Judging solely from the trailer, Avatar is the sort of embarrassingly oversimplified, blindly anti-military, pro-ecoterrorism, trope-ridden narrative that has no place in the modern storytelling landscape.
You’re 17 years late, Mr. Cameron. Ferngully premiered in theaters in 1992–and 20th Century Fox at least had the common decency to market it as a children’s movie.
You might have been able to get away with this sort of schlock two decades ago, but Pixar and Miyazaki have since proven that animation, either hand-drawn or computer-generated, can tell deep and complex stories while still appealing to children.
It may well be that Avatar has the kind of moral complexity to engage a modern audience exposed to quality animated and/or science fiction films. There is precedent for great films with awful trailers. If that is the case, I suggest that Mr. Cameron fire the people responsible for compiling the Avatar trailer currently airing on television.
Game Crazy is in the process of closing 200 stores across the United States. Yesterday, my wife and I visited a local Game Crazy where all items remaining in the store were 50% off.
I picked up the following:
AM CD/DVD Game Cleaner Manual Machine ($5, new). I bought this to replace a hand crank-style Maxell CD/DVD cleaner that I’ve used for about 10 years. One of the parts came off my Maxell CD/DVD cleaner years ago, but I still have it and just plug it back into place any time I needed to clean CDs or DVDs. The AM brand cleaner didn’t come with a lens cleaner disc, so I’m keeping my old Maxell disc handy.
Boktai: The Sun is in Your Hand ($10, new?). When I spotted Boktai in the display case, I was somewhat surprised to see that it hadn’t sold already. For those not already familiar with the game, it’s a Gameboy Advance title that has a solar sensor built into the game cartridge. Playing where sunlight reaches the cartridge affects gameplay in interesting and creative ways.
On the drive home from Game Crazy and before I unwrapped the game, I felt a twinge of buyer’s remorse for buying a GBA game for $10 when I already have a backlog of games to get through. I was concerned that the solar sensor might just be a silly gimmick, but after playing through the game’s first mission, I found myself impressed with how the developers (Konami) incorporated the solar sensor feature without making the special hardware feel extraneous or tacked on. The game would be an impressive title even without special hardware, but the solar sensor adds to the experience.
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Posted by: Peter in Games
Nekketsu Oyako is a beat ‘em up also known as Thermal Blood Parent and Child or Hot Blooded Family. The game was released for the Playstation in December 1994 and for the Sega Saturn in July 1995.
On an interesting side note, the game’s first level ends with the player being swallowed whole by a giant whale. The “belly of the beast” trope was listed in a recent GamesRadar article entitled Myth in games.
Click past the break for direct feed footage of the first two stages with Rio selected as the player character.
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Posted by: Peter in Anime
The Springfield Anime & Manga Enthusiasts will meet Friday, Oct. 9 from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. at The Library Center (4653 South Campbell, Springfield, Missouri 65810) in Meeting Room B.
The group is open to everyone 18 and over. (Those under 18 should check out the library’s Anime Otaku Club program for grades 6-12.) We welcome all adults interested in anime and manga, whether they’ve never watched an episode or read a chapter or they’ve been enthusiasts for many years.
For more information, visit the Springfield Anime & Manga Enthusiasts Forums.
Ni no Kuni (English title: The Another World), the Nintendo DS role-playing game collaboration between Level-5 (Dragon Quest VIII, Rogue Galaxy, Professor Layton and the Curious Village) and Studio Ghibli (My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away) looks amazing. The game will also features extensive voice acting.
Below is a list of Japanese voice talent for Ni no Kuni:
Source: Level-5 Shares Ni no Kuni Time Frame and Voice Cast
Posted by: Peter in Games
The King and his Sheep are just going to knock a Drawbridge into the lava and a regular Bridge isn’t long enough to cross the chasm in front of the Fort. The Large Wooden Gates are there for a reason.
Posted by: Peter in Anime
Huzzah!
Last night was the first meeting of the Springfield Anime & Manga Enthusiasts at The Library Center and, in my opinion, was a great success. We had 8 area residents in attendance, watched the first episode of Toradora and episode 19 of the first Lupin III television series, and had a fun time discussing anime and manga.
Our next official meeting is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 9, but some of those attending the meeting last night expressed an interest in putting together an October event as well. (SAME meetings are scheduled for the second Monday of each month; Columbus Day falls on the second Monday of October and The Library Center will be closed that day.) Those wanting to post suggestions for an October meeting should reply to this SAME forums thread. Forum registration is free and required to post.
Thanks to those who attended last night’s meeting and the library staff that helped make it happen. I look forward to seeing you all at the November meeting (and possibly in October as well)!
Posted by: Peter in Games
Having trouble completing Challenge 3-6 in Scribblenauts on the Nintendo DS? Press Up on the directional pad immediately after starting the challenge to see more of the stage. The rest is up to you and your imagination.
Posted by: Peter in Games
Aion open beta keys are now available to all North American Fileplanet users, including those with free accounts. Click here to request an open beta key.
Remember that the open beta client download is over 9GB and the beta ends Sunday, Sept. 13.
Posted by: Peter in Games
UPDATE 9/8/2009: Aion open beta keys are now available to all North American Fileplanet users, including those with free accounts.
NCSoft’s misleadingly-titled “open beta” for Aion is not open at all. It requires either a pre-order (which costs money), a Fileplanet subscription (which costs money), or a closed beta key (and if you already have a closed beta key, this article isn’t relevant to your interests).
I discovered this only after downloading the 9+GB (gigabyte) “open” beta client via BitTorrent and installing the client on my computer. Learn from my mistake: Do not download the Aion open beta unless you already have an open beta key. Avoid wasting bandwidth on NCSoft’s false advertisement/bait and switch, skip this beta, and wait for a trial. Better yet, play an online role-playing game by a company with scruples.