Murderer's Music

Just to follow up on yesterday's post, I thought I'd talk about the soundtrack of Assassin's Creed Two. In a word, it's beautiful. I really can't express how absolutely amazing the composition is for this game. It's a true experience to listen to, and it helped solidify the game's experience to an incredible extent. This is a soundtrack that instantly garners a position on my top ten list of best soundtracks ever.

I can quite securely say that this is a OST that I'll be listening to, for months to come.

-----------Ezio's Family----------------------Venice Rooftops-----------


I'm in a killer mood because of the beauty of these tracks.
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Slayer's Style II

Just beat Assassin's Creed Two last night, and all I can say is wow. While not close to the most enthralling gaming experience I've ever had, it was damn good. It was worth every last cent I paid. Here's to hoping that the third one holds up to my expectations, and that the story truly comes full circle.

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Blood Sucking Beauty

One of the long running Mangas that I've been reading is Rosario to Vampire, a story about young man who, in a desperate attempt to get into high school after failing his placement exams, enrols in a school advertised by a flyer which is dropped by a creepy man one night. On his first day he discovers the school is actually a monsters only academy where the supernatural creatures learn to control themselves and prepare to live with humans. However if humans are ever found on campus they are immediately killed to keep it's location a secret.

Now the entire point that I've brought this up is because of how it was turned into an anime at some point (a bad one I might add). Due to it's racy nature it was successful enough to warrant the production of a sequel (which was infinitely worse than the first).
Now being the type of person I am, I couldn't help myself and watched both seasons as they were being released. Understand that by no means was I impressed and I was neither entertained by either season, nor am I interested in seeing another. However there was one very VERY large thing about the second season that I found outstandingly good, and that would be it's intro sequence.

The high quality animation, fluid movements, obvious work that went into the choreography of the girls movements, and the cohesive style of the entire minute and a half opening blew me away. By no means did I expect to see such a well done piece of art to be used to set the tone for such a sub par show, which touts itself as little more than a fan service cluster fuck.

I don't know, maybe I'm being to critical but none the less the entire point is that the video below is a quality piece of work.
Also on a side note the youtube version has a slight problem with syncing and frame rate, so it's noticeably inferior to a full downloaded version preceding any given episode.

Rosario to Vampire 2 intro


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Conan, Andy, and Anime

Just watch and don't ask questions.

Dub Session One


Dub Session Two


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Augmention Centuria

As an aspiring film maker and visual effects artist I have to say the most important part about making videos of any kind is knowing your history. Weather it be to understand how things were done in the past, what you admire and hope to achieve, or what you want to avoid, history is key. Since it's been one hundred years roughly since the incorporation of special effects into movies, it's appropriate to pay homage.

Watching this video fills me with pride to know that the augmentation of the reality on screen has such a rich history.

100 years of special effects.


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Transform!

Thought this was a fun little video. It's the transforming legacy of Nintendo.



Kinda wanna do a video like this myself.
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Chicks and Nightclothes

I don't talk about racy things on this blog really, all because that's not what it's about. However a recent photo shoot that I saw with Ana Beatriz Barros (a Brazilian model), caught my eye. The reason is because of how perfectly her good side was captured in several of the shots. Most prominent of them is the particular photo where she is wearing blue, the composition is what I would consider perfect.

The main reason that I am surprised is because of how I have seen some of her other shoots, and quite honestly less than perfect. The style is either atrocious, the composition is poor, or the cameraman totally failed to capture a good angle or the makeup artist was simply to doped up to do a good job.

Call me prude or even gay for not being pleased by just BOOBS! But I'm an artist and when it comes to professional photo shoots I expect them to be done right. It's a massive blunder to make you model look like she has a hangover or hasn't had her daily dose of nose candy.

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Eight bit bullet time

I don't know what type of gamer i would be if I didn't bring this up after seeing it.

If you haven't seen the latest viral vid on the net it's a large stop frame project that uses tons of Legos as pixels. Its an 8-bit trip with an amazing amount of work put into it, and without question it deserves kudos.

ok less talkey mor watchey

8-bit trip


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Computational Jumping Method

I've done some programing in my time and I know enough to say that I hate doing it. Never in my life will I program something unless i really need to. Which is why I have to respect the people who do it for fun or practice.

This video I found is the result of writing algorithms for the primary purpose of allowing a computer to play Super Mario World perfectly. In it you can see the possible actions as red lines and all the moves are puled off flawlessly even the fabled wall jump.

AI Plays Mario

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Overlay

I'll be brief with this post. Being a motion graphics artist i understand just how hard it can be to not only drop things into video to augment it's reality, but also to properly motion track a shot in order to have you elements move properly with the scene. So naturally I like seeing things that have the proper amount work put into them so they look good. That' the case even when the result of the final product is a bit creepy. This video would be one case.



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Repetition Return

When it comes to music I'm simply interested in anything that sounds good to me. That means it doesn't matter what genre the music belongs to, what language it may be written in, or what instruments it's played with. If the sound is good and harmonious I probably can tell if the song is real good or just mediocre.
Even though I'm not discriminatory with what I listen to and judge music based on it's sound alone it doesn't mean I'm not prone to look for music from certain composers, groups, or artists.
One of those said Groups is Linkin Park. I've been listening to their music for years because of how much I find their music to have not only a different sound but the lyrics are something I've always liked.

I can't deny my that I had an awkward reception to Linkin Park's last album minutes to midnight. After all it was a big step is a new direction where they (for the most part) left behind their founding musical style. It took a while but the album grew on me and I don't think it's that bad now, but it's still not the original linkin Park.

That's why I was so happy when I saw the new transformers movie. I was wondering what type of song they would use at the end of the movie. In the first film they used "What I've Done" from the minutes to midnight album; Which was honestly the best track from the whole disc. The track just worked so well when the movie faded out and the credits started to roll. So obviously linkin park would have been great for the second movie but they haven't come out with an album for at least two years.\
Well much to my surprise when the second transformers movie was coming to a close the music that started to play sounded familiar in it's style. I was just blown away when I herd Chester Bennington start to sing.
I have to say I'm plenty glad that they had Linkin Park specifically produce a song for the movie it just helped it to close right. But even more so am I happy that I herd a new song from the band that reminds me why I started listening to them way back when.

It's just great to know that even if they don't intend to do the same thing all the time they haven't forgotten how to do what got them popular.

This is the song I'm talking about.


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Check the Depp

When it comes to people I see on camera there are a few names that come to mind for prominence. However none of them are as significant as Jonny Depp. The reason is because as an artist and an actor he is exactly what I respect and think a true screen talent should be. No matter what I hear, read, or where it comes from the reports always seem to be the same. Depp just does things his way and only because he enjoys it. He has no real ego, he's humble, hates being the center of attention, and prefers to stay away from talk shows and things that bring on gossip.

However when he does appear in the public eye and isn't in costume there is no doubt he's just the same as all those articles, talk shows, and media buzz portray him. Humble with a lack of ego.



If I ever become a director Jonny Depp is someone I want to work with.
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Cross overs

Cross over media is some of my favourite type of entertainment. It allows you to get the best kind of jokes and humour from two different directions. Of course at the same time It's also the ultimate way to alienate people since it's noting but hardcore inside jokes.
Anyway I was avidly awaiting the advent of the game MGS4. Since I also own and play the game Little Big Planet this ad not only appeals to me, it also makes me laugh. This is a good example of well done cross over humour.

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Facebook and Twitter

Well as a gem of information I have to say that I have a faceBook page even though I never use it, and at the same time I have never used twitter. The main reason is because I think it's not to great of an idea to engage in such totally pointless social networking to express the mundane and worthless points of my life.

This short gets my point across best. I truly understand what that green guy Gigantor is feeling.

Facebook Twiter

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Castles and blood

Well if your any type of a REAL gamer you would know that E3 was this week and some of the biggest titles were announced.
Personally I'm looking forward to the new Castlevania.

Check it in HD here.

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Final High

so I was big on the Advent Children movie before it cam out a few years back. I kept my ear to the ground and painstakingly searched for info pertaining to the movie on a regular basis. I was SO into it that I got my hands on the film two days before it was released in Japan with some ragged subtitles so I could follow along.

Well Nowadays I'm not that big into the FFV:AC thing but it doesn't stop me from loving the movie. So naturally I'm ecstatic about the Blu-Ray release of the movie. Ever since I herd about how the HD version would have more scenes and fighting I was excited. However when I herd that the entire movie was going to be redone with dirt being a factor on the characters and their clothes, I was blow away.

I've been very much so anticipating the inevitable release of the HD Final Fantasy Movie. So I'm honestly giddy with it being next week that those of us across the trench in America here getting our release of the movie in HD.

Teaser (check this out in HD full screen 720p)


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Sim or Show?

I was looking around the tube the other day and found this vid. I'm not to certain where they got these ideas but i like it quite a bit. Even though it doesn't truly mesh with the melancholy concept very well.



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Chipset Envy

lol, if my PC was like this I would never have gotten a mac. Good 'ol 2001 a space odyssey.



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Birthing Ideas

Well there's no lying that when you get an idea that's great it just seems to come out of nowhere. With me that's just the case; I may know what i can do to stimulate myself in order to raise the chances of having one but it doesn't stop the fact that they come when they come. Forcing it just doesn't work.

Well I found this video that explains expresses just that.

Process before and Idea


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Final Fantasy Mash

hmm, it took a long time but man just being able to see a Final Fantasy game that hosts all the heroes and villains excites me. To bad it's not in HD and only the the PSP. I'm not much of a hand held gamer so it's a bit of a let down.



Better quality here.
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Crying Consoles

so there's no if and or buts about it, as powerful as consoles are they still qualify as last gen technology compared to high end gaming rigs. A game like Crysis can kick a console's processor core senseless in less than thirty seconds if that. For that reason I've remained a PC enthusiast for some time, and there isn't much of anything that can make me stop being one.

However to find that crytek has actually gone back and rewritten massive sections of the cry2 engine to get games like crysis working on consoles, amazes me. Technically its not even the cry2 engine anymore either; it's gone through so many changes it qualifies as a new version, the cry3 engine. The changes are so significant that I can't describe how important this is to the (current) console gaming industry. Aside of some other things that were just as large if not bigger that were announced at GDC 09; this has to be one of the top three that I've herd.

Not all of you may look at this and understand just what this means on a technical basis. Though none the less the visual results are easy to understand.

Demo vid of Cry engine 3 on consoles
Tech explained part 1
Tech explained part 2

invigorating!
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Unexpected Intrests

So when it comes to what your interested in you typically fit a role to some extent. Most common being that you fulfill the visual role of a stereotype somehow. If your a jock you look like you exercise a lot. If your a prep you dress well, have nice hair, and know whats in. When your a nerd your (very) scrawny or chubby, wear glasses, get picked on, and don't get any girls.

Stereotypes drive forward many mediums today because they're easy to describe and design. However they aren't that real. Certainly they exist but they really don't look like what you expect them to. One example would be Vin Diesel, a large muscular actor who got his name from how much energy he had as a bouncer. However his oldest past time is tabletop gaming Dungeons and Dragons style.

check this vid it's a better explanation than I can give.



Don't judge a book by it's cover
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The Good Burn

One of the things that I love about reviews is when I encounter a slew of scathing remarks for any game. Even if I loved the game or the franchise, hard boiled spit in your face reviews put the nitty-gritty right in your eyes and show you all the flaws that have been made. It's terribly important to me that such reviews are made which is why I love the zero punctuation videos. No doubt Croshaw the writer will end up in someone's wallet at some point, but till them it's very entertaining to hear all his well written bitching.

With the number of kick backs and bribes happening in the game review industry today hearing a bad review is just that great. Primary because it typically means that no one got money and the developer is reaping what they decided to sew. Of course the down side to that is how no matter what, not a single game gets a perfect ten unless a hand is greased at least a little.

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Bikini Samurai Zombie Slayers

I really don't know what to say. I mean, I know that the OneChanbara game series is around five years old by now, but still. I never expected it to be successful, didn't think it would ever warrant a movie, and absolutely dismissed the thought of it EVER coming to America. Well I suppose I should expect it to do one of the last things possible, be a hit state side.

Oh yeah if you don't know what I'm talking about just watch the video below it explains everything. if the video is dead you may have luck at game trailers.

OneChanbara Opening movie


the stupidity of this game concept makes me ashamed to know I play games.
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Devil may Cryin Out Loud

About three weeks ago I bought Devil May Cry 4 during an after Christmas sale. I just recently beat it and I have a soul complaint that's big enough that I care to voice.

If you don't know Devil May Cry is a game series that spawned off of Resident Evil (AKA Biohazard) when the creator was trying to eliminate the clunky game play style of the survival horror genre. Devil May Cry is a game that focuses on battling hoards of enemies while looking as stylish as possible while doing it. The game play formula is commonly accepted as the 3D replacement for the classic 2D action platforming.

Anyway I'm not new to the DMC series but at the same time I'm not a real vet either. Simply put I've been playing it long enough to know the whole story and remember how all the characters used to look. Usually when (and if) video game characters change they do so in two directions, one for each sex. Men get bigger, stronger, steroid muscular, and more badass. Women however get thinner, more hooker like, bigger boobs, and a total disregard for practical clothing, or covering their skin in general.

This brings me to a character from DMC3 called Lady. When they made her she had a real school girl look to her, wearing a pair of short shorts under a skirt, and a loose dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up. This looked good on her and above everything else she was a true example of sexy but practical. Now however in DMC4... well my picture below sums up what's wrong with Lady now.



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