Well, life has been utter hell lately, which only serves as a reminder of why I’m here blogging about nonsense like video games, comedians, and youtube videos.
As I approach my 1 year anniversary at a job I hate with crappy pay, I find out economy is still shit, my roommate is unemployed, my weak stomach has been giving me hell, and as a perfect end to a perfect week–my scanner committed suicide. And what am I doing about it all? Not a damn thing, obviously, what can you do? Everyone is struggling. We live in a world where ‘grit your teeth and bear it’ has long since replaced the ‘American Dream’.
That is why ‘Critical Leisure’ exists. Because in this day and age, leisure IS critical. What we do with our free time–however much or little of it we have–is the only thing that can keep us sane.
As for me, I’ve mostly been playing video games. I beat Re: Chain of Memories a few weeks ago, and all I can say is Repliku sucks and Marluxia is the easiest, most pansy-assed boss I’ve ever fought after Xenosaga’s token Albedo battle.
Since then I’ve played FFVII: Dirge of Cerberus. I’m horrible at FPS games, but as it’s Final Fantasy related, I had to play it eventually. There’s a rule. It’s written down somewhere. What can I say about Dirge of Cerberus? Lucrezia is bat shit crazy, for starters–at least that’s my ever humble opinion. Graphics are pretty decent, story line is engaging. There are a few boss battles I could have done without ( *cough* Azul *cough*), but I managed my way through them. Cutscenes were absolutely gorgeous. All in all, well worth the fifteen bucks I spent on it.
FFVII: Dirge of Cerberus
Unfortunately, Final Fantasy is a double-edged sword. It’s such a massive enterprise, that so many great games get swept under the rug and forgotten in it’s wake. I tend to fall in love with these great RPGs…that no one I talk to has ever heard of until I demand they go find and play them.
Star Ocean: Until the End of Time
One example is Star Ocean: Until the End of Time.
It’s a bit of a slow starter, but once the game gets going it’s almost impossible to put down. An engaging story with adorable characters like Peppita Rosetti and badasses like Albel Nox. There’s really something for everyone in this rpg, if you can get past the first …ten hours or so, where the game seems to drag a bit. Ah, I just adore it. A big time favorite for me.
And it’s not the only one. The Xenosaga series is great, if you can get through the horror that is the second game to see how it all ends up with an awesome end to the trilogy (and can tolerate your MC, Shion, long enough to pay attention to the plot.
Suikoden III is a gem hidden in the pile of crap that is the rest of the Suikoden Series, where you get to play as three very awesome MC’s–Hugo, Chris, and Geddoe. (Geddoe is my favorite, for the record) with a HUGE amount of interesting side characters.
Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits
And I’ve been reliving my other obsession: Arc the Lad, recently. I played Twilight of the Spirits a few years ago, and it has since remained one of my favorite games of all time–right up there with Star Ocean and Final Fantasy VIII. Fun, engaging characters, a good storyline, and to put some icing on an already rather enjoyable cake–it’s easy. I don’t remember struggling with any of the battles –other than the Giant Eyeball of Doom you fight at the end of the game–and that’s more tedious than difficult.
Well, I loaned that game out and never got it back, but I think I’m going to have to buy another copy (as well as get my hands on the Arc the Lad Collection for the first three games) sometime in the near future, because right now, as I play Arc the Lad: End of Darkness, I can’t help but miss it’s predecessor.
Now, I haven’t been playing EoD very long, and maybe that’s the reason I feel this is a game that completely does NOT do justice to it’s predecessor. The MC, Edda, seems bland. His sidekick, Hemo, is cute, but nothing to write home about. The entire game thus far plays like a series of mini-quests with only small spatterings of plot. It takes place five years after the events of Twilight of the Spirits, and as you go through the game it seems that you meet many of the characters from the previous games. The only problem with that is 9+ hours into the game you still don’t feel as if Edda has a story of his own. You learn bits about his parents, meet up with characters from previous games, and do a lot of fighting that more or less feels completely pointless, because it doesn’t seem to be leading anywhere. i feel like I’m playing a Twilight of the Spirits fanfiction. …and that fanfiction is badly-planned.
Well, I’m not being fair. I’ve only played 9 hours of the game, after all. Star Ocean took more than that to get going (although, Star Ocean by now at least had Fayt–the charming MC, and the adorable Peppita), so I’ll keep an open mind for the time being.
But that’s enough rambling about games! It’s all I ever do on here. Before my scanner committed suicide, I did manage to get a scan of something last week, so for once maybe I’ll show off some of my own art instead of someone else’s. The background is lame and pathetic (a huge weakness of mine), but as far as the character design I’m more or less happy with this piece for a change:
Kiyoku Hono: by K.T. (that's me!)
Check out my other art at: Kou-Tan@DeviantArt.com
Well, I was planning to work on some art tonight, but since my scanner has sold itself to the devil –to the point that I had to break down and order a new one–I think I’ll spend the rest of tonight on video games, and possibly most of tomorrow writing. I’ll do a real art feature in my next post–featuring myself SO doesn’t count!
Until Next Time,
Remember: Leisure is Critical, so do something with it!
~K.T.~
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