Ending B

Greetings my fellow internet denizens! Today, I have a very special treat for all of you! Now as you all might know, I tend to play games of a rather free variety, and I usually pass said savings on to you! Of course, I make exceptions for notables like "World of Goo", but usually a purchase is warranted.

Today, I speak about the Kingdom of Loathing, a foray into the online world that does not require payment! Of course, you can always donate to keep the servers running, and in doing so, you get a nifty item!

There are many mechanics to this wonderful game, and I'd hate to make a huge review/summary when there are action shots to be seen, but the object of this wonderful game is to play through the questline and defeat the final boss, like all other RPGs. However, you are not alone! Out there, among the tubes, you will find others trying to do the very same thing, and they can trade, chat, and aid you in real time! Due to the awesomeness of the game, you are only given a limited amount of "adventures", which you can replenish (though limited as well) through drinking booze, eating food, and spleening items (that is, harnessing items through your spleen, I really don't understand it myself). Also, the game currency is meat, a currency that I most hungrily endorse!

Now I haven't played this game as long as the more elite crowd, but I have at least a small amount of pride in what I've accomplished, and to share in these accomplishments, I've commissioned the best artist I could find in the short time I chose to post this review.

Tedris the Seal Clubber!

Yes, Tedris! With his hammer distilled in the blood of a thousand baby seals, he hails from the Northlands to do unspeakable things in order to gain favor in the realm. He is holding a special binder that allows him to translate runes that he finds while on his run. In the distance, the Naughty Sorceress' tower looms perilously, and in the sky, the twin moons are shown (once there was a third, but that was no moon, that was a space station!)

Tedris the Disco Bandit!

Yes, Tedris again! In this life, he serenaded and swooned many with his Shagadelic Disco Banjo (I didn't make that name up), and stole items from various monsters in order to grant great wealth and power. His many cocktails allowed for a grand drunken journey, and he served his clan to the fullest.

Tedris the Turtle Tamer and the Naughty Sorceress!

And here's Tedris once more! Here, he is in the guise of a Turtle Tamer, a mighty class that uses skills to use his many familiars, and also to strengthen his armor and shielding abilities (he's wearing a shield, you just can't see it due to how awesome he is). Here, he is depicted fighting the Sorceress that plagues the land, as she stands atop her dais of power. Though the outlook of this battle is still too soon to tell... judging by how awesome the artist drew that mace, I'm guessing Tedris rocked her world (on the dais, on the dais? Rock me on the dais! (slight spoiler, whoopsie!))

In closing, if you have nothing better to do, and you have an idling web browser, why not give the game a try? You can play it anywhere! Also, I'd like to give a shout out to The Pixellated Array, a fine group that has aided me, and ultimately allowed me to write this game review. Oh yes, and thanks to our wonderfully unnamed artist, who will be receiving sufficient compensation for the bad ass action shots.

(A small addition): I wrote some new music, and seeing as how my post is still on the front, and I don't have a picture to go with the music, I figured I'd just leave this right here: Ambience in my head

Hello everyone! I'm sure what's on most everyone's mind is what happens when the roads are so icy that you don't really feel like doing anything.

Of course, I tend to find a new game and play it, or play something that I'm stuck on. Right now, I found quite a challenging game that I would suggest that all platforming fans give a try!

So what has drawn me to this game? Well, I have read such reviews as: "Nethack meets Cave Story" and "Oh God, what the hell?", and my personal favorite: "Tap dancing Christ, the music is stuck in my head, and I can't look around a corner without thinking about a shopkeeper blasting me in the face! How did they put shops in that cave anyway?"

Okay, I just made that last one up, but anyhow, like all reviews, this is supposed to give an opinion, and that being said, even though I rate this favorably, this may not be the game for you.

If you are incapable of growing a pair, I would suggest not picking up this game. If such a feat is impossible due to gender, I used the phrase metaphorically. Think about Samus or Shiek as "having a pair"

My rating: 8.8 (just download it and see for yourself!)

Well, it took several months of picking up the game, done mostly in a "play game, get frustrated, turn off" kind of fashion, but I finally beat Mega Man 9!

Take that Wily, you geriatric bastard!

I have sort of a love/hate relationship with Mega Man 9. On the one hand, it's great to play something that reminds me of my childhood, and overall the game is fun. However, and this is a big "however", it may be one of the most frustratingly difficult games I've ever played.

Falling upward + enemies + spikes = very hard

There are two kinds of hard: "fun and challenging" and "annoying and tedious." Unfortunately, Mega Man 9 is more annoying than fun. There are several instances where I wanted to lodge my WiiMote into the wall. My picks for hardest parts would have to be: Magma Man Boss Battle, Twin Goo Titans, and...

FLOWER CLOCK! DAMN YOU!!

There was also a Protoman mode for me to try out, which is fun because I always wanted to play as Protoman! He can do all the things that Mega Man could do in previous games: charge shot and slide. However, his defense if pathetic at best, he gets knocked back easily, and his normal shot firing rate is incredibly slow.

Clearly, Protoman's shield is as useful as soggy bread.

I had asked in an earlier post whether this game was hard because I'm out of practice or because it's truly difficult. According to Ed, a fellow Ending B contributor, the game was made hard on purpose. So, there we go. Less research for me to do.

As big of a Mega Man fan that I am, it pains me to say that this game is NOT for everyone. This recommendation is late, but that's how it is. If you have never played a classic Mega Man game before, I highly recommend you download Mega Man 1, 2, and 3 from Wii's Virtual Console. They are classics and a whole lot of fun. If you feel comfortable playing those, then maybe you'd be ready to play Mega Man 9.

In short, for hardcore Mega Man fans only. Have a nice day.

Oh, and Roll still holds on to the title of "Dr. Light's Most Useless Robot." Congratulations!

I love indie games.

No, seriously, I like independent games, though I think this was obvious by my previous posts about World of Goo and Cave Story (both of which became WiiWare titles, imagine that).

Oh yeah, I'm supposed to post pictures here, right?

So, enough with the exposition. You control this little dude with the WASD keys (as is standard in most keyboard mouse FPS games), but your attacks are used with the JKL buttons, which are represented by moving bars that come from the top of the screen.

Is this ringing any bells? That's right, this is a rhythm game! On top of maneuvering around the enemies on the screen, you have to hit those three buttons as the bars hit a certain point on your screen. Let me just say that the first boss fight was a little tricky at first, but that was probably because I was playing on the harder difficulty to start out with.

To those that know me, for me to jump into the harder difficulty in a rhythm game should come at no surprise, after all, I am a veteran of the genre, but this game is rather different. Of course, I considered it innovative, but that seems to be par for the course over at DigiPen.

See it for yourself, go ahead and download it here and feel free to check out some gameplay videos by searching for it on youTube.

Have fun everyone!

So, looks like Dr. Wily finally got wise and decided to have his eight robot masters attack Mega Man at once!

I found this while looking at Destructiod. The best part is you can download this and play it yourself! Check it out Here!

EDIT: I died many times trying to win, but once I got the two E-tanks, I was victorious! And it only took my about... 20-30 minutes to triumph! Not bad, eh?

It's that time of year. That time when most people get time off of work or school to spend time with family and friends. But what should you do after you get sick of them? Well, if you're patrolling this site, chance are it'll be video games, comics, movies, or anime. Today, I'll give you a brief list of a few animes you should consider watching over break.

And yes, YouTube is going to be my friend. But I figure it would be more affective to show you openings of these animes, so you can get a better idea of what you're getting into.

Fate/Stay Night

Length: 24 episodes
Genre: Fantasy/Action
Quick Plot Summary: So, this guy gets a magical servant who kicks ass and wants to get the Holy Grail.
Better Plot Summary: Click Here

My HiME

Length: 26 episodes
Genre: Science Fiction/Magical Girl
Quick Plot Summary: Magical girls beat the sh*t out of each other. NOTE: My HiME has the best soundtrack of any anime I've ever heard. It's soundtrack rivals that of academy award winning movie soundtracks.
Better Plot Summary: Click Here

Kanon

Length: 24 episodes
Genre: Magical Realism/Romance
Quick Plot Summary: Guy returns to a town for the first time in seven years and meets five girls who all have problems that the guy tries to fix.
Better Plot Summary: Click Here

You should give them a try. All are roughly the same length and cover different genres. I like them all, so maybe you will too!

Still makes me laugh

After a few months, I finally started watching Clannad - After Story. So far, they have mini story-arcs about the side characters. That's nice and everything, but I want to see more story about the main character and the main girls. Don't get me wrong; it still seems worth checking out.

And now, for your amusement, the opening to Clannad After Story. Damn that song is pretty. I think I need it. Now.

Fuuko isn't featured as a main character girl... SAD.

Journalism! Honestly I rarely find the time to write on here unless I find something potent in the realm of newsworthiness. I'd rather not turn this into a personal blog about the harrowing idiocies of my day, but I'd rather entertain YOU, the reader!

That's right, YOU, the reader, found this site, and in today's world, your time is precious, and entertainment should be swift and merciless!

For those of you who love a good bullet hell, you are most definitely in luck this evening, for I have found a magnificent shooter whose shortcomings lie in the realm of no soundtrack (which I may or may not remedy over the holiday) and the fact that it takes so long.

I am, of course, talking about the freeware PC shooter: Warning Forever

Oh yes, and I have a picture here!

"Oh yes, Ed!" you must surely be screaming in delight, "Show me more, it's so... so, nice! But, that's just a boss battle, where are the rest of the enemies?"

Whispering sweet nothings, I would respond "Quiet, my sultry minx, for the only enemies of this game are bosses, hence the most apt name. T'is a game for real men like myself!" Before the conversation would escalate further, the resounding epicness of playing a game that only gives you boss battles will be too much at first glance, and pure joy will secrete from your eyes!

"My eyes?" ... right, anyhow...

At least, that's how I remember my first time playing this game. Oh, and you can change the direction of your shooting, how wickedly boss is that? The bosses get stronger as you progress, adapting to your play style, and the game ends when your time runs out, in which deaths will subtract from your playtime. One who is a greater man than myself, of which I might add, are growing increasingly rarer each day, will find their time limit to go so long that they can surely find more joy than I have already found.

Oh yeah, and it's free, so what are you waiting for?

I saw this video on Kotaku and decided to rate every fatality/heroic brutality, in order of appearance in the video. The rating system is basically the first thought that comes to me when I see it. *ahem*

Baraka Fatality 1 - Meh
Baraka Fatality 2 - Lame
Jax Fatality 1 - Slightly amusing
Jax Fatality 2 - Weak
Kano Fatality 1 - Suck
Kano Fatality 2 - Super Suck
Kitana Fatality 1 - Nostalgic
Kitana Fatality 2 - Boring
Liu Kang Fatality 1 - Amusingly Nostalgic
Liu Kang Fatality 2 - Irish Jig of Death... HAH!
Raiden Fatality 1 - Nostalgic, but stale
Raiden Fatality 2 - Oh come on...
Sonya Fatality 1 - Fiery Nostalgic
Sonya Fatality 2 - Uninteresting
Scorpion Fatality 1 - I would be upset if they left this one out
Scorpion Fatality 2 - COOL
Shang Tsung Fatality 1 - Too simple
Shang Tsung Fatality 2 - Uh... wasn't that the same as the one before?
Sub-Zero Fatality 1 - Again, needed to be there
Sub-Zero Fatality 2 - Oh look, another repeat
Batman Heroic 1 - Effective and clever
Batman Heroic 2 - Less clever, but something he would do
Captain Marvel Heroic 1 - Wait, who's Captain Marvel?
Captain Marvel Heroic 2 - And why are his finishers so bad?
Catwoman Fatality 1 - Okay, I guess
Catwoman Fatality 2 - OUCH
Deathstroke Fatality 1 - Was that last part necessary?
Deathstroke Fatality 2 - Why use the sword at all?
The Flash Heroic 1 - Punchie punchie!
The Flash Heroic 2 - Typical Flash move. A good one, though
Green Lantern Heroic 1 - Seems a little too silly to me
Green Lantern Heroic 2 - How is he not DEAD from that?
The Joker Fatality 1 - AWESOME
The Joker Fatality 2 - What... no pencil magic?
The Joker Fatality 1 (unedited) - How is that worse than a card to the brain?
Lex Luther Fatality 1 - Maybe that's a bit of overkill...
Lex Luther Fatality 2 - *cringes* Owwww...
Wonder Woman Heroic 1 - Hey, the lasso isn't used like THAT
Wonder Woman Heroic 2 - That's more like it
Superman Heroic 1 - Why can Sub-Zero shatter someone and Superman can't?
Superman Heroic 2 - I'm sure the first hit would've broken his skull

Well, I wasn't on board with this idea when it first came out... and from the looks of it, I'm still not. I mean, can you even use a fatality on Superman?