Forum - View topicThe X Button - Uncovered Paths
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QXZ
 Posts: 13 Location: Lancaster 93535 |
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From the article:
Here's some footage for you, Mr. Ciolek.  I have to say, the music from just the first level is rather sweet.
Upon seeing the footage from Hammer Away, it looks like it plays similarly to G.Rev's far more recent Under Defeat (Dreamcast, PS3, Xbox 360). Both games employ a limited helicopter tiling mechanic, though whether or not the people behind Under Defeat were aware of Hammer Away's existence is questionable at best. I have no intent on making any speculations beyond that. |
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Hoppy800
 Posts: 3331 |
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Never played Hammer Away but I should at least give at try on MAME or FBA (whichever runs it better) since I like Helicopter shmups such as Twin Cobra and Avenger (which is also the first game I ever imported way back in 1992).
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keyinjpop
Posts: 55 |
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Already pre-ordered Tales of Hearts R. Been a while since I got a physical copy Vita game and the Tales games have some fun gameplay so I'm excited.
After reading this piece, I want to check out Drakengard. I'll go watch a full LP of the game to see if it's worth the purchase. |
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enurtsol
 Posts: 14896 |
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Bet ya won't finish it! 
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belvadeer
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Sonic X-treme: I think this game's cursed development history is really one of the saddest in video games. It didn't look or sound like a bad idea in retrospect, and the planned music was catchy and atmospheric, especially Space Queens. It was just that silly drama, some of it caused by Yuji Naka himself claiming they "stole his NiGHTS game engine and threatened to quit the company" when that really wasn't what happened. It's awesome that Chris Senn released all those materials and dedicated fans are attempting to put the game together themselves (it makes sense to let them; no one at Sega is going to put together a cancelled game from the mid-90s now).
Digimon: All-Star Rumble: It definitely isn't the game I or the other fans wanted, that's for sure. Besides, trying to imitate Smash Bros. just results in the game getting largely passed over or ignored. Digimon is awesome of course, but this just isn't the right way to do it. It's like they think North Americans just want to see Digimon mindlessly beat the sense out of each other. I'd have loved to play any of those unreleased RPGs, as Digimon RPGs tend to be pretty good games with lots of customization. A Smash clone isn't really going to cut the butter with me, but that's just me; I'm sure the game will have its devoted fans, especially since we're starved for anything Digimon over here. Oh well, maybe the new anime next year will be a better consolation. Sonic Boom: Rise of Lyric and Sonic Boom: Shattered Crystal: I personally wonder what the reaction to the upcoming animated series tie-in is going to be like after the first episode airs on TV. Tales of Hearts R: The translation's going to stink a little with those silly improvised additions that amateur fan translations tend to do (Final Fantasy IV's fan translation for example), but I guess it is what it is. I can understand about not being able to English dub it since our Namco branch has been trying to put out Tales games much more often than before and there probably wasn't enough time to round up voice actors for all the characters & record the lines before the intended release date (still, I would have loved to know who they might have had in mind for everyone). Regardless, I'm still getting it. Gotta keep supporting Tales here plus this particular entry has one of the best stories in the series according to what I've heard. |
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doctordoom85
 Posts: 2094 |
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I'll definitely be picking up Tales of Hearts R next week. With this, Arcana Heart 3, Freedom Wars, and Senran Kagura Shinovi Versus, my Vita's been getting a lot of use recently.
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ikillchicken
 Posts: 7272 Location: Vancouver |
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"Detractors point out that Bayonetta remains a contrived sex object. [...] that's not far from the all-too-common stereotype of a resolute superheroine who happens to choose to wear a costume the size of a slap bracelet."
I think the difference with Bayonetta though is that she doesn't just "happen to" to dress that way. It actually feels entirely natural to her character. Not just on a superficial level either. It really feels like a deeply ingrained aspect of who she is. On the other hand, the typical "she just happens to dress that way" character is different precisely in that it seems like mere contrivance or happenstance. They aren't particularly sexual as a character. They don't seem to particularly enjoy their sexuality or exhibit agency over it. Or hell, forget enjoyment* even just substantial, character driven reasons would be good. But no, by all rights they seem like a character that wouldn't particularly dress that way. They only do because either *shrug* they just do or because of some half assed hand wave excuse with little real substance or integration to who the character is. To me, that's when a character feels truly contrived. It doesn't seem believable even within the narrative. And thus, it just serve to highlight that it isn't "their" choice at all. It's the choice of their creator. Of course, as you say, games are in any case still developed by people and even if how Bayonetta acts fits with her character, her character is still itself determined by the choices of her creators. Thus, her actions fitting with her character is not an automatic pass as far as criticism goes. Still, I think there's a very meaningful distinction to be made between insubstantial character choices that are merely thinly veiled developer choices and character choices that, while still ultimately determined by the developer, feel natural and meaningful to the character. Even if we could just see more of that latter that would be a massive improvement. *Enjoying her sexuality and exhibiting agency over it are also obviously another huge plus with Bayonetta. But that's not really even my point here. I just want to see more female characters who's attitudes toward their sexuality are driven by substantial, non-superfluous aspects of their characterization. Even that would be a big step forward regardless of how positive those attitudes are in themselves. |
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InuKen
Posts: 20 |
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Lol. Drakengard 3 is one incredibly sexist game according to people who care about social justice who keep harping on the matter but because the women are the dominant characters, none of them are complaining. All the men in the game(with the exception of one) are nothing but sex toys and play things for the Intoners. They serve as tools for the all the female characters and are not even treated as humans at all. And if you've actually played the game you would know how pointless their existence is. If the genders were reversed, the game would've gotten so much flak for it. Talk about double standards. If anything, that's real sexism if applied to the real world, not some scantily clad woman who dresses the way she wants. You see plenty of women dressed sexily and provocatively on the streets wearing short skirts and short shorts, flaunting their midriffs and cleavage. Does that mean they're sexist? Do they need an absolute good reason for dressing however they want? If a women is confident of her body and sexuality, she can choose to dress as sexily as she wants to. smh The biggest bullsh*t in all of this is how a scantily clad woman can't be strong and independent and how strong women shouldn't dress sexily. That's the biggest pile of poop I've heard in my life. The fact you're judging a women's strength based on what they dress or look like. Yea, that's what we call real sexism right there.
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Paul Soth
 Posts: 142 Location: Columbus, Oh |
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^ Someone needs to calm down. And perhaps stop looking for feminists hiding under his bed.
Anyway, I got the prize package safely. Sadly, I don't have a PSP and I need to get an expansion for my Saturn, but everything else is good. And at the least, I can finally take care of that curious desire to play Fester's Quest I got from reading Nintendo Power some twenty five years ago. Also, yay for mature attitudes towards female sexual agency. |
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gloverrandal
Posts: 406 Location: Oita |
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There will never be an answer on sexuality in games because third wave feminism and sex-positive feminism constantly clash heads with one another. The old notion of all sex, even consensual sex between a married couple, is an act of violence perpetrated against a woman clashing with a woman's right to do as she pleases with her body is an argument that has been going on for decades and will most likely never stop. ikillchicken's assessment of Bayonetta can and has been attributed to mere male power fantasy in discussions. Men who simply envision a woman who wants to be sexual because it's what men wants. It all depends on the perspective of the viewer and which stance they have on what true equality is.
InuKen raises an interesting point, though. Quite a lot of games seem to get more spotlight from websites and communities if they portray women in a alleged negative light compared to men. I do remember when Far Cry 3 came out writers raised concerns about how Crista appeared topless, despite her tribe being based on jungle tribes one might see in National Geographic. Interestingly enough, none of the writers talked about the fact two men are raped over the course of the game. One by a another man, and one by Crista herself. Though in the Tomb Raider trailer when a man looks at Lara Croft in a certain way there were lots of complaints and concerns about implied rape. Likewise, South Park Stick of Truth featured a lot of sexual abuse towards young boys and never raised concerns. The only concerns I recall were the ability not to play as a girl in the game. It's interesting to see where specific community's priotires lie on gender issues, to say the least |
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leafy sea dragon
 Posts: 7163 Location: Another Kingdom |
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I would expect no less. People spoiled by ultra-detailed figurines from Figma and the like should not expect the same level of quality in ordinary figurines. Living in a place with a lot of bootleg stuff, I more commonly see something like this: 
I'm glad when something is actually colored remotely within the lines.
As a Sonic fan myself, I can say that for the most part, the 16-bit purists have mostly moved on, either playing non-Sonic stuff or have stopped gaming altogether. It's the Adventure sub-series fans who are the loudest and whiniest nowadays. (Oddly, they seem to have inherited the SEGA-Nintendo rivalry, despite the Adventure series being roughly when SEGA and Nintendo allied together. Or is it BECAUSE the alliance happened during then?) |
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Stuart Smith
 Posts: 1298 |
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I'm still holding out hope the Japanese Amiiboo will be better and it's just us Americans who get the inferior product as per usual. -Stuart Smith |
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Shippoyasha
Posts: 459 |
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I don't see the problem in making girls/guys sexy in anime, comics and games. They don't have to have some extra serious reasoning why they're dressed that way. It's just for visual flair, to make characters interesting/sexy, whatever.
The 'controversy' already fizzled out of relevance the days after people complained about it on Tumblr/Twitter. It just shows what a non issue it is, in the grand scheme of things. And Bayonetta especially is a gleeful celebration of the sexually over the top anyway. Much like how Kill la Kill was. I think it's fun. I can see why some would not like it and that's cool too. Not everything will appeal to everyone when they go for big sex appeal in stuff. It doesn't mean they should go away or the creators/fans need to be shamed for liking it. More power to the fans. That's always a good thing. The way things fall into some 'sexism this, sexism that' angle just seems extremely shallow to me. Not everything has to trip over themselves to prove something in gender politics and imagery. If some creators wants to, again, more power to them. But that's the power of art in general. You can portray whatever you want that may be a lot more risque and bold than something you can get away in the real world, and it's in the ultimate safe space that is pure fiction. |
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Stuart Smith
Posts: 1298 |
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Whenever I see the excuse of something is okay because the woman is in charge of her sexuality, it comes off like the individual trying to find a way to justify themselves liking something perceived as "problematic" by their peers. Mental gymnastics, if you would. Kill la Kill is a good example, because it got praised on ANN despite the general anti-fan-service tone of the community and staff. People were trying to say it was a parody of fanservice, or it was actually empowering, and insisting scenes like Ragyo fingering Satsuki and the general groping going wasn't male pandering in the slightest bit. People shouldn't have to justify why they like something just because the current trend is to call it sexist or trashy. It's the same reason I hate the term 'guilty pleasure'; it comes off pretentious like we as human beings are above the simple notion of fun or enjoyment and people feel they have to acknowledge the very act of doing so is bad. Just do and enjoy whatever you want. At the end of the day, nobody actually cares what your hobbies are. -Stuart Smith |
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Battle Cossack
 Posts: 87 Location: Bay Area, CA |
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The game finally broke me on the stage where tough enemies literally started popping out of the ground. For all its incest and cannibalism, I'll always remember Drakengard as the one with those buff skeletons. Also gender roles; yay. :D |
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