Cerulean Alpha

MegaTen Online, anyone?

2009-02-06T10:55:00.000-08:00

I say, "yes"!

Seriously. For a Free MMORPG, this just rocks.

Too busy playing to write about it. Look it up yourself.

Kura

Stylish eSper Shooting Sports

2009-01-16T14:03:00.000-08:00

My first thought was that I would suck at it, then hate it. I do suck at it, but surprisingly, I don't hate it.
S4 League is a game some would say looks a lot like Gunz. Sure, you get a sword and guns, and can go into Deathmatches with other players. But the main fun in that game is the Touchdown games, where you have to fight for the ball, and bring it to the enemy camp without them killing you and taking it away! Now that's fun.

Both swords and guns have their own advantages though. Personally, I prefer swords-only games when in a Touchdown game. Snipers can get very annoying. You get many (yet still kind of limited) ways to customize your character with hairstyles, hair colors, outfits and even supernatural powers that you can combine with your weapons to create your own combos and abilities and outsmart your opponents!

Of course, like all free games of this kind, there are a few assholes, but once you've got a good group of nice friends with whom you can play, it can be even more fun! All in all, I really recommend this little MMO if you're bored and/or have time to waste. They've got some stylish clothing, and PINK HAIR. Gotta love the pink.

Oh, and they're planning a release for the PSP. Release date hasn't been announced yet though.

Oh, and did I mention you can have pink hair?

The tears we cry are echoes

2009-01-10T09:25:00.000-08:00

You stood always smiling, ever-quiet, ever-tender.
And I, a lost child, always frightened, I remember,
That you came and found me blinded by unshed tears.

The tears we cry are echoes that tell what tomorrow can hold.
And I wept in your arms and I heard
Bells ring out across the land, bringing peace at last,
To your heart my dearest friend.

And now, the love that you gave me blooms and will live on
Through the tears in a song without end.

Those are the lyrics to a song, A Love Passed On, from a game I've been playing lately. A game that I would recommend to many: Valkyria Chronicles. It is a Strategy Role Playing Game, and is a Playstation 3 exclusive. Now, for the PS3 to have an exclusive, that on top of all is an RPG, is pretty rare, I know. But the game itself is excellent. The makers really pictured war as it is, introducing it through characters so attaching that we share the various emotions they go through. I've been hooked to the game from the day I downloaded the demo on Playstation Store.

The game occurs a set number of years after the First European War, during a conflict between the Gallian forces and the Imperial forces. After the main character, Welkin Gunther, came home to Bruhl only to see it taken by the Imperial Army on the same day, he followed in his father's footsteps, joining the Gallian Militia as a Tank Commander, with his younger sister as the pilot. He is then immediately given the title of Lieutenant and entrusted with his own squad, Squad 7, which immediately becomes YOUR squad to manage and set up so you can come up with the best strategies to make it through all eighteen chapters.

So, basically, you're left with different classes (Scout, Shocktrooper, Lancer, Engineer, Sniper), and a great amount of characters you can add to your squad, all with their own strengths and weaknesses. Some have fears or are frail, others have allergies or get distracted easily, causing lowered stats. Some like to show off, are masochists or feel more confident when other people are around, leading to a boost in stats. Through time, more people appear in the list, and your characters earn new potentials. You're sure to have your favorites, though, and when you have a character you like, you'll most likely forget about their weaknesses and use them anyway. We love to make our lives difficult.

Being careful is important though. There are a set number of characters that are important to the storyline and that will retreat if defeated in combat. However, the other characters are all vulnerable to the cruelest reality of war: death. If a character is rendered unconscious and is reached by the enemy before an ally, or is in this state for three turns without an ally rescuing them, they will die, making it impossible to use them until a New Game or New Game + is started. Plan your strategies well if you don't want to experience any losses in your squad. (My technique: I save A LOT during battles.)

All in all, this game has all but PSN's Trophies system (Which could pretty much be added later as Downloadable Content. Who knows.) and a Downloadable Content with a Very Hard difficulty level and new missions will be coming out soon. Now what reasons do you have not to go and buy it, hm? None! Go now! No, being busy is no reason! Come on, just go and buy it already!

I give it a 9/10. The music is excellent, the story is amazing, the graphics are unique, the characters (even the unimportant ones) all have that little something that makes us want to keep them alive, even the voice acting isn't irritating! The only thing I can't stand about this game is the withdrawal I'll have to go through when I finish it. With that said...

"This is an order! Get in the car, and drive to your nearest games store!"

"For Gallia!"

wat

2009-01-02T19:47:00.001-08:00

There I go, starting up a blog again. How long it will last, only time will tell. Until then, I guess I have to keep this thing alive. I'll start with a short introduction, I guess. The name's Kura. It's not my real name, but that's the name I'll be using here. You can call me anything as long as it's not overly disrespectful, though. I don't yet know what I'll be blogging about, but it will pretty much be random. From things I like, to things I hate. From video games, to anime. Movies? TV shows? Or just random stuff that happens in my life, I guess.

Today, I was brought back from dreamland by my mother who was telling me she and my dad were leaving to our hometown to see some family. What more to do on a cold (minus 30 celcius) day, alone at home? Play video games, of course! Come on, sleeping is such a waste of time when you've got games waiting for you. I switched on my 360 and decided I'd continue the Tales of Vesperia game I started just yesterday night. With already 10 hours into the game by the middle of the day, I was certain I was probably quite a way through, and yet, I was quickly brought back to reality by someone who hurriedly told me that the game hadn't even started. "wat" was my reaction.

Of course, it's really not that disappointing a thing, as the game is very enjoyable. Oh, I did miss a few achievements here and there, but if I get rid of enough laziness to go through the game a second time after my first playthrough, I will most definitely get them. I stopped playing Tales of Vesperia in the late afternoon and went outside with my dog for no more than three full minutes, as the cold air was too much for my uncovered face skin. We came back inside and wondered what we were going to do when we got a phonecall from my sister saying that she was coming back home from work. Less loneliness? Not really. We ate dinner, and she went to bed because she was tired. Yay.

Then came online Sara who subtly and indirectly asked me to start up this blog, showing much enthusiasm when I told her I would. She even got Jessie into it, which is miraculous! These two are probably my only readers, now. Haha. Ha. Yeah.
As of now, I am writing this after I finished a fabulous quest on my Evil character in Fable II. Oh, Charlie. How I love your hat. Your sacrifice won't be vain; villagers will like me more, now. Thank you, Charlie. Oh, and thank you for the augment, Charlie's grandma.

Much love.

Kura