Anglerte's Soundtrack of the Week

Silent Hill

One of the most gruesome, bizarre and mutually depressing moments in the game, and perhaps of all games, this track perfectly highlights the horrific and striking loss of peace, hope and happiness caused by the curse of Silent Hill on Lisa Garland. The helplessness, hopelessness and pity assumed by Harry Mason after witness such a devastating loss of innocence are undoubtedly referenced by the name of the soundtrack, "Not Tomorrow". In an intriguing way, the song itself seems to serve as the mourning and compassionate sentiment that almost every other aspect of the plagued, hellish town seems to lack. In context, this is perhaps the most depressing soundtrack ever featured in a video game. Out of context, same thing.

Anglerbe's Soundtrack of the Week

Resident Evil Code: Veronica

Cliff Hanger

Resident Evil in general has a very memorable and excellent soundtrack, but this track, despite it's short length, is one of the most addictive, at least for me. Code Veronica is quite possibly the most cinematic Resident Evil game currently in existence (that actually deserves its title, anyway), and that epic tone is echoed in this theme. After losing hope with Steve and Claire, it re-instills you with the notion that you still have a fighting chance, as Chris is on his way. I think this was a great way to go about this transition. You really feel like a hero scaling a cliff, here to kick a*$ and save the day. Now we just need somebody to loop it for 10 hours or so...

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim: Porpoisemonkey's Adventure

Porpoisemonkey goes on a gaming adventure by himself for the first time since last September.

Console Analysis: Xbox One (Impressions)

Warning: This is not a review of the device in question, but rather an establishment of first impressions and concerns of a potential consumer (who you probably care nothing about). Thank you for reading, and feel free to share your opinions of the console in the comments section below!

This will be a bit tougher, now that Microsoft has fallen back a bit on their penny pinching policies a bit. Even though this abolishment of principles was almost certainly carried out with greed rather than compassion for the consumer, it certainly provides the Xbox One with an excuse to receive a bit more attention than it otherwise deserved. While I favor Microsoft's PC's over Mac's because I despise most of Apple's products, mostly do to restrictions ironically similar to those that Microsoft almost enforced with their own product, I tend to find the way in which Microsoft approached the console gaming industry a bit repulsive in certain aspects. Even still, I'll do my best to avoid bias remarks and influences where they are unnecessary, but do keep in mind that, if you do continue reading, you will be observing my opinions and interpretations of the console, and not a factually influenced review (hopefully this was obvious given that, at the current date, we don't have access to most of this stuff). Sony's presentation was a bit more appealing than the qualities exemplified by the Xbox One, but, overlooking its remaining (potential) faults, I strongly believe that Microsoft could redeem themselves enough to enjoy reasonable success in the coming generation. Onward to my impressions, shall we?

Positive Impressions/ Hopes:
-Everything that seemed immediately repulsive about the Xbox One, more specifically, the uncomfortably restrictive and fraudulent cloud gaming policies, was recently revoked by Microsoft when they realized that consumers recognized that their limitations possessed far more insidious detriments than they offered innovative benefits; hopefully, the console will not again be kicked into an abysmal pit of disapproval and contempt with the enforcing of even more asinine concepts in the future
-As with the Ps4, the implementing of an easy-use streaming system could prove to be immensely useful for Youtube hobbyists like us, who generally need to assemble overly complicated systems and spend perhaps unnecessary amounts of money to ensure that our streaming sessions, especially with commentaries streaming from multiple locations simultaneously, function properly; I don't know exactly how editing will be handled, or if such a thing will be possible, for I supposed it's very possible that this system was designed specifically for casual users, but if they implement some sort of cloud system where you can save raw footage, and then make clips accessible from PC's where they can be modified with the video editing software of choice, I would be an immensely jubilant individual. Also, I'd probably be more inclined to create video game related Youtube segments on a regular bases, rather than whenever I feel like going out of my way to organize everything so that I actually can do something
-Now that Sony will be charging for online gaming services, hopefully Microsoft will take advantage of the competition and lower the cost of an annual Xbox Live subscription to below 30$

Negative Impressions/ Fears:
- I don't know too much about the whole "multiple operating systems" structure, but I have heard rumors that  , over time, the decay of these systems/ the hardware could ultimately impede the power of the console later in it's life; I'm also not a huge fan of the idea that Windows has been implemented in the console, given that the tendency of PC's to collapse or choke on more advanced games as time progresses was one of my major inspirations to embrace console gaming in the first place
-I has been stated that Microsoft is capable and legally permitted to reverse their policies at any given moment; perhaps, once the Xbox One has gained popularity through the establishment of highly enjoyable exclusives and other marketing tactics, Microsoft will reinstate the horrendous policies that original turned most previously loyal Xbox fans in the opposite direction
- Big Brother is watching me  

Overall, although Microsoft has at least temporarily repealed their cunning policies, given the price and the lack of interesting exclusives (obviously the console hasn't been released yet, and relatively few games have been announced, so this factor specifically could easily change), I just don't see a reason to value this console over its competitors.  Once again, thanks for reading, and please do respond in the comments section with any relevant opinions or reflections. Thank you!

Anglerte's Soundtrack of the Week

Warhawk(Ps3)

Warhawk is one of the best shooter games I've ever played, owed mostly to the entertainment value it possesses, but also because it offers an engaging and often intense (typically hilarity accompanies this factor when playing with friends) experience without over-hyping itself. Unfortunately, do to that fact, this game was probably overlooked by many Ps3 owners. Hopefully both this game and Starhawk will be advertised somehow when the Ps4 takes over, as it would be quite uplifting to see this game regain popularity. I recommend this game for fans of third person shooters, the Star Wars: Battlefront series, and fun.

Anglerbe's Soundtrack of the Week

Sonic Adventure DX

 Lost World

Since E3 happened fairly recently and with it came the Sonic Lost World trailer, I figured I would go back to a level in Sonic Adventure of the same name. But is it a coincidence? No way of knowing, yet. Sonic games have a reputation for having great music, and this one of my favorite tracks from this particular game. Mysterious and ominous, like the world which lies underneath the strange pyramid structure in Mystic Ruins. Really, this could easily be fleshed out into it's own game, and I hope that's what this new game will do. In any case, enjoy the music.

Console Analysis: Ouya (Impressions)

Warning: This is not a review of the device in question, but rather an establishment of first impressions and concerns of a potential consumer (who you probably care nothing about). Thank you for reading, and feel free to share your opinions of the console in the comments section below!

Now, it may be true that we hold a slight bias towards this indie-driven console specifically and quite simply because it is in fact "indie-driven", however, I'm not entirely certain that we can immediately port Android-ready apps and games over to the console's market without making some adaptations. While this is probably stands for the greatest good, I'm using any potential work we may face as an excuse to establish potential criticisms (I honestly know little about this thing concerning structure and style). Hopefully the way in which multi-player and streaming (for fancy YouTube-hobbyists like ourselves]) will be implemented will be fairly impressive and satisfactory way. Given that this is the first one of these "impression/ review" articles that I've drafted (that any of us have drafted, actually), I'm totally going to improvise the way I structure it. Well, better get started.

Positive Impressions/ Hopes:

-Personally, I'm fairly indifferent towards device sizes when it comes to home consoles and technology that is not necessarily supposed to be constantly portable; that being stated, I find the smaller size of this particular console to be fairly appealing, as it will allow for easy storage and transportation; these qualities will be particularly attractive when concerning app development, as they will likely be just as readily accessible as most mobile devices.
-Cross-platform Multi-player: If this thing is really as open as it is advertised to be, I hope to see developers take major advantage of new opportunities and produce content that is innovative and impress to such a degree that major companies will take note, and apply similar concepts to their future consoles (or maybe their current consoles, all depending on how things play out);  imagine how awesome it would be if indie developers started publishing multiplayer games of equivalent quality to games of professional developers, and made these games cross compatible with the Ouya, Mobile Devices, PC's and Mac's and possibly even the Piston (or whatever that console is going to be named). If this particular quality is attended to, the Ouya will hold a major quality above and against almost every other console of this coming (and in some cases, present) generation.
- Innovation and Freedom:
I don't know how successful this "easily modifiable" system will ultimately be, but a few things are guaranteed: the horrifying policies Microsoft almost successfully imposed (maybe they still will, eventually), and the high cost of hardware presented by most of the consoles of the current/ coming generation (PlayStation Eye and all that stuff I most likely won't purchase if I do end up purchasing these consoles) will be completely obsolete in the world of the Ouya
- Retro Games:
Hopefully, in light of any success this console may experience, developers of older games (Resident Evil, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and older still) will allow the use of their games on emulators; obviously they would be taking a major loss if they accepted the system as it currently stands (for the most part), but if they developed their own files to be used with emulators which required purchase before use, playing older games would be extremely convenient, safe, and enjoyable; I know that this occurrence is unlikely for the most part, but it would certainly be innovative, exciting and extremely satisfactory to say the least if such a system could be created that would allow for fun while successfully preventing piracy

Negative Impressions/ Concerns:
- I've yet to explore the required procedures and requirements for app development, but, as I understand it without having confirmed whether or not my concerns are necessary, all games developed for the console must undergo specific modifications as to cooperate with the specification of the device (this probably means proper functionality with the controller, the app store system and various concepts of that nature)
- I am uncertain as to whether or not The Game Creator's App Game Kit Tier 1 engine will immediately be supported by the Ouya console; if it is not, this will impede our development progress a bit in respect to games we are currently developing with that engine; however, most issues of a similar nature to this I will likely disregard once I develop a more vivid understanding of the console's game development/ publishing process
- Loss of quality: Although the Android store hosts a number of highly enjoyable and popular (always note that these two concepts are immensely different) video games and applications (for example, refer to Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunter), often times, the quality of the games is slightly impeded by fact that they are often intended for mobile devices that may not be powerful enough to handle games with higher visual quality and more advanced functioning (a downside to many Android Game stores). I would hate to see games suffer major decreases in quality simply because they were intended to be compatible with mobile devices. - -Garbage Games and Apps: While the loss of quality would be a bit disheartening and disappointed, nothing is quite as detestable in respect to Android App markets than the vast array of absolute manure that can be discovered if one is not careful and observant in respect to the games they download. I can't count the number of instances where I downloaded a game that advertised as something extremely interesting and exciting only to find that it was nothing like its given description and name. I have a slight fear that, given the quite enjoyable freedom of the device's founding principles, some pillocks will take advantage of the lack of restrictions and publish vast libraries of useless, unenjoyable or in anyway misleading applications simply because they have the power to do so; to summarize, I hope to find games rich in quantity and quality, that I can tell developers put time and effort into with a vision of something that would be enjoyable for the consumer

Overall, based on the fairly uninformed opinions and impressions I've established, it's almost a guarantee that, for the low price and promising features, we'll be purchasing one of these before the arrival of the next generation of gaming consoles. Once again, thanks for reading, and please do respond in the comments section with any relevant opinions or reflections. Thank you!