sports event USA, American Football by fighting on THURSDAY at 10:30 PM ET Rutgers vs Fresno St. playing on USA The most enjoyable and fighting Rutgers vs Fresno St. football match known as those two team. All of the squad are fully ready to fights one another. Digital Cable TV channel broadcast those and NCAA full season match. You can watch online which TV Link here. Just join here and enjoy NCAA Full Season.

2013 NCAA College Football Week 1

Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live

NCAA | NCAA Scores | Schedule | Standings | Stats | NCAA Nation | Local | Highlight

Match Schedule
Game: Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live
THURSDAY, AUGUST 29

Week 1: 2013 College Football
Location: usa
Time/Score: 10:30 PM (ET)
TV: Live Link

Hellow Guys welcome to the Rutgers vs Fresno St. match on NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association). You can able to watch Rutgers vs Fresno St. live streaming video here. don’t miss this match just join here and enjoy more now.

You all about USA Game entertainment like NCAA, NCAAF, MLB, NASCAR, SOCCER, BOXING, FORMULA ONE, ect by which All of you can watch each and every games live streaming online. From any location! Get instant access and most exciting sports coverage stream software online directly on your PC. Download and install oue software and enjoy all the pleasures of the sporting world comfortably like you are at the stadium watching the match Miami vs Dallas live HD TV NCAA College Football 2013.

How to watch Rutgers vs Fresno St. NCAA live Streaming Free just flow our guide line here :
You can watch free Rutgers vs Fresno St. live here : ustream, justintv, myp2p, wiziwig.tv and daprtv.com.

Or You can download our tv software. which include 3500 tv chanel. Very easily operating system and HD quality only for NCAA football match. 60 Day Money Back

The National Collegiate Athletic Association TV schedule for the 2013-14 NCAA season on CBS, FOX, NBC, ESPN and NCAA Network. Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live NCAA, live football Rutgers vs Fresno St. live NCAA, watch Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live stream, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live online tv, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live hd tv, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live tv lnk, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live streaming tv, preview Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, live highlights Rutgers vs Fresno St. american football, american football Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, watch Rutgers vs Fresno St. live free, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live Feed, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live video, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live coverage, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live NCAA game, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live football match, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live match video, sop cast Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, web cast Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, streaming tv Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, enjoy Rutgers vs Fresno St. live football, NCAA Rutgers vs Fresno St. live, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live 2013, Rutgers vs Fresno St. live pc tv.

How to watch Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live TV coverage and Week 1 odds (Video)
Watch Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live stream and TV start time College Football 2013.
Week 1 Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live Live stream and TV coverage (Video).
NCAA Live stream Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live TV coverage and Week 1 odds (Video)

Welcome to USA NCAA Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live Streaming Online TV coverage College Football 2013 start time. Now you can enjoy more channels than your cable and satellite TV Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live combined for a one-time fee less than one month of your monthly cable bill. You can watch Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live TV right from your laptop or desktop computer anytime or anywhere in the world. Or connect your computer directly to your TV set – once you are a member we will show you how Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live! NCAA Season schedule for Week 1 kicks off this THURSDAY and NCAA fans everywhere will be more interested in their favorite teams as many of the starters should see a lot more playing time 10:30 PM . With the NCAA Network, ESPN and different options to watch via live stream, Rutgers vs Fresno St. Live Week 1 has fans ready to go!

Click Here To Watch NCAA Live Online Video

Match Schedule

Ever since the announcement of next generation hardware earlier this year, more and more games are becoming online only experiences. With games like Titanfall, Destiny, and The Division all requiring constant internet connections to play, the path has been paved for a trend that could see a much larger number of always connected games in the future. However, as enticing as some of the possibilities are for this generally unknown method (at least on consoles), there are also a lot of problems that could arise throughout these games life-spans. Server errors, local connection issues, and constant maintenance could literally render these games unplayable at times. Even worse, the fact that they are always online games will mean that they are eventually going to be no longer supported, basically making the game worthless. Even among the excitement and fervor that these games are building, gamers should be wary that they are taking a risk with their wallet when they purchase these online only games. 

MAG ultimately promised more than it could deliver, but it still had a loyal following.

Even though the concept of always online games on consoles has only become popular in the recent months with the arrival of next-gen consoles, there already has been an experiment with this idea on the current generation of consoles. The PS3 first person shooter exclusive MAG promised intense 256 player battles that would comprise the core game. While the game did offer a brief offline training mode, the rest of the game remained an online experience. The game received mixed reviews upon release, and the long term player base remained relatively small. Coupled with the low player count and developer Zipper Interactive shutting down in early 2012, Sony has decided to pull the plug on the game, with the servers expected to close in early 2014. While the player base is still diminishing, I'm sure there are still an avid group of players that still enjoy the games large scale battles. Unfortunately, this hardcore following and any other players of the game will be locked out of the games online modes when Sony decides to shut down the servers, making the game essentially worthless. Not only will the dedicated fanbase lose their go-to online game, but they'll also be out of $60, or however much they spent on the game. 

Sure, you might say, this kind of thing has happened before in the PC space. Large MMO's like Lego Universe and Star Wars Galaxies have met their eventual demise, with Galaxies having a subscription fee. Fans of any subscription based MMO are taking a risk when they choose to pay that monthly fee, but it seems as that method has faded away in recent years. A large number of MMO's have gone free to play in recent years, with a subscription fee still in place for only the most dedicated players. At least with this concept, if the game is disconnected, at least players aren't out of $60 and monthly subscription fees (save for microtransactions). 

It could also be argued that there are a larger number of casual gamers on home consoles than on PC. They might not be aware that a certain game is online only, and will be very surprised and angered when they pop in a game like Titanfall or Destiny one day only to find out that they can't even play it any more. I'm not trying to say that a game like Titanfall or Destiny is destined to fail and will have its servers closed soon after launch, but eventually the day will come where they have to pull the plug on those games, and there still might be a fair amount of players latched onto said games. 

SimCity underwent weeks of patches and scheduled maintenance in order for it to function normally.

Additionally, there is also the question of how developers of these games are going to address launch stability or game crashing patches. There have been a myriad of instances this console generation where a patch for a game will go live and can drastically alter a game's multiplayer component, usually for the worse. These patches can even break a game's multiplayer if severe enough, and while they usually last only for a brief period, they still affect a large number of people. Just as bad (or even worse) is when a game first launches and the servers are overloaded and additional ones are needed. This happened the first few days when Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was released, and subsequently, the PC launches of always online games like SimCity and Diablo 3 have caused uproars in the gaming community. At least with a single player option, gamers can enjoy that portion of the game while they wait for the multiplayer to be fixed. As we witnessed with Diablo 3 and SimCity, without that option to fall back on, things can get pretty nasty. Both games still have a bad reputation for their disastrous launches, and for SimCity at least, compromises had to be made for the game to run properly. Will always online console titles have features stripped in order to be playable?

There is also a major issue that is being addressed right now: subscription based MMO's imposing a monthly fee on top of an Xbox Live or PS Plus monthly fee. Even though gamers have dreamed about playing highly detailed MMO's that are usually available only on PC's, this issue has prevented a large majority of them from being released on consoles. With the new generation approaching, it seems as though this could be the starting point for console based MMO's with The Division and The Elder Scrolls Online coming next year. While it's unknown if The Division will have a subscription fee yet, The Elder Scrolls Online has announced that it will charge $15 a month. This alone has angered many PC gamers, as subscription based MMO's are slowly being phased out, but it's even more frustrating for console gamers who will have to pay for their online services monthly as well as a monthly payment for just one game. Fortunately, free to play MMO's should have no problem winning over console gamers, as they don't have to worry about this complication. 

With all these possible roadblocks for online only titles coming to consoles soon, I'm certainly cautious about how they will be received and how they will perform when they are let out into the wild. And don't think for a minute that I'm not excited for any of these games; I am. Destiny, The Elder Scrolls Online, and The Division especially look like they will be exceptional titles, I'm just worried about the issues they could face on consoles because of their always online nature. Besides the obstacles I mentioned, there could be ones that I or no one else could conceive, leading to an ultimately flawed product that I'm not sure console gamers are ready to deal with. 

What do you think of always connected titles coming to consoles? Let me know in the comments below.

And that seems to be the million dollar question these days... What is it exactly that makes a sequel a good addition to a series, or even possibly more successful than the first game(s)? Is it any one thing, any one feature? Or is it a multitude of them, working in tangent in order to make a good impression on players or muddle your senses into believing (justly or otherwise) that a game is quite excellent indeed? The true answer is, depending on the game, any number of things could be done to make awesome sequels that deserves each and every commendation they receive, and there is no one solid, surefire way to be successful in your games. It's just all about risk and risk management and mediation, truthfully. So, let's take a look at a few series' that have fared pretty well throughout the years, and the unquestionably successful entries in each. Today, we'll be highlighting some particularly well received Ubisoft titles, for the sake of continuity- Splinter Cell and Assassin's Creed The games in question will be Blacklist and II.

♦♦♦

Playing Cloak and Dagger in the Shadowy Sept

The Splinter Cell series has seen some major and minor changes to it's formula over the years, ranging from purely tactical action to carnage and chaos. Today's game is equally different and the same as it used to be, in many more ways than one. And the reason for the most recent game's major successes thus far have been because of this. Players both new and familiar with the series can identify with Sam Fisher as he once was and as he now is. It's primarily the continuity and the newfound power that make this newest iteration impressive in many ways. Not only is it yet another graphical update, but the gameplay is as rock solid as ever, the story has evolved in the ever expanding world, and the stakes are higher than ever. If there's one thing that's certain, it's that- when playing with higher stakes, you're willing to risk it all for higher rewards. And I think critical success, at least for the first many days, is a high and just reward indeed. But that's just a short little glance, without really spoiling things for you. Let's move on to my second point.

A Game of Assassination

I chose Assassin's Creed II, even though it is definitely not the most recent successful sequel by any stretch, mainly because it was the first, and the one that seems to have revolutionized the series the most- as well as received the most unanimous acclaim. Sure, Assassin's Creed III was spectacular, but there was a surprising number of people not able to look past its persistent bugs, as they had in the past, even in II. Assassin's Creed II broadened the horizon on nearly every front available- open(er) world, intriguing and inter-arching story, evolving and expanding viewpoints, and stellar gameplay that was both refined and refurbished are just a few major playing points to name. Assassin's Creed II did just about everything right, and for that reason, fans still play it today, and newcomers still choose that particular title as the major jumping-on point for the series. It would be insane and undue to say that the game wasn't a successful sequel, and game, in its own right. And for these reasons, as well as many more.

♦♦♦

Now, that's my short little note for the night, as unsupported as it may seem. I apologize if it seems a little cut and dried, or maybe simply lacking in true detail, or at least as much as I normally put into my work ethic, but honestly- I am just too busy right now to really break away and pour my heart out to you. So you'll have to settle, momentarily at least, with this poor piece of work. I appreciate the consideration when you take your precious time to read my work, and I would also appreciate hearing your own opinions, feedback, and any other information you feel inclined to give commentary about. Yours, as always.

It's college time once again, and for some reason, I find that I have to write during the times that I'm at my busiest. I mean, I had a whole summer, with no school, and I barely wrote anything. Maybe writing is my own personal way of escaping from the trials and tribulations of real life. At least, that'll be my excuse as to why I wrote something like this instead of a paper for an actual grade.

So after my review of "The Last of Us" (go ahead and click that, by the way, thanks), I just couldn't think of a topic that inspired me enough to write. Well, I finally thought of something, and it couldn't be more different than a game with brainless zombies, (although many of the people that watch this particular show may be considered as so). It's one of my more humiliating interests that I'm always embarrassed to admit to liking, but in the case of this blog, I have to just come right out and admit to it. Here, let me take a deep breath first. *breath in, cough, try to regain my composure* Alright, here goes nothing:

My name is Zach Hall, and I'm a wrestling fan.

Hey, I'm still alive. Go figure.

Now before we get started, let's just get the usual stuff that most wrestling fans have to clarify and get out of the way: Yes, I am a fan of the fake sport that acts like a sport. No, I don't watch it because it has men rolling around in tights. I'm sure there are many people that do watch it specifically for that, and that's just fine. I, however, do not.

"Just Trying To Prove A Point. Honest"

With that out of the way, the reason why I had to mention I like wrestling is because of how wrestling games made for some of the most entertaining and memorable moments I had as a young boy. I mean, (and fun fact) it was a wrestling video game that I rented from my local Hollywood Video in St. Louis that I have to blame for turning me into a wrestling fan.

As a socially awkward kid in elementary school, who had just moved and had no friends, I needed something to do while I was out not making friends. Video games became that something and wrestling games became some of my favorite games to play. Turns out, when I did make a friend, he was also a wrestling fan. What are the odds?!

We'd play some video games, and because we both enjoyed wrestling games, they became some of our go to games when we had that gaming fix. We thought that playing these types of games would be limited to just us, since we figured that people who weren't wrestling fans would find little to no enjoyment in playing those types of games. We were wrong.

When my friend group started to grow (my posse, as I never called them), it allowed for the opportunity to bring more people over to hang out at each other's houses, and sometimes, a wrestling game found its way into one of our gaming systems if we had one.

"Pretty Sure This Just Threw My Point Out The Window"

Now remember when I mentioned that I was socially awkward as a kid (if not, just look back three paragraphs, you really can't miss it)? Well, I'm still socially awkward as a young adult, but I discovered as a kid that when I was around my friends, awkward I am (usually) not. When it came to playing these wrestling games with friends, I could be the biggest pain. It's ironic that the times I was a pain were (usually) the times that made for those memorable moments I've been building up in this blog (thanks for being patient, by the way).

I remember when I'd intentionally handicap myself when playing. First, it'd be a 2 on 1 match (okay, go ahead and insert all your innuendo jokes here), then 3 on 1 (and here), and after winning those matches, I proposed one final match to my friends so they could try and regain their dignity: 3 on 1, and I'd play one of the female wrestlers, while they played as the normal male wrestlers (wait, who was trying to get their dignity back again?). See, back in the day, this was something done for fun, whereas nowadays, this wouldn't be considered "socially acceptable" (nor should it be, may I add). Oh, and spoiler, I actually managed to win that match. Sure, I probably did the most begging for mercy and dirty tricks that I've ever done with anything, but I won, and I was proud! At least, as proud as a prepubescent boy possibly could be after playing as a woman to beat three other men.

"I'm REALLY Starting To Regret Writing This"

Wow, I think this just became the most unintentionally innuendo laden blog I've ever written. Can I even post a blog like this? Anyway, I still hope you enjoyed this re-return blog. I had a lot more fun writing this than I thought I would, and I hope I find something else to write about in the future. Hopefully something less questionable.

I'm an early adopter of the Wii U and I wanted to share my pros and cons of the console.

Pros:

Standard Controller Style

The Wii U has a controller with control sticks and buttons by default. I love that! When the Wii U was first unveiled and it showed that it came with a more traditional controller, that is when I was sold immediately. The Wii was pretty impressive and had some cool experiences, but the control scheme just wasn't for me. The games I enjoyed the most on the Wii had the least amount of motion control (Smash Bros Brawl, Mario Kart with nunchuck, Mario Galaxy). I couldn't wait to play Nintendo games with a more standard controller experience again.

And it feels great. The gamepad is awesome. It feels like a Super Nintendo controller with analog sticks and triggers with a screen in the middle. It has a nice Nintendo quality directional pad. The triggers ZL and ZR on the back feel nice and in the right spot. The Pro controllers also feel great. I don't mind the placement of the analog sticks and playing games is everything I wanted with them.

Off-TV Play

The Wii U gamepad has the ability to play games without having the TV on or turned to the Wii U input. I didn't realize how much I would enjoy this feature until I had it. In my situation as a family we share a single TV.  Having the ability to play my console games while the TV is in use by someone else has increased my game time tremendously. The screen is just the right size for it and the speakers sound pretty good for most games. A headphone jack is also available.

MiiVerse

Miiverse is the Nintendo version of Twitter. Each game has a community to post within. Users can post a 200 character text, or draw something the size of the gamepad screen, select from 5 Mii expressions to convey emotion, tag the post as an accomplishment, impression, or question, mark it as a spoiler, attach a screenshot in some scenarios, and follow other users. There are game developers on there verified by a checkmark so you can see Nintendo news and they even respond to feedback and comments.

This was another feature that I was suprised that I enjoy as much as I do. It's been great fun to see the amazing artwork that people have made using a stylus on the gamepad screen.

Most people are really friendly and if you are stuck anywhere within a few minutes you can usually have a reply to a post. It is nice having a whole wealth of game related twitter feed style posts for each game released (even the virtual console games!).

Seriously, go to https://miiverse.nintendo.net/ and browse some of the communities.

Games

This is a Nintendo console so it's going to have the awesome library of Nintendo franchise games. We can expect the Nintendo triforce / holy trinity of Mario, Zelda, and Metroid to have a release or two on the Wii U. Lots of friends complain that Nintendo just "re-hashes" their franchises for each system. It's hard to defend that sometimes because it is the same universe of characters for each game, but they are always really high quality and usually have a unique feature that sets it apart from the rest of the series. They also sell really, really well. A common phrase I hear often is "I can't wait for an HD Zelda, or Metroid, or Mario game."

Standouts for me so far have been: New Super Mario Bros U, Luigi U, Lego City Undercover, and even Nintendo Land.

CONS:

Pro Controller Support

So one of the main reasons I wanted the system is standard controller support, which turns out to not be supported as much as I thought it would be. Wait what?

Yes that's correct, not every game supports the pro controller! Imagine my disappointment when I learned that if I want to play Mario or Nintendo Land with my family that we needed to go buy Wii Remotes. The gamepad is supported with every game but the pro controller is not. (Mario Bros U has since had it patched in which is awesome) I have to check the back of the box and read several reviews of games, or google search just to see if pro controller support is included. Disney Infinity shows it's supported on the box, but it really isn't and on their site they apologize for the improper packaging.

Why is it even a question whether it is supported or not? Why is it not supported by every game? And why is it so hard to find out if it is?! It can't be too much different than wiring up support for the gamepad controller which every game already has.

Off-TV Play Support

So the next item in my pros list is also not supported by every game. I can understand a few select games not supporting it (like Zombie U) as they are built around having two screens, but they still could be done on a single screen. So guess which games get more play time from me?

This feature, along with Pro Controller support should be in every game. It should also be easier to find out if it is supported or not for the game instead of having to google and research.

Trophies/Achievements

This is one area that some people may disagree. I've already seen other blogs pop up from people saying they are happy to be free of trophies/achievements with the Wii U and the effects they have on gaming. I have seen some strange multiplayer behavior in Halo 3 regarding achievement hunting. Like all things in life, achievement hunting can be taken to the extreme and have some negative effects on people.

But I personally feel that Trophies have improved gaming overall. For games that I really enjoy it has added so much depth and accomplishment. I really did play through Shadow of the Colossus HD five times in a row to get the Platinum trophy. It was completely worth it because I love that game and the sense of pride I feel when I look at that trophy and the memories it triggers are priceless. I experienced more parts of the game than any other time I had played it before. I feel even more deeply in love with it because of this. (For example, I had no idea that you could hang onto an underwater fish or a flying eagle.)

If I don't love the game, I'm OK with not getting 100% of the trophies and it doesn't distract me or take away from the enjoyment at all. But I sure do love seeing that I completed the story mode (and what the date was) when I look back through my accomplishments.

Nintendo didn't implement a running total/profile level achievement system. MiiVerse does have some forms of accomplishments but it's no where near the same level as MS and Sony. I think that is a serious misstep for gaming. Imagine what Nintendo could have done with it. Some Nintendo themed trophies like coins, or 1ups, or something would have been awesome to have right out of the gate.

When it comes to third party games that are available on the Wii U and PS3 or Xbox 360, I generally will go for the PS3 version for trophies. As tempting as Off TV play is, I love having the trophy history.

Games

According to comments on internet gaming sites the Wii U "has no games". For me I think there are plenty of games on it. The Wii U launched with 29 games! Yes there were re releases of earlier games but for Nintendo fans it was awesome to have them.

For those of us that are heavy into gaming we most likely owned several of those releases already. It wasn't too exciting to see that we can get Batman, Mass Effect 3, or Darksiders again, without trophies, and for full price. (Especially when the Mass Effect Trilogy costs the same for the other systems).

The main reason I have this con here is because the Nintendo franchises don't release fast enough sometimes and third party support is sparse in between. It's nice to get some of the big hitters but it's too bad that not every game available for the other two consoles will be available on the Wii U also.

Wrap Up

So those are the pros and cons for me. I love the Wii U and will continue to play it. I'm excited for all of these fall releases coming up and for what Nintendo has in store for the future.

It will probably not be my go to system for every game though due to lack of trophies/achievements and how some of the basic/taken for granted features like pro controller support and off-TV play are not implemented in every game.

What do you think about the Wii U? Do you agree with my pros and cons?

What if there were more games where successive generations were central to the gameplay - where your time with each central figure is finite but the problem faced is presented as developing alongside your protagonists vice being a more "clear and present danger" problem?

Too often in my gaming adventures am I presented with the tried and true, "X happened ages ago during Y's time and now it's up to Z, descendent of Y, to stop it."  Or, the other storyline-ism that I've grown accustomed to seeing, "I've been brewing this dastardly scheme for years and now you're powerless to stop it!  Muah-hahaha!"  But your plucky band of randomly assembled would-be heroes will save the world in 40~60 hours and approximately 7 days of "their world" time.

Nope.  Not buying it.

Look, I understand and appreciate the methodology behind presenting a story that unfolds as previously described, and I genuinely like the vast majority of said stories, but what if?  What if developers at Square Enix, Capcom, or whoever gave us adventures and quests that are so grand, so epic and long-lasting that it spanned multiple in-game generations AND conveyed that same feeling of complex, developing characters, truly rooted and grandiose problems, and purpose over time?  Make a tale or two where I need to pass things on to the next generation of heroes - equipment, items, knowledge, maps, money, skills - where I must do these things and make enduring, foresight-driven plans of my own or severely limit my characters' development. 

You mean we have to PLAN IN ADVANCE..?  GASP!  By our powers combined though...

Ponder this with me for just a few minutes...

A tale is crafted that convinces you that a problem is enduring and grand enough that it requires the culmination of efforts of generations of heroes, not just the rambling, disjointed deeds of a happenstance band of do-gooders...you would have stories that Felt as enduring and long-lasting as reading the Robert Jordan "Wheel of Time" series (may he rest in peace), dedication through developing drama, unity of effort that overcomes significant, time-spanning problems, and potential for truly developed characters, heck, families and generations of characters and all the tied-in supporting characters along the way...

It could be like playing Game of Thrones and its' entire backstory on your console of choice.

I get that not everyone wants this, and that it has been tried before, Record of Agarest War (meh) and Dragon Valor spring to mind immediately as examples for me, but neither one quite hit the mark, and I argue that neither example ever received critical acclaim.

Dragon Valor had the right idea...

It could be Legendary.

Cheers, and Thanks for taking the time to read my random ideas.

In Brightest Day, In Blackest Night...

It was late at night on a Friday. It was raining outside, and it was the first week of summer, but I hadn’t really gotten a lot of time to game until that night. I had recently bought The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion on Steam and was playing it for the first time. I finally got through the sewers, and had put my final tweaks to my Nord, and I was ready to get to the world at large. I clicked that I was ok with my character and waited for the loading screen. When I got back into the gaming world I was amazed by the simple fact that I didn’t have to do the main quest… I could go anywhere. I set off north apprehensively and started what would become hundreds of hours of exploring Cyrodil. That memory has stuck with me for years, even though I’ve seen more objectively amazing things in games multiple times, and I can barely remember those.

Maybe the impact (or lack thereof) of certain games has something to do with our own personal experiences in life and how look at life. I think this extends to other mediums as well. For example, I think The Wire is the best TV show of all time, and also the only TV show or movie or game that’s ever made me cry. The Wire has always stuck with me, because it impacted me and made me question things, which is what all TV/Movie/Games should strive to do. Oblivion made me question why games should be so linear, and elevated open world games to be my favorite genre.

There’s a game that I love very much, but probably didn’t make much of a mark on anyone else’s mind: Hitman Blood Money. It got pretty meh reviews when it came out in 2006, but I think that the game is amazing, and because of its brilliant level design I’ve put in hundreds of hours into it (probably more than Oblivion… I know, I’m insane). I know that Oblivion is objectively the much better game, but overall I like playing Blood Money a lot more, and I’ll always value the time I’ve had with it (and Oblivion of course). Hitman Blood Money is one of my favorite games of all time, even though I’ve played dozens of game that are superior to it.

Hitman Blood Money gave me lasting gaming memories not because it made me realize something or because it made me think: It gave me memories because it was so damn fun. The Hitman Blood Moneys and the Saints Rows of gaming always have to be around, because if we just had serious, thought provoking games, liking video games would be tedious. On the other hand, we also need to have games like The Last of Us or Gone Home, which aren’t necessarily fun, but have a worthwhile story to tell. As much as i hate comparing games to film, I think the analogy fits: You’re always going to need Citizen Kane as much as you’re going to need Terminator 2.

I think that lasting video game memories are always going to be varied and different for every person and every generation that plays video games. There are just so many different games and ways to play them that everyone is going to have different perspectives and opinions. Overall, I wouldn’t have it any other way, because video games are so unique and it’s great to hear other peoples stories about what they take away from video games personally. Thanks for reading, leave a comment and tell me about some of the video game memories. Till next time.

With WWII, the Vietnam War, the 1980s in the Middle East, the modern times, and now with near future, it would seem to many, including my friends, that COD has used up all of the potential settings for a game. But, I think that there are some other settings that would make for a good COD game. There are four that I will name. This is just my opinion, so please don't take this for a fact. Enjoy!

(WWI setting)

WWI was the first war to include pretty much every nation on the planet in some way, and it effected every single nation on the planet, involved or not. Yet, nobody has decided to make a game just for this setting? a baffling thing to actually know as truth. But, it would make for a good setting, if thought about. I would really want to see this setting used, and I think that it would turn out very good for COD fans and for the franchise itself, which needs to take it way back for it's next installment.

(Civil War setting)

The Civil War setting has only been attempted once, in a below average shooter from the History Channel. But, I think that COD could do it better than the before mentioned game, with better graphics, better controls, better voice work, better audio, better narrative, and just more fun. The campaign would work like the History Channel game, but it would, again, be a better attempt. The multiplayer would have players choosing between the north and the south, and actually fighting for the side that was chosen.

(Revolutionary War setting)

The Revolutionary War is the war that brought The United States Of America to reality, and it has already been featured in games before(most notably with Assassin's Creed III). But, it hasn't been attempted by COD yet, which would be just a huge experiment. With the replacement of assault rifles and M9 pistols to muskets and flintlock pistols, it would take some retraining for about every player who's played COD, which would really give new players a chance to get into the franchise and really enjoy the game.

(Future setting)

Many would say that this would be the Haloing of the COD franchise, but I don't think so. As long as they kept aliens and other Halo like things out of the game, it could and would be like a COD game. And some would say that it might not be the best idea. But, I say that if they can make near future(Black Ops II) with quality and still do well, I think that just going to 2075 and having more futuristic weapons would be able to work out for COD just as well.

I hope you've enjoyed reading this. I will still write my blogs that was supposed to for my 31/31 with the same titles, and they will still represent it. If I can get all three of the ones that I need to get up today, than maybe I can consider this a success instead of a failure. Tell me in the comments below which setting you think COD should use next, which setting that I chose you think will be the downfall of COD, or just how you liked the blog. Later today I will write about my feelings on the now overused modern setting in FPS. Have a nice day!

The modern setting has been overused as of late, and it's been talked about by almost every gamer and game journalist alike. But, I have yet to give my opinion on this subject. But, now is probably the best time for my opinion. I will talk about why I think it's been overused, who's overused it, and which setting I think will overused next. This is just my opinion, so please don't take this for a fact. Enjoy!

First off, I will talk about why I think that it's been overused. But, to do that, I must bring up the other setting that FPS games have overused and is now just not wanted by most of the gaming community; the WWII setting. After the great movie Saving Private Ryan, games set in the WWII time period started popping up everywhere. And at first, we were okay with that. But, after a while, the gaming community started growing tired of the WWII FPS, and that setting is now just sighed upon when announced. But, has the modern setting been used to that extent? I don't think so quite yet, although it is getting there. With the new MOH series, COD, and Battlefield, to name a few, there is no shortage of shooters based in the modern times. But, I think that we are still in that phase of the overusage where we don't notice too much, or if we do, we don't care too much, to really say anything about it to get it changed. I think that in about another 2 years, we will start to get onto devs for how much use is being gotten out of the modern time period.

Next is who I think has overused it. COD has obviously used it for a good while now(with three game in the Modern Warfare series), although I can't tell for sure if COD has gotten away from the modern times, with Black Ops II and the soon to be released Ghosts to be set in the near future. Battlefield has used it for some time now as well. With Battlefield: Bad Company 1 and 2, Battlefield 2, Battlefield 3, and the upcoming Battlefield 4, they have really used this time setting to the extent of its potential. And then there have been a lot of other games that have used it that were one offs or just aren't currently in my memory.

Lastly is which setting I think will be overused next. That, I think, is the easiest one to answer. I think that it will be the near future setting. With COD: Black Ops II, COD: Ghosts, Homefront, Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, plus many others, have already used or are currently about to release with this setting. And we all know that Homefront 2 will be near future, along with a sequel to Ghost Recon: Future Soldier. And that's not even mentioning all of the other shooters that we haven't heard about yet that's going to use it.

I hope that you've enjoyed this. I will have the last part of my 31/31 up today, on schedule. Tell me in the comments below how you feel about the modern setting, whether you think that it's overused or not, whether you feel that the near future setting will or will not become overused, or just how you liked the blog. I will write my last part later today about video game endings. Have a nice day!

Please rate and comment.

Hello again GIO community, today is time for another of my Ideas_____ blog. This time is for a game you may have heard from. Jurassic Park Builder for mobile devices. 

-The game is about you the player building various parks for prehistoric creatures both land based (such as T-Rex) and aquatic based (like the Megalodon). but here is are my two cents on how it can improve the formula:

1. Different types of creatures: it is nice to see various dinos from different eras in the same place but the types of animals are pretty boring (we have like 4 different sauropods). It may be time for the dev to make something great for the land portion of the game:

That is corect, a crocodile, and not just any croc, a Sarcosuchus, let us see the Crocodile Hunter handle him. Oh what is that, you think a croc is not big enough?

2. A  building that features prehistoric insects like the Mossasaurus Aquarium- this will give us a reason to keep expanding the park and to have a little more change of scene. 

3. Giant prehistoric trees- during the course of the game we have to clear out forest sections to put our rides and other decorations. What we need is more bigger flora to replace those forest with and to give the surrounding area a greener look.

4. What do you think is a good idea for the game?

This is the last blog in my 31/31! And while I did have to do three of these today to be able to say that I've done it, I finally did it. And what a more fitting topic than my opinion on how to get the ending to a game right. This is just my opinion, so please don't take this for a fact. Enjoy!

We all love a good ending. When we play a game, listen to a good song, watch a good movie, or watch a good play, you want the ending to be appropriately good as well. But, sometimes, that doesn't exactly work out the way it should. With some games(Mass Effect 3, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, etc.), the ending was shown neglect, either by itself or along with other parts of the game that weren't shown the right respect. And, with those bad endings, people remember those games for that, instead of for the good parts of the game. That shows just how important an ending really is to a good narrative(or even a bad one). If the ending isn't good, than the people involved aren't happy.

But that doesn't mean that it has to be a happy ending to be a good one. Bioshock Infinite and The Last Of Us prove that one. They both have really unhappy endings, with Bioshock Infinite just being confusing and The Last Of Us being really gloomy and just gives off that sense of final dread and loss of hope. Sometimes the not so happy ending is just as great as the one where everything is fine and dandy. But only if it works for the game. There shouldn't be an oddly misplaced happy ending in a game where a happy ending wouldn't be appropriate. And there shouldn't be an oddly misplaced unhappy ending where an unhappy ending doesn't belong. 

With endings, sometimes characters have to die that you don't want to die, or things have to happen that you don't want to happen, because of the ending's purpose. Bioshock Infinite's ending, once I knew about it, was one that I didn't want. But, I understand from a story perspective why it happened, and I'm cool with that. The Last Of Us's ending is one that I didn't think would ever happen, and while it wasn't a happy ending, it was definitely a good ending for a spectacular game(and my game of the year so far). But would these games been as good if the endings were happy? That's a question that, instead of answering myself, will let you guys answer in the comments below.

This 31/31 has been a real fun thing to do. I hope to do it again sometime. Tell me in the comments below how you feel about the whole happy vs. unhappy ending, how you liked the blog, or whether or not you guys would like to see me do this sort of thing again. I won't be taking a break, however, so expect to see another blog from me soon. Have a nice day!

I've previously started working with a couple people help interviewing each other. It would result in a co-op blog. They've been quite successful. So, I have you my first ever Juanolo's Gaming interviews. It's where I interview a GIO user, and have a little chat. I'll ask 6 questions about gaming, 2 games kind of off topic, let a Special Guest ask a question, and finally a question from my little brother Jordolo(Title May Change). Let's get started. The person I decided to interview this week is Cyndaquill. He's kind of new, and seems pretty nice. Our special quest with a question is Redguard Assassin. Let's get started shall we.

1. As this gaming generation ends, what's been some of your favorite games of this generation?

Some of my favorite games from this generation of consoles(PS3 and 360) are Red Dead Redemption, Borderlands, Call of Duty, Gears, Grand theft auto, Wolfeinstein,UFC,NHL, and Batman Arkham Asylum. Those are the games that i played the most this gaming generation. If i had to chose one as my favorite id pick Red Dead Redemption all the way.

2. Any new games you thinking of getting?

I never got a chance to pick up my Gears of war judgement pre-order so i still wanna play it. But besides that i wanna get Saints Row 4,The Last of Us and Metro last light. Besides that there are a bunch of old games from this generation that i never got a chance to play. Like skyrim,Dragon age,fallout and Portal too.

3. Where do you stand: PS4 or Xboxone?

That's a tough question because i am an owner of both PS3 and 360 but i don't consider either of them to be my favorite. Due to the price difference id have to chose PS4. It just doesn't make sense to buy a console for $100 more that puts out the same quality of games. Sorry X-box but Sony wins my vote.

4. What's your favorite feature on GI?(Replay, Test chamber, spoiled, etc.)

I don't actually use any of those features on GI. I usually just read and comment on the articles and user and editor blogs.

5. What are some games about to come out, or have allready came out that you think have gotten to much, or is getting to much hype? (Overrated I'm trying to say.)

Id have to say that Bungies Destiny doesn't look as good as people are making it out to be and it is very overrated. At E3 almost every game looked better. I don't think im ever gonna buy it and will never play it. Even CoD Ghosts is too hyped up as its probably gonna have the same feel as all the other call of duty's just with better graphics. The campaign is gonna be linear as ever but im still gonna waste $60 buying it and playing the heck out of multiplayer.

6. If you could pick a game from next gen for you at launch for free, what would it be, and how successful do you think that game will be?

There are so many good Next gen games coming that picking out a single one to be free is a hard choice. I would pick Assassins Creed Black Flag and think it would be a perfect fit to be an included game. I think it is gonna be very successful with over a million copies sold at least. But i dont know how there gonna make money on the game if its included with the console if thats what your asking?

Random questions from me

7. What do you think of Ben Affleck being the new Batman?

I didn't know he was playing batman but ill take your word for it anyway. So im a little on the fence about it. Christian Bales acting expertise clearly shone in the previous installments so its hard for me to think there's gonna be any improvement in that category.I didn't even know he was gonna play Batman so this could've been a trick question for all i know but anyway he should probably bulk up a little bit before talking on this role. Otherwise hes gonna look too small on the big screen and all his friends are gonna laugh at him. Ben has some big shoes to fill for this one.

8. What are some new movies you're excited for coming out this fall and winter?

The family with Robert Dinero without a doubt. I keep seeing the trailer for it every time i turn my head around and it looks pretty sick. Despicable me 2 looks good too.

Question from GI user(Redguard Assassin)

9. In your opinion opinion, what generation has the best starters in Pokemon?

In my opinion the generation that has the best starters are in the second generation. Cyndaquil, Tododile, and Chikarita are the reasons why that generations starters are the best. If you look at my name you might recognize my affinity to cyndaquil as a starting Pokemon. But you cant right off Tododile and chikarita who also are really good pokemon in their own respect's. Its either between secon gen or first because the original trio of Bulbalsaur,Charmander and Squirtle are hard to compete with.

Question from Jordolo

10. What is your favorite superhero, and superhero game?

My favorite superhero is Spiderman. Not because i think hes the strongest but i wish i had his powers. Climbing roofs with his ability and swinging through New York city shooting webs from your hands seems pretty fun. My favorite superhero game is Batman: Arkham asylum. It has a good campaign mode and im a fan of the way you can explore the map looking for clues trying to uncover the history of Arkham. Even the way it has a description of all the villans in the game is cool. I wouldn't mind being Batman either...

 Well that's it. Thanks goes out to Redguard Assassin and Jordolo. Huge Thanks goes out to Cyndaquil for participating. This was fun. So what do you think? Agree or disagree with Cyndaquil? Who do you want me to interview next? Thanks again for reading and commenting. Adios Amigos!

Your Amigo,

Juanolo

Ok picking up where I left off we are in Nimbasa City which has a lot to explore.

I don't feel like exploring quite yet so I'm going into the Battle subway and as you try to enter a girl comes out and gives you a Vs. Recorder. I guess it can be used to record battles on the battle subway or between you and your friends. So apparently there are rules for each line and it's recommended to save first so I did. At the end of each line is BP and BP can be traded in for prizes.

I started with the Multi-Train line, which is 2 vs 2 battles. One player is either your friend or a random generated character with high attack, defense, or balanced attack and defense. Since I'm all attack I got a high defense partner. The other thing that occurs is all pokemon are all level 50 for these battles (no you don't get to get moves this way :( ).  There is no penalty if you lose so don't worry and try different combos in order to win (I did).

The goal here is just go through one time (7 battles) and receive BP (3) per ride I might go back later and farm for some Rare Candy if I get a weak pokemon that gets on my nerves. There is a full list on Bulbapedia of all the items you can get. I plan to only get Rare Candy with the points when I get enough (which I pry won't right now). I'll list each time I get one.

You can't use any super trains yet. There is a train to Anville town which I'll go back to later on before I mess with the amusement park. Next is Double Train which is where you use two of your pokemon at a time versus two pokemon at a time. Then it's Single Train which is single battles. The only bad thing about all this is your pokedex doesn't update via these battles :(

Ok I left there and went to the battle training facility place next to the pokemon center and got told to level up my pokemon and then come back. So I'll just remember to come back here later on down the road in the game. Ok go the building behind the pokemon center and go up stairs the guy walking around gives you a Sun Stone. I used it to evolve Dredear at level 20 into a Lilligant.

The building behind the battle training one on the first floor there is a guy/kid on the left near the stairs talk to him to get the HM Strength this allows big rocks to be pushed plus it can be used to attack the target in battle. I need to backtrack but first lets finish exploring everything but the other city and the amusement park. Up stairs the girl by the table with white hair will give you a Soothe Bell if your pokemon likes you that is in first place in the order list (I had a Sandile there).

Next is the Pokemon Musical with Bianca...you receive a prop case for the purpose of dressing up pokemon to have them participate in the musical. Well they make you dress up a pokemon then leave and tell you to talk to the receptionist to procede. Ok it's one of the cutest yet silliest things I've ever saw. Afterwards a random photo of the musical can displayed in the theater (I didn't cuz it looked bad). My pokemon came out as very elegant afterwards a new girl was in the lobby who gave me a Lace Cap accessory for more musical making.

After that I went to the girl over beside the counter and bookshelf looking thing on the upper right of the lobby who gives you a TM Echoed Voice which is where the pokemon attacks and each turn the attack if used again each turn will grow more powerful. Well I played a few musicals got more props and left to see some great storyline. Now to the Small Stadium.

The Small Court game being supposedly played between me going out to battle the trainers differs on the time of day. I went out during Basketball and realized I forgot to switch back to my battling team that has my items being held (Exp Share mainly). -sigh- After a hard battle I went and switched back and went back to battle and explore further. Ok.... there was only one trainer... must have been a bad time. On to the Big Stadium.

Inside they are playing football so time for some trainer battles.  -sigh- only one trainer again. I guess these places are sorta lame honestly. So time to teach Strength to a pokemon. I gave it to Abagoura and made him forget Wide Guard.

What do you know back in the forest that old guy is gone now time to explore and find items. By going right and up you see a stump go around to get a Hyper Potion inside of it. Well ahead of that is tiny rocks that evidently block something that can't be moved because you can select them to find out what the deal is. Follow some confusing arrows to find the hidden item Rare Candy. Now go all the way right from there to find a TM Solar Beam (2 turn attack first gathers light then unleashes it in a blast) in the far right corner in some grass.

Hihidaruma at level 22 can learn Fire Punch (which is a punch using fire). He has four attacking moves already so I had him forget Fire Fang (which is slightly weaker). I also had him forget Headbutt and learn Solar Beam.

Ok back on Route 2 where the big boulder is use strength to move it and access the item Rare Candy. Now time to track all the way back to Nimbasa so we can check out the Amusement Park, get rid of a Team Plasma and get a gym badge.

All of which I'll do next time. Hope you enjoyed the read! :D

Which do you prefer? Out of all the versions of the show released so far, the uncut Kai release is by far my favorite despite it being loathed by many DBZ fans. But I grew up on the series watching the numerous releases on CN and Toonami, and have to say Kai is better in every way. Now I know you've seen arguments like this before and it's not entirely original, but it is a topic that I like and feel strongly about, and makes good practice for my blogging skills.

1. Remastered

Kai has been very well cleaned up and reformatted for HD. Not only are many scenes reanimated  and/or flipped around and zoomed in or out for better aesthetics, the aspect ratio has been fixed to 16:9 widescreen. Along with the other improvements this goes a long way to making the show better. Although a couple mistakes or one-scene flourishes are added, by and far the most changes were fixing mistakes that were made with the original. For some reason the only real arguments I hear on this part is that they removed blood and nudity. But as I explain in point #2 the vastly superior dialogue does more for violence than the former ever could and makes the show much more engaging. And nudity? Baby winkies and butts are gone. Why complain about that?

There are a couple examples below (right is Kai), and if you click the link and scroll down, you can see image and audio comparisons (for point #2), but unfortunately only for the Saiyan Arc which is episodes 1-16 in Kai. This is also why the examples are all from those episodes.

http://kanzentai.com/eps-review.php?id=001

2. Better Dialogue

Say what you will about some of the characters having new voice actors, I've been watching the series since I was 4 and didn't mind the new people one bit. I also liked the new script and completely re-recorded audio, as many of the original voice actors did return and their additional experience shows. Below you'll see a couple videos that showcase this. While in the original version the voice acting was pretty poor at many points and dialogue that surely wasn't meant to be campy seemed like it anyways, Kai has come around and, although it reduces the blood and gore, it more than makes up for it with far more violent dialogue which does more than any amount of gore could.

Goku's "I will make you suffer" line during his first SS transformation really brings out his rage and more ruthless nature while in the form (while the Kai scene altogether is just more epic overall). Frieza saying he'll find Goku in space while hurling his Supernova at Trunks instead of "This is for you father!" made him seem more like a ruthless villain instead of a brat seeking his father's approval. And the way #18 dies at the hands of Trunks...these may not be and in all likelyhood aren't the best examples, but off the top of my head (haven't watched in a year or so) they are my favorites and trump the originals by far. The Kai scene with Trunks vs Frieza starts out with him already SS unfortunately, but it's close enough without linking an actual entire episode from a bootleg site. Remember that above link if you want to hear more changes!

Goku's SS Original:

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Kai:

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Trunks vs. Frieza Original:

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Kai:

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Trunks vs Androids 17 & 18 Original:

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Kai:

(Please visit the site to view this media)

3. Less Fillers

Oh my Jesus, this makes the show that much more amazing. Nicer visuals and improved dialogue are good enough, but taking out all the fillers that were placed in and tightening up the pace of the show is for me the best thing that could ever have happened. It makes the show much more in line with the manga (which is a moot point for me as I admittedly never read it but for many fans it should still be a boon), though I definitely notice clearly-filler episodes that contribute nothing are cut, as is the the entire Garlic Jr. Saga. Goku's Spirit Bomb on Namek and many other drawn-out moments are significantly shortened...for the great majority only useless fluff material was removed. There are a very few moments that really shouldn't have been cut as they create plot holes, but DBZ fans know what happened and many new viewers wouldn't even notice.

----------------------------------

So that's my argument for Kai. Please voice your opinions below, but please do keep the complaints about the blog itself to a minimum. This is my first one so it's going to be rough, like in how I don't know how in the flip to embed Youtube videos instead of having crappy links. *I did go back and fiddle so a couple pictures and the first video link may have been wtf for the very few early viewers.

The Legend of Zelda has a huge catalog of characters that are very likable. Some fans latch on to a particular character throughout the story and it's easy to pick a favorite that interacts with Link in a serious, funny, or dramatic way. NOTE: Link will not be in this this, because... We all know he's pretty awesome. Whether it's for the their great personality or their development throughout the game, these, in my opinion are the best characters in the series.

Number 5...

Kafei- Majora's Mask

He and his lover/fiancee, Anju, are the focal point of the Anju& Kafei Quest, which involves reuniting the two and is, quite honestly, the best sidequest in the entire game.  Why I like Kafei as a person so much is really because of his devotion towards Anju. When you first met him, Kafei tells Link that he was cursed by the SkullKid to have the appearance of a child as a prank, and to make it worse, he then had his ceremonial wedding mask stolen from him by a thief. Out of complete shame and no one else to turn to, he asks Link for his help. On the last day, Link and Kafei team up and retrieve the mask from the thief's hideout, but by the time they are able to get the mask back, it's become nightfall. The end of the world is near, and during all of this, Anju is waiting for Kafei at home beside her wedding dress. What follows is a particurally powerful moment where you literally wait with Anju for Kafei to arrive as the world itself is about to come to an end. When Kafei finally arrives, they fuses their masks together and become a couple, embracing as they decide to die together along with the rest of the world. THAT IS WHAT YOU CALL LOVE. Even though all throughout the sidequest Kafei has been hit with setback after setback, his sheer devotion makes it so he and Anju get to become a couple, even if it's literally minutes before the world ends. 

Number 4...

Tetra- Wind Waker

A charming sailor of the seas and pirate captain (despite her young age), Tetra is truly the show- stealer in Wind Waker. After being dropped on Outset Island by the Helmrock King and directing causing Link's sister to be taken in replace, she decides to assists Link in his initial quest to recover her. As Link and Tetra's paths continue to cross, they start to care for each other and gradually reveals that Tetra is indeed Princess Zelda. Headstrong and confident, she commands her crew with iron fists, though she does have a soft spot for Link and Arryl. She isn't afraid to spit in the face of danger, while also retaining her capacity to make smart decisions. Tetra shows that under her aggressive and bossy exterior can lie a caring a graceful character.

Number 3...

Zelda- Skyward Sword

The characters of Skyward Sword in general were very well done. Zelda was one such character. In the previous games, there was no sort of connection between Link and Zelda whatsoever. Zelda was a Princess... Then she's gone... Then Link's on his adventure... (Looking at you, Twilight Princess) But then in Skyward Sword, Link and Zelda have a relationship as like childhood friends, and you them grow throughout the game... Especially Zelda. At the beginning of the game, she's this fun, sweet girl that everyone love, but come the end of the game she's the more stoic, more serious Zelda everyone knows. But that just goes to show how big the gravity of the situation is. That even though they wanted to have fun up in the world of Skyloft, their destiny is huge, and is bigger than the relationship they might have had. Because through this serious side of Zelda, she also had this sad side, like she didn't want to fulfill her destiny and just be with all her friends at Skyloft again. This comes through when she's about to be sealed away. As Link frantically tries to stop her, she says one of the most heart warming things ever to be said in the Zelda franchise:

"Before all this, I was happy just spending my days hanging around with you in Skyloft. I wanted that feeling to last forever. While it's true that I am Hylia reborn, I'm still my father's daughter and your friend... I'm still your Zelda. So, I'm going to ask you a favor, sleepyhead. Ever since we were kids, I'd always be the one to wake you up when you slept in. But this time, when all of this is over, will you come to wake me up?" 

"... I promise." 

Number 2...

Linebeck- Phantom Hourglass

Linkbeck is one of those characters you can't like right away. He is downright selfish, smug, cowardly and relentlessly greedy - and as a result, he's a perfect comedy relief for Link's heroics. A self-styled "real man of the sea", Linebeck's the captain of a steamboat, which he's vain enough to name after himself. He's primarily motivated by finding treasure, which is why he unwittingly aids Link on his ocean-spanning adventures. Always being scolded by Ciela for his greediness, Linebeck always finds ways to put Link headfirst into danger then reaping the benefits afterwards. But slowly and progressively throughout the game, Linkbeck experiences a redemption of sorts. In later parts of the game, he decides to finally get out of his boat and explore the dangers with you. But his real compassion comes out at the end where he decides to risk his life just to keep Link from getting strangled to death by the evil sea creature, Bellum. This lead to Bellum possessing Linebeck and making him attack Link. His caring personality, though, is shown better in the manga. While fighting, the possessed Linebeck manages to get Link off his feet and is about to deal the final blow to him. At the very last second, though, Linebeck assumes control of himself and stops himself from striking Link down. He knows he doesn't have much time before Bellum takes control of him again, so he decides to to take his own life ( Thankfully, Link stops him in the nick of time). At the end of the game, the Ocean Kind grants Linebeck one wish ( as he promised he'd do earlier in the game). To my surprise, instead of asking for untold riches, he asks for his sunken boat to be restored to its former glory... Now that's a change of heart. 

Number 1...

Midna- Twilight Princess

Inarguably the most memorable character in Twilight Princess, Midna is an imp- like character that decides to free Link from his prison in the Twilight- inveloped Hyrule Castle. A magical being descended from a magical race called the Twili, she's not a particularly sympathetic character when you first meet her - rude and sarcastic, Midna spends early portions of the game riding Link (who's been transformed into a wolf) around like a horse. With absolutely no remorse, she practically forces Link into becoming her personal servant, collecting these mysterious items called fused shadows. She then plans to use Link to take down Zant, the villainous Userper King that took the throne from her, transformed her into an imp- like creature, and inflicted the people of Twilight as well as the citizens of Hyrule. But after traveling with Link and witnessing his struggles to recover Llia, as well as Zelda's noble sacrfice, she eventually becomes much more friendly toward the citizens of the light world, especially Link. Though intially shown to be a self- absorbed trickster who only seeks personal gain, it becomes more apparent that her mind can be warped by revenge and rage, making little room for sympathy. In the second half of the game, it shows that she also houses bitterness towards herself for putting Link through all of this, which only adds to her character. Her growing friendship with Link serves as one of  Twilight Princess's strongest elements. At the finale of the game, she makes a full change of heart, as she tries to stop Gannondorf from taking control of Zelda and eventually risking her own life to take down Spirit Gannon, a very powerful moment of Twilight Princess. Midna is a well developed character, through and through. Her matured personality as well as her charming antics makes her, in my opinion, the best character in the entire Zelda franchise.

And the creepiest smiles award goes to... MIDNA!

Good job, Midna.

What's you favorite Zelda character? Comment below and thanks for reading!

Are you one of those kids who grew up watching episodes to the first season of pokemon every morning watching as Ash, Misty, Brock, and Pikachu went about through Kanto ever-waiting for them to make it to the pokemon league, and became extremely excited over the prospect of fighting other high-level trainers tournament style all the way to the top? It sounded like a lot of fun.

But then you got Red, Blue, or Yellow Version, fought your way through the region to find out that the league consisted of fighting four shut-ins back to back until facing off against your rival. For me, this was rather crushing at the time, and although watching my brother fight his way up the chain of challenging elite was an awesome (my folks didn't get me my own pokemon game for some reason, but that's a story for another time) I felt it was detracting compared to what it could've been had it been  living breathing tournament involving a whole slew of high-level trainers.

13 years have passed since I watched my oldest brother defeat Blue in Pokemon Red Version, and the thoughts stayed with me. Years passed, and my first actual experience playing pokemon came in the form of Sapphire Version, and then later Emerald. Emerald was clearly Gamefreak's first valiant effort at creating challenging tournament style arenas and they did it with some success, but still had work to do.

After all when you stand in a room waiting for someone else to come with with fighting words like "I WANT TO GO AROUND" (true happening) you feel rather detached from the experience that the person actually has an interest in fighting you.

Now Gamefreak is entering the next age of handheld console gaming, and it's pretty impressive hardware. The safe bet is that they're sticking to their tried and true formula of an Elite 4 with a Champion at the top that's probably someone you met on multiple occasions during your time playing the game.

But just imagine with me what would happen if they went about this new gen with a plan to bring the tournaments from the anime to life in the game. What would that look like? What could that look like?

What'll be required

First and foremost is getting a sense that these trainers your facing are more than just proccdurally selected characters with randomly generated messages to them. That's just damaging in immersion.

Establishing a roster of characters with some sense of personality (if not complete) could be a good place to start. Each one would have to have some semblance of uniqueness, but doesn't have to be entirely original in pose and assets, heck, here's something I did ages ago using assets from the D/P sprite set: 

I'm aware the series is making a big overhaul to 3D, so I understand this complicates things

This can also make good use for cameo appearances of all the trainers from previous versions. After all, they're quite a crew.

Each character should have something meaningful to say both in and out of the match. And here's what I mean by that.

More than just battles

Depending on the desired scope of the concept, one could infer that simply being allowed to talk to other trainers, to trading with them, or casually battling them outside of the times it matters could be an option. For those who just want to fight, they are given the option to skip to the next match.

But even better, can be an interwoven story arc involving the region mafia organization or some other undesirables. What if you find out that one of the competitors is actually there to ploy a coup while Team _____ uses the power of magnets to snatch everyone's pokeballs? Okay, it's a pretty lame story, I know, I've been out of the Pokemon loop since D/P and was turned off by how crappy Movie 11 was (even though Movie 10 was sooo goood - in Japanese). 

What if some of these other trainers and you band together to make a coordinated strike on Team _____ headquarters where you could switch off with other trainers to tag-team in battles, or even need them to solve large environmental puzzles from multiple locations unreachable by all one person? The scope could be quite enormous depending on what elements of the deeper lore could be tapped into involving the Legendaries, and what not.

Movie 10 was one of the best movies of the entire series for purposes of lore and what not, and it took place right before Dawn was going to participate in one of the biggest Coordinator contests in the region. What's to say the torunament would not be located in a city with a past involving legendaries getting into some trouble?

Some Benefits and other ideas (because I can't really sort)

Such an event in game could be well managed to provide fans a fresh helping of post game content as well as new competition with well balanced and strategic teams similar to those seen from the members of the Battle Frontier (my gosh was Lucy friggin hard to beat). Gamefreak could manage to integrate perhaps a few different storyarcs that tie into the events at the tournament that can all happen in intervals a month (of real calendar time) or more after the last tournament was held. 

Other ideas like allowing the player to inset themselves into the shoes of NPC trainers during the tournament, and use that trainers team against the other to get a feel of what other high-level pokemon they may not have might be like should they get some theirself could do well to get people interested in training other pokemon for online battles, rather than just sticking to their well-planned team they've had forever.

And that's all I can think of at the moment, feel free to share your ideas.

It's not often that I write about movies. But with all of the hoopla and uproar over a famous Bostonian being cast as the Dark Knight, I found that I just couldn't help but weigh in on this one. Like most people, the announcement that Affleck had landed the part was a surprise to be sure, but not nearly as offending as some have made it seem. In my own head, I just had a hard time visualizing how the whole idea would work.

I don't agree with the whole argument that Affleck doesn't have the chops to play Bruce Wayne/Batman. I think that assumption is a bit dumb. Affleck has certainly had his ups and downs in the world of film. But, I must honestly say without any reservation that he has grown quite a bit as an actor. In recent years, it seems that he has shifted away from his traditionally goofy/smart-ass roles, and embraced tougher grittier projects that challenge his range of acting ability.

I was highly impressed by Affleck's performance in The Town. And even though he caught quite a bit of flak for the Daredevil flop, I think the problem with THAT film went way beyond his skill as an actor. Let's face it. Daredevil was poorly conceived, poorly cast, and poorly written. First of all, Daredevil has always been one of Marvel's darker character's. Jennifer Garner as Elektra??? Please. Elektra is probably one of the blandest females villains in the Marvel universe. Now a truly delicious female villain to see on film would have been Typhoid Mary. If there was ever a woman that could give you nightmares, she is it. If you have time, go back and read the back issues where she helps Kingpin bring Daredevil down. It's easily one of Marvel's best stories.

Uhm... yeah. Don't mess with this lady. Seriously. Just walk away. Better yet, run.

Anyways, I'm getting off topic here. Back to Ben Affleck. Here's the bottom line folks. Ya gotta ask a few basic questions when considering who might be able to portray the Batman.

1) Can the actor strike a believable balance between an arrogant, playboy socialite billionaire and a brooding, tormented vigilante? Anyone who plays Bruce Wayne has to strike a perfect balance between the light and the dark.

2) Is the actor physically believable as the Batman? And think carefully on this one folks. Remember, they cast Michael Keaton as Batman. Remember Mr. Mom? Multiplicity? And... Beetlejuice? According to my Googling, Ben Affleck is 6'4. Hey guys, in my book, that's a guy I do NOT want to meet in a dark alley. Especially if he's pissed off and wearing a suit loaded with militarized weapons and gadgetry.

3) Likability. Believe it or not, even though Bruce Wayne is a man with a lot of demons, he has always been portrayed as having a consistent charm and appeal. That has to come through in whoever plays the part. Ben Affleck has the benefit of a very recognizable face which translates to likability for many moviegoers.

Don't get me wrong. I am by no means trying to say that Affleck will somehow produce a Heath Ledger level of performance in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel. But for pete's sake, let the guy at least have a chance. I honestly don't think he's anymore likely to screw up the role than anyone else. And if you really are fair and think about it, you'd have to admit that some of the greatest casting decisions in film history were a total surprise. Still in denial? Think about Brandon Lee as The Crow, Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman, or Benedict Cumberbatch as Kahn?

No one knew what to expect when Brandon Lee was cast

in what would be his most famous role.

The truth of the matter is that really good acting, and some of the most memorable performances come from actors who have a deep pool of emotion to draw from. And because very few of us know many celebrities personally, you literally have no clue what any given actor is capable of until they decide to say, "To hell with it. I'm gonna let my demons out and give these people SOMETHING TO WATCH."

All I can say is this. When they first announced the first Man of Steel, I was ecstatic. When they announced that Brandon Routh was no longer on board, I was worried. I thought it was a huge mistake. When they annouced that Superman's costume would no longer feature the trademark red underwear, I was even more concerned. I thought it was too many changes. I was 75% certain that they were going to ruin the entire movie franchise in one fell swoop. And who could ever replace Christopher Reeves, right?

One helluva hard act to follow.

Wrong. Times change. Sometimes the change is good, sometimes it's bad. But you cannot stop it. And choosing to live in the past is a sad choice. Look, I loved the Superman of the 1970's and 80's. I actually shed tears when I first heard that Christopher Reeves had been paralyzed. In my mind, he was, and always would be Superman. That's still mostly true for me today. But I gotta say, Henry Cavill did a stellar job filling the role, and he is completely believable to me. He stands on his own merit as a unique and skilled actor. I would have never saw that as a possibility before, especially since I remember him as Albert Mondego, the son of Edmond Dantes in "The Count of Monte Cristo" (2002).

We all have Christian Bale's performance as Batman burned in our brains, and then we say, "How could anyone ever be better?" Life is FULL of surprises folks. Isn't it possible, even likely, that we might be in store for a few more? Personally, I'm going to give Mr. Affleck the benefit of the doubt. I'm ready to give him one shot to impress. What about you?