Everyone Needs A Little Brad-Time, Brah...

As my summer vacation comes closer and closer to an end, I needed something short and easily digested in small chunks to piss away the last few days that I have left and I discovered an XBox Live Arcade game that I had bought on sale and never played, so I figured why not...and I am so glad I did.  Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley was just what I needed.

 Comic Jumper came out in October of 2010 from the fine folks at Twisted Pixel.  It centers around a comic book character named Captain Smiley and the foul-mouthed logo on his chest named Star.  As the game begins, we are in one of Captain Smiley's many adventures as he goes against his arch rival, Brad.  Brad is everything that Captain Smiley is not.  He is good looking, strong, smooth with the ladies, and he has the Brad-copter that is covered in speakers that constantly drone out the Brad theme song.  At the end of this first adventure, we see Captain Smiley's comic cancelled and him having to jump into other comics as a guest star in order to boost his popularity and earn enough money to restart his failed book.  He has to go into fantasy, silver-age (there is Kirby all over this stuff), and manga comics in order to further his adventures.  It is a lot of fun and the different takes on different genres of comics is a hoot to see.

This gives a peek at the styles

You can tell that this idea has been in someones head for a long time and you get to unlock a ton of extras with the in game cash that you earn that really let you know where the story came from and where it could have gone.  Concept art, comic covers and art used in game, videos from the creators, audio clips of music from the game, models used for producing the characters, and exclusives that unlock a lot of fun stuff from outside of the game.  These extras give a lot of back story, but also each increases the amount of in game money that you earn on each of the eleven missions.  The exclusives were probably my favorite because they included two cool gamer pics, a premium theme for the Xbox dashboard, and a new level for one of Twisted Pixel's other games, Splosion Man.  Additionally, just for the playing the game, you unlock two different avatar items, a t-shirt with Star on it and a wearable Captain Smiley head. 

Overall, I really love the game.  The dialog is great and the attention to detail when it comes to the types of comics that the levels are trying to emulate are top-notch.  If I have any complaints it is that the fantasy levels could have been more diverse and represented the story matter better and the game play can get very repetitive at times.  It is definitely a game that gets better the more time you spend with it.  The dialog and characters will make you forgive that and you will have a lot of fun overall. 

So if you have the Microsoft points and some time to kill, give Comic Jumper a try...and tell 'em that your buddy Brad sent ya, brah!

Brad is a bad-ass, brah!

Downloadable Games

Hi, imaginary readers.  For someone who is suppose to be working through a ton of games this summer, I haven't been gaming a lot lately.  I just haven't been in the right mindset.  Some people can pick up and game and play an hour or two and then can move on...not me.  Once I start one, I want to finish it until the bitter end and get all I can out of it.  I think that's why sometimes big, disk games are sometimes daunting to me.  I have all three Assassin's Creed games and I have yet to jump in cause I know they will rule my life for a while once I start the first one.  Sometimes, it is just easier to jump into a shorter downloadable game because I know that I can devote a little bit of time, get a complete story, and have a ton of fun.

I have an XBox 360, so I can only talk of the XBox Arcade Games there, but over the years there has been a gradual shift from smaller, more puzzle type games Bejeweled and Bomberman Live and straight ports of older games like Joust and Contra to new complete adventure games like Shadow Complex and Limbo and upgraded classics like Bionic Commando Rearmed and Pacman CE.  Some of my favorites?  Why I thought you would never ask!

Puzzle Games
Pacman C.E.
Peggle
Hexic HD

Shooters
Heavy Weapon
Contra
Duke Nukem 3D

Adventure Games
Limbo
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Shadow Complex
Bionic Commando: Rearmed

Others
Plants Vs. Zombies
Carcassonne
Puzzle Quest

By all means, the list is not exhaustive.  There are a lot of good games out there to download and a lot that I have never played...just tried to narrow it down to ones I have played and loved.  You can't go wrong with these, the all get the PaleRiderOfDoom stamp of awesomeness!  Till next time, imaginary readers!

A Little Ranting About Gamestop...

Video gaming was not that easy around these parts as I was growing up.  Living in the middle of BFE, there really were not a lot of options when it game to arcades or even buying video games for that matter.  I can though fondly remember going to Roses in Richmond and drooling over Sega Master System games and not so fondly remember being scared to look anyone in the eye at the Kentucky Arcade across the street. 

Going to the big city of Richmond was a huge deal for me back in those days and those trips were few and far between.  That said, on the off chance I actually got a new game, once it was yours - it was yours. You could maybe trade with a friend, but like I said - out in BFE - there wasn't a lot of that going on.  Over the years, I grew up (sort of) and moved away from a lot of gaming.  It was just hard to do for me.  I had a game system or two (who DIDN'T have an original Playstation, right?) and though I played some awesome stuff, it really wasn't until my wife bought me an Xbox 360 one Christmas that I didn't really get into gaming that can be considered "proper hardcore". It was quite the jump for me going from Metal Gear Solid all those years ago to Gears of War (which was my first new game).  Loved it and I was hooked again and for the first time, could actually play the games I wanted to play and boy did I.  So, as I approach 80K gamerscore, you can imagine that you rake up a lot of games in the library and anymore it just isn't practical to hang on to all of them.  Me being new to all this went to the one that most people go to...Gamestop.  On the surface it seems like a great concept.  You buy a game, play a game, trade it back to them, and buy another game.  That would be great it you didn't end up getting royally screwed on step three and sometimes even step four there.  I didn't much like paying full price for a game then selling it back for a quarter of the purchase price (if you are lucky and quick with the turn around).  Even their used games, which they push a lot are far from cheap ($5 off is not a good incentive in my mind).  I mean, I guess all that would be fine if you had a clue what you would actually be getting for a game going in, but it is a huge mystery that you never know until you are standing at the counter where you can either grab your games and walk out with nothing new or taking the little bit they offer and still handing over a wad of cash for something new (all the while grumbling under your breath works that I probably shouldn't type here). So...none of this is new to anyone I am sure, so why even rant about it? 

Well, a friend of mine who had been working at Gamestop for a very long time and was the only employee I would waste my time working with (would drive 20 minutes out of my way just to see him, even though I have a Gamestop in my town) was fired this week by the company.  They said his shop was in bad shape and they no longer needed him.   Truth was, he had worked with them a long time and made a lot of money compared to the typical Gamestop employee and has MS.  They wanted rid of him cause he couldn't work the type of schedule that the company often demands and it cost too much to keep him if he couldn't put in all the extra hours they demand.  I hope he sues and makes a mint off them.  I won't be going back.  I am tired of the whole way they treat customers and now, how they treat their employees.  They post huge earnings year after year and they treat everyone like crap.  I am out...done.  Will probably be using Best Buy from now on.  They don't give a lot of money either, but at least you know that going in since you can look up any game online and get a quote.  No more mystery or hidden conditions.  Just something to think about.  Have a great weekend all.

A Desperate Cry For Help...

Ahhhh...summer.  Time to relax, work in the yard, play with kids, and get caught up on my video game playing.  Usually, I would dive headfirst into something epic that is a great game that I want to pour hours and hours of gameplay into.  This summer, I am taking a different approach.  Over the years since my wife bought me the ole Xbox 360, I have always been on the lookout for games on sale.  I will admit, there have been more than a few times when I have bought before I thought and now I have a huge library of unplayed games; some great, some good, and some not so good.  Usually when I pick a game I go for the great ones and so I have ended up with a backlog of the later two types that I have been waiting patiently for their time to shine.  This summer, they wait no longer!  I went through and pulled out 24 games that I plan on getting through during my break from work.  Will I make it?  Probably not, but at least I am playing what I have, getting through some of my shelf, and generating a little trade in credit for when I can finally get that copy of Duke Nukem Forever I have had my eye on.  Here is the list (in no particular order):

Watchmen: The End is Nigh (Done!  Not too bad actually)
Guitar Hero: Metallica (Done! I like the band and all, but that was too much)
Guitar Hero: World Tour (Done! Hand aching...)
Guitar Hero: 5 (Done! My God!  Three Guitar Hero games in a row is definately a cry for help)
Eragon (Done-ish...Should finish tonight)
Medal of Honor: Airborne
Mirror's Edge
Lego Batman (I have started and stopped this game so many times)
Lego Indiana Jones 2
Call of Duty 3
Rainbow Six Vegas 1
Rainbow Six Vegas 2
Bionic Commando (My God!  My arm is my wife! wait...what?)
Tomb Raider: Underworld
Transformers: The Game (Yeah...that one...the one based on the first movie...(shutter))
Wanted: Weapons of Fate
Bayonetta
Ninja Gaiden 2
Condemned 2: Bloodshot (Loved the first one...we will see)
Ghostbusters: The Video Game
Lips (Free Mics!)
Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol Encore (Drinking and Best Buy do not mix kids)
Brutal Legend
Fracture

There is the list.  Will I finish them all this summer?  Probably not, but I am going to keep at it till Gears of War 3 hits, so we will see.  I will keep you posted...keep me in your prayers...