(note: to the experienced MMO players out there – I’m writing this for those folks who might not know all of the terms, so I’ll be explaining what some of them are. You have been warned.)

World of Warcraft. Everquest (1 and 2). Ragnarok Online. Eve Online. The list goes on.

These days, it’s hard to read a video gaming magazine or website and not see an article or post about MMO (massively multiplayer online) games. World of Warcraft’s huge subscription numbers are often spoken of these days, and a lot of people try to dissect why it’s done so well.

At its core, there are two primary modes of gameplay: Player versus Player (PvP) and Player versus Environment (PvE). The first pits you against other players, both of the opposing faction (in special battlegrounds) and sometimes of your own (the arena combat system). The second has you playing against the game itself – fighting computer-controlled monsters and enemies, doing quests for the various NPCs in the game, and working with other people to achieve certain goals (like defeating the dungeons).

Many people tend to prefer one type of play over the other. Some of the PvE types like to see the in-game lore that unfolds from doing quests and exploring new areas. Others like to see what kinds of cool loot they can get from doing the large-scale dungeons (known as raids) and fighting some of the super-tough bosses (aka world bosses).

On the PvP side, some people just enjoy pitting their skill (and gear) against other players, be it in “large-scale” warfare, ala the WoW battlegrounds. Others prefer to do their fighting in closer quarters, against smaller groups of enemies. For these people, there is dueling and the Arena.

Both are valid forms of gameplay, and as more MMORPGs come out, there will some games that try to balance the two types of gameplay, like WoW does, while others will try to focus on one over the other, like Pirates of the Burning Seas. I think it will be interesting to see how the landscape develops over the next few years.

So, I pose this question to you, dear reader – if you play MMOs, what do you prefer? PvE? PvP? Why? If you’ve never played an MMO, which of these two types of game play do you think you’d prefer, and why? (Me, I’m a PvE-centric player.)

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In the past few years, a few Japanese shows have been brought to the U.S. and repackaged for American consumption. The ones that come to mind the most readily are Ninja Warrior (on G4) and MXC (on Spike TV). These two shows, along with a couple of others, have been met with varying degrees of popularity.

What some people might not know is that with the exception of Ninja Warrior (known as Sasuke and Kunoichi for the male and female versions) and Hey! Spring of Trivia, which are both currently running, the shows are fairly old.

While it’s kind of easy to tell with MXC (originally Takeshi’s Castle), where the footage is fairly old looking, it’s not as easy to tell with G4’s new show, Unbeatable Banzuke (Muscle Banzuke). Banzuke ran in Japan from 1995 to 2002, and because the footage is relatively recent, one could easily mistake it for a modern Japanese show.

However, there are a couple of tell-tale signs if you look for them. Fashion in Japan is generally close to that of the U.S., so when you watch Banzuke, you can notice some definite 90s fashion. The contestants’ (and host’s) hairstyles also give the show’s age away, if you watch closely.

So, fans of these shows, what do you think? Do you care that we’re being given repackaged shows from 10 and more years ago? Do you want more old Japanese (and other foreign) shows brought to the U.S. mostly untouched? Do you watch any shows like this that I didn’t mention?

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It used to be that finding anime-influenced art on non-anime things was fairly rare. You might spot a bootleg anime picture on a bootleg product, but that was likely to be it. But these days, it’s become fairly common to find anime-influenced artwork in everyday items.

Case in point, I was at Best Buy a couple of weeks ago, and as I stood in line, I took a look at the “quick sale” racks, and noticed a couple of karaoke CDs that looked a bit unusual.

Upon inspection, the ‘Western Hits of the 90s’ karaoke CD had a distinctly cute anime girl on the cover (and without a cowboy hat or any kind of identifying ‘western’ apparel).

I thought to myself, “This has to be a joke.” Then I looked around, and spotted a couple more CDs with similar covers. At first I wondered why they would be trying to sell karaoke CDs like that to kids, then I realized that the ‘kids’ I was thinking of were now in college most likely.

Since then, I’ve noticed anime style art on a variety of items, from clothing labels to snack packages (and again, not branded-items) to a bunch of other things. But still, the thing that struck me as the strangest was the karaoke CD.

So what kinds of things have you noticed in normal life that has anime-style art on it? What’s been the most unusual? The most “normal”?

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I will post more about the Haruhi game I played last week once I’ve had the chance to play it a bit more. This week, I want to take a first look at a game for the Nintendo DS known as “Game Center CX: Arino’s Challenge”. 

This game is loosely based off of a show with the same name. The premise of the show is that Shinya Arino, a comedian and actor, has to play an extremely hard game all the way through. The only help he gets is from his staff, who supply him with information, cheat codes, and even occasional assists. It’s a wonderful show, and I may talk about it more in the future. 

In any case, the game’s premise is that Arino has had enough of the hard games, and takes it out on you. To get his ‘revenge’, he turns you into a kid, and sends you back into the 1980s, where you will have to play the same old school games that cause him so much trouble.

You are assisted in this by Arino – Arino as he was in the 1980s. He supplies the games, some advice, and he even buys gaming magazines from time to time to get tips and tricks. He can’t believe what his older self is doing, but is glad to have a friend to game with.

“Demon Lord Areenoh”, as he calls himself, issues you four challenges per game, with eight games to play total. The games include two shooters, two racing games, three platformers, and even an RPG. The interesting thing is that you can play the games, all the way through, both in the “story mode” as well as once you’ve beaten the challenge from the main menu. While they aren’t very long, they are definitely entertaining.

I’ve gotten past a few of the games so far, and am looking forward to hitting the RPG part and beyond. Like the Haruhi game, I will report a bit more when I get some more game time.

So, I ask you, dear reader: is this the kind of game you would like to play? Would you want to see a show like this in the U.S. (or wherever you may be)? Do you like classic games, and if so, what’s your favorite?

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Hello, folks!

I will be posting later tonight (7:30 PM-ish PST). My apologies for the delay.

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As I just got this game in today (Monday, February 4, 2008), I figured I would play it for a bit and write down my first impressions. 

Suzumiya Haruhi no Tomadoi (The Wonderment of Haruhi Suzumiya )for the Playstation 2 is a combination of a visual novel and a game creation simulator. The plot of the game is as such:

Haruhi has found out about a game creation contest, called “Game Garden”, and decides that the SOS Brigade is going to participate and win. Your job, as Kyon, is to set the schedule for the next four weeks and create a game that Haruhi will accept.

But it’s not as simple as that. Nothing involving Haruhi Suzumiya ever is. The initial attempt at making a game ends up being a ‘prologue’, and after the four weeks end, you get shot back to the first day again, to try all over again.  Koizumi tells you on the second run of ‘Day One’ that the four weeks are likely to repeat themselves until the group is able to create a game that satisfies Haruhi. That said, there’s no knowing what will satisfy her until you make it. 

The back of the game’s package states that there are several potential games, ranging from Dragon Warrior/Quest-esque RPGs to girl-raising simulators (like Princess Maker) to a parody of the Super Robot Wars series. It also states that all of these games are playable, though not to what degree. (I’m guessing a few levels/dungeons/stages each) 

So far, I have seen the prologue, the opening animation (which is the same as the TV series), and one day of ‘game production’. I have learned, though the helpful, if a bit wordy, tutorials, that it will likely be necessary for me to go through the four week period a few times, in order to learn some of the tasks necessary to make a good game, like ‘finding story ideas’ or ‘creating the rough character designs’. 

All in all, this is looking like it will be a rare thing – an actually enjoyable anime-based game. The writing is good, and the game play is easy to learn, yet requires a good amount of planning and strategy. I’ll talk more about the game play in more detail next time. 

So, Haruhi fans (and those who are not), does a game like this interest you at all? What kind of Haruhi (or anime/manga) related games would you like to see? Do you even like anime-based games?

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This is a short post, because I’m still ill, I had to work late-ish, and it’s my birthday.

On your birthday, generally speaking, you want to do something you really like. Some people prefer having a lot of people over, and being social. Other people prefer quieter affairs, just a couple of friends and dinner, for example.

Me? I like to have friends over, and watch movies, play games (board, card, video, etc.), and geek out.

What kind of geeky things do you like to do on your birthday? Please keep it PG-13.

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Someone has taken the end theme from the game ‘Portal’, and ‘translated’ it into Japanese. The link is below, listen at your own risk. (SFW)

Po-taru

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Man, what is it about my new home that makes me sick?

I’m homebound by doctor’s orders for almost a week, and I can’t think clearly enough to really post.

My apologies, everyone.

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Not Curly.

First, my apologies for the lack of posting recently. Holidays, being sick, and work all prevented me from having the time to think of a good post.

Then my fellow poster, Mr. Win-Myun Kim, gave me something to build on.

Tsundere is one of my favorite moe, as some of you may remember. But before tsundere became a standard moe, and heck, even before the idea of moe was unified, as it were, there was the idea of ‘takabi’.

Takabi, short for ‘takabisha’, is a term used for ‘princess types’. In anime, this would be the rich girls, the actual princesses, the women (and sometimes men) who were or felt that they were socially superior to you/the main character. (Some more uncouth people might call this archetype the ‘rich bitch’)

Good of examples of this kind of character are Kuriko Kazetsubaki from Maburaho, Mira Kagami from Tokimeki Memorial, and Aeka from the Tenchi Muyo series.

How is takabi a predecessor to tsundere? Here’s a comparison:

Tsundere

• Cold/mean in public to the main character
• Eventually grows to like the character, but often only in private

Takabi

• Cold/mean/commanding in public to the main character
• Eventually grows to like the character
• Often rich or socially higher than the others in her group

Admittedly, there’s not much to the archetype. But still, that’s the kind of character that was prevalent in anime and such until the tsundere archetype came about.

So, do any of you like tsundere and/or takabi girls/boys? Who? And why do you like the archetype?

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