Special Occasion Post:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY POKEMON!

-Twenty years ago, Pokemon Red and Pokemon Green hit the shelves of Japanese game stores. Two years late, in 1998, Pokemon Red and Pokemon Blue (the US never sold Pokemon Green) found a place in the hands of American children. Finally, one year later, in 1999, Pokemon Yellow was released and it was this game that sold the franchise to kids all over the world. While the first game I played in the series was Pokemon Blue, it was Yellow that solidified a place in my life for any and all Pokemon games. Like millions of other children, Pokemon gave me the feeling that I was an adventurer. The real world was boring but with a switch on the side of my GameBoy, I was completely encapsulated by a totally new world in which I was the hero, the guy everyone watched. I battled my way through wild Pokemon and trainers alike, obtaining the eight badges necessary to challenge the Elite Four. After many tough battles, I was the new Pokemon Champion. Being the first game I ever beat, Pokemon Yellow gave me a feeling like no other. I, not him or her, was the one Champion.
Now, twenty years later and multiple entries into the franchise, I'm still being granted that feeling by one of my favorite franchises. Being the twentieth birthday, GameFreak and Nintendo have decided to not only re-release Pokemon Red, Blue and Yellow (via the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console), but after a six-minute, nostalgia-filled Pokemon Direct (ala Nintendo Direct), two new Pokemon games, Pokemon Sun & Pokemon Moon, have been announced for a worldwide release Holiday 2016. Having never misses a Pokemon game, you can bet on me being at Gamestop, waiting in line with plenty of other Pokemon Trainers, patiently watching the clock knowing that once it hits midnight, my next adventure begins.
This post isn't a review or a public announcement. This post is an appreciation post, a happy birthday, to a game that will forever hold a place in my hands.
Thank you Pokemon..

Deadpool Review

-Deadpool, Dead On.

Almost six years ago, May 1^st of 2009, fans of Marvel’s cult antihero Deadpool were treated to quite possibly, the worst iteration of the character ever seen. In what world is literally sewing the mouth of the “Merc with the Mouth” shut a good idea? Fortunately for all, the creators of this movie were quite aware of Wolverine: Origins’ disrespect to the character that so many Marvel fans have come to love. Deadpool, starring Ryan Reynolds knows the character is back in the spotlight and throws everything they’ve got into the character. Unfortunately though, this means that nothing was thrown into everything else such as the plot and the villain. With a depressingly conventional revenge plot and a near forgettable (save for an almost incomprehensible English accent) villain, it’s a shame the writers didn’t put more effort into everything surrounding Deadpool. Had they done so, this movie would have been near perfect.

While everything around him falls short, Deadpool shoots and slices through expectations, yielding one of the most memorable character iterations in recent history. This is mostly in part thanks to Ryan Reynolds performance. He’s confident, charismatic, and fully aware that this Deadpool has to win us all over and he certainly does. While he spends some of the movie in heavy makeup (burnt skin and all), it’s when he’s in the suit that surprisingly enough, Reynolds shines. This suit might as well be pulled straight from a page in a comic and with the help of some minor CGI, Deadpool comes to life. With the use of CGI giving Reynolds’ Deadpool facial expression and Reynold’s ability to bring the physicality of the character to life, I don’t think we’ll see a better version of Deadpool on the big screen.

The best part about Reynold’s performance is that he never shuts up. From the second we first see Deadpool, the jokes flow and flow and flow and flow. From one-liners to critiques of today’s society all the way to meta-jokes breaking the fourth wall, Deadpool is full of comedy. Sure, when you’re constantly tossing out jokes and gags, some fail but for the most part, you’ll be laughing out loud.

There’s plenty of vulgarity and immature jokes but the humor really shines through in the most normal moments of the movie like sitting in a bar, riding in a cab, or watching his blind roommate build some IKEA furniture. It’s quite strange laughing during a Marvel movie while not watching the Hulk throw Loki like a rag doll or hearing the banter between Captain America and Iron Man but a welcome feeling nonetheless. This movie is quite aware that it’s not big like its superhero movie counterparts and takes full advantage of its opportunities to have some normal every-day moments. In fact, this movie feels more on par with a sitcom like Workaholics or Broad City than a comic book movie.

While the movie puts everything it has into the character of Deadpool, the plot and villain fall to the way side. The story is a simple revenge story. Bad guy does this to Wade Wilson and Wade Wilson is angry about it. Bad guy steals Wilson’s girlfriend and Wilson goes after him. There’s nothing special at all about the plot. In fact, it’s arguably the most forgettable story told in a comic book movie. To add to that, the villain, English-accented Ajax is extremely boring. He’s the man responsible for turning Wade Wilson into Deadpool and beyond that, he adds nothing to this universe. He’s very strong and doesn’t feel pain (and subsequently, boring). While the revenge plot serves to let Deadpool be Deadpool (the jokes, the violence, etc.), Ajax serves to fight in an underwhelming climax.

In recent superhero movies, we see the man or woman gain super powers. Then we see a montage of them training. Finally, the movie ends after the superhero fights the villain with these powers. While Deadpool’s plot is boring, it is refreshingly told. Deadpool talks the audience through his journey from Wade to Deadpool in the middle of a hilarious fight. Once he catches us up to speed, we see how he lives his everyday life. It’s here that we’re introduced to the bad-guy-steals-girlfriend-revenge story and here that the movie loses some of its steam, but not enough to stop the train.

The most exciting prospect of this movie is its connection to the greater X-Men (thanks FOX) universe. We get a taste of this with the extended cameos of Colossus (who looks great for a low-budget movie CGI character) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead. While they have their moments, they ultimately feel underused. This culminates in the feeling that the writers were highly restrained in what they could and couldn’t use. It’s not their fault but it would have been nice for Marvel and FOX to loosen up on the reins a bit.

Thankfully, one area that this movie isn’t restrained in is violence. Filled with the most gore I’ve seen on the big screen since a Saw movie, this movie borders ultraviolence but that’s a good thing. Those familiar with Deadpool know that he slices and dismembers his enemies, laying bullets into their heads as well. The fight scenes stuffed to the brim with this violence are stylized, utilizing slow-mo to express even more extreme gore, and choreographed perfectly. Not once did I believe that what I was seeing wasn’t actually happening. It’s that well done. One of my favorite scenes comes from arguably the most graphic fight in the movie. With only twelve bullets left, Deadpool narrates to the audience how he plans to use each bullet, showing us in brutal slow motion.

Overall, Deadpool has returned from his slumber with a big bang. This Deadpool is definitively so and clearly Reynold’s character through and through. The character of Deadpool, the violence, and the humor keep this movie standing, while the forgettable plot and even more so villain valiantly attempt to bring it down. It’s a shame that some gears never get going because had they done so, this movie would be almost perfect. Thankfully, Deadpool is dead on. What shines, shines bright.

Final Score: 7 out of 10.

With 5 serving as the score for an average movie and 10 being the best possible score, Deadpool falls right in between. It’s certainly not average and too much holds it back from receiving a 10. It falls right in between yielding a 7. 

ON THE SUBJECT OF MOVIES:

I want to take the time to introduce the idea of my blog featuring reviews of movies as well as my standard reviews of games. To preface it, I am not by any means an expert on movies. With video games, because of how often I play them and how critically I judge them, I would say that I'm becoming more and more of an expert on the subject of games. Rather than just playing current games, I delve into the past and play what my parents played. I play the important games that changed the industry. I research the companies that make these games, the voice actors and actresses, the development and so on. I do all I can to take my video game interest to a professional level. Because of that, I think it is easy to feel like my video game reviews are more than just some guy writing a review. I hope that those reading them feel like they are getting a professionally created product. 

With movies, all of that changes. I am by no means an expert and I have no plans to dive into the world of movies in the same way I did with games. I watch movies and I enjoy them, not much more and not much less. While video games are more than a hobby, movies are a way of pure entertainment for me. Regardless, I plan to begin reviewing the occasional movie I see. With that being said, I saw Deadpool the night it came out and I plan to review it here very soon. It will be my first movie review so it certainly won't be something to take seriously but understand, it is the first stepping stone into legitimately reviewing movies.

Thank you,

Wesley

Star Wars Battlefront Review

Star Wars Battlefront Review

-A New Hope for the franchise, but not yet a Return.

Star Wars Battlefront is a tribute to a universe we all love. It’s immersive and incredibly detailed, pushed forward by a desire to defeat the next hero, capture the next droid, or even take down an AT-AT. By improving on the classic games of two generations ago, and fully embracing the world of Star Wars, DICE has created a game that I know I’ll keep returning back to months and months after release, despite its problems.

What DICE nails, it really nails but when the game falls short, it not only falls but quite frankly, plummets.

This game comes jam packed with an unbelievable amount of detail. Star Wars Battlefront is the most beautiful game I’ve ever seen. The textures never pop and constantly retain a high level of detail, the shafts of light cutting through the trees on Endor look better than ever, and the explosions rival that of any Michael Bay movie. This is the best we’ve ever seen the Star Wars universe. Just like the original trilogy that this game strives to honor, the objects and characters in this game are weathered, creating the sense that this world has been through the ringer far beyond what we are aware of. The AT-AT’s have scratches and scorches, the guns aren’t pretty and certainly not brand new off the shelf, and the planets aren’t untouched. Everything you encounter in this game reminds you that this battle has been going on for quite a while.

The only thing better in this game than the sight, is the sound. DICE’s sound designers have perfected the sounds of Star Wars. The lightsabers rumble and growl, the Tie-Fighters screech and scream as they zoom above, and the guns sound just like you always remembered. Your favorite songs are present including the main theme of Star Wars as well as the Imperial March. DICE has also managed to mix in an original score that sounds so good that I don’t even realize it isn’t music from the movies.

DICE puts this perfection of sight and sound in a hodge-podge of game modes. At best, you’ll find two or three of the eight game modes that you enjoy. The downside is that after playing the other modes once, you’ll never return to them. Battlefront really stretches its wings though in some of the most unique game modes I’ve ever played such as Walker Assault, Heroes vs. Villains, and Drop Zone.

Walker Assault provides the most canon-feeling mode in the game. In this mode, you will either play as the Rebels, who must capture and defend uplinks in an effort to call in a Y-Wing bombing run on the AT-AT, or the Imperials, who must stop the Rebels from capturing uplinks and calling in Y-Wings. While this serves as the games objective, there is so much more to do. You can pick up vehicle cards which allow you to fly around in the iconic Rebel X-Wing or stomp around in the Imperial AT-ST. Hell, if you’re lucky enough to find and pick up the card, you can become the driver of the AT-AT, utilizing Orbital Strikes and other weapons to defeat any and all enemies in your sights. Both teams can pick up the rare Hero card which, depending on your alliance, allows you to call in the likes of Han Solo or Darth Vader (or Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Emperor Palpatine, and Boba Fett) to possibly turn the tides of the battle. When you’re an Imperial, safely escorting the AT-AT feels like a solid accomplishment but taking down the formidable machines as a Rebel comes with the struggle and massive uphill battle (and the subsequent relief of pushing back the Imperial March through your rebel base) that is apparent in Episode V.

Heroes vs. Villains is a simple but extremely addictive game mode. Here, you’ll rotate between Hero (if you’re the Rebels) or Villain (if you’re the Imperials) and simple soldier in an effort to defeat the other team. Rather than relying on finding the elusive Hero card in a different game mode, you’re at least guaranteed a round playing as a hero or villain in this mode. The desire to play as a different hero the next round or the effort to take down a villain when playing as a Rebel soldier, is what keeps me coming back time and time again.

In Drop Zone, you’re in a constant 8v8 race to capture the next drop pod that has fallen out of the sky. Capture a drop pod and your team is granted 4 Power-Up cards, but lose the pod and you’ve just handed that advantage to your enemy. In these pods comes the crushing Orbital Strike, the dubstep bomb aka Thermal Imploder, and some weaker items that you’ll quickly end up relinquishing yourself from such as the Blaster Cannon. Because each player brings his or her own custom player setup to the field, coupled with the randomness of a drop pod, this mode gets wild and chaotic fast, and it’s in these moments that the game really shines.

Unfortunately, not all of the game modes hit their stride like the above-mentioned ones. Hero Hunt, a 7 soldier vs. 1 hero mode, is broken and unbalanced. Blast, DICE’s attempt at Team Deathmatch, is boring and forgettable. Some game modes such as Droid Run (think Destiny’s Control or Call of Duty’s Domination) and Cargo (think Capture the Flag) have hints of greatness but in the wake of modes such as Walker Assault, fall short of becoming anything meaningful that players will often return to. Fighter Squadron is short, sweet, and sadly, lazy. Fly around in an unbalanced match of A-Wings (that are near impossible to defeat) and Tie-Interceptors (that act as paper mache shooting targets for the A-Wings) while dodging the even more unbalanced Hero ships. Finally, Supremacy almost nails it on the head but due to a clear advantage to the rebels (give thanks to the A-Wing for this one), it’s tough to jump into this mode.

The only good that comes from some of the poorer game modes is the maps. Battlefront launches with 13 different maps (4 maps for the large game modes such as Walker Assault and 7 maps for the smaller game modes such as Drop Zone) and each and every map is great. These 13 maps are hosted on the planets of Endor, Hoth, Sullust, and Tattoine and each map is littered with hints of the planet they take place on. On Endor, sneak up on Ewoks in their tree houses. On Hoth, you’ll see the remnants of a local Wampa’s dinner, while on Tattoine, you’ll see Jawas scurry to safety when you arrive. Sullust, although previously never seen in a movie, retains the level of detail that each of the other planets do, making it a welcome addition to the Star Wars universe.

While the design and feel of these maps are great, they suffer from terrible spawn points, bad placement of Power-Up cards, and easy location exploits that allow players to farm kills. It’s a battle between the gorgeous pull of each map and the plague of technical problems each and every time you log into this game. If you’re like me, you’ll be happy enough playing anything Star Wars that looks and sounds this good.

To fans’ dismay, there is no single-player campaign. This game asks you to create your own stories using your battles in the multiplayer side of the game instead. That would be fine had players not been granted some of their favorite Star Wars campaigns in previous iterations of the game. In this day and age, there is almost no excuse for a lack of campaign. To add to that, DICE threw in a single-player (also co-op) wave-based mission mode called Survival. While fun, it’s certainly not a fair substitute from the galactic conquests we’ve been a part of in previous Battlefront games.

In each game mode, you’ll earn experience and subsequently, credits. With each level, you’ll unlock a different lazy character design (you can play as the old man rebel soldier that we all asked for…we all did right? Right?). After 40 levels of new character unlocks such as a woman soldier with a ponytail, or a man with a new style of beard, you’ll get to character unlocks that seem worth it. From levels 40 to 50, you’ll unlock different alien races or Imperial officers to play as such as Sullustians and Rodians (on the Rebel side) and the ever-so-badass Shadowtrooper (on the Imperial Side). The credits that come with experience allow you to unlock new weapons and Power-Up cards. Some weapons such as the Iconic Han Solo DL-44 can be unlocked as well as the classic Imperial E-11. While some of these weapons are great, many are forgettable and serve as placeholders until you get to the weapon you actually want to use. Using credits, you can also purchase new Star cards to put into your custom arsenal. These range from Plasma Cannons to Thermal Detonators, Personal Shields and even traits such as Scout, which allow you to receive special benefits with certain killstreaks. Like the weapons in the game, some star cards fall short while others stand out above the rest.

My favorite and most addicting surprise in the game is the Diorama. Here, by completing challenging and unique objectives, you’ll unlock new figures to add to your Diorama, each with a trophy view that comes with an iconic sound clip. This Diorama is often the only reason I’m jumping into my lesser-favorite modes such as Fighter Squadron or using my least-favorite Hero. It’s a simple yet welcome addition to the game, especially for the tried and true fans of Star Wars.

Star Wars Battlefront serve as the most beautiful and entertaining engagement into the Star Wars universe yet (save for the movies), but falls short in too many places for this game to considered anything beyond good. It’s the perfect example of masterclass perfection in aesthetic and sound design, but a poor example of a multiplayer game. What could’ve shined as one of the best multiplayer shooters this generation, serves only as a platform for DICE to learn what we truly want from the next Battlefront game. What’s there is mostly great, although many hiccups hold it back, but the lack of a single-player campaign makes it hard to justify this as a $60 game. In a few years, maybe DICE will deliver the game we wanted this one to be. DICE, you’re our only hope.

Final Score: 6 out of 10.

With 5 serving as the score for an average game, 6 stands for a game that is good. Star Wars Battlefront is just good. Nothing more, nothing less.