys were beasts, but it didn't make it any less fun. The ring system is a timed press setup and it works great alongside the turn based gameplay. Say you equip a fire ring, when you time it right, you do damage plus whatever extra damage the ring gives you. Also, since 5 of the main characters are immortals, if they fall in battle, and 2 full turns pass, they will revive as long as at least 1 member of your party still stands. This has saved me time and time again. Sadly I killed the final boss in 3 turns because my team members were all basically super heroes by then. The DLC dungeon that this game has on Xbox live, however, had a horribly tough boss but defeating him was a great feeling. This game is arguably the most popular on my list, but again, if turn based RPGs are your thing, get this game right now. It's one of the most beautiful Xbox 360 games to exist, it has great music, well stylized enemies, and colorful magic powers. Some complain the main character is kind of bland, and I guess Kaim could be called that, but Jansen more than makes up for it.



8.) Clock Tower (PS1): Point and click survival horror at its finest! You control a few different characters as the story progresses, but they all fear one man... Scissorman! Yes, the villain is a hunchback with a giant pair of jagged scissors. Your goal is to find out what is happening, and why he is trying to kill everyone, all while surviving. There are about 5 or 6 endings and you truly feel fear when playing this game. Scissorman can literally come from anywhere and even after playing a few times, he will be in different locations. Sometimes you can hide in a closet and you are safe, other times he knows you're in there and stabs you THROUGH the closet door. The game spawned 2 sequels, which personally both paled in comparison to the original. And yes I know the Super Famicom had a clock tower game too, but this one was more mainstream.



7.) Critical Depth (PS1): Twisted Metal underwater. Need I say more? The game was made by the Twisted Metal creators and the vehicles in question are groundwater vehicles. The gameplay is simple: destroy your opponents and advance and then your character wins a prize, usually an ending that gets twisted. Graphically the game is dated, but if you liked Twisted Metal 2, and enjoy vehicle combat, Critical Depth gives you something different.



6.) The Last Remnant (Xbox 360): This is an RPG that went severely under the radar. With it's turn based and also squad based style, Last Remnant is a very unique game. As you play you can recruit people into your ranks. The only downside is you can only control 1 character, and by control I mean choose his weapons and whatnot. The computer chooses your squad mates style. Granted it's choices are based on what resources you have and it will ask you when it's going to upgrades a weapon or change a weapon. Some characters are more for healing, others for heavy damage, but the true key to battle is your battle position. There are many different choices of how to arrange your squads in battle. When in battle, you choose an action for that whole small squad to do and the moves they pull off all relate to one another. Choose a standard attack, successfully play the "press this button at the right time mini game" during each standard attack and the final guy in the group will do a better attack since his teammates were all on point. I love this game and it's style. The only bad news is make sure you load it to the hard drive, otherwise this thing lags like a mofo. You fight enemies of all sizes and the game is a good length.



5.) General Chaos (Genesis): This one may be harder to find, but that doesn't make it any less awesome. General Chaos and General Havoc are in some kind of war with one another. They bring their men into battle, and in this strategy game, you fight until no one is left. There are guys with machine guns, bazookas, flamethrowers, grenades and dynamite. Each character type has a specific weapon they use, so before battle you have to choose wisely which group you select (you are given 4 squads to choose before the match. The gameplay is point and click, but, if you choose a commando team, you may only have 2 characters but they are more independently controlled by the player. So sometimes less team members can be a strategic advantage due to this.



4.) Tecmo's Deception (PS1): You are a man wrongly accused of murder. When you are put to death, you make a plea to Satan to save your life in return for servitude. He will grant it to you if you kill the current inhabitant of a castle, named Ardebaran, and take his place. If you enjoy trapping people and stealing their souls or killing them for money, then look no further. In Tecmo's Deception, you become a man cursed and forced to remain in a mansion and deal with anyone who comes your way. As you play there will be simple peasants who wander in the castle, or soldiers looking for your blood. Your only defense is creating insanely elaborate and weird traps to capture and/or kill these people. The best part is, as you play, you are given choices which can slightly alter your path. So you can kill people or allow them to escape and this will affect what happens later in the game. The game spawned 2 sequels (Kagero Deception/Deception III) and a spiritual successor Trapt for PS2. I have yet to see any recent games do this, so if this idea appeals to you, check it out on eBay or wherever else this game can be acquired. As a fun side note: if you have Monster Rancher for PS1, and you put in the Tecmo's Deception disc, you get Ardebaran as a monster to raise and fight against others. That's a nice touch Tecmo.



3.) Urban Reign (PS2): This lost game on PS2 is personally what many beat em ups should be. You go through missions and face waves of enemies. The battle style is that of the old wrestling games, but it also has that Tekken vibe to it (since it IS a Namco game). The game is only 1 player in the story mode, however a cheat code allows a 2nd player to control any AI partners you'd normally have in the game. SO while they cant play every mission, after the first few, the majority of them allow a 2nd player to join in. There's 4 player versus mode as well which just gets insane if you have a multitap and play free for alls or 2v2 matches. The characters have special moves (not specific to them per se but the special moves are more categorized. So some will have temporary invulnerability while others will know some different moves when activated). As an added bonus, Paul Phoenix and Marshall Law are guest characters.



2.) Eternal Darkness (GC): When you think survival horror, Resident Evil and Silent Hill come to mind. But there is another game that is just as creepy and dangerous, and that is Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem. Here you jump to different characters through out time, finding all info on 3 different gods. But as you play and see enemies, your sanity meter depletes. If you do not kill them to regain it, the game starts to mess with you big time. You'll walk in a room and your head will fall off, or you see a lot of money on the ground only to be zapped back t when you entered the room and be empty handed. This game even made people turn off their system because it would give a blue screen or show an Input text to make you think you lost the system's signal. Keep in mind this is happening while you try to navigate dark corridors fighting zombies and other such creatures. Great gamecube game and worth every penny.



1.) Gladius (Xbox/GC/PS2): I know, I know, I keep talking about this game. I just don;t know where else to mention it! This game got rave reviews from every magazine and site when it came out back in 2005. Sadly, Gladius was poorly advertised and I've literally only met 2 friends of mine who played it. One of which doesn't count because we both heard about the game together and played like madmen. With a turn based strategy and tactical style, this game is amazing. There's dozens and dozens of character types, different elemental affinities, different cups to battle in each with different stipulations like all female fighters, or all animals, things like that. This game is a must play if you call yourself a turn based strategy fan.

Sadly, PAX East 2012 had to come to an end sooner or later. I am home, basking in the glory of the 3 day video game filled weekend and have yet 1 more day of fun to tell you all about. While today was not without its problems (waiting in line for Spec Ops for 2 hours to play a 30 min demo which I will tell you more about), I still had a great time. At the end I have a handful of pictures from today (and some from the other 2 days). So let me run it down for you on some of my key points of the day:

High Points:
- Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Why didn't anyone tell me this game existed?! Take elite beat agents play style, mix it with TONS of Final Fantasy I-Final Fantasy XIII music, add in fun cutesy versions of all our favorite characters and enemies from the series, and there is Theatrhythm Final Fantasy for the 3DS! I mean I only played one winged angel and it was fun as hell. I am a big nerd about video game music and have always wished for something like this and it is happening! It was the very last thing I played at PAX too so it was a good way to end my PAX adventure. I will 100% be getting this game when it comes out in the summer time. Side-note: As I waited in line I spoke to a guy also waiting and he seemed cool. So when he played the game I spoke with the guy behind me. We got to talking about what we like about the FF series and it's music. As I left he gave me his card and I gave him mine. When I got home, it turns out he is an associate editor for Udon entertainment, which I thought was awesome.

- Super Time Force: This game is cool beyond words. I spoke with the game's creator and told him "This game is like Contra x100" and the guy said he liked it and might use that. Now I am sure he was just having fun and simply enjoyed my comment but I am super excited about this game. Basically you try and get through the level without dying. One hit will kill you but if this happens...it's not over. The level rewinds to the very beginning and you play again, however, the turn you just took still happens. Yes, you fight alongside a ghost version of your previous attempt through the level. Whatever you did that turn, still happens, so you can focus on other things all until you beat the level. There was about 4 character types to choose from including an 80s guy with a grenade launcher named Jeff Leppard. I love time travel and this is just about the coolest thing I have ever seen. Check this shiz out in 8-12 months. I hope this gets the recognition it deserves. http://www.supertimeforce.com/

- Guacamelee: You read that right. You play as a luchador named Juan (or some female luchador(a) whose name I didn't see mentioned) and you fight an evil fire headed villain named Flame Face. You can turn into a chicken also to get through tight spots. The game is filed with Mexican stereotypes but it's hilarious in dialogue and fun in style. The game is a side scrolling beat em up. You face poncho wearing skeletons and other such enemies, and face the dual pistol holding Flame Face in the demo. This is one to check out. http://guacamelee.com/

- Diabolical Pitch: I am not very well versed in the ways of Kinect as of yet. I only played one about 2 times so this was still a new experience. But in this game you are a pitcher fighting zombies and other such creatures. You aim with your left hand and throw with your right (you can choose to swap that if you are a lefty). When you build a meter up, you lift both hands over your head and swing your right hand to unleash a super move that you chose prior to the level. It was a very unique game idea and I for one enjoyed it.

- Awesomenauts: If the name alone didn't scream awesome, then the game surely will. The game is 3v3 and the object, at least in the level I played, was to destroy your opponents turrets first. You can choose from 6 characters and they each have different weapons and special moves. It had a great cartoon style and zany action that will definitely be a fun game to play with friends online. They also chose the best way to respawn... being dropped in a drop pod from a spaceship. Awesome. http://awesomenauts.com/

- They Bleed Pixels: Here we have a very old school style game. The game is made of pixels and you play as a goth chick with red claws on her hands. You rip apart these black shadowy figures and other such baddies with your claws, kicking them into spiked ceilings or saw blade, or booting them into walls of spikes. As you do this you have to get blood orbs to build up a checkpoint meter. once it's filled, you then stand still for a second and the girl will make a checkpoint. This way if you die you don't start all over. It's simple indie fun and I want the world to know about it because it was very enjoyable. http://theybleedpixels.com/

Low Points:
- Spec Ops The Line: Maybe it's because I am not a huge war game player, but the game was so-so. I waited in line for 2 hours (and the line was the shortest of all the big attractions) to play a WAY too long demo. I'm sorry, when I think demo, I think 10-15 minutes tops. If you can't show me the gist of your game in that time, the rest feels like you're forcing it on me. It's your standard affair: run/walk, find cover, shoot enemies, wash rinse repeat. You can perform executions which range from shot in the head to snapping a neck with your boot and perhaps more I am unsure. You can rappel down lines or go across zip line,s but this is a "Press A" thing and they do it automatically after that. The game is portrayed well with camera angles going one minute from a cinematic then right into the game seamlessly which is cool I guess. There is also blood but its your normal everyday spray when you hit them. Heads can be popped off but the head just kind of disappears. Sure there's blood to make it seem cooler than it is, but it was a one minute the head is there then the next its not type of situation, Soldier of Fortune this game is not (and I mean SoF2, not the garbage we last got). I predict the game will sell alright depending on the final product, but after 10 minutes I wanted to stop, but I forced myself to play it all since I waited for 2 hours, thus wasting 1/4th of my last day at PAX.

- No worthy merch: So I ventured to the merch area one last time. Now I enjoy a good Penny Arcade comic now and again, but I am not in love with them or anything. I have enough t-shirts before going to PAX, let alone actually spending money on some while I am there. The few things I wanted were expensive (but in retrospect a mug shaped like a Mega Man Energy Canister would've been cool, $35 cool I am not sure, but I do somewhat regret it).

- Not being able to see things I wanted to see: Long story short, I missed Aliens: Colonial Marines, Lollipop Chainsaw, Firefall, Borderlands and Max Payne 3. The lines were just way too long and on my last day, and having already lost 2.5 hours on Spec Ops, I wasn't about to do the same. At 4:30pm EST I got in line for Aliens. They gave us the the Alien bandana/scarf thing, I waited 15-20 min, the line didn't budge, so I felt my last hour and a half was better spent elsewhere.

There is still more to talk about, which I will do in the next couple of days, just in a different format. I received some cards to sites with free games made by video game design students from different colleges so that's something I'll check out and report back to you all. I stayed away from PC games simply because that is not my thing, but this all pretty much sums up my 3 days at PAX East 2012. So as promised, here's a whole slew of more images, complete with my last day of swag at the very bottom. Enjoy! Comment if you have questions!