61 Frames Per Second

Browse by Tags

(RSS)

Shadow of the Colossus: First Blood

This weekend, I did a bit of shopping, visited my parents, and destroyed two idols the size of skyscrapers. Yes, I have drawn my first blood (or some kind of black ichor, anyway) from Shadow of the Colossus, and it's been as much fun as a naked pagan dance.

My previous assessment of the first Colossi battle was a little off. The first Colossi battle is a tutorial battle—of sorts. It's just not a very easy one. You're expected to learn and perfect the basics of climbing, stabbing, and shimmying. Otherwise you don't stand a chance against the second Colossi, which is three times as large as the first and has twice as many hooves to flatten you with. The sink-or-swim approach of Wander's first real fight is a clever way to bypass modern gaming's overzealous hand-holding, though it took me a while to realise I would get better if I tried. I was just initially scared to keep trying.

I'm not even sure why I harboured that fear. Who was going to laugh at me for my failures? The shadowy Gods flitting near the ceiling of the Temple of Worship? Wander, who wouldn't change his facial expression if you dropped a cinder block on his foot? Agro? Wander's dead girlfriend/wife? I eventually realised I was being silly, and took up the controller again.

Posted Apr 20 2009, 08:16 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 2 comment(s)

Filed under: super mario bros 3, shadow of the colossus, ps2, mega man x, nadia oxford, secret of mana, Suikoden ii

Freaktastic Fanart: Mega Man Zero Fanservice

I haven't yet decided if game-related fandoms are more like the Hotel California (where you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave) or the maze of the Minotaur (where attempts at escape just draw you closer and closer to a misbegotten beast-man who will slit your belly with a horn).

I'm still active in the Mega Man fandom, though I'm not in the middle of it anymore. I just kind of squat on the fringes in my hermit shack and poke sticks at the bad yaoi fanfiction. But I still love the Blue Bomber, and I maintain a close group of like-minded friends. One such friend is Irene, also known as “Wave.” Her alias should give you an idea of how long she's been in the fandom, since it lacks a string of numbers at the end.

Wave has been an eye-popping artist for as long as I've known her. Even though she's all growed up now and working at Marvel, she can always be counted on for completely rad Mega Man X and Mega Man Zero oekakis. What's an oekaki? Sort of an illustrated message board. With a limited range of tools and layers, you draw what's on your mind and others comment on your work.

Click the jump for delightful samples of Wave's work. Check out her Deviantart account for the full-sized pics.

Posted Mar 17 2009, 10:44 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with no comments

Filed under: mega man x, fan stuff, nadia oxford, freaktastic fanart, mega man zero

The Protomen: Making Two Old Men Awesome Since 2008

Over the years, Capcom has attempted to add depth to our robot hero, Mega Man. I mean, they've really attempted it, God bless 'em. Even though the end product reads like a story written by a ten-year-old science fiction fanatic with ADD, we shall give Capcom an A for Aeffort.

But even though we have a good idea of Mega Man's inner workings (gears, bolts, some black stuff), what do we know about his creator, Doctor Light? I mean, we know his hair and beard are poofy like some anime Zeus'. We know that he likes a pipe now and then oops wait not in America. We also know that his inventions, however well-meaning, initiated vicious wars between humans and robots that spanned across generations.

Oh, but we don't talk about Dr Light's little "oops." Shhh, look. Look over here. Look at this cute little robot dog. Hold still while it eats your skull.

I am an unapologetic fangirl of The Protomen, the fine lads who constructed a Mega Man rock opera. The first album is about Protoman defecting to Doctor Wily's band of killer robots and Mega Man trying to convince his brother through song (unsuccessfully) that he is a good boy. The second album, coming...soon, I imagine, is a prequel with special emphasis on Wily and Light and certain events that cause humanity's spin down the toilet.

Posted Nov 13 2008, 10:39 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 3 comment(s)

Filed under: mega man, mega man x, fan stuff, fandom, nadia oxford, the protomen, rock opera

Comparison of Wiki Articles Proves Geeks Inherited The Earth

When teachers and talk show radio hosts moan about the decline of America's youth, they point out how so few kids can name all 50 American States yet can identify all twelve billion of Nintendo's Pokemon with seemingly no effort.

(The secret here is that Pokemon are fun and exciting where as geography is not. Oh wait, that's not a secret.)

For all the lamentations of our teacher-women (and teacher-men), it seems as if the generation that grew up with Ash Ketchum is ahead of the old fuddy-duddies. This GamesRadar feature indicates that the geeks control Wikipedia and they who control Wikipedia, control the Earth.

So what matters are given the most attention in the digital tome of knowledge that will soon be passed on to our children? Is it religion? Is it the rich history of the forefathers who founded the free world?

No, fool. Knuckles the Echidna takes precedence over all. Get your priorities straight.

Posted Jul 01 2008, 03:07 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 2 comment(s)

Filed under: pokemon, gamesradar, sonic the hedgehog, mega man x, wikipedia, ash ketchum, feature, knuckles, mavericks

Alternate Soundtrack: Mega Man X vs. The Knife

It may be hard to believe at this point in the Blue Bomber's long and increasingly complex history, but 1994's Mega Man X was the first spin-off from the original Mega Man series. Set in an even more distant – and this time, dystopian – future, the X series saw a whole new Mega Man face off against waves of "Mavericks", intelligent robots that have gone human-killing crazy. The game played more or less identically to the previous Mega Man games, but X could upgrade parts of his robot anatomy in addition to gaining enemy abilities. New boots allowed X to dash, a new chestplate increased X's defense, et cetera. The music in Mega Man X, while in keeping with Capcom's fantastic production values, always struck me as being out of place. The technopunk soundtrack seemed a little too upbeat for the setting and story.

Posted Jun 24 2008, 11:00 AM by Derrick Sanskrit with | with 6 comment(s)

Filed under: alternate soundtrack, derrick sanskrit, capcom, mega man, mega man x, the knife

The Ten Greatest Opening Levels in Gaming History, Part 3

Sonic the Hedgehog - Green Hill Zone

By the time the original Sonic the Hedgehog came out, Super Mario World had been out for six months in Japan. In almost every way, Mario had the edge on Sonic — more levels, more power-ups, more variety, more gaming. But there was one thing you couldn't take away from Sonic, and that was the sheer dazzle of starting up the game and entering Green Hill Zone. To this day, Green Hill Zone looks spectacular, with its sparkling ocean, lush vegetation and abstract geometry — not to mention Masato Nakamura's unforgettable music. Mario had a lot to offer, but in terms of pure physicality, most of Dinosaur Land seems awfully drab next to Green Hill Zone. (Plus, it was 1991 — "zones" were just cooler than "lands", for Chrissakes.) — PS

Posted Jun 12 2008, 09:45 PM by John Constantine with | with 6 comment(s)

The Ten Greatest Opening Levels in Gaming History, Part 2

Metal Gear Solid 2 – The U.S.S. Discovery

The opening level of Metal Gear Solid 2 is the finest Metal Gear game ever made in-and-of itself. Forget Hideo Kojima’s cinematic pretensions for just a moment and think about the raw play available in this self-contained prologue scenario. The tools of MGS’ trade may not be available to Snake in their totality here, but every inch of the tanker acts as a playground for the series' most fundamental mechanics. You can sneak through without ever being seen or you can kill every Russian soldier you come across. There is an expertly paced boss fight. There is skin-mag related humor. It’s all here. Now layer Kojima’s cinematic pretensions back on top of all that considering they are at their best (read: most restrained) here and you have a beginning that is, arguably, superior to anything the follows or precedes it in the entire series. — JC

Posted Jun 12 2008, 09:30 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments

The Ten Greatest Opening Levels in Gaming History, Part 1

First impressions are important, in videogames as they are in life. The first moments you spend with any art can define your experience of it. They compel you to dig deeper, to more carefully consider the work or the hand that crafted it. Other times, they can be so startling that everything that follows is diminished. This week, 61 Frames Per Second looks at the ten greatest opening levels in gaming history. Stick with us past the first one though. They’re all great. — John Constantine

Prince of Persia 2 - Rooftop Chase

The original Prince of Persia was a unique and wonderful game, but it wasn't much for setting. Half the game takes place in a monochromatic dungeon, and the other in a monochromatic palace. 2 quickly makes up for it; about to be executed by the Vizier's goons, the Prince leaps through a window, and from there it's up to you to guide him across the palace rooftops, into the marketplace below, down a long pier, finally leaping into the hold of a departing merchant ship — all with those guards on your tail. The stage is a real nail-biter, and all the more memorable because the rest of the game is comparatively subdued. — Peter Smith

Posted Jun 12 2008, 09:15 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments

about the blogger

John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

Derrick Sanskrit is a self-professed geek in a variety of fields including typography, graphic design, comic books, music and cartoons. As a professional hipster graphic designer, his recent clients have included Nerve, Pitchfork and MoCCA, among others.

Amber Ahlborn - artist, writer, gamer and DigiPen survivor, she maintains a day job as a graphic artist. By night Amber moonlights as a professional Metroid Fanatic and keeps a metal suit in the closet just in case. Has lived in the state of Washington and insists that it really doesn't rain as much as everyone says it does.

Nadia Oxford is a housekeeping robot who was refurbished into a warrior when the world's need for justice was great. Now that the galaxy is at peace (give or take a conflict here or there), she works as a freelance writer for various sites and magazines. Based in Toronto, Nadia prizes the certificate from the Ministry of Health declaring her tick and rabies-free.

Bob Mackey is a grad student, writer, and cyborg, who uses the powerful girl-repelling nanomachines mad science grafted onto his body to allocate time towards interests of the nerd persuasion. He believes that complaining about things on the Internet is akin to the fine art of wine tasting, but with more spitting into buckets.

Joe Keiser has a programming degree from Johns Hopkins University, a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, and a fake toy guitar built in the hollowed-out shell of a real guitar. He writes about games and technology for a variety of outlets. One day he will stop doing this. The day after that, police will find his body under a collapsed pile of (formerly neatly alphabetized) collector's edition tchotchkes.

Cole Stryker is an American freelance writer living in York, England, where he resides with his archeologist wife. He writes for a travel company by day and argues about pop culture on the internet by night. Find him writing regularly here and here.

Peter Smith is like the lead character of Irwin Shaw's The 80-Yard Run, except less athletic. He considers himself very lucky to have this job. But it's a little premature to take "jack-off of all trades" off his resume. Besides writing, travelling, and painting houses, Pete plays guitar in a rock trio called The Aye-Ayes. He calls them a 'power pop' band, but they generally sound more like Motorhead on a drinking binge.