The Media that I Love

Video Games, Music, Movies, I'm here to talk about all of the entertainment that makes me who I am.

[timothyrepasky]

Bloodborne: The Perspective of a Souls Beginner

*Contains Minor Spoilers*

I never thought I would play, let alone fall in love with Bloodborne, as I’m not the most patient person and I don’t tend to gravitate towards difficult or esoteric games. Love is exactly what ended up happening, however. After finding the game on sale for $10 I had to see what all the fuss was about. It sat on my shelf for some time, as I felt intimidated by everything I had heard regarding the Souls series. Once I finally decided to try it, I told my girlfriend that I didn’t see myself getting all the way through the game. I was just curious about it. Over 50 hours later, I have defeated every big bad and even achieved the hardest ending.

Bloodborne didn’t grip me right away. Even though I knew it was the incorrect way to approach encounters, I tended to play like it was a standard character action game like Bayonetta or Devil May Cry. This was a mistake and led to me dying...a lot. I also felt like I was making no progress whatsoever, as I learned online that I was unable to level up until obtaining one insight. Even though I was getting the crap kicked out of me, I began to learn Central Yharnam and its enemy placement, all the while inching myself closer to the Cleric Beast by way of shortcuts.

By the time I finally encountered him, I of course, died. But by earning one insight I was finally able to advance my character. This is the one substantial issue I have with the game: the way in which it gates players behind the initial insight attainment wall is asking a lot. Yes, I am aware of the possibility of obtaining insight in the sewers before encountering the Cleric Beast. However, I feel that even with that option my point still holds. Whether you earn your initial insight by either method, it’s more difficult that it should be and it’s understandable that most players would quit before completing either of these tasks. To top it off, the game doesn’t even explain this to you. If I hadn’t read into it so much on my own via the Internet, I myself may have called it quits. This is also by far the most I have ever read up on a game online.

The game soon turned into a series of “runs” for me. I would make runs solely for the purpose of grinding soul echoes and farming blood vials. Every so often I would return to the Hunter’s Dream and cash in my echoes and this progression loop was one I would return to often during my playthrough. The original designers of Halo often talked about their concept of “5 seconds of fun”, and how the constant repeating of this is what made Halo so entertaining. I found myself applying this mentality to Bloodborne. Instead of the 5 second rule, however, I would say Bloodborne is more or less a 5 “minute” rule at its onset.

I finally bested the Cleric Beast and made my way to Father Gascoigne. He, of course, wrecked me initially as well but grinding allowed me to brute force my way through him. With these two initial bosses under my belt and the fallback on making grinding runs, I was confident in my ability to move forward and the feeling of abandoning the game was constantly diminishing. Soon arriving at the Cathedral Ward, the game finally opened up for me and I was hooked.

As anyone who is even remotely familiar with the Souls series knows, combat is punishingly brutal. Despite this, I enjoyed learning the ins and outs of it. It was satisfying learning individual enemy movements and exploiting their openings. I quickly abandoned using firearms, as I never got confident enough to utilize the stagger mechanic. I selected the Saw Cleaver as my starting trick weapon but ended up purchasing the Kirkhammer and sticking with that for the remainder of the game. Learning to master the Kirkhammer was also incredibly rewarding and this is pretty much how I approached combat encounters for the rest of my time with Bloodborne. Upon acquiring the hunter’s torch and learning that beasts are more vulnerable to fire, I did use it as my secondary weapon quite a bit, which led to a further decrease in firearm use. But aside from the torch I rarely messed around with any other equipment. All I needed was my Kirkhammer.

Even though I would say that the loop of combat and stat progression were the biggest hooks for me, the shadowy world of Yharnam was also something that constantly propelled me forward. I always wanted to see what dark nightmare was around the next corner, and the game never disappointed. I also appreciated how nearly every location was connected with one another, and this did wonders in establishing Yharnam as a believable world. Through my grinding runs I got to learn each locale intimately and that was a great feeling.

After getting to the Cathedral Ward there were only a handful of points where I had to dedicate a day or so to grinding in order to proceed. The encounter with the Blood-Starved Beast gave me a heck of a time, even with assistance from a NPC. Other stop gaps for me turned out to be the Forbidden Woods, Rom the Vacuous Spider, and Ebrietas. People are correct in their assessment of this game’s difficulty. However, I cannot stress enough that once you are able to level up via the Doll in the Hunter’s Dream, every challenge ahead can be solved through grinding as long as you have the time to invest.

While I did get invested in the stat progression aspect of Bloodborne, I have an issue with how the caps work. Each of the six character stats have soft and hard caps, and by advancing past certain points you start to encounter a significant reduction in returns. The most egregious of these is the cap for endurance. While other stats like Vitality continue to grow (even if it’s ever so slightly) after hitting the soft cap, leveling up endurance past its soft cap of 40 does nothing for your stamina rating until you achieve the hard cap of 99. I found this to be bogus and am most thankful that I learned this online before investing my blood echoes further into it.

I ended up completing Bloodborne and really loving it. It’s one of the most unique games I have ever played and I can see why the Souls series gets all the praise it does. The difficulty and cryptic nature of the game didn’t turn me away like I thought it would and I can already say that I want to give another entry in the series a try sometime. I’m currently leaning between Dark Souls 2 and 3 as my next pick. I would love a Bloodborne sequel, as I know many others do. I’ve already moved on to other games but with Bloodborne’s New Game Plus option looming in the back of my head I’m having to fight off the temptation to jump back in.

[timothyrepasky]

3 Things I Like About Dishonored 2

Quick Saves

I found Dishonored 2 to be very challenging for the first several missions. When you haven’t acquired many items or skills yet, you certainly take a beating from any guards who spot you. This caused me to pursue a stealthy approach through the environments, but I still got caught a lot. Until you really get to know each level and the guard layout, things become very much a trial and error. Thankfully The quick save and quick load system made this all the more bearable. Upon any mistake I made I could easily hit two buttons to reload my previous save. Alternatively, each time I got past an obstacle, I would quick save and be guaranteed a safe checkpoint the next time I got into trouble.

Karnaca

I found the island of Karnaca to be a breath of fresh air from Dunwall. Its vibe is completely different and I found it a refreshing change of pace. Everything is more colorful and I just found it to be a much more pleasant experience than the dank coldness of the empire’s capital. Karnaca still has its share of slums, but when the story takes you to the wealth of Karnaca things stand out much more in locales such as the Clockwork Mansion and Grand Palace. Beyond these, every environment is a joy to traverse. There’s a great amount of verticality and extreme care went into making each place feel real. Even though I took my time through each mission searching for secrets, I never found all of them. It’s also a blast to eavesdrop on the denizens of Karnaca, further fleshing out its rich world.

Freedom of Choice

Dishonored 2 is full of choices, both minute and grand and you are presented with a pretty big one at the beginning of the game as you can choose to be Emily or Corvo. There are at least two ways to complete each mission, which usually boils down to either eliminating a target for finding an alternative way of ensuring they will no longer be a threat. There are multiple endings depending on the choices you made throughout but aside from the big decisions that you have to face, small ones are also ever present. You can choose to be stealthy and sneak through the environments or take a more aggressive approach. Guards can be defeated lethally or non-lethally, and then you must choose whether to hide their bodies or not. Environments offer various paths to your targets and there can be huge sections of each level that you don’t even have to enter if you don’t want to. You can also choose which abilities you acquire and upgrade, with it being impossible to obtain all of them in one playthrough.

[timothyrepasky]

The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye

Book Review (Contains Minor Spoilers)

I am a massive fan of Stieg Larsson’s original Millennium trilogy, but I wasn’t at all bothered when David Lagercrantz took over the series after Larsson’s tragic death. Happy to see the story continue, I was very pleased with The Girl in the Spider’s Web, and I am still mostly pleased with The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye. With Spider’s Web, the main difference I noticed was its shorter length. Other than this, I couldn’t even tell it was a new author. An Eye for an Eye is vastly shorter than any of the preceding novels, but it also starts to differentiate itself more than Spider’s Web did with its increased focus on new characters.

From what I can recall, Spider’s Web was conservative in its introducing new characters. The Balder family played a pivotal role in the plot, and I also remember the “Ed the Ned” character. We also got to finally see some of Camilla Salander, which made me very happy. While these are all the standout new faces from Spider’s Web, this new novel goes crazy with its fresh faces, and sadly to a bit of a detriment. An Eye for an Eye begins by following our beloved Lisbeth and Mikael characters, but is quick to get bogged down by Lagercrantz new additions, causing a peak and valley effect.

I was engrossed with the beginning of the book. Lisbeth is in prison after the events of the last novel and Palmgren visits her only to resurface nightmares from her past. There is also a threat within the prison that the reader knows Lisbeth will have to take care of sooner or later. On the outside, troubling events transpire with Palmgren. By this point I was all in, but I soon lost enthusiasm as an overload of new characters began to become the fixation of the narrative. Perspective would shift back to Lisbeth and Mikael but for a while it was a struggle to get through the sections that were not focused on them.

So many new names were thrown at me that I lost traction and continually wondered what they had to do with the rest of the story. This continued for some time throughout the middle of the novel until things finally picked up again towards the end. Lagercrantz does tie everything up together nicely when all is said and done, but at times it takes a little too much perseverance to get there. He provides just enough mystery to keep you going, but I often wanted a bit more. The story he tells ends up feeling deeply complex and does end up satisfyingly linking back to Lisbeth, but ultimately feels like he refuses to move the overarching plot of the series forward. The last book ended climatically with Camilla and instead of furthering what is going on with her, we instead get more of an explanation of the past, leaving you with the feeling that it’s only a half-step forward. This novel’s ending is also far less exciting.

The story Lagercrantz ends up telling about twins ends up being interesting enough in itself, and it’s impressive how he ties it back to Lisbeth. I ended up enjoying the book and it’s definitely worth reading if you’re a fan of the series and wasn’t put off by Spider’s Web. However, the next book needs to take more substantial strides forward.

[timothyrepasky]

5 Things I Like About Rise of the Tomb Raider

The World

Crystal Dynamics did a phenomenal job realizing its vision of Siberia. The game has several large hub areas that were designed with the utmost care. These environments are filled with things to find and do, resulting in a believable world. Optional tombs are hidden throughout the game that offer that classic puzzle solving experience. These are short but well designed and always offer a reward. Stumbling across one and completing it always felt like a small adventure itself and only added to the already excellent world building. Each time I discovered one I actually felt like I was in a very ancient and desolate place.

The Progression

The progression in Rise is constant and satisfying. Whether you’re finding things littered throughout the environment or looting corpses, you are constantly building your inventory and skills all the while becoming stronger. You can craft resources, upgrade weapons, and teach Lara new skills depending on your preferred play style. This is broken down into the brawler, hunter, and survivor categories. I was always offered something new that improved my experience and made me feel like a more efficient adventurer.  

The Combat

Combat is not something I’ve ever come to a Tomb Raider game for. Instead it’s about the adventure, sense of discovery, and puzzle solving. However, in Rise the combat is surprisingly satisfying. I never once felt disappointed when I encountered a fight, or when there was a stretch of intense combat. Part of this is due to the excellent pacing of the game, but combat itself is also engaging and diverse due to the weapons feeling good and variety of ways to approach encounters.

Lara

While the overall story and supporting characters didn’t do much for me, I found Lara herself to be a well developed character. Since a majority of the game sees Lara trekking solo (and rightfully so), it’s only natural that she talks to herself a lot, but this never annoyed me. None of this felt out of place or forced, and I really grew to care about Lara as the game went on. Much of this development is done through her family and her desire to accomplish what her father couldn’t, and this is done with powerful effect. The Blood Ties content very much expands this, as you get to learn in much greater detail what happened to Lara’s parents. Being back in her home also allowed for further character growth.  

The Fan Service

The first hint I got of the fantastic fan service Crystal Dynamics put into Rise of the Tomb was with the classic Antarctica costume from Tomb Raider 3. Later on in the game there are more classic costumes and skins that can be unlocked and applied to Lara for use in her adventure. This even goes as far as rendering her classic character models. While this looks ridiculous on the PlayStation 4, it’s fun nonetheless. The rest of the fan service comes from the Blood Ties content, which places Lara back in Croft Manor. As fans know, being able to play in the manor was a huge part of the classic games and while it is far more story-driven here, just being in that environment again made me very happy. Additionally, you can find and play a recording that turns out to be the very same music from the classic manor stages. What really made me smile was a note I found discussing how when Lara was younger she would trick the butler into going into the walk-in freezer only to lock him inside, which is something I would always do in Tomb Raider 2.

[timothyrepasky]

Masters of Doom Book Review

Beginning with Commander Keen and continuing on with Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and Quake, id Software was one of the most prolific video game developers in the 1990’s.  The company’s games revolutionized the industry in such a way that ripples of that very wave are still felt to this day.  Out of all of id’s employees, none were more integral to its success as the brilliant programmer John Carmack and groundbreaking designer John Romero.  Masters of Doom by David Kushner tells the story of these two Johns and how their games changed the world.  

The book begins as far back as possible by describing both boys’ childhoods and families, and continuing on with their lives from there.  We learn how the two meet, about their early games, the beginning of id Software, and the triumphs and struggles through developing their critical and commercial darlings.  The drama slowly builds as the company becomes more successful, and it actually feels like you’re there watching it unfold before your eyes all the way until these two partners go their separate ways.  

Masters of Doom is painstakingly researched, as it took the author six years to conduct interviews in order to get the information found within these pages.  Even though such a large amount of journalism is in this thing, it reads more like a novel, with dialogue interspersed throughout.  It’s also obvious that the author is a fan of games and technology himself, as he does an excellent job of describing anything that may be unfamiliar to the reader.  Kushner’s portrayals of these people are also well done.  Carmack is shown as a bit of a quirky yet hardworking and exceedingly intelligent individual, where Romero is an impressive designer with the attitude of a rock star.  After reading this book, you feel like you really know these men and understand them.  

What is also focused on is how id’s games fit into the larger video game industry, and beyond that, pop culture and American society.  There are huge amounts of fascinating information for those who care about video games and technology as a whole.  Doom’s influence on pop culture is also focused on, and things even get political as controversies such as the Columbine shooting are discussed.  Kushner really ties everything together and the result is a good look at how Doom and its peers fit into what we see as America today.  

For gamers interested in history behind their favorite industry, Masters of Doom is a must read.  It’s loaded fascination.  Even if you aren’t a fan of Doom or any of id’s games, it’s still important to see how they shaped the video game industry.  If you play games today, chances are they were impacted by id Software.  I walked away with an even greater appreciation and understanding of games and those who make them, and I wish that more books focusing on specific game companies and developers existed.  

[timothyrepasky]

How Doom (2016) and Wolfenstein: The New Order Have Redefined Themselves

In 1992, id Software helped pioneer the First Person Shooter genre with its massive hit, Wolfenstein 3D.  One year later the company released Doom, which became even more of a phenomenon and forever changed our culture by introducing deathmatch fully embracing violence.  Both Wolfenstein 3D and Doom were MS-DOS games, an operating system for PC’s developed by Microsoft.  The past few years have seen reimaginings in both of these hugely important shooter franchises, with Wolfenstein: The New Order in 2014 and Doom in 2016 for the current gaming platforms.  After having recently played both of these titles, I think it’s important to look at how they each represent themselves in the current gaming landscape.

The New Order is perhaps the more ambitious of the two and strives to incorporate aspects of other successful titles in the crowded genre by having a clear focus on narrative, character development, and cinematics.  I was reminded of Dishonored on more than one occasion.  Themes of Nazi ideology pervade the experience, and the dark alternate history that the game presents is intense and unsettling.  Additionally, the sci-fi flavor injections in the form of mechs and robotic dogs give the game a strong sense of style.  These are the things that stand out most when looking back on The New Order, but the core FPS gameplay is solid throughout too.  Various play styles are presented to the player and each is viable, whether you want to take a stealth approach or decimate everything in your sight.  You are also able to dual-wield almost any gun, and embracing this slightly wacky side of things gives the game charm.  The New Order manages to fit well alongside modern shooters by both embracing and nailing current tropes.

Doom takes the opposite approach.  Where plot, cast, and cutscenes are central to The New Order’s success, they all take a backseat in Doom.  Here the focus is more on adhering to what made the original Doom so special back in the 90’s.  Constant, frenetic action is front and center and is handled with glorious success.  Innovations are minimal, but the new core mechanic of staggering an enemy and then performing a glory kill ensures that you always maintain pace.  To further this, no reloading is needed.  Much of the brilliance of this game is how loyal it remains to the original with its reimagining of classic weapons and enemies.  Level design feels very arena focused, and power-ups, teleporters, and bounce pads all ooze 90’s flavor.  There’s less to dissect with Doom, but its actions speak louder than any words can do it justice.  You just have to play it.    

2016’s Doom was developed by id Software and The New Order was developed by Machine Games.  Even though different teams brought us these titles, it’s interesting to compare each studio’s approach..  Both games were critically and commercially successful.  A sequel to The New Order just got announced and is expected to release later this year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if another Doom is already in the pipeline.  It’s also worth noting that while this is the first Doom game since Doom 3 in 2004, the Wolfenstein series has seen much more frequent releases.  The New Order is the biggest leap the series has taken in quite some time however, and it feels as much of a reboot as Doom does, building a solid foundation for future installments.  Numerous successful shooters have decided to focus on narrative-heavy campaigns, and The New Order fits in well with its peers.  On the other hand, Doom very much does its own thing by only caring about violent, gloriously fun gameplay cranked to maximum levels.  The retro tropes feel good to revisit and the result is an overall thrill-ride that you never want to end.  It’s nice to see so much variety in today’s crowded FPS genre and I am eager to see how these two franchises continue to evolve and redefine themselves over time.  

[timothyrepasky]

Wolfenstein: The New Order Review

A Blast of a Nazi Nightmare

The New Order realizes a world that could only be enjoyed through the medium of video games.  Its opening chapter sets up what appears to be another done to death World War II shooter, but soon evolves into something fresher.  After B.J. Blazkowicz fails his mission to stop General Deathshead, the game jumps to 1960 where the Nazis have complete dominion over the Earth.  B.J. is in an asylum, but it doesn’t take long for him to escape and continue being a Nazi-destroying machine.  This alternate history gets even more grim as B.J. seeks out a small resistance team and begins fighting a war that’s been long over.  Tinged with sci-fi elements, Nazi idealism is portrayed throughout The New Order with frightening accuracy through graphic cutscenes and cinematics.  Storytelling, compelling character development, and authentic world building are among the game’s strengths.  

Aside from the numerous set piece moments of the narrative, the folks at Machine Games also crafted a fun game.  Players are encouraged to play how they want, as there are distinct upgrade paths for all play styles, from stealth to explosives.  The more you play to a particular style, the more unlocks you will be awarded that deepen your preferred approach.  While there’s always the option to go in guns blazing, the stealth approach is usually just as effective.  Every approach is satisfying, and B.J.’s combat prowess is always clear.  You can dual-wield just about any gun, unmount and heft around turrets, overcharge your health, and even slide around the battlefield.  Environments are richly detailed and filled with collectibles to hunt down.  Enemy A.I. is usually pretty impressive as well, using tactics to flank and surround you if you choose to sit still for too long.  The campaign is also phenomenally paced, with excellent mission variety and gameplay variation and settings that keep the experience feeling fresh.  

Despite the overall strong art direction, I ran into a few bad textures during my playthrough.  There was also the occasional difficulty spike, and quick swapping with the weapon wheel continually left me frustrated.  Though I appreciated how much care went into developing B.J. as a character, he really only boils down to a Nazi mutilator when all is said and done, and his constant monologues felt a bit archaic.  The auto-snap cover mechanic didn’t always work for me either.  Lastly, while it’s cool (yet ridiculous) that you can dual-wield nearly every weapon, I rarely found it necessary.

The New Order is a thrilling experience almost the whole time through.  The action never gets old and the story that carries you from set piece to set piece is intense, compelling, and told with style.  Machine Games is successful in bringing one of the grand-daddies of the FPS genre to the modern day.  Wolfenstein’s legacy is respected by retaining what made the previous games fun all the while infusing modern sensibilities and the result is an extremely solid shooter.  

8.75/10

[timothyrepasky]

Doom (2016) Review

Bloody Hell

Disclaimer:  This review only pertains to the singleplayer campaign, and not the SnapMap or Multiplayer modes.  I also played on the PS4.  

Whether it’s feeding the player a slew of cinematic set-piece moments (Call of Duty), focusing on large-scale tactical battlegrounds (Battlefield), or taking more of an artistic approach through story and stealth (Dishonored), some of the biggest names in the FPS genre have found ways to distinguish themselves.  What Doom does to set itself apart is travel back to its 90’s roots, and to astounding success.  There’s no need for a sprint button, as Doom Guy’s base speed is already fast-paced.  Combat is even more frantic, you won’t want to stay anywhere long.  There’s also no reloading or fall damage, which would just slow things down.  Arena-style level design returns, as do power-ups, colored key cards, teleporters, and bounce pads.  Outrageous amounts of demons are thrown at you and the only way to progress is to slay them all (yep, literally life-force doors).  To top it off, everything is backed by heavy-metal riffage, with a slight electronic flavor for a more modern feel.  

The story matters just about as much as the pistol does.  You are presented with it early on, but it soon becomes forgotten as soon as you pick up that shotgun.  The plot basically functions as a reason for you to move from one point to the next.  It seems as if the developers did try to make you care about what’s going on, with passable dialogue and Prometheus-like holograms used to flesh out the past, but it ultimately doesn’t matter because the core of the game is the shooting mechanics, which are masterfully done.  Weapons are satisfying to use and it feels good to blast demons, which you’ll be doing a lot of.  

The biggest gameplay addition comes in the form of the Glory Kill mechanic.  Just before you are about to kill an enemy they will become staggered and glow for a short period of time.  Performing a melee attack during this window will result in a Glory Kill, which rewards you with a gruesome death animation as well as health and ammo.  This combined with the smart decision of no auto health regeneration  further pushes you to play aggressively instead of taking cover.  Doom Guy also automatically grapples onto ledges, and this added mobility paired with an unlockable double jump helps the otherwise subpar platforming to not feel like a chore.  

Constant player progression adds to Doom’s success.  Completing challenges, finding secrets, and simply killing things all reward the player with weapon points, suit upgrades, and equippable runes.  You are steadily becoming more powerful and capable of dealing with what the game throws at you, and the balancing is expertly done.  

Checkpoints are generous, but the load times are not.  The game runs exceptionally and without a hitch, but I was still surprised with the load times after installing the game to my PS4.  I also found the quick weapon swapping to be mildly frustrating, there’s an occasional difficulty spike, and some of the level design can result in confusion on where to go next.  Additions to the Doom formula are also kept to a minimum, and I would have liked to see just a little more new ideas.  

Minor gripes aside, when Doom is firing on all cylinders (and it usually is) there is little in the FPS genre that can provide as much fun.  Innovation is subtle but effective and the game honors the franchise’s identity.  The minute-to-minute combat provides copious amounts of entertainment, and there are lots of secrets to discover and challenges to complete, resulting in extremely high replay value.  The developers at id Software nailed this reboot in nearly every way, and I desperately hope there will be a sequel.  

9/10

[timothyrepasky]

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Review *Spoilers*

Fans have been given very little in the almost ten years since the conclusion of the Harry Potter series.  That is, up until last year, with the release of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and more importantly Harry Potter and Cursed Child.  The latter has been marketed as “the eighth story” and “based on an original new story by J.K. Rowling”.  It’s also the first to debut in play form.  Rowling isn’t the only name credited with this new story, as Jack Thorne and John Tiffany also helped develop this tale.  A lot of time has passed since the last official Harry Potter novel, and this is the first time Rowling was assisted by two additional writers.  The fact that this story comes in the form of a screenplay also gives rise to skepticism.  Despite all of this, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child still serves as a worthy addition to one of the most beloved stories of our time.  

I went back and forth on whether to include spoilers in this review, but I have decided that I will.  You have been warned.

The story moves at an almost uncomfortably odd pace at the beginning, as time continually jumps forward year after year, before eventually settling on a more focused time frame.  This book primarily follows the children of Harry, Ron, Hermoine, Ginny, and Draco.  It’s not all about the kids, as their parents do play significant roles, but the heart of the story is about the younger generation of wizards who have to follow in their parents’ footsteps.  The authors also surprisingly bring back characters who you wouldn’t expect to see, yet were integral in the previous books, such as Dumbledore and Snape.  The reasons we see these characters again are sound and don’t break the established lore.  It’s also obviously great to see new interactions with them.  However, this book has a problem with retreading familiar ground, resulting in a feeling of fan fiction.  Loads of previously dealt-with events are brought back to the forefront, especially things that happened in the fourth book.  In fact, each task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament is gone through again, which feels nostalgic yet too familiar.  What makes this (and seeing familiar faces again who have died) possible is the time-turner similar to the one used in book three.  Whenever time travel is introduced into a story, things get very complicated and confusing, and that’s absolutely the case here.    

Occasionally we get glimpses of the past through Harry’s dreams, but what’s more interesting is when we see scenes that were never shown to us before.  This is what I wish The Cursed Child had more of, but unfortunately it’s much more concerned with retreading the past that any fan already knows about extensively.  New snippets learned along the way are few and far between and this is really the story’s greatest fault.  Where it had the opportunity to expand the wizarding world through the eyes of a new generation, it instead uses those young eyes to tug a little too hard on your heart’s nostalgia strings.  

I have mixed opinions about some of the new principal characters.  The story primarily focuses on Harry’s son Albus and Draco’s son Scorpius.  Surprisingly, Scorpius was much more likeable than Albus, who has some serious daddy issues.  Thankfully we see growth in Albus by the end of the story, as the relationship he has with his dad develops into something much stronger than it is at the outset.  It’s interesting to see Harry, savior of the wizarding world, struggle with being a parent.  Scorpius, on the other hand, is very likeable.  Even Draco is more likeable in this book than he ever was in previous installments, and it was fun to see how he gets along with the others now that they are all adults.  He still has an attitude, so his character doesn’t feel off, but again we see how he’s grown and changed as a person.  

Much like previous books, relationships are at the heart of this story.  The importance of friendships was always focused on before, but now we have the addition of the parent/child relationship.  This being at the core of the story helps it to feel like it belongs in the canon, and it is done well.  

The fact that this is presented as a screenplay shouldn’t detract any Harry Potter fan from checking it out.  It’s a far quicker read than any of the other stories, but it’s one that is definitely worth your attention.  It retreads old ground and plays it safe a little more than I would have liked, and the new things that it does present are few and far between, but it’s so much fun being back in this world and seeing these characters again so many years later.  Thankfully everything is wrapped up nicely by the end, but I really hope that Rowling continues to dabble in the wizarding world.  The only thing I could ask for is for her to take a few more risks next time, instead of offering too much of the familiar.  We still would have felt the nostalgia with far less.  

[timothyrepasky]

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers 40th Anniversary Tour

I recently attended the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers 40th Anniversary Tour at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis.  Tom Petty has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, as my dad listened to them often while I was growing up.  I can recall my dad lending me some old cassettes of his music so I could listen while I played video games.  One of the strongest childhood memories I have is being on vacation and feeling a great amount of joy in recognizing a song that came on the radio.  When it became time for me to start owning some music for myself, I received various cd’s and dvd’s of his in order to expand my appreciation.  

I hadn’t listened to Tom Petty much in recent years, aside from what I would hear on the radio at work.  Nevertheless, when my family expressed interest in seeing him for his 40th Anniversary Tour, I was all on board.  In preparation for the show (and partially because my girlfriend was somewhat unfamiliar with him) I dug out his Greatest Hits cd and Playback dvd that I had received as gifts all those years ago and re-explored some of my favorite jams of his.

Joe Walsh opened for Tom Petty that night and I honestly wasn’t that impressed with him.  The fact that he had two drummers was cool, but I did not care for his chatting, singing, or song selection.  His guitar playing was “okay”, but I remain to be convinced that he is one of the greats.

Thankfully when Tom Petty came on, I enjoyed myself much more.  For these guys being as old as they are, they still play tight together, which makes sense because four of them have been in the band for forty years.  The setlist was mostly what I expected, and I recognized a majority of the songs even though I haven’t heard much of his new material.  The highlight for me was definitely “You Got Lucky”.  They extended the outro to that song with more of a guitar solo-y feel and when it was over I was floored.  A similar thing happened to many of the other songs but this one was done the best in my opinion.  

For being as old as these guys are, they remain a very talented rock band that you should definitely see if given the chance.  Even if you didn’t grow up on his music, it’s easy to appreciate and enjoy.  The band performed well, but I got the feeling that they won’t be touring much longer.  That makes me sad but also causes me to feel grateful that I got the chance to see them.  I’ve always thought of Tom Petty as “the coolest of cool guys”, a mainstay in the American rock n’ roll genre, and all of those feelings have only been reinforced after seeing him perform live.  

[timothyrepasky]

My Favorite Albums of 2016

As with every year, 2016 was one with plenty of musical releases that I enjoyed checking out.  It didn’t quite top last year’s output, as many of these albums left me wanting more, but overall we got some decent stuff for our earholes to absorb.  This list is going to function similar to last year’s in terms of what is eligible for entry, and then afterwards I’ll look ahead at what I’m excited for in 2017.  Let us commence!

10.  A Moon Shaped Pool - Radiohead

I’m a newer Radiohead fan, really getting into them only last year.  They’re my brother-in-law’s favorite band and he has been feeding me their stuff bit by bit.  When they surprise-dropped A Moon Shaped Pool earlier this year he was going gonzo for it, and I did my best to dig into the album so the two of us could have a decent discussion about it.  As with most of their material, this thing took a lot of effort to listen to and unlike most people, I actually came away pretty mixed.  “Daydreaming”, “Identikit”, and “Present Tense” stand out as personal favorites but overall I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I have some of their previous efforts.  I listened to this thing hard so as to prepare for a conversation with my brother-in-law, but after that I rarely felt like going back to it.  Maybe overtime it will continue to grow on me but I don’t have much “fun” listening to this one.  Between that and the fact that I’m still a very new Radiohead fan, this one lands at number ten for me.  

9.  The Prelude Implicit - Kansas

At the polar opposite of the spectrum we have Kansas, a band that has literally been present throughout my entire life thanks to them being my dad’s favorite band.  The Prelude Implicit is a big deal because it’s the band’s first record in sixteen years.  Adding in the fact that they have a new lead vocalist, and plenty of other fresh faces, nobody knew what this thing was going to sound like.  The incredible thing is that despite all of the lineup changes, the band very much sounds like classic Kansas.  I thought this thing was pretty good upon first listen but for some reason didn’t return back to it much.  It instead just made me want to listen to a bunch of older Kansas albums.  Personally, I think the new vocalist sounds incredibly similar to Steve Walsh.  I even got to see them perform live twice this year and he still impressed me.  Standouts from this one include “Refugee” and “The Voyage of Eight Eighteen”, an awesome acoustic ballad and classic-feeling prog song respectively.  

8.  Hardwired to Self-Destruct - Metallica

This one is a more recent release and as such I haven’t had as much time to digest it.  As a whole it feels like a less-epic, slightly strung-out continuation of Death Magnetic.  It’s a double album that shows the band having just enough restraint from releasing another Load and Reload.  I find the first half slightly superior, with “Atlas, Rise!”, “Moth Into Flame”, and “Halo On Fire” being highlights.  On the second half we have the standout closing song that nobody can seem to shut up about, “Spit Out the Bone”.  I enjoyed this LP a decent amount but I don’t find myself eager to put it on all that often.  

7.  Tidal Wave - Taking Back Sunday

I really struggled with the numbering of this list, especially with this back half.  I’m not entirely sure how (or even “if”) Tidal Wave actually beats the last three albums in terms of quality, but it just has something to do with a few of its songs getting stuck in my head.  I personally found Tidal Wave to be a slight step up from Taking Back Sunday’s last release, but not by a whole lot.  It’s crazy to think that their self-titled record came out after the original lineup reunited and was as incredible as it was and then they drop two records that I just don’t care for all that much.  “Death Wolf” gets stuck in my head to this day (though its title is kind of silly for a TBS song), and so does “Call Come Running”.  I also enjoy the title track, sections of “You Can’t Look Back”, and “All Excess”.  For some strange reason, “In the Middle of it All” reminds me of a Tom Petty song, which is also pretty cool.  Most of the other tracks are just kind of “okay” to me.  These guys have certainly grown as songwriters, but I always prefer to listen to their older material.  

6.  Bad Vibrations - A Day to Remember

While I felt that the Taking Back Sunday record was a slight step up from their previous one, Bad Vibrations was the opposite for me.  Like everybody else (except my brother apparently), I thought Common Courtesy was phenomenal but this band from Florida unfortunately couldn’t properly follow it up with the same amount of grace.  This thing is dark and heavy, which is fine but there were just too many lows that I’ll almost always skip.  My favorites include the opening title track, “Exposed”, and “We Got This”.  I also thought both of the bonus songs were pretty good, and this album would have suffered even worse without them.  My words here may not seem like this thing belongs in the number six spot, but I really enjoy those three songs quite a bit and can appreciate the tonal shift they went for with this one when they could have easily gone the other way.  

5.  The Death of a Bachelor - Panic! At the Disco

I’m not sure how this one is so high either, haha.  The best explanation I have is that it pleasantly surprised me.  Panic’s last album really bummed me out and is easily their worst in my eyes.  Seeing as how Brendon Urie is the only remaining original member left and Panic is for all intents and purposes his solo project now, I was expecting for this thing to be a trash fire.  Surprisingly it’s not.  I dig a good portion of the songs on this album, including “Victorious”, “Don’t Threaten Me With a Good Time”, “The Good, the Bad, and the Dirty”, and my overall favorite “LA Devotee”.  Brendon’s multi-instrumental and songwriting talents really shine throughout much of this record and even though some of the stylistic changes can be pretty jarring I walked away impressed.  P.S. I still miss the other original members though.  

4.  The North Corridor - Chevelle

A few years ago when the last Chevelle album, La Gargola, came out I got really deep into the band and quickly purchased all of their material.  After doing so I found that I didn’t like La Gargola nearly as much as their older stuff.  I’ve come around a little bit on it since but I was extremely excited for its follow up.  The North Corridor didn’t disappoint, as I believe it to probably be a step up from La Gargola.  The first single, “Joyride (Omens)”, is definitely one of my favorite songs of the year and I also really like “Rivers”.  This album continues the brooding, ear-crushing sound that Chevelle have settled into with their last few releases and while I dig it, I would appreciate their next effort to shake things up a bit.  This is their third in a row working with the same producer and it would be a breath of fresh air for me as a fan to hear something more along the lines of Vena Sera again.  P.S. I always want to call this album The “Northern” Corridor.  

3.  Misadventures - Pierce the Veil

I didn’t think it was possible for Pierce the Veil to put out something that could match Collide With the Sky but not only have they done that with Misadventures, they quite possibly may have topped it.  Misadventures released back in May and it’s something I have constantly come back to ever since.  I really like almost every song on this thing, which is the first time I can say that about an entry on this list.  This record is more fun than Collide With the Sky and never leaves me bored.  It also explores more territory.  “The Divine Zero”, “Floral and Fading”, “Phantom Power and Ludicrous Speed”, and “Bedless” round out my favorite tracks.  I was very impressed and pleasantly surprised by Misadventures and can’t wait to see what these guys do next.  I really feel that they are one of the most talented modern bands that are out there today.  

2.  The Stage - Avenged Sevenfold

Speaking of surprises, I got another one with Avenged Sevenfold’s The Stage.  I wasn’t a big fan of their last record, Hail to the King, and I rarely find myself returning to it.  These guys are one of my favorite bands and their City of Evil album continues to be one of my favorite records of all time.  They have just never been able to top or even match that one for me personally and after The Rev died things only got more shaky.  Hail to the King was by far their most uninspired output to date and it really left me scared about what the band had become.  Thankfully The Stage is the complete antithesis of Hail to the King.  Where Hail to the King felt like nearly every song was crafted to be a single, had slower tempos that focused on groove, and felt like the band were phoning it in, The Stage course corrects all of those issues.  The title track and opener for this new record is so far the only single and I have honestly spent a lot of time thinking about what the next single could be and I still don’t have a good answer for that.  The songs on here all very much feel integral to making the album what it is.  Standout tracks for me include “The Stage”, “Sunny Disposition”, “God Damn”, “Angels”, and “Higher”.  There is also something magical to this album, as it has so many moments that really move me as a listener.  The ending of “Higher” is one of them.  It’s incredibly beautiful and feeds well into “Roman Sky”.  “Exist” is very clearly comprised of three distinct parts.  The first third rocks your face off and the last third adds narrative, but the middle section is what hits me.  It’s certainly one of the slowest sections of the entire album but I find it extremely moving.  The instrumentation on this record is some of the best that A7X have ever produced, and that’s saying something coming from a guy who feels that they are some of the most gifted musicians I have ever heard.  What really helps with this is the band’s new drummer, Brooks Wackerman.  The drumming this guy has brought to the table absolutely blows my mind on numerous occasions on this thing and I feel confident saying that he’s the best they’ve had since The Rev (and yes I know that’s sacrilege considering they had Mike Portnoy for Nightmare).  His drum beats are mind blowing and really help make this album as special as it is.  I hope Brooks really is a long-term member because he fits so well with the rest of the band.  The Stage is easily the best Avenged record in years and I am so excited to see what this means for them going forward.  This feels like a new beginning.    

1.  The White Album - Weezer

The White Album cheated.  That’s right.  Even though I have listened to Misadventures far more this year and have been on a non-stop A7X kick since The Stage dropped, The White Album still dominates the number one spot on this list.  Why?  Because it happened to come out at a time where I was at my lowest of lows and was able to truly connect with this record.  A few years ago Weezer went through a rebirth of sorts with their album EWBAITE and similar to how I felt with with the Pierce the Veil stuff, I didn’t think there was any way that this band could top that last one.  The White Album manages to do just that while feeling exponentially different.  Tracks 1, 2, 4, and 6 are pretty straight-forward Weezer tunes, but very good ones at that with 6 being the best of the bunch.  “Thank God for Girls” shows tremendous growth in the band’s songwriting and Cuomo’s lyricism that manages to be smart while also retaining his signature nerdy goodness.  “Do You Wanna Get High?” feels like a long lost Pinkerton track.  Everything is very solid and fun...and then tracks 7-10 happen.  These four songs hit me so hard on a personal level that I have trouble stomaching them.  A lot of this is due to where I was when this thing came out but there’s no denying that tracks 7-10 are some of the greatest songs Weezer has ever recorded.  I have a hard time explaining why this album is so special, and much of it has to do with very personal feelings but even devoid from that it’s easily one of the best Weezer records, falling straight behind The Blue Album and Pinkerton for me personally.  After so many years of lackluster Weezer releases, it’s so exciting to see these guys at the top of their game again.  

Albums I’m Looking Forward to in 2017 (In No Particular Order)

The Blood Album by AFI.  I’ve only more recently become a big AFI fan but after consuming their last four records I am very much anticipating The Blood Album that supposed to drop this very month.  The two singles they’ve released so far have been great and I can’t wait to hear the other twelve tracks.

Coheed and Cambria.  I wouldn’t be too surprised if we didn’t a new Coheed record this year since they only released The Color Before the Sun in 2015 but I still feel there’s a chance.  As most people are aware, that was their first non-concept record and I am eager to see if they continue this idea of just releasing an album of non-related tracks or if they will go back to the Amory Wars story.  They may even start something new.  Their last album was a little bit of a letdown for me.  It was very poppy and not as dark as I would have liked.  Whichever direction these guys choose to go I’ll be very excited to find out the details about their next LP.

Disturbed.  These guys also just released an LP in 2015 but it’s not out of the question to see them coming out with a follow up in 2017.  I really loved their comeback album Immortalized and would be very happy with something that’s even just as good as that one was but I wouldn’t be surprised if they waited another year.

Fall Out Boy.  American Beauty / American Psycho was easily my least favorite FOB record and I hardly ever return to it.  I still love Fall Out Boy so much and seeing as how they have been very consistent in past in regards to release schedules I pretty much expect them to have a new one out this year.  While I don’t like their new material even close to as much as their pre-hiatus stuff, I am dedicated enough to stick with them and check out anything they release.  I really believe these guys can do way better.

Senses Fail.  I believe there’s a very strong chance we’ll get a new Senses Fail record this year.  Buddy has said that they have been in the studio and are planning for a 2017 release.  We’re also supposed to get an acoustic EP sometime and I also know that he and Finch have a side band that they’re putting a lot of effort into.  While I did like their last two records, I miss old Senses Fail.  The hardcore stuff has been good and Pull the Thorns From Your Heart was probably a step up from Renacer but I would really love for these guys to get back to their roots and sound more like their first four LP’s.  And judging from Buddy’s statements I believe that’s what we’ll be getting.  Add in the fact that they are supposedly working with founding member and guitarist Garrett Zablocki again and I am so eager to see what’s coming next.  

Silverstein.  These guys have also said that a new album is absolutely coming this year.  We’ve already gotten a new track “Ghost”, which was killer.  I have always said that Silverstein are one of the most consistent bands in that you always know what you’re getting with them.  They stick to a schedule and never make drastic changes.  I will love anything these guys release.  

Underoath.  This is perhaps the biggest longshot on my list but Underoath have been touring again and while they haven’t talked about new material I could see it happening, even if it’s not this year.  I want a new record from them so badly and I am hopeful that sooner or later we will get one.  The Academy Is… also did some shows though they weren’t as far-reaching as Underoath’s Rebirth stuff and they’ve gone quiet since.  I want the same thing to happen with My Chemical Romance but out of these three right now Underoath seems like the most probable for a new release.  

Farewell Continental.  This band has had half of a record in the bag for a while now and are hoping to finally finish it this year.  I’ll be there on day one.  

[justincourtneypierre]

Everything That Hurts, by Justin Courtney Pierre

Hip Shit From A Hip Dude. JK. This Dude is 0% Hip.

Hey gang, just doing some soul searching amidst the constant cleaning up after an 18 month old Tasmanian Devil.

I know I probably sound like a broken record, and most likely everyone who reads the stuff I post has already heard it, but I released a tune a while back on Bandcamp (as well as iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, and EVERYWHERE ELSE) called Everything That Hurts.

If you could check it out and let me know what you think that would be great. If you could buy it, that would be, I’m not going to say better, but I will say equally great.

Every $ I make is currently going into a figurative little cookie jar that I hope to use to eventually fund more music making. If you can’t afford to buy it, please send it to some people you think would. At the very least stream the shit out of it on your favorite site and by all means TELL THE PEOPLE OF THE WORLD.

You are my only hope, you beautiful fucking Obi-Wan’s.

I love you.

[timothyrepasky]

My 2016 Summer

After a (let’s call it tumultuous) Spring, I was more than ready for the 2016 Summer.  While it was far less impressive than last year’s Summer, it ended up being a great break for me.  I have a full time job and also attend a university full time so the absence of one of those things (school) for a few months was something I was in dire need of.  I officially resume school on Monday so that means summer is nearing its end and I am looking forward to what the Fall holds for me.  Before I begin to look ahead, I wanted to do a little write-up reflecting on what I did do this Summer, which may not seem very grand but oh well.

What I am most happy about is my writing output.  I wrote more recreationally than I ever have, and it felt great.  Everything I wrote ended up on this Tumblr, and thankfully I contributed to my Game Informer blog some too.  I wrote some book reviews, video game reviews, new track impressions, concert impressions, contributed to my Motion City May feature that I love, and even wrote a few things pertaining to Zelda, in addition to a few completely personal posts (like this one).  

Since writing is what I want to do with my life after college, I’m glad I did so much of it this Summer.  I also hope to do even more next Summer, and even broaden my pieces.  I have a long way to go but am very happy with how everything turned out.  The video game reviews I did were probably the most challenging, but also the most rewarding.

Aside from all of this, I had a lot of nice recreational time.  I read books (even some manga), finished watching all five seasons of the original Dragon Ball anime, played video games, watched movies, listened to lots of new music and podcasts, and took lots of walks.  I also went to three concerts. Lastly, I spent a lot of time with family.  

As I’ve said on Twitter, I don’t know what my blog output is going to look like for a while.  I won’t have much time with all of my other responsibilities.  I hope to do some here and there but next summer will definitely see a lot happening for me.  I’m sure my writing will improve greatly by then too, so that’s exciting.  This will be my last full year of school, and I am immensely happy about that.  This time next year I’m hoping to only have one more semester left, and then I’m off on new life adventures.  Thanks Tumblr.    

[timothyrepasky]

Hardwired - Metallica - Track Impressions

It’s been eight years since “Death Magnetic” and finally (finally!) metal lords Metallica are back with a new song and album announcement.  Set to release November 18th, “Hardwired...to Self-Destruct” will be the group’s tenth LP (and a double one at that!).  Along with the announcement we also get the first single “Hardwired”, which is a blistering first taste of what is to come.  Things start off at breakneck speed with a fantastic drum beat from Lars that really never lets up.  Honestly, he’s the star on this thing and I love it.  The rest of the instrumentation keeps up all throughout and we do get a decent solo, yet it’s very short of mind-melting.  I find this track to be lyrically pretty weak but at the same time its seemingly brash commentary on the world we live in today is a fitting one. “Hardwired” feels much like a return to the band’s thrash roots, and also retains an eerie feel from their last record; 80’s Metallica with a 2016 gloss if you will (and I most certainly will). It actually reminds me of “My Apocalypse” with its quick, in your face delivery of its words to match the music accompanying it.  This is a very solid single and has me hopeful for this upcoming album.  

[timothyrepasky]

Jaco The Galactic Patrolman

Review

Those of you who saw Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection F last year might recall the Jaco character that showed up to warn Bulma of Frieza’s impending arrival on Earth.  I found myself really enthralled with Jaco and the larger context that he brings to the Dragon Ball universe that I have loved for most of my life.  I was unfamiliar with his story and eagerly sought out the Jaco The Galactic Patrolman manga graphic novel.  

I hadn’t read any manga for a long time, but I really enjoyed the fun story that Akira Toriyama delves into here.  Jaco is a goofy character sent to Earth to protect it from the Saiyan threat.  In doing so he crashes, causing some major damages to his ship and becomes stranded on the planet.  Thankfully he lands near a small island inhabited by Omori, an old engineer capable of making repairs to the ship.  

Even though Omori is your typical grumpy hermit who dislikes most individuals, he and Jaco manage to strike up a friendship and the tale of getting the ship fixed is both comedic and fascinating for those who love the Dragon Ball mythos. Fan service is surprisingly minimal until about halfway through the story, when we are introduced to Tights, Bulma’s older sister who I had no previous knowledge of prior to reading this book.  At the end we’re even introduced to the rest of the Briefs family, including an adorable version of Bulma younger than we’ve ever seen her before.

Speaking of timeline, this is the earliest tale set within the Dragon Ball storyline that I am aware of.  It even ends with a bonus chapter that details the events on Planet Vegeta leading up to Kakarot being sent to Earth (which Jaco both humorously and thankfully misses).  There’s even a short scene of Grandpa Gohan discovering young Goku.

My Dragon Ball loving heart adored this entire story.  It’s funny, engaging, and an absolute treat for fans of Akira Toriyama’s work.  Everything wraps up extremely nicely as well.  Even though there are no real loose ends, I would still love for a Jaco series of novels to continue.  Omori, Tights, and Jaco are all wonderfully realized characters that I greatly enjoyed spending time with.        

[timothyrepasky]

My Family’s 2016 Family Reunion

As the 2016 summer is coming to an end, another one of my family reunions has also come and gone.  I’ve never been shy about expressing my love for our annual get-togethers, as they are literally my favorite part of every year.  I seriously have the best family in the world and I am endlessly grateful for them.   

The reunion was much later this year than they normally are, not taking place until the beginning of August.  While this felt weird at first, I ultimately didn’t mind it because it still gave me something to look forward to for longer throughout the summer instead of it being over halfway through.  This summer it was my aunt and uncle’s turn to be hosts.  Going up to Michigan and being at their house is probably my favorite of the four places that we rotate between each year.  Their house and property are wonderful and they live right next to a lake.  This means that paddle boating, motor boating, and swimming all took place.  Even just sitting in the shade next to the lake and feeling the breeze relaxed me more than anything has in a long time.  As a matter of fact the weather was excellent the entire time.  It never got too hot and it didn’t rain once.  And as always, lots of delicious food was consumed the entire weekend.  

Except for one person, we were actually all in attendance this year too, which sadly doesn’t happen often enough.  It was so great to catch up with everyone, especially those I hadn’t seen since last year’s reunion.  I had some really nice conversations with people that I hope stick with me and help shape my life in the coming year.  

In a way, it feels like we didn’t really do much this year as far as activities go.  Aside from the lake stuff, most of the adults really didn’t do much besides sit around eating and visiting with each other.  I’m not disappointed in this, it’s just an observation I had about half way through the weekend.  I always talk up our reunions to anyone who wants to listen and in doing so I always talk about how much fun we have.  I always mention water balloon wars and homemade water slides but there really wasn’t any of that this year at all.  Part of it had to do with the location, as my aunt and uncle don’t have a nice hill to water slide on like my parents and my other aunt and uncle do.  Sure the kids kept busy and had a blast but overall it feels like I personally did a whole lot less this year.  

None of that last paragraph is meant to diminish my enjoyment for the past weekend, because I really did have a blast and wish it could have lasted longer.  I think a big part of the change is due to people getting older and having less energy to spend on such things.  Next year I see a similar thing happening, as the aunt and uncle whose turn it is will have even less room for such shenanigans.  Nothing was said on their part, so I’m just hoping right now that they actually do end up hosting it.  The following year will be my parents turn and they always do the water slide.  

As I believe I mentioned in last year’s reunion blog, the future of these annual family functions isn’t as concrete as I would like them to be.  Our seasoned hosts are indeed getting older and organizing these things takes a lot of work.  I understand that the same people won’t be able to do this forever, but sadly none of the younger generation next in line to take over has stood up and offered to yet.  Rumors about changing things up have been circling around for the last few years but nobody has broken tradition yet.  I’m slightly worried about who is supposed to host next year’s reunion, but as long as that one happens I know my parents will gladly do the next one.  I just never want these things to end.  These reunions are the the only time I get to see many of these people that I love so much and I hope they will be around in some shape or form for many years to come.  Even as a kid I held them in high regards and I want my future children to experience them too.  Speaking of the younger generation, one last thing that stood out to me this year was seeing of my younger cousins getting upset and bummed out that they had to leave.  I did the same thing as a child and I still get that way to this day.  I always want to leave as late as possible.  Seeing that bums me out because I know how they feel, but at the same time it also gives me hope for the future that our family reunions will carry on as new hosts step up to fill their parents’ shoes.  Even though this year’s family reunion just ended, I’m already excitedly anticipating next year’s.    

[timothyrepasky]

Dead Space 2 Review: One Giant Leap Into Terror

Isaac Clarke survived the events of the first Dead Space, but did his mind?  Hallucinations constantly plague him in this sequel from Visceral Games as he makes his way through a new space station infested with Necromorphs.  Attempting to destroy a new Marker that he has no memory of creating, Isaac’s obstacles are just as much psychological this time around as they are physical manifestations that he has to de-limb.  The question of mental stability is also present with other characters in the story.  

In retaining its predecessor’s feel, Dead Space 2’s universe is a clearly disturbed one.  From enemy designs to truly gruesome death animations, horrific scenes are plentiful throughout the experience.  Visceral also manages to craft combat scenarios that instill utter fear in the player.  The action certainly intensifies to such a degree that had me on the edge of my seat wondering if I was going to survive the next few seconds. Thankfully the checkpoint system is very forgiving and save stations are plentiful, though this provides little comfort.  

Everything moves faster this time around, including the progression.  Looting is just as important as it was before but since you are dropping more corpses that also means pickups are more plentiful.  I was constantly obtaining credits and upgrade nodes to further advance my weaponry.  I always had plenty of credits to spend on new toys and each time I did I felt even more powerful.  That being said, I never seemed to have too much ammo or health packs to a point where I felt comfortable and prepared.  This balance is perfect.  New Game Plus as well as higher difficulty settings give you plenty of incentives to go back after the credits roll.

Weapons are fun, gratifying, and effective.  You can also use stasis and telekinesis to further deepen and diversify your approach, which come into play for light puzzles too.  There are also much more zero gravity segments this time around.  These are well-designed and help keep things fresh in addition to offering a grander scope to the story.  Dead Space 2 nails its pacing.

Incredible sound design is present throughout, adding to the already stellar atmosphere.  The voice acting performances are solid too.  Maybe it’s because you see his face during many of the cutscenes, but I felt that the developers did a good job of humanizing Isaac much more this time around and I greatly appreciated this.  The game is very accessible for new players, with a nice recap of what happened last time in the menu options.

Dead Space 2 is a step above the original in nearly every way.  The combat is frantic.  The story leads you along at a nice pace with plenty of cinematic moments. Zero gravity and light puzzles diversify things.  Strong voice acting, great visuals, and true sense of atmosphere place you into a believable world.  From the Necromorphs in front of him to the unsettling things that Isaac keeps hearing and seeing, Dead Space 2 provides terror that should not be missed.  

9/10