Dungeons of Time - Savage Worlds

Believe it or not, dear readers, there was a time when I was completely jaded with the hobby of tabletop roleplaying.  In 2003, Wizards of the Coast came out with Dungeons & Dragons 3.5.  Since this made the hundreds of dollars worth of 3rd Edition D&D books I bought obsolete, I got pissed and parted ways with their products (and if 4th Edition is any indication, I'm not coming back anytime soon).

The other system I played, White Wolf's World of Darkness, was improving their system.  But, in 2004, my "rpg mistress" went from being this dark, mysterious, sexy, and sophisticated piece of ass to a mopey, depressing, juvenile bitch.  They basically wrote the end of the world for each game in the system and it ended up being a poorly executed doomfest.  I promptly ignored their little pity party and kept playing with the old story they wrote before they ruined everything.  Then, White Wolf dropped a bomb: they retconned the entire World of Darkness.  Some things seemed familiar, others were interesting, but, as a whole, I was severely disappointed.

I was also tired of the same old crap.  I fooled around with other sytems over the years: Rifts, Legend of the Five Rings, etc., but none of them inspired me.  All of their dice systems were getting stale and I got sick of having to remember complex rules for dice mechanics or being frustrated by bad rolls ruining a game (especially those game sessions when all of my die rolls sucked).  I also felt that systems like d20 didn't give you as much of a heroic feeling (unless you were high level, then, it just got boring).

At this point, I came to one conclusion about roleplaying games:

Fuck this shit!

I was about to hang up my dice bag for good.  Roleplaying was one of the few hobbies that I cherished since I was very young and I was about to abandon it.  The spark wasn't there, anymore.  I loved her, but I wasn't in love with her.  It was killing me.

Fortunately, I think it was toward the end of 2007, I discovered a game that reignited my love for the hobby and reminded me why I got into it in the first place.

That game is Savage Worlds.

Pony Kombat!

Boog is having computer issues, and asked me to cover for him. So while messing around I found a bizarre link, that upended my plans for tonight's post.

Evidently there is a fan made My Little Pony fighting game coming out for PC. No I'm serious. There's even a video.

See I'm not full of crap. My wife is pretty much obsessed with this show as are her friends. I think it's cute, but I'm not really a fan. I doubt she's going to be excited about this. Although maybe I'm wrong and she will want to take Applejack (her favorite) through Ponyville, and stomp every-ponies cutiemark*.

I've got to say the art looks good. The game looks like the animation and control will be at least as good as an old SNES fighting game. Honestly the style reminds me of  Ninja Turtles Tournament Fighters game (SNES version) with a graphical upgrade. If you want more information on this game there is an FAQ here.

Looking throught the FAQ it looks like the creators are fans of the show but I have to caution, as excited as fans of ponies, and video games maybe I'm not going to hold my breath for this to get released. I have a feeling someone is going to drop a Cease and Desist, and this game will disappear. So if you happen to see a link for this game later, you may want to grab it while you can.

So to end this post here's me as a pony, because my friends are weird.
I guess my eyesight got better as a pony, well take care, and I'll see you tomorrow.

Meet the Medic aka Ribs Grow Back

Holy Crap! You probably already heard, because this is the internet, and if you don't post it immediately you're too late. (Stupid work getting in the way of my dream of being a big name blogger), but Valve had something to show you today.



Meet the Medic...he's brilliant, he's crazy, he's finally got his own short intro film. I wasn't sure what to expect from the Medic's film, but I certainly wasn't expecting this. We were planning to do a big write-up for this short. But really the film speaks for its self.

However one other piece of news coming from Valve almost trumps their latest release. Team Fortress 2 is now free. Not just for this week, but for...ever. Here's the FAQ, if the idea of a game being free is hard to comprehend. (No actually there's some good info in the FAQ, especially on how it's going to reward those who spent money the game in the past.)

Also there's a trailer.



By the way be sure to check out all the new weapons, accessories, and hats that came out during the last update...the Uber Update.

Oh and if you need someone to play TF2 with feel free to look me and my friends up, we're always looking for fun people to play with TF2, Spiral Knights (also free), or other games as well.

Games You Should Know About... Retro Game Challenge

First off, this week marks the official 20th anniversary of Sonic the Hedgehog.  I plan on doing a Cart Classics retrospective of the series, but that will take time to get going.  Hopefully, you'll see it later this year.  Until then, happy birthday, Sonic.

My other announcement is that one of the best video game shows you probably aren't watching is finally hitting Stateside.  Game Center CX is a Japanese TV show where the host, comedian Shinya Arino, is asked to complete challenges in difficult old school games.  Much to the amusement of the show's staff and countless Japanese viewers, Arino often struggles in his quest, but usually emerges triumphant.  Other segments in the show have Arino visiting arcades in Japan, interviewing game designers (usually for the game he's playing during that episode), or trying out failed consoles and peripherals.  For the past couple of years, Fuji TV (the company behind Game Center CX as well as the original Iron Chef) was looking for international distributors to bring the show to other countries.  Finally, Gawker Media got the rights to broadcast the show on one of their flagship blog sites, Kotaku.  Starting tomorrow, June 23, Kotaku will stream translated episodes of the show every Thursday at 8 pm EST (that's 7:00 pm Central, for us Midwesterners).

Currently, it is unknown whether the show will have English subtitles or be dubbed by a voice-over (I'm gunning for subtitles), but the show's name has been changed to Retro Game Master.  They most likely did this to tie in brand recognition with the DS game Retro Game Challenge, which came to the States two years ago.  By the way, this is definitely a game you should know about...

Free RPG Day followup

Dungeons and Dragons 3.5
without the boring parts.

Anacronus, Alchemilla, and Kspaz walk into a nerd store*. No, it's not the start of a joke, it's the opening line for my article on our local Free RPG Day. Ours is at the Fantasy Shop in St. Charles. We went up there to get free swag and see demos on different Role Playing Games (RPG's). I got a one shot for Pathfinder (my favorite system.) as well as a dice tumbler, and a one shot for The Walking Dead game, (because I had an idea for a zombie game a while back and was interested in the mechanics.)

Then we signed on to play in a demo of Savage Worlds. Savage Worlds and I have a strange history. I was told of the RPG and how it was centered around story, and characters rather then rules. Dnd has a list of rules long enough to intimidate anyone coming into the game (which makes it hard for people to get into role playing at first.) So I bought it, the only book you need to run the game is $10. A plus since games usually cost anywhere from $50 to $200 to start.

Small in size and price,
Large in fun.

However after buying it we tried a few times to get a game going, but always had issues. Having someone who knew the game, and had a well thought out story helped a lot. This game was awesome, the combat is easy to pick up. And gives either side in the battle a chance to win. Luck plays a lot more of a role in Savage Worlds. Never in combat did I think "Okay we can take these guys", but neither did I feel like we had no chance to win. And this is coming from a group were one party member died.

The story was that of a team during the Revolutionary War, who was charged with finding a certain man who has ties to the British Loyalists (tories to those who know the era). Later we find out he is involved in the occult and, well I don't want to say all hell broke loose, but crazy things did happen. Very fun game, and it showed me finally how a session of this game should be handled.

So you may want to seek out Savage Worlds, I know Anacronus is a big fan of the system, and really I've always been waiting for a real game of it to judge how great it could be. This is an excellent system for people new to role playing, and for a group that may want to try different games every couple of weeks, but don't want to pay a lot for the different books.

I'll not say too much more so Anacronus can do a full review of the system someday.

*Nerd Store being my title for any store which deals in primarily in Board Games, RPGs (think Dungeons and Dragons not Final Fantasy), comics, ect.

Free Dungeons!

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into your favorite comic book/gaming store, it returns!  They thought the madness would end after Free Comic Book Day, but it has only begun.  Gather your dice bag and your courage, for only the mightiest wizards and warriors can stand against the monstrosity that is...

That's right, this Saturday is the fifth annual Free RPG Day.  Retailers worldwide are offering promotional products (such as free adventures, quick start rules, even dice) from many different RPGs, including Dungeons & Dragons, White Wolf's World of Darkness, Pathfinder, Savage Worlds, and much more.  Many stores are also having free RPG demos you can join and play in.  It's the perfect time to find that new RPG you're looking for or meet with others who play the same games you do.  Don't forget to support these stores.  If you find a new RPG that you can't wait to play, speak to one of the staff members of your local store and see if they have it, or, at the very least, if they can get it for you.

Hope to see you there, just don't touch my dice.

Forgotten Worlds - Galaga Turns 30 (Part 1)

Thirty years ago, arcade history was made.  Namco released one of the most popular video games in the world, Galaga.  Now, Namco has had a storied history of some of the greatest arcade games ever made, including Dig Dug, Pole Position, Tekken, Soul Edge/Soul Calibur, and, of course, Pac-Man, but Galaga is special.  It's one of those few games from the golden age of arcades that just about everyone has played.  Even kids today have played this game.  It begs the question of how a simple shooter from 1981 became such a phenomenon.

The answer is simple: Galaga was friggin' everywhere.  Galaga is one of the most prevalent arcade cabinets (whether by itself, or with Ms. Pac-Man in the 20th Anniversary arcade cabinet, which means Ms. Pac-Man is also 30).  You could find it at thousands of arcades, movie theaters, laundromats, bars, pizza places, etc.  Many major video game systems, from the Atari 7800 to the XBOX 360, have a version of Galaga.  It's even been available on most cell phones (I know I had a copy of the game on an old phone of mine).  On top of that, there have been a couple re-imaginings of the classic game, such as Galaga: Destination Earth on the original Playstation and Galaga Legions (along with the forthcoming DX version) on the XBOX 360.

Okay, perhaps the answer is not as simple as that.  No game would be an established part of the video gaming consciousness if it sucked.  While Galaga was not the first top down shooter, it certainly did revolutionize the genre with action never seen before in an arcade game.  Even when other shooters eventually surpassed it in technological advancement, Galaga remained a steadfast favorite of arcade goers.  Perhaps it was the waves of oncoming enemies, or the classic arcade strategy needed for scoring the most points.  Maybe it's the iconic visuals and sounds.  Personally, I just think it has that "x-factor" -- a combination of challenge and fun that is so hard to attain.  Not even its predecessor, Galaxian, nor its multiple successors could duplicate the phenomenon that was Galaga.

But there's much more about this franchise than Galaga, including many other games.  Games which I will go over in the upcoming weeks.  For now, enjoy this anniversary present: a papercraft of the classic Galaga cabinet, courtesy of WayoftheRodent.com.  Just click on the image below, print it out, and start cutting, folding, and gluing.

Until next time, keep your scores high and don't let your last ship get captured.

Flick Picks 22: I'm not giving a title this time.

This Review WILL contain massive amounts of SPOILERS!, and on more than one topic. You Have Been Warned.

Sometimes, I'm not sure how to approach a certain review. Especially one that may very well lead to angry, geeky, cosplaying mobs coming to my door with torches and pitchforks to demand my head, or at very least, some of my spleen. But, hey, I signed up to write for this site to give you (mostly) unbiased opinions on films, and occasionally CDs and books, based upon my years of experience as a film watcher, and some small stints on the other side of the film industry, learning what works, and what doesn't, so I could help you, the reader, make honest, informed decisions on what you might want to watch, rent, buy, or burn in an incinerator. How then, do I approach something I can't help but be slightly biased about? How do I approach something, that when it first came out, was quite possibly the most divisive thing ever made, based on it being part of a franchise that has, to date, one of the most diehard and loyal fanbases ever, to the point of a religion still being practiced and spread by it's minions among anime and game conventions of any type? How do I approach....

Classic Gaming Anniversaries

(Update: Just found out that the Dragon Quest series of rpgs is celebrating its 25th anniversary.  Holy crap, I've got a full plate commemorating all these franchises.)

This week, the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, is dazzling game enthusiasts in Los Angeles.  All sorts of new games are being announced and even a few new consoles, such as the Wii U (?), are making a debut.  Then again, you know me.  I'm all about the classic gaming experience.  Fortunately, a couple of legendary franchises are celebrating their anniversaries at E3 this year with a lot of fanfare.

First off, one of my favorite arcade games turns 30.  The classic space shooter Galaga is still devouring quarters from arcade enthusiasts, even after three decades.  Namco Bandai is celebrating by releasing the Galaga series on smart phones and iOS, as well as the upcoming Galaga Legions DX on XBOX 360 Live Arcade and a new title on the 3DS that combines a 3D version of Galaga with a game featuring last year's trentagenarian: Pac Man.  There was even a World Galaga Championship at New Hampshire's American Classic Arcade Museum this past weekend.  It was part of their world famous International Classic Video Game Tournament, but was actually sponsored by Namco Bandai.  Hopefully, I can scrounge around the internet and get more details on the championship at a later time.

This year also sees 20 years with my favorite speedster, Sonic the Hedgehog.  While I usually dislike platforming games, the classic Sonic games are still some of my favorite games on the Genesis.  Though his games have not been as good as of late, Sega hopes to change that with Sonic Generations.  This new game supposedly gives you the opportunity to choose play style between modern Sonic or old skool Sonic.  Will it deliver?  We'll have to wait and see.

Of course, one of the biggest announcements has been the 25th anniversary of Nintendo's Legend of Zelda franchise.  At their press conference, Nintendo let out all the bells and whistles.  An orchestra started the conference with a medley of classic music from the legendary franchise.  Then, Shigeru Miyamoto himself announced a slew of great things for the franchise.  For instance, the Game Boy Color classic Link's Awakening DX is one of the first games available for the 3DS Virtual Console (Aww, yeah!).  Of course, there's the remastered release of Ocarina of Time for the 3DS, but now they announced the game's soundtrack for the first people who register their copy of the game on Nintendo's website.  On top of that, a new Legend of Zelda: Four Swords adventure will be available on DSiWare (for those who have a DSi or the 3DS) for FREE!  To cap it off, they're doing a worldwide tour of symphonic Legend of Zelda and there's going to be a symphonic CD available (most likely as a limited edition add-on for Skyward Sword).  There's a lot for Zelda fans to look forward to.

Later on, I'll go more in depth with each of these classic franchises and the games that helped define a generation of video gamers.  For now, I'm really sick and can only muster up enough to write this short blurb.

There was also another video game series celebrating an anniversary.  Nothing too fancy, really.  It's this small video game that a couple of people may have played.  I think it's called Halo, or something.  It turned 10.  They're doing a remastered version of the original game for XBOX 360.  No big deal.

I'll see you guys next week.

Great Music Video Series

Ginger's posts on great music videos got me thinking about bands and groups that go above and beyond with their videos. I'm going to give you three very different examples of what I mean. Hopefully you'll see something new, and something awesome.

The first example is probably familiar if you've been on the internet before. Ok Go. You might now them as the guys dancing on treadmills. They are the masters of the long take, most of there videos since "Here it goes again" (the treadmill video) are done in one long take, (although it takes them many tries to get them). I have trouble thinking up any band who has attempted to do this in more then one video. They've done several, really I've just linked to four (counting the embedded video below) in the last paragraph.



In the course of doing this, I would also argue they're probably the first group to have two viral videos to their names, usually you only get one (unless your last name is Cicierega).

My next example you've probably never heard of, even if you like anime, even if you like the show it's based off of. There was a short lived epic show called Gurren Lagaan (it doesn't matter what it translates to).  27 episodes of people piloting giant robots and fighting for their freedom. The show became a big hit in Anime culture, even if it's extremely over the top (but in a fun way), and a parody of the genre. The company that made the show decided to make music videos of the soundtrack using the characters (even if they don't fit in continuity). The result was Gurren Lagaan Parallel Works. 8 music videos which span a list of genres, some better then others. Last year a 2nd set was released. I'm starting you off with #4 because it's probably the most accessible, it's labeled inverse, because the heroes of this video are actually the villians from the show, and vice versa



Some other examples are a knight's quest to resque the princess (set to a rap song), and a take on the magic girl genre. There are a couple other good ones, but if you find a working #6 don't watch it, it is very much a WTF Japan video. Otherwise have fun, the 2nd set is not a easily numbered.

Finally I give you the most epic, set of music videos ever done, 14 music videos which tell one story. Daft Punk's Interstella 5555. All combined this video is 1 hour and 4 minutes long animated magnus opus. Detailing the story of a band kidnapped from their home galaxy, and the hero who fights to save them.



These 14 songs were also from their album Discovery, the song list was not changed for the videos continuity, even though the videos came long after the album. The animation is also done by Toei Animation, the people responsible for Voltron, Dragon Ball (original recipe, and Z), One Piece, Sailor Moon, Digimon, and Yu-gi-Oh! So, this was not done, by newcomers to animation. It still looks like it was heavily influenced by Voltron to me. Seriously sit down and watch it, sometime. You will not be disappointed.

Well these are my votes for video series that I think are awesome. I find myself watching these over and over again when I have nothing going on and youtube is open.  Despite what I've posted, these do not reflect my main genres of music. So give them all a shot, you might find something you really like, even if it's in a genre you don't generally listen too.

Flick Picks 21: Chaos Theory

 Hello Streakers! Boog here, first to say that this is not a Guilty Pleasure post, despite the fact that it is a seventh post. The short answer, is that I've decided to change the format up a little, and give you Guilty Pleasures, and other niche reviews, as I happen across them. Today, I have a bit of treat, in quite possibly the most underrated romantic comedy of all time. Based on the title, I had thought I was going into a sci-fi thriller, or at least an action movie. I was pleasantly surprised. It only opened on 11 screens, and made less than $250,000. But it stars a vampire, a vampire hunter, a woman who has never done a single project with vampires ever, and has a couple of scenes with Dr. Elliot from Scrubs. SPOILERS! It's time for Chaos Theory. At first glance, you can why this film wouldn't do well. The director, other than a few TV episodes, a couple of music videos, and the Nick Cannon Disaster, I mean Underclassman, had no real credentials to prove he could direct a comedy. And the writer is probably best known for two films he wrote and directed: Breakin' All The Rules, (or the other movie Jamie Foxx made while filming Ray), and 1997s Commandments, which, as you can guess by the title, has a lot to do with a list of ten things from some book I think I read somewhere. Basically, the writer and director together hadn't really had a single hit between them, and they both had at least ten years of experience going into this. Which is of course, how they landed Stuart Townsend, Emily Mortimer, and Ryan freaking Reyonlds for the leads. More after the jump.

Dungeons of Time - Heroclix

 

Yes, it's time again for a new segment.  I've found, through my experience, that if you're going to write a blog article every week, you better talk about a lot of different things.  So far, I've talked about arcade games, home video game systems, board games, free comic books, pro wrestling, and a heaping helping of nostalgia.  Well, let me add one more to that list.

If you recall from my last Forgotten Worlds article, I have been interested in tabletop role-playing games since I was four. I've played many of the major games that have come out:  Dungeons & Dragons (in most of its incarnations), Rifts, White Wolf's World of Darkness (the original, not that new crap), Savage Worlds, GURPS (okay, so I only got as far as creating my character, but that's because the group got so sick of making GURPS characters for two straight hours that we gave up on the game), and so on.  I've also played my fair share of tabletop miniatures games, including Games Workshop's HeroQuest (classic!) and Mordheim (because it was a hell of a lot cheaper than Warhammer 40K).  Since I've been playing these games for most of my life, I figure why not talk about the tabletop games of the past, present and future?

And so, I invite you to strap on your armor, grab your weapons, and get your spells in order.  You're about to delve into the deepest caverns of my imagination.  But beware, for you never know what dangers may lurk in the Dungeons of Time.