Beat arc w dv. Apprentice got.

Devil Blinga

I can't knock X-Play's 3/5 score for DMC4. Seeing as I liked DMC3 a hell of a lot, I would skew slightly higher, but I concede the criticism that this iteration is merely a new coat of paint and some incremental gameplay developments. The exception being, perhaps, Nero's demonic appendage, the so called Devil Bringer.

Before I delve further into these observations, I must confess I have only completed through Mission 8. I have not yet taken control of Dante, so I cannot comment on changes to his gameplay (though the prospect of switching styles on the fly is quite enticing.)

Whilst I enjoyed switching blades mid-combo in Dante's Awakening, I found myself rarely swapping firearms in the heat of battle for any practical purpose. None of the options really compared to the twin pistols, and the decelerating effect their fire had on descent was a crucial component of my evasion and regrouping. This said, predictably I am not opposed to being equipped with the Red Queen (sword) and Blue Rose (revolver) for the entirety of Nero's play time. The Queen's Rev Guage adds a lot of depth here, allowing for modified versions of Nero's special sword commands, known as Exceed Attacks.

I really have to say here, though, the Exceed System is not very original. Order Sol (from GGXX/ and GGXX^C) and his Charge ability functions almost exactly the same way in both its three tiered enhancement of special moves and the methods by which one can build up charge. But, c'est la vie.

But this gun and sword dichotomy, immediately familiar from the last game, is fundamentally altered by the addition of the Devil Bringer, which is implemented for Snatching enemies from a distance to begin or continue combos, or to deal damage with an enemy-specific throw. This throw, called the Buster, can also be enhanced by the Devil Trigger transformation, and this combination can inflict even more punishment and has its own unique animations for each enemy (including bosses).

And so far, yes, DMC4 has been a bit of a Bossathon, keeping with Capcom's penchant for boss fights. So far I've liked these encounters, and found the design and implementation to be superior to the last iteration. Barring any shortcomings in the rest of the campaign, I should be poised to review this game quite favorably in the near future.

Odds and Ends - Refresh Edition

Finally got Melee back in the house after an ill-concieved lending on Lego's part. Had a few stand out rounds with Doc. Typical... Doc's the only one of my mains not returning for Brawl. Other than that I'm pretty happy with the final roster. (Really, though, Falco, but no Dr. Mario? Are you serious?)

Some nice TF2 last night. Defending the third Dustbowl stage, I registered 43 kills and 9 deaths. (Assist, destruction, and defense totals escape me.) Lego is totally right, though; Skill levels skyrocket after midnight.

Speaking of which, can anybody recommend a good PS3 mic? My Samsung WEP200 is not really meant for this purpose.

Obligatory T5DR notes: I keep seeing high rank Drag ghosts using a punch parry that I don't know. I've heard rumblings in the forums about this hidden move. I really need to look into it. Those same ghosts just love Pinpoint Fracture (qcf+4). (Why don't I?) Thirdly, for some reason, I'll use the Choke and Roll (f,f+2) nigh constantly when I'm screwing around with Hwoarang, but I never use Sergei's (f,f+1+2). (Blizzard Rush, or whatever it's called.) I've got a lot of work to do before T6.

Sidenote: When the fuck is T6 coming out? I've always heard Namco likes to keep SC and Tekken releases as far apart as possible. With SC4 slated for June, formulaically, T6 should drop now, or early Q4.

In other news, Final Fantasy XII By Committee is closing in on the last Esper, the notorious Zodiark. Deep within the lair of the uber-bats, also known as the Henne Mines, we battled our way to the thirteenth summon, only to be rebuffed. (Game over.) Down, but not out, we took a breather to fell the Shadowseer at Ridorana after FAQ'ing the arbitrary black orb puzzle. We then commenced Henne Bat Genocide '08 to bring the stragglers up to Level 60 and recessed for the week. Hopefully some research should yield success next time. Next on the agenda is the loot-swapping Biggoron's Sword Tournesol process and the last few Elite Marks. I'm not sure if we've settled on taming all the Rare Games are not, but we are nearing the end of XII. Just in time for XIII!

Sergeilicious

There has been very much Tekken lately at my abode. It seems like it's always a good time to scare up a round with Legoman or an unsuspecting house guest. I've dedicated myself as of late to Sergei as my primary, though when I played DR on PSP I was much heavier on Armor King usage. Sergei's slow, technical Sambo is a little awkward to wield against Lego's Law and some of the other swift characters I face, but I've had a pretty damn good record lately, so I cannot complain too much.

And with Tekken 6 looming on the horizon, all of my practice includes cognizance of the changes that the gameplay will be undergoing. For one thing, sidesteps are apparently faster this time around, which should no doubt cause a problem for Sergei's left-side weakness. Low parries reportedly will be giving slightly less frame advantage, however word is that Sergei is getting a low reversal (df+1+2) to compensate. The rest of the cast seems to be left out, though. (Awww... too bad.)

But most importantly, his running right punch (WR+2) will now bounce the opponent, leading to juggles, not unlike the way his Russian Sickle (f,f+2) currently does on Counter Hit. Needless to say, I'm verily titillated. Lego, predictably, is much more excited about big fat Bob.

It is unclear at this point when Tekken 6 might hit North American PS3s, and there is definitely a possibility I would have access to the console version before I could find it in an arcade in this podunk capitol city. So I'm hoping to see it next spring, nestled in the fuzzy time frame that includes MGS4 and SSBB.

In the meantime, I'll continue to teach Lego's Wang the hard way...

(b+2,1,3~1+2) bitch! You better ask somebody!!11

Motherfucker

I wiped all of my PS3 saved data yesterday when I inadvertently deleted my user profile. Yeah, my dozen hours in Enchanted Arms... My Intel, Superhuman difficulty, and progress in Resistance... My bronze ducky... Poptart's custom Lili costume... All the species in fl0w...

And no, I don't really feel like talking about it.

SLC MvC2 FTW

Apologies for the gross lack of activity here on Final Form; We've been experiencing a mid-summer influx of busyness. I've only been back a scant week from a conference at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Utah. The day of our arrival it was an arid 104°, and I was yet still more aghast at the dry character of the Salt Lake area. Not really the most vibrant place I've ever been.

While mingling with other industry schlubs, my associate and I found ourselves with significant downtime between panels. I ventured to the nearby outdoor mall to subsist the local economy, and I was quite pleased to find not only an EB Games, but also a Tilt arcade! It had a typical collection of shooters, racers, and, my specialty, fighters. My fingers were crossed in anticipation, hoping against hope that I might stumble upon a Dark Resurrection cab.

Tekken Tag and Tekken 4, yes. But alas, no Tekken 5 to be found, Darkly Resurrected or otherwise. On the plus side, I was pleased to find Marvel Vs. Capcom 1 and 2, and Soul Calibur II. I quickly ran through MvC2 alone to leave the old KIL initials emblazoned at the top of the High Score screen, and then I started patronizing SCII, with a careful eye on the MvC2 machine.

Aha! A fly soon became enwrapped in the hyperactive web I was staking out. I waited until the teenager played through a CPU bout or two before I strolled over unassumingly. "Can I get in?" I politely asked. I'm sure this fresh-faced competitor was somewhat confused by Business Attire Killa gaming alongside the sandals and t-shirt types, but, of course, my challenge was accepted.

I didn't want to bring anything less than my A game, so in lieu of Akuma in my second slot, I picked the honorable Nathan Summers (Projectile), along with Sentinel (Ground) in the lead off position, and Cammy (AAA) as the closer. I don't specifically recall the opposing team, save for Cyclops, but I managed to edge him out in both of our clashes, resulting in him walking away somewhat disheartened.

I practiced Ms. White's Air Throw loop for a few minutes against the AI, and then abandoned the machine to once again lie in wait while I mindlessly dispensed Xianghua's tricky combinations. Another youth eventually approached the crossover cabinet, and was playing with an uber-newbie team of Wolvie/Wolvie/Spidey. I let him play a few rounds before cutting in with teh pwnage. I took a bit of a gamble and swapped Akuma in for Cable, but against such an amateur I could have used Spiral/Akuma/Cammy and still have cakewalked it.

I guess this should be no surprise, as SLC is not known for its arcade scene, though it did make me feel the stick practice at home had been paying off. MvC2 does not require the double quarter circle motion with which I've been struggling lately, but still, it was nice to emerge victorious over human opponents without the safety net of the comfortable and familiar d-pad.

Also, I Have This Cake

Not only did I procure my PS3 earlier this month, but just yesterday I was able to recoup the difference post-price cut with the assistance of the helpful Best Buy customer support staff. With my $105 refund in hand, I picked up the drastically cheaper Enchanted Arms as my second PS3 disc. I've been looking for an RPG lately, as I draw near the close of Valkyrie Profile (Goddamn you, Jotunheim Ice Palace!), and while I was considering a replay of either FFVII or FFVIII, for a mere Jackson I can treat myself to this notoriously conventional offering. Keif has been prodding me to use the refund on two more Sixaxes so that some intense splitscreen Resistance might take place, but Catarina has been trying to persuade me otherwise, in hopes of waiting for the seemingly imminent rumble-ready Sixaxis upgrade.

Meanwhile, like everyone else, I've been mastering the Heavenly Sword demo (all two minutes of it) between oglings of the RE5 trailer.