Archive for Dec, 2012

20 Dec

Best of 2012: Top 10 Game Cases

Posted by vagrantesque in Best of 2012, Games, Lists. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

YouLoveIt

Time to kick off my ambitious goal of presenting ten top tens of entertainment media in 2012. This is going to require an unprecedented time management effort, but hey, hopefully I’ve grown enough this year to meet the requirements. First up, something I’ve always paid perhaps a little too much attention to: videogame cases.

We live in an age where games are available as full digital downloads more readily than ever, but physical production is still plenty relevant. When you look at a game on a store shelf, a lot of things go through your mind, whether consciously or (more likely) subconsciously. Is the cover eye-catching? Does it stand out from its brethren? Does it give you an adequate idea of what the game will have you doing? Does it do something other than feature a man looking straight at you while striking a badass pose? All these things and more churned around in my mind before I could spit out this list of my top ten favourite game cases of 2012.

But the list doesn’t just take into account what the front cover of a game looks like; I’ve also considered the back, the spine and, where applicable, even the inside of the case. All facets of physical presentation have been accounted for. Yeah, I’m definitely a cool guy.

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VR BEST OF 2012 DISCLAIMER
This list represents my opinion only. I am not asserting any kind of superiority or self-importance by presenting it as I have. My opinion is not fact. If you actually agree with me 100%, that’s scary. You have been warned, fanboys.
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10. Assassin’s Creed III

Case_Assassin's

When compared to the cover art of the first four Assassin’s Creed games, one thing immediately stands out about the front of the ACIII case. Connor, the newest member of the Brotherhood of Assassins to be introduced to series fans, isn’t simply standing in an ominous pose with a hood over his head. No, he’s actually doing something, and something rather violent at that. That redcoat he has in his very capable grasp is not going to be breathing for much longer, or so the implication stands. The motion-blurred battlefield depicted in the background, complete with prototype American flag, adds to the kinetic excitement of the image, suggesting a history-rich experience well worth playing through.

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20 Dec

Best of 2012 Intro

Posted by vagrantesque in Best of 2012. Tagged: , , .

YouLoveIt

2012 has been the best year of my life thus far. This is mostly due to reasons that have no place on Vagrant Rant (as well as, indeed, the existence of Vagrant Rant itself), but there’s no denying that a quality selection of entertainment media played its part. If you had told me at the start of the year that I would be playing three new games consoles by its end, that The Avengers would out-perform The Dark Knight Rises at the box office or that a thirty-something Korean pop star would be nominated for TIME’s “Person of the Year”,  I would have looked at you with stunned disbelief.

Yet here we are, sitting less than a fortnight out from the end of another year (and on the eve of the supposed end of the world), getting all reflective and stuff on what has gone by. What better way to celebrate than with ten top ten lists? Well, I love that idea. In fact I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about it.

Let’s go.

18 Dec

Game Review: Pokemon White Version 2

Posted by vagrantesque in DS, Games. Tagged: , , , , , .

The DS’ swansong is a real beauty and it’s a relief to get the review for it up on Vagrant Rant, at last. I’ve been playing the game when I can ever since its October 11 release.

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Platform: DS
Developer: Game Freak
Rating: G
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FIRE!

That thing’s power is honestly beyond ridiculous.

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674 hours, 18 minutes.
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According to the in-game timer, that’s how many hours I have spent playing the first Pokemon White Version. As a gamer, the Pokemon franchise is my World of Warcraft. It is my Team Fortress 2, my Counter-Strike, my Minecraft. It is that one series that grabs the addictive part of my personality and doesn’t let go. So understand that when I review a Pokemon game, my opinion is slanted a certain way. I will probably be more forgiving than a more casual fan on some aspects of the game’s design, but I will also be harsher on others.

Having said that, Pokemon White Version 2 is the best and most complete Pokemon game I have ever played. There you go.

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16 Dec

Why I like K-Pop

Posted by vagrantesque in K-Pop, Music. Tagged: , , , .

Yep, it’s out in the open.

And we might as well get the hipster stuff out of the way: I was, like, totally into it before Gangnam Style.

There comes a time in every person’s life, after the dramas of adolescence have been left behind, when he or she rediscovers things from his/her childhood that, once upon a time, seemed like the greatest thing in the world but eventually became “uncool” to like as a teenager. Without the self-conscious tinted glasses of that awkward period, the young adult is more able to appreciate those entertainment properties that, while aimed at kids, are actually put together well enough to warrant enjoyment once more.

Of course this doesn’t apply to everyone, but it is one explanation for the popularity of Disney movies, TV shows like My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic and Adventure Time, as well as game series like Pokemon, among adult audiences.

While it isn’t directly analogous, a similar logic can be applied to explaining the relative Western popularity, or at least the inherent appeal, of a pop music phenomenon that is otherwise more than a little baffling. Of all non-English language musical outputs on the planet, none is enjoyed in quite as many countries as Korean pop or, as it is more commonly known, K-Pop.

Why? Well, for quite a few reasons, but few more prominent than the fact that at its core, it imitates a musical style that was popular when the young adults of today were kids.

Spice_brah

Man, I used to be obsessed with these girls.

Remember New Kids on the Block? Take That? Boyz II Men? The Backstreet Boys? N*Sync? Steps? The Spice Girls? S Club 7? God knows I do, and as it turns out, so does Korea. For some reason, after the early-to-mid ’90s had run their course and pop groups had fallen out of fashion in Britain and the United States, the fledgling Korean entertainment industry took their interpretation of the phenomenon and ran with it.

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15 Dec

It moves!

Posted by vagrantesque in Misc, Movies.

Vagrant Rant now supports video!

Yay!

To celebrate, here’s the latest and final trailer for Quentin Tarantino’s new film, Django Unchained, which we don’t get in Australia until next month.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5sks1-EGfw

SO keen.

10 Dec

Behind, Pt 2

Posted by vagrantesque in Games, Lists. Tagged: , , .

With last Saturday marking the last decent-sized game release of the year (Paper Mario), it’s about time to reflect on how misguidedly optimistic I was at the start of 2012 for game releases.

2012 has been an awesome year for video games, and even if it you are of the belief that it fell short of 2011 in terms of overall quality, it’s hard to argue that we’ve been treated to some fantastic titles. And a fair few delays.

So, just like I did with movies a few weeks back, I’m going to look back at that list I posted back in February, wherein I rolled out a list of my top ten most anticipated games of the year, without the knowledge that half of them wouldn’t hit in 2012 at all:

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9 Dec

Movie Review: Skyfall

Posted by vagrantesque in Movies. Tagged: , , , , , .

I saw this celebration of 50 years of James Bond the first Tuesday it was available. Suffice to say I was very pleasantly surprised.

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Starring: Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Judi Dench
Director: Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road)
Rating: M
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I never thought I would be comparing a James Bond film to a Batman one. Not in my wildest dreams. Yet here I am, having watched a sucker punch of a 007 film that quite possibly ranks as one of the best instalments in one of cinema’s longest-running sagas, doing just that. Emotional, lengthy and fraught with unpredictability, featuring great action scenes that for all their grandiose ambition don’t stick in your mind as much as the quieter character-driven interactions; yep, to say this movie wasn’t influenced even a little by Christopher Nolan would be a bit daft. Throw in a skin-crawling villain who has already been compared to Heath Ledger‘s Joker in The Dark Knight by several critics and you get a film that is worthy of a certain category of artistic praise and yet is still quintessentially, unmistakably, Bond.

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8 Dec

U Ready? – Wii U Review

Posted by vagrantesque in Console, Games, Wii U. Tagged: , , , .

I think it’s clear that desperation is now the main driving force behind my choices of post titles.

The Wii U, Nintendo’s new home console, launched in Australia and Europe about a week ago, and after spending as much time with it as my current lifestyle would allow, I present this, here, now.

Icy blue

Day One haul, clockwise from bottom left: Screen Protector Kit, Facepad & Stylus Pack, Wii U Premium Pack, Pro Controller, Warriors Orochi 3 Hyper, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, Assassin’s Creed 3 Join or Die Edition, New Super Mario Bros U.

Yeah, if you haven’t already guessed, I enjoy throwing money at console launches.

I’ll be structuring this piece much like my Playstation Vita review from earlier this year. Here goes.

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7 Dec

Rant Chaser #2

Posted by vagrantesque in Rant Chaser.

Trying to start some momentum here.

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R A N T – C H A S E R

T W O

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Some more rant follow-ups lie here. This one covers a broader range of topics than the last one did.

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1 Dec

Greetings From Wii U

Posted by vagrantesque in Console, Games. Tagged: .

Where things are looking pretty awesome.

I am writing this post from the native internet browser of Nintendo’s new home console, the Wii U, while running the third sequence of Assassin’s Creed III in the background. My TV isn’t even on; it’s just me, the console’s Game Pad controller and a Tritton headset, alone in a dark living room at midnight on the first night of what looks like a sweltering Australian summer. Suffice to say it’s a pretty fresh gaming experience.

The console came out on Friday and I spent most of launch day trying out as many aspects of it as I could, writing notes and downloading updates. So many updates.

Anyway my thoughts will all be coming in one hit, as soon as I find a window of spare time big enough to post them. Stay tuned to Vagrant Rant.

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