So i've been itching to play this game with some Dtoiders so this FNF I'll be hosting some Rainbow Six Vegas 2 on 360. Also, since Grim doesn't know what email is I had to resort to acutally posting a blog! Onoes!

All you need to do is invite me, when the time comes I'll invite all I can into a player match and we can begin to rape and pillage.


To recap-

The game: Rainbow Six Vegas 2
Platform: Xbox 360
Time: Friday Night Fight time - 7:00PM Pacific/10:00PM Eastern
Gamertag: Yashoki

So I'm not very excited for HL 2 EP 3. I read a bunch of articles, looked at some screenshots, and even watched the big long gameplay video but nothing could really raise my interest in it. Most people would probably say in response that maybe I'm not into fantasy FPSs, or that maybe if I would have played through the first two games (that's right, I'm a HL 2 EP 3 virgin) I would be a bit more enthralled. While these accusations might have a little bit of truth to them, the main reason why HL 2 EP 3 doesn't look special to me is because it really doesn't seem to be doing anything new.

Now, being a Half-Life virgin I'll admit that I'm no authority on Half-Life gameplay. However, from what I've seen so far from Half-Life 2: Episode 3, this game doesn't stray too far from its previous brethren in terms of its playability. As Valve has said already, only a mouse will be needed in order to play Half-Life 2: Episode 3 (of course, we all know that this is bullshit and that Skins and Mods will be very necessary in order to truly play the game at a fun level). The Half-Life games always been very "Shooty" games and it seems like this one will be no exception. But is this what gamers really want? Ok, maybe some gamers do like very shooty games. To me, however, this seems like a step backwards in gameplay. Its been a while since Half-Life 2 Episode 2 was released, and I can't help but think that Shooty FPSs are a thing of the past. Hell, I remember that even when I bought Quake I thought that the gameplay felt outdated. However, seeing Half-Life 2: Episode 3's old-fashioned, trite gameplay was only a mere slap in the face compared to a certain previous announcement by Valve.

Team Fortress, what a game! I remember when Valve first announced it, the internet collectively cried tears of joy! I shed a few myself, until I say what Valve was doing with the franchise. The Dark atmosphere that I so enjoyed in Team Fortress was replaced with cartoonish, Pixar styled graphics. Art design aside, they announced very early on that they were going to be sticking very closely to the original Team Fortress gameplay. I realize that, like Half-Life 2 Episode 3 there are some new twists (read: gimmicks) that might make the game feel a little more fresh. The problem is that none of these are really new. Take the height element that they're implementing. Basically, some units can walk onto raised platforms and hills now making them less of an obstacle. This would be cool and everything if hadn't been done already in games (I'll talk about this a little later). Also, they did away with many of the great innovations from Team Fortress. They're different games, I know, but if Team Fortess could be such an innovative game, why can't Half-Life 2 Episode 3 be one too? I fear that Valve might be too afraid to mess with this franchise in any extreme way, but since they're on the most highly acclaimed developers in the world, you would expect them to try to set the bar higher.

ect

It's not secret that I'm a huge fan of the Castlevania games, and I've always enjoyed the Metroidvania style of play (theres something so satisfying in something so simple). Roaming the castle at my own pace and just hacking away at enemies is like meditation for me.

I recently started doing some reading into the new DS Castlevania "Order of Ecclesia" and there some new things, first off is the fact that you have boobies (yay?). Since Castlevania Legends, that has been removed from the series' canon, you've never had a female staring in one of the Castlevania games. Hell, as soon as I saw some of the new art I was completely sold. This bitch in fact, looks sick(the good kind).



Among the characters theres a new fighting system, worldmap, completely new characters (where Dracula is the only returning character), side quest mission from villagers, and combining attacks.

Oh and that anime styling is gone, not that I've had a problem with it, but Castlevania never seemed like a game for anime. This is probably due to a new artist that has been working on the game, all I can say is that I'd like moar plz.
http://crispygamer.com/_GeneratedPages/Interviews/Interview886.aspx

The question is: Is it too late for all this?

The Castlevania franchise is twenty two years old this year and has had over 20 releases thus far, but is it too late for something new? Is this not enough for some people?

I'm actually pumped because of all the minor things that will be added/moved around. I love the Metroidvania style of play, but someone might feel different. Maybe it's time to work on another 3D Castlevania to get the formula down and maybe create a new legion of fans and get some of that next-gen sexiness.

Oh yeah, I has a video.

A short story/rant
I’m about twelve years old. I just walk out of a Circuit City with my brand new copy of Golden Sun for my Game Boy Advance. I step into our Dodge van, buckle the safety belt, and tear into the plastic wrap as if it were the last game I would ever have.



I hold in my hands, a Brand New Video Game. I admire how I can feel the box in my hands the exact object I’ve been saving up for and looking at through the hard plastic protector to keep thieves out. I look at the box art and see four heroes I will soon control; their story will be mine to experience. I see the “ONLY FOR GAMEBOY ADVANCE” on the box and I realize “I have a Game Boy Advance, this game is for my Game Boy Advance and it’s only for the Game Boy Advance!” My excitement overwhelms me.

I have severe motion sickness when it comes to cars and reading, playing games, or paying attention to anything at close range, but who cares? I have a new video game! And it’s for my[i] Game Boy Advance and [i]only for the Game Boy Advance! If you don’t have a Game Boy Advance, you’re shit out of luck!



Despite my dizziness I carefully open the box being sure not to bend the tab that keeps it sealed. I pull out the game cartridge and manual and leave the plastic rectangle in the palm of my hand, immediately I feel a surge of power. Something so small has so much? I still couldn’t believe how they managed to fit a whole adventure into such a small cartridge, but that doesn’t matter time to learn about my new game.

The manual smells like what god would smell like and its contents even more precious. I pass the warnings, table of contents, and basic information. The manual, like foreplay before sex, was only a taste of what I was about to experience. I learned slightly about the backstory, how to access my inventory, the battle system, using magic and about the map. I was equipped for my journey ahead. I had all the necessary tools to venture into a new world and fight battles never fought before. It was time. The rest, as they say, is history.

I am now eighteen and much more into video games than ever before, but one thing has changed. I have long traded in my Game Boy Advance for a Nintendo DS. The next generation of handheld gaming is here. I buy a couple games, and again the experience is every bit as sweet as when I was younger.

I hear that there’s this amazing device called the R4. And apparently it will allow me to download games and more than just one. I can have a whole library of games in my pocket. No more dealing with cartridges, bound to get lost, chipped, and worn-out. I had to get one.

Ok, Advance Wars is out for the DS, time to get a new game. I log onto my favorite ROM website. Search for the latest ROM and locate my target. Like a sniper hitting his target I click on the download button. Boom Headshot. I am redirected to a file hosting website and await my place in turn. Kinda reminds me of waiting for those stupid toll lines in Grand Theft Auto IV. Finally! Time to download! The wait from zero percent to one hundred seems way longer than a minute and fourteen seconds. Seconds turns to hours when you want something to happen! Here we go, I’m done, time to un-rar this file. A familiar ritual starts all over again. Double click, open, extract, and place onto my desktop. Next is to rename the file to something more pleasing. The final step is to drag and drop the game into the “DS ROMs” folder on my micro SD card. I quickly slide the SD card out of its USB connector and pop it into my R4.

I switch on my DS, browse to the file and start the game. “Oh nice, this one has a story, that’s neat. “ After hours of playing my new game I feel content, but something is missing. My preparedness is gone, my beautiful box art is missing, and I seem to have misplaced my manual. I feel happy I have a new game, but not excited. In my hands I have nothing; no tabs, no papers, no cartridge. Oh well, time to move onto the next game!

Since I’ve gotten my R4 I no longer feel like an excited kid ready to spend days playing his band new game. The wonder and excitement has been stripped from games (at least on my DS). Now that I have the entire library at my disposal, one game no longer holds any value. It’s works in economics too: If the US decided to print more money and giving everyone in the United States a billion dollars, the dollar would be worth less than it is now. I find it more difficult to appreciate one particular game when I have fifty others waiting for me.



Sometimes I feel a bit regretful that I bought my R4 because it isn’t the same when I could bring home a game and be giddy about it, but on the same note, I have saved so much money and time and it’s awesome to have all the games on the DS at my disposal.

To those that have an R4: Am I just a complete and utter nerd? Or is there anyone else who has felt the same way?

To those who don’t have an R4: buy an R4 if you must, but know the dangers before you do.

Believe it or not, I've not been "hardcore gaming" for that long. To be honest I've always considered myself a kid who just liked video games. In recent years i've gotten more and more into video games as an actual hobby, or even a passion.

Fast forward to today, I finally have enough money to buy the games I want and invest my time in something I find to be worthwhile. My most memorable time with Etrian Odyssey is playing it. The music, the atmosphere, the art, everything about it was just refreshing. It was something that I knew I was going to love, even if insanely difficult (FOEs are impossible).

Everyday I get to play a new game it's always an amazing experience, I've never really had the luxury of having parents who could afford to buy me alot of games and systems. My first console was an N64 with Mario 64 and after that as a Jr. High grad present I got a PS2.

But umm....yeah. Etrian Odyssey fucking rocks. :D

So after a crap weekend in vegas (i'm 18 so i'm legal but I cant do shit) where I had to take care of my little cousins, I get home on monday to see that my Dtoid patch is in the mail.



First off I would like to say how awesome it is to see handwriting I really like the personal touch. I dont know who wrote this, but their penmanship is 1,000,000x better than mine. The little dtoid head on the back is awesome

Second, look at the postage, some creepy old lady and what looks like some animorph thing. I'd call it a furry but it has no human features other than it looks like it has shoulders.



Anyway, thanks a bunch Niero and Colette! (and any unnamed sekret people on the inside) Dtoid! Wins! My internets! :)

P.S Now all of you know where I live :O