November 2003

Now it’s a week later or so. I forget. And it’s 3am on a Monday morning. And STILL, there is NOTHING happening.

Fajitas!

It’s 2AM and I’ve read everything on the sites I normally visit. I know I must be a bad person, because all I can think is “Won’t something please blow up or crash so there’s something new on CNN.com?”

Awful. Just awful.

So I realize that I haven’t updated in forever. Mea culpa. It’s been busy, and I finally landed a job, which has eaten up most of my time by keeping me on a very odd schedule. Can’t complain, though, because the money is good and the stress is low. Not a bad way to go, really.

Otherwise, in my copious free time, I’ve gotten hooked on a few new games. Pretty decent stuff coming out lately, it’s pretty amazing. I just have flashbacks to around 1996 when it seems like nothing coming out was good. No RPGs, no decent strategy titles, just shovelfuls of first-person crap shooters. Wow, the times they are a-changin’ and for the better.

Homeworld 2 - the graphics. Oh my GOD the graphics. Just stunning. I have this odd fetish I need to confess - I love watching starships and the like go kablooey. Nothing much makes me happier than watching a huge chunk of space-travellin’ battleship go fwoom with the assistance of whatever insane graphics card I currently have. It’s awesome. Oh, you mean there’s a game behind all the explosions? Hey, go figure. The game is insanely hard compared to the original, but it’s still fairly high quality. This has been somewhat on the back burner lately thanks to a couple of other titles.

Disgaea - ah, the tactical RPG. Since none of the major companies really seems very interested in a classical RPG anymore (although there is still some hope), I’m left seeking shelter in the realm of the tactical RPG. Thankfully this one is pretty f’n amazing. The character animations are good, the voice acting is phenomenal, and the overall sense of humour present in the game allows me to unabashedly sit down and enjoy the daylights out of this title. It just owns in so many ways I run out of things to say about it. Although killer penguins and the phrase “nin nin!” are now parts of my life and will NEVER leave their endless loop in my head.

Fire Emblem - this is another great tactical RPG. It’s a tad more simple than most of the tactical RPG’s I’ve played, but the simplicity belies a surprising depth to the sheer amount of gameplay available in this title. I’m only a little ways into it so far, but I’m very impressed with what I’m seeing so far. I’m looking forward to getting further into this game.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance - ah yes, the great granddaddy of them all. I have to confess that I’ve lost days of my life to the original game. It’s simple, compelling, addictive, maddening and all the rest. The successor is nearly everything the original was, given the available resources of the GBA platform compared to the PlayStation. The law system can be frustrating, but adds a little challenge to a game that overall feels a bit easier than the original.

I suppose that’s all for now. As I’m working overnights now, I’m sure I’ll have plenty to say. Thanks.