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Topic: Darwinia
Posted: 2005-04-01 @ 12:40:20
Darwinia, created by Introversion software, is what a lot of PC games struggle to be. Don't be fooled by it's simple appearance. Dispite this game's (intentional) 8-bit gone Tron style, the game has a surprising bit of depth.
Darwinia is like a controlled environment, for purposes of breeding the race of AI's known as 'Darwinians'. A nasty Virii has infected the environment, and the Scientist responsible for it's creation is at a loss for what to do. Enter you, a random encounter with the gigantic server drags you into his world, where he enlists your help to stop the spreading of Virii to save this race he spent years creating.
The game presents itself a bit like a traditional RTS, but here's the kicker: There are no on-screen indicators of how many of whatever you have, no map, nothing. The only indicators are located in the 'task manager'. Inside the Task Manager, you can activate programs by drawing thier symbol inside of a specified area (An idea previously seen in 'Arx Fatalis'), as well as check to see how the evolution of the different species' is going. You can check your objectives here, in case you forget them.
The Darwinians aren't really smart at first, constantly running into electric 'fences' and running from battle, but as they evolve they gain access to weaponry and form better battle tactics. But how do you make a Darwinian?
To make one, you must simply create a squad to go around and kill a patch of Virii, then when that spot is cleaned up, have an engineer patch up an incubator (placed in various locations around the map) and collect the souls to convert into the Darwinians. Once the Darwinians are born, you can order them around with 'officers', or Darwinians with an extra line of code added to them (thanks to the Task Manager).
So what happens at the end? Well, the secret is pretty well guarded, so why don't you find out for yourself?
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Topic: [DVD] Gorillaz Phase One: Celebrity Take Down
Posted: 2005-01-04 @ 19:01:19
Silently released and advertised on thier site only, it seemed like this DVD was only to be found by hardcore fans. And this was rightly so, for the DVD caters only to the Hardcore Fans of the Band.
Initial Setup/Menu:
Inserting the Disk, it gave me two choices. 5.1 Surround, or 2.0 Stereo. Since I don't have surround sound, I had to opt for the Stereo. After choosing my only sound option, I was treated to an intro video that was done in a Psudo-3D style, with the characters appearing in 2D. We're taken into the front lobby of Kong Studios, from which we can either inspect certain items around the room, or use the bar at the bottom with different logos to jump to different rooms. A basic DVD setup. Each room has different things moving around in it, some of thier songs can be heard echoing off the walls, and an interesting animation that occurs when you leave the DVD idle for a while. However, said animation only makes sense if you have been following the Gorillaz since the 'Streaker' incident. It should be noted, that if you wish to be cheap, you can use the Map of Kong Studios that is included to see what is in each room.
Content:
First big thing to be noted: Each music video has been put on this DVD, in outstandingly high quality. The animation is much smoother than the TV releases, and shows a contrast from the band members and the 3-D backdrops. Music is louder than the TV releases as well. Included is each Music Video's Animatics, and Sketches. The exception being the Music Video 5/4, which was never completed and is only included in Sketch Form.
Also included are Gorillaz Bites; Short, less than one minute clips of the band in hilarious situations. However, the humor only seems to be the best to fans of British humor and the Band.
Also to be Found: The 'Charts of Darkness' Documentary (possibly the longest thing on the DVD), hidden 'test' videos, live show visuals, and a 'hidden area'.
Special Features:
Sometimes this DVD feels more like a collection of Special Features for something so much bigger. But then again, maybe it is. The DVD comes with an Enhanced CD, which has Screensavers, Wallpapers, Magazine Clips, and a key for 'future' parts of Gorillaz.com.
Final Thoughts:
Me being a huge Gorillaz fan, I was at orgasm point when I heard of this DVD. It has been out for a while, but with the announcement of the Gorillaz' new album, I snatched it up while I can. Some times it feels like an extended Art Book, which isn't too far from the truth, but it's shining moments and perhaps my love for the band won me over in the end.
FINAL SCORE: 8.5/10
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Halo |
Topic: Bug = "squashed";
Posted: 2004-12-20 @ 11:14:59
The name issue is fixed, sorry about the trouble guys :(
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