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Video Games FAQ: All That s Left to Know About Games and Gaming Culture
Book
Here is a fact-filled history of video games, from their earliest days as blocky abstractions to the...
Cori June (3033 KP) rated The Dirty Streets Of Heaven (Bobby Dollar #1) in Books
Apr 28, 2021
Bobby Dollar AKA Doloriel is a snarky, stubborn, cynical, jazz loving, wiseass of an angel. As an angel of the Third Circle his job is that of an Advocate Angel. He's on your side to argue for your soul to get into heaven. When souls start disappearing Bobby is on the hook and finds himself in the middle of a conspiracy that has Heaven and Hell in a tizzy.
This book is a supernatural noir type, Set in Heaven and San Judas, California-named after the patron saint of the hopeless, the unloved, and other lost causes. Told in a first person narrator pov. (Think similar to Brust. The narrator is talking to 'you personally'). The characters are phenomenal and the descriptions are great. As this is not his normal writing style it shows and can be a bit rough at some places.
This fast paced mystery is a delight with its unique show of how heaven and hell could work it makes you think. Even though it is about angels it isn't overly religious it also isn't anti-God. There is drinking, cussing, and violence. Yep the angels drink, some even to the point of drinking their Earthly bodies to death.
Heaven's most problematic angel is figuring out how he can survive being stuck in the middle of this ancient battle.
This book is a supernatural noir type, Set in Heaven and San Judas, California-named after the patron saint of the hopeless, the unloved, and other lost causes. Told in a first person narrator pov. (Think similar to Brust. The narrator is talking to 'you personally'). The characters are phenomenal and the descriptions are great. As this is not his normal writing style it shows and can be a bit rough at some places.
This fast paced mystery is a delight with its unique show of how heaven and hell could work it makes you think. Even though it is about angels it isn't overly religious it also isn't anti-God. There is drinking, cussing, and violence. Yep the angels drink, some even to the point of drinking their Earthly bodies to death.
Heaven's most problematic angel is figuring out how he can survive being stuck in the middle of this ancient battle.
Lee KM Pallatina (951 KP) rated ONI in Video Games
Aug 30, 2019
An overlooked bungie Gem that was too ahead of its time.
Contains spoilers, click to show
Oni is a third person action videogame developed by Bungie (west).
Released in 2001 it was Bungie wests ONLY game!?
The game focuses on shooting and hand to hand combat as you take on a reasonable amount of enemies, the gun controls are rather terrible and the combat controls are great providing you actually manage to land a strike.
ONI was originally planned to be released just for Mac, OS and Windows but was later ported to ps2 through Rockstar Canada.
The game was heavily inspired by Anime classics 'Ghost in a Shell' and 'Akira' which is very noticeable from the cover and beginning of the game (and also being set in a cyberpunk world).
Story:
Taking place in the year 2032, the world has become a dystopia due to pollution leaving very little of the planet habitable.
In order to solve the Global economic crisis, all nations formed under one banner....the world coalition government.
You play as agent Konoko (voiced by Amanda winn-Lee) a member of the TCTF (Technological Crimes Task Force), working against a crime organisation known as The Syndicate. Whilst blasting through enemies konoko begins to unravel secrets promoting more questions than answers.
Released in 2001 it was Bungie wests ONLY game!?
The game focuses on shooting and hand to hand combat as you take on a reasonable amount of enemies, the gun controls are rather terrible and the combat controls are great providing you actually manage to land a strike.
ONI was originally planned to be released just for Mac, OS and Windows but was later ported to ps2 through Rockstar Canada.
The game was heavily inspired by Anime classics 'Ghost in a Shell' and 'Akira' which is very noticeable from the cover and beginning of the game (and also being set in a cyberpunk world).
Story:
Taking place in the year 2032, the world has become a dystopia due to pollution leaving very little of the planet habitable.
In order to solve the Global economic crisis, all nations formed under one banner....the world coalition government.
You play as agent Konoko (voiced by Amanda winn-Lee) a member of the TCTF (Technological Crimes Task Force), working against a crime organisation known as The Syndicate. Whilst blasting through enemies konoko begins to unravel secrets promoting more questions than answers.
Matthew Krueger (10051 KP) rated The Secret of Monkey Island in Video Games
May 8, 2020
Point and Click Away
The Secert of Monkey Island- is a 1990 point-and-click graphic adventure game developed and published by Lucasfilm Games.
It takes place in a fictional version of the Caribbean during the age of piracy. The player assumes the role of Guybrush Threepwood, a young man who dreams of becoming a pirate and explores fictional islands while solving puzzles.
The early releases of the game came with copy-protection. A cardboard wheel, named "Dial-a-Pirate", was provided, and the player had to match the pirate shown on-screen with that of the wheel.
The Secret of Monkey Island is a 2D adventure game played from a third-person perspective. Via a point-and-click interface, the player guides protagonist Guybrush Threepwood through the game's world and interacts with the environment by selecting from twelve verb commands (nine in newer versions) such as "talk to" for communicating with characters and "pick up" for collecting items between commands and the world's objects in order to successfully solve puzzles and thus progress in the game.
The in-game action is frequently interrupted by cutscenes.
Like other LucasArts adventure games, The Secret of Monkey Island features a design philosophy that makes the player character's death nearly impossible (Guybrush does drown if he stays underwater for more than ten minutes.
Its a excellent and classic game.
It takes place in a fictional version of the Caribbean during the age of piracy. The player assumes the role of Guybrush Threepwood, a young man who dreams of becoming a pirate and explores fictional islands while solving puzzles.
The early releases of the game came with copy-protection. A cardboard wheel, named "Dial-a-Pirate", was provided, and the player had to match the pirate shown on-screen with that of the wheel.
The Secret of Monkey Island is a 2D adventure game played from a third-person perspective. Via a point-and-click interface, the player guides protagonist Guybrush Threepwood through the game's world and interacts with the environment by selecting from twelve verb commands (nine in newer versions) such as "talk to" for communicating with characters and "pick up" for collecting items between commands and the world's objects in order to successfully solve puzzles and thus progress in the game.
The in-game action is frequently interrupted by cutscenes.
Like other LucasArts adventure games, The Secret of Monkey Island features a design philosophy that makes the player character's death nearly impossible (Guybrush does drown if he stays underwater for more than ten minutes.
Its a excellent and classic game.
Symphony Road (Shane Cleary Mystery, #2)
Book
Trouble comes in threes for Shane Cleary, a former police officer and now, a PI. Arson. A Missing...
Crime Procedural Noir Historical Fiction
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2200 KP) rated W is for Wasted (Kinsey Millhone, #23) in Books
Dec 4, 2022
Distracted Plot Wastes Time in This Book
PI Kinsey Millhone is facing a stretch with no clients over the next couple of weeks, which she isn’t quite sure how she will fill. That is, until she gets a phone call from the coroner’s office. A homeless man has died, and the coroner has no idea who he is. The only thing they have to go on is Kinsey’s name and office number. Who might he be? Why did he have Kinsey’s contact information in his pocket?
The premise of this book captured my attention from the start. Unfortunately, the plot wandered, with a sub-plot taking over the middle of the book before Kinsey really even discovers there is a crime for her to solve. We know that sooner thanks to some flashback chapters written in third person. Both parts of the book are rushed in their resolution, leaving a couple of things dangling. However, I still found myself engaged in the book thanks to the characters, who I still love. It might have helped that I listened to the audio instead of reading it. Judy Kaye, the narrator, does a great job once again here. Fans of the series will want to see what happens here, but if you haven’t met Kinsey yet, I recommend you start earlier and work your way to this book.
The premise of this book captured my attention from the start. Unfortunately, the plot wandered, with a sub-plot taking over the middle of the book before Kinsey really even discovers there is a crime for her to solve. We know that sooner thanks to some flashback chapters written in third person. Both parts of the book are rushed in their resolution, leaving a couple of things dangling. However, I still found myself engaged in the book thanks to the characters, who I still love. It might have helped that I listened to the audio instead of reading it. Judy Kaye, the narrator, does a great job once again here. Fans of the series will want to see what happens here, but if you haven’t met Kinsey yet, I recommend you start earlier and work your way to this book.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2200 KP) rated The House Guest in Books
Jul 29, 2023
Will Helping a House Guest Hurt Alyssa?
Alyssa Macallan’s life is turned upside down when her husband walks out of their house one day. Facing a divorce she never expected, she finds herself drinking at a bar one Friday night, where she meets Bree Lorrance, who is also down on her luck. The two hit it off, and Alyssa invites Bree to move into her guest house. Helping Bree lets Alyssa forget her own problems, until her own problems heat back up. Will the two be able to help each other? Or do they have secret agendas?
I was hooked early on, although the book does take a little while to build up to the full plot. Once it does, I couldn’t wait to see how things would resolve for the characters. I appreciated the fact that no one seemed overly whiney here, although they could have repeated things less, giving the book more time to flesh out some of the late breaking twists. While knowing I couldn’t fully trust Alyssa and Bree, I really did like them both and hoped things would work out well for them. We get the book completely from Alyssa’s third person point of view which makes us question just what anyone else was thinking. Even with the pacing issues with the plot, I enjoyed this book overall.
I was hooked early on, although the book does take a little while to build up to the full plot. Once it does, I couldn’t wait to see how things would resolve for the characters. I appreciated the fact that no one seemed overly whiney here, although they could have repeated things less, giving the book more time to flesh out some of the late breaking twists. While knowing I couldn’t fully trust Alyssa and Bree, I really did like them both and hoped things would work out well for them. We get the book completely from Alyssa’s third person point of view which makes us question just what anyone else was thinking. Even with the pacing issues with the plot, I enjoyed this book overall.
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2200 KP) rated Cry Wolf in Books
Nov 16, 2022 (Updated Nov 16, 2022)
It’s Not Crying Wolf to Say This is a Great Book
When Zoe goes with her boyfriend, Pete, to visit Pete’s father in the care facility where he is living, they discover that Pete’s old training officer, John, has moved in. Pete’s happy since his father keeps insisting that something strange is going on in the place. When John is murdered a few hours later, it looks like that might be the case. Can Zoe and Pete figure out what happened?
This book started out quickly and never let up. With several sub-plots to keep us engaged, I was racing to find out what was going on, and I was left in awe when I reached the end. Zoe and Pete make a great detecting duo, and we get the story equally from their third person points of view. I do still feel like Pete is too overbearing, and I hope that softens soon. Not all of the regulars get much page time, but those who do show up are critical to the story. And the new characters are strong enough that this is really isn’t an issue. Since this isn’t one of my cozies, there is more content than in the books I typically read, so know that going in. Now, I need to make time to visit Zoe again soon.
This book started out quickly and never let up. With several sub-plots to keep us engaged, I was racing to find out what was going on, and I was left in awe when I reached the end. Zoe and Pete make a great detecting duo, and we get the story equally from their third person points of view. I do still feel like Pete is too overbearing, and I hope that softens soon. Not all of the regulars get much page time, but those who do show up are critical to the story. And the new characters are strong enough that this is really isn’t an issue. Since this isn’t one of my cozies, there is more content than in the books I typically read, so know that going in. Now, I need to make time to visit Zoe again soon.
Nicholas Redmond (11 KP) rated Avengers: Endgame (2019) in Movies
May 16, 2019
Fantastic ending (2 more)
Great fan service
Character exploration best from any marvel film
Too much fan service at times (1 more)
Plot allows for problems in future
Excellent end with a couple of annoyances
Contains spoilers, click to show
I'm sure there have been many reviews of this film so I will do one myself. This film is the ultimate in fan service. 11 years, 22 films and a host of stick out moments are brought to this moment right here. It felt amazing watching this, midnight showing with infinity war double bill, knowing I was one of the first to watch it, in the UK anyway. Now the dust has settled it may not have been as fantastical as the first 3 days after but its still great.
The final act is non stop, as many people thought it would be, and I think that's how many people wanted it, including me. It made time for most of the big names, apart from maybe groot, and even has an A-Force moment, which is not to everyone's taste, but I enjoyed it. It concluded well, i think i was the only person in my screen not to cry, and was paced very well and was equally sublime, ridiculous and brutal, giving and ending suitable for the 3 main characters ending story arcs.
The first act, possibly my favourite part of the film, is a character driven piece, based around the aftermath, if you ignore the introduction/ending of infinity war in the first 20 or so minutes, of the snap. Chris Evan's, RDJ and Scarlet Johannson are excellent and it is probably the best acting seen in the entire series. The contrast in tones throughout this opening third is fantastic and could almost be compared with Logan in terms of melancholy, grief and hope.
Finally the middle third. For me this is were the film loses it's way a little. Time travel explanation is interesting but breaks it's own rules, the nudges and winks are a little much at times and humour for humours sake make this a bit of a trudge but still some excellent fan service at times.
All in all great film, kept from excellence by niggles and too much self awareness. Fitting end to a great saga.
The final act is non stop, as many people thought it would be, and I think that's how many people wanted it, including me. It made time for most of the big names, apart from maybe groot, and even has an A-Force moment, which is not to everyone's taste, but I enjoyed it. It concluded well, i think i was the only person in my screen not to cry, and was paced very well and was equally sublime, ridiculous and brutal, giving and ending suitable for the 3 main characters ending story arcs.
The first act, possibly my favourite part of the film, is a character driven piece, based around the aftermath, if you ignore the introduction/ending of infinity war in the first 20 or so minutes, of the snap. Chris Evan's, RDJ and Scarlet Johannson are excellent and it is probably the best acting seen in the entire series. The contrast in tones throughout this opening third is fantastic and could almost be compared with Logan in terms of melancholy, grief and hope.
Finally the middle third. For me this is were the film loses it's way a little. Time travel explanation is interesting but breaks it's own rules, the nudges and winks are a little much at times and humour for humours sake make this a bit of a trudge but still some excellent fan service at times.
All in all great film, kept from excellence by niggles and too much self awareness. Fitting end to a great saga.