Editorial – The Reaper’s Advocate: A Different Take on the Mass Effect 3 Ending
This is a guest post by Rei who is a translator/editor and software developer who loved watching his city get wrecked at the beginning of ME3. Additionally, like many fans, he played femshep because broshep’s voice was kinda dry plus he didn’t feel like watching his N7 ass for 100 hours.
The Mass Effect 3 ending has become a social phenomenon of its own category. Somewhere between the apparently low-budget ending sequence, the contrived interpretations and the misuse of charitable organizations to bring attention to the fans’ disappointment, there’s a decent ending: an ending that does for the most part make sense and could have been emotionally satisfying if not for a few unfortunate circumstances.
Editorial – Mass Effect 3: Ending Analysis
I realize the brewing firestorm that is going on right now with Mass Effect fans about the ending to Mass Effect 3 but I really do hope no one replies to this post with a lot of vitriol. I do not write this blog entry as a way to force or influence the way those who don’t like it think. Everyone’s experience with the ending is valid. If you hated it then I have no complaints to listen to what you have to say as long as it doesn’t descend into ranting or name calling like I have read on other forums. On the other hand if you liked it I would love to hear how it affected you or what you thought. Let’s keep this civil, please. Finally, this entire post spoils the entire plot of the game so if you intend to play it without any knowledge be warned that I touch on many things here.
Editorial – You Can’t Unwatch it!
Okay, this is going to be a short post but after seeing a video game trailer today I almost threw up on my laptop as I was laughing so hard. People who know me by now realize that I have always been an ardent Star Trek fan over Star Wars. Yes, this is one of those eternal science fiction debates that will probably wage on for the rest of eternity with no easy answer in sight. Actually, I find it ironic that I’m writing this right after my rather long post about the relative merits of Mass Effect which has been often described as being the “Star Wars” of this generation where I came to the conclusion that the two series should not be compared yet after this video it makes me wonder if Mass Effect has already surpassed it.
Editorial – Mass Effect Series
On the eve of the release of the final game in the trilogy I’ve finally gotten around to writing about why I thought Canadian video game company Bioware’s Mass Effect series was perhaps the most influential new franchise of the past decade. Others have already done so who more or less succeed in mentioning many of the points I had in mind yet I decided the time was right for my own thoughts. Some writers have made their case that Mass Effect is the “Star Wars” of this generation which I find an amusing opinion albeit open to much fan derision. It is not as if the series doesn’t have worth but this sort of comparison is bound to ignite a lot of divisive chatter amongst the Internet crowd.
iPad – Antique Road Trip USA HD Review
Antique Road Trip USA HD is an average title that tries to mix up the usually mundane hidden object gameplay paradigm but ultimately fails to add anything original to the genre. Throw in a rather silly narrative that is less than engaging and functions only to force players to visit different American cities and the entire experience feels incredibly monotonous.
Xbox 360 – Alice: Madness Returns Review
Alice: Madness Returns is a stylistic tour du force that marries an altogether visual cornucopia of wonders with solid platformer gameplay to make one of 2011’s best video game entries. Though it suffers from some overly long levels that tend to overstay their welcome far too often and a rather odd implementation of a combat lock-on mechanic the game still manages to surprise with some inspired level design and a deep mature storyline that has a remarkably dark narrative that is sure to cause some heads to turn.
iPad – Time Mysteries Inheritance Review
Time Mysteries Inheritance is certainly a competent hidden object game yet the experience is so vanilla that one can’t help but feel a bit disappointed. The game attempts to spin a tale of time travelling adventure that spans multiple centuries yet it never truly comes together in a coherent and emotionally involving package. Instead, the game resembles a hodge-podge of different locations replete with authentic attire from differing time periods but its altogether too disjointed to make much of an impression.
Xbox 360 – Unique Avatar Gifts for the Holidays
For those individuals who are looking to give a unique gift to a diehard gamer here is a website at cafepress that provides avatar-based gifts for those with Xbox Live accounts. While the inclusion of avatars initially met with much criticism from some diehard gamers who thought they were too kiddy-like in appearance and served no purpose they have proven to be resilient enough for Microsoft to keep using them in games and through their social services. There is no argument however, that Microsoft devised them in reaction to the positive consumer response from Nintendo’s Wii yet in fairness the Rare studio designed avatars have much better range in movement and generally have a pleasant next-gen sheen which the Wii lacks.
