After years and years of trying, yesterday, I FINALY beat The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. I had a lot of fun with it, and it definitely had some outstanding moments.

When I first joined GameSpot, I wrote a review for MM where I was basicaly just ranting how I found the game overated and stupid. That was because I couldn't pass the Snowhead Temple, due to my sucky controlers, but I finaly passed that, and beaten the whole game. And after experiencing it, I sure feel like a dumba** for having a "conclusive" opinion without even beating the game. So, sorry Majora's Mask. You trully are awesome.

For my full review of it, click here (http://www.gamespot.com/n64/action/legendofzeldamajorasmask/player_review.html?id=771387&tag=all-about%3Breview1)

When I was a kid, three of the things we considered "the sh**" were Pokemon, Digimon and Yu-Gi-Oh!. All these things had games, animes that were on TV and a lot of merchandise. But as I grew older, the rose tinted glasses of nostalgia faded. I still love the Pokemon games, and at times watch the anime purely for the novelty factor, though I don't consider it as awesome as before, since I now see things a different way. Digimon I complety got over, ocasionaly playing the games and seeing an episode or two of the anime, but it feels really basic and kind of copycat of Pokemon in a lot of areas. But what about the latter? Well, it is... complicated.

You see, I have played the card game for as long as I have watched the anime, and had a bigilion card till last year, when I got rid of them. I don't regret that, but I feel like the game, as it was originaly intended to be played, still is pretty sweet for a "children's card game". But looking at how complicated it got with the new spin-off series, it just pisses me off. The card game that once was a guilty pleasure became much more series and complext, taking away the simple child fun it had. But I digress. Let's talk about the animes.

When it comes to the anime, I feel somwhat reluctant to talk about, because it is hard to really get my point across. First of all I will say this: the original series was pretty good in general. It had characters that weren't too deep, but you could like them, the story was simple but got complexier as it went on and watching the card games was really awesome. However, at the same time, all the positives have negative sides: the characters stayed the same thoughout the whole series (besides Yami) and talked about constantly the same things (Tea = Friendship), the story took FOREVER to get to the more interestings parts, since half of the 200 something episodes are filler, and the card games also took forever to end. A duel between Yugi and Kaiba once took 5 or 6 episodes.

The way the anime did things was that so, while a card game was being played, plot devices, such as flashbacks, were being explained, but it just came across as lazy and annoying. Even as a kid I thought it took forever. It is even worse than Dragon Ball Z fights. Take for example the duel between Kaiba and Yugi again: they could have made the duel in a maximum of 3 episodes (which is still exageating), and then used one whole for plot exposition, which would have diminixed the series unecessary filler by a lot. Another example is the arc about the digital world, which went absolutely nowere. They were 50 awkward episodes of things that, what matters to the plot, could have been explained in no time. The villain was a brat that had a ridiculous change of heart in the end, and, in the end, you were just left with a "wha...?" feel.

Oh the villains! How could I forget about them? Well, basicaly because there kind of are no villains. Taking for example the arc until the city tournament, we had: Pegasus, Yami Bakura and Yami Merric. The latter two were just being controled by evil spirits, and first wanted to revive his dead lover. Pegasus was probably the best of the three in terms of vilany, and Merric was the most developed character of the three, but in the end he was just freed of the evil spirit of his Millenium Item. Bakura was around for the whole series, but only in the very end he made his move. Why? So we could have more filler. Of course.

An interesting fact that many people didn't know is that, in Japan, there was another anime of the series, produced by Toei, which took place before the tournament that Pegasus made. It only aired there, and so we missed a bunch of plot points that were vital, such as Yugi meeting his friends, finishing the Millenum Puzzle and freeing Yami, and the introduction of characters that were very important in terms of the plot itself, such as Shadi, who just came and went in the following series. Most of the plot points of these season were explained in flashbacks, but a lot still weren't, and flashbacks in the entire series to retome things vital when we could have just had the other season feels... cheap.

Of course, I can't fail to mention the Yu-Gi-Oh! Abridged Series, made by LittleKuriboh, which basicaly parodies everything that I just said. In fact, I have to thank him, because it made me get a little into this important part of my childhood (besides making me laugh very hard). If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have explored the series and understood it more as I could now, and get my thoughts across of my feelings for it. If you haven't seen it yet, google-it and watch; you will laugh hard.

So there goes my rant on the original Yu-Gi-Oh! anime. How does it stands up? It really is hard to say, because when it gets its point across it normaly is quite intereting and very enjoyable, but we have to sit through so much filler and unnecessary stuff to get there, that it becomes qutie ridiculous in the end. It is an anime that is just worth seeing for the sake of nostalgia. And it is just enjoyable to watch, due to its light hearted material.

What do you think about Yu-Gi-Oh!? Can you sit though the filler and get to the good points or not? Or have you never gotten into the series?

Last year, I did a list of what I considered the best songs in gamiming, but not only that list is not accurate anymore, but it was very shallow by that point even, so I will comply some songs I just love, not grading them or anything, just listing them:

"Heaven" from "Persona 4":
-This song was in my previous list, and I still have not grown to dislike it. It not only fits the level it is in perfectly, but also manages to be very soothing and great to listen to a bunch of times in a row.

"Pursuing my True Self" from "Persona 4":
-From the same game, and the previous list, the opening theme from this game is less than 2 minutes song, but even being so brief, it is so catchy and gets the mood just right for the game.

"Burn my Dread" from "Persona 3":
-You could call this the main theme from the game, since it plays a lot of times thoughout it. While the lyrics don't make a lot of sense, it shifts quite a bit the music in it, and get you in the mood for playing the game. It also managed to stand out in the sountrack of the game, since the other tracks are much more jazzy and lounge, and this one is more rock. Another songs that is great to listen to anytime.

"Athletic" from "Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island":
-Probably the happiest song in the list, this one just gets the mood right for the game, and I always bop´my head while listening to it. While it isn't as good to listen to without the contex, it still is a versitile song, and one I listen to once in a while.

"Over Shiver Mountain" from "Paper Mario":
-This game has in general a great soundtrack, but this song in particular is just so catchy, and probably the only one I listen to ina regurlar basis. It fits the area perfectly, and is just a lot of fun. I have to give props to a Let's Player called chuggaaconroy for pointing out this song, since it had been quite a while since I played the game, and he reminded me of how much I like the song from my childhood.

"Shield Sheldon Stage" from "Mega Man X6":
-While X6 is not that fantastic, its soundtrack is, and this theme definitely is up there. It really fits with the stage and is another one I bop my had always when I listen to. It really is catch, but, like "Athletic", is one I don't listen to all the time.

"Beware the Forest Mushroom" from "Super Mario RPG":
-Is this song overrated? Maybe, but it doesn't reduce the awesomeness that it is. It is absolutely catchy and probably the one I listen to the most. I could listen to it all day and I wouldn't get tired of it. It really is something you have to listen to so you can understan how great it is.

"Still Alive" from "Portal":
-Another song that is very acclaimed, the music and the lyrics are perfectly togheter, and is kind of hilarious to listen to. Props to the performance ofEllen McLain, who really get the job done as GLaDOS.

"Snake Eater" from "Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater":
-Snake Eater is by far the most over the top song in the list, as it sounds more like a James Bond theme that anything. That is probably what makes it so fun to listen to, and is one I listen to in a regular basis. It is a quite addictive song, and one that make less sense in context than out of.

"Fire Emblem Theme" from "Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn":
-Radiant Dawn is awesome, and its soundtrack is too. The main theme of it is one of the main reasons, since it gets the mood for the epic tone of the game. It feels natural in the game, and alone it is quite interesting and catchy.

"Dire Dire Docks" and "Book in a Bottle" from "Super Mario 64" and "Super Mario Sunshine":
-Both songs are from water levels, and I think both get the mood right for theme, and are songs that are very soothing to listen to out of context, and are quite addictive.

Now, I warn you: I'm going to list now a lot of songs from one franchise, so get ready for fanboy outcry:

"Theme of Laura" from "Silent Hill 2":
-This game got everything right, specialy when it came to story and music. The main theme of the game is one I have gotten absolutely addictive to once. It is just so beautiful and, actually, quite interesting, and, while it doesn't quite gets the mood for the game, it still fits perfectly and is speacially good to listen to out of context.

"You're not Here" from "Silent Hill 3":
-This was the top song from my previous list, and I still love it. Unlike the previous song, this one get the mood for the game quite well, as the lyrics express the main character. Besides it, its melody is simple amazing, and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn voice is, once again, amazing.

"Room of Angel" form "Silent Hill 4":
-Out of all the songs in this list, this one probably fits mostly the game, since it talks direcly about the main villain of the game. It is quite haunting as well, fitting the game a lot, and McGlynn's voice just contributes to the hauting atmosphere it gives.

"Tender Sugar" from "Silent Hill 4":
-This, along with the next game in the list, is one of the songs I listen to the most. Not only its lyrics are genious, but the melody is absolutely contageous and the voice is also simple incredile. Not a lot to say but "damn". This is another song you have to listen to understand why I think it is so great.

"Your Rain" from "Silent Hill 4":
-This is the song I listen to the most out of the ones in this list. While the song in the game has a brief apearance in the ending, it is the best to listen out of context. It lyrics are beautiful and meaningful, its melody is addictive and the voicework from McGlynn is once again perfect. All around an absolutely mesmerizing song. (I said, I'm a SH fanboy)

"Hell Frozen Rain" from "Silent Hill: Shattered Memories":
-I'm not sure if I got this song on the game, but it also is incredibly fun to listen to. Despite being quite lengthy, the minutes go out quite fast, and its elements come out very well together.

WOW, that took some time! Well, so this are some of my favourite songs in games (I could still list a few other), and I hope you enjoy them as well, and feel free to share some of yours.

This week was the much awaited E3. Every year, developers show their new stuff there, and we were expected to get some really hot stuff this year. How was it? Well, let's recap a bit.

NINTENDO: Obviously the "Wii 2" was highly expected to be announced, and so it did. ...
The Wii U, as it is called, will have a very different controler, that even has a touch screen in it. It is huge, but seems to be pretty useful. Now, my thoughts on that: stupid.

Honestly, I don't know what Nintendo is thinking with this. Innovation is good, but when the controler is the main attraction of the system rather than the console itelf, you know something is not right. Oh that is right, they did that with the Wii! At the same time that it is the most succesful console of this generation, it didn't get a lot of third party support, since it was much weaker than the PS3 and the 360. The Big N seem to want to mix the uniqueness of the Wii, with the power of the PS3, and they themselves stated that the console will be more hardcore. I feel like the Wii U will be cumbersome, since the controler is so huge and different, and not really practical.

But, in all honesty, Nintendo always surprises us. A lot of people though bad of the DS when it was annouced, but people loved it. A friend of mine thinks it will be a mix of the 3DS and the Wii, but I'm skeptical.

SONY: Like Nintendo, Sony also had a console to annouce, the NGP, which was renamed PS Vita.

My thoughts on that? Awesome. It honestly surprised me a lot. I had already seen images of the console, and it really was a neat piece of hardware.

I do have a PSP, but we have to be honest and say that Sony didn't give it enough love. It was a very powerfull console, but lacked the innovation of the DS. The Vita will have a touch screen, acelerometer, and a text sensitive area in the back. It doesn't feel like that much innovation, but it just feels neat, and seems to work very well. Besides that, the support of games was very strong. Titles like ModNation Racers seemed awesome on it, as was LittleBigPlanet, and we can't forget the plethora of games already annouced for it, like Uncharted and Killzone. Besides that, the price was the same as the 3DS for one version, and a bit more expensive for another. It may seem a lot, but that thing looks so powerful, that I honestly don't think will be that big of an issue.

I hope the Vita becomes succesful, but only time can tell, like if the Wii U will be awesome or not.

Well, that is what I think of E3 this year, in terms of hardware. Just quickly, in terms of game, the ones that surprised me the most are all 3DS titles, like Luigi's Mansion 2. It just makes me more anxious to get one.

Okay, so with no more delays, in this blog, I will talk about the stuff you can do in between the main storyline, like side quests and most of the exploration. Let's get started.

Now, I myself prefer my RPG to be more direct. I enjoy RPGs for the story and battle system, so it is something that the SMT series wins for me, since the majority of the time you are either in battle or seeing a cutscene. When it comes to dungeon design and whatnot, they are clever, but quite often feel a bit too similar, in that the dungeons don't have a lot of differences, and are at times quite bland. Besides that, the path is mostly linear, though exploration is important, and rewarding.

But when it comes to side quest and stuff, Final Fantasy wins by a lot. In FF games, there are always something else you can do besides the main story, like blitzball in FFX. It created a nice diversion of the main storyline, and make the game seem a bit more light handed. This is something either one considers a big plus, or something that doesn't matter a lot. For me, it is the latter, but it is something to be respected about the series, which is its variety is content. The Persona games do have the Social Links to do in between the main stuff, but they are the only ones. The games that do the most in terms of making you do the main story are specially Devil Survivor and Digital Devil Saga.

However, another important thing to be mentioned is alos replay value, and it is something Final Fantasy loses. By that I mean is that there is almost no incentive to go back and play the games again unless you just really loved the gameplay or storyline, since they only have one ending. The only Fantasy to have more than one is X2. All others have only one. There are new dungeons you unlock, and even sometimes characters you can use in another run, but the replay value is kind of lacking. In SMT games, they always have a bunch of ending, like SMT 3: Nocturne, which has more than 5. That encourages multiple playthoughs. And besides that, you can always play the game with a different team setting, or with your main character being differently set up, so there is incentive to go back and play them again.

In the end, this is a tie. Final Fantasy has more stuff to do in between the main story, with strong explorations and minigames and whatnot to distract you from the main storyline. Shin Megami Tensei encourgaes multiple playthoughs due to multiple endings and stuff like it. It is another matter of what you like more.

To end this comparisson, I will say again: I think Shin Megami Tensei games have better storylines, gameplay and just more fun to play. But I can understand why someone would prefer the more epic feel of a Final Fantasy game. If you disagree with my coments, leave me a message. See you sometime else.

I have been really busy with stuff in school and family, but I will probably post the third part of my reasons for prefering Shin Megami Tensei over Final Fantasy tomorrow (May 31). I'm sorry, but I just been having a lot of stuff, mostly boring :P.

In the mean time, if you haven't read the other parts, they are here:

http://www.gamespot.com/users/bomberfan14/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=m-100-25928485&tag=all-about%3Bblog1part 2

http://www.gamespot.com/users/bomberfan14/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=m-100-25928305&tag=all-about%3Bblog2part 1

Also, as an update, I will tell something about the roster of the best characters I was doing. I do not feel compeled anymore to continue it. Why? I really don't know, but it is the truth, so don't expect anything of the sorts anymore. I may continue it if I have enougth time and I feel like, but that won't be until a very long time. So, sorry for disapointing :(.

Well, that was it.

Now, just because I feel like, I'm going to tell how good my day at school was. First of, I got an 8.8 in a physics test, which I normaly suck worse out of all my friends; now I was the second best :D.

Besides that, I had some troubles in a geography presentation, but in the end, my teacher said I did a really good job.

For last, the dude that runs religious stuff in my school for high school (my school is Jesuit) had a retread with the people who are doing the confirmation, but felt bad for not inviting some of the people who aren't doing it and wanted, like myself. In return, he gave me a ring that symbolizes a union with god and promised a place in the one next year.

Well, the other cla$ses were normal, but nothing bad.

And besides that, my mom gave me a pair of slippers, that are very comfy and warm, since we are entering winter next month.

So yeah, had a pretty damn good day today. Se ya tomorrow!

As I said, yesterday, I think the SMT series has a better story than the FF series.This blog post is dedicated to comparing the battles systems of the series.I will already say it already, but I do think the SMT series is better in this category too, and I will tell why.

For the sake of telling, I will first show what games of each series I have played:

SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI: Persona 3,Persona 4,Digital Devil Saga 1, Devil Survivor. Have not finished Persona 1 and SMT 3: Nocturne.

FINAL FANTASY: FFIV. Have not finished I, VII, X, X2 and Crystal Chronicles (GC).

One could argue: you have played much more SMT,so how can you tell which is better?I can because I have been exposed to the series since I was a kid, and have done a lot of research about all the games, so I can tell a bit about each of their battle systems, stories and such. Not only read, but I also discussed the series with friends and seen a bit of everything. So I do belive I have enougth knowledge of the series for a comparisson. One could say it isn`t the same reading and playing, but I do have good sense enougth not to come here much biassed.

But I digress. Getting back on topic,the battle system is a hard topic when it comes to FF, since the games shift between turn based and active time systems,but I`m here to judge how fun they are. This is one other thing I like in SMT, and that is how the games are similar one another. Between the Persona games and the main series there are notable diferences, but you can tell they are relatives.

One also could say that this gives the Final Fantasy games more variety,since each game is diferent from the last.And this is one thing I cant discuss with, since people like this variety,and to be fair, none of them really turn out wrong. The active time of IV is superb, as is the turn based of X. They also are simple and complex at the same time, though at times a bit too gimicky, like the licence system of XII, which is just stupid. In the end, this normaly is the strongest point of the series.

The SMT series fouses on a very cool concept, which is having demons as part of your party, or you summoning them. I love this idea, though I`m a sucker for demons and the oculism (I found it to be really interesting). This give the games a much bigger sense of personal touch to the games, since the parties are more opened to be made, and you can play the games again with a totaly different party than the last time. The FF series also has a great amount of customiability on the characters,since you can even choose what stats to level up in certain games. It ultimately comes to which one you like better.

When it comes to the battles themselves, it also is a matter of preference, since the both have strong points: Final Fantasy consantly shift the battles, so you normaly are surprised, and SMT is constanly very good,but with fewer variations in the games. The battles on the active time FF are very fast paced, and you really have to think fast some times,while the turn based ones are much slower paced, but allow for more strategic playing. The one thing the SMT games really win is the amount of moves the characters use. FF mostly has fire, water, thunder and ice, with some aditional ones,besides character specific abilities and summons. SMT has fire, ice, thunder, wind, dark, light, earth, and much more, and constanly specific to the games, there are specific abilities.

Also, the battles are more streamlined; what I mean is that you go in battle, defeat the enemeis and done. In some FF,like VIII, you have to do some stupid stuff like draw magic to proceed.

The demon stuff also give the gave more strategic elements, since you have fuse stronger ones with better skills, though one could say that staying with one character and making them stronger is better.

In the end, it is simply a matter of preference, since both games a very strong. Final Fantasy games often swich the battle system, with mostly great results,but at times add unecessary things. Shin Megami Tensei games have always similar structures, but are always great. I do prefer the demon structure of the SMT games, and how it works out,but I can understand why one would prefer FF's.

In the next post, I will compare the side quests and stuff to do in between the main story.

I have had been a fan of RPGs for a long time, but my big love for them came when I played a little game called Persona 3 for the PS2. I just loved it. The story, the music, the combat system; it is close to perfection. It sequel, Persona 4, is even better, addressing some issues of its predecessor and having an even better story and music.

Those two games are of the Shin Megami Tensei series, which translates to True Goddess Rebirth from japanese. The series was popular in Japan in the NES and SNES days, but never made its way out seas. It was with Revelations: Persona that the worldwide audience gave attention to the series, and well deserved. Most other games in the series followed it, and normaly with critical acclaim. Other games in the series to be released worldwide include Devil Survivor for the DS and the Devil Summoner games for the PS2.

Now, this blog will be dedicated to this franchise, and comparing it to the most popular RPG franchise worldwide (besides Pokemon), Final Fantasy, and why I think the former is better than the second.

Now, what is the most important thing about an RPG? Some would say story, and others would say the battle system. Those two things are very important, but what you do in between is also very important. So I will compare them mostly in these categories.

In terms of story, it is quite easy to say which has the best. And that is Shin Megami Tensei. By a lot. Now don't get me wrong, Final Fantasy games often have good stories, but don't play dumb and say they don't usually fall in the "good guy beats bad guy and saves the world". Take for example Final Fantasy IV. The game begings with Cecil trying to find his identity, but soon becomes a task to save the world and with some sci-fy stuff, and a dumb plot twist at the end. Still is a good story, but the games seem to trick you into what the main purpose of the story is. The first Fantasy was straight up save the world, so it has an excuse, but the other games feel a bit generic at the end. It also doesn't help that they all have only one ending, providing no new experiences.

On the other had, the games of SMT not only go into more phylosofical details about the characters, but develop them so much that you care about them. Take the story of Persona 3. From the begining of the game you are basicaly told that you have to save the world, but the game explores the motivations for the character, as well as making you care about them. When finishing P3 or P4, I honestly missed the character, since you become involved with the story. After finishing FFIV, I was happy about the characters, but really didn't care about them, and what happen to them next.

One explanation for than could be that the SMT games are mostly M rated, enabling them to explore more mature (dãã) and complex stuff, specially emotional. They tackled suicide, world rebirth, drugs, ADOLF FU***** HITTLER!, and much more. Being T rater, Final Fantasy limits it, and do go into such taboo stuff, and in the end make the plot not as entertaining. As one of my more favourite Youtubers said about the story of Final Fantasy XIII "it is a basic FF plot", so I'm not the only one who shares this perspective.

Well that went on way to long, so next time I will talk about the battle system. I may upload it today, or tomorrow evening, since I will hang out with some friends, so bye.

With the filming of the second movie of the franchise taking place right now, I want to know: what do you guys think about the Silent Hill movie? I though it was great, since I played all the games in the series but Homecoming, and could understand the story as a whole. Also, I will present a scene of the movie in a work for school, about Ocultism/Satanism. It will be awesome :D

Also, about a week ago, it was anounced that Persona 4, the best RPG ever made, will recive an anime adaptation! How awesome is that? Well, just thought I should let anyone who hasn't heard of that yet. It hasn't been anounced when it will be released, but probably soon. Of course it is in Japan, but we can always count of fansubs!

Also also, happy easter! Eat a lot of chocolate!

After Higurashi, 07th Expansion decided to take the sorrow and desperation to new characters, in a new location. The chosen one was an island knownRokkenjima, and so a new nightmake begun.

Umineko no Naku Koro ni (When the Seagulls Cry) can be considered the spiritual succesor to Higurashi, as it has some cameos and references to characters of the first series, besides similar themes, but everything else is different.

This series features the main characters as the Ushiromiya family: Rudolf, Kyrie and their sons Battler and Ange; Rosa and her daugther Maria; Krauss, Natsuhi and their daugther Jessica; Eva, Hideyoshi and their son George and the head of the family Kinzo. The Ushiromiya family is very wealthy, and since Kinzo is dying, he has to chose which son will become the heir. This is one of the main themes of the series, and one that persists in all the series. Besides them, there are the servants of the family: Shannon, Kanon, Genji, Gohda andKumasawa. All these characters have a unique backstory and, as you might guess, they all have a depressing backstory. But besides that, the family members are all introduced as jerks, and it hurts a lot the series for them to be so unlikeable, but they grow on to be nice characters.

These are the main protagonist, specially Battler, but the series has a bigger focus on its villain, Beatrice. She is a witch, who gave Kinzo his wealth a long time ago and, since he hasn't repayed her, she went back to get what is hers. This is the main thing of Umineko: Beatrice kills the family, but to become the Endless and Golden which, and all powerful, she has to have all family members to acknokledge her. All but Battler do, and the arc of the anime focus on her trying to make him belive. To do so, she keeps reviving the family members, and her and Battler watch it from a meta-universe, with her trying to make him belive, and him trying to prove all the murderes by a human method.

The premise is unique and highly interesting, and the best moments of the anime are when Battler is trying to rebuke Beatrice, often failing, in a very Ace Attorney-esque like. However, Uminko has a much more flawed structure. The big problem is that the series dosen't explain nearly as much as Higurashi, and the 26 chapters just end, barely explaining anything. Also, there are so many plot twists that are hard to keep up, and since every time she revives them (she calls it "games") the past, present and future are changed, there is a lot to keep up, and the anime often fails to explain stuff.

The series is like this: starts of greatly, then becomes better in the second game, falls in the begining of the third, reaches a high point in the midle of this one, as well as a low in its end, becomes stale in the fourth and another high point in the end. Even though, the series really dosen't explain the end, which is just really annoying.

Besides Beatrice, other witches are introduces: Bernkastel (which the name will ring very familiar for Higurashi fans), an all powerfull witch, the most powerfull of the world; Lambdadelta, her rival; other Beatrices, since this name is a title and some of her servants. They all have a lot of personality, and is a lot of fun when they are on screen.

One thing to note is that the series is just as gruesome and sad as Higurashi, and often show some really horrible deaths or just very disgusting scenes, and unfortunately, it often is with little reason. A friend of mine calls this a "psycopathic" anime, and it really is true.

The music is something to take note, as it is much better than Higurashi's. The opening theme is amazing, and the music that plays in the episodes is normaly clas*ic, with organs and other instrumants playing, and it sound incredible.

FINAL NOTE:
Umineko no Naku Koro ni is often as inteligent, intereting and sad as Higurashi; but is often much poorly explained and confusing. Also the level of violence is very intense. Definitely worth watching if you liked Higurashi, but one must proced with caution.

FINAL GRADE: B

The good:
-Incredible music
-Great cast of characters and they do become likeable throughout the series
-Story is interesting and inteligent
-Beatrice and the other witches are specialy great characters

The bad:
-A lot is not explained
-Sorrow of the characters and violence is even bigger