NEW LOGO

A bit of an update, I created a new logo for the blog. The previous one was simply a  rip-off of the xbox logo. Even though my name is based on the Xbox, i felt that the logo took things a bit too far, so I created an original logo.

Also, I’ve been trying to review as many things as possible, with quality, but it’s hard to do while working 5 days a week on top of school. I simply don’t have enough time to immerse myself in an item to review it at this time. I’m learning to balance work and school, however, so expect to see fairly frequent reviews, though they will still be a bit eclectic in the timing. I’ll try to review things as soon as they come out. Thanks to my, what, two readers? Maybe things’ll pick up once I start to review more.

“Snickersnack went the Vorpal Blade”

Tim Burtons new film, Alice in Wonderland came out yesterday, Friday, March 5th. The film runs 108 minutes, and is rated PG for “fantasy action/violence involving scary images and situations, and for a smoking caterpillar.” Starring Mia Wasikowska as Alice, Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, Helen Bonham Carter as the Red Queen, and Anne Hathaway as the White Queen, with the voices of Stephen Fry, Michael Sheen and others.

The film is not a remake of the original Disney cartoon, but as a sequel, telling the story of Alice as she returns to Wonderland at the age of 19. Alice is re-acquainted with old friends, and must face new challenges in Wonderland before she can find her way home, taking the lessons she learns with her in Wonderland to her obstacles in the real world.

The acting was done very well, and the storyline kept me interested. As with most films these days, there was a large amount of computer generated imaging in Alice in Wonderland, and the special effects were exquisite. However, on the downside, many of the original characters were downplayed significantly. Tweedledee and Tweedledum became much more bland, and uninteresting. The Mad Hatter seemed very much more sane than in the Original Cartoon, but was still more insane than most of us are.

All in all, it’s definitely worth buying when the film comes out. I give Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland an 8/10.

Desolation of Eden

Released February 16th, 2010, Chelsea Grin first full-length album hits heavy. With brutal breakdowns, sick guitars, and intense drums, all topped with insane vocals, this album is a must-have for death metal fans.

Although the album promises nothing in the ways of groundbreaking innovation, it pulls off the tried and true Death formula expertly. The vocals have improved since the Self Titled EP, featuring more outward vocals, and fewer inward pig-squeals while not abandoning them entirely.

The song features two tracks from the EP, re-recorded for the Full Length: “Recreant”, and “Cheyne Strokes.” Both songs had a massive overhaul, turning out vastly superior to the originals. The original songs are breathtaking as well, with technical songs such as “The Human Condition,” opening with a series of sweeps, to downright brutal tracks like “Revenant,” diving head-first into a breakdown.

All in all, Death Metal fans delight, for Chelsea Grin’s “Desolation of Eden” delivers everything you love, just the way you love it!

The Emptiness Will Haunt You

“The Emptiness” is Alesana’s third full length album, and the only album to have a single before its release. The songs “The Thespian” and “To Be Scared by Owls” were released earlier, teasing fans with a taste of what is to come.

All of Alesana’s previous albums  focused on mythology of various cultures, and this is the first to break that mold. Supposedly this album is a concept album, telling the story of Edgar Allen Poe’s Annabel Lee.  Every other song on the album relates to a character in the story:  “The Artist”, “The Murderer”, “The Thespian”, and “The Lover”, with the last track entitled “Annabel”.

Following the albums previous release, “Where Myth Fades to Legend”, the band is definitely headed back uphill from the mess that was WMFTL. The album was mediocre, but left me hesitant for the next album. Thankfully, they do not disappoint. The sound is much more refined, without the barely organized vocals of the previous album. The ear-shattering high vocals were also switched for a more straightforward method.

Alesana has also switched guitarists in this album, and the new guy sure knows how to rock. The guitars are have improved since the last album in technicality and energy, giving the album more life. The opening track features an ominous spoken word, setting a deep, melodramatic mood for the album, closing with the phrase “The Emptiness Will Haunt You”.

Overall, the album is superior to WMFTL, but still has the same sound. Fans of Alesana, rejoice, this album will not disappoint, but if you already have no love for the band, “The Emptiness” will do nothing to change your mind.

Game Demo Review: Dante’s Inferno

Dante’s Inferno is an upcoming title spanning the Xbox360 Playstation 3 and Playstation Portable consoles, based on the poem the Divine Comedy, written by Dante Aligheiri. The game follows the Italian mercenary Dante, who was killed in war, but refused to accept his fate, subsequently fighting Death to the death. After defying his fate, he returns home to his beloved Beatrice, only to find her murdered. Dante then proceeds to chase his love into the underworld, fighting through the nine layers of Hell to overcome his own sins, and reunite with his love.

Dante fights with a normal scythe at the start of the game, but after defeating Death, acquires his soul-reaping scythe. The combat system brings to mind Devil May Cry and God of War, but the game is unique enough to not feel like just another DMC/GoW spin-off. As you level in the game, you attain new powers, and may choose to whether improve skills in the Holy category, or the Unholy category.

From the short gameplay of the Demo, the storyline sucks you in, leaving you craving more. The game shows much promise, and if the full gameplay is anywhere near as epic as the first half-hour or so of the demo, it will be well worth playing.

The game is set for release on February ninth in the Us (12th in Europe, and the 4th in Australia), and is being produced by Electronic Arts. For more info on the game, including trailers, release dates, etc. be sure to check out the games official page.

Game Review: The Legend of Zelda:Spirit Tracks

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks is the latest addition to the Legend of Zelda franchise for the Nintendo DS. The game is a sequel to the first Zelda DS title, Phantom Hourglass, making this series of the franchise the only to have 3 games in a direct timeline (Wind Waker>Phantom Hourglass>Spirit Tracks).

Spirit Tracks starts out in a small village by the ocean, with the protagonist, Link, training to become an engineer on a train, the newest form of transportation to the series. Driving the train is the only way to get to one place from another, completely eliminating the over world in so many other Zelda games. While this will be a drawback to many Zelda fans, who enjoyed the sense of adventuring through the countryside (I’ll admit, I was a bit skeptical about travel by train when the game was first announced), the train can be a fun, new way of transport.

Shortly into the storyline, Links train will be equipped with a cannon, allowing Link to demolish rocks along the way to Links destination to gain money, and “health” for the train. Many enemies will attack Links train as Link travel, and the danger of running into trains “possessed” by evil, that seek Link out on the tracks, adding a sense of strategy to the train travel. Another danger of train travel is lone animals wandering on the tracks, causing damage to the train if hit. To avoid this, the trains whistle is implemented to scare the animals off of the tracks.

The Quest

Links quest starts off with Link traveling to Hyrule Castle Town with his mentor, Alfonzo, to get his Royal Engineer’s License from the princess. Along the way Link will have a run-in with the Chancellor, a short man who wears two green bowler hats. After Link obtains his license, Zelda passes Link a note telling him to use a secret passage to visit her in her quarters and to “beware the Chancellor”. She then asks Link to go with her to the Spirit Tower, as the Spirit Tracks that protect the land from a great evil are slowly disappearing, and the tower is the hub for the tracks, a ”lock” to the great evils imprisonment, with the tracks as “chains.”

When Link nears the tower, a dark cloud forms around it as the spirit tracks disappear beneath the train, causing it to careen to a stop. A clearly sinister trains then literally flies out of the foreboding clouds, merely inches above the heads of Zelda, Link and Alfonzo. The chancellor and a rather intimidating fellow then makes an appearance, where the chancellor reveals that he is in fact, not human, and that his two hats were conveniently covering two horns. They then attack, leaving Zelda cast out of her body, a ghost in a sense, with Link and Alfonzo left unconscious.

It is here where the quest truly begins, and Link must restore the Spirit Tracks and stop the Chancellor from using Zelda’s body as a vessel for a Demon King. Link is given the Spirit  Train to travel, and much like in Phantom Hourglass, the focus will be on one main dungeon, with several smaller ones that must be completed in order to progress in the main dungeon, the Spirit Tower. Zelda’s ghost will join Link his journey, as a guide, making an interesting new partner as opposed to the classic fairy partner. Zelda will play a much larger role in this game than any other, with the ability to possess the now evil Phantoms of the Spirit Tower (The same “undefeatable” enemies found in Phantom Hourglass), her only weakness being a fear of mice.

Zelda can either follow close behind link, or, using the stylus, a path may be drawn for her to follow. As a Phantom, Zelda can distract other Phantoms, allowing Link to sneak post, or carry him on her shield, allowing Link to pass jets of fire, lava, spikes and other obstacles commonly found in Zelda dungeons.

Items

As usual, whenever Link crawls through a dungeon, he gains an item which he uses to progress farther in the game. This game brings in classics, and new items to the game. The first item found is the whirlwind. By blowing into the mic, a gust of air is sent away from link in the direction he is facing, stunning enemies, and knocking items (like keys, hearts or rupees) from an unreachable ledge to a reachable area in the room.

The boomerang is brought back in this game, following a path drawn on the screen with the stylus. It is possible to select multiple targets, and the boomerang will hit them in the order they are selected. The boomerang stuns enemies, just like in previous games, and there is not much new to its use. A new item to the series is the whip, a variation of the grappling hook in the Wind Waker. The whip can be used as a weapon, and also can latch onto certain items, allowing Link to swing across gaps, or to snatch items from enemies.

The bow also makes a return in this game, aptly named the Bow of Light. The bow will fire regular arrows, but if held down, the arrow will become charged with light, effectively making a Light Arrow. The Light Arrows can be used to stun phantoms, allowing Zelda to possess them much the same as a sword charged with tears of light. Another returning item is the ever-famous bomb. Bombs can be purchased from Beedle’s Air Shop for 500 rupees, or found inside acorns, or dropped by enemies.

The Sand Wand is a new item unlike any other in the Zelda series so far. The wand allows link to raise solid ground out of soft patches, which can stun enemies that live in sand, and unearth items such as rupees, or keys. The Sand Wand can also be utilized to make a path for Link, or Zelda while possessing a Phantom (she normally sinks in sand).

As with most Zelda games, a musical instrument is implemented, this time a pan flute called the Spirit Flute. There are a total of six songs to be learned, along with duets played with the Lokomo to restore the Spirit Tracks after a Rail Map is found in the Spirit Tower. The Spirit Flute is played by blowing into the microphone, and moving the Pan Flute on the bottom screen to select a note.

Conclusion

All in all, the game is just  what is to be expected: An exciting new puzzle-based RPG, with the classic Zelda theme, saving the Kingdom from a sinister evil, with new twists and turns.

Game Review: Pokemon Soulsilver/Heartgold

So I have my hands on a Japanese copy of Soulsilver, and thought I’d do a bit of a review of it before it’s release this year. Now, I can’t tell you too much about the storyline, because I don’t read Japanese, but I can tell you about the gameplay and some of the new features.

The game is a remake of the second generation, or metal generation Pokemon games Gold, Silver, and Crystal. As with the original games, you will start out in New Bark town. The game brings back the PokeGear, to the relief of many Pokemon fans, who had heard rumors of another Poketch being implemented in the GSC remakes.

What is really amazing about this game is that it takes full use of the touch screen. The menus is entire on the bottom screen, and literally everything is touch-controlled. With a ap of the bottom screen you are in the Pokemon screen, and can shift your pokemon from the touch screen. SS/HG improved where DPPt failed, creating a simpler, easier touch-screen menu that is actually easy to use. Now, for those old-school players who just don’t want to switch to the touch screen, don’t worry, you can still access the menu through the buttons.

Another nifty new feature is the running shoes. Not specifically the running shoes, but one of the ways that the feature is used in this game. Starting in the 3rd gen Advance series, the running shoes had been introduced, having the player hold down ‘B’ when they wanted to run. In SS/HG, there is an icon on the touchscreen for the running shoes. If the button is tapped, the player will be in a constant “run-mode”. Now, the “B” button can still be used if anyone is a bit apprehensive to the new changes, but I suggest giving it a shot before you jump back into your old Pokemon paradigms.

As with most of the new Pokemon games, a supporting character is introduced as the opposite gender of your character. Kotone, the fashion-challenged female is the new addition to the cast, with Marill as her Pokemon. She plays a role similar to that of the supporting character Lucas/Dawn in DPPt, keeping Silver as the rival in this game. An interesting bit of information is that the supporting character is the grandchild of the Daycare Couple on route 34, whether it is Kotone or Gold.

The most surprising new feature is the Pokemon sprites. Whatever Pokemon you have in the first slot of your party follows you around, reminiscent of Pikachu in Yellow version. Any pokemon can follow you from your starter, to Snorlax, to Mewtwo. As in Yellow, you can talk to your pokemon to find out how much it likes you. Also, if you talk to your Pokemon in tall grass at specific locations (depending on its nature) it has a chance of picking up a new item, the Shining Leaf. If you get five of them, your supporting character will give you a star for your trainer card, and make the leafs into a crown for your Pokemon.

The newest idea in this Pokemon game is the PokeWalker. If anyone had a Pokemon Pikachu (2), you might feel a bit of nostalgia with this little device. With the PokeWalker, you can “download” a Pokemon, and level it on the go. It works like a pedometer, raising level and happiness as you walk. There are lots of features to the PokeWalker that I will discuss in a full review once the game is released in the states.

Soulsilver and Heartgold are set for release March 14th of this year.

What xJORDAN360 is all about!

On the xJORDAN360 blog, I will discuss, and review current media ranging from video games, to books, and movies/television and anything between. Obviously the reviews will be a bit biased, as every person has their own tastes and opinions on what is good, but I will attempt to keep xJORDAN360 as free of opinionated variations as possible, while still making a valid review.

You’ll notice some stuff on the sidebar, and I’ll take a moment to talk about those. The links are quite obviously, links. They will direct you to my accounts on several sites I have that you may feel free to add me on. Myspace and FAcebook are obvious. Dailybooth and Twitter are similar sites, Twitter more for text updates, and Dailybooth is more of a daily photo blog/yearbook. Formspring is a site where you can (anonymously or not) ask me any questions. 100% honest feedback guaranteed.

Coming soon will be a category in the links for some of my favorite sites, blogs, etc. Be sure to check them out, and feel free to ask me about affiliation.

After that we have the “xJORDAN360 live” section. This is where you can subscribe to have new posts sent to your email. Don’t worry, there’s no cost, xJORDAN live is free for everyone.

The last thing you will see on the sidebar is SocialVibe. Social vibe is a site where you can help raise money for charities by spending not money, but a little bit of your time. By doing a few quick activities for big sponsor such as Bing, Apple, Best Buy and many others, the companies will donate towards your cause. I won’t stay on one cause for too long, maybe a few months for each cause. If you would like to see any cause in particular being supported, let me know and I will try to support it the next switch I do.

Thank you for taking the time to check out my blog, I will attempt to keep it as active as possible, with my busy work/school schedule.