Month: May 2016

Categories
Reviews Video Games

Life is Strange Episode 4 Review: Omens and Revelations

Impending disaster still looms over Arcadia, but Max has more immediate concerns building off the huge cliffhanger that ended episode 3.

lis4

Several long running story lines reach culmination here, with a number of strong, impactful reveals and surprises.  Given the nature of where Episode 3 left off, I can’t talk about any details without major spoilers. The plot is building extremely well though.

The gameplay is again solid here. The immersion is as good as ever with the atmosphere getting creepier and and more intense. One of the biggest mysteries is largely wrapped up here, which is a good move because it let it get focus here while leaving the other major mystery to hopefully come to the front in the final episode. There were a couple of points where the characters made poor choices for the sake of the plot, but it can reasonably be chalked up to the emotional turmoil they’re going through.

The puzzles were fine, but the story and dialog choices are the big draw here. The important choices have much less of a “no right answer” feel then in previous episodes, but I guess that’s a bit inevitable as the series comes to a close. Choices from previous episodes still matter a great deal in terms of dialog choices and certain scenes, which is something that is usually weak in these types of games and the thing I love most about this series.

Dark Room cranks up the tension and emotional impact to fitting levels for the penultimate episode of Life is Strange. I’m a little worried about how much is left to address and explain with only one episode left, but at the same time I’m looking forward to it as overall I’ve enjoyed the series thus far.

Categories
Comics Film Reviews

Captain America: Civil War Review

“They’re not stopping.”

“Neither are we.”

civilwar

I completely adore the way the Marvel movie universe has been building, and Captain America: Winter Soldier is perhaps my overall favorite of the bunch. So to say I’ve been impatiently waiting for Civil War would be a VAST understatement. I’m thrilled to say it’s just as fantastic as I hoped.

Part of Winter Soldier’s strength came from the core characters having relatable points of view and struggles. Civil War wonderfully captures this same aspect. EVERYONE in the movie acts the way they do for specific, understandable reasons. This really grounds all the conflict and makes sure the clashes between heroes feel compelling and natural instead of awkward and forced. There were several surprises as the story unfolded and a few things played out very differently than I expected, yet everything flowed logically and nothing came out of left field. And of course the expected sublime touches of humor were present throughout. I can’t say enough about how engrossing I found this film.

A particularly impressive aspect is that all of the above is accomplished while juggling a huge cast. While some characters obviously received stronger focus and more development than others, no one felt neglected or under-developed. From the secondary cast I particularly enjoyed seeing more of Falcon, Scarlet Witch, and Ant-Man. But the amazing part was how two new, important heroes were established in this movie while still doing justice to the other TEN. Both Spiderman and Black Panther were written, handled, and played perfectly. It gives me great hope that it is possible to manage the sure to be significantly larger cast of the Infinity War movies well if done with care.

Alright, I think I’ve been clear enough about my love for Captain America: Civil War so I’m going to wrap this up to avoid devolving into spoilers. Go see it!

Categories
Mystery Boxes Reviews

Nerd Block: Limited Edition International Tabletop Day Box Review

The Limited Edition International Tabletop Gaming Day Box from Nerd Block and Geek & Sundry was my first of NB’s special blocks. Unfortunately it will likely be my last.

IMG_9491

The t-shirt is nice, prominently featuring the International Tabletop Day logo. Sadly, it’s mostly downhill from here.

IMG_9496

The majority of the space in the box was taken up by the Magic The Gathering Legacy Collection Figure. Look, I understand how these boxes work, and I’m not surprised to be getting overstock. But for double the price of a “normal” block I expect better than so much space and around 1/3 of the advertised “value” ($25 retail price of the promised $75+ value) of the items being a two year old figure selling for less than $10 in local game store bargain bins. Figure itself looks fine, but is nothing special.

IMG_9495

Dungeons and Dragons Shadows of the Vampire comic #1 is a reasonable inclusion, although the exclusive cover featuring the cast of one of Geek & Sundry’s shows does nothing for me (and this will be a recurring theme).

Wil Wheaton’s D6 is a somewhat amusing novelty die featuring one dot on five sides and a logo on the sixth. The No Survivors Notepad is a meh item in my mind with a logo/branding for one of Geek & Sundry’s shows.

I like the Geek & Sundry Player Tokens and Velvet Pouch in general. The tokens are a nice size and have good weight. The five classes represented are decent choices and the related logos/designs are good. However this is one of many spots where the sponsor’s branding is an issue for me. Geek & Sundry is very prominent on the bag, as well as on the back of all the tokens. That’s a lot for me already, then on the face of the tokens Geek & Sundry is prominently featured across the top. Honestly I would be fine with all of this if all of the other items were on theme instead of featuring the sponsor, but that’s not the case.

IMG_9494

The playing cards are a logical inclusion, if a little plain. My issue is again the branding. International Tabletop Day is on one side of the outer box, but it’s Geek & Sundry plastered on the back of every card. A pair of pencils doesn’t impress me, with or without the Felicia Day quote. The last item is a Geek & Sundry bumper sticker. Sigh.

 

Conclusion

I have to say I’m disappointed with this special edition block, and won’t be getting any more. My monthly Nerd/Arcade/Sci-Fi Block items aren’t plastered with the Nerd Block logo, and for TWICE the price of a normal block I expected much more emphasis on the Tabletop Day theme and much less on the sponsor. “International Tabletop Day” or its logo was on 2 of the 9 items (3 if you want to be generous and count being on the outer box only of the deck of cards). Geek & Sundry logos were on 7 of 9 items, ridiculously so on 3 of them.

I’m sorry if it seems like I’m harping, but again for the additional cost I feel like if anything was repeatedly featured on the included items it should have been the advertised theme. Instead I feel like I payed for a Geek & Sundry advertising kit. If this was advertised as a “Geek & Sundry” block rather than an “International Tabletop Day” block BY Geek & Sundry and Nerd Block I never would have bought it in the first place.

Categories
Board Games Reviews

Quick Thoughts: And Then We Held Hands, Mr. Jack Pocket, and Onitama

Here are some brief thoughts on a some interesting games two-player games I’ve played once or twice so far.

… and then we held hands.

IMG_9570

“… and then we held hands”  is a two-player cooperative game centered around the idea of balancing emotions. There are a lot of unique aspects that really stood out, from needing to be balanced to refill you hand to using different edges of the cards depending on which side of the board you’re on to always being able to play from either your own hand or your partner’s.

IMG_9568

The theme, while providing decent framing and structure for the game, really disappears when you start playing. It instantly became an abstract. No real complaints about that though. I thought this was a fun, original challenge for a pair of players.

Mr. Jack Pocket

IMG_9564

Mr. Jack Pocket is a neat little two-player, asymmetric, abstract game. Having the four random actions available on odd numbered turns and the “opposite” moves to choose from on the  even numbered turns is a nice touch that gives the game some depth. I and my opponent both found Mr. Jack’s role more difficult to play than the detectives’, but enjoyed the game in both variations. This plays quick and does a lot with a fairly simple setup.

Onitama

IMG_9551

While I’m not a huge chess fan, I’m finding I quite enjoy games that take inspiration from elements of it. Onitama is another great example of that. The simple setup of having five pieces that all move the same based on cards make this extremely easy to learn. Having those cards remain the same throughout the game and “rotate” in a sense between the two players adds a wonderful layer of strategy and gives this game its unique hook. Great aesthetics too.

——-

Just a quick look at some games I’ve had the pleasure of playing. Hope to be back with more in the not too distant future. 🙂

Categories
Comics Film Reviews

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Review

Here we go. DC’s big attempt to jumpstart their movie franchises and build their own shared universe, starring their most iconic characters.

bvs1

From the early reviews I was expecting a trainwreck of epic proportions. Having seen it now I think they sold this film way short. Let’s be clear: this is NOT movie in the Marvel superhero mold, and going in with any preconceptions is just going to bias the viewer against what has been accomplished here. It’s far from perfect, but should be judged on its own merits rather than be compared to what other companies are doing.

While there were elements added to the character I didn’t care for, overall Ben Affleck’s Batman was quite interesting and played well. I’d very much like to see the rumored stand alone movie featuring this take. Superman didn’t work nearly as well. Henry Cavill just couldn’t seem to capture the nuanced emotions needed for how the part was written. Superman needed to convey being various stages of conflicted, angry, and worried, and instead I kept seeing the same semi-stern largely neutral expression in every scene. What little we saw of Gal Godot’s Wonder Woman made me excited for seeing more of her in the future.

Going back to preconceived notions, Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor is another aspect that really needs to be judged without comparison to other versions. It worked great for me, as I thought his maniac, ruthless Luthor was the perfect compliment / counterpoint to the atmosphere of the movie. But any viewer expecting / wanting Kevin Spacey will find the performance jarring and likely disappointing.

While there were definitely several areas that could’ve been improved, I enjoyed B v S overall. Decent story progression, intriguing versions of most of the characters, and a fair amount of potential going forward. I personally think the critic reviews were a bit too hard on this, and would recommend checking it out for yourself.

Categories
Film Reviews

April and the Extraordinary World Review

In a very different 1941 France, a teenage girl named April looks for clues about her missing parents, two of the many scientists who have mysteriously disappeared over the course of 70 years.

april_twisted_world

I didn’t know much about April and the Extraordinary World ahead of time, but the steampunk aspects, animation style and strong reviews piqued my interest. What I found was a fantastic adventure that built logically and gradually from an initial twist, like all great science fiction. April’s journey is a joy to tag along with, complimenting a tense dramatic underlying story with the perfect touches of humor.  There are some cliched elements towards the end, but even they fit beautifully into the overall narrative.

Equally impressive to the story are the evocative visuals that bring April’s tale to life. She inhabits an incredibly imaginative and realized steampunk world, which is just overflowing with inspired and unique designs.

I adore movies that impart a true sense of wonder, and April and the Extraordinary World has it in spades. This French movie is reminiscent of some of the great Japanese animated features I’ve seen, and an easy recommendation for any animation and/or steampunk fans.

Categories
Manga Reviews

Psyren Volume 16 Review

This is the final volume of a layered, intricate story that has been carefully built since the beginning. There’s no point starting here – this really must be read from volume 1.

This review will contain thoughts on the series as a whole and will be as spoiler free as I can make it.

psyren14

No detailed summary this time. It’s simply the final showdown with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Cliched as that sounds, the specifics of Ageha’s journey and the world of Psyren make this gripping and compelling to the last page. The various distinct, conflicting agendas intersect perfectly in the climax to provide a finale that is fitting and consistent with the series that preceded it.

On the critical side, a ridiculous amount is packed into the last couple of volumes and they do feel a little rushed. Another volume or two for this last arc would not have been out of place. There are also a few open questions and subplots I wish got a bit more development. That said, these are minor issues. Every major plot thread is addressed and the resolutions are character-driven and satisfying. A couple things wrap up a little too neatly, but I’d much rather that than too many loose ends.

The best part about this finale is that Iwashiro still had a couple of surprises to share without anything coming out of left field. Having logical progression and good foreshadowing without telegraphing everything is very difficult and the repeated success achieved in Psyren is one of the things I love most about the series.

A fitting end to a fantastic manga. Psyren tried hard at every stage to transcend the very cliches and genre trappings it embraced and became a phenomenal journey to tag along with.

Highly recommended.