The Lone Gamer

ELBOW. ELBOW. SHOULDER. ELBOW. Winner, Akira.

WHOA, what’s this? Another Character Countdown? And for a series whose name doesn’t rhyme with Smekken? ZOUNDS!
Well, why not? I’ve found that doing this kind of article series not only proves entertaining for both me and readers- it’s also a great way to pass the time. And passing the time is something I really want to do since the release of the awesome Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown is so close but also so far away. So here, a countdown series featuring the blokes and babes of Sega’s flagship fighter, the Virtua Fighter series. I imagine that even veteran beat ‘em up fans may not be totally acquainted with the VF crew, unless they made it a point to read up on them. Well, let’s fix our collective VF ignorance and get to know the combatants in the Next Big Fighting Game to hit our consoles next month.

So, to start the ball rolling, why not kick things off with VF’s Poster Boy- the franchise’s ‘Ryu’ and the Main Guy; a frighteningly powerful fighter… so frightening he scares off gamers from even trying to use him! He’s the Hakkyokuken Master, Akira!

AKIRA YUKI
Distinguishing Features: Japanese male of exceptionally fit physique, usually dressed in a plain, unspectacular martial arts gi and matching headband. Basically he’d be Ryu who actually gets to bathe and change clothes more often (or is it less rarely?).

Strengths: Shoulders and elbows that can crack concrete. Akira is the epitome of efficient, explosive movement. Very intimidating… fighters have been known to pass out from fear even before his elbow hits their jaw. In the right hands, Akira can destroy his opponent faster than you can say ‘WTF?!’

Weaknesses: So many think he’s so hard to learn, few dare try to use him. Does indeed require at least a fair level of skill on the part of the player to use effectively. Not the most exciting fighter to watch since he’s so darn methodical and to the point in his attacks. Hotheaded and impulsive; a bit naive and uncomfortable in social events outside of martial arts.

Background: A fighter who’s been competing in the World Fighting Tournament in VF since the very beginning, Akira was raised from childhood training in his family’s dojo, mastering the art of Bajiquan/Hakkyoku Ken. He continually trains and yearns to fight strong opponents in order to test his skills and uncover his own flaws and shortcomings.

Ryu Who? Akira’s resemblance to Streetfighter’s main man may or may not be a coincidence, or it may just be indicative of the stoic, ‘The Fight is All’ archetype that he represents. He’s that kind of character, totally dedicated to his calling, the fight, the school and the secret of True Strength. In other words, this guy may be a monster in the fighting tournaments, but he’s probably clueless in pretty much every other arena or social gathering. He is, after all, the model after which the Champion of Blandness, Ryo Hazuki of Shenmue, was inspired from. Heck, he’s got a gorgeous lady (Aoi Umenokoji) basically throwing herself at him (probably hand and feet first though), and they’re strictly platonic. Nope, just like Ryu, Akira’s sight is squarely on the horizon. I honestly don’t believe he actually expects his journey to ever end. When that actually happens, he’s probably gonna die.

On that note, it also doesn’t appear that Akira has any inkling or awareness of the unsavoury, sinister goings-on with the organization holding the World Fighting Tournament- Judgement Six. However, he’s such a significant player that he’s sure to be a thorn in the bad guys’ side if he finds himself in the way between J6 and their intended targets. For as pure and one-dimensional as Akira may seem to be, one thing that is also sure is that this guy is a hero- an unwary hero, still looking for his potential, but a hero nonetheless.

Akira has always been known as the character in VF that requires an ‘Almost Zen-like Dedication’ to master. I think that may not be entirely false, but it’s also not totally true. In fact, it seems that like many aspects of Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown, Akira’s skills have been made more accessible and usable by players who are at least open to putting a wee bit more effort into learning. The Tutorial mode in VF5FS, which comes complete with timings and frame data, should be perfect tools for anyone to master even the infamous ‘Stun Palm of Doom’. In short, don’t be scared away from Akira, and give him a try when VF5 Final Showdown hits this June. Then you may find everyone in fear of your skills.

‘Um, Pai… would you go out on a da… er… uh… IF I DEFEAT YOU, YOU PAY FOR MY DINNER, AGREED??!’

Virtua Fighter 5 Final Showdown comes to PSN and XboxLive this coming June 5-6, 2012.

Breaking News! I’ve just gotten into a cool arrangement with a business partner, and now I’m going to be changing the format of my site. From here on, I’ll be focusing totally on mobile phone gaming. No more Fighting Games, no more RPGs, no more anything on any device or console with a screen more than 5 inches. Yeah, that may sound a bit odd, but with screens getting more High Definition and pixel-heavy, size doesn’t really matter anymore. Anyway, there are quite a few stories I’m going to be focusing on in the next few weeks, here’s a wee taste of what you’ll be getting from The Phone Gamer!

Baldur’s Gate on iOS. Hold the Forgotten Realms in your palm! This is really getting me excited- the BG series was pretty much THE RPG back then, and it was as deep and playable as you can get. This is as much nostalgia as it is getting back a truly awesome time of games. They just don’t make ‘em like these. Look for more info on this comeback soon…

More Capcom Titles to come on your smartphone? Rumor has it that we may be seeing cool things happening as SFIV and SFIV Volt has done pretty well on the iOS front. Perhaps we’ll see beat ‘em ups from Capcom’s stable appear soon? Fingers crossed!

More and more! So get those phones ready- gaming on the go has never been this amazing!!! Who needs consoles??! NOT ME!

HAPPY APRIL FOOLS DAY! ^_____^

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Don’t miss the new ‘Item Move’ with Nina at 0.42… Heheh…

In case you missed it, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 Unlimited is now out in Japanese arcades (International gamespots will get it later this year), and along with all the new changes and tweaks to gameplay and the added player modes (1 vs 1, 2 vs 1), we got new items and customizations. Among the new items are Item Moves, some of which, like Nina’s Halo, take effect only when you are knocked out in a certain way. This Tekken chapter certainly has ramped up the wackiness (wait till someone posts a vid of Anna’s Dance-till-you-drop Item), which I appreciate… even if the customization has been slightly (and irritatingly) simplified. Anyway, this should be out on consoles this coming Holiday 2012. For now, check out Shintairiku Kumigaya’s channel for more direct-feed TTT2U matches.

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Is this life ala Mass Effect? Pretty rough…

A cool thing about getting into gameblogging- I often get a lot of emails and heads-up from all over the place. 7SL Productions sent me the above-linked vid showing off their comedic short film, Mass Effected. I love the whole game-to-movie thing online, whether its Machinima or live-action. Have to say I’m not that big of a ME fan (and now, with the hubbub on the 3rd game’s endings, I might not take the plunge) but I like game-based media in general. Check out the vid and give the guys a thumbs up if you like it.

In case you don’t already know, I FREAKIN’ LOVE The Elder Scrolls V Skryim. At least as much as I love fighting games, Tekken and Streetfighter, and that’s saying something. Like my fave games, one great thing about Skyrim is that it’s one of those games that are just so fun to watch as much as play yourself. Testament to this are the gazillions of player and fan-made vids from the game online, on Youtube and elsewhere. Some are nice, some are meh, some are out there, while some just make you feel great about loving this masterpiece of an RPG/Open World Game/Alternate Life Simulator. Here are five of the most entertaining Skyrim videos I’ve yet seen, so enjoy!

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5. Army of CHILDREN
A hilarious vid from Robbaz (whom you’ll be hearing again from later) whose accent really makes this vid doubly funny to me. But really, the sight of a mob of knife-wielding, expressionless little buggers should be enough to turn any defender’s blood to icewater.

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4. Skyrim Theme with Piano and Violin
By now there are lots of Skyrim music vids, but this was the first one that I ever saw online, and I still think it’s the best. Still gives me chills to hear the majestic music interpreted by these two talented musicians. Lara6686 and ViolinTay, take a bow!

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3. Skyrim on Master Difficulty
Someday, I may deem it necessary to give myself more challenge and ratchet up Skyrim’s difficulty up to Master. Till then though, perhaps I’ll just live that Masochistic Life vicariously through this series of playthrough vids made thoroughly entertaining by the laugh out loud-hilarious commentary by Brickwallgames, with the vid up above (Episode 71) being especially LOLriffic. One. More. Round!!!

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2. The Adventures of Felix the Peaceful Monk
A truly unique way to play the game is shown here in the Adventures of Felix the Peaceful Monk, by WestSideLuigi, who has opted to try the unconventional route of Pacifist in Skyrim. The point is to not kill anything or anyone directly or indirectly (via followers, albeit traps are fine). How is this done? Via lots of running and lavish use of stealth or Illusion spells, that’s how. Still, being strictly pacifistic will certainly prevent you from progressing in most of the game quests and faction storylines, but this is truly a fascinating watch for gamers who want to see a very unusual gameplay style.
Oh, and WestSideLuigi’s voice is just so soothing. The guy should sell pillowcases.

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1. Unarmed Badass Viking with Commentary
There are many vids showing off the unarmed fighter build in Skyrim, but darn- none are as colorfully or convincingly narrated and sold by Robbaz, ‘King of Sweden’ (and Yes, I did indeed make an Unarmed Fighter and he’s doing well, thank you very much). Watching this vid will make you save over your previous messy build and sell off those swords and silly spells ’cause, well, only a pussy needs anything but SMITING, Heavy Armor and his FISTS to kill everything in Skyrim. Oh, and a nice badass Viking helm too. WHO WANTS TO BE A WALRUS???

With the game only out for about two and a half months, there’s sure to be more vids to come. Who knows, maybe I’ll make a couple of my own? Well, still playing as much as I am watching, and blogging here is taking time away from both of those activities. So LATER! Heheh.

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The Adventures of Felix the Cat… Monk.

In videogames, where destroying or killing the opposition is pretty much the most basic and primary way of winning or scoring, it’s quite amazing to see players going against the grain, and somewhat thriving. Take the Skyrim video above, where Youtuber WestSideLuigi has dedicated his character to living and playing as a pacifist. That means no killing- AT ALL. Not even wolves, and not even undead (who technically shouldn’t really be considered kills since they’re already dead anyway). How he’s doing this? By use of the game’s non-lethal illusion magic, in particular the spells/effects Calm and Fear. So far, he’s gotten to Level 9, all with a Kill Count of Zero. As well, he refuses any quest that requires him to kill anything- which pretty much blocks off pretty much every quest not item or fetch-related. Quietly awesome!

While this means he won’t progress questlines such as the Skyrim Civil War, the Companions (Fighters’ Guild), the Dark Brotherhood and, oh, The Main Quest among others, he could conceivably play indefinitely as a cat burglar (heh) since the Thieves’ Guild don’t normally kill.

It’s certainly a unique way of playing Skyrim, although this isn’t entirely new- Metal Gear Solid 4 for example, can supposedly be played throughout without actually killing anyone. Just goes to show though what a setting or platform the latest Elder Scrolls game is, to allow such options or ways to find your pleasure in, no matter how odd.

Next up, Skyrim’s Dog the Bounty Hunter, who makes it his goal in life collecting, well, you guessed it, BONES…

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These dudes are soooo dead.

WOOH. As I am writing this, my neck kinda aches and my face hurts from lack of sleep but hell, I haven’t been this happy in years. Yep, I’ve been through a gaming weekend, which consists mainly of me in my room, staring at my TV set for hours on end as a virtual world sprawls before me. Yep, it was my first weekend of Elder Scrolls V Skyrim, and well- yeah, it’s indeed All That. This isn’t my review yet, but really- there’s no question. This game rocks hard and then some, and then some more. Anyways, I’ve got tons of stories to tell, even if I keep the big spoilers down (there will be some bits but I won’t reveal anything big, don’t worry) so stay a while and listen.

Like in all past Elder Scrolls, Skyrim has you starting from the very bottom of the proverbial barrel- as a prisoner, being led to his/her execution (at least in Oblivion you were just chillin’ in your cell). But just as the headsman’s axe was about to separate your head from your body, a Dragon- a big, scary, horny, black thing of nightmare- attacks the place. As Imperial soldiers and the big flying lizard battle it out, you get a chance to escape. Since I was playing a Nord guy, I decided to go with Ralof, a fellow prisoner and member of the rebel Stormcloaks- those Nords fighting for an independent Skyrim. A somewhat lengthy romp through the inside of the Imperial stronghold makes for a nice little beginning tutorial.

Combat has been improved from Oblivion- instead of sliding around while standing straight up, combatants are in more proper battle-stance, and weapons are swung with vicious, convincing weight. It’s still got a tendency to be a messy affair though- often your making a strike and the enemy reacting don’t always match up- you’ll swing several times until you realize your enemy’s already on the floor. This often causes you to accidentally hit friendly characters nearby as you flail about. One could argue a ‘Toggle Friendly Fire’ option could have been included, but hey, then you couldn’t kill your friends if you wanted to, and that’s all part of the Elder Scrolls fun, ain’t it? The power to choose, no matter how crazy your choices can get (well, to a point). Anyway, long story short, the combat looks fierce and pretty cool- the addition of finishing sequences makes them all the more visceral.

Lockpicking… is still a pain. But I think it’s a lot better here now, with you turning the two analog sticks. Force feedback shows the resistance, and you can easily break your fragile picks if you’re not careful. However, as frustrating as it can get, it’s actually kinda fun, so no biggie.
After a brief bit through some underground passages, I was finally out of the Imperial stronghold-turned-dragon-playground. My companion headed off after giving me a tip to viist his sister for help in a nearby town, and I was free. Free! Man, oh man, was I free.

For a moment I just had to stand there, taking it all in, letting the camera spin about. It was the same thing in Oblivion, after you beat the initial dungeon- once you arrive in the bigger, wider world, you just have to pause and realize that you’re on a long and interesting journey. But this time, the world is even more detailed, even more beautiful and immersive. I stare at the sky, which is photorealistic, in awe. The trees may as well be real. A moose runs by. Goddamn this is awesome.

I arrive in the first town and the wonder still doesn’t stop. People are walking about and talking. Yeah, it’s still not perfect, but it’s a notch up from Oblivion when you talk to people. No longer do you have POV zooms into the face of the person you’re talking to- they just talk to you as they’re standing, and it’s much more natural. Dialogue is all spoken with much better voice-acting (and a lot more voices too), even if your hero is still the silent-type.

After some time in town, I soon find myself on my first dungeon quest, to a place called Bleak Falls Barrow to retrieve a stolen item from some bandits. This is the same dungeon we’ve all seen in the Skyrim demo. It’s here where I really get to play the style I want (for now), that of stealth assassin. I find myself sneaking in, and I manage to get up the initial steps undetected, and kill off the bandits on top with some sniping- archery is now a LOT deadlier, and with the right perks and skill, you can wipe out whole enemy camps from afar… it’s goddamn fun. This continues into the actual barrow itself, which actually turns out to be a bit lengthier than I saw in the demo. All’s well though- the dungeons was great from beginning to end, I got the item back, some treasure and the hankering for more.

Anyways, from there on I wandered a bit more- before getting back to the first town to receive my reward, I stumbled on a couple more dungeons and found myself facing off with a nest of Necromancers (I hate these guys…) in a half-submerged fort. Wandering about, I face a LOT more bandits and wolves. Funny that there are at least as many female bandits as there are males (they’re an equal opportunity kind of outlaw)… seeing as how hot all the ladies are, I realize why there are so many of them… ahem.
Afterwards, I headed off to let the local Jarl (or overlord) at a nearby city know about his impending Dragon Problem. This leads to more adventures, more bandit-killing, my first battle with a dragon, being hailed a hero and having a hot warrior babe pledge her life to my service. Oh, and somehow every time I kill a dragon I get these awesome powers.

ALL of this in just one weekend… and I know I’ve barely even made a dent in this game.

My head’s throbbing. I need coffee. Need to get some work done today. But I’ll be back in Skyrim soon. Got stuff to do, people to meet. Dragons to kill. Man, I love being a gamer.

Warning: Some Spoilers Ahead (No Plot Spoilers Though)
Been playing quite a bit of Dead Island lately, and so far I’ve been on a good run with my first-ever character (Sam B., the One-Hit Wonder Rapper) in the game. Am currently on Chapter 8, having moved out from the confines of the resort and into the wider world of Banoi’s mainland city, Moresby.
At this point, I was feeling that I had finally gotten the hang of zombie-killing. In Dead Island though, you’re never really quite safe- the game levels up with you, so grinding too much won’t make you invincible. Far from it- even slow Walker zombies can kill you if you’re stupid, and the always-chilling Infected- the most rabid and dangerous of the common enemies- can kill you in a flash. Getting mobbed by groups of zombies is almost a sure way to die, so the best thing is to run- to either flee (although enemies will pursue you for a while) or give yourself room so you can take on enemies one at a time.

The most effective and trouble-free tactic I’ve learned though in the urban sprawl of Moresby is to use the many derelict cars. Zombies after you? Jump on a car. Even that low height is usually enough to keep you safe, even if the undead are really only inches away. From there on your lofty perch, simply kneel down and strike at the bastards with abandon. Soon your sanctuary will be surrounded with the bloody ruin of their bodies. Bliss.

Aside from this, I’ve been making it my priority to look for exceptional weapons and modify the hell out of them. After a while, I had amassed quite an arsenal, which included several wicked-looking electrified or skull-crushing wrenches that would make Jack Ryan green with envy.

I tallied my count of items- miscellaneous stuff you use for mods or just selling off- and I saw several bottles of Champagne. Remembering a side mission for a drunk Russian gal who paid in diamonds for every bottle of the bubbly, I hustled back to the resort to cash in. On the way of course was the token gauntlet of zombies- mostly fodder walkers and one Thug. Thugs are, of course, the routine Boss of the game, a tank-like zombie who can knock you down on your ass with a single swipe. Sadly I haven’t really mastered fully the timing of attacking these brutes in close, so I opted to just throw my arsenal at him from a distance.

I lured him away from the dock and into the water, where we could be alone- and I started pelting him- soon, he was looking like a walking pincushion, with my modified electrified wrenches, nailed bats and upgraded paralyzing machetes sticking out of him. For good measure, I’d slip in a safe kick every now and then, grab a weapon right from him, and throw it again. He was a tough sucker, but I was whittling him down. Soon, he was down to about a fourth of his life bar. Victory was in sight. Just a couple more good throws.
Suddenly, I heard something shuffle and groan off in my peripheral vision, and I turned- and lo and behold what was standing there was a goddamn Suicider Zombie- a walking, pulsating pile of pus that exploded with nuclear ferocity if something sneezed on it. I didn’t do anything, but for some reason- perhaps the Thug hit it or what- the damn creep detonated. At that distance, there was no escape- I was dead.

Of course, death in Dead Island is not permanent- you respawn after a few seconds, just minus a portion of your cash. But in this case, I also lost something else- MY FREAKIN’ WEAPONS, which were stuck on the damn Thug! Unfortunately, instead of respawning me right where I died, the game threw me at a checkpoint area, some distance away from the actual place. The Thug was nowhere in sight, along with my weapons. GONE, into reset oblivion. I was fuming and foaming at the mouth- ALL my hard-earned gear was gone! I quit the game, hoping that I would be reverted to an earlier save with all my stuff intact- but nope- I was trapped right there, post-Suicider Explosion, bereft of all my cool stuff.

WHAT THE HELL!!!!! I have to admit, I was cursing and cussing for about an hour after in disbelief at the incredible bad luck. That a turtle-fast Suicider was able to creep up on me undetected, while we were in the middle of the water was inconceivable. I was convinced the game just got pissed at me and threw me a bloody curve. What an ass!!!

Anyway, in the end what could you do but pick yourself up and start all over again. I went off and restarted my arsenal-hunting, and as of this reading my gear is even cooler and more zombie-killinglicious than ever before. Suffice to say though, unless I’m in a locked room with a Thug, I won’t be throwing my gear so readily from now on.

Back to playing then…

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Now THIS is a Boss Battle…

Here’s the fun little spot for Tekken 3D Prime Edition for the Nintendo 3DS that debuted early last week at a pre-TGS Nintendo event, this time with subtitles. Yeah, the trailer’s game content is pretty much the same as the previous T3D trailer, but seeing the live-action sequence, complete with Japanese TV-style camera work and hilariously hammy performances from Streetfighter’s Yoshinori Ono and Tekken’s Katsuhiro Harada is priceless. The 3DS Tekken game is still very much in development, apparently, but it’s been given a release window of as early as February 2012. Well before then I expect we’ll see various trailers and spots to show what this latest portable Rave War has in store for mobile gamers.

On other Tekken-related news, Harada has tweeted that release dates for Tekken Hybrid will be announced soon, along with news of a possible Collector’s Edition. Also currently ongoing is testing of Tekken.Net for online play for Tekken Tag Tournament 2 in international arcades. More as we get it then!

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Friendship hurts.

The first time I saw both my Tekken mains Asuka and Lili’s high-fiving was in the Tekken Tag 2′s AOU Trailer months and months ago, and it got me smiling in glee. Now we finally get to see it in full, in nice crisp quality thanks to Aznboysrfr on Youtube. Nicely enough, it doesn’t disappoint and has a funny little twist at the end, still playing on the girls’ rivalry and the apparent fact that they just can’t seem to perfectly get along.

That aside, these two are definitely a killer team that should be very popular. Can’t wait to get my girl team going when TTT2 comes out here in my parts.