Quick Pick Flash Game! Ep. 1

Hey guys!

UPGRADE COMPLETE!

Check it out on armorgames.com.

Now.

Go.

Play it.

~Yeah568

Now that was quick!

Amazon aStore!

Hey guys!

Just wanted to let you guys know, we have an aStore! Buy the things we review, and get it for less! Guaranteed! Wait, what? That's Wal-Mart's slogan?

Anyways, here's the link. A portion of all purchases goes towards a needy charity (aka the writers of the blog)

We're also using LinkBucks. That also goes towards the same needy charity. :D (Hey, it's hard to complete projects with no cash) So just be patient, and wait like 15 seconds on the links. Thanks!

EVE Online Review

Hello, this is Roosterton with our first post in a while. (I know this is getting repetitive, but what am I supposed to say, "Sorry, I've been addicted to EVE and Cybernations so I haven't made any new posts?" Oh, wait...)

Anyways, recently, once an EVE addiction sweep took over Cybernations, I decided to join in the fun and set myself up with an EVE account. It was definitely a good choice. Now that I've had EVE for 14 days, I think I'll get on with the review.

Story: There are 4 empires in this far, far away universe. Basically, you pick a race, fly around in an uber-cool looking ship, and do missions for people within your empire, while having to deal with other players. This may not sound interesting at first, but it's actually pretty cool. You can team up with other players to do missions, join your Empire's militia and fight other empires, join a player controlled corporation, and help out other players like yourself, or even hang around in isolated areas and shoot people. No matter how you choose to play the game, it's pretty sweet no matter what.

Story: 9/10

Gameplay: Gameplay that's UBER-EPIC for an MMORPG. Control your ship with simple commands, fit it with modules and guns, lock on to and blast other people... Once you've started in the EVE universe, tons of fun will follow, for sure. Some things that I really like about the gameplay:

• Pretty much hundreds of different solar systems to fly to and do missions in
• The PvP system is actually good, and there's lots of it.
• Each solar system has a different security level, which means, the higher the security level, the more NPC justice-bringers there are to attack you if you cause havoc. Basically, it gives newbs a chance to be in safe areas, while at the same time, in low security space letting Pirates and advanced players kill each other.
• The Missions are usually interesting enough

One thing I dislike, though, are some of the glitches that pop up here and there, like being stuck in some weird spacey vacuum area where you must log out then back in to save yourself.

Gameplay: 9/10

Graphics and Music: It is likely inferred from the screenshot at the top of this post that the graphics are awesome, going into extreme detail and great colour. The Music, though, can be quite drab and repetitive at times.

Graphics and Music: 8/10

Overall score: 9/10

Download and buy an EVE Online account: Click here

Rant on Internet Security

Hey! It's R2D2 with his first rant (and first post) in a long while.

This is my rant on Internet Security. And I don't mean Malware or Viruses, but I mean the whole "OMG! Someone in a foreign country knows where you live!!" And "Chatrooms are teh EVIL!!" Yes, I'm here to do a rant on people protecting their privacy on the internet - What you can say, and when you've gone too far.

I was inspired to write this when I told what city I live in to someone on Nations States. How do my parents react? "Don't say anything that could spoil who you are." Er... So, he knows that I live in the city I live in. GREAT. What's the big deal?
For my rant, I'm going to define three things: Underprotection, Logical Protection, and Overprotection.

First, Underprotection. Underprotected people have NO idea how to handle being in contact with people from around the world. They are quick to think and will post personal information without considering it first. Basically, underprotected people haven't been taught by their parents anything about handling sensitive information - so, to them, it doesn't matter if someone knows everything about them.

An underprotected person would react in an IRC channel like this if they are every asked to meet on some dusty sidestreet:

lets meet at 123 fake street. i have something to show you

okay see you tomorrow

Then, in two days time, it turns out he/she was the victim of a crime that took place on 123 Fake Street.

Now: Overprotected people.

Overprotection. Mainly, I will discuss the people overprotecting their kids, rather than the overprotected people.

Overprotective people will sometimes even not allow their children on IRC, or Internet forums. Is this fear really necessary?

No. While people of 20 years ago first thought things like IRC were dangerous, now they are expanding to be a larger part of our world. Example: I couldn't have survived Cybernations without my alliance's IRC channel. If I was banned from using IRC, how would I have ever taken the IRC alliance interview? Not to mention other stuff Cybernations and Nationstates use IRC for. Forums can be set up by anyone so that any group of people can get together and discuss whatever - It is not only used by child predators.

My ultimate theory is that this "Oh noes - someone knows your city!" Fear was back when the world wasn't connected by technology - when it was considered a luxury to talk to someone across the World. Back when it would be odd for someone from Scandinavia to what city someone from India lived in. Now? People post Youtube Videos with their addresses in them. Anyone can see people making themselves look like idiots on the World Wide Web. Heck, when you're filling out your blogger profile you can choose to say what city you're from. This is normal. GET WITH THE PROGRAM. Hey, why should I invite any friends over to my house? Then they'll learn my address and tell it to their parents who'll tell it to their friend who *Could* be a child predator. Oh, they don't even need to come over - It's in the ADDRESS BOOK. Burn the address books!

*Note that the last few lines were done sarcastically.

Anyway, Logical protection is the balance between these two. Don't meet people at sidestreets at night, (no duh) but don't be a closed up person who won't say anything about themselves either - will anyone like you if you're like that?

So, the choice is yours. You can stay in your little safety bubble world where address books are banned, or you can venture out and explore the vast world of the 21st century.

Anyway, that sums up my rant on Internet Security.

I'm sure Yeah568 will have about a million more reasons supporting my argument. So, I'll leave that to the comments section. Enjoy the show!

GTA: CW and Pokemon Platinum Reviews are coming!

Hey all!

I managed to get myself a copy of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, and Pokemon Platinum. What?!?! Pokemon Platinum isn't even out yet! Yeah, yeah. I know. But seriously, people who work at game stores who are your friends FTW.

Anyways, be sure to expect reviews for both games coming soon. GTA is most likely to come first.

~Yeah568

Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon

The_Roosterton here, with a pre-review of Nintendo's newest (and first) Fire Emblem game for the Nintendo DS - Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon! (Fire Emblem: Shin Ankoku to Hikari No Tsurugi) This game is a remake of the very first NES Fire Emblem game. Anyways, on with the pre-review!

Story: The Story looks decent so far. Original, considering it came from a NES game.

Gameplay: Impressive gameplay, very challenging, but it lacks some of the features that other games in the series like Radiant Dawn had.

Graphics & Music: Not bad graphics, for a Nintendo DS. The music is good, but it gets repetitive.

That's just a taste of the game so far. Expect a full review once I've finished it!

P.s: Over 1000 page views! Thanks to all our readers!

Mac OS X > Windows

Nothing to say, besides Mac OS X > Windows.

Sid Meier's Grand Review

R2D2 Here!

*Warning - This will take a long time, if you will read all of it.*


Today, I will be reviewing three games in one post, all of them by the epic game-maker, Sid Meier.



We will review Alpha Centauri, Civilization 3, and Civilization 4, which are all turn-based empire running games. (though not MMOG's, like Cyber Nations or Nation States 2. Also unlike those 2 online games, these have graphics engines and go into way more detail. Unfair to compare them, though.) Anyway, on with the reviews.



ALPHA CENTAURI



One of the older games in the series.



STORY: Earth has been completely ruined by anarchists and such, and some sort of WWIII breaks out. Before everyone is killed, the most important UN figures go on a high-tech space ship to inhabit the far away planet, known as planet. (?) On the way there, a reactor engine melts down, and the political figures must get to planet via these weird pods, ending up getting split up from one another. Choose one of these figures to play as (An environmentalist, mad scientist, religous person, Military commander, communist, or an industrialist) and lead your colony on planet. You will encounter various challenges, evil worms trying to take over your colony, and more. Enjoy.



STORY: 9/10



GAMEPLAY: At first, I despised the game because of hard to learn controls, but soon got the hang of it. You send colony pods out to build bases on planet (Which function like cities) that will grow over time, depending on how much resources they have. You can choose to build certain things from these bases. (Military units, scouts, recycling tanks) How fast you build these depends on your nations mineral income. Lastly, energy. Energy acts like a revenue source, and is used to hurry production of things, bribe rival colonies, and do other stuff like that. Each base may gain you or lose you energy, depending on how wisely you use it. Customize your government as you research new technologies, declare war on other colonies, map out each and every part of planet, what you want to do is really up to you. The game ends when your colony gets wiped out, or someone wins a certain victory, (Like destroying everyone, or becomeing the UN's supreme leader) or when time runs out, in which case whoever has the most points will win. This game's gameplay = win, despite being hard to learn at first.



GAMEPLAY: 9/10

GRAPHICS & MUSIC: The game has a top-down graphics engine. As for detail, well, it was released for Windows in 1999, so you can't expect too much.

As for music, I have to say it sounds identical to the Command and Destroy Sci-fi stuff. Only this time, its understandable due to the game's age.

GRAPHICS & MUSIC: 7/10

ALPHA CENTAURI OVERALL: A great game for Sid Meier n00bs and series veterans alike.

OVERALL: 8.3/10 (Great game.)

CIVILIZATION III:

The fourth game in the Civ Series (if you count Alpha Centauri as the Civilization series.)

STORY: You are the leader of a real-life Civilization. Choose one of many leaders and dominate. Start with a wimpy settler and grow into an empire.

STORY: 8/10

GAMEPLAY: Gameplay engine identical to that of Alpha Centauri, with added features, more units & buildings, Cities rather than bases, and other minor improvements. The instructions for this one is much more clear than Alpha Centauri's instructions. The game starts in the ancient time, where there were weak soldiers, tiny buildings, and overall less to do, and end in the future. One complaint is less customization - in Alpha Centauri, you could basically create your own military unit through alloys and guns that you have researched, while you can't in Civ 3, making some aspects of Alpha Centauri more enjoyable.

GAMEPLAY: 7.5/10

GRAPHICS & MUSIC: Music is epic. There are lots of original tracks, from tribal things to massive orchestras. The graphics are a lot better than Alpha Centauri's, with more detail and colour. Same top-down engine.

GRAPHICS & MUSIC: 9/10

CIVILIZATION III OVERALL: Another hit by Sid Meier.

OVERALL: 8/10

CIVILIZATION IV:

The newest Civ game that I've played.

STORY: Same as Civ 3, only with much more Civilizations to choose from, and multiple leaders for each Civ. Also, each leader has more of a unique personality, (i.e Ghandi is very peaceful, while Stalin will come to war over one measly thing.)

STORY: 8.5/10

GAMEPLAY: More units, more buildings, more improvements... One major addition is religion. Religion can spread in your cities, (whether it be Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Islam, or Confucianism) and converting to that religion will bring +1 happiness in all the cities that have that religion. Or, have free religion and make everyone happy, though that's only available once you have enough technology. Something else good about Civ 4 is, more rivers. In Civ 3, you needed rivers to provide irrigation to adjacent farms. Rivers were very scarce, and, as a result, you could end up with a lot of starving people on your hands. In Civ 4, you still need irrigation, but there are lots more rivers. Also, there are more barbarians, (people who randomly try to take over your Civilization) and there is even a mode where you can play as the barbarians. Unlike other Civ games, Civ 4 focuses less on Getting more of the same, and more on getting more new. Civ 4's gameplay definitely isn't disappointing in any way.

GAMEPLAY: 9/10

GRAPHICS & MUSIC: Big step up for graphics, going into the best of details. One minor Graphics problem is that in the later stages of the game, when there is lots of everything, the game can get a bit laggy.
The music is pretty good. They kept a few tracks from Civ 3, and got a bunch of new ones as well.

GRAPHICS & MUSIC: 8.5/10

CIVILIZATION IV OVERALL: Epic.

OVERALL: 8.6/10

OVERALL FOR ALL 3: In all, the games manage to keep the charm of the last one, while adding many new features for each one.

OVERALL FOR ALL 3: 8.3/10

YourFonts.com Review

Yeah568 here with another review, but this time not of a game, but of a service. It lets you create your own font, with your own writing/symbols. I have to admit - it's dead simple to use. Took me about, say, 5 minutes to set everything up, and then about 10 minutes to write everything in. Just print out the template, fill it in, scan it, and download. Told you it was simple. You can see my crappy writing which is my new font below.


Yeah yeah, I already know that my writing sucks. But hey, the quality, I have to admit, is pure awesome. No smudges or anything. But seriously. Doesn't it look so awesome? This is going right up there with my Super Mario Bros font.

Anyways, this is Yeah568, signing off.

Cyber Nations

Hello! This is R2D2, here to tell everyone about another Nation-Running game, this one called Cyber Nations. (And I learned about it from a guy who played Nation States 2.)

Same concept, to run a nation. However, it goes into a LOT more detail, and they already have a working war feature. Each day, collect taxes, pay bills, expand your military, buy infrastructure, technology, land, and get better!

Also, there are alliances, but unlike NS2, you can only be in one alliance at a time, and these alliances are hosted at off-site forums.

Website adress located at www.cybernations.net.

My nation is called Roosterton. Everyone is in the same world, so we don't need to worry about that.

~R2D2

Nation States 2 Review

Hello! This is R2-D2 with our long-awaited review of the MMOG, Nation States 2!

STORY: You are a world leader. Do as you wish.

STORY: 0/0.

GAMEPLAY: The gameplay is text based, you run a nation, make friends (or enemies) with other nations, blockade people, trade with people, Answer issues (that will mould your nation) join alliances, and more, all with the mouse. There are very little restrictions as to what your nation can do, but there are a few annoying things that I'd like to note:

-The website (http://www.nationstates2.com/) is very slow, and often just STOPS for no apparent reason. I guess that's to be expected with 30,000+ nations.

-If, say, you are in a big alliance, and an alliance law demands that you trade with everyone in that alliance, you cannot set to trade wth everyone in the alliance. You HAVE to go nation by nation, setting status with each one.

-LOTS of inactive nations. (cough cough Yeah568) In some worlds, literally almost half of the nations are inactive and haven't logged in for a few weeks.

Other than those issues, the gameplay is good.

GAMEPLAY: 7.5/10

GRAPHICS: Text based. (N/A)

MUSIC: Browser-based games don't have music. (N/A)

OVERALL: A good game to pass the time. Just don't expect to be on it for hours on end.

OVERALL: 7.5/10

Gotta Love Glitches. Episode 2.

Hey guys!

I'm finally here with another episode of Gotta Love Glitches. I'm now attempting to try to get a new post up two or three days, but I don't promise anything. Anyways, on to the post!

This time, the glitch is from Game Giveaway of the Day, a site which gives away games for a day, for free.


As you can see, the thumbs up or thumbs down percentage equals, well, 101%. One hundred and one percent. 100+0+1%. Not the usual 100%, but 101%. Weird, huh? GGotD has some explaining to do......

So, that about wraps up this episode of Gotta Love Glitches. 'Till next time, this is Yeah568, signing off.

Send it in!

Just a little tip to you loyal fans out there that there's a new e-mail for the Mario Blog team - roosterton.blog(at)gmail(dot)com . Send us your questions, concerns, recommendations, whatever to that email there. And BTW - we're accepting positions to help us with our blogging. Send us a simple resume to the address above.

Yeah568, signing off.

One-man Orchestra plays Wind Waker Music

Hey! Yeah568 here with another awesome find, which is just awesome. Also, sorry about the long period of time when I wasn't posting. I was on vacation, and nowhere was there free Wi-Fi! Grr....

Anyways, a guy named Fredrik Larsson created this jawdropping piece of music. All by himself. No help. 19 parts. Over and over and over. Amazing, isn't it?



Watch the video on YouTube here.

So, I have to go do other stuff now, so see ya guys later!!

~Yeah568

Star Wars - The Force Unleashed (Wii) Full Review

Hello! This is teh R2D2, with the full SWTFU review.

I finished the game a LOT sooner than I expected, if anyone's wondering why the pre and full reviews are so close together. Anyway, on with the review!

STORY:

The main character is the un-named apprentice of Darth Vader between episodes 3 and 4. While he starts out serving Vader, he slowly betrays him and eventually fights with him. With an original story and a tragic-but-heroic ending, the story is pretty damn good. However, it loses a few marks for one reason... I beat it in SEVEN HOURS and 20 minutes, split among three days. :0! Way too short.

STORY: 7/10

GAMEPLAY:

The gameplay seems good at first. The Wii-remote is used as your lightsaber and the Nunchuck is used to control your force powers. And throwing Wookies of high bridges with the force never gets old :). However, it sometimes gets irritating as you start to feel that the Wii-remote is a bit undersensitive, and the Nunchuck is a bit too sensitive. Also, the creators need to draw the line between "a Large Variety" of Force Powers and "An Excessively insane" amount of Force Powers. You seem to have so many, yet I probably used only half of them more than once or twice. The enemies and landscapes don't really change much throughout the game, and they get boring after a while.

GAMEPLAY: 7/10

MUSIC:

The music is taken pretty much directly from the movies. While it isn't bad, you'd think that they could be a BIT more original.

MUSIC: 8/10

GRAPHICS:

While the Graphics to a good job of animating flinging Storm-Troopers and Force Lighting Storms, the character detail is like that of a PS-2 game. Literally. Its detail is about as good as Star Wars BattleFront 2, for the PS2. They could be more detailed, me thinks.

GRAPHICS: 7/10

OVERALL:

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is a C+ Game, nice if you want some mindless lightsaber-swinging action. However, don't expect it to be a 24-hour Epic, or a challenging game.

OVERALL: 7.25/10 - meh...

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (Wii) Pre-Review

Hello! R2D2 here!

I recently got Star Wars: The Force Unleashed for the Nintendo Wii. So far the game is okay. Here are my draft - rough copy thoughts on the game so far.

Story - The story looks good so far. A bit corny at times, but good. (I will say what the story actually is in the full review :))

Gameplay - Good gameplay at first, but it gets a bit drab. Also, the Wii Remote (Used as your lightsaber) is somewhat unresponsive at times. Force powers are cool, though.

Music - Music taken straight from the movies, so I can`t really complain.

Graphics - Meh. Could be better.

That`s the quick idea of it. Much more detail in the full review, coming soon!