By Aaron N
The first Lost Planet really took me by surprised. I was not expecting what I played and it was an enjoyable concept. The idea of a sci-fi shooter that combined military with giant monsters and mechs were any sci-fi fans dream. While it wasn't the greatest game ever made, it still was a good all around game that seemed like it could be the potential starting point for a quality franchise. This came true when they released a sequel in 2010. This game boasted bigger monsters and more mechs than in the first game. So then it could only be better right?
Graphics:
The graphics for "Lost Planet 2" were quality but inconsistent. The cut scenes were tremendously done and looked very realistic and smooth. The cut scenes looked and played out like scenes out of a movie and they were the most impressive aspect of this game. The gameplay, which still looked good, lacked the smoothness and clarity that the cut scenes had. In some levels it was too dark to even see yourself, this really turned me off. Also at times there was too much on the screen to see yourself and it just become a mass of colors and flashes from your gun. The inconsistency reminded me of older Gamecube and Xbox games where the cut scenes looked drastically different than gameplay. This is a problem that most games no longer have and to stay up with modern gaming you can not have this problem. I wish that they could have stayed more consistent in this department.
Story:
The events of "Lost Planet 2" take place ten years after the first game. There is now civil war on the planet known as E.D.N III. While this war is going on you have to take on monstrous monsters known as akrids who inhabit the planet. Also the villainous group from the first game, NEVEC, are back to try to destroy the planet for their own gain. The game is broken up into six episodes, each one seemingly disconnected to the prior ones. This confused me very much and took away from gameplay. It would feel like the game would be missing a key cut scene in between. It would be revealed in the end that you were playing as different characters in each episode and they would all connect during the final episode, which was a great "wow" moment, but besides that moment I could not generally connect to any of the characters. Besides some of the oddly acting Spanish sounding characters I did not really care about any of the characters. I wish I could have played as them the whole time. Anyway, the plot that ends up being explained towards the end is that you must stop NEVEC from creating an even bigger monster that will make the planet go into an ice age and kill everybody on the planet. The plot makes sense in the end and when the entire picture is revealed I finally saw what they were trying to do. They wanted you to play as all the different characters in order to get more into the universe. But I feel like they could have done away with most of the confusion for almost the entire game if they explained the events better.
Gameplay:
The controls for "Lost Planet 2" are similar to most third person shooters. The addition of the mechs, known as VS's, give it a different dynamic and make it unique. Although I had some problems with controls on one of the mechs, I largely understood how to control the characters. As I mentioned earlier the game is broken up into six episodes. Each episode is then broken up into three or four chapters, which are then further broken up into areas. They stop gameplay after each area in order to tally up points. This doesn't allow gameplay to be smooth and seamless. It takes you away from the game a little. Also, the game is geared
towards four player co-op. There is a way to play as only one player with three computer players along side of you. But when I did this I ran into one problem in a boss level that was obviously made for multiple players and I found it impossible to beat with only one player so I had to move the difficulty down to easy. I did not like this. I like the idea of a four person online co-op but I feel like they could have done it and still made it possible for someone to beat it single player.
Sound:
Something was off about the sound in this game. Some moments would have no music in the background, then other moments would have epic music that seemed out of place. The music felt displaced and it seemed like it didn't know what it wanted to be. The voice acting was also off. Most of the characters, besides the aforementioned spanish sounding ones, lacked character. The characters all sounded the same and, coupled with the fact that they were all wearing masks, helped in the confusion of not knowing one character from the next. I wish more characters had a presence to them.
Overall:
The key thing that I feel was missing from "Lost Planet 2" was consistency. The game had some moments where everything clicked and I had a fantastic time playing, but it also had some dull moments that seemed to be just missing something. It was still a fun experience that had some memorable moments. But it felt like it just fell short of what it could have been.
Lost Planet 2 gets a 7.5/10
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Monday, August 13, 2012
Thursday, August 9, 2012
A Good Walkthrough Poster
This video was done by a friend of mine at work, so I thought I would help promote his stuff. He does some good walkthroughs on games like Bastion, Diablo 3, and more. Check it out if you need help with a game and he is still posting more so keep an eye out for more.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Retro Review: Ultraman:Towards the Future (SNES)
By Aaron N
It if wasn't obvious from my column that was all about Godzilla games, I love everything and anything dealing with kaiju and the tokusatsu genre. Basically anything dealing with giant monsters. My favorite character outside of the Godzilla series is Ultraman. There have been many Ultramen throughout the series. When I was younger the one game I always wanted but never owned was "Ultraman: Towards the Future" for the Super Nintendo. "Ultraman: Towards the Future" was based on the television series of the same name. I remember enjoying the game when I borrowed it from my friend. I recently finally acquired this game. So let's see if the game has stood the test of time, or if it is a product of nostalgia.
Graphics:
"Ultraman: TTF" is a sprite-based combat game. The sprites do not look too bad but they lack in comparison to similar games on the Super Nintendo. The movements of the sprites are minimal and when you do a move like jumping, the graphics are awkward and they look poor. Each level is set in a different place and the background changes to account for that. Although it still looks like a still picture in the background, it is very good looking. But you must compare it to other fighting games like Mortal Kombat. Mortal Kombat had moving parts in the background such as people cheering and moving. "Ultraman: TTF" lacks that movement. Although they are good looking backgrounds, they can be dull. For example, the Mars level is basically dust and red. They lack detail. The graphics aren't too much of a hinderance, but they are lacking compared to what games were capable of.
Story:
To understand the story to this game, I must explain the concept of Ultraman. Ultraman is a giant cosmic being from a planet consisting of ultras. He came to Earth and inhabits a human. When a giant monster threatens the Earth, the human changes into Ultraman to combat it. The problem is that Ultraman can only stay in Earth's atmosphere for three minutes. So you are basically playing through episodes of the show, although only the climactic fight scenes. Each level is three minutes long. The cutscenes in "Ultraman: TTF" are only of Ultraman looking up and flying away as he does in the show after each battle. They don't explain the plot in the game. I wish they did a better job with the cutscenes as newcomers to the franchise will not fully understand what us ocurring.
Gameplay:
"Ultraman: TTF" plays very similarly to other 2D fighting games. The only difference is that you can only play as Ultraman. You can punch, kick, jump, and block. As you use an attack, your special attack meter increases. There are four different special attacks, each increasing in power. But the only way you can defeat an enemy is by bringing its health meter all the way down and then hitting it with your most powerful special move. There are nine levels varying in difficulty, but I found that I could get pretty far by basically just using jump kicks and special attacks. As I said before there is a three minute time limit on each level because of the limit set in the television show. It is very simplistic in gameplay and it doesn't have much variety upon replaying it. I wish it wasn't so simplistic but I'm not sure there was much more it could have done.
Sound:
The sound in "Ultraman: TTF" is simplistic. The only vocal sounds are monster roars and Ultraman screams. He yells when he kicks or punches. The sounds are taken directly from the show, but they work because the simplistic sounds matches exactly with the shows portrayal of Ultraman. Each stage has a different theme song to go with it. They aren't very memorable but they do the trick. Once again I wish they tried harder in this category but it does a good job matching the feel of the show.
Overall:
Upon playback "Ultraman: Towards the Future" does not live up to my nostalgic expectations, but it is still an enjoyable game. It feels lacking in every category. It feels just good enough to enjoy, but not good enough to be great. They had a great concept so with a little more effort it could have been great. I still enjoy this game, but unfortunately not as much as I remember.
Ultraman: Towards the Future gets a 7/10
It if wasn't obvious from my column that was all about Godzilla games, I love everything and anything dealing with kaiju and the tokusatsu genre. Basically anything dealing with giant monsters. My favorite character outside of the Godzilla series is Ultraman. There have been many Ultramen throughout the series. When I was younger the one game I always wanted but never owned was "Ultraman: Towards the Future" for the Super Nintendo. "Ultraman: Towards the Future" was based on the television series of the same name. I remember enjoying the game when I borrowed it from my friend. I recently finally acquired this game. So let's see if the game has stood the test of time, or if it is a product of nostalgia.
Graphics:
"Ultraman: TTF" is a sprite-based combat game. The sprites do not look too bad but they lack in comparison to similar games on the Super Nintendo. The movements of the sprites are minimal and when you do a move like jumping, the graphics are awkward and they look poor. Each level is set in a different place and the background changes to account for that. Although it still looks like a still picture in the background, it is very good looking. But you must compare it to other fighting games like Mortal Kombat. Mortal Kombat had moving parts in the background such as people cheering and moving. "Ultraman: TTF" lacks that movement. Although they are good looking backgrounds, they can be dull. For example, the Mars level is basically dust and red. They lack detail. The graphics aren't too much of a hinderance, but they are lacking compared to what games were capable of.
Story:
To understand the story to this game, I must explain the concept of Ultraman. Ultraman is a giant cosmic being from a planet consisting of ultras. He came to Earth and inhabits a human. When a giant monster threatens the Earth, the human changes into Ultraman to combat it. The problem is that Ultraman can only stay in Earth's atmosphere for three minutes. So you are basically playing through episodes of the show, although only the climactic fight scenes. Each level is three minutes long. The cutscenes in "Ultraman: TTF" are only of Ultraman looking up and flying away as he does in the show after each battle. They don't explain the plot in the game. I wish they did a better job with the cutscenes as newcomers to the franchise will not fully understand what us ocurring.
Gameplay:
"Ultraman: TTF" plays very similarly to other 2D fighting games. The only difference is that you can only play as Ultraman. You can punch, kick, jump, and block. As you use an attack, your special attack meter increases. There are four different special attacks, each increasing in power. But the only way you can defeat an enemy is by bringing its health meter all the way down and then hitting it with your most powerful special move. There are nine levels varying in difficulty, but I found that I could get pretty far by basically just using jump kicks and special attacks. As I said before there is a three minute time limit on each level because of the limit set in the television show. It is very simplistic in gameplay and it doesn't have much variety upon replaying it. I wish it wasn't so simplistic but I'm not sure there was much more it could have done.
Sound:
The sound in "Ultraman: TTF" is simplistic. The only vocal sounds are monster roars and Ultraman screams. He yells when he kicks or punches. The sounds are taken directly from the show, but they work because the simplistic sounds matches exactly with the shows portrayal of Ultraman. Each stage has a different theme song to go with it. They aren't very memorable but they do the trick. Once again I wish they tried harder in this category but it does a good job matching the feel of the show.
Overall:
Upon playback "Ultraman: Towards the Future" does not live up to my nostalgic expectations, but it is still an enjoyable game. It feels lacking in every category. It feels just good enough to enjoy, but not good enough to be great. They had a great concept so with a little more effort it could have been great. I still enjoy this game, but unfortunately not as much as I remember.
Ultraman: Towards the Future gets a 7/10
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Video: Jonathan Coulton's "Still Alive"
Here is Jonathan Coulton singing the famous song "Still Alive" from the original Portal game. Jonathan wrote the song and played the background music in the game's version. He is a very talented musician who is known in the gaming community for his entertaining, yet different music. Check this out and enjoy, I guarantee the song will be stuck in your head soon.
Also, this is a hint at the column I am currently working on that will be posted in the near future. Try to figure it out.
Also also, if you haven't already go to Time Out's new facebook page http://www.facebook.com/TimeOutVideoGames. Please enjoy, "like", and share.
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Review: Blacklight: Retribution (2012)
By Michael A
The first picture of Blacklight had me interested. The words ‘free to play’ on Steam compelled me to give the game a shot. The overcharged music and stylish graphics grabbed me by the throat and headbutted me into submission. From Perfect World, a company mostly known for its MMORPGS, and its purchase of Runic Studios (the makers of torchlight) and Cryptic studios (Another MMO company: City of Heroes, Champions online, and Star Trek online), this shooter came as a surprise to me. A pleasant, dubstep filled, explosive surprise.
Graphics:
Blacklight is a sleek game, with immersive maps, impressive and realistic character designs, and solid weapon effects. The HUD for the player is useful without being overwhelming, but the minimalism of it can prove a bit frustrating: a lack of a literal bullet count in the magazine of your weapon can lead to confusion on if the correct loadout was selected unless the guns are drastically different. Beyond that, though, everything is excellent. Colors are lush and well placed without being overwhelming. As said before, the character designs are very cool, with an impersonal futuristic look to all the helmets and armor. Even better, heavy armor looks and feels heavy. Guns are fancy and suitably high tech, and many objects, both player model and otherwise, have small glowing effects that reinforce a futuristic appearance without crossing into ripping off Tron. One weak point is that some of the bullet effects and grenade effects are less than amazing... But I will say that firing a minigun at ANYTHING is friggen sweet, with the bullet effects on this weapon being phenomenal.
Story:
Being an MMO in nature, there isn’t much to be had in terms of story. It’s a dystopian future where elite groups of agents war over various assets, both physical and digital. They have the support of powerful governments and corporations, and these battles sometimes happen right amongst populated areas with no one being the wiser. It’s kind of like a mini war in a Shadowrun or cyberpunk style setting. Otherwise, there isn’t much to be said on story.
Gameplay:
The primary form of gameplay is simple: Pick a game to join, or hit quick play to be shuffled off to a random game. Games go up to sixteen players, with a deathmatch game mode, as well as team modes including deathmatch, king of the hill, capture the flag, kill confirmed and more, played in an 8 on 8 format. From here, you have a fairly typical, fast paced shooter: It’s pretty frag-fest-y, like Halo or Call of Duty. Fast reflexes will put you above the pack fast. The maps are big enough, though, and the metagame important enough that a smart player can use his weapons and gear to play smart as opposed to a complete run and gun twitch fest.
The metagame I mentioned? It’s an account based leveling system, in which you earn exp and cp. Exp levels you up, unlocking new equipment. The other currency, cp, is used to actually activate gear, either for a short time (sampling), or permanently at greater cost. As one expects with a free to play game model, there is another currency, zen, that allows you to access things early and permanently for money. The plus? Very, very few things are zen exclusive, if you are patient.
These unlocks let you customize your armor(from light to heavy, from well equipped to barebones), your equipment (a utility backpack and up to 4 side items, including grenades, jammers, melee weapons and the like), and your weapon. The guns are set into loadouts of a primary and secondary gun, and you build the gun yourself. Yes, that's right: build it yourself. Want an SMG with sniper barrel and scope? Do it. I, for example, like a light machine gun with parts to increase long range accuracy. BAM, I have a rapid fire sniper rifle that isn’t helpless at point blank. This system is so well balanced, with only a tiny amount of ‘paper rock scissors’ in it that I must admit, it’s very impressive.
The last two major features are the depot and HRV. The depot allows a player to call for more equipment, from health and ammo refills, to big guns (minigun, anyone?) and finally, the hardsuit. Yes, you can get a freaking mecha in this game, and yes, it lets you kick butt. HRV is short for Hyper Reality Visor. Long story short, it’s a built in wall hack. You activate it at will, and it lets you see friends, enemies, objectives, everything just about, anywhere. Downside? You can’t shoot your weapons. Best hope no one is looking at you.
Sound:
Oh boy, the music. Let me warn you now: This game has some next level beats. It’s easy to laugh at the music, but the pseudo dubstep soundtrack actually really suits the gameplay and visual style: It’s just intense enough to get you pumped, but if it was any more eccentric of heavy, it would be obnoxious. Plus, you only really hear the music in the between match intermissions. otherwise, the sound is well executed: a player can tell one gun type from another based on the sound of it firing, with most weapons having a nice, satisfying bark. SMG’s have a harsh chatter, LMG’s an intimidating rumble, bolt action rifles giving a player scattering shout, and the rail gun commands players with an explosive roar. Absolutely lovely gun sounds.
The player automatic voices are useful in game, and the computerized narrator is suitably cold and digital, but a bit quiet. Other sounds, such as footsteps, bullet ricochets, and hardsuits walking are crisp and clean, though some of them could be heard from a slightly larger distance, particularly hardsuits. Nothing sucks more than the realization that if you can hear a hardsuit, it’s probably close enough to give you a backrub.
Overall:
Blacklight Retribution has everything a PC shooter needs to be happy: Fast paced action, some serious customization, free to play without being pay to win, and dubstep’s famous wubs, which have me and my gamer buddies laughing hysterically as we try to sing to it. I have no regrets to getting this game through steam, though the community sometimes frustrates me with it’s refusal to participate in objective matches, but this behavior plagues many fast paced shooters and PC games alike. If you’re looking for a good shooting fix for a few days, or are in it for the long haul, give Blacklight a look: It’s hard to go wrong for a price tag of free!
Blacklight Retribution gets a 7.75/10
8/10... If you like wub wub wub, like me.
The first picture of Blacklight had me interested. The words ‘free to play’ on Steam compelled me to give the game a shot. The overcharged music and stylish graphics grabbed me by the throat and headbutted me into submission. From Perfect World, a company mostly known for its MMORPGS, and its purchase of Runic Studios (the makers of torchlight) and Cryptic studios (Another MMO company: City of Heroes, Champions online, and Star Trek online), this shooter came as a surprise to me. A pleasant, dubstep filled, explosive surprise.
Graphics:
Blacklight is a sleek game, with immersive maps, impressive and realistic character designs, and solid weapon effects. The HUD for the player is useful without being overwhelming, but the minimalism of it can prove a bit frustrating: a lack of a literal bullet count in the magazine of your weapon can lead to confusion on if the correct loadout was selected unless the guns are drastically different. Beyond that, though, everything is excellent. Colors are lush and well placed without being overwhelming. As said before, the character designs are very cool, with an impersonal futuristic look to all the helmets and armor. Even better, heavy armor looks and feels heavy. Guns are fancy and suitably high tech, and many objects, both player model and otherwise, have small glowing effects that reinforce a futuristic appearance without crossing into ripping off Tron. One weak point is that some of the bullet effects and grenade effects are less than amazing... But I will say that firing a minigun at ANYTHING is friggen sweet, with the bullet effects on this weapon being phenomenal.
Story:
Being an MMO in nature, there isn’t much to be had in terms of story. It’s a dystopian future where elite groups of agents war over various assets, both physical and digital. They have the support of powerful governments and corporations, and these battles sometimes happen right amongst populated areas with no one being the wiser. It’s kind of like a mini war in a Shadowrun or cyberpunk style setting. Otherwise, there isn’t much to be said on story.
Gameplay:
The primary form of gameplay is simple: Pick a game to join, or hit quick play to be shuffled off to a random game. Games go up to sixteen players, with a deathmatch game mode, as well as team modes including deathmatch, king of the hill, capture the flag, kill confirmed and more, played in an 8 on 8 format. From here, you have a fairly typical, fast paced shooter: It’s pretty frag-fest-y, like Halo or Call of Duty. Fast reflexes will put you above the pack fast. The maps are big enough, though, and the metagame important enough that a smart player can use his weapons and gear to play smart as opposed to a complete run and gun twitch fest.
The metagame I mentioned? It’s an account based leveling system, in which you earn exp and cp. Exp levels you up, unlocking new equipment. The other currency, cp, is used to actually activate gear, either for a short time (sampling), or permanently at greater cost. As one expects with a free to play game model, there is another currency, zen, that allows you to access things early and permanently for money. The plus? Very, very few things are zen exclusive, if you are patient.
These unlocks let you customize your armor(from light to heavy, from well equipped to barebones), your equipment (a utility backpack and up to 4 side items, including grenades, jammers, melee weapons and the like), and your weapon. The guns are set into loadouts of a primary and secondary gun, and you build the gun yourself. Yes, that's right: build it yourself. Want an SMG with sniper barrel and scope? Do it. I, for example, like a light machine gun with parts to increase long range accuracy. BAM, I have a rapid fire sniper rifle that isn’t helpless at point blank. This system is so well balanced, with only a tiny amount of ‘paper rock scissors’ in it that I must admit, it’s very impressive.
The last two major features are the depot and HRV. The depot allows a player to call for more equipment, from health and ammo refills, to big guns (minigun, anyone?) and finally, the hardsuit. Yes, you can get a freaking mecha in this game, and yes, it lets you kick butt. HRV is short for Hyper Reality Visor. Long story short, it’s a built in wall hack. You activate it at will, and it lets you see friends, enemies, objectives, everything just about, anywhere. Downside? You can’t shoot your weapons. Best hope no one is looking at you.
Sound:
Oh boy, the music. Let me warn you now: This game has some next level beats. It’s easy to laugh at the music, but the pseudo dubstep soundtrack actually really suits the gameplay and visual style: It’s just intense enough to get you pumped, but if it was any more eccentric of heavy, it would be obnoxious. Plus, you only really hear the music in the between match intermissions. otherwise, the sound is well executed: a player can tell one gun type from another based on the sound of it firing, with most weapons having a nice, satisfying bark. SMG’s have a harsh chatter, LMG’s an intimidating rumble, bolt action rifles giving a player scattering shout, and the rail gun commands players with an explosive roar. Absolutely lovely gun sounds.
The player automatic voices are useful in game, and the computerized narrator is suitably cold and digital, but a bit quiet. Other sounds, such as footsteps, bullet ricochets, and hardsuits walking are crisp and clean, though some of them could be heard from a slightly larger distance, particularly hardsuits. Nothing sucks more than the realization that if you can hear a hardsuit, it’s probably close enough to give you a backrub.
Overall:
Blacklight Retribution has everything a PC shooter needs to be happy: Fast paced action, some serious customization, free to play without being pay to win, and dubstep’s famous wubs, which have me and my gamer buddies laughing hysterically as we try to sing to it. I have no regrets to getting this game through steam, though the community sometimes frustrates me with it’s refusal to participate in objective matches, but this behavior plagues many fast paced shooters and PC games alike. If you’re looking for a good shooting fix for a few days, or are in it for the long haul, give Blacklight a look: It’s hard to go wrong for a price tag of free!
Blacklight Retribution gets a 7.75/10
8/10... If you like wub wub wub, like me.
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Very First American Legend of Zelda Commercial
This commercial is....well interesting for many ways. First it is interesting to see how gaming has evolved since then. The use of the "cool kid and nerdy kid" motif is in full effect here. The nerdy kid shows the cool kid the new game and gets the cool kid hooked. This is to show people that even the cool kids who didn't play video games would like it. Also, look at the nerdy kid! Do those kids even exist anymore? They have the most stereotypical looking nerdy kid in this commercial. Now I know they probably made him out to look this way and in real life he didn't, but it still stands out. These are the people video gaming was for back then. Now the industry is enjoyed by all. Then we have to talk about the rap song at the end. It seems so unnecessary and goofy, but it must have worked. Or it could have been that the game was great enough to overcome this commercial. Either way I hope you enjoy!
Monday, July 23, 2012
Column: Chasing the Ghosts of the King of Kong
By Aaron N
Arcades are very special to me. Many of my fondest memories are from arcades. This site is even named after my favorite local arcade that I used to frequent back in the day. So when it comes to video game documentaries about the classic arcade era of gaming there are two that will always be linked. One of these is "King of Kong: a fistful of quarters," and the other one is "Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade." "King of Kong" is argueably the more famous one of the two, but I recently watched "Chasing Ghosts" for the first time and I found that there are a lot of similarites between the two. Many subjects are touched on during both documentaries. But they also differ in more ways. "King of Kong" is a documentary that was released in 2007. It follows Steve Wiebe and his quest for recognition in the classic arcade community. This movie is where I first encountered Twin Galaxies. Twin Galaxies is the group that acts as a governing body for world records in video games. The figurehead for Twin Galaxies at the time was Walter Day. Walter Day's prescence in the history of world records, and video games as a whole, is astounding as he basically created Twin Galaxies and the idea of video game world records. His dedication for the industry is unmatched. So Wiebe embarks on a quest to get recognition of his new Dokey Kong world record when his video tape is disqualified. His nemesis in the video game world, as portrayed in the documentary, is Billy Mitchell. Billy Mitchell is widely regarded as the greatest classic video game player in history. He owns various world records including Donkey Kong and he was the first person to achieve a perfect game in Pac-man. This movies does a good job at placing Steve Wiebe as the protagonist, and Billy Mitchell, with other Twin Galaxies representatives, squarely as the antagonist. Steve Wiebe eventually receives recognition from Twin Galaxies by going to various competitions and showing that he wants to compete. It is an enjoyable documentary that shows a small upstart player trying to get recognition against the big machine in the video gaming world.
"Chasing Ghosts" was also released in 2007. This documentary is more about the history of the video game players that are seen in "King of Kong" and about Twin Galaxies. It talks more in depth and introduces you to the players from the famous Life Magazine cover picture from 1982. Walter Day actually organized the meeting between 16 of the top world record holders in various classic arcade games in Iowa in order to take the picture and have a convention of sorts. It then follows what the players have done since and tells of events that directly followed the magazine photo shoot. There were various tournaments and television shows featuring the various players. There was also a planned touring museum where people could come and play against the record holders in their game. Unfortunately nothing succeeded and the classic arcade boom ended. What was interesting was that many of the players ended up being in different situations than their bretheren. Many of them had to go to school and get jobs. Some of them are very well off without even mentioning the video game fame. While some of the others seem like they are stuck living in the past and can not get out of holes that have been dug for them. It is an interesting watch and really delves deeper into the history of video games.
Now time to compare the two documentaries. The main difference is that "King of Kong" is obviously made to be more entertaining than educational. The way it's made to be a "good vs. evil" story is a vastly different way of presenting the information than the straight educational route that "Chasing Ghosts" uses. What I was most disappointed with is that when I did some more research on the events of "King of Kong" I found out that much of the information is wrongfully presented. This is obvious also after watching "Chasing Ghosts". Billy Mitchell is presented in "King of kong" as an evil man who is very pompous and only out for himself. While his self-confidence and eccentric personality are still present in "Chasing Ghosts," it is dramatically less. He even says that one of the other players is the best video game player ever! The Billy Mitchell shown in "King of Kong" would never admit anyone was even close to in his league. Some of the other players are more similarly presented in both documentaries. I feel that after watching "Chasing Ghosts" I had more respect for Billy Mitchell and Walter Day because it showed what they did for the history of gaming. Walter Days' impact is shown in "Kong of Kong", but he is shown as more of a puppet of Billy Mitchell's than the orchestrator of it all. Now I am not saying that everything in "King of Kong" is misrepresented and wrong. It is hard to disprove what is on camera. It is still fun to root for Steve Wiebe because he deserves recognition and some of the actions of Twin Galaxies in "King of Kong" were undeserved. But I feel like things were embellished in the documentary.
Both documentaries are enjoyable to watch. Each one shows a different side to many people and events in the history of gaming. They should be watched together and not separate in order to get a complete understanding. They complement each other greatly as "King of Kong" delved deeper into some of the people that "Chasing Ghosts" didn't. But at the same time "Chasing Ghosts" explained the history that led up to "King of Kong." I would recomend both of them to anybody reading this.
Arcades are very special to me. Many of my fondest memories are from arcades. This site is even named after my favorite local arcade that I used to frequent back in the day. So when it comes to video game documentaries about the classic arcade era of gaming there are two that will always be linked. One of these is "King of Kong: a fistful of quarters," and the other one is "Chasing Ghosts: Beyond the Arcade." "King of Kong" is argueably the more famous one of the two, but I recently watched "Chasing Ghosts" for the first time and I found that there are a lot of similarites between the two. Many subjects are touched on during both documentaries. But they also differ in more ways. "King of Kong" is a documentary that was released in 2007. It follows Steve Wiebe and his quest for recognition in the classic arcade community. This movie is where I first encountered Twin Galaxies. Twin Galaxies is the group that acts as a governing body for world records in video games. The figurehead for Twin Galaxies at the time was Walter Day. Walter Day's prescence in the history of world records, and video games as a whole, is astounding as he basically created Twin Galaxies and the idea of video game world records. His dedication for the industry is unmatched. So Wiebe embarks on a quest to get recognition of his new Dokey Kong world record when his video tape is disqualified. His nemesis in the video game world, as portrayed in the documentary, is Billy Mitchell. Billy Mitchell is widely regarded as the greatest classic video game player in history. He owns various world records including Donkey Kong and he was the first person to achieve a perfect game in Pac-man. This movies does a good job at placing Steve Wiebe as the protagonist, and Billy Mitchell, with other Twin Galaxies representatives, squarely as the antagonist. Steve Wiebe eventually receives recognition from Twin Galaxies by going to various competitions and showing that he wants to compete. It is an enjoyable documentary that shows a small upstart player trying to get recognition against the big machine in the video gaming world.
"Chasing Ghosts" was also released in 2007. This documentary is more about the history of the video game players that are seen in "King of Kong" and about Twin Galaxies. It talks more in depth and introduces you to the players from the famous Life Magazine cover picture from 1982. Walter Day actually organized the meeting between 16 of the top world record holders in various classic arcade games in Iowa in order to take the picture and have a convention of sorts. It then follows what the players have done since and tells of events that directly followed the magazine photo shoot. There were various tournaments and television shows featuring the various players. There was also a planned touring museum where people could come and play against the record holders in their game. Unfortunately nothing succeeded and the classic arcade boom ended. What was interesting was that many of the players ended up being in different situations than their bretheren. Many of them had to go to school and get jobs. Some of them are very well off without even mentioning the video game fame. While some of the others seem like they are stuck living in the past and can not get out of holes that have been dug for them. It is an interesting watch and really delves deeper into the history of video games.
Now time to compare the two documentaries. The main difference is that "King of Kong" is obviously made to be more entertaining than educational. The way it's made to be a "good vs. evil" story is a vastly different way of presenting the information than the straight educational route that "Chasing Ghosts" uses. What I was most disappointed with is that when I did some more research on the events of "King of Kong" I found out that much of the information is wrongfully presented. This is obvious also after watching "Chasing Ghosts". Billy Mitchell is presented in "King of kong" as an evil man who is very pompous and only out for himself. While his self-confidence and eccentric personality are still present in "Chasing Ghosts," it is dramatically less. He even says that one of the other players is the best video game player ever! The Billy Mitchell shown in "King of Kong" would never admit anyone was even close to in his league. Some of the other players are more similarly presented in both documentaries. I feel that after watching "Chasing Ghosts" I had more respect for Billy Mitchell and Walter Day because it showed what they did for the history of gaming. Walter Days' impact is shown in "Kong of Kong", but he is shown as more of a puppet of Billy Mitchell's than the orchestrator of it all. Now I am not saying that everything in "King of Kong" is misrepresented and wrong. It is hard to disprove what is on camera. It is still fun to root for Steve Wiebe because he deserves recognition and some of the actions of Twin Galaxies in "King of Kong" were undeserved. But I feel like things were embellished in the documentary.
Both documentaries are enjoyable to watch. Each one shows a different side to many people and events in the history of gaming. They should be watched together and not separate in order to get a complete understanding. They complement each other greatly as "King of Kong" delved deeper into some of the people that "Chasing Ghosts" didn't. But at the same time "Chasing Ghosts" explained the history that led up to "King of Kong." I would recomend both of them to anybody reading this.
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