CarnEvil (& Arcade Machines)

I found this article today about an old Arcade game called CarnEvil which scared the shit out of me as a child and It's possibly the biggest labour of love I've ever seen, for a Wikipedia Article on Videogames anyway. Whoever wrote it has named all of the individual enemies, described them, commented on the soundtrack and (get this) the last eight known locations of these now almost precious machines. One of them, is in South Shields near where I live, and it was that very machine that originally made me crap myself all those years ago.... The machine itself is a bit knackered these days but still. Memory lane and all that.

Got me thinking about how much I love Arcade machines though. I mean seriously, they're just incredible. Some of them, like CarnEvil are just so well made and so polished that you can't help but pump those pounds in like there's no tomorrow.

I can't believe I just used that phrase.

Heathen Talk!

 

You  know what? I’m considering getting an Xbox… Yea I know, I talk of blasphemy but I may as well. Their not that cheap, they don’t break as much anymore and no-one can deny that the online is worth it every time! Also, it’ll be fun to play some online games with a mate of mine.

 

In other less hypocritical news, I finished Battlefield Bad Company last night! Cracking game. I really enjoyed it, even though I got it in September (The shame!)

 

Also, I got Crash Commando and the Metal Gear Solid pack for LittleBigPlanet. I’ve yet to play the latter, but the former is well good. Personally, I just can’t wait for the next Penny Arcade episode to come out. I loved that. It was brilliant. I may even go as far to say one of the best games I’ve played in a while :P

 

Oh, and the reason I haven't been blogging is that over the last few days I’ve been involved in SOCIAL activities! Real social activities!

 

I know, I’m surprised too..

A Productive Day

Oh yea! I finished an RPG today, can you believe it?

 

I really, REALLY enjoyed (Pauses for breath) Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness. It was a fantastic blend of humor, fresh game play and some truly fantastic artwork. In fact, I don’t think I’ve enjoyed a game this much in a long time. Bravo, Penny Arcade boys. Bravo.

 

In other news, Peggle has been confirmed for the PSN with trophies (something that made me beam with joy) and Quake Live is as epic as… well Epic. Speaking of Epic, they should really jump on the bandwagon and make a free to play browser based Unreal Tournament. I mean, that would rock.

Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness Episode One

Bought this, this morning. To be honest, I kinda regretted it straight after because I hadn’t read… GOOD reviews for it. Just average ones. Still, it was already downloading so I sighed, set my PS3 to shut down after download and off I went to college.

 

I got home around 8, wandered down the local Tesco with a mate and got back around 9. I booted it up, sighed, and began playing.

 

Let me tell you, I love Penny Arcade. The web comic is funny as hell, and never fails to deliver off the wall yet true to life wit and humor. It’s a must read. No doubt my obsession with the web comic was one of the factors that led me to buying this game. So why was I so cynical about my purchase? Well firstly it’s an RPG and I don’t really do RPG’s… Also, it’s episodic. Meaning that no matter how long they claim it is, It just wont be.

 

As usual though, I ate my own words (for the record, they taste rather rich like fruitcake, and as you well know, fruitcake is the preffered choice of desert for a liar). I love this game. It’s around 6-8 hours long (or so I’ve heard), has a rather fresh combat system (it’s just the usual turn based, but it’s not as strict as Final Fantasy) and, best of all it is funny as hell. It really left me wetting myself with laughter. It’s brilliant.

 

The character creation system is pretty impressive as well. Your character appears in the cut scenes, fully animated in 2D. It’s rather clever!

Mario kart!

Why was this not Mario Kart Wii? The graphics are like, a lot better. The overall feel seems more Mario Kart and the camera inclusion is a fantastic idea. Another wasted opportunity in my humble opinion...