If the internet nerd-rage was high regarding the so-called "white washing" of the Last Airbender cast, just wait until the cameras start rolling on American Akira.
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
Quick Hits: The American Akira Movie
It's all over the internets. There is going to be an American made live action adaptation of Akira coming out. And it takes place in Manhattan instead of Tokyo. And nearly everyone in is is white. And no one is in a motorcycle gang.
If the internet nerd-rage was high regarding the so-called "white washing" of the Last Airbender cast, just wait until the cameras start rolling on American Akira.
If the internet nerd-rage was high regarding the so-called "white washing" of the Last Airbender cast, just wait until the cameras start rolling on American Akira.
Uncharted 3 Counter-point
SmittyD made some bold claims in his Uncharted 3 review - and to be honest some of them are fitting. However as an Uncharted Lifer, and a fullblown PS3 fanboi - I expect that from him.
Uncharted 3 needs some real talk though; Nate may in fact be the best protagonist of this generation, and he is also surrounded by some of the most memorable characters as well. This is the true strength of Uncharted 3 and perhaps the Uncharted series. You care about these characters and their stories are always interesting.
Uncharted 3 needed a few things though; first - it was too short. Way too short in my opinion - the game really could have ended in the boat as that was the most epic part of the game and truly displayed the ultimate creativity of the Uncharted 3 team. Keeping it going was required because cutting it off @ the boat would have made Uncharted 3 2011's Heavenly Sword. So they recycled a bunch of crap and made up some stuff to try to slap an ending on the game. This made it so that noone could call it 2011's Heavenly Sword - however no other game in 2011 had this much potential and delivered such a short experience. The reality is that Uncharted 3 IS 2011's Heavenly Sword. Tacking on PvP does not resolve this problem anymore. MW3 tacks on Single Player - Uncharted tacks on PvP - noone actually cares about either.
Also I beat this drum with my friends and fellow bloggers here constantly but Uncharted 3 is the #1 missed co-op opportunity of all time. Drop-In Drop-out and split screen coop should be bundled into the MAIN story in this game. Yeah - we get it - Nate Drake is THE GUY - but that does not mean that this amazing supporting cast should not be put into the rotation to make the game more interesting to the people in your house who have to watch you play it.
I enjoyed my (limited) time with Uncharted 3 and I expect that the recycling and shortened timelines are avoided for Uncharted 4.
Uncharted 3 needs some real talk though; Nate may in fact be the best protagonist of this generation, and he is also surrounded by some of the most memorable characters as well. This is the true strength of Uncharted 3 and perhaps the Uncharted series. You care about these characters and their stories are always interesting.
Uncharted 3 needed a few things though; first - it was too short. Way too short in my opinion - the game really could have ended in the boat as that was the most epic part of the game and truly displayed the ultimate creativity of the Uncharted 3 team. Keeping it going was required because cutting it off @ the boat would have made Uncharted 3 2011's Heavenly Sword. So they recycled a bunch of crap and made up some stuff to try to slap an ending on the game. This made it so that noone could call it 2011's Heavenly Sword - however no other game in 2011 had this much potential and delivered such a short experience. The reality is that Uncharted 3 IS 2011's Heavenly Sword. Tacking on PvP does not resolve this problem anymore. MW3 tacks on Single Player - Uncharted tacks on PvP - noone actually cares about either.
Also I beat this drum with my friends and fellow bloggers here constantly but Uncharted 3 is the #1 missed co-op opportunity of all time. Drop-In Drop-out and split screen coop should be bundled into the MAIN story in this game. Yeah - we get it - Nate Drake is THE GUY - but that does not mean that this amazing supporting cast should not be put into the rotation to make the game more interesting to the people in your house who have to watch you play it.
I enjoyed my (limited) time with Uncharted 3 and I expect that the recycling and shortened timelines are avoided for Uncharted 4.
Starhawk Straight Talk
I said last night that I'd have some Starhawk impressions for you, but I forgot that since it is still a private beta that there may be some NDA concerns. Luckily, a quick web search revealed that there is no NDA for this one. Probably because this is nearly the same game I played at PAX this year. Anyway...
Starhawk has got to be one of the most frantic games I've played. That might have something to do with the fact that my team was getting stomped, and enemies were spawning everywhere, but I digress.
The good:
The Build-and-Battle system works flawlessly. Collect some rift energy, hold triangle to open the building selection menu to see what you can afford, and hit X to build (assuming you're in a place where it can be built). The building comes slamming to the ground, killing anyone it lands on. Build jetpack spawners, hawk spawners, sniper towers, etc. these structures can also be destroyed by the enemy. I can see that players willing to be pure builders are going to be the key in any successful strategy.
In the game where I was getting stomped, an enemy snuck next to our flag and built a spawn point right there. Chaos ensued-- it was a mad rush for my team to try to destroy the point with enemies dropping in all around us. Yeah...frantic. And even though I was on the receiving end of that beating, it was still completely awesome.
Planting mines in the enemy's base is still a laugh riot. So is sniping a dude from a sniper tower that you just built (which, by the way, comes complete with a couple sniper rifles). It's also awesome to get pinned down by enemy fire, and erect a wall between you to cover your retreat.
Aside from the BaB stuff, the controls were familiar to any Warhawk vet. The graphics were outstanding, and the gameplay kept me up way past my bedtime. I can see myself spending months in the Starhawk universe, just like I did with Warhawk.
The not-so-good:
Nothing here is really "bad" in my opinion, but there are several interesting things that should be noted...and it's likely that I only picked up on them because of all the time I put in with Warhawk. The hawks don't have a hover mode -- or if they do, I couldn't figure out how to use it. You're either flying or you're in walking tank mode. No biggie for me since I was never a great flier, but it's still an interesting design choice.
Also, you no longer have any control over any turrets. You build them, and they work on auto-pilot. Granted, there is probably more that I haven't seen yet, but I'm going to miss firing flak at the flyboys with my own two hands. Still, there is more that enough to keep you busy with the build and battle. Camping in a turret all match would not be good for the team.
I'll likely be in again tonight, so look for another post tomorrow.
Starhawk has got to be one of the most frantic games I've played. That might have something to do with the fact that my team was getting stomped, and enemies were spawning everywhere, but I digress.
The good:
The Build-and-Battle system works flawlessly. Collect some rift energy, hold triangle to open the building selection menu to see what you can afford, and hit X to build (assuming you're in a place where it can be built). The building comes slamming to the ground, killing anyone it lands on. Build jetpack spawners, hawk spawners, sniper towers, etc. these structures can also be destroyed by the enemy. I can see that players willing to be pure builders are going to be the key in any successful strategy.
In the game where I was getting stomped, an enemy snuck next to our flag and built a spawn point right there. Chaos ensued-- it was a mad rush for my team to try to destroy the point with enemies dropping in all around us. Yeah...frantic. And even though I was on the receiving end of that beating, it was still completely awesome.
Planting mines in the enemy's base is still a laugh riot. So is sniping a dude from a sniper tower that you just built (which, by the way, comes complete with a couple sniper rifles). It's also awesome to get pinned down by enemy fire, and erect a wall between you to cover your retreat.
Aside from the BaB stuff, the controls were familiar to any Warhawk vet. The graphics were outstanding, and the gameplay kept me up way past my bedtime. I can see myself spending months in the Starhawk universe, just like I did with Warhawk.
The not-so-good:
Nothing here is really "bad" in my opinion, but there are several interesting things that should be noted...and it's likely that I only picked up on them because of all the time I put in with Warhawk. The hawks don't have a hover mode -- or if they do, I couldn't figure out how to use it. You're either flying or you're in walking tank mode. No biggie for me since I was never a great flier, but it's still an interesting design choice.
Also, you no longer have any control over any turrets. You build them, and they work on auto-pilot. Granted, there is probably more that I haven't seen yet, but I'm going to miss firing flak at the flyboys with my own two hands. Still, there is more that enough to keep you busy with the build and battle. Camping in a turret all match would not be good for the team.
I'll likely be in again tonight, so look for another post tomorrow.
Skyrim:The Dragonborn Comes by Malukah
Recently a video of a cover of the song "The Dragonborn Comes" from Bethesda's new hit game Skyrim when very very viral. Sung by a very beautiful and talented musician known on the internet as Malukah. This video definitely touched my soul with its beauty.
Now IGN has gone a step further and used the cover as the background music to a series of beautiful vistas and scenes in Skyrim. As I don't believe I could put together a better video nor do I have the time. I'll link you theirs as the visuals combined with Malukah voice and guitar are awe inspiring. I highly encourage you to go full screen and HD option in the video.
Now IGN has gone a step further and used the cover as the background music to a series of beautiful vistas and scenes in Skyrim. As I don't believe I could put together a better video nor do I have the time. I'll link you theirs as the visuals combined with Malukah voice and guitar are awe inspiring. I highly encourage you to go full screen and HD option in the video.
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