Tag: blog

Blogs, Chris, Video Games1 Comment

Tales of Disappointment

Chris

My love-hate relationship with the “Tales of” video game series goes back almost a decade now. Don’t get me wrong — there’s a lot more love than hate. But sometimes those emotions are two sides of the same coin, after all.

I was introduced to the series through a ROM of the Super Nintendo’s Tales of Phantasia back in high school. At the time, I was impressed by the idea of a fighting-game-like battle system in an RPG — it seemed like a nice change of pace from turn-based, menu-heavy systems.

That game was decent, but I wasn’t really a huge fan until the summer of 2004, when Tales of Symphonia hit the GameCube and redefined my view of the series and RPGs forever. Continue reading “Tales of Disappointment”

Blogs, David, Sports1 Comment

ASU season preview

David

As all (OK, few) of you know, I’m a gigantic ASU fan. It’s written on my info page if you want to check it out.

So the 2011 football season comes this year with more expectations and excitement than any season I can remember in the last decade. The Sun Devils returned 15 starters and are a team filled with veteran players who have experience in big games.

Last season, 4 of their 6 losses were by 4 points or less, and they took national runner-up Oregon to the brink before turning the ball over 3 times in the fourth quarter. They hope to use that momentum and experience in close games to get over the hump this year and win the inaugural Pacific 12 conference title.

I write this a week after their first game, as it’s usually a much better gauge of where a team is after they’ve actually seen the field. Following last season’s thrilling double-OT victory over UA, and then this season’s opening win against UC-Davis, things are looking good in Sun Devil country. Throw in a complete re-branding of the logo, new jerseys, and the nation’s most feared player in Vontaze Burfict, and this ASU fan is giddy with the prospects of this season. Let’s break down this schedule and make some predictions, which I fully plan on having thrown back in my face when I’m wrong. Continue reading “ASU season preview”

Blogs, Chris, EntertainmentLeave a comment

Review: RHCP’s “I’m With You”

Chris

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have been around for a while. Hell, the band was started before I was born.

Since 1983, RHCP has had a weird mix of consistency and disarray in their lineup — Anthony Kiedis and Flea have been there from day one and Chad Smith joined the group more than 20 years ago, but the early days involved a lot of drug use and rotating people. For their new album, “I’m With You,” the Chili Peppers are introducing new guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, who replaces longtime member John Frusciante.

That change, coupled with the band’s continued evolution and musical development, results in a different sound for RHCP’s 10th album. But different doesn’t necessarily mean bad — in fact, there’s a lot to like about “I’m With You.” Continue reading “Review: RHCP’s “I’m With You””

Blogs, David, Entertainment1 Comment

Classic Simpsons

David

“The Simpsons” has been going strong for what feels like about 100 years. They’ve had their hits and misses, but as a whole, they’ve delivered the goods a vast majority of the time. For the few and far between clunkers they’ve had (notably: The clip shows, and when Sideshow Bob [as much as I love the character] hypnotizes Bart [and yes I’m aware that I used a bracket inside a parentheses, just wait until I have a point within a point within a point, your head might explode]), they’ve had classics.

There’s one episode that stands out above them all, and that’s Cape Feare.

This episode aired in season 5, right as the Simpsons were hitting their golden age.  Most people my age were small children when this episode aired all the way back in 1993. (The Simpsons have been on a long time.) The plot had been set up by episodes in the previous four seasons, setting up Sideshow Bob’s homicidal hatred of Bart. For a quick recap: Bart not only foiled Bob’s attempted takeover of “The Krusty the Klown Show” by uncovering Bob framing Krusty, but also dissected Bob’s attempt to murder Selma for her money (When did Selma get rich? Oh well, suspend your disbelief for fictional TV shows, right?). This leads to Sideshow Bob devoting his life to plotting and executing his revenge against Bart, with hilarious consequences.

There are a lot of great reasons to love this episode, but here are a few, in no particular order: Continue reading “Classic Simpsons”

Blogs, David, Video GamesLeave a comment

Adventures in PlayStationland

David

Full disclosure: I’ve always been a Sony fanboy customer.  It probably started back when I was young and the only brand of electronics in our home was Sony. We had a Sony 27” TV from the time I was 3 up until I was about 17. Sony was built to last, built for the long haul and would be there with you like a good friend. That’s why I never purchased an N64 or Xbox growing up, it was all about the Sony PlayStation.

Things just aren’t like they used to be, as I’ve had quite the adventure with my PS3.

I was the recipient of the original PlayStation in January 1997 for my 12th birthday, and it still works to this day. I bought the PlayStation 2 in February 2004, and it still works to this day. I purchased the PlayStation 3 in March 2008, with the full expectation that it would work until the PlayStation Cuatro, or whatever goofy name they come up with when the next generation of systems come out.

Boy was I ever wrong. Continue reading “Adventures in PlayStationland”

Checkpoint, Video GamesLeave a comment

Checkpoint: Kingdom Hearts

Gray Areas

Checkpointlogo

With the recent release of Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days for the DS (which Shaun reviewed not too long ago), Checkpoint takes a look back at the Square/Disney mashup that came seemingly from nowhere. The idea of Cloud and Donald interacting didn’t make much sense at the time, but now, four titles later (with a fifth on the way), KH is entrenched as a major franchise in video games. The One-Uppers look back at the original and its sequel and decide which is the better game. Continue reading “Checkpoint: Kingdom Hearts”