I originally intended to write this earlier, say, just after the beta ended. No matter, it's an important matter for the gaming community. With a Beta Tester medal, (or was it badge?) and a flaming Hammerburst as my witnesses, so I begin.

Honestly, I didn't like it. I didn't like the Gears of War 3 Beta, and I'm sure I won't like the retail version.

And before the sea of flames and napalm comes falling from the skies, I shall proceed to tell why.

When you make another iteration of a game, you expect things to improve, because developers have seen their mistakes, studied them, and corrected them, and add new, exciting new content. Take Patapon for example, in Patapon 2, your little Patapons weren't lost forever when eaten by a monster, so all that time upgrading wasn't wasted, and new classes like Magipons were amusing and useful.

But, I feel GOW 3 is just a copypasta of the previous game. You see, the concept of Gears of War is fantastic, like guerrilla/urban warfare. You take cover, flank enemies, blast them out of cover. On practice though, all that is nonsense. In fact, what people kept doing in the Beta, was pull their shotguns, roll in proximity, and blast everyone out, which is exactly what people do in GOW 2. And I'm sorry, but before you go all lrn2play on me, if everyone is going to do that, and call that playing properly, what in blazes are you playing? If you're going to just rush in, rolling so you can't get hurt, shouldn't you be playing a proper FPS? Minus the rolling part, of course. Why bother using grenades, making executions for every single weapon and new game modes, if in the end it's just shotgun duels?

And camping. Some people won't do anything but rush in for the power weapon. Yes, they're power weapons, they're supposed to be overpowered to a point. But it's the same thing with shotguns, that's the only "strategy" some people will use. And when you couple the Oneshot with a one-way hall, you got a recipe for camping. The only weapon I did enjoy was the Digger Launcher. That one did give you an edge in battle, without the insane splash damage of the Hammer of Dawn.

And between shotguns and campers, I'd rather go back to playing Bad Company 2.

Honestly, if y'all liked it, good for you. I'm sitting this one out, as I wait for Battlefield 3.

--From Zim's olde desktop.

To be honest, I was going to write this post in Spanish, given that this one is a matter not concerning the US, but visiting Gamespot and not speaking English is what you'd call misplaced. Besides, it's good to let other people know other things that happen around the world.

So, the topic at hand, the 3DS. Honestly, I was quite excited when it was announced. Right now I'm not very sure. You see, I've always had Nintendo consoles as far as I remember, all the way back to SNES, except for Virtual Boy, but needless to say, we all know how that ended.

Anyway the thing is, I'm not sure how will the 3DS will fare, especially here, as the song would say, south of the border. For one thing, price tag. Yeah, I know the "usual" retail price is US $250, yet somehow here it's around $6,000. To put things in perspective, for that money you can buy a PS3. My Xbox cost around $6,200 local currency, which included the S model, Forza Motorsport 3, Alan Wake available for download, a 250 GB hard drive and Battlefield: Bad Company 2. So right now a 3DS is insanely overpriced.

Also, yeah, it's 3D, and yet I can't get off the feeling that it's just a gimmick. Apparently the only thing that does is give you a headache and drain battery faster. Yeah, I know other portable consoles last about that or less. Heck, my PSP lasts about 3 hours, but as a friend pointed, Nintendo portable consoles historically have always excelled in that particular matter.

Also the games. There are good titles coming like Resident Evil, both of them, Street Fighter IV, Paper Mario and Metal Gear Solid 3. But that right there is my problem, most of them are labeled "coming soon". Launch titles don't seem like much to be honest.

As a long Nintendo follower, I'd like to see the 3DS become a great success, then again I am no fanboy, and to be honest I'm not sure this is a great idea.

So, you, my probably non-existing readers, what do you think?

You know? Today I pretty much became a blacksmith apprentice. I successfully made a chisel out of raw steel, and you have no idea how proud that makes me feel. Aside from tools and equipment, I had virtually no help (or advice, to be precise), and still managed to create a functional, albeit rugged piece of equipment. Ultimately, I'm trying to create a sword, and perhaps a dagger, knife or short sword of some sort in between. If I manage to, I'll make sure to post the results to my fair, albeit non-existing readers as of this post writing.

True story, btw.

Ah well, all of that because I kept thinking on a style of making these 'ere blog posts, and I kinda liked how I started Red Steel 2, so hopefully, you'll see some random lulz or true story every time I make reviews.

But, as the keen observer might suspect, this one is really short, for reasons I'll explain.

So, the game in question: Naruto Ultimate Ninja Heroes.

Overall verdict: It fails. Of course, the correct term is different, but let's try to keep it family-friendly. Why? I do not know, but I don't feel like swearing right now, and the game doesn't bother me enough to do so. At least not now.

Anyway let's try to do this by the book.

Overall thoughts: Meh, aimed at fans. Yeah I know, it's obvious, and yet, couldn't they just, I don't know, maybe, try? Overall game depth is quite shallow, just punch some dudes, power up, and punch 'em again. While the formula is familiar to fighting game fans, to me it's just a jack of all trades, master of none. Let me try to explain.

Gameplay:

If what you're looking for is a fighting game, there's quite a share out there, and many fo the best, and I'm sure I need not mention series. Anyway, here the roster, or at least on a new game is quite limited, and that alone can make a fighting game fail.

Of course, games like the original Smash Bros. can pull it off because the characters are quite different from each other, making every bit of the roster worthwhile. Here, every character is quite the same with identical move lists that pretty much mash the eff out of the O button. No strategy besides mashing said button or throw sharp things. And I always wondered how in blazes they manage to give Sakura (or Hinata, for that matter) jutsus [Or techniques, for those who don't follow the series] as they didn't show any, at least not until Shippuden [Or later in the series, again for those of you who couldn't care less]. Granted, Hinata SHOULD know jutsu, given that she is from a preeminent ninja family, but Sakura shows absolutely nothing until Clash in the Land of the Snow [A movie]. Besides "Inner Sakura" is a sad excuse of a jutsu compared to 8 Trigrams and the like, let alone Chidori or Rasengan [All personal techniques, the last two are supposed to be the badass main character techniques].

What about "certain" RPG elements? Well, there's a level up system, and that´s pretty much it. No story whatsoever. As I said, aimed at fans. As I see it, people can and will steer clear from it, as how do you fight with a character that you know nothing about? And even worse, they don't take time to at least tell about them. Honestly, a friend chose not to play Dissidia just because of this small detail, so I know it happens. Was it so hard to make little stories for everyone? Of course it is, because you'd have hordes of fans raging and arguing about if that should be considered canonical.

So, lack of depth, no story, Fans only. Yep, that's pretty much it.

Wait, so this formula of fighting game combined with RPG elements was doomed to fail? So no one can do it correctly? And for the PSP? Such questions fill my mind...

Oh right. Effin' Dissidia: Final Fantasy.

Right, the other scores and we can put this to rest.

Sound:

Ewww. American dubbing.

Visuals:

Ok, I guess? Not ground breaking but not hideous either. Cel-shaded style. As to give it more of anime feeling, I suppose. Well, the stages are nice actually, especially since you can interact with the background and fight there. Colorful replicas of famous landmarks. Of course, if you don't follow the series, you won't care anyways.

Last, but not least, Replay Value:

You COULD spend several hours leveling every character until the CPU poses no threat to your skill, but fighting games become dull quickly unless you manage to find someone to play with. Chances are, if you bought this as a Naruto fan, your friends don't have a PSP to begin with, as they spend their money in other interests. Likewise, as an average guy, your friends are likely to keep their distance knowing you own the game, so you're on your own playing either way.

---

On a last note, it wasn't as short as I expected to be, sound did cut some corners, but the game overall gave me a lot to nag about. Some final notes to finish.

-I only played for about 10 minutes. 15 tops. That's as much as I could handle.

-I did watch the series, and I'm roughly aware of the story so far. In case you want to complain about that.

--From Zim's Olde Desktop

I wrote this intro in a bit of a downtime, so if you feel to skip it, I'll post a video for you. Mind you, this time we're going deep into complex matters, as metaphysics come into play. For those readers who know little of philosophy, metaphysics speaks about things like who am I, what is the universe, nature and so on. If you're not interested in such topics to begin with, I'm not sure what are you doing still reading this post. Here's a quick link to You Tube, and something of my personal selection to boot:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFXNuzuOc2M

Anyway, I was saying downtime because, currently, I don't have a girlfriend. Yeah, I know. How can a good-looking, nice guy like me possibly not have a girlfriend? Well, it happens. More than you imagine, to be precise. Of course, I'm not just speaking about myself either.

Anyway, I was with my comrades in a bar, speaking nonsense, weirdly, with just one beer each. For one thing, none of us has a girlfriend, and they're quite rare in our school. I don't know what do Engineering careers have that scare women away, but we could use some pretty ones.

Ahem...

And then I thought about so many things, and among them, the fact that we're all people of faith deep inside, although I'll probably cover that in another post. Then, when I lifted a small prayer to, well, wherever they go, I thought: "It's nice to think your prayers are worth something".

Well, actually, I just remember that from playing Bayonetta, but still...

That, then, brings me to the point of the topic; thoughts. Are prayers actually worth something? Where do ideas go? Do they simply remain in your brain?

From this point, I should probably warn that this, while makes reference to science and scientific experiments, I myself a not claiming anything as true, hence the category of "Opinion".

So, as I'm getting lazy, shall post some quotes from a friend, which I believe he quoted from somewhere else. This is mostly meant to stir thoughts in whomever reads this blog, if any.

---

Our ideas are not ideas about reality – they are a part of reality. We are not separate from reality looking at it, we are part of it. We are part of this universe and our ideas are part of this universe. In effect they are not truly our ideas, they are the universe's ideas and we just happen to be the thinking organ of the universe.

---

So, what do you think? Next, was my answer:

---

Anyway, I once heard about an experiment where people could influence a completely random event, like flipping a coin, to tend to a certain result just with their thoughts. Statistically, flipping a coin an infinite number of times, should give and equal number of heads and tails, given a chance for those two events to happen is 50-50. However, in the experiment, people could make those events turn in favor of a certain result after a great number of "coin flips".

So, if thoughts can influence in random events, there is a possibility thoughts actually "echo" throughout space, universe or at least our surroundings. At least in my opinion.

---

Thus returning to the topic at hand, how far can a thought go? Can simple thoughts influence people? My friend gave some insight on this matter:

---

While light travels at the rate of 186,000 miles per second, thoughts virtually travel in no time. Thought is finer than ether, the medium of electricity. In broadcasting, a singer sings beautiful songs at Calcutta. You can hear them nicely through the radio set in your own house at Delhi. All messages are received through the wireless.

"Even so your mind is like a wireless machine. A saint with peace, poise, harmony and spiritual waves sends out into the world thoughts of harmony and peace. They travel with lightning speed in all directions and enter the minds of persons and produce in them also similar thoughts of harmony and peace. Whereas a worldly man whose mind is full of jealousy, revenge and hatred sends out discordant thoughts which enter the minds of thousands and stir in them similar thoughts of hatred and discord."

With this I mean that in the way that your thoughts can portray an ambiance that in inherent to you, they also can and will modify the Universe at your will in a very microcosmic way. There's a little bit of scientific truth to that saying, "If you wish it hard enough, it'll come true." You can't control the Universe macroscopically or immediately, but your thoughts do affect your surroundings in a very subtle, almost imperceptible way - yet relevant enough to make some results change.

---

Err... disregard the geography of the text, he quoted that from somewhere else.

Then someone asked, what place does imagination take in all of this?

---

To make you aware of what's possible within this realm and what is not. The only way you know it's impractical is to try and make the things you imagine work or attempt to create them. Otherwise, without experience, you just keep wondering and wondering.

Because you are nature and nature is you. You're part of it and not independent from it. You're not exterior to it, the same way it's not exterior to you; you came from it and you will go back to it.

Imagination is there so that you have the slightest perception of how immense the Universe you're a part of is. You'll never fully understand it, but you can definitely comprehend it so that you become synchronized with it. Once you've realized there is absolutely no difference between what you are and what the Universe is, you'll understand the significance of everything that composes you.

---

I gave my opinion on imagination as well:

---

Anyway, let me address both XG and Kip. First, how does imagination work here? As I conceive it, it works as a force of creation or change. Picture the Big Bang. If one thinks of galaxies as "newtonian" bodies bound by gravity, the galaxies as a whole should be moving away from each other as the universe continues to expand endlessly, as there is no external force that keeps them from expanding. Bur some galaxies behave quite different as predicted by Newton or Kepler, as for example, galaxies that slow down. Those "erratic" behaviors are often associated to dark matter. What is it? No one knows for sure, but maybe one day it will cause the universe to collapse in itself, causing a new Big Bang, and thus, resetting the universe.

Perhaps imagination works in a similar way, as a chaotic force necessary for the old to be destroyed and give birth to new things, to make things change.

---

Quite interesting, is it not? However, we don't have any means as to prove this "bold" claims. Once can still think of thoughts as electric pulses racing through the brain, and yet, for those who know a little science, there's the fact that flowing electricity creates magnetic fields. Could this transmit thoughts, like the song, across the universe? Of course, I know the electric currents in the brain are quite weak, and weak currents make weak magnetic fields, so that can be pushing it a bit too far. Nonetheless, you can't help but wonder...

It's nice to think your prayers are worth something, don't you think?

A special thank-you to my good friend Kip, and XGamer for his contribution, as small as it may be. You guys make nice philosophy buddies.

Ha, a nice second Ender topic.

-From Zim's Olde Desktop.

As my probably non-existing readers know, I do not actually submit proper reviews for Gamespot. Partly because I find it hard to adhere to specific formats, partly because I'm too lazy to figure it out, and partly because I chicken out. Also I must admit I agree with completely biased reviews, but you must always find many different reviewers as possible to have a better grasp of the game in question. As an example of this there's Zero Punctuation, which usually trashes games without remorse, and I'm ok with this because the flaws usually one overlooks are brought to front page, giving as I said, a better grasp of the game overall. On a side note, I must say I enjoyed his review on Battlefield: Bad Company 2 even though I'm a fan of the game. And so, let us begin this review, shall we?

Anyways, with the recent holidays I've spent an unhealthy amount of play time since school takes most of my time and sometimes my sleep. I couldn't let the opportunity to play online games late at night, and late at night is the perfect setting for this game.

This time I came across a free download card, containing the Alan Wake game, and at first, I didn't put much attention to it. Finally getting my hands of Bad Company 2, I overlooked the game initially, and even more when I could "git mah paws" on Bayonetta too. But as once I heard in a marketing conference, strange things happen late at night when you're half asleep and sometimes half steeped in liquor. As I was contemplating the free download card, I said to myself, why not? And so, it began the torturing wait, as my internetz, while it's considered broadband, it's probably barely enough to archive such title.

So I found myself late the next night with a downloaded game. Oh jolly.

I only heard rumors of the game, which described it in the horror genre. I'll begin by stating it isn't by far a horror game. Silent Hill is a horror game. To put it simply, Alan Wake is a weak Latte, while Silent Hill is a full Espresso. This doesn't mean, however, the game is a complete failure, or even you'll be bored by a number of jump scares. It's good at setting an unsettling atmosphere, and added with a nice touch of dementia. I think it's best to put this game as playing a book. If you're a fan of Dan Brown, you'd probably feel like playing one of his books, with plenty of mysteries, hidden pasts and numerous cliffhangers.

A bit of the story to put things in perspective, be aware of...

*SPOILER ALERT*

...so we can go on our merry way. Don't say I didn't warn you. Even though I'll try to keep it on a minimum.

The main character is, as the title suggests, Alan Wake, a successful writer who decides to spend a vacation with his wife, mostly because he has a two-year writer's block on a small town called Bright Falls. Here, the young couple rents a cabin, which turns out to be in the middle of a lake. After a small argument with his wife about his writer's block, he leaves the cabin, just to hear his wife screaming from inside. He rushes to help her, only to find a handrail broken, and a gap leading directly into the dark lake. He promptly follows a hint of her wife into the water, and after a horrible nightmare, he finds himself in a car accident, knowing nothing of his whereabouts or those of his wife, who presumably was in a cabin that doesn't exist in the first place.

From there on, he finds himself not only struggling against dark creatures who roam at night, but also his own sanity. In his mind all of this seems too real, but him being a skeptic, it's just too crazy to believe in.

He comes across the manuscript of a book that was never written, which also claims that the very same Alan Wake is it's author. The manuscript seems to have future predicting qualities, as everything written on it becomes real. This prompts a number of characters, including some shady ones, to try to get their hands on such manuscript. So it all becomes a frantic race to escape the black nightmares, recover this mysterious manuscript to search for answers, follow the clues to a possibly dead wife and avoid both the authorities and a room with white padded walls, including a white jacket with very long sleeves as an added gift.

*END SPOILER ALERT* Possibly. Probably. I don't want to write more alerts.

Anyway, where does it succeed and where does it fail? Let us find out.

Gameplay:

Let me get something straight. Our main character, Mr. Wake, is a writer. Yes, it's obvious, and yet, it's important to understand how to play the game. He isn't (by far) a demon, sorcerer, bionic soldier, enhanced human being, regular soldier, special operative, S.T.A.R.S member, space marine, member of SOLDIER, chosen one, robotically reconstructed police officer, occult expert, war veteran, jedi, regular police officer who got a job with the president, Ex-Marine SEAL, mercenary, escaped convict, god emissary, Chuck Norris, Mega Man, Frank West, Super Mecha Death Christ, Captain Falcon, or any job slightly related to a physical activity. He is a writer, so he doesn't run marathonic distances without tiring, jump atop buildings, or exterminate 30 foes in 5 seconds with flair.

Once that is out of the way, let us go on. Fighting foes isn't a big deal, since you're usually given a revolver. Once you get the hang of it, you can mow down through enemies at a comfortable pace. Crowd control can be a nuisance though, even when you're equipped with a shotgun.

There are rarely ammo issues in this game, as you're constantly supplied with useful items such as various types of bullets, your other "ammo", and the occasional multi-man melee supplies. Even those with little perception of the environment will find easily supply boxes conveniently labeled "Emergency", but for those who search their surroundings carefully, some neat prizes await, especially Da Big Gunz. You might be surprised about this superior firepower, but considering the context of the game, it makes an awful lot of sense.

Other than that, the game's pretty linear, with a very defined path. Some secret caches now and then, but still linear. The game's divided in a few, but beefy chapters, and they're actually told like a T.V. show. Speaking of T.V.'s there's a Twilight Zone parody called Night Springs, so be sure to check tellys you find along the way.

Sound:

While not a very memorable soundtrack, at least gameplay wise, it serves it's purpose. It can give a sense of emptiness or that of approaching darkness. The voiceovers are pretty good too. Alan Wake himself usually tells the story at certain points and some enemies actually possess speech, which is unsettling too, reminding us that your enemies were once human. However, I found "Children of the Elder God" and "The Poet and the Muse" to be quite memorable.

Hmm? Whadya know? It wasn't the last one:

*MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT*

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwaeOH04GQE

Second song mentioned. I believe there are a couple of slight mistake with the lyrics, however, I find it enjoyable. Maybe you´ll find so too, if you've already played that part, or disregard the *MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT*.

*END MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT*

Visuals:

It plays fine, but does it look fine? Yes, it does. On with it.

Heh...

The visuals help create the atmosphere. Daylight gives a sense of warmth, of safety, and hope, whilst nighttime is an ever present danger, eyes lurking near and far. This contrast helps the narrative go smoothly, as the transitions between day and night keep you prepped for action. Nighttime visuals are fun to look at, especially when you know you're watched, as the screen blurs, giving an extra feeling of nightmare. But, find a shining lamp for refuge, and suddenly all nightmares banish into the light. At least, until you venture into the shadows again.

Last but not least, Replay Value:

You know? I tend to be a bit picky in this subject. For me, good games are those which have a good rating on the aforementioned departments, however, awesome games also score good in this one. Remember Contra? Or Super Mario 64? I still find fun to play these games even after all these years, that's why they're awesome.

Ahem...

So how does Alan Wake score?

Passable.

Yeah, achievements are "nice", giving you some other chances of at least replaying some chapters. But honestly, most of the charm goes away on the first run, since you already know what will happen. There are two special chapters aside from the main story, but since those are DLC, I can't be bothered to check them. I suppose they give the game some extra life, but as I said, I can't be bothered to see for myself.

So there we go, another review sealed and sent for my non-existing readers to, well, read. Comments? Liked it? Hated it? Mind you, it took quite a while to write this, so I'd appreciate a bit more than tl;dr.

-From Zim's Olde Desk. The desktop herself passed away some time ago, so please, pray for her soul. And yes, the blog is still named "Zim's Olde Desktop". She will remain with us in spirit.

I've written about the wonders of modern life right? Well, one of those wonders I've had the pleasure to enjoy is online gaming. I've never been a fan fo things like World of Warcraft, where you have to be glued for days to make any progress, so I've stuck so far with arcade like things like shooters and so.

One game that has gotten my attention so far is Monster Hunter Tri. I've played other games fo the franchise so I was expecting it for a long time. I've almost dedicated this blog post to the game in particular. Almost is the key word.

In online gaming, many things are prone to happen, and that along with copious amounts of gameplay, that amount to weeks and months, even more things. I've simply felt the need to share these experiences with you, my fair readers. I'm also at liberty of telling tales from some other people here.

Online etiquette, or netiquette, as once I heard. is a matter of discussion nowadays. Pretty much in between "if you don't act like a douche in real life, why should you do so online" and a signature in GameFAQs that I found pretty hilarious: "I thought internet was like a multiplayer notepad, so nothing I say will matter".

Online gaming is no exception, I'm sure many of you have found the displeasure of kids playing Halo 3, and their motor-mouth-never-ending cussing in high pitched voices. I'm not against cursing, I mean, I do so more than I'd like to, but when a kid spews bad words like there's no tomorrow...

Alas, I digress...

The point is, as no one likes these things happening, analog situations happen in Monster Hunter Tri.

First and worst: the oh-so-ungodly questjoin.

Imagine you're playing with some dudes that aren't half-bad. They know the game, what are they facing, and the key to survival. You're doing fine until some random guy appears and then follows like this:

*RandomN00b entered the city*

*RandomN00b posts a quest* (Usually their urgent or something they want to farm)

RandomN00b: quest

*Nobody gives a damn*

RandomN00b: join

*RandomN00b left the city*

If your city is labeled "Everybody welcome", that's pretty self-explanatory. You don't (mostly) mind who enters the city. But at least have minimal manners and ask for help. Don't just post a quest and expect people to help.

But it really brings things to a boil when you're in a room labeled "Playing with friends", "Event quests ho!" or in recuiting servers. When I read "Playing with friends, I read these guys know each other, and want to play with their true and tested companions, not with any random that chances upon the room. And you'll find yourself asking them "nicely" to leave when faced with the above situation. I've heard cases where people go to the most remote server in the most remote city and people STILL find their way into "Playing with friends". Does this mean that these folks actively search for those cities?

Same thing applies for events. Event quests happen just once in a while, and some of them yield pretty good and collectible weapons and armor. So imagine someone posting another quest, like in the oh-so-ungodly questjoin.

Recruiting servers allow you to state the specific monster you wish to hunt. And now pair it with questjoin. See my point? In these situations, you get three angry hunters for the price of one. Talk about a deal. The icying of the cake is when the other guy, pissed at everyone else, just calls them noobs, or idiots.

Next, we have the "vet".

I'm sure that if my fair readers have played online, you have seen the guy who claims everyone else is a noob, and the feel free to tell them how to play the game.

It's ok to give advice every now and then. In games like Monster Hunter, it may even get the job done, as helping a fellow hunter means helping the entire hunting party. Just don't call people retarded just because they don't play the game like you do.

Third: the "leech".

I'm sure the term was made popular somewhere else, but horrible to deal anywhere. For those unfamiliar with the term, leech means someone who waits for the battle to be over, and swoop the loot they didn't win for themselves. In Monster Hunter, these guys simply wait safely in the next area, while their teammates, with enough skill, avoid getting pummeled and return when the deal is sealed.

Once I heard a story of a High-rank guy who came down from heavens to help other hunters with whatever troubles plagued them. He chanced upon a room with guys trying to do 2*Urgent quests, which is needed to further advance in the game. He pretty much tore the monster by himself, with some help of the guy who tried to do the quest in the first place. The other two guys simply observed in the distance. When the job was done, these two jerks simply moved in to get an easy loot. The high-rank guy, pissed off at this cowardice, prevented them from carving their loot. As expected, they were outraged too, and demanded an explanation. He stated that they pretty much did nothing but watch, and therefore didn't deserve rewards. After this whole mess, these guys claimed that my acquaintance's name would be smeared all over the internetz. A second guy came in, but far to their demise, he was a friend of his. Same story happened, but with an awful twist. Here you can "end via subquest" meaning you can finish with minimal reward and the job not done. Guess what happens when this guy faces two leeches.

The honorific mention goes to playing with randoms. Many times you expect people to at least be able to carry their own weight in battle. But you always have the risk of teaming with noobs, which is especially annoying between High-ranks. I still wonder how did some of them archieved such high rank, when they can't even hold their own in easy quests. So my advice in this matter is: play with friends you met beforehand.

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I still feel like writing a small note on online gaming from the three sides of the actual console war. So, enjoy.

1.- Nintendo WiFi Connection.

Currently, the system I own.

First and foremost, IT'S FREE! That means no ugly-butt Xbox live subscriptions. Which by the way, I'm still looking for the way to cancel it, making the Wii very convenient for cheapskates like me.

It tends to get kind of laggy, but only in certain games. Unfortunately, one of those games is Super Smash Bros. Brawl, which I enjoy thoroughly, and yet only locally. Boo hoo.

Other games like Mario Kart work just fine, especially playing with randoms. They seem to have an inconvenient one way or another, but games in general are enjoyable nonetheless. Also you're free to use an USB Keyboard for your communication needs.

Did I mention it's free? I did? Well, it is.

2.- Xbox Live.

Quite popular. A friend request system takes off the annoyance of the Wii's friend codes. A nice voice chat system too. I kinda dislike you have to buy a special keyboard for those needs. Overall, pretty well thought out, if you ask me. You can also download updates for games, which is good. I played the lost chapter for Gears of War 2, and I felt good to be able to play it.

Still, because it seems to be popular with kids these days, it's fairly easy to cross with a cussing kid, which is more annoying than a die-hard Twilight fan.

I must also complain about the subscriptions. If I wanted to renew my subscription, I'd say so in the first place. Thanks, Microsoft jerks, I owe my pal a month of Gold subscription.

Still, if Monster Hunter Frontier is confirmed for the US, I'd buy an Xbox in a heartbeat. Overall, I feel the general structure for Xbox Live compared to Nintendo WiFi Connection would be better. Not that the Wii is bad, just would be a tad easier to manage. Then you can renew my subscription.

3.-Playstation Network:

Actually, I've haven't had enough time to tinker with the ins and outs of PSN. And I've only played one game. BUT, so far, the one I've liked the most. I played Battlefield: Bad Company for a while, and it felt almost lagless, if any at all. I really liked how you can enter the game at any given moment, or even quit without making a fuss, and that makes it quite impressive. And I love when the Russians toss grenades. Overall, it seems to have all the good things of Xbox Live, and a bit more. The only thing I've noticed so far, is that either my friend's sound is rotten, or voice chat isn't very clear.

---

There, after a long rant, I can say I'm finished for now. So if you meet a guy named Diablo in Monster Hunter Tri, say hi. Make sure that he's Diablo, the official Russian Dog of the Clan Tantalus. If you find some of my clanmates, say hi to them too.

-From Zim's Olde Desktop

Nothing really, just a small update on this 'ere blog.

By the time of writing, the olde desktop is now older by a year! Yep, this piece of junk is now 9 years old, and in computer time, it's probably older than your dog. If you have one, of course.

Since this blog is named after my beloved piece of junk, I'd say its fair to celebrate it's (sort of) birthday. Cheers!

But! That's not all, since I finally picked my lazy arse in order to update the blog, which I believe it's been some months, I'd like to make some announcements:

First, if you're into Role-Playing, you should visit The Official Role-Playing Union, TORPU for short. There are some good folks over there. So, if you feel like RPing, want to learn more about it, or find some good friends, go check it out. I know out there, some of you are closet RPers. >_>

Of course, RP isn't all that's handled there, so I still suggest a visit.

Anyways, this should also be home to my reviews, since I can't afford to make an unbiased one. Don't get me wrong here, if there's a bad game, I'll be sure to say so, just that a strict format is too much for me. If a guide or FAQ for a game should show up, (penned by me of course) this will also be reflected here (I hope). Rantings will be posted as usual.

With nothing else to say, that's all for today's blog.

-From Zim's Olde Destop.

So today I wanted a soda, and walked into a store to look for a Dr. Pepper. Since they are rare over here, I try not to miss the chance of buying one. I had half luck today, as I found a DIET Dr. Pepper. So, I went ahead into buying it since, well, it's a Dr. Pepper.

As the time of this blog entry, I still want my money back, as I was tricked into buying something I thought was Dr. Pepper. Not did it only sucked, but it made me sad just to remember a real Dr. Pepper.

Oh well, that happened while I was returning home from buying Red Steel 2. Since Gamespot requires me to be Secundum artem about reviews, I'll use my blog to write my opinions on the game. Hence, TEH real review.

Ahem, let's get started.

Keep in mind the following contains, say, MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT. Spanish cursing was removed out of fear of mighty Gamespot mods. I'm not sure of their tolerance in private blogs, but it is wise not to test one's luck.

---

Red Steel 2, a game I was dreaming of since I bought the original Red Steel. When I first played it, I thought "Wow, this is what the Wii was made for. Then I realized it was just bad. Not horrible, but bad. The controllers were less than stellar, swordfights were rare and in moments where I could simply draw a gun, kind of that scene from Indiana Jones, the plot was for a bad movie and the aiming had epilepsy seizures.

When I knew Red Steel 2 was coming, I was really excited. To think all the problems of the previous iteration were solved. But wait, should I heed old man Grahf's words of advice? Is Ubisoft delivering another epic fail? So far, scores go to decent, so let's have a look into: Red Steel 2.

The first thing I notice, it's packaged with a Wii Motion Plus. My readers will now have to excuse my Spanish rants.

Rant.

Viene con unos 4 o 5 avisos del Wii Motion Plus. Como para decirte "****** ******, a ***** nececitas el accesorio. No sabes leer o que, ******?" Nada mas falta que alguien se queje de que no furula el juego. Viene como con 6 ******* instructivos de como usarlo. Hasta dice EXCLUSIVO PARA EL WII MOTION PLUS.

/Rant.

So, as I check the box, I notice the instruction booklet is lacking. As the AVGN once said, what happened with the grand ole booklets? They were so extensive and colorful.

Hmm...and I yet have to start the game. Bad sign.

As I access the Game Channel, the very same sound of Red Steel is pushed through the speakers. Ubisoft 0, Grahf 1.

Curious, there's actually an instructional video about the Wii Motion Plus, and since saying Wii Motion Plus is too long, let's shorten it into WM+. Excuse me while I rant in Spanish again.

Rant

Por si eres demasiado ******* para leer el ****** instructivo, el juego pone un VIDEO para conectar la ************. Nuevamente, por si estas demasiado *******. Ay Jesus, Maria y José. Si no fuera suficiente lo puedes ver una y otra vez si es que tu seso no funciona como deberia y debes verlo muchas veces.

/Rant

As the game starts, we find our main guy lying in the middle of the desert, and before we know it, some random douche pulls us around the desert into a town with a bike. Hmm... nice and colorful Cel-Shaded style.

At a certain point, we know the name of our friendly biker, Payne, and his crew hasn't had enough and continue the special treatment on our guy. By a lucky chance, the ropes that restrain him catch fire and that's enough to free the right hand and pull a revolver. Guess what happens next. And so far, this Pain guy fails to impress me.

So, the controls still feel a little stiff, but definitely an improvement over Red Steel. My first hints of combat also feel a lot better than the previous game.

Also, the first training goes way too fast. I'm even on my first mission already. At this point I'm not sure of who the guy is or what am I supposed to do.

Some other things I notice, are that either people in these places are VERY generous, or the main guy is a powerful sorcerer. That is because you're allowed to destroy barrels or boxes lying around, and these yield money. So either the townsfolk are too rich as to put money in garbage bags, or somehow the guy is able to transform destroyed stuff into its monetary value.

Also, everyone in this game seems to have that mercenary syndrome, like Resident Evil 4, as they somehow arrive at locations before you do as there is this Tamiko girl who briefs you about your objectives, a dojo master, the local sheriff and a gambler dude.

---

So, making a decent amount of walkthough, I find this game the game that the original Red Steel should have been. And yet, there's a bit of hit-and-miss about it.

+Hits:

+A real combat system. After a comment from my bro, I realized RS1 is more of a 1st person shooter, with meager swordfights. The past sword katas system was useless, as basic abilities are more than enough to finish the game.

This time around, though, you can freely choose how to engage, whether up close and personal with your sword, or push a couple of rounds into their brains. Some elements of the previous combat system were kept, such as being able to move freely around your opponent, and strong hits that can break guard.

Though, innovations put combat years ahead of its predecessor. I was able to take 8 baddies without a single scratch. Took one with a head shot, rushed to impale another one, readied my shotgun and downed the third, quickly made a special move to instantly kill one who sneaked from behind, got the next one with precise sword strikes, preformed a rising move-to-revolver a la Devil May Cry with the sixth, swiftly maneuvered to a back attack on the seventh and parried to counter the last one. All that in a few seconds.

+I did the Indiana Jones thing. A guy rushed and jumped valiantly to meet me, just to unexpectedly meet one of my bullets into his grey matter cap. If I can pull a gun in a sword fight, why not?

+Sword movement is definitely an improvement over RS1, the WM+ is definitely worth it.

+Number of firearms was reduced. Why is this a plus? Because it now balances sword with gun, that's why. And you're not limited to carry two at the same time. The magic number is now four.

-Misses:

-Quoting the esteemed Nostalgia Critic:

Ahem...

EXPLAIN GAME, EXPLAIN!!!!!!ONE111.!

Up to this point, I'm not very sure about the story or background of the game. So far, I'm stuck with a nameless hero of who's the last member of some Kusagiri or kusagari clan, who somehow banished from the face of the earth. Or apparently all killed by another clan.

-Aiming is still stiff, but just a little bit as if you swing your sword, you're momentarily left aimless.

-Game progression is still linear. While it actually works for RS1, as you have a constant goal throughout the game, its not right for RS2. It has sidequests, but they're done while you complete the main objectives. It would have been nicer if they let you roam for a bit, and take said sidequests. The reward of these is money, which is used to buy sword, gun and personal upgrades. So it makes sense to have some free time to do sidequests. This is a bit personal, but I thought this would be more of a mercenay style.

-If everything is linear, why bother traveling? There are some parts where you must go to a certain destination, and there are no enemies along the way. Box deaths surely outweight bad guy kills at the time of writing.

Weighing the good against the bad, my statement about this being the game RS1 should have been still stands. I'm sad to say I'm a bit disappointed, as I expected a complete upgrade form the previous game.

On my closing words, overall it is a good game. As I said before, it has its hits and misses, but it is a game, and as such it is fun to play. If you're into swords, guns, and cool looking characters, definitely give Red Steel 2 a chance.

Half credit to Old Man Grahf for being half right about the game. I'd go as far as calling it a game, so Ubisoft didn't deliver as it should, but still worth the time.

-From Zim's Olde Desktop.

For today's and first entry, modern life.

Today I realize I have changed my habits. For bad or good, that's for time to decide. I simply got my bum lazy brain to start working on something differently rather than my usual couch potato time. My readers have no interest in this, but I'm actually sitting on a couch while working on my desktop, so it's a good place to become a vegetable, or get a back ache. However, my recent incursions on both GameFAQs, and Gamespot have made me more of an internet social guy, when before I shunned the very idea.

So, after a while in forums, and the fact that Gamespot gave me the chance of making a blog, I find myself writing in my new creation.

Before I get into more iterations, back on topic.

All of these made me see the wonders of modern life, such as this 'ere internetz. Today we can meet people from, literally, around the world. Meet different cultures just to make a new, globalized one. We have our own language and our own accepted social practices, terms and ways.

Then again, how many of us have double lives? It is certain to me that almost nobody will be going online with their names and such. We made our own culture, but our native cultures are a different matter. People still hate each other offline when they are friends online.

So in order to put ourselves apart from the real part, we get these sorts of masks, and with these, we can become someone we like to be, even if you're 40 and living in your parents' basement.

Personally, I'm somewhere around 6 people living in the same body, all of them with their own name and personality. How about you?

Ahh, not that bad for first blog entry, but I'll try to improve in the future.

As a side note, I just saw them monsters planning to take over the world, so if you see Devilijo around, put a couple of rounds into his brain.

http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/genmessage.php?board=943655&topic=54039301

LOL