KJToo

Men say “I Love You” with flowers and jewelry. Laura says “I Love You” with CDs and science-fiction DVDs. Ladies, you’re getting a raw deal.

Spiritual Spiritual
B-Tribe

This is the fourth B-Tribe CD in my collection. The others — ¡Fiesta Fatal!, Sensual Sensual and Suave Suave — are all excellent. The “B” in B-Tribe stands for “Barcelona,” and the music is a sort of techno-latin: flamenco guitars and Spanish vocals mixed with a lot of synthesizers. Spiritual Spiritual is definitely the most low-key and mellow of the four albums, but it still has all the elements that keep me listening to B-Tribe. In fact, I’m listening to it as I write this, and wishing I’d gotten around to replacing my crappy headphones.

The Legend of Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash

Twenty-one tracks that trace the Man in Black’s nearly half-century career in music, from “Cry! Cry! Cry!” originally recorded in 1955 to his 2003 cover of Trent Reznor’s “Hurt.” One of my personal favorites is “Delia’s Gone,” which appeared on American Recordings, Cash’s first outing with famed rock producer Rick Rubin. A bit of Man in Black trivia: the song “A Boy Named Sue” was written by Where the Sidewalk Ends author Shel Silverstein.

Amarantine
Enya

Amarantine is at least the seventh Enya album in my collection, not counting her work on the soundtrack for The Fellowship of the Ring and the two-track single Oíche Chiún. Alas, my copies of Watermark and Shepherd Moons have gone missing. Enya doesn’t disappoint on her latest release, which is rich with her signature sound. I read a review last week that points to this familiarity as being a bad thing, but for me it’s very, very good. Did I mention that I need new headphones? Man, these things suck.

Serenity

Cross another item off the Amazon Wish List. I thought about picking this up about a week after Christmas, but couldn’t find it in the two or three stores I normally visit. I was a latecomer to the fandom of Joss Whedon’s Firefly series, but was just as eager to see Serenity when it hit theaters as the most rabid of Browncoats. If you have to ask what a Browncoat is, I suggest finding a copy of the Firefly box set and setting aside a weekend to watch the entire short-lived series. Then do the same with Serenity. If you ask nicely, I may even loan you my copy.

Posted February 14, 2006 Comments(6)

Time to talk about the idiot box for a little while. Why? Because I said so.

You may or may not recall that I picked a few new shows out of the fall lineup that looked like they might be interesting: Invasion, Night Stalker, Surface and Threshold. Two of the shows, Night Stalker and Threshold, bit the dust early in the season. I was sorry to see Threshold go, because it was actually getting pretty good. Night Stalker wasn’t great, but the last episode aired was the first in a two-part story, and I would have liked to see the resolution.

Surface had a good start, but it kind of lagged in the middle of the season. The few episodes leading up to the season finale really kicked the story into high gear, and the finale itself was pretty damn good (save for two things that I have filed under “Not Bloody Likely”). Rumor has it that NBC is waffling about whether or not to pick the series up for another season and a final decision won’t be made until May. I’m guessing that time frame might have something to do with DVD sales, but I could be wrong.

Last on the “new stuff” list is Invasion, which has recently begun to get interesting. Unfortunately, ABC has apparently decided to put the show on a six week “hiatus,” during which they’ll quietly cancel it. Invasion, like Surface, seemed to be stalling in mid-season. Though one could argue that the story was making progress, it didn’t seem like creator Shaun Cassidy and company were especially eager to reveal anything significant about the alien invaders, and that’s very frustrating. While Surface has pulled the curtain back on some of its mysteries, Invasion is almost as inscrutable as it was in the first episode. Still, I’m interested enough that I don’t want to see it cancelled.

I’ve also been watching the second seasons of Lost and Battlestar Galactica. Since Laura and I both watch Lost, I try not to watch it unless she can sit and watch it with me. As a result, we’ve got about five unwatched episodes on the TiVo right now.

Timing aside, there’s another reason I haven’t been eager to keep up with Lost: Michelle Rodriguez. I hated Michelle Rodriguez’s character in Resident Evil, and she plays the same damn character in Lost. The main difference between the two roles is that she hasn’t been killed by zombies in Lost, but there’s always next episode, right?

Last but not least, we’ve got Battlestar Galactica, which is the best thing on SciFi. That’s not saying a lot, but it really is a good show. For the most part. See, season 2.0 ended with a cliffhanger after the battlestars Galactica and Pegasus stumbled upon one another and Admiral Cain (Michell Forbes) assumed control of the Colonial fleet, as she outranked Commander Adama (Edward James Olmos). Cain’s hard-line, cutthroat command style didn’t sit well with Adama or the ailing President of the Colonies, Laura Roslin (Mary McDonnell). The conflict between the characters set up a very explosive situation, and season 2.0 ended on a cliffhanger. Season 2.5 resolved the cliffhanger over two episodes, but rather than force Adama and Cain to resolve the conflict themselves (either by diplomacy or force), Galactica’s writers opted to simply remove Cain from the picture. It was an incredibly weak, clumsy resolution to a very intense conflict, and I was terribly disappointed.

All done. I guess I won’t feel compelled to talk about the teevee for another six months or so, by which time all I’ll be watching is Baby Einstein and The Wiggles. Stay tuned!

Posted February 14, 2006 Comments(5)

On Sunday, February 12, 2005 at 3:14PM our friends Rob and Beth Murdoch welcomed their son, Lance Robert Murdoch. Lance, being a bit of an overachiever, was born about five weeks early and will have to spend a little time in a special nursery before he goes home, but both he and his mother are doing quite well. At birth, Lance weighed 5 pounds 5 ounces and was 19 1/4 inches long.

Lance, for those who are wondering, is the kid Kyle is supposed to beat up all through childhood. Methinks, however, the tables have likely turned. I’ve seen firsthand how scrappy kids who are born a few weeks early can be, and Lance may have the upper hand. Steps must be taken.

So, congratulations to Rob and Beth. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to start Kyle on his endurance training.

Posted February 14, 2006 Comments(1)

Star Wars: Empire at War (PC)

Remember the Star Wars RTS game Rebellion? Probably not. I think I was one of maybe eight people who actually bought and/or enjoyed that one. Rebellion hewed closer to the Civilization model of gameplay more than the Age of Empires model, which is probably why it wasn’t a terribly popular game. Instead of concentrating on how individual units move on the battlefield, Rebellion tasked the player with coordinating the production and movement of entire fleets across the galaxy. Though there was a mode that allowed skirmish-level interaction in space battles, there was no such option for ground battles. In other words, the player wasn’t pitting snowspeeders against AT-ATs and Rebel foot soldiers against Imperial stormtroopers; the player simply ensured that ground-based defenses were built and troops deployed, then the computer determined the outcome the battles.

Galactic Battlegrounds and Force Commander, on the other hand, were both solely concerned with playing out those ground battles. Unfortunately, Galactic Battlegrounds is merely Age of Empires II with a thin Star Wars patina slapped on the game engine. The facade wore especially thin in the areas of resource collecting and utilization of key Star Wars characters. The resource collection mechanics from Age of Empires (food, ore, gold) do not translate well into the Star Wars universe, even when gold is replaced with “nova crystals.” Likewise, the special abilities of the monk unit in Age of Empires are mapped almost directly to Darth Vader in Galactic Battlegrounds. To make matters worse, the sight of Darth Vader hacking away at a building with his lightsaber is enough to totally dissipate any remaining sense that the game is taking place in the Star Wars universe.

Then there’s Force Commander, which is a prime example of how not to implement a video game: it won’t even run on my system, despite my best efforts to find patches and workarounds to the various technical issues I’ve encountered.

Enter Empire at War, which was either released last Friday (10 February 2006) or will be released this Thursday (16 February 2006); GameStop says the 10th, Amazon.com says the 16th. Empire at War combines the galaxy-wide strategy of Rebellion with the skirmish-level combat of Galactic Battlegrounds, and it appears to do a very good job with both.

A few months ago, Miscellaneous G™ and I were discussing the various shortcomings of Galactic Battlegrounds and I put forth an “if I ran the zoo” scenario describing in particular how resources ought to be handled in games that take place in the Star Wars universe. My primary assertion was that the Imperials would, like most governments, acquire resources through taxation. The rebels, on the other hand, would have to use less overt means. While a certain percentage might come from wealthy members of the Rebellion, a significant portion would be gained by smuggling and/or stealing directly from the Imperials. To simplify things, available resources should be measured in currency (rather than carbon, ore, nova crystals, etc.) and the ability to build or acquire different units would be dependent upon the amount of available currency.

This is pretty much how Empire at War handles resources, but the concept is taken a step further: the Empire spends currency to develop new technologies, while the Rebellion must spend currency to recruit spies who will steal those technologies. Additionally, the Rebels hire smugglers (such as Han Solo and Chewbacca) to siphon resources from the Empire. Should Imperial bean counters discover an accounting discrepancy, they can hire bounty hunters to eliminate the smugglers.

The resource management mechanics I just described are largely a part of the galactic-level scope of Empire at War, as are planetary defenses, mining (which can supplement income), fleet and infantry production, and military deployment. When actions taken on the galactic level result in combat, however, the game switches to what I call “skirmish mode.” In this mode, the game operates like Galactic Battlegrounds, but without all the unfortunate artifacts from Age of Empires II. These skirmishes, which can actually be quite involved and large, take place on the surface of the planet or in space. In the heat of battle, it is possible to switch to a “cinematic view,” which strips out all control interfaces and displays the battle in a manner that resembles a movie.

I have not played the full Empire at War game yet; everything I’ve gleaned about the gameplay thus far is from playing the five tutorials and single mission included in the downloadable demo. It’s pretty safe to assume that I liked what I saw, since the game has been added to my Amazon Wish List. I’m not going to run out and buy it right away, though. I’m going to try to finish several games I currently own, including the crop that I recently acquired. Call it a test of resolve, to see if I can keep Mr. Instant Gratification under control.

Posted February 13, 2006 Comments(2)

The collection grows ever larger…

Dead Man’s Hand (PC)

Dead Man’s Hand was released right around the same time as the excellent Red Dead Revolver, and the two games are similar enough that they’re bound to draw some comparisons. They’re both western-themed shooters with a revenge-based story, and both integrate poker into the gameplay — Red Dead Revolver has a poker-themed multiplayer mode, while Dead Man’s Hand allows the gamer to play hands of poker prior to each mission in the story mode to gain extra ammunition.

Poker gimmick aside, both games are fairly standard shooters. Dead Man’s Hand uses the first-person viewpoint, while Red Dead Revolver employs a third-person viewpoint, meaning you are essentially following the main character, Red, through the adventure. This allows for some interesting “cover” mechanics, which allows Red to effectively hide behind obstacles during a shootout. Tejon, the main character in Dead Man’s Hand, is able to crouch, but the notion of “cover” (including what can and cannot be shot through) is a little weak. This can be very frustrating, especially when trying to shoot a bad guy through the gap in a fence and finding that he is able to fill you full of lead, but you can’t return the favor.

Also frustrating in Dead Man’s Hand is the the level design. Areas that should be accessible aren’t, and there is at least one point where Tejon becomes stuck after simply walking through a doorway. No amount of jumping, crouching, shooting or wiggling can extricate him from the predicament, and the only option is to restart the level.

Both games offer a cooperative multiplayer mode, though neither is based on the game story. Instead, the players are pitted against computer-controlled “bots” in an arena. This is all well and good, but multiplayer co-op that proceeds through the story is much more satisfying.

The single player story in Dead Man’s Hand follows former outlaw Tejon as he tracks down the members of his old gang, The Nine, who shot him in the back and left him for dead. Each chapter is broken into two parts: first Tejon shoots his way through a slew of lackeys and lickspittles, then he faces off against his former compadre. Tejon finds Sanchez in the classic Old West town, which leads to a showdown in the saloon. Next up is Flat Iron, who is hiding in the canyons. The face off occurs in and around a group of adobe buildings, and Flat Iron — an expert knife-thrower — weaves in and out of the alleys, nooks and crannies, and proves to be rather tricky to bag. After Flat Iron, Tejon tracks down… well, I don’t know. I haven’t managed to get Flat Iron to hold still long enough so I can retire him.

Dead Man’s Hand doesn’t bring anything new or exciting to the FPS table, and it has its share of flaws, but so far nothing severe enough to make me quit playing. On the whole, I think Red Dead Revolver is far superior, but I enjoy the Old West theme enough that I’ll play ‘em both.

Posted February 10, 2006 Comments(2)