09.30.07
Posted in Game Reviews at 4:14 pm by earl
(9.75/10.00) After waiting for what has seemed like an eternity, we have finally gotten our hands on Halo 3, and boy was it worth the wait. The game tells the story of Master Chief and the rest of his faithful gang (now including the Arbiter) finally “finishing the fight†against the Covenant. The game also performs extremely well in the technical department which has become a huge part of gaming today. The reflections of the sun on building panels, the reflections from MC’s visor, and the water effects are astonishing and are something I’ve never seen before. However, sometimes in the environments there could be some bad lighting, but it’s nothing major. The game also sounds wonderful. The score provided by Chris O’ Donnel and the voiceovers are pretty good. Even the marines have their own voices, mainly yelling “Shoot at them, not me!†when I was playing. But let’s get down to what Halo is known for: The multiplayer. The game provides tons of new game modes like Infection, which is basically a zombie romp, and VIP, where one player is a bodyguard to another. There are also several new maps, like High Ground and my new favorite, Valhalla, which has a warp pad that can work like a cannon if you throw your grenades into it. One thing I did love about the game was its new vehicles, including the really cool Mongoose. The game also has the really big but slow Elephant. But don’t think the game’s shy on weapons, oh no, I have a new favorite weapon, the Gravity Hammer. The Spartan Laser also spurs on some hilarious moments with it being able to destroy Banshees in mid air. The new Forge mode also is a lot of fun being able to place items anywhere. The film save feature will also help you show your buddies what awesome matches you played over the weekend. However, whenever playing multiplayer with my buddies, I was frustrated several times by the changes made and some of the new things. For one, one of my favorite maps, Lockout, is missing! I’m still trying to find Coagulation, and why can’t the zombie in Infection drive? Basically he’s a target for the other two guys with Ghosts. Trust me, I know. However, these are just minor complaints, nothing to move me from the big picture of Halo 3’s greatness. Overall, Halo 3 is a great experience that no Xbox 360 owner should deprive him or herself from. I strongly recommend it to any video game fan with an Xbox 360. So go, settle down with a 20 oz. of Mountain Dew Game Fuel, and finish the fight.
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Posted in Top Tens, Video Games at 4:10 pm by earl
1. Plasma Sword backflip pwn on The Pit.
2. Gravity Hammering Sergeant Johnson on that co-op mission.
3. Getting pwned by Colt on the Ghost……10 times in a row.
4. Finding the lone NPC Slim/Kitty/The Bear and beating him down.
5. Getting Spartan Lasered out of nowhere.
6. Gravity Hammering Flanders from behind.
7. Trying to get on the turret on Flanders’ Mongoose, me telling him to back up, and him running me over.
8. Killing Innocent Marines and then seeing them turn on me.
9. Watching our saved films in fast forward with the Benny Hill theme.
10. Jumping with missile pod from the warp pad and pwning Flanders and Colt together. Can you say Double Kill?
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09.28.07
Posted in The Way Earl Sees It, Video Games at 12:42 pm by earl
Over the past few years, there has been a growing phenomenon about video gaming as a sport. And although I watch these events, I sometimes question, Is gaming a sport? I aim to find out. Throughout the years, networks like Dish and USA have provided coverage on major gaming events like Major Leaque Gaming and the Halo 2 tournament. But yet, there aren’t as many responses as there would be for, say the Superbowl. Why is this? Well for one, really the only people that will watch (and enjoy) Pro Gaming are gamers, and really, gamers would rather play that game then watch others play it. You can’t go out and play a football game with 20 other people that easily, but you can begin a pro gaming round with the flip of a switch. And as far as the question of is gaming a sport goes, it really depends on what you consider a sport.
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09.27.07
Posted in Game Previews at 9:07 am by earl
Assassin’s Creed-One of the best looking games of the past few years has been Assassin’s Creed, and with its November release date nearing, it just keeps looking better and better. As you probably know, in the game you will play as an Assassin, and there will be 9 assassinations throughout the entire game. You can think of these as boss fights. You will have to somewhat “detective work” so you can complete your objective. The game has been worked on for about 4 years, so you can expect it to be awesome when it releases in November.
Secret Agent Clank- My favorite gaming series is getting another port to the PSP with Secret Agent Clank, a spinoff game to the Secret Agant Clank TV Show started in Ratchet and Clank:Up Your Arsenal. Hopefuly we can expect the great weapons of a Ratchet and Clank game but with the stealth and coolnessof a James Bond game. High Impact games will take over for this installment as they did so well with Size Matters. This post will self-destruct when Secret Agent Clank arrives sometime in 2008.
Metal Gear Solid 4:Guns of the Patriots--A PS3 title that many have been looking forward to over the years has been Metal Gear Solid 4. The game will feature a unique camouflauge system that will allow you to sneak up on unsuspecting guards and take them out with ease. And as with any MGS game, it will require stealth, and quick action. You will use the Triangle button a lot for quick manuevers, and then the triggers for weapon fire. This game will sure to be one of th biggest games of 2008 when it releases………in 2008.
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Posted in The Tube at 8:19 am by earl
Yea, I will be doing this again for this new season. I enjoy it.
Anyway, after wating for a not-so-long 4 months, we finally get a new glimpse at the brilliance of Heroes. And just as expected, they are able to roll with the punches and produce a high quality episode. We start off with a narraration from Mohinder, chronicoling what has happened and what is to come. Then, we get a view…..of the now. Mohinder is doing a class in Cairo when an apparent stalker finally pushes Mohinder to his limits. He threatens the man but then the guy offers Mohinder a job, apparently working for a company that sounds a lot like H.R.G.’s old foe. That is, after the man shows Mohinder his golden talent. It turns out he is living with Matt and Molly in Mohinder’s apartment. But don’t think that Matt and Molly aren’t having troubles of their own. Although Matt has been accepted as a detective, Molly is having nightmares and is drawing pictures of them in her class. In the pictures, a man is torturing her or someone else and there’s always the strangely familiar helix, which is proving to have a huge part in this new season. People like Hiro’s dad and Peter and Nathan’s Mom have received pictures of themselves with a red helix on their faces. It means that they will be dead in 24 hours. Hiro’s father reveals that he and Angela were part of a past organization of 12 people that tryed to find people with extraordinary people. The club sonsisted of people like Linderman, Charles Devoax, and Dallas Petrelli. Kaito (Hiro’s dad) is later killed. We are also introduced to two new Heroes Maya and Alejandro. They are two illegal immigrants on the run trying to get to America so they can cure their deadly powers. While on a smuggling truck with several other people, Alejandro is thrown off, and this causes Maya to go mad, using her power. She kills everyone on or in the truck. They drive the truck off to reach America and bury the bodies. Hiro, of course, is in the past, where he saves who he thinks is Kensei, but who turns out to be a cheap substitute hired by the real Kensei. He turns out to be a con-artist Englishman that is only interested in money. Hiro trys to bring him to the good side, but is punched in the face. Hiro realizes that it will be harder than he thought to convert this warrior. Claire and Mr. Bennet are in their new home in Costa Verde, where they are trying to be as normal as possible. Claire is asked by the boy if she is like the others or if she is different. The boy trys to figure out. Claire nearly blows her cover while doing a cheerleading trick in front of a guy, while Mr. Bennet was a little irregular by nearly breaking his employer’s finger by throwing him onto the table and asking him nicely to not boss him around. I thought it was hillarious since both Claire and Noah reacted the same way when asked if anything irregular happened. We find out later that Noah is teaming up with Mohinder since Mohinder took the job to take down the company. We also realize the boy that Claire met can fly. Nathan had been living with his mom, Angela, since the explosion. He had grown a beard since then, and Angela was convinced Peter was dead. Nathan was pretty depressed, but I’m still confused as to how he lived! Later, Nathan is shown in a bar where he looks into a mirror and sees himself with his face radiated. Peter is also found in a storage container in Ireland with the symbol around his neck, and apparently he has amnesia. The symbol is going to play a huge part in the new season. A great start.
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09.24.07
Posted in Video Games at 7:52 am by earl
Halo 3.
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09.23.07
Posted in Music at 1:41 pm by earl
I have a very unique taste in music. I don’t really lean towards a certain genre or group, because if I hear a certain song on the radio and I like it enough, I’ll buy the CD. That is, unless it’s rap. I hate rap. Rap, beat boxing, jive turkey, hip-hop, trash metal that you can’t even understand goes on my X list. Honestly, I don’t mean to get on my soapbox here, but I hate rap because I guarantee you that a good 99.9999999% is about the same thing. And since this site is rated PG, I won’t mention it. You do the math. Trash metal (sad excuse for rock) is just too loud and anyone could do it. Really, I like good music. Like The Fray. They have put out some great songs like She is, How to Save a Life, All at Once, and Fall Away. I’m also a fan of 70s, 80s, 90s rock like Journey, Styx, and more. I love the song Surrender, Levon, and much much more. I find myself often times listening to the Oldies. I also am a fan of Casual Country as I like to call it. Songs that don’t go full blown like saying that their proud to be hillbillies or rednecks. Last time I checked those were insults. Except for The Beverly Hillbillies. Country bands like Sugarland, Rascall Flatts, Trace Atkins (Tryin’, I just wanna feel something) are great.
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Posted in The Tube at 1:25 pm by earl
This is a really good reality show and one of the most unique I’ve ever seen. It basically pits 9 people in a isolation experiment where they aren’t fighting each other…..but themselves. Each of them have their own pod, deprived of sunlight/moonlight, any time-telling device, or anything that could help them. They have a bathroom, a meal slot through which they receive items for tests, tasteless food, or the rare awards. There will be several activities, and once before each treatment they will have a test. The winner of said test will win “immunity” from the upcoming treatment. The tests can range from getting a message out of a 52 word pileup that takes 5 seconds to play through, making a huge domino chain, putting together clips from a disturbing movie, assemble a 50 piece hamster maze by running 10 laps on a treadmill for each, and more. They will then go on to a treatment which could be a footbed of nails, a smoothie of 50 different foods, or spinning ina desk chair. The first to quit a treatment loses and goes home, but they do not know if someone else has gone home, so they are left wondering after they have quit if they lasted long enough. They may quit at anytime from this “torture”. I strongly recommend this to anyone who is tired of hearing Simon babble or hearing the Tribe speak. It comes on 8:00 p.m. Saturdays on Fox Reality, Channel 250 DirecTV.
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09.22.07
Posted in Quotes, The Tube at 7:18 pm by earl
I am soooooooooooooooooooooooo psyched for Heroes this Monday. Even more than I am for Halo.
“Haven’t I killed you before”-Sylar
“Didn’t Take.”-Peter
“Sometimes I look in the mirror and I’m not sure if it’s me looking back.”-Niki
“Save the cheerleader, save the world”-Hiro
“My only concern is should I hide my true identity? A costume maybe?”-Hiro
“I walked through fire and I get didn’t get burned.”-Claire
Simone: These are fantastic!
Issac: No! They’re evil.
Simone: What are you talking about?
Issac: What am I talking about? You know what I’m talking about? (Picks up painting of a burning bus) You see this? Suicide bombing in Israel. I painted it three weeks ago.
Simone: Yeah, so?
Issac: So? That’s this morning’s paper. Look at the number on the bus. This happened yesterday. Yesterday. Something’s wrong with me.
Ando: Hiro, there are twelve and a half million people in this city. Not one of them can bend space and time. Why do you want to be different?!
Hiro: Why do you want to be the same?
Ando: Because that’s what I am. The same.
Hiro: It’s what we all are. Homogenous. Yogurt.
Ando: Huh? Yogurt?
Mr. Bennett: So is that the quarterback?
Claire: Who?
Mr. Bennett: The boy that you like over there.
Claire: I don’t “like” him. I mean he’s a very nice boy, but… yes, he’s the quarterback.
Mr. Bennett: You really wanted to make me happy, you’d only date nerds. Well it worked out very well for your mother.
(after getting thrown out of a van)
Hiro: That hurt more than I thought it would.
Ando: Every hero is on a journey to find his place in the world, it is a Journey, you don’t start at the end, otherwise they can’t make a movie about it later.
Peter: You came from the future and told them to save the cheerleader. Oh, and you had a sword.
Hiro: I had a sword?
D.L.: The good news is, it’s just going to be you and me from here on out. Partners.
Micah: You mean like Batman and Robin?
D.L.: Yeah. Like Batman and Robin. Only…I’m not wearing any tights. You can wear tights, but I’m not wearing tights.
Peter: (about Hiro) You remember how he used to be, all full of hope and optimism?
Ando: Of course. That’s the Hiro I know.
Peter: He went away the day you died. Between you and me, I think you’re the reason he became so obsessed with trying to change it all back. He wants to save you
Nathan: That’s your idea of a brighter future? (points at painting of nuclear explosion)
Linderman: What if I was to tell you that it was?
Nathan: I’d say you were a lousy humanitarian.
Sylar: I think I’m going to do something bad.
Mohinder: You’re a murderer, you don’t get the luxury of regret.
Sylar: You don’t understand. I think I’m going to kill a lot more people. A lot more. I understood it before, the killing. I had a reason; to take what others didn’t deserve. It was natural selection.
Mohinder: What are you talking about?
Sylar: An apocalypse. A massacre. Half the city gone in an instant. They mean nothing. They’re innocent. There’s no gain, so why would I do it? What possible reason would I have for killing so many?
Niki:(looks at Matt) Didn’t i throw you out of a window?
(Thompson comes up quietly behind him and points his gun at Matt’s head.)
Thompson: What am I thinking now, Parkman?
(Mr. Bennet points his gun at Thompson’s head.)
Mr. Bennet: Your last thought.
Matt: We know where Sylar is, we can go after him.
Bennet: No, not without Petrelli. He’s the only one who can stop him.
Matt: I’ve come three thousand miles; I left my pregnant wife at home. He’s a bad guy, I’m a cop, I’m going after him.
Matt: (to Molly) So you can find anyone in the world you just need to think about them?
Molly: Almost anyone.
Matt: Almost?
Molly: There is only one that I can’t.
Matt: Who is that? Is it someone bad Molly, like the boogeyman?
Molly: No. He is a lot worse.
Matt: Why don’t you wanna find it?
Molly: Because when I think about him (whispering) he can see me.
Hiro: (After teleporting to Kirby Plaza) Sylar!!!
Sylar: (Before Hiro puts his blade through his stomach) You!!
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Posted in The Tube, Videos at 12:14 pm by earl
This is a great 6-minute video from Youtube of some of the very first moments from Season 2. This is a great teaser for me and I cannot wait until September 24. Or Sep. 25.
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Posted in Weapons of Mass Enjoyment at 12:06 pm by earl
Due to James pathetic whining and my love and dedication to this site, I have decided to put aside my hatred of code and continue on with Part 2. Oh by the way, all you missed on Part 3 was the announcement of Snake as a Brawl character and some TGS stuff. That and Game of the Week this week is World in Conflict. Hello again.
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09.15.07
Posted in Top Tens, Video Games at 5:50 pm by earl
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- Lock the your door. Mario isn’t that strong.
- Employ Kratos or Master Chief as your first boss. You’ll never hear from Mario again.
- Take all of the mushrooms out of the castle.
- STOP THROWING WEAPONS!!!!!! THIS MEANS KOOPA SHELLS!!!!!!!!!!
- Get out of your little smiley face thing and fight like a man. Your 6 feet taller than him. Do the math.
- Wear a helmet.
- Stop kidnapping Princess Peach.
- Kidnap Luigi instead. He’s second banana, and noone in Mushroom Kingdom would care.Â
- Really mess things up and kidnap Zelda. TEAM UP WITH GANONDORF!!!!!!!
- Buy a security system.
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Posted in The Way Earl Sees It at 5:43 pm by earl
 
     
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As we all know, there are several new video games that are coming out that are spreading out brand new series, and will possibly last for years to come. But what about old school games like Mario and Sonic? Can they still survive in a new enviroment full of shiny graphics, gameplay innovations, and the soon to be beaten Blu-ray? Or will they just eat the dust like Sonic has and be only remembered as a distinct memory that will never receive an update? And if so, which of our newer series will meet that fate, and when?
Well, the Way I see it, there are a couple of different answers. Back in the 80s we received Mario, the Italian plumber who was rescuing Peach from the cruel hands of Bowser over and over again. And just about 5 months ago we received his newest installment, Super Paper Mario, which was a huge success. And we planning on getting another one in November. So we could definitely say that Mario, the old-school king, is still reigning on his throne. And he’s not the only one. Old-school superstars like Metroid, Zelda, and more are still kicking butt after 20 years! However, some characters fail to meet that expectation, like Sonic. Before you Sonic Fans (Steven and The Dirty Kid) fly off the handle, take a look at these scores of the last few Sonic games since its last good game, Sonic Adventure Battle 2. Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)-2 out of 5, Shadow the Hedgehog-2 out of 5/ 1 out of 5/ Worst Game of the Year, not to mention all the other games that were even worse than Larry the Cably Guy:Health Inspector. Sure, Sonic has had some good games, but with 50 good games and only about 15 being good, YOU HAVE A PROBLEM. Overall, when it comes to if old school games will live or die, it’s all a matter of content. One reason Sonic games fail is because of their new, trying to be hip content, which fails miserably, one reason we loved the original was because it was just fun to run and attack Eggman. We don;t really care about the emo-style whinings of Shadow. And series like Metroid which have new content and yet succeed do that because the new content is actually worthwhile. If you decide to add new content, do it right.
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09.14.07
Posted in Video Games at 9:03 am by earl
 
 
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Usually I would show the picture of the winner above, so there wouldn’t really be that much guessing, but now I’ve decided I’ll put the best nominees up, and then make you read. Oh the humanity. Â
As the monumental release time continues, we receive more and more great games, most of them good. We got our hands on the high-speed racer Fatal Inertia, hit the puck around with NHL 08. We even to nail a few tricks with the possible Hawk killer, Skate. But one game did stand above the rest. We had seen this game since E3 05, and it has dazzled us since then with beautiful graphics, fun and intense gameplay, and more. It’s name is Heavenly Sword, and it is Game of the Week.
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