Musopticon?

lol Project Akira 2: The Appleseed Edition! I'll wait for the 360 demo, but this has made me giddy alrady.

I think I logged in at 60 hours for Puzzle Quest previously, so this is on my wish list definitely.

Now it's a tie between Toshiro, Marvin and Tominac.

(sorry, Paizo) CthulhuTech A friend called it "fighting Migos with mechas", and honestly, there's nothing I want to add to that.

The second movie was honestly pretty average and that's a lot when it comes to game-to-movie licenses. I almost liked it.

Overlord on PC with a Xbox S pad via XBCD. Much fun, little depth, brilliant puzzle design at parts. The Witcher Enhanced Ed. with Polish voice overs. It was a pain to install, but has tons of depth and quite a bit of replayability outside of the repetition of the hunts. Unless you do a really improvised build, like Axii and bombs. Onimusha 3:Demon Siege is a decent romp all in all, kinda simple compared to 2:Samurai's Destiny. Don't play without a gamepad, the port control scheme is horrible. And finally, Stalker:Clear Sky. Works pretty decent on an average laptop(my pretty new Amilo!).

Now, I'm going to go play Pool of Radiance Remastered, since I feel my rpg nerd points plummeting...

This will be long-winded since I just got coffee into my system. Honestly, your biggest problem is your lack of experience with the other weapons. It's possible to win the game with just your chosen weapon(good luck with a pure scythe run though), especially with the well-rounded DS, but it's a lot easier and rewarding to at least try out the new gear you acquire as you go on. Not to mention, having three or four nice upgraded weapons gives you a larger playing field in terms of available combos and really how you approach encounters. I enhanced at least DS, Lunar and Claws periodically(they have something for every situation), but immediately tried to max Tonfas, Kusari-Gama(no one seems to realize how awsum that thing is) and Dual Swords, because that's just how I roll. Pick a few guns as your main and concentrate on kicking ass with them. Same with the combos, master a couple from every weapon(especially ones that you can link into the dreaded Izuna Drop, since you can't be hit while doing it) and leave the really showy crap for when you know you can do them safely. A few things: Surviving in higher difficulty levels in NG2 is based on avoiding damage. That might sound obvious, but the fighting system is built from the ground up to avoid taking damage. Ruy has several "invincibility frames" in his animations, split seconds when he's invulnerable, and a lot of the combat against the official "harder" monsters in the game rewards you for taking advantage of that. For instance, the Claws, if upgraded note, have several combos where Ruy teleports around and spends a lot of time in the air and these not only serve as moments of invulnerability where incendiary shurikens, warlock fireballs etc can't hit you, but also give you a breather from the constant pummeling you face by making Ruy unreachable for the moment. The Izuna Drop is a prime example. And a really cheesy method against human enemies. On Acolyte(hey, I started on that too, shut your face), you don't really need to dig deep into that system, but it helps to take the gist of the strategy to your heart. Pick an enemy and separate him from the throng with any quick combo of you choice(say, forward+x+x+y+y) or circle your enemies with constant dashes and rolls until some straggler charges, if you get a couple of good clean blows in, the chances are the enemy loses a limb and it's obliteration time. With wolves, for instance, if you keep circling a pack with roll jumps or just keeping your block up and dashing simultaneously(slow, but makes you almost invincible) you'll get a running attack by a new furry friend for certain. Now, another good tactic is to master the Wind Path, or the dash you can make immediately after blocking. It doesn't always avoid throws, like the Kuja tail grip, but if the attack starts with any blockable animation, hold your block and push dash immediately after the attack hits, a wind path towards the enemy will get you behind him most often. Pound into him, wind path again, repeat until the horde is on you and you have to change your chosen target and circle the group again. When a wolf does the running thing, wait till he's near and quickly dash to the side to avoid the running throw. Put a combo in and change the side with another wind path or a dash and keep hitting his back or side. Eventually an arm will fly off. Good, that wasn't so hard, right? However, tight corridors pose a problem and really make you love every moment you spend in an invisibility frame. So, it's good that you got two things with the longest frames in the game: Ninpos and Ultimates. On ninpos, it's better if you stop thinking them as straight damage dealers, but tools. An unupgraded fireball makes you unreachable for as long as the animation lasts. When in a pinch, hit the ninpo buttons and savour the moment. Some boss attacks(like all the **** the lightning worm throws at you or the massive bone walker's annoying kicks) can be completely avoided with that. My fave nipo, The Wind of Blades(or limb rain) is the best combo against massing groups of ninjas and soldiers, since it delimbs just about everyone. Suddenly the battlefield is an obliteration fun zone, just as long as you avoid their suicide attacks(dash next to an enemy and push y, repeat, never run next to delimbed enemies). The flame phoenix ninpo makes foes lose their ready stances and interrupts attacks, which is a blessing with some demons. Black hole is a flyer killer. Forget about the ratings and go on a ninpo spam. The game will drop one or two chests in a level which always max your ninpo bar, since some of the chests only contain the essences you need at the time. Same with the essences that spawn. Ultimates on the other hand, are a bit more difficult to get off. First of all, once you see a blue or a red essence you don't immediately need(even a tiny one will start an Ultimate), keep your block on so you don't immediately use it(since Ruy only attracts the globes when your block is down) and dash into a position that will net you the largest amount of enemies but also give you a split second of time to suck the essence and start the UT by holding y pressed a heartbeat. Most of the ultimates are separated into a couple of combos, which you may direct slightly. So once you are well into(say, 5 slashes) an ultimate, point Ruy into another enemy and so on. You'll get it. Now, a word of warning some of the first level UTs really suck. Especially Lunar only shines once you upgrade it the second time. It's ultimate ends with a massive expanding circle of fire(yeah, it makes no sense, "power of the moon" wut) that wolves really love. A real group killer, you'll love it. Hang in there. And don't forget about the scythe, bosses hate it.

I'll play the part a bit soon and see if I can come up with anything decent in terms of strategy, heh. Two thing though, have you upgraded your weapons(especially the claws and lunar) and what difficulty are you playing on?

In other news, it's great that Bethsoft finally got over their ugliest npcs ever syndrome. For instance, in Megaton, both the Sheriff, Nova, the water treatment dude who loves his scrap iron, Nathan and addict guy are very good attempts. Then again, some of the raiders are hilarious. The head shot gib effect is often a blessing, honestly.

Is that Venice after you reach Wolf's castle or Venice Underground? In either one, the werewolves become fountains of squiggly bits with the Lunar 3-hit decapitation combo and it's Ultimate Technique. Another cheesy method is using Falcon's Talons and constantly delimbing the wolves with either y+y+y or forward+y(dash kick). As long as one is careful enough to spot the running attack they make, which they signal with a kind of twitching, it's reasonably moderate, instead of really freaking hard. As for Kujas(the Diablo monsters with boobs), good luck. I use Wind of Blades, the dual swords and hope for the best.

I still remember the combat music there, bless Kurt Harland.

Yup - Alla jalavapuun Genius, just lovable.

^TVB is awesome. Carpathia - A Dramatic Poem is their unchallenged best and a premier work in horror metal. Best of all, the dudes have always kept that glint of humor in their works. Unlike a smathering of stiff-neck dark metal bands making tracks of the same subjects. Siouxsie and the Banshees - Hong Kong garden

My deepest condolences. Sometimes, I'm glad to be a Zen owner, no need to hassle with iTunes or solve tech problems caused by overzealous devs.

no u Soul Reaver 2 is my fave of the series. Though the metroid-model of the game's weapons was a bit of a dreg.

I think the effect looks pretty natural. And you've got a forest going on, good! Now continue.

I doubt you'll be able to find a spy rpg with a team as high calibre as Obsidian behind it anytime soon. Hell, or ever. You're right in that it's doubtful they'll cater to your palette exactly, but it would be frivolous to assume that they take their own subject and setting as anything but serious. The Syriana-influences, the problem situations they have presented, the building of networks and alliances in a world that is morally gray, etc don't scream "watered down" to me. Of course the super spy theme is an element in the mix, though it wouldn't be the first game they develop with both extremes, sillyness and that loveable grit.

Jerkface does it again!

It's 0:33 here in Finland, so well into the year 2009. So without further ado, happy new year 2009 and let's hope AP is awesome!

Once I finish my Tremere game(Hallowbrook and Kuei-Jin to go!), I'll have to start as a Malk. And Toreador, just to try Celerity at least once.

Amon Tobin - Easy Muffin

Soul Reavers 1-2 and Defiance are also pretty darn awesome games, so that's a plus as well.

I wish I could still do that long gaming buzzes. To be honest, the longest I ever played in single sitting was HL 2, and only for 10 hours. Right then. You are An Hero now. Have a good sleep.

Opeth - Roundhouse tapes cd