During the early ages of the Gamecube's lifecycle, before the golden age of Resident Evil 4 and its precedent on the horror genre, there were only a few games that were reaching out to that 'mature horror audience'. Really, there were only three games that I can recall: the Resident Evil remake, Luigi's Mansion (if you that type of person) and Eternal Darkness. Unfortunately that last game is indeed 'last' and didn't grab the attention it should've to the gaming audience. In fact, the only reason I know about Eternal Darkness is because it was the most interesting looking game in the clearance bin at the local Gamestop.

Even though its a horror based video game, one really can't compare Eternal Darkness to games like Silent Hill or Resident Evil, nor could one really fit it into that Survival Horror genre. Some would rather put it in a sort of Action Horror genre, considering there is no Item Boxes to be found and the objective is to kill as many monsters as possible with various (mostly melee) weapons rather than avoid enemies and conserve bullets.

The story is also very different from that of most horror games. Its a hybrid of mythological fiction and psychological horror derived from authors such as H.P. Lovecraft. It begins in a modern day setting in the shoes of Alex Rovias, a twenty something year old trying to uncover the mystery behind the brutal murder of her grandfather. The only real clue she finds is an old Tome. Unknown to her, the mystery and the tome span all the way from the beginning of time itself and puts more than just the Rovias family at stake. Its filled with interesting, and mostly engaging characters who ultimately meet their doom in the same way her grandfather did. While the story isn't groundbreaking or award winning, it certainly is able to tie the player in and motivate them to help Alex find the resolution of her grandfather and maybe even save the world.

Both the graphics and gameplay were solid, however it was also somewhat simple and (not to discredit Nintendo) what you'd expect from an early Gamecube title. However, even with this setback, Eternal Darkness manages to use an original aspect to keep the game interesting and horrifying. This aspect is called the 'Sanity Meter'. Everytime your character alarms a monster of some kind or you do something insane such as kill a human NPC, the game punishes you by taking some of your character's sanity. They farther their sanity goes down, the higher the risk you run of dealing with a Sanity Effect. This is where the game really stands out. Any game that chooses to break the fourth wall gains a new level of intrigue and respect from me. This game not only breaks the fourth wall with these sanity effects, but does it exceptionally well. From heads/body parts blowing off randomly to TV screens going blank during intense boss battles, Eternal Darkness manages to give player a while new type of gaming horror experience as well as a new brown lump in their pants.

Even though the sanity meter was the main selling point of Eternal Darkness, there was much more behind the gimmick than most realize. Unfortunately, few were able to see any of the game at all and it failed commercially, further perpetuating Nintendo's kiddie stereotype and making Eternal Darkness one of the most underrated games of the generation. Whats even worse is that its developers, Silicon Knights had actually planned a trilogy, but this is now out of the question since Nintendo owns the rights to the sequels, dropped it's exclusive rights with Silicon Knights. There's also the fact that SK has decided to move on to other projects, such as Too Human for the Xbox 360. I can only hope those companies work something out and we finally see a sequel to this amazing game.

As a huge fan of this game, I've only found a few who share the same love for the game. Maybe this blog might attract the fans =P

Last year I decided to dress as Lara Croft for Halloween. While it was kind of off (I used Guncons as her deagles), I managed to pull it off well. I plan to repeat this tradition, but instead of expressing my love for Tomb Raider I'm going for another series I hold dear to my heart: Silent Hill. Upon reaching this conclusion, I then decided to go for an iconic character of the series, the infamous bobblehead nurses. While I may not be as 'endowed' as they are, I'm positive I can pull this off.

Notice I didn't use the term 'cosplay'. I feel as if this would be an insult to those who frequent this hobby rather than try it only once a year. However, it would be much appreciated if those familiar with this kind of thing or even just fans of the series to maybe give some pointers on how my costume could be more accurate.

In this first step, I bought a nurse's outfit that was on sale. Its about as close as I will get their outfit.


As you can see, this outfit's clean. The nurse's outfit is dirty and covered in God knows what. This is my small dilemma: other than fake blood, I really don't know how to give the dress that dirty off-white tint. I've heard that soaking it in coffee or tea might do the trick, but I"m afraid I'll end up with a poo-poo brown color. Any ideas?

After I'm finished with the dress part I'll be working on the face area and trying to get a 'suffocating'-like mask.


Btw, if anyone has a steel pipe they'd be willing to give away that would be greatly apperciated =D

So I was just strolling through the not so local, not so friendly Target, and I decide to browse the video game section, even though my broke ass can't afford anything. That is when I stumbled upon the infamous error.



And I was feeling like shit this whole week so seeing this made me feel a bit better about myself, or at least my home console. This was actually the first time I've seen the RRoD 'in person'.



And look! Its right under Jim Sterling's favorite game.



Only fitting, eh? The funny thing is that the Target employees is no matter how many people reported about this problem, they treated like a normal day in the 360 aisle.]

edit ew.. title mess up DX

With the release of Halo 3, I decided to get back into the world of XBL, a lavish but cruel world I once spent most of my time in. I knew fully what the hell I was getting myself into and I didn't want to deal with it really, but hey. Its worth a shot,no?

By the first round of Team Slayer, I recalled the absolute shit one can take when even attempting to communicate. I started talking to my buddy Rob about not being on here for awhile, then some guy from out of no where goes:

XBL 'tard 1: "Oh my.. OH MY FUCKING GAWD IS THAT A GIRL!?!? DUDE OMFG!"
XBL 'tard 2:"HOLY SHIT I CAN'T FUCKING BELIEVE IT!!! HEY HEY CAN YOU SPEAK AGAIN!?!"

Yep, from then on I learned not to open my mouth unless need be with voice. And that was only my first lesson. After a few plays I recall the racist, misogynistic, make-no-sense screaming of the wonderful population provided by Xbox Live. Hearing 12 year olds like this turned me off so much... and yet the whole time, I'm actually enjoying myself. Of course this whole time I was being picked on by some ass in the middle of nowhere for having ovaries.... and yet it hurt so good.

It just goes to show XBL is sort of like that fucked up loser cousin of one always has in their family; you may be forced to love him at one point, but eventually you'll embrace the times he gives you.

And my dumb ass came up with a thought that should've crossed my mind 5 years ago:

The Halo Warthog controls could've been modeled by RC cars.


Could this have been the inspiration for...


..this!?


Yep, just my sentiment of the day.

And I'm not being sarcastic. Not only did someone manage to get through AP Statistics with flying colors, but they also managed to leave a little surprise in their end of the year project.

A simple project about the choices of soda among students added an extra detail within it:

Look to the top right of this school project..


Wait a second.. is that what I think it is??


Yep.. it looks like someone managed to place the shocker in an innocent school project. I asked the teacher about the project, whether she had noticed anything different or obscure in this particular, but obviously she isn't too familiar with sexual hand gestures =P

From what I heard this person got an A. They deserved it.