It is quite unfortunate for someone to be called as a delinquent by the people around you, misinterpreting you. But what's even worse is you're getting to a harem relationship that you didn't even ask for. And the guy, Fujimura had his hands full because not only he had to deal on how society looks at him, also he had to deal with his three "girlfriends", which is asked by the student council just for the sake of making him attend school more often. I would love to be in that situation, but I would choose not to, because of the gravity of LOLs and hilarity that have happened to him, and the future awkward scenarios he will undergo as the chapters goes on.
Ah, high school, full of surprises... But this is more than a surprise, it is like a good nightmare(if there is such thing, LOL =P). Well I'm going to look forward for more of this manga, and oh by the way, Fujimura is one lucky bastard. She has the student council president(Shitzuru), the former school cool beauty(Eriko) and the high school idol(Yumizuru) to be his girlfriends. My friend you are one blessed "deliquent", hehe! I can't help to laugh at him, and in kinds of scenes he's into for 90% of each chapters. And Hiromu is one creepy girl, don't want to mess with someone like her if I ever see one. Anyway, it's all laughs and spontaneous burst of giggles. I love this kind of genre, even without the ecchi.... AWESOMESAUCE! ^_^
To tell you honestly, I picked it up because of the cover. It is quite intriguing, I mean, the cover had this guy with the initials HP on his shirt, and the other one, had a twenty-sided die in between his middle and index finger. For the sake of curiosity, I went to read the teaser of the graphic novel, and it involves a freakish online gamer who got banned by the court for being so addicted to online games, and it has references to Dungeons and Dragons, Magic The Gathering, Pokemon, online and console gaming? I said to myself: "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME? THIS IS LIKE EVERY NERD'S DREAM IN A BOOK! WOW!". So I purchased it in a heartbeat, and read it like 10 or 15 times, can't remember, but I can't help it! The story is something I could relate on!
I'm a former tabletop gamer, a current console gamer, and a future online gamer, well planning a come back to say at least, so everything in this book actually can be attributed to my experiences as a gamer. But I'm no Shesh Macabee, who had a dissociative identity disorder, that was caused by his excessive time on playing games. No, no, no, I haven't reached that level. About the story, it's like 1% of what I can relate on, but the characters, it's safe for me to say that I'm an amalgam of the main characters. Like Shesh's addiction to online gaming, his best friend named Mike who loves Japanese RPGs, and Theodore's enthusiasm over the game Dungeons and Dragons, but in the book, it's called Mages and Monsters. Cliche huh?! :P
Well, sad to say, after reading it over and over, I sent it to someone else. I don't know if she liked it, but I hope she experiences the same way of happiness that I've felt when reading the book. It was a fun memory, I'd never thought that I could read a book that really exemplifies a gamer's life, and how he struggles into the society. Goodness, I wish I won't suffer the fate of Shesh Maccabee, who got banned by the judge according to court ruling after destroying his fellow players in an gaming cafe when he got into his psychological disorder rage. Want to know the punishment? No internet, no computer, and no electronics whatsoever! I love technology so I don't want to be taken away from it. Well, that's all for now!
Korean MMORPGs, might be appealing to your eyes because you're used on playing these, but like games before them, at least console-wise don't have obvious flaws. But as a gamer, and as a "grammarian" myself, I can't help to resist to had sour grapes over the games that are developing, because seriously, are you really going to play something that have more flaws than your aged curtain that have been shot with a full magazine from a Thompson Machine Gun? Ok, that might be a way off hyperbole but let's go down with the facts:
Inconsistency in story line and reference.
This is probably one of my issues within Korean MMORPGs. But I surely admit that I've played many of them before, no wonder I found these flaws in their game, in which most of the people who "grew" up with it kind of shoved it down from their shoulders. For an obvious example, Ragnarok Online; the game is supposed to be about the imminent destruction of Midgard and all of the cosmos, but still you don't see any, as in ANY quests or missions with regards on how will you stop the end of the world? And why the hell they put Valkyries as enemies, wherein the Norse mythology realm, they play a major role on recruiting Einherjars who will fight to the side of Odin to prevent Ragnarok from happening. And I don't even see Loki, the perpetrator of the upcoming twilight of the Gods. I bet the developers and the creator, Lee Myung-Jin really forgot to do their homework on keeping their references/inspirations straight enough.
Wrong grammar within their games.
Before I would like to say something, Japanese RPG also have their share of the flaw pie, but Korean MMORPGs' mistakes are dramatically evident on these one. I saw many wrongfully written quests, and one of the things that I can't get off my head is how they spell the word "Beginning" in the game Cabal Online. That just dropped my jaw, I mean, they can't spell a simple word like beginning, and instead they spelled it as "Beggining", what's that begging ning? WTF.. It is so damn stupid, my brain almost melted. Seriously.
Stupidity within their job classifications.
That is not a gunner, it's a heavy arms specialist.
THIS is a GUNNER.
Crusader - Paladin - Royal Guard? That doesn't make sense at all! Isn't it more appropriate if it's a Templar or Templar Knight?
I really don't get it why they have to screw up their job description on their games way. They fail in this department miserably, I mean, they are all on the top of the line. For example, Ragnarok Online's holy warrior transition. Bear with me, Crusader, Paladin, then a Royal Guard? Royal Guard? As in guard of the royal family? Heck, they haven't heard of a Templar, you know from the Knight's Templar, the servant of the Church during the Dark Ages to take over the Holy Land? It really doesn't make any sense at all, and that goes to show that they really don't know what they are doing, or if they really intended to make grave mistakes like these. Shame, shame.
Personal Thoughts:
I admit I played these games, but if you're going to ignore these facts and you encountered someone and debated to him/her about your gaming knowledge, you might be screwed up in the end. You have to face these facts, and look outside of the box you've been comfortable with, if the game doesn't want to be corrected, at least in your mind, correct it for yourself. With that all being said and done, you will benefit from it, and you'll be better to yourself. That is all for now. Always have fun, because that is gaming is all about!
Good times, good times. That's all I am thinking when looking back and reading these mangas. Wow, those are the days that things are still wholesome, and by that, I mean all the the slightly pervertive wholesomeness of these Japanese mangas. I cannot help to resist to smile and laugh at times when there are awkward moments when ladies and the male protagonist are in somewhat in a very tight and a little sensual situation.
Sure, there are many other mangas that offer this kind of pleasure, but nothing beats the first right? Like your first kiss, your first.... You know where I am heading. With that being said, it's every male nerds to be surrounded with girls with the beauties of Aya Toujo, Nishino Tsukasa, and Satsuki Kitaoji from Ichigo 100%, and Iori Yoshizuki from I"s. Well if you don't believe me, take a look the pictures about, or if that didn't convince you, these pictures might change your mind:
Iori Yoshizuki
Aya Toujo
You can look but you can't touch, LOL I'm just playing around, we all know that they're not real. But going back to the topic at hand, I've watched ecchi themed animes too like Ladies vs. Butlers, Rosario + Vampire, Suzuka, Kimi Kiss, Hatsukoi Limited etc, I could go on and on, but nothing beats the first thing you've seen, and it's quite evident, you're reading at it.
Well, you can call me a weaboo, because I really AM(Muwahahaha!), but looking at things inside out, it's really not that bad, I mean, we also have some "ecchi" moments too, but always turns for the disastrous point, but the thing is, these kinds of things spice up our world, but in a double edged sword kind of way. It's a matter on how look unto these things. That's sums up my experience with these two ecchi manga/animes. And remember, there is a fine line between reality and fantasy, we could enjoy the best of both worlds, as long as we are sane enough to know the boundaries. Until next time!
Ah, the social taboos. Nerds versus the cool/jocks/"normal" people, whether it's in school, in public places, and nowadays even in gaming. True, game nerds like me are in the minority group, since gaming nowadays is all about ego and shit, but for us, it's a matter of enjoying the game and experimenting to get out of the conventional style. Which brings me to the issue I want to address, the battle of nerds and jocks even in gaming.
There are these group of people, actually most of them take gaming way too seriously, as if it's what makes them in the game also makes them the person they are in real life, which is damn stupidity on their part. I mean, who cares about how many bosses you've hunted down, but you cannot admit that you defeated it by your lonesome. Hypocrisy much?!
While we, the nerds, loves to explore the possibilities and lurk for information before entering such endeavour, and besides, it's the gaming experience that counts, and we don't likely to mix our online or any other games associated with ego and pride, to our real life. Yeah, we are called people with "no lives" but that's just a complete irony compare on how these "cool" people treat gaming.
In this world today, if you're following the trend you're "in" with the cool club, but if your thinking is different then you're alienated to the social caste. It works like that, and more likely to be a norm to be followed in the future of gaming. Kind of disappointing how this cycle really goes on for a while now, but I guess if no one will transgress these attitudes, it is more likely to happened.
All I can say is this, there is no such thing as "cool" in games, well I bet if Atari will rise from the grave again, and the cool people want to join the fray, that goes to show that these group of individuals are such attention leeches who sucks whatever is new. For game nerds like me, let's just enjoy every moment that we are playing, and always have fun, because that's what more important.
I've been hearing for so long, debates on what makes a game good or great? Most of the people nowadays say it's the graphics, there are minorities says it's the game play that counts, if it's a RPG, many people are saying it's all about the characters and their attitudes in the game. But, we cannot just choose one side of the coin right? But, with that being said, let's break it down into pieces, and it's up to you and I'll give my own side regarding the matter:
Graphics:
I just want to cite Final Fantasy XIII as an example on how graphics really improved into the 21st century, we went from single lines, to 8-bit, 16-bit etc, you know where I am heading. But graphics alone doesn't make the game, if that's the case, like other people are assuming and nagging, it's like you're reading a manga or a novel, without the gameplay, and you could not comprehend on what are you suppose to do without the story, or how a character in the game respond if he/she doesn't have any persona at all.
Game Play
True, Final Fantasy XIII supposedly to be on this list, but I don't want to be tagged as a fanboy, and I am not a fanboy, so I picked up Suikoden 2 instead. The gameplay is like where the concept of the auto combat system of FFXIII got its root, well at least in this game, you still need to put command into Auto so they can attack freely, unlike in Final Fantasy XIII where you can set the skills to be used, etc, when going auto combat. Suikoden's gameplay is like a leap forward into the RPG realm, and it's graphics where appealing to many audiences at the time. But without the graphics, and the characters' persona and the story, it would be like playing a board game without the board, and you're just represented by a piece.
Storyline
The beginning of the new leap in RPGs, Xenogears started it. With graphics that are outstanding, great gameplay, almost realistic characters, and what really stands out in this game is the story within the game. You'll never see a story this compelling and complex, unless you haven't played it. But does the story is the barometer of a good RPG? Well thinking about that fact, have you considered reading a novel? Not light novel, just a novel.
Characters
Sorry if I have to portray Rydia from Final Fantasy IV here, but just for the sake of proving my view on this matter. Characters, are an integral part of a game, especially in RPGs. Well, if we're going to think for a minute and let that sink that in, have you ever admired a celebrity, only based on what he/she is portraying in a movie or a show? It's seems to be a stretch to compare it together, but look at it that perspective.
Personal Thoughts:
True, we gamers chose a certain factor when playing a RPG time and again, and we prefer one thing to another. But, no matter what, they're all important variables that makes a role playing game great. As for me, what really important, aside from the 4 things I've mentioned are the replay value, the enjoyment and the wonderful memories that the game gave to me, not to mention, there are also lessons to be learned if you will look at it deeply.
That is all for now... I hope I shed a light into the matter and brought out anything that I could lay on the table. Always have fun!
I haven't seen a good or decent anime in a long time, so I really wanted to wait for Fall because I usually feel that the autumn feeling is better, and animes that was released on spring and summer, for me at least didn't deliver the goods. Of course with that being said, I'm really happy that a new set of animes are lined up to be aired really soon in Japan, and will be translated a week or so after they were in the airwaves. Pretty cool!
Anyway, among the list, the one caught my eye first is Fate/Zero. Honestly, as a Fate series fan, I've been looking forward for this installment in the series, where it was taken place before Emiya Shirou grew up to be a master himself, and where Emiya Kiritsugu was one of the participants in the Holy Grail War, and Saber is his guardian on this upcoming duel to destruction to get the Holy Grail(touche).
Also, Persona 4: The Animation, I'm quite a fan of the Shin Megami Tensei series too, and have been wanting to play the online game Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine, so refreshing my memory by watching this anime would really a great welcome for me. Of course, with that being said, I already foresaw a high-octane action as present to the Persona games I've played, and of course deep story line as well too.
Shakugan no Shana III, this would be the final installment? Ok, that is somehow disappointment because I'm somewhat hooked on the story of the anime, but I guess good things must come to an end. To heck with it, sometimes good things are better when it's finished, like Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood and Moshidora.
Sad to say, there are no ecchi/romance/high school animes that I really crave on. I miss those, like Ichigo 100%, or I"s type of anime, it's not that I'm a pervert, well, sort of, but I really love that slight pervy feeling when watching beautiful girls. Goodness I'm such a weaboo, lol!
With that, I'm going to wait for winter 2011, and while I'm "hibernating" waiting these animes, I'm going to surf myself some more anime, the animes that I feel fit to my taste. That's all for now, and I hope you guys can have a great time......
I've been waiting for like eternity for the new season of NCIS, the original NCIS that is, so NCIS LA suck it! Haha! Jokes aside, I just watched the first episode of the latest season, actually a continuation of the final episode of their season 8, and it's quite surprising and amazed on what Anthony DiNozzo's secret "assignment" is, and with the patented dramatic flashbacks and all, realized that he's after one of Special Agent EJ Barrett's colleagues, and was tasked of somewhat kill him in sight, I don't know, but he ended up dead eventually.
I thought at first it was Ziva who was on that mission order, but thank goodness I'm so wrong about that. And the new SecNav is sure is scary, and really a person to watch at. And what's with the Watcher's Fleet and the Phantom-8 project by the Navy? And what's the new SecNav is up to? It's also a welcome addition that Kate Todd's sister showed up in this episode, and I hope she guested the future episodes too. Well, I hope I raised a few relevant questions on where is NCIS heading... I'm really, really excited for the upcoming installments of the series, so strap your heads in, or be prepared to be Gibbs' slapped!
Knowing the Shin Megami series quite well, the story and the game play really stands out, from the first game which is only a Japanese exclusive up to where I stopped playing, which is on the Playstation 2. The characters are well fleshed out, and with each new installment in the series presents a new style and a new concept story-wise.
Now thinking about it, this is the type of game that I've been craving for since I started on playing MMORPG, and I'm happy to say that I'm not one of those people think that the Korean MMORPG developers did a great job of defining RPG on what it is, because a lot of the people before the MMOG boom years ago knows what their games are, especially when it comes to RPG. I'm kind of surprised that there would be a game from Japan that would be released for the global gaming community to play and enjoy, and the fact that it came from Japan makes it more appealing. Hey, after all they released classic RPGs like the Final Fantasy series, Suikoden series and many other well-known and classics in the role playing game realm.
True, the Korean MMORPG started this wave of online gaming, but they are sub-par when it comes to the style and form that the Japanese RPGs are made of. Game play is plain given when playing a RPG, but you also have to consider the consistency of the storyline, and how the characters add up to the story, and how the characters are portrayed. You cannot call a game a RPG if a player couldn't submerge himself to the character he/she cannot relate to it. Imagine yourself without a face and without any emotions at all, roaming this world, that would be bland and boring. I'm not against South Koreans at all, but I'm stating how I really feel about the games they've released and will be releasing in the future.
Now that this game(Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine) is now available for the global audience and of course free to play(oh yeah! it is!), I really can see how will the Japanese enter into this business, and little by little, it's evident that they will dominate this department too, and it's going to be a battle of ideals, which is great for the sake of competition and how will the South Korean MMOG developers and the other major online game developers respond, let's find out.
But if you excuse me, I'm going to lurk in the Shin Megami Tensei: Imagine forums to get myself some tasty information about character build and character specialization.... Always have fun, and like what Roo from Clan of the Gray Wolf always says at the end of his 16-bit gem game review series, "There is no reset button.". Take care and keep on playing, enjoy every moment of it!
I'd never thought that I would see a day that there are people in the gaming world that would help humanity. I mean, who would have thought that these so called people like me who have "no life" according to most of the people would help to crack the mystery of the AIDS enzyme. I guess this will change after this discovery, and for those who says that playing games are just a waste of time and will make your brain rot.... Ha-ha! In your faces!
And besides, playing games aren't just games, they serve as stress relievers too, and as for us nerds, a comfortable way to hide our selves from the people who think they are better than us, and the games makes us value more of characters like hard work, perseverance, and patience... Games are more than meets the eye, people, always bear that in mind.
So for those who are behind of this marvelous discovery, I would like to express my deepest gratitude and my overwhelming respect to you! You guys are now one of my newest heroes of today! Keep on playing, dudes and dudettes!
Goodness, with updates every 2 months, waiting for the latest chapter of the Claymore manga requires patience, lots of it.Well so far, I've read about Dietrich's decision to follow the path Deneve and other survivors from the War at Pieta, and that is to crush the organization, after reminisce and realized that what happened in Rabona also happened in her home town. Yup, it was all the organization's ploy to plant Awakened beings in towns so they could emerge and be taken advantages of.
Also, I find these two warriors to be beautiful, heck, even their names matches their appearance.
Meet Dietrich(top picture) and Anastasia(bottom picture), well, aside from Dietrich, Anastasia also realized what the Organization is up to, but she's in denial that she wants to help Deneve and the others to crush them once and for all. Even greater news is, that Miria is still alive, I didn't imagine that she's going to be alive after she was cut into parts when she confronted the Organization head on, and alone, which is very suicidal.I guess the anti-warrior didn't kill her at all, which is awesome. But by doing that, she moved many warriors that once followed the Organization, are now opposing them. And it's also surprising that Raki was imprisoned, but escaped thought when the rebellion is still raging within the group and somewhat helping the other children who is being experimented by the Organization to be the next generation of warriors.
And here's a shocker, Daa was talking about in the past chapters that he is doing this "project" that he often says "chosen according to their strength". I'm so confused just by thinking and deciphering it myself, but when they were released, and showed up to fight the rebel warriors, I wasn't expecting that they are all former number 1's, and were resurrected(WTH?!). Damn...... I mean, I'm that shocked, but I'm glad that Teresa wasn't touched by that douche and make Miria and the other warriors who defected more worried, because 3 number 1's in a fight like that, the odds are almost impossible to win. And I hope Miria don't lose her sanity and consciousness now that she's fighting Hysteria the Elegant. She's getting over limit, so I hope she could repress that really soon. That is all for now, I'm waiting, Nagi Yorihiro!
And oh, for those Claymore fans that are still hoping and wishing for season 2, that will never happened. Just think about the mangaka's situation, he was not credited enough... ^_^
Wild ARMs, Final Fantasy 6, and Xenogears, examples of many JRPG's that are considered and revered by many gamers around the world to be classics. I wonder and amazed, on how these Japanese game developers able to establish such story plots, great gameplay, and of course, the nostalgia value after years they went mainstream into the market, not to mention the replay value of these games. But that makes me wonder, with the boom of the online gaming business and many other shits, I wonder what are the South Koreans are playing back when these games are in their height of popularity? Sure they might have Starcraft, Warcraft and Counterstrike back then, but I asked some South Koreans if they played any "RPGs" prior to their "hit"(not actually a hit, it's pathetic) Ragnarok Online, almost all of them said that they don't know games that are from Japan.
So with that being said, it's really a startling discovery, I mean, I bet they didn't lay their eyes on consoles like NES, SNES, Playstation, Sega Saturn or other consoles, aside from Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii? That might be a prejudicial assumption, but thinking about it, they don't even heard of other classic games other than RPGs, like the first 4 Castlevania installments for the NES/SNES console, Double Dragon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles etc.? Hmmmm.... I really can't think of any other reasons why they don't really know about these games, and it is a shock for me. Because right now, there are many South Koreans living in the Philippines nowadays, and they are quite good at Filipino's favorite game, DOTA, and games like Starcraft, Warcraft, and even Tekken 6(I'm not expert so don't give me an invitation for a game ok?), and people in the gaming community know the South Koreans for their online games, and that's it, aside from having the laziest citizens in the world(ask the statistics, then be the judge).
Again, this is only based on my observation, and if you're curious, if you know any South Koreans, ask them if they know any games aside from the games they grew up with. It's not that hard, and besides, if they answer the same statement that I presented, then I might be right. But thank goodness I grew up playing the games that are nostalgic and very memorable, and that what makes a game a classic. Always take care, and have fun!
Well I guess, Lelouch and Code Geass fanboys and fangirls would be mad if I compare their beloved Lelouch Lamperouge to Conan Edogawa's clever and analytic wits. Let's face it, they are both brilliant, but Lelouch is nothing without his Geass, and he couldn't pull his tactics without using his powers on controlling various people to implement it. Yes, he's a genius in chess, but sometimes, it's not appropriate to use the chess reference for your tactics, because war is not all about attrition and elimination, but it's all about dominating your enemy with the least casualties as possible. Lelouch ignores that fact in his strategies.
Conan on the other hand, uses his mind, calculating every possible scenario on solving the case, with the help of evidences, the conditions of the environment, and the statements of every possible suspect. True that he uses a facade of an adult person and copying the voice of it, but he doesn't use any fancy mumbo-jumbo to get the job done, and oh, he's also quite a good striker too, with his top of the line kick on anything, he kicks it like Maradona going for a goal.
I think in terms of battle of wits for me, these two should have a face off, but I think the die hard Code Geass fans would say that their Lelouch is genius, as he is good looking, while Conan is a little brat who talks big(really?) and could be a distraction to the case at hand. Just consider this: Watch the two and compare, and think it for yourself, who is the brilliant of the two. It's up to you....
I belong to a family of the middle class, and at the time that I have my transition of renting to play Playstation 2, emulators are my friends in terms of playing some classics that I grew up with in the past, and the same time opening new frontiers for me like playing the underrated games that had great gameplay and concrete storyline.
I know, most of you people would be saying things like "Using emulators are kind of piracy" or statements adhering the hate over these, but look unto this perspective. Do you think the game companies like Nintendo, Sony, Sega and many other consoles are still available in the market up this date? It's not, but if you want to buy those old consoles, there are sites like Amazon or E-bay that sells them for a huge amount, of course excluding the shipment of that console, not to mention the game cartridges or CDs, that are also expensive.
True, it is piracy at some points, but there are gamers out there that don't have the luxury of buying these consoles, or the games for those consoles, because of the cost. I know the playing value of using an emulator is not the same as you really play them on their consoles, but for now, if you really want to play and fuel the fire of your gaming desire. It's not that bad, and the game companies, are not against it, so it means emulators must be legitimate.
I have bunch of emulators on my computer and I pick up games like Final Fantasy II(IV), Ogre Battle: March of the Black Queen, Vagrant Story, and many other RPGs that are well known and least known and I'm really thankful for emulators, because of it, I might not discover games like Terranigma, Koudelka, Treasures of Rudra and many other rare and unique games.
I promise to purchase every console and games as possible in my lifetime, and if possible, I would love to play every RPGs that are available from the NES era to today's console. But for now, I would resort to emulators, and thank goodness they are here to stay. ^_^
Ahoy! I be a pirate and gonna kick these land born swacallawags on the planks of me ship to be eaten by sharks, arrgh! Tell ye maties to join the army to plunder our be selves' with spoils and plunder those who will ever opposes us! ARRRRGGHHHH!!!!!!!
I was backtracking Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood, and as I'm watching it, does anyone think that there are elements that happened in parallel to one of the turning points in mankind's history, World War II, like I do. Sounds preposterous right? Yeah you might call that, but I recall one scene that one of the Fuhrer's loyal subordinate inviting over Major Olivia Mira Armstrong to sacrifice Briggs and its army so they, together with "Father" could make a utopian country by using the power of the philosopher's stone. And that scene that Father said that he is greater than "God" and he could make a perfect world, a world where he will rule over for a long while, in exchange of many lives, and only his followers will live under his wing. Scary yes, because back in World War II, Hitler and the Third Reich are shouting the same parallel thoughts as the main antagonists in FMA Brotherhood are trying achieve.
I know, anime shouldn't be taken serious, but like Final Fantasy Tactics that tackles the power struggle and the desire of the Glabados Church to reign over Ivalice, seems to rhyme over Vatican's aim to take control over world's government and rule it over, Full Metal Alchemist also goes into that same vortex. It is like the author of this anime is kind of teaching us a lesson that we should not turn our backs from the past, instead learn from history and make sure it will happened again in the futures to come. I truly love Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood for this, and I applaud the effort of Hiromu Arakawa, for inserting subliminal facts about history of the second World War in his masterpiece. For that, I really thank you, I learned so much.....
I literally jumped out like a rabbit on a caffeine addiction when I read about this article on Kotaku. I said "I said, a NEW Suikoden installement? OH MY GOD! I can't wait to see that!", but it was short lived when I read it more, and it's only going to be Japan-clusive. Damn Konami, why you have to do this to us, the fans of the Suikoden franchise have been waiting for this game after Suikoden V, don't you people have any idea how much we've been craving for this, and you people are going to let us drool in our demise? Please Konami, I know people from your company would love to give us, the non-Japanese speaking gamers some Suikoden love, unlike what Squaresoft(Dual Orb, Rudra no Hihou, Mother 3), and other game developers have done to us.
So please, hear us out, release this outside of Japan, and translate it into English! We, the gamers from Asia, Europe and Americas are pleading that you should lend us your two ears and listen that we deserve that game! Konami, don't abandon us like this!
Final Fantasy VII and VIII, Cloud, Squall, Sonic and many other "icons" as they call it, are all over the place now. I mean, they are like a bad case of wildfire in the gaming forest.
No offense to the other dedicated fans, but are you people are so narrow minded that you think it's healthy for yourself and for the gaming community to act like the game you're obsessively love is the one should be played because according to your bias opinion is one of the best games around? Oh come on, wake up! Final Fantasy 7 and 8 are the best and classic RPGs of all time, that's dull and downright moronic! Sonic is better than Mario? Please! Everybody knows that Mario is one of the classic icons of gaming, and if you don't know about that fact, use Google to search for his information! You, yeah, you fanboys! You disgusts not only me, but the whole gaming community, don't be so hard-headed! It's not right to have an unconditional bias over a game, you people should be open to new ideas and new games, but being obsessed with something or someone doesn't make you a "better" gamer above everyone else! If you don't get that, then read this: "Suck it, you ridiculous fanboys!"
Going back to my childhood, I used to get beaten up physically and mentally by people, at school and outside of our home because I'm "different" from what a "normal" person should act. My refuges to the these real struggles are books, video games, and with the late addition of anime and manga reading online.
Back then, I'm only playing games like Super Mario Bros., Zelda, Bomberman, Contra, Castlevania, and many other classics under a Nintendo Famicom that have built-in games inside the console. But that changed when I got my hands on the Super Nintendo.
It's been over a decade since it broke down and gave up on me, but the fact that it changed my life as a person and the start of me as a gamer didn't go to waste, because there are lots of sweet memories that are still engraved to my heart that I will treasure forever, especially when games like Final Fantasy II(IV) changed my viewpoint in games.
Yes, the story of Final Fantasy II(IV) would be like every man's dream, saving the world for the sake of the people he cares about and for his loved one, but it's moment like that makes me smile, and I realized that I'm not playing a simple video game anymore, that involves scores, rankings, or on how skillful you are, you're playing a book that have morals on it if you're going to look at it deeply. Sounds silly and ridiculous, but it's quite true. Back then I don't know the term RPG, nor I don't know that there are tons of genres of video games out there, and from there on, I crave for more and more of RPGs, and I didn't care if it's made from Japan or from US or Europe(EU today), it is because I want to savor up the stories like I slowly submerge myself into reading books by Rudyard Kipling, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain and Lewis Carroll.
From there on, I told myself that I become a gamer, and I know for a fact that I only scratched the surface, but what the heck?! The game itself was my defining moment, I know the game has been remaked, but I play it up on my ZNES emulator time and again to take me to that moment and savor it once more, and I'm not afraid nor turning back on my roots from gaming. That is an assurance.....
Note that this is only on my piece of opinion, but in the world of video games, especially RPGs where the usual protagonists are male, there are also women that I think gives a great name towards the ladies. I mean, like the very well known video game male protagonists(Cloud*yuck*, Squall*duh*, Ramza*oh yeah!* for example), women also have their share of characters that surely(for me at least), deserves to be in this realm. Having a negative stereotype really won't do nowadays, as it's everybody's ball game, in many aspects in life, and that also includes video game culture. Let me enumerate them, and remember, these are only my personal opinion, I'm ready for flames, trolls, or whatever.
Lenneth Valkyrie - Valkyrie Profile(PSX) and Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume(Nintendo DS)
Probably one of the most recognizable female protagonists in video game so far, her appearance in the game Valkyrie Profile showed that even females could take charge and lead her mission into successful accomplishment. And good thing tri-Ace did their homework nicely for really sticking to their reference(Norse Mythology FTW! In your face, Ragnarok Online fanboys), especially when it comes in representing a Valkyrie. The names way off to the Valkyries in the Norse Myth, yes, but it's not that bad because they kept most of the references intact.
And oh, did I mentioned that her finishing move is as elegant as her appearance?
Freya - Valkyrie Profile(PSX), Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria(PS2) and Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume(Nintendo DS)
Second to Lenneth in the Valkyrie Profile series, she's also a very well known character in the video game realm. Of course, knowing Freya from its Norse myth roots, she's the goddess of fertility, but she's one fierce and capable woman of crushing any creatures with her power. I'd say she has the most powerful single hit special attack in video game history, ever! And I'll even argue this fact until I die, and if you don't believe me, you better watch this and prepare for your jaws to be dropped, muwahahaha!!!
Valkyrie Profile - Freya's PWS - Ether Stirke
Cassandra Alexander - Soul Calibur II(PS2), Soul Calibur III(PS2), Soul Calibur IV(PS3, Xbox 360) and Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny(PS3, Xbox 360)
To tell you, I'm kind of have a crush on her, oh wait, I do have a crush on her!(Weaboo, LOL) The fact that she is portrayed as a courageous yet rash fighter is definitely a thumbs up at least in my opinion on the stereotype of most people, especially male gamers(like me before but when I start to grew up, it vanishes, thank you maturity ^_^)that ladies shouldn't fight because they are so delicate and so "girly" they don't even deserve to be in the arena. Now times have changed, and many gamers, especially male, prefer female characters like Cassandra because they are struck by her style and her fighting spirit too, if you're going to look at their story closely of course.
Asuka Kazama - Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection(PS2) and Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion(PS3, XBOX 360)
I have to admit, seeing her for the first time in the Tekken 5 and onward to Tekken 6, I'm like dumbstruck. She actually reminds me of Jun Kazama(it's her auntie, as you might say), fighting style wise. I've read many things about her in Tekken forums that she's the embodiment of sexiness and strength, and the fact that she had this aggressive personality, to confront Jin for destroying her father's dojo and injuring him, is definitely something that a female should be proud of.
Lili Rochefort - Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection(PS2) and Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion(PS3, Xbox 360)
Don't be dumb strucked by her charm and beauty, because like in a song "Every Rose has its Thorn", and yeah, she can make you sleep in your longest sleep. Lili is one of these video game girls that has that stereotypical feminine characteristics, but it's only a facade. Her fighting style is somewhat a representation on how she looks like and show she is raised, elegant, and yet very effective and flashy at the same time. And she's the only one I see so far fighting in a dress(no perversion here so, keep it to yourself) that really can carry herself, and yeah, she's only 16 years old, so to all teenage ladies out there, follow her example!(Ha-cha-cha!)
Aya Brea - Parasite Eve(PS1), Parasite Eve 2(PS2), and Parasite Eve: 3rd Anniversary(PSP)
She's cold, sarcastic, yet beautiful, and she's not even human(O_O), but she's more than human despite that. Aya Brea is one of these female characters that usually, most of the time don't take people seriously. She always keeps things in a professional scale, because of her background(FBI anyone?) but she has this motherly love towards children, and really kind too to people at times.
But you don't want to mess with her because she's really good at firearms, and you don't want to get your head blown off your neck and I'm serious about that. Definitely one of the female protagonists that really gives a great plus to the feminine side.
Personal remarks:
That's all I have in mind for now, I know that Samus Aran should be included, so as Ayane from Tenchu, Jill Valentine and Claire from Resident Evil and many others, but knowing these characters well enough makes them top on my list on how magnificent they are to the video game culture and our female counterparts. Again, I'm open for debate or argument, but let's keep it civil. Always have fun, everybody!
