Sunday, June 16, 2002

Review of Jet Set Radio Future for Xbox     Publisher: Sega     Developer: Smilebit     Genre: Action     # Of Players: 1-4     Peripherals: None     The highly anticipated sequel to the groundbreaking Dreamcast game has arrived on Xbox.  Take to the streets of Tokyo as one of over 15 (start out with about four, but there’s a lot more you can gain as the game progresses) rollerbladers as you try and take back the streets from rival gangs and the corrupt Rokkaku police force.  For those not familiar, your weapon is a spray can, as you graffiti various marks, machines, and people to get through the various levels, all while performing extreme and outrageous tricks.  But does the game make a successful translation to the Xbox?  Read on to find out. Graphics: Okay, this game still has the same great cel-shaded look that the original had.  The difference in Xbox is that everything is a lot sharper, and there’s more of everything.  More cars, more people, more details, and a lot of the all-new levels are bigger too.  But there is occasionally some slight slow down. Sound: Unfortunately the sound is somewhat of a mixed bag.  The voice is acting kind of silly and overdone (but it kind of works for the style of the game).  The sound effects are somewhat minimal, as you can’t really hear traffic even though it’s all around you, and the massive people on the street have 3 very canned phrases that sound weak and get repeated any time you go near them (it actually would’ve been better if they didn’t talk).  The music was the real highlight of the DC game, with rocking tracks that were absolutely perfect for the game and added a whole lot to the atmosphere.  Here, while there is a large amount of music, a lot if it is quite grating (but there are some real quality tracks, like “girl in aisle 10”, and a great swing mix), and you can only listen to tracks of your choice in the garage, and in places you’ve already cleared. Gameplay: The gameplay in Jet Set is a big overhaul.  There are no time limits on the levels, so you are free to explore as long as you want (but with no time structure, the level is very ambiguous about just where the heck you are supposed to go, especially when you are supposed to find baddies your chasing, because it only gives you a rough idea of where they are).  Graffiti has been extremely simplified, because instead of having to do a manual design, you just simply spray and it’s automatically done for you (although you can make your own custom tags).  I do have some major control issues, however.  The control in general is extremely loose, making precision skating and jumping a major hassle (and when you need to land on extremely thin rooftops or power lines, it’s extremely annoying to over jump them again and again).  And the control is way to prone to grinding, as I will often latch on to something I had no intention of grinding on in the first place.  And then there are some major camera issues, as your character occasionally gets obscured, and you can often only find out by trial and error whether jumping down leads you to a street or leads you to grisly demise. Features: A big improvement on the original, as you now have a variety of multi-player games, which are mostly fun, but somewhat limited (for example, there’s a race with power ups, but it’s set at three 3 laps, no more, no less).  As I previously mentioned, you can also design custom tags, and there are a bunch of skaters to unlock.  A co-op story mode would’ve been welcome, but I think the biggest feature missing is that this is another game that is pretty much screaming for the much hyped Xbox custom track feature; but it is nowhere to be found (in fact, as far as I know, the only game to use it is Project Gotham Racing, which was a launch title). Funfactor: Despite some major camera issues and control gripes, this is still one of the most nnovative and fun games I’ve played in awhile.  It’s very easy to just pick up and play, has a large cast of likable characters (even the corrupt police captain, because he’s so freaking nuts), and is a truly original idea even a couple years later, and the new multi-player option adds a whole lot more replay value.  And even if you have trouble completing the levels, it’s always fun to just go around and practicing your tricks. --Final Scores Graphics: 9.5-Amazingly sharp and smooth cel-shaded characters fill a colorful environment, but there is a little slowdown occasionally. Sound: 6.5-Large selection of tracks, but only a few gems among a huge amount of duds.  Sound effects are limited, voice acting is goofy, but it works for the game. Gameplay: 8.0-Nice, simple controls, but are way too lose, and there are some bad camera issues. Features: 7.0-Some nice multi-player extras, and I like that you can design your own tags, but this game could really use the Xbox custom track feature, and a two (or more) player story mode would be a good idea to. Funfactor: 8.0-Although the camera and control issues can be a little frustrating, this game is the definition of pure fun. Overall (not an average): 8.0-This is a great game that’s has enough new stuff for DC fans to get it, and should definitely be experienced by everyone. 9:52:33 PM    comment []

The Bottom Rope for 6/2     Enough with this stupidity.  I try to ignore it, but I can hear it every single week, and quite frankly after all this time, it’s really starting to get on my nerves.  What exactly am I referring to?  The mind-numbing stupidity of commentators, that’s what.  Even the oh so great J.R. is guilty of massive stupidity, though not as much as the other announcers.  Let me give a few of many scenarios:  A match is going on, a wrestler’s music hits, and what is the first thing the commentators always say: “What the heck is that?”  As if they don’t recognize the theme music of the wrestler.  A wrestler grabs a foreign object, and the commentator’s asks, “What is he going to do with that?”  The there is the idiotic nicknames like “The big evil” (Undertaker), “the cerebral assassin” (HHH), and so on.  There is useless and possibly fake factoids, the endless and badly done segues into the main event. (i.e. “that move was crazy, and speaking of crazy, let’s talk about that main event we have later today with Austin & Bradshaw taking on the N.W.O., that’s also just plain crazy!” not exact words, but very similar).  Wrestling has evolved a lot of the past 10 or 15 years, but one aspect that is most definitely still stuck in the past is the wrestling commentator.  A big reason for WCW’s   failure was the massi incompetence of its announcers.  There was the “chess man” Larry Nabisco (yeah, that’s on purpose), who was able to somehow turn everything into a boring chess analogy.  There was Tony Shitonme (yeah, that’s on purpose too), who had one of my all time favorite sentences that I still say: “You know, the aluminum garbage can makes a great sound, but it doesn’t really hurt all that much”. Way to sell the move Tony.  And let’s not forget his famous insult of wrestling legend Mick Foley: “Yeah, that’ll put asses in seats.” Which is what he said about Foley winning the title for the first time.  But the worst of the bunch was that fat slob of a miserable human being known as Mark Madden. I still have nightmares about him yelling, “What time is it? PRIME TIME!” every 5 seconds along with his other idiotic sayings.  I honestly think the only reason I didn’t complain about the WWF at the time was that in comparison to WCW, they didn’t seem so bad.  But that’s the disadvantage of being the only guy on the playground, yeah you’re the best, but at the same time you’re the worst.  We need to update these guys.  They need to talk about the current match more.  I have no problem plugging the main event or a ppv, but it needs to be cut down, we don’t need to be reminded about every 60 seconds.  Announcers should know what they are talking about (even if they don’t in other sports).  They should be able to recognize who the hell the guy running down to the ring is (instead of: “Who the hell is that?  Do you know who that is?  It’s so-and-so!!) and recognize their theme music.  And not to mention they should have the intelligence to figure out what Raven is going to do with that chair.  The crowd knows it, the home audience knows it, and it massively insults our intelligence when the commentators act like they don’t have any idea what’s going on. 9:42:20 PM    comment []

Review of Half-Life for PS2         Publisher: Sierra         Developer: Gearbox Software         Genre: First Person Shooter         Origin: U.S.         Peripherals: None     The phenomenon and award-winning game for the PC has finally arrived on PS2.  In Half-Life, you play a scientist at a top-secret research lab.  One day, during a routine sample evaluation, something goes horribly wrong, and there are suddenly murderous mutants all over the place.  Not only that, but there are soldiers who are ordered to contain the mutants and kill any witnesses.You have to somehow get out with your skin intact.  So, does Half-Life survive the translation to PS2?  Read on to find out. Graphics: Half-Life's graphics are solid but not anything spectacular.  Not quite up there with games like Quake or Unreal, but they hold their own as there are plenty of cool little details and and monster designs, as well as some nice (if disgusting, such as seeing a guy's heart fly out of his chest) animation. Sound: Great voice acting, really good sound effects, and really good pulse-pounding, occasionally terrifying music (in a good way).  This adds a lot to the overall atmosphere of the game (especially when you hear the creepy, disturbing sound of some mutant around the corner). Gameplay: Half-Life is has always been praised for it's gameplay, and I can tell why.  The controls are very good for the most part (except when you have to swim, they are horrible) and well set up.  But the real treat is that the characters are actually intelligent, with the ability to help you, so it's in your best interest to save as many as possible.  The level of interactivity in the environments is amazing (they actually account for gravity, which is cool, but can be a bummer when you unexpectedly fall through something that can't support you). I also really like the 2-player mode, decay, which has its own set of completely different missions, making for a whole new experience. Features: Well, there's a 1-on-1 combat mode, two-player co-op that I mentioned earlier, and there are cheats to unlock various things.  A more diverse death match mode would be nice, but since that isn't the focus here, I won't really hold that against it. Funfactor: Well, in all honesty, this doesn't quite stand up to Halo for the Xbox, so if you have the choice, I would go for Halo.  But this is a great game with lots of depth and originality all in it's own right, and well worth purchasing if you haven't played it before. --Final Scores- Graphics: 7.5-Solid, but a little dated and not quite up there with Quake or Unreal. Sound: 10-It doesn't get any better (or more terrifying) than this. Gameplay: 9.0-Great A.I., and overall solid control (but if the swimming is this bad, just leave it out!), and the two-player co-op adds a whole new dimension. Features: 9.0-Could use a deeper deathmatch, but the two main modes are more than enough to keep you busy. Funfactor: 9.0-Lots of depth and originality, plus a good storyline to boot. Overall (not an average): 8.5-A great one or two-player experience, and one of the few first person shooters with some depth to it. 9:38:27 PM    comment []

Review of Sega Soccer Slam for Gamecube     Publisher: Sega     Developer: Visual Concepts/Black Box Games     Genre: Sports     # Of Players: 1-4     Peripherals: None     Oh my god it’s a Gamecube review!  It’s been 5 months since the last one, but all Gamecube has had since December is releases that were already on other systems (Cel Damage, Gauntlet, etc.) and even then they still haven’t had that many games come out since the big launch.  They really are trying to stick to their “quality not quantity” pproach.  Here is Sega’s first original title release (meaning a game that hasn’t appeared on any of their own platforms) on another system, Soccer Slam, which is probably what would happen if you crossed Mutant League with Blitz and applied it to soccer (although the game is more like indoor soccer, with smaller fields and goals).  3 man teams with wild characters in crazy arenas with explosive maneuvers and lots of fast action.  But like many Blitz-inspired games, is it a case of style over substance?  Read on to find out. Graphics: While not top notch, the graphics do quite nicely, with great character and stadium design, very good animation, and nice effects that add quite a bit to the atmosphere of fun in the game.  The highlight is definitely the character design, with every single haracter having a very unique design and personality (my favorite being Rico, who is such a soccer nut his head is colored like a soccer ball). Sound: Slam does quite well in the sound department too.  Each character has a unique voice that totally fits them (like El Diablo, the former Mexican wrestler, has a totally ntimidating voice that really sounds like he used to be a wrestler), and there are lots of great little bits scattered throughout (like whenever you hit a spotlight shot, you hear really cool chanting that is individual to each player).  The announcer is one of the better ones I’ve heard, because he manages to almost never get annoying.  There is music when you score, but there is no music during the game, but that’s not much of a detractor. Gameplay: The gameplay in Slam emphasizes blazing speed over actual strategy.  There is no out of bounds, no penalties (which leaves your guys free to wail on the opposition), and no injuries.  There also is no real stat tracking, as the game only keeps track of total team stats during quest mode.  Controls are easy to handle, A.I. is actually intelligent as your team mates go (they often will set up shots, and vigorously go after the ball), but quest mode is way too easy, and there are only 6 teams, with no extra teams or players to unlock, so it gets boring after awhile.  And while the teams’ characters are different enough, their skills aren’t.  Every team is more or less balanced, with no real advantage (there are no teams that are great at stealing, but can’t shoot worth a damn, for nstance).  So it feels roughly the same no matter what team you play with.  Controls are very nicely done and it’s pretty easy to get off awesome shots, but they are far from impossible to block, making the game much more even than most with “super shots”. Features: While the quest mode is interesting, and there is a good practice mode, there is no team/player creation, no stat tracking, no season/career mode, and the only thing to unlock are extra stadiums and game art, which while all extremely cool-looking and unique, are ultimately pointless.  The multi-player mode is the real gem here, allowing 4-player mayhem at it’s finest. Funfactor: The gameplay is there, the design is there, but ultimately, this game falls just a tad short of what it aspires to be, that being the soccer version of  NFL Blitz.  Too few teams and options really hurt the replay value of this game, but it’s still very fun multi-player, and is a great start to a new franchise.  Let’s hope an eventual sequel packs in some more teams and options to make this a truly great game. --Final Scores— Graphics: 8.0-Not hugely impressive, but good animation, and fantastic character and arena design. Sound: 8.0-No background music, but an actually decent announcer, great voices, and really solid effects. Gameplay: 7.5-Great controls, evenly balanced gameplay, but quest mode is too easy, and teams are too evenly balanced, giving no team any kind of real advantage (which is good and bad). Features: 5.5-Practice and quest modes are nice, but needs more teams, possibly create-a-player, and most sports fans will want season mode and stat tracking. Overall: 7.5-A nice fun game that has the potential to be a much better one. 9:32:45 PM    comment []

Review of Spider-Man for Xbox     Developer: Treyarch     Publisher: Activision     Genre: Action     # Of Players: 1     Peripherals: None Oh joy, another movie-licensed game.  That’s just what I need since I still haven’t recovered from the last couple of licensed piles of crap like Star Wars Jedi Power Battles and anything with the name Monsters Inc. attached to it.  But, the last Spider-Man game was actually excellent, the best superhero game in a long time, and this game has the same basic engine, and it even uses the actual actors from the movie whenever possible so it looks like Treyarch was determined to not make this another horrible waste of a perfectly good license.  And they almost succeed. Graphics: Well, since this game has been released on all three systems, I thought I’d pick the one that would easily look the best, but that’s the problem with a multi-platform game.  This is fairly good for PS2, but it not even really taxing that hardware, so while it’s decent, it’s kind of low quality for Xbox standards.  The animation is only decent, and frame rate isn’t too spectacular either.  Again, since this is a game made for all platforms, I’ll be a little more forgiving, but I think if it was delayed a couple of months in order to take better advantage of the Xbox’s capabilities, we’d appreciate it. Sound: Some very nice surprises here.  The voice acting is all great, including some hilarious voice work by the great Bruce Campbell (mainly in training, but he is also spread throughout the game levels in the form of blue question marks), and the actors form the movie also lend their voices to make the experience all that much better.  But even the voice of the most common thug is done pretty well.  The music is also really great, adding quite a bit of atmosphere to the game (but where’s that original catchy theme song?). Gameplay: Well, while Spidey has a lot of new moves and even new ways to wall swing, there are some big problems.  Target lock on is a big hassle; I could never really get the hang of it.  Web slinging is clumsy, making turning around somewhat problematic.  But the biggest problem is the absolutely horrible camera control.  It’s nearly impossible to see your enemies half the time, or get a good fix on your surroundings. Features: You want tons of features? You got ‘em.  Training mode (which is more than worth it just to listen to all the funny stuff Bruce Campbell says), difficulty settings, you can unlock cinemas & artwork, and even unlock cool stuff like extra costumes via a point earning system.  I honestly can’t think of anything this game could possibly add. Funfactor: Initially, this game is a lot of fun because you haven’t really been able to be the wall crawler at this kind of a level and the great voice acting and music draws you in.  But a few levels in, you get tired of the frustrating clumsy swinging and especially the absolutely unforgivably horrible camera.  I guess they had to release it in time for the movie, but this could’ve easily been the best superhero game yet if they had just fixed the camera. --Final Scores— Graphics: 6.5-Pretty good for PS2, but looks mediocre compared to most Xbox titles. Sound: 10-Fantastic voice acting and music. Gameplay: 5.5-Lots of cool maneuvers that are relatively easy to learn, but camera is just inexcusable, and targeting and web swinging are extremely clumsy. Features: 10-Most packed game I’ve seen in awhile features-wise. Funfactor: 6.5-If you can actually tolerate the bad camera; it is pretty fun (but I unfortunately can’t). Overall (not an average): 7.0-Not a bad game, almost a great one.  Major Spidey and should really give this a shot & Bruce Campbell fans should give this a rental because it’s the best work he’s done since the Evil Dead series. 9:21:10 PM    comment []

Review of Spider-Man     Tobey Maguire takes on the role of super-nerd turned superhero in Sam Raimi’s vision of Marvel’s most famous character, Spider-Man.  For those of you who never read the comic book, Peter Parker was a just your ordinary average high school science whiz until he got bitten by a radioactive spider (alright in the movie it’s a genetically cloned super spider, but roughly the same thing).  From the bite, he gains super strength, the ability to crawl and walls, heightened agility, the ability to shoot webs from his arms.  He decides to become a hero and use his powers for good after his uncle Ben was killed by a thief he could’ve stopped but chose not to.  Meanwhile, Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe), facing the loss of a military contract, which could possibly mean the end for his company Oscorp, decides to test a new dangerous human enhancer.  The experiment works, but has the side effect of creating an alternate personality-The Green Goblin.  A homicidal maniac who feeds on death and destruction all while using the latest technology to accomplish it.     Spider-Man could’ve (and has been in previous forms) been a cheesy, forgettable poorly realized superhero movie, but an unlikely choice for a director and an all-star cast helps it become one of the better ones.  Tobey Maguire is perfect as unassuming average guy Peter Parker, and handles the wisecracking webcrawler role quite well too.  Willem Dafoe was pretty much made for this role as the slow burn psychopath (although his goblin costume does not allow him to be quite as expressive as he could be without it).  James Franco is also strong as Harry Osborn, Norman’s son and Peter’s best friend.  And Kirsten Dunst does a fantastic job as Mary Jane Watson, Parker’s love interest.  Sam Raimi, as I stated previously, was quite an unusual choice to direct (for those who don’t know, he directed the Evil Dead series of movies), but he adds just the right amount of humor, action, and depth to the movie.  The special effects are quite impressive, but if you’ve seen even one ad, you could probably figure that out.  This movie does have the sometimes bad label of being a summer blockbuster, and usually that constitutes a movie with big effects and nothing else to it, but this is probably the best big-budget blockbuster I’ve seen in a couple of years. Final Grade: A+ 9:18:13 PM    comment []

Review of Arc the Lad Collection: Arc the Lad II for PS2     Publisher: Working Designs     Developer: Sony Computer Entertainment     Genre: RPG     # Of Players: 1     Peripherals: None         We continue our reviewing of the Arc the Lad Collection series, continuing with Arc the Lad 2.  This picks up years after the original. Arc and his band are now wanted criminals, falsely accused by the sinister Andel of assassinating the king.  This chapter in the series, however, focuses on a young mercenary named Elc, who believes Arc is responsible for destroying his village.  He meets a young girl during a job named Lieza with mysterious powers and a wolf named Paundit. Mysterious and strange men are after Lieza and Paundit, and Arc, along with his mentor Shu, are determined to find out why.  Now, while this is an improvement over the previous installment, much like it’s predecessor, I’m playing Arc II despite its gameplay, not because of it. Graphics: Well, this is a slight improvement over the original, with better and more a nimation, and slightly upgraded graphics, but it’s still the same basic design which means the graphics could almost be done on a super nes, and the cinemas still look pretty bad. Sound: Again, the sound is really just ok.  The voices are done well in battle, but there is no other voice acting in the game.  The sound effects are kind of sparse.  The music is also nothing special.  Given its age, I wasn’t expecting a big upgrade, but it’s essentially the same quality as the original. Gameplay: Ok, a lot has been fixed.  You have a lot more characters, but you can only have 5 in your party at a time, which makes the game challenging in a good way.  You can actually buy weapons and armor, and there are tons of optional quests.  You still can’t choose your direction when you end your turn, however.  The optional side quests are mostly mundane battles.  It’s extremely difficult to gain levels late in the game.  You can capture monsters, but it’s such a chore and so hard you won’t bother.  And your characters from the previous game are way powered down.  Plus, the game is just to long, clocking in at 60-70 hours, the story is stretched way too thin. Features: You can load your data from Arc I, and use monsters in a little game called Arc Arena, but there’s not anything else. Funfactor: Ok, in all honesty, this is not a good rpg.  If there was a good rpg out there, I’d recommend it, but Arc has the distinction of having no real competition until fall.  But what are done well are the characters themselves, a good overall story (even if it is stretched thin), and the truly evil villains with no remorse (I hate villains that have morals or are evil for a reason).  It’s enough to make me play through till chapter 3, and if you really enjoyed Arc I, you’ll definitely enjoy this one. --Final Scores Graphics: 5.5-Slight improvement over the first, but could almost be done on a 16-bit system. Sound: 6.0-Voices are done well, but no improvement over unoriginal uninteresting music from the first. Gameplay: 6.5-Improvements, but still major problems from the first as well as some new ones. Features: 6.0-Transferring data and being able to use your monsters in Arena is kinda cool. Funfactor: 6.0-Although an overall improvement, Arc II introduces enough new problems that it doesn’t warrant a higher score.  This was supposed to be the best one in the series, but it’s still way inferior to games made years ago on old systems that this generation of gamers barely remembers. 8:59:46 PM    comment []

The Bottom Rope for 6/4/01 by Eric Chrisman Once again, we are coming upon what can be considered one of those make or break times of the year for athletes.  In my opinion, there are 3 times in a year where an athlete can be given a chance to really breakout and move up (used to be four, but now that survivor series style matches aren’t really used seriously anymore, it’s down to three), the first is Royal Rumble, where how many you eliminate, how long you last, and how close you get to winning can raise your stock quite a bit.  Then, of course, is “the showcase of the immortals”, Wrestlemania.  That is without a doubt the biggest wrestling show of the year (and honestly has been since it began 17 years ago), and that’s when you bring out the best in yourself so hopefully, you’ll be higher up on the card next year.  And then there’s King of the Ring.  A tournament in which the winner can be catapulted to mega star success, (Austin, HHH, Angle) or sputter into mediocrity (Gunn, has anyone made worse use of the push?  Yeesh.).  This year will be interesting, as it’s the first year where there really seems to be no clear cut person destined to be the next big thing (although, I’ve only ever predicted two KOTR winners correctly anyways, Shamrock & Angle, so it won’t matter much anyways).  But this is actually a good thing, as it throws a lot of unpredictability into the event. Here’s a look at some stars that have the possibility of being this year’s KOTR (taking into account the qualifying matches, and who else said they were in the tournament on tonight’s Raw, and I will reserve my actual pick for when we are down to the final 8): Chris Benoit:  Let’s face facts, HHH’s leg injury couldn’t have come at worse time for the rabid wolverine, who probably would’ve been the next serious challenger for the title rather than just helping to build up the feud between Jericho and Austin.  They may throw Benoit in here in order to give him something to do, but while Benoit is more than worthy, he doesn’t need to elevate his status.  He’s main event.  He proved it last year against the Rock; he proved it this year against Austin.  He could easily feud with Regal, who seems rather directionless feud wise.  And a feud with Regal would probably lead to Benoit/Tajiri matches, which are more than worth drooling over.  Bottom line, making Benoit KOTR is kind of a waste when there are other people who need it much worse. Spike Dudley: Most years, the WWF likes to insert a massive underdog into the tournament (Roberts, Vega, Mankind, X-pac Crash) and give them the sympathy heat for the crowd.  They usually make it to the finals, or close to them, but never actually win.  My pick for this year is Spike Dudley, because he’s more than perfect for the role, especially with the current angle he’s got going with Molly (I can just see Spike, dedicating his performance to Molly).  I would love for once to see the underdog win, but it’s a rarity, and generally heels win KOTR (Owen, HHH, Gunn, Angle).  Although, given the unpredictability this year, don’t be completely surprised if little Spike pulls it off. Jeff Hardy/Edge/Christian: Ok, these guys are all under the same category.  The WWF is testing to see how much of a reaction these guys can get own their own.  If it’s really good, one of them may actually walk away with the KOTR title (if that happens, it will most definitely be Edge, although to really get a successful push, he may have to get more serious), if it’s not, back to the tag team picture they go, or possibly into jobberville if their partners become stars. Angle: I actually think this is how the KOTR finals should end up:  Angle vs. Spike, Angle is just obliterating Spike.  Punishing him and enjoying it immensely.  Shane or one of his WCW employees interferes and costs Angle the match, massively building up heat for the match between Shane and Angle.  Regardless, there is no chance in hell that Angle is winning, as it would be extremely pointless to have him win not only again, but two years in a row (although a long term Angle could be made of that if Shamrock, who won the title of “King of Kings” returns to the WWF in the next year or two).  Him being in the tournament gives Shane McMahon an actual chance against a tired, worn out Angle, rather than a fresh and completely focused Angle. William Regal: I could so see this happening.  Regal is actually in the perfect spot for this, as he is right near the main event, and winning the KOTR would most likely give him the boost he needs to get up to the main event status, and give the WWF a sorely needed main event heel in addition to Austin (Course, they could’ve used Kane, but no, they decided to waste him in the IC division.  But that’s another column).  He, in my opinion, is the most probable to win this year if he actually enters (but it doesn’t really look like he will so far), as he is pretty much the kind of character who usually wins these things. X-pac: Two years ago, X-Pac deserved this title, as one of the guys who could even carry guys like Bossman to three star matchups; he looked to be one of the WWF’s future stars.  But somehow, he always seemed to be more of a follower than a leader, and he never got the major singles push he needed.  In the last year and a half, X-pac has become extremely unmotivated, which as a disappointment to me personally, because he’s always been one of my favorite wrestlers.  Even as the leader of the newly formed “X-Factor”, he doesn’t quite seem to fit as their leader (although that may be due to his pairing with Credible, who seems more fit for the role).  So, while he may have a slim chance, he doesn’t look very likely to be KOTR this year, or any year until he gets motivated again. Test:  Test seems to be a big fav to win it all this year, and while I wouldn’t be surprised if Test did well in the tournament, but it just doesn’t seem like his time yet.  He might be better suited to feud with a big star to get more established first, possibly Angle or Regal, before he gets such a big elevation.  I personally would love to see Test win, but I think he’s not quite their yet, and the fans tend to be rather rabid on such matters, and they won’t accept him if they think that. Rhyno: See Test. Raven: Along with the massive underdog, there’s also usually a dark horse.  Somebody who’s a strong possibility because of what a KOTR win would do for them, but usually doesn’t win.  My pick this year is Raven.  If he won, he could quickly become a main event heel, and anyone whose seen Raven’s heel work knows that he is at the top of his game when he is the self-righteous, sadistic, and miserable SOB heel we saw in ECW.  We’ve seen brief flashes of this, but a KOTR win would probably put Raven into full gear.  I honestly think that Raven stands to gain the most from winning KOTR, and I would like to think the WWF creative staff saw it that way, but it’s apparent that we rarely see eye to eye on anything :). Ok, and those are my thoughts on the possibilities for this year’s KOTR.  As I stated, I’ll hold my actual pick for the tournament until we find out the final 8, so we’ll just have to wait and see how it turns out, but it should be very interesting, nevertheless.  8:55:59 PM    comment []

Review of Hunter: The Reckoning for Xbox     Publisher: Interplay     Developer: High Voltage     Genre: Action/RPG     # Of Players: 1-4     Peripherals: None     There is evil in the world.  Only a chosen few can actually see this evil, and they are the ones destined to fight it and free the world of it. Loosely based on the popular White Wolf role playing series and using an engine similar to Diablo/Gauntlet, Hunter: The Reckoning takes place in a random modern day city (anytown, USA) that has been overrun by legions of the undead.  You as one of several unique classes (and up to 3 friends) must find out who’s behind the evil and put a stop to it.  This is what I’d consider the next Gauntlet, with better graphics, a real story and more moves. Unfortunately, a couple of key flaws keep it from being one the next step up from games like Gauntlet and Diablo, Graphics: The graphics are good for a game of this type, but they aren’t anywhere near taxing for the Xbox.  Even so, there is plenty of missing frames and slight glitching.  But the environmental effects are pretty well done (especially in a cool battle in a church with a giant possessed teddy bear), the character and monster designs are cool and effectively creepy, there’s almost no slowdown, and the level design itself is very well done. Sound: The acting is decent, not bad, but not really good either.  The music is great, though.  Pumping in loudly when you have a whole horde of undead after you.  All the monsters make appropriately creepy sounds, and you can hear things like bullets pinging of walls, swishing through water, etc. Gameplay: All 4 classes are classically balanced to suit your tastes (and there are also 3 hidden classes).  The button setup is a little awkward but you get used to it fairly quickly.  You have a decent variety of moves to cleverly dispatch your foes (plus there is that oh #$%# moment when you suddenly see 30 zombies coming at you at once), and there are a wide variety of cool weapons to use as well (the chainsaw & flamethrower rock).  The gameplay is a little limiting however, as you can’t repeat levels to get stronger or pick up missed objectives, and there’s no kind of power up shop to get cool gear (yeah not necessary, but it would be cool). I don’t like that you share lives in multi-player, but it’s standard in games like this, so that’s ok.  My real complaint, however, is that there is no split-screen action in multi-player.  All players are confined to one screen, so it’s real easy to get trapped in corners and so on. Features: There is multi-player, initially 4 classes available, and more that you can unlock.  Additional play modes to unlock, and different ending depending on how you play.  This game comes loaded for bear, but no level select hurts a little bit. Funfactor: I have to say that while this isn’t fantastic game, it’s a pretty good one, and easily the best game for Xbox since Max Payne.  Good hack and slash fun, good tongue-in-cheek humor (like saying that many zombies were maimed in the making of this game during the loading screen), wide variety of balanced characters, and cool design make this a great purchase.  But the multi- player can be frustrated because of how confined you can get and it’s really easy to get stuck because the other player(s) are trying to get some space (some advice: distance attacks are your friend).  Now to be fair, most games of this style don’t have split screen, but the screen in those games stretches out quite a bit further than it does in Hunter. But this is the only thing even close to an RPG on the Xbox, and a very good game, so I recommend it. --Final Scores Graphics: 7.0-Frames of animation are missing and there is occasional glitching, but the level, monster, and character designs are done really well, and there’s rarely any slowdown. Sound: 8.5-Good tense music when action gets insane, decent voice acting, and good environmental sound effects. Gameplay: 7.5-Control scheme is a little odd, but you get hang of it quickly.  Split-screen is needed badly for multi-player, and could use level select and some kind of weapon/power up shop. Features: 9.0-Loaded with extras including multiple endings, alternate play modes, and hidden classes. Funfactor: 8.5-Great hack n’ slash action with a little RPG elements thrown in, but a couple of irritating flaws keep it from greatness. 8:54:10 PM    comment []

The Bottom Rope for 5/26 Sorry that there was no column last week.  But it was the weekend before finals and I decided that passing my classes (or at least trying to) was more important than something I don’t even get paid for (man are my obligations out of whack).  But before I get on to what’s happening in the WWF, I want to address something a little more personal.  Tragedy is a word I and other columnists use often and all too often we take the real meaning for granted. But a real tragedy happened last weekend.  I don’t know the specifics, but the final chapter of in the rather troubled life of the British Bulldog (a.k.a. Davey Boy Smith) came to end last weekend when he suddenly died.  He wasn’t even that old (36, I think?), and he was supposedly going to discuss a new contract with McMahon this Tuesday.  His life over the past few years had been troubled at best.  He had to fight charges from his wife of death threats; his brother-in-law Bret has repeatedly dragged his name through the mud; he had a near-fatal infection that required an operation; he got fired  from WCW via fed-ex while suffering from that injury.  Davey Boy was extremely unique when he entered the big leagues of the WWF.  He wasn’t a big guy, but he had a great presence and personality, he was extremely athletic, and had a scary amount of pure strength (sure, it was probably steroids, but that’s when they were still claiming wrestling wasn’t fixed, so what the heck did we know).  One of my favorite memories was Mabel sitting on him and him lifting the 500-pounder up on his shoulders until he was actually standing upright with Mabel sitting on top of him.  In remembering this formerly great superstar who had held every major WWF title except for the World, you should think about what your favorite memories are of him as well (maybe him being the first European champ, or when he beat Bret Hart at Summerslam).  Ok, now onto slightly more pleasant things. I think Raw was a big step in the right direction this week.  I liked the infighting in the N.W.O., and I liked that Nash came back to refocus the group (he’s a great spokesperson, just don’t let him wrestle).  And while the actual setup isn’t good, I am foaming at the mouth over the Guerrero/Austin feud, because that will lead to some great match-ups.  And the RVD/Taker main event was also great.  I hope it leads to a big match a KOTR.  But it still wasn’t near the high quality of Smackdown, which is trouncing Raw every single week in my humble opinion.  It may not get better without any trades, but I think trades would be a bad idea.  Instead, they should have a draft every year, making a lottery drawing every year after Wrestlemania.  Wrestlemania is always like the closing of the last year of  WWF, and they usually start anew afterwards.  This would add a lot of variety to the whole extension angle and allow us to see feuds we want to see.  I want to see Angle/Lesnar, I want to see Hogan/Austin, Guerrero/Kidman, and so on.  But unless a bunch of really odd title changes happen, we aren’t going to see these anytime soon.  An annual lottery would really spice things up (especially if one show has a bunch of angles that just are not working, it would be a chance for a fresh start).   But that’s just my opinion 8:50:46 PM    comment []

Review of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones     The prequel trilogy continues in this second installment, which comes ten years after Episode One.  Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christiansen) is now a young man and padowan under Jedi Master Obi-Wan (Ewan McGregor).  Queen Padme (Natalie Portman) is now a senator on the counsel of the republic (and unfortunately, so is Jar Jar Binks, but he only has a small role in this film).  But somebody is trying to assassinate the senator, and Obi-Wan and Anakin are assigned to guard her and figure out who is trying to kill her and why.  But there are much more sinister matters afoot than any of them could possibly comprehend.     Ok, now unlike a lot of people I actually enjoyed Episode I (yeah, Jar Jar is possibly the most annoying character in the history of motion pictures, and the kid who played Anakin was pretty bad, but otherwise I thought it was a solid film), but even if you hated Episode I, you should give Episode II a shot because it’s quite an improvement.  First off, the movie looks absolutely fantastic, with very real-looking locales ships and aliens that are extremely well done and animated.  The story is a lot tighter than Episode I, moving at a much better pace (and just a better overall plot in general).  And all the action scenes are excellent especially the light saber duels and the final huge battle.       Now for the bad news.  The dialogue is absolutely horrible (the best example being that whenever Obi-Wan and Anakin are talking, literally every other line he calls him “my young padowan”, it was endearing once, it’s painful hearing it twenty times in a row).  And the acting isn’t much better.  McGregor does a good job and so does Samuel L. Jackson but they are pretty much the only ones in the whole cast who do so (hell, Yoda is a better actor than most of the real people in the film).  Christiansen has the presence and look down, but his acting is uneven at best, and he’s given no good lines to use anyways, Natalie Portman is extremely low key and low energy throughout the entire movie, and they have very little on-screen chemistry together.     However, I was able to look past the poor acting and dialogue, and really enjoy the look, action, and excellent story.  I also enjoyed all the subtle hints of Anakin’s turning and manipulation, and stuff that alludes to the original three movies.  It has its weak points, but Episode II is a solid action film overall and an improvement over Episode I, which gives me a lot of hope for Episode III. Final Grade: B 9:07:42 AM    comment []

Review of Insomnia     A somewhat famous L.A. detective (Al Pacino) flies to a very small town in Alaska to help an old friend with the investigation of the murder of a young girl.  But he’s not flying there just as a favor.  His entire department is under investigation by internal affairs, and his partner is ready to make a deal, which may get Pacino in some hot water for questionable tactics.  They team up with a young detective (Hillary Swank) who is an admirer of Pacino’s work, and the investigation leads to a local writer (Robin Williams) but Williams has something on Pacino that is making him reluctant to turn the heat up on him.     This is the first big budget feature from Christopher Nolan, the director of one of last year’s best movies: Memento.  He comes in with some big expectations, and his first good move is the great casting.  Robins does a great job as a slow burn psychotic, trying to reason his way out and outsmart the detectives, and Hillary Swank does a good job as a rookie trying to understand a series of things that don’t quite add up.  But the real force here is Pacino.  While he plays a much more subdued character than most of his previous roles, he really makes you feel those 30 years of experience of his character.  You can see it in his eyes, in how he works, and even in his walk.  The setting is also a great choice, being in the long summers of Alaska when the sun is up for an entire season, which really makes the whole place eerie.  It’s dark, it’s disturbing, but it’s also one of the best movies of the year. Final Grade: A 8:24:45 AM    comment []