http://onlysp.com/seasons-after-fall-review/
Friday, June 9, 2017
Seasons After Fall Review
Friday, October 7, 2016
Writing Update: Nostalgic Trends (Including ReCore!)
Well well, it's been a little longer than I'd like here on the blog, but I suppose that's how it is when you start a full time job. Thankfully, I haven't stopped writing altogether, and here's a selection of what I've posted around the web.
From Rare to 'ReCore': Can Xbox Attract Nintendo Fans?
This story was written before the release of ReCore but I like to think it's interesting as a history of Microsoft's efforts to create an identity that might attract old-school game fans.
Four Games That Could Make Stronger Movies Than Uncharted
Fun fact: shortly after finishing this story, the fourth entry, Monster Hunter, was confirmed to be an actual Hollywood project by Capcom. I'm still trying to campaign to write the sucker.
10 Single Player Games to Look Out For In October
October is a month so packed with games that I changed up our usual format and went with ten games instead of five.
Four Nostalgic Trends We Want To See (That Aren’t From The 90s)
Being Gen-Y, I have plenty of nostalgia for the nineties in games, but here are four trends that would be great to come back that aren't strictly about nineties nostalgia.
From Rare to 'ReCore': Can Xbox Attract Nintendo Fans?
This story was written before the release of ReCore but I like to think it's interesting as a history of Microsoft's efforts to create an identity that might attract old-school game fans.
Four Games That Could Make Stronger Movies Than Uncharted
Fun fact: shortly after finishing this story, the fourth entry, Monster Hunter, was confirmed to be an actual Hollywood project by Capcom. I'm still trying to campaign to write the sucker.
10 Single Player Games to Look Out For In October
October is a month so packed with games that I changed up our usual format and went with ten games instead of five.
Four Nostalgic Trends We Want To See (That Aren’t From The 90s)
Being Gen-Y, I have plenty of nostalgia for the nineties in games, but here are four trends that would be great to come back that aren't strictly about nineties nostalgia.
Friday, August 12, 2016
Writing Update: Telltale Episodic Games and Forgotten PS4 Exclusives
13 Properties We Would Like Telltale To Adapt Into Episodic Games
Here's a really fun article we put together at GoombaStomp (I wrote on Thunderbirds) about the television, movie and book properties we would like to see Telltale develop into episodic series.
Five Upcoming PS4 Exclusives You Might Have Forgotten About
Sony always seems to sign the weird and interesting platform exclusives -- whether they are actually good or not is another matter -- and some of them (like No Man's Sky) get much more press coverage than others. Here are some that haven't had as much time in the spotlight.
Here's a really fun article we put together at GoombaStomp (I wrote on Thunderbirds) about the television, movie and book properties we would like to see Telltale develop into episodic series.
Five Upcoming PS4 Exclusives You Might Have Forgotten About
Sony always seems to sign the weird and interesting platform exclusives -- whether they are actually good or not is another matter -- and some of them (like No Man's Sky) get much more press coverage than others. Here are some that haven't had as much time in the spotlight.
Thursday, August 11, 2016
Mini Review: The Shadow of the Torturer (The Book of the New Sun #1)
In the past I've made no secret of my appreciation of the wilted beauty of Dark Souls: a video game portrait of high fantasy that has come to ruin; regal, majestic worlds that have met with slow, inevitable decay.
It seems grim -- to want to see magical kingdoms hurtling through their end times -- but ultimately the death of an imaginary realm fits into the greater story that we like to hear: the promise of rebirth. We like to anticipate something wonderful beyond the spectre of destruction. I will be writing more on that topic later on, but for now understand that this is the context in which I approached Gene Wolfe's The Book of the New Sun (which I discovered during my search for more fiction like Dark Souls).
Taking place on "Urth", a world under a dying sun, the series tells of Severian. He is taken in as a baby by the Guild of Torturers, in an alternative version of Buenos Aires known as Nessus. Throughout the first book, there are hints that there will be a "New Sun", signifying the end of Urth and the beginning of something else. I will leave the rest of the details of the plot, as -- much like Dark Souls -- part of the fun for many fans is figuring out what is actually going on. Reading the setup for the rest of the series spoiled me on several big plot reveals to come, and I don't wish to propagate that.
As to this book, The Shadow of the Torturer is an intriguing first step into the greater journey Severian undertakes, written in a lyrical style that is (believe me) far too difficult to replicate. Gene Wolfe must be commended for presenting just the right amount of information about the world, the events of the plot, the backstory, and even the apparent intelligence of the protagonist in tantalisingly vague terms. Each discovery only grows the mystery as you learn more about the world, with the reader's mind filling in the blanks.
Unfortunately, this vagueness also makes the book a difficult read at best. With only the promise of further ornate mystery to come, there isn't much to hook the reader except for Wolfe's style of prose. Fans of Dark Souls are probably the best prepared for this solemn doling out of story breadcrumbs, especially as the characters also act and think in a very alien manner. Readers seeking high-octane action or quality drama will be disappointed.
I enjoyed The Shadow of the Torturer as literary example of wilted beauty, and will be continuing through the series. However, I am wary that the narrative's opacity might begin to drag, because just like in movies, I come to a story for the characters and the plot, not just aesthetics and feelings.
I listened to the book on audio. The performance was good enough to elevate the book from 3 / 5 up to 4 / 5 stars.
Monday, August 8, 2016
Harmony of Heroes: The Legend of Zelda
You can download this massive album here. As it is fan work and therefore free, I have no problem recommending that you search the track names on YouTube if you can't download them.
Previous post: the Donkey Kong tracks
The Legend of Zelda series introduced me to high fantasy, steampunk, and 3D adventure games all at the same time -- so as you might guess, I have a lot to say about the music of Zelda. This had better be good!
17. High Roller's Castle (Georg-Christoph Schlee)
For me, at least, having the hiss and pop of vinyl opening this track sets a distinctive (and very good) mood. From then on we enjoy an improvisational, high-class lounge interpretation of the original Hyrule theme for piano and xylophone. Just like Sunset at Mushroom Castle, I like how this style pays homage to Nintendo's jazzy roots while also sounding rather unlike most of the video games.
18. El Pájaro es la Palabra (Laura Intravia feat. Davey Patterson)
Spanish name, snappy flamenco guitar, seductive colours? Surely this must be Gerudo Valley, right? Nope.
For the second time in a row, we hear it first through a vinyl filter (probably to establish a certain prestige or maturity) but it isn't Gerudo Valley at all, it's Dragon Roost Island!
This theme from The Wind Waker was so good that they included it without changes in Brawl. With such expectations, you expect a certain level of quality from a new version, and this track does not disappoint. Jumping from wind to strings to wind again, with plenty of scene-setting percussion (I particularly enjoy the maracas) El Pájaro es la Palabra makes you want to get up and dance, without getting too energetic and ruining the melody.
Oh and don't forget the bass guitar -- priceless.
19. Behind Pillars of Marble (Chris Hunter)
Now, the polar opposite, this epic track takes some of the series' least celebrated music (Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link is still an outlier and wasn't scored by Koji Kondo) in one of its most exciting forms (the Melee track was my first exposure to it) and plays around for over six minutes. Not much more to say except that they are fantastic melodies shown off in an excellent fashion.
20. Wind in the Sail (Soleviio)
I have to admit that, at first, I wasn't a fan of this very synthy version of The Great Sea from The Wind Waker, but it definitely grew on me. The original is a fun, adventurous piece, so the decisions to go first in a more relaxed, sparkly direction, and then secondly add in an electric guitar, are strange ones. On the whole, it works, but it isn't my favourite interpretation.
21. Mirror of Twilight (Sean Haeberman)
Another great fantasy piece, this time using the extremely fertile ground of Twilight Princess's main theme. Each component of the melodic identity in the theme is given its own style, meaning that rather than just a ride across Hyrule Field, we are treated with royalty, danger, adventure and eventually a very heroic rendition of the original Hyrule theme. It isn't perfect, but it captures the game it's referencing much better than the more experimental Wind in the Sail did.
22. Cucco Revenge Squad (Jonathan Peros)
For a track called Cucco Revenge Squad, you might be surprised to hear the harp-like-guitar sounds often associated with Lake Hylia at the start. However, very soon we get the Dark Mountain theme from A Link to the Past, combined with little filigrees that acknowledge the flamenco and country/Western feel that is always bubbling below the surface of Zelda.
I can't get enough of the Dark World music in A Link to the Past, so combining that with Westerns is a win for me.
23. Saria's Fairy-Go-Round (ZipZipper)
Most of the themes from Ocarina of Time were designed to fit together, so it's interesting to hear one performed inside the wheelhouse of another. Here we have Saria's Song, but at first you might think you're listening to the Song of Storms, given the carnival atmosphere. Your ears don't deceive you; it's just yet another ascending, three-four time melody played in a music box. I think it's pretty fun, if ultimately not as memorable as the pieces that flank it.
24. Beyond the Chasm (Erik Sceri)
With deep colours and several core themes of Zelda tossing around at the start, it's another bait-and-switch with regard to which track is being adapted here. Then, soon enough, we are offered an incredibly cinematic rendition of the Gerudo Valley theme.
Like with Dragon Roost Island, the melody is so good that any adaptation of the original needs to work hard to stand out. And this track certainly works hard -- if it weren't for the slightly awkward time signature change in the middle, I'd award this piece top marks.
My personal highlights are the jaunty, piratical strings that end the A section, the airy pipes in the B section and the subtle but strong brass around the three quarter mark.
25. Tal Tal Ranger (Mesmonium)
What if Zelda were a really, really good Sonic level? Or perhaps this is just what you hear when you're at the Hyrule racetrack. No matter, this track is over in a flash but it leaves a big impression as an argument for why adapting 8-bit music can absolutely rock (or jive, or roll).
26. Tune of Tempests (Stephan Wells feat. Christopher Woo)
Queen Rutela's theme, itself an adaptation of the Serenade of Water, sets a melancholy stage for what is ultimately more action packed than you might expect. It's like something Andrew Lloyd Webber might write for A Midsummer Night's Dream, if it was also an action movie.
Um ... can someone please make that, like, now?
27. Mechanical Steed (Steampianist)
I was always going to be harsh on a track that starts with what might be my favourite Zelda piece ever, the Morricone-inspired The Hidden Village, so let's start with the positives.
The steampunk/weird-West angle works, mostly, since Zelda has always been a little off-kilter, and I always wished that they used trains in a core series title (rather than just Spirit Tracks). I love that the melody itself still gets to shine, and the twangy guitar walks the line of serious and silly quite well.
However -- in the middle section this track takes a left-turn into Kookyville with a theme that I can't place my finger on. It's not poorly done, it just misses the point of the original in my opinion. I don't expect a cool gunslingin' adventure to suddenly turn into vaudeville, but that's kind of what it feels like.
Still, the arranger Steampianist is very talented and clearly had a lot of fun putting this track together, so I'm glad it exists -- it's just like Wind in the Sail, where the style just doesn't do it for me.
28. Dark Horizons (Sam Dillard)
A great way to end the Zelda tracks, with the groundbreaking and epic Dark World theme from A Link to the Past, and a liberal sprinkling of Dark Mountain too. The vocals are a perfect addition, with the other instruments doing their best to elevate what is already excellent material.
The Zelda tracks of Harmony of Heroes are so much fun, whether you're a fan picking up references or just want to listen to some great fan music. Despite some tonal divergences, they do a good job of celebrating the source, as well as being a credit to the musicians who took on such tough work as re-arranging beloved tunes. But there's no stopping, because next time we have a less-well-known series, but with just as beloved music, Metroid.
I can't wait.
The Legend of Zelda series introduced me to high fantasy, steampunk, and 3D adventure games all at the same time -- so as you might guess, I have a lot to say about the music of Zelda. This had better be good!
17. High Roller's Castle (Georg-Christoph Schlee)
For me, at least, having the hiss and pop of vinyl opening this track sets a distinctive (and very good) mood. From then on we enjoy an improvisational, high-class lounge interpretation of the original Hyrule theme for piano and xylophone. Just like Sunset at Mushroom Castle, I like how this style pays homage to Nintendo's jazzy roots while also sounding rather unlike most of the video games.
18. El Pájaro es la Palabra (Laura Intravia feat. Davey Patterson)
Spanish name, snappy flamenco guitar, seductive colours? Surely this must be Gerudo Valley, right? Nope.
For the second time in a row, we hear it first through a vinyl filter (probably to establish a certain prestige or maturity) but it isn't Gerudo Valley at all, it's Dragon Roost Island!
This theme from The Wind Waker was so good that they included it without changes in Brawl. With such expectations, you expect a certain level of quality from a new version, and this track does not disappoint. Jumping from wind to strings to wind again, with plenty of scene-setting percussion (I particularly enjoy the maracas) El Pájaro es la Palabra makes you want to get up and dance, without getting too energetic and ruining the melody.
Oh and don't forget the bass guitar -- priceless.
19. Behind Pillars of Marble (Chris Hunter)
Now, the polar opposite, this epic track takes some of the series' least celebrated music (Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link is still an outlier and wasn't scored by Koji Kondo) in one of its most exciting forms (the Melee track was my first exposure to it) and plays around for over six minutes. Not much more to say except that they are fantastic melodies shown off in an excellent fashion.
20. Wind in the Sail (Soleviio)
I have to admit that, at first, I wasn't a fan of this very synthy version of The Great Sea from The Wind Waker, but it definitely grew on me. The original is a fun, adventurous piece, so the decisions to go first in a more relaxed, sparkly direction, and then secondly add in an electric guitar, are strange ones. On the whole, it works, but it isn't my favourite interpretation.
21. Mirror of Twilight (Sean Haeberman)
Another great fantasy piece, this time using the extremely fertile ground of Twilight Princess's main theme. Each component of the melodic identity in the theme is given its own style, meaning that rather than just a ride across Hyrule Field, we are treated with royalty, danger, adventure and eventually a very heroic rendition of the original Hyrule theme. It isn't perfect, but it captures the game it's referencing much better than the more experimental Wind in the Sail did.
22. Cucco Revenge Squad (Jonathan Peros)
For a track called Cucco Revenge Squad, you might be surprised to hear the harp-like-guitar sounds often associated with Lake Hylia at the start. However, very soon we get the Dark Mountain theme from A Link to the Past, combined with little filigrees that acknowledge the flamenco and country/Western feel that is always bubbling below the surface of Zelda.
I can't get enough of the Dark World music in A Link to the Past, so combining that with Westerns is a win for me.
23. Saria's Fairy-Go-Round (ZipZipper)
Most of the themes from Ocarina of Time were designed to fit together, so it's interesting to hear one performed inside the wheelhouse of another. Here we have Saria's Song, but at first you might think you're listening to the Song of Storms, given the carnival atmosphere. Your ears don't deceive you; it's just yet another ascending, three-four time melody played in a music box. I think it's pretty fun, if ultimately not as memorable as the pieces that flank it.
24. Beyond the Chasm (Erik Sceri)
With deep colours and several core themes of Zelda tossing around at the start, it's another bait-and-switch with regard to which track is being adapted here. Then, soon enough, we are offered an incredibly cinematic rendition of the Gerudo Valley theme.
Like with Dragon Roost Island, the melody is so good that any adaptation of the original needs to work hard to stand out. And this track certainly works hard -- if it weren't for the slightly awkward time signature change in the middle, I'd award this piece top marks.
My personal highlights are the jaunty, piratical strings that end the A section, the airy pipes in the B section and the subtle but strong brass around the three quarter mark.
25. Tal Tal Ranger (Mesmonium)
What if Zelda were a really, really good Sonic level? Or perhaps this is just what you hear when you're at the Hyrule racetrack. No matter, this track is over in a flash but it leaves a big impression as an argument for why adapting 8-bit music can absolutely rock (or jive, or roll).
26. Tune of Tempests (Stephan Wells feat. Christopher Woo)
Queen Rutela's theme, itself an adaptation of the Serenade of Water, sets a melancholy stage for what is ultimately more action packed than you might expect. It's like something Andrew Lloyd Webber might write for A Midsummer Night's Dream, if it was also an action movie.
Um ... can someone please make that, like, now?
27. Mechanical Steed (Steampianist)
I was always going to be harsh on a track that starts with what might be my favourite Zelda piece ever, the Morricone-inspired The Hidden Village, so let's start with the positives.
The steampunk/weird-West angle works, mostly, since Zelda has always been a little off-kilter, and I always wished that they used trains in a core series title (rather than just Spirit Tracks). I love that the melody itself still gets to shine, and the twangy guitar walks the line of serious and silly quite well.
However -- in the middle section this track takes a left-turn into Kookyville with a theme that I can't place my finger on. It's not poorly done, it just misses the point of the original in my opinion. I don't expect a cool gunslingin' adventure to suddenly turn into vaudeville, but that's kind of what it feels like.
Still, the arranger Steampianist is very talented and clearly had a lot of fun putting this track together, so I'm glad it exists -- it's just like Wind in the Sail, where the style just doesn't do it for me.
28. Dark Horizons (Sam Dillard)
A great way to end the Zelda tracks, with the groundbreaking and epic Dark World theme from A Link to the Past, and a liberal sprinkling of Dark Mountain too. The vocals are a perfect addition, with the other instruments doing their best to elevate what is already excellent material.
The Zelda tracks of Harmony of Heroes are so much fun, whether you're a fan picking up references or just want to listen to some great fan music. Despite some tonal divergences, they do a good job of celebrating the source, as well as being a credit to the musicians who took on such tough work as re-arranging beloved tunes. But there's no stopping, because next time we have a less-well-known series, but with just as beloved music, Metroid.
I can't wait.
Friday, August 5, 2016
Writing Update: Games of August and Games Ignored At E3
Single Player Games in August
Here are five interesting entries into the early beginning of the Season of Too Many Games. There are so many in August in fact, that I had to name some more at the bottom.
Games Ignored at E3 That Shouldn't Have Been
What it sounds like: these are the titles that were showcased at E3 but still managed to slip under the radar. By no means an exhaustive list, there are plenty more where these came from.
Here are five interesting entries into the early beginning of the Season of Too Many Games. There are so many in August in fact, that I had to name some more at the bottom.
Games Ignored at E3 That Shouldn't Have Been
What it sounds like: these are the titles that were showcased at E3 but still managed to slip under the radar. By no means an exhaustive list, there are plenty more where these came from.
Monday, July 11, 2016
Review: Warcraft
That's more like it!
Each year it's the same story: there are genre movies I like, genre movies I hate, and several that I thought I would enjoy but instead just end up being disappointed. And rather than the bad movies, the third category is the worst because articulating why something is disappointing to fans of a franchise is maddeningly difficult.
Movies like Days of Future Past, or the empty Oblivion, or even the recent Hobbit films, mostly enjoyed by my peers but relatively unimpressive are likely to make me question whether I really do enjoy movies, or if I'm just a grumpy, critical curmudgeon.
However, there is a fourth, much rarer type of movie that comes out every now and again that solves this problem. They can remind me why I love movies so much in the first place.
2016 has been unusually rich in this prize category: 10 Cloverfield Lane and April being two wonderful films, though entirely different. Now I can add Warcraft to that list.
Make no mistake: Warcraft is nowhere near to the level of quality that the movies above have reached. Like the similarly messy Prometheus, this is a franchise-starter that's filled to the brim with ideas but chopped up mercilessly to achieve an under-2-and-a-half-hours running time. By the end of the first hour, all of the little time-saving cuts add up, resulting in an unfortunate feeling of story whiplash.
If you can get over the pacing, Warcraft is creative, thrilling and thoroughly enjoyable, because, thankfully, the characters are nowhere near as doofy and lifeless as the cast of Prometheus. But before I dive into why Warcraft was so pleasing, let's take a look at the basic premise.
Based on the first game in the long running series, 1996 strategy title Warcraft: Orcs & Humans, the film portrays first contact between (you guessed it) Orcs and Humans. I have never played the games, but I gather that the story was originally a fairly basic "good guys, bad guys" affair -- one that Duncan Jones has expanded and re-interpreted into something less black-and-white.
Echoing 2014's Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, the true battle is against conflict itself, with the orc protagonist Durotan (Toby Kebbell, playing the inverse of his role in Apes) and human protagonist Lothar (Travis Fimmel, trying his hardest to be Viggo Mortensen) struggling to end the war before it begins. As you may have guessed, they might not be entirely successful in a series with "war" in the title.
So if you couldn't tell from my tone at the start, I really liked Warcraft and was willing to accept some of its flaws. There are a few that are unforgivable though: Lothar's son Callan is a characterless non-entity, robbing the human side's fatherhood story of any gravitas. Additionally, the greater cast is sorely lacking in age diversity: it seems like everyone on Azeroth was born within five years of one another (perhaps in an effort to represent the median age of World of Warcraft players?).
Still, while the human side has its complaints, it isn't enough to drag down the excellent orc story. The movie's high quality performance-capture animation brings to life creatures never before seen in "live-action" and, unusually for such depictions, I didn't immediately wish it was done with puppetry instead.
Toby Kebbell's Durotan is brilliantly portrayed: emotionally affecting and given some of the best dialogue in the film as he stands amid the sadly misled Orc Horde. The Horde is misled by the orc shaman Gul'dan, who has been twisted by evil "Fel Magic". As great a hero Durotan is, Gul'dan is a thoroughly terrifying villain, standing out in an otherwise brightly coloured fantasy film.
I have to mention the palette: even when it comes to the villains, it's much grander than your standard modern blockbuster, filled with glowing rings of magic and wide, unrealistic vistas (by which I mean fantastical, as they should be!). At times it made me wish I was watching an adaptation of any of the great fantasy novels of my adolescence, but even one step removed from them, the derivative world of Azeroth is like a breath of fresh air in a Hollywood dominated by superhero films.
The colours aren't the only visually interesting part, either. Duncan Jones has to be commended for his quietly audacious authorial voice: like George Lucas, his acting direction could use some work, but the creative ideas herein are presented unadulterated. Big special effects scenes, intimate character scenes, funny background events and well staged fights prove his talent. We would be privileged with a series of movies like this -- and the film's success in China particularly seems to suggest we will see at least the one sequel. Please, Legendary keep the same director at the helm!
Finally, I must restate the tragic evisceration of the theatrical cut of this film. By no means perfect, the original director's cut may not even be substantially better than this version, but at least it would have been complete. Even if Duncan Jones doesn't return for Warcraft 2, the least they can grant him is a release of his director's cut on home video.
Fresh, messy, colourful, impractical and layered, Warcraft gets 3.5 / 5 stars but with a strong recommendation to fantasy fans.
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