Hilarious April Fool's Joke on IGN

I just found the fake trailer IGN did for a Legend of Zelda movie...It looked really good, and it makes me sad it's not real. Go here to watch it.

Upcoming games that will be awesome

This summer features the release of some pretty awesome games, for both the casual and the hardcore gamer.

For Wii owners who also have WiiFit, and have been looking for a more hardcore workout, then EA Sports Active is the game for you. The fitness game feels like a personal trainer and comes with resistance bands and a leg strap for the nunchuck. The balance board can also be used for this game. From the feedback I've heard about WiiFit, it's not quite the workout people thought it would be. EA Sports Active looks ready to fill the spot of hardcore workout game for the Wii. The game releases May 19. Check out the EA Sports Active home Web site for more information.

For the hardcore gamer or Batman fan, Batman: Arkham Asylum releases June 23, and looks to be amazing. The visual look of the game is very dark, which is appropriate for the setting. The game is based inside Arkham Asylum, and Batman must fight his way through many of the villains he helped put there to get to the Joker. There is a complete site set up for the game that shows the visual look and action, as well as going through the storyline. The site also offers trailers for the game. XBox 360 and PS3 owners can most likely download a playable demo for the game now.

The fun that is "Eternal Sonata"

A friend let me borrow Eternal Sonata recently. Namco-Bandai published, the game is an RPG on the XBox 360 and PlayStation 3, featuring a beautiful soundtrack, colorful and cheerful visuals, and a battle system that I enjoyed from the minute I picked up the controller.

Eternal Sonata features characters that are all named after some aspect of music. I haven't gotten very far into the game yet, and I've encountered Polka, Allegretto, and Beat, as well as composer Frederic Chopin. The world the player explores seems to be the world inside of Chopin's head, who is suffering from an illness that keeps him in an unconscious state.

From the opening scenes, the music creates the feel of the world, and that is of a quirky, colorful, yet elegant world. Rather than your run-of-the-mill game music, the music has a classical feel to it. Apropos considering the game involves Chopin and the world inside his head.

The visuals of the game are a contrast to some of the themes introduced. Vibrant colors abound, with even the underground or night scenes possessing colors that seem cheerful somehow. I love the costumes that the characters have as well. Each has their own look, and it varies based on their personality.

When the semester is over, I'm going to sit down and give this game the attention it deserves. From what I've played so far, I'm a little confused, but completely loving it. Updates later after I've beaten it.

Movie Games, are they good?

I cannot remember how many times people ask me about movie games. You know, the games that are released the same time as the movie, with the same name?

"So, is this a good game?"
Me: "Well, it has its good points, but overall...well, did you like the movie?"
"Yeah! It was great."
Me: "Don't ruin it by playing the game then. It's horrible."

In general, movie games do not have the same amount of time spent on them that others do. Also, the do not have the freedom to make their own plots...because they have to follow the movie.
The mechanics tend to be the basic platforming type game, which is well and good when done right.

If you want to play a fun platforming game, go for something like Ratchet and Clank, or the Jak and Daxter series. These two are great platformers with original characters and a well-thought out plot and execution of actions.

Guitar Hero Metallica PS2

Guitar Hero Metallica releases this week for the PlayStation 2. Guitar Hero or Metallica fans, prepare to rock.

My New Favorite Movie

When it came out in theatres, I really wanted to see Baz Luhrman's Australia. After seeing some of his previous movies, I felt certain I would like this one. Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman are some of my favorite actors, and they certainly didn't disappoint in this movie. Australia was epic, tragic, beautiful, heart-wrenching, and hopeful. Visually and musically gorgeous, the movie draws you deeply into the story.

When we are first introduced to Lady Ashleigh, (Nicole Kidman), we see her as a weak, useless woman whose only concern is selling Faraway Downs in Australia to get her husband to come home. After she arrives and finds her husband murdered, Lady Ashleigh makes the decision to stay and see the work on Faraway Downs finished.

Hugh Jackman plays a cattle drover who is pivotal to her success. A little rough around the edges, he seems to be concerned only with being free to follow his own path and the job. As the movie progresses, we see that isn't true. Jackman and Kidman's characters are drawn together by Nullah, an Aboriginal half-breed they both love.

Set in Australia with war about to break out between Japan and the U.S., Australia is a moving epic tale that is a wonderful, all around experience.

"Moon Princess" Fable in Okami

Another "Okami" post. I know. However, after finding a collection of Japanese myths and folktales, I found a story in that book which I remembered from "Okami". The legend of the Moon Princess is one that is widely known in Japan. To summarize, a poor bamboo-cutter is out one night, and sees a bamboo stalk that has a radiant light coming from it. He cuts it open, and sees a beautiful baby girl. He takes her home to his wife, and they raise the child. As the child grows, she becomes famous for her beauty and radiance, with kings and commoners alike in love with her. The day comes when Kaguya-hime (Moon Princess) is summoned back to the moon. she does, but leaves behind a garment to remind her guardians of her love for them.

"Okami" uses this legend for one of the stages in the game, and the details are very accurate. A humorous element is even mixed in by making the princess have rabbit ears, referencing another popular Japanese myth; the rabbit in the moon legend goes along with the Moon Princess legend. The player must find the princess and free her from the evil emperor, so she can return to the moon.

So, yet another reason to check out "Okami". You can get a literary education.

Controversy in Video Games

After the release of "Resident Evil 5" last March 13th, a friend of mine has written several articles over controversial issues in video games. For instance, the issue of racism in "Resident Evil 5". Gaming forums, newspapers, and "concerned parties" worldwide have made a big hubbub over the idea that racism is running rampant in the game. Set in Africa, the game's hero, Chris Redfield is sent to fight the newest Bio-hazard outbreak which has changed people into zombies, the likes of which have never been seen before. The problem? 

Chris Redfield is white. Caucasian. Not of African descent. He's neutralizing African zombies. In large numbers. Obviously, that is a plot by Capcom to beat down a specific race, not to be realistic to the setting. For a more in depth discussion, my friend has a great article on the Nashville Examiner website. 

Why do people find issues where there are none? "Well, all the kids that did those awful school shootings played these dang videogame things...obviously that's what caused it!" ......Really? Wow. What an original assumption. That HAS to be the answer. It never occurred to people to look at the environment that a person grew up in, because parents would never be so irresponsible as to ignore their children or cause them to have huge issues when they grow up. Nah...it's video games. 

My whole statement is simply this: don't just make an assumption because the news media says something is evil. Don't take a simple opinion as gospel. I believe video games are another form of entertainment, and a good one at that. They are no more evil in their portrayal of violence than movies such as Kill Bill,

Okami Amaterasu: The Sun Goddess featured in a videogame?

Folklore and mythology have long been rich forms of storytelling. Many movies, games, books, and other forms of art often have their base in a story that has deep cultural roots. Valkyrie Profile, God of War, and Okami are just a few that come to mind. Valkyrie Profile deals with Norse mythology, God of War with Greek, and Okami with Japanese. I think Okami is unique for the way it interprets the characters and the visual representation of the Japanese culture.

Originally made for the PlayStation 2, Okami is a platforming game where the player controls the character Amaterasu...fondly called Ami-chan throughout the game. Ami-chan is the reincarnation of Okami Amaterasu, brought back to save Japan from destruction by demons.

The battle system for the game is unique and beautifully executed. Players have the traditional normal weapon attacks, but the fun comes from calligraphy style symbols the player draws, calling on special abilities and attacks. This is particularly easy to use in the Wii version of the game. The motion controls are so intuitive for drawing the symbols, and the power of the attacks increases the bigger you draw the symbol on the screen. Bosses have to be defeated using a conglomeration of each style, with the player figuring out how to use the calligraphy attacks to inflict damage.

The visual style of the game is reminiscent of a watercolor or sumi-e style painting. Bright, vivid watercolor style colors give the game an artistic feel that transports you to feudal era Japan. I love the bright colors and stylization personally. If the execution had been blurry or less-detailed, there is no way possible this look could've worked. However, whenever an area is cleared of corruption, there is a gorgeous sequence showing the land being restored to its former glory that I NEVER get tired of. It's very inspiring to watch and refreshes you in preparation for the next series of lands in the game.

The soundtrack can be haunting and creepy at times. One level has the player exploring a partially-sunken ship at night, and the spirits on the ship block the player's view, making for a difficult and odd situation. The music accents the visuals in the best possible way, and you find yourself humming a track without even realizing it.

I really like the way the game incorporates Japanese customs and lore, making the game a rather educational experience rather than just mindless fun. It actually inspired me to learn more about Amaterasu and Japanese myths.

For Wii and PlayStation 2 owners who are also fans of platforming games, or just wonderful games in general, Okami is a must buy. I can recommend this game to anyone with no reservations, and this is the game that I can convince people to buy at work. Seriously. Don't ask me about Okami if you're not ready to spend money because you will walk out of the store ready to play it.

Dream career

I've actually come to a firm realization of what I want to do with my life. I'm a Public Relations major, hopefully graduating soon, so this may be a little late.

I would LOVE to work in the PR department of a major video game developer. It would have to be a developer I know and love, or can at least respect. I don't think I could work for Rockstar, because on the whole, I disapprove of their games. I know this would require me to move out to the West Coast, but if I make enough money to live, that would be okay with me.

My boss thinks I should work in the PR department of GameStop, and since I already "have a foot in the door" it would be fantastic. That's in Texas though. I like to see color and live grass, plants, and flowers where I live.

Regardless, that is my career aspiration. Let's hope one day I reach it.

Yes, I cry every time I beat FFX

This may be the only Final Fantasy game that made me cry. Final Fantasy X, the first title for the Playstation 2, is the story of the summoner Yuna, and a boy from Zanarkand named Tidus. FFX follows Tidus and Yuna as they travel through Spira on Yuna's pilgrimage to become a full-fledged summoner in order to defeat Sin.

The game begins with Tidus, in his home-town of Zanarkand. Sin arrives, destroying parts of the city and sending Tidus to a place and time he doesn't recognize. Whenever he asks someone about Zanarkand, or explains that he's trying to get back home to Zanarkand, they just think he is affected by his proximity to Sin and suffering from the toxins. Thus, he is disregarded.

Tidus eventually meets Yuna, and he becomes one of her guardians on her pilgrimage. Being the same age, the two bond, and become friends. Throughout the game, you see that the two are falling in love.

This was the first Final Fantasy I noticed on overt spiritual reference. The ultimate enemy, Sin, is a problem that has plagued Spira since the before the Machina War with Zanarkand. Summoners train and begin the pilgrimage to acquire the Final Aeon in order to defeat Sin. The problem is, Sin is never really defeated, only made to go away for several years. The catch is that the peace in between Sin appearances come at the cost of the Summoner's life.

Tidus knows this, and has made it his mission to help Yuna find a way to defeat Sin without having to die for it. At the conclusion of the game, there is a particularly poignant scene, accompanied by beautiful, sad, music, that never fails to make me tear up. I've gotten caught up in Tidus and Yuna as people, involved in their lives. To see them so sad, makes me sad. More than any other game so far, this is the one that I get wrapped up in the most. It is a wonderful game, and focused on the characters. Love it. Play it if you haven't. You won't be sorry.

Final Fantasy VI

For some people, it's Final Fantasy VII. I can understand why: it was the first Final Fantasy in the States to be on the Playstation, and had 3 discs to it. The story was revolutionary and intricate, with more layers to the characters than an onion. It is a fabulous game, with great music and characters. That's why it's my second favorite Final Fantasy of all time.

So what is better about VI than VII? For me, I love the characters more. The issues they have individually are so human; they each have a back story. My favorite characters are Terra (Tina in the Japanese), Celes, and Locke.

Terra is sort of the main character of the game, though everybody is equally important. When you begin the game, you see Terra in a sort of robotic armor/vehicle thing. For some reason, she can't remember who she is. The subsequent characters we meet help her, and we learn more about the world of Magitek, and the evil empire of Ghastra. The important thing to know about Terra is that she is half Esper.

The big baddie of the game is Kefka. Boy, is he loony. He wants to rule the world and use the power of Espers to do it. It's complicated I know. I think this screenshot says all we need to know about him. Consequently, he's about to throw poison in a river to completely dominate a rebellious city. The main plot of the story is that our characters need to beat him and keep him from destroying the world.

I'd really like to see Final Fantasy VI get the treatment that IV got for the DS. A complete makeover, ported onto a new system, but otherwise untouched. I still have my PSone port of the game, so I can still go back and revisit it fondly. Which I think I want to do right now.

Review of Favorites 1

With so many new-fangled fancy video game technologies out there today, I want to take a moment and remember some classics that I still absolutely love, pixelated sprite characters, 8 bit music, the whole works. To start, a Super Nintendo classic that was ported onto the DS...Chrono Trigger.

To me, this game is perhaps the greatest RPG (role-playing game) of ALL time. Not only is the save-the-world theme AMAZING and EXTREMELY well done, the characters are ABSOLUTELY AWESOME! You've got a knight-in-training-who-was-turned-into-a-frog-by-an-evil-magician, said evil magician being a playable character later in the game, you've got a princess who would rather help save the world than stand around being saved, a genius inventor, and a robot with feelings. Take THAT Haley Joel Osment! You SO weren't the first emo robot!

Basically, the main character Crono, travels through time with his band of merry misfits and participates in history changing events in each time period. An alien being called "Lavos," is the original cause of time being changed, since his very prescence opened the first time portal, called in the game "Gates." The time-changing is so much fun because once you are able to travel back and forth between times, you can see the changes that came about from your actions. The game is THAT well thought out.

The battle system is mostly your standard RPG turn-based battle, but with a more active element. Rather, you don't have a turn, and then your enemy has a turn. As your time bars fill up, you can attack. Same with the enemy. Characters can learn attacks with other characters (called Duel Techs and Triple Techs.) Triple Techs are some of the most powerful attacks in the game.

Once you've beaten the game once, you can go back through from the beginning with a feature called New Game +. Basically, this means you have all your items/equipment/techniques/stats that you had when you beat the game. This enables you to go through the game and beat it at different points to get different endings that correspond to when you beat it. Awesomeness, anyone?

Another plus is the soundtrack. The composer is Yasunori Mitsuda, but I've seen some information that makes me think Nobuo Uematsu was a contributing factor (of Final Fantasy Soundtrack fame for those who don't know.) Mitsuda created a masterpiece for this game, and every theme for every town and battle fits so well. The music creates some very poignant moments throughout the game as well.

In Preparation for the Movie Release

In preparation for the release of Watchmen Friday, I purchased the graphic novel and read it as quickly as I could. I'd never really read an actual comic graphic novel before, only graphic novels of anime series I had already watched. So this was a different experience for me. Overall, I liked it. The story was often confusing, introducing issues and then leaving them alone until several pages later, or having important details stuck into a tiny corner of a cel.

I really thought they dealt with political issues well. The characters all had to deal with the government, whether in a good or bad way, and it either shaped them or reflected who they already were. It definitely deals with the "superhero" issue in a way that I've never seen before.

That being said....Adrian Veidt is still a overglorified, whiny, I'm gonna save the world rich boy who gave up everything worship me for being so smart person. Still, I'm conflicted. He made a difficult decision based on rational facts. I'm not going to spoil the ending for those who haven't read it, but...maybe there really was no other way.

Why I love the TV show Bones

As I sit in TV purgatory, anxiously awaiting March 12th, I find the only way to make this transient state tolerable is to re-watch Bones....all three seasons (and study for school of course! ^_^) In re-watching the show, I realize just how much I really do like it. There are many reasons. You should watch. Thursdays. 7:00. Be there.

First, I love how smart the show is. I read somewhere that the science (anthropologically speaking) is dead on. The show even won some kind of award for scientific accuracy in TV. This is the kind of show where you have to listen to what's being said and watch what it correlates with. It's not just the dialogue and science though.

The characters are so amazing. I hate to sound ultra feminist, but I love the fact that Dr. Temperance Brennan (Emily Deschanel) is such a strong character. So many times, you see the female characters portrayed as silly, vapid, weak, useless...need I go on or can we all call to mind some good examples? Brennan is a genius level forensic anthropologist who helps Special Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz) solve crimes for the F.B.I. Even being a genius though, she has a disconnect with real life situations, often saying things that are somewhat inappropriate for the moment. Booth is the perfect foil for her. He has a practical, down to earth way of approaching problems, and isn't afraid to tell Brennan that something she has said might be seen as inappropriate. I have to admit, I'm somewhat in love with Booth myself.....*sigh*

The stories in the episodes are always compelling and touching. The show never forgets that it's about people, and while it does have glitzy science and thrilling action, it always comes back to the people. It's got top-class acting, wonderful stories and great writing. One of my favorite quotes from the show is by Dr. Brennan. Booth calls her a smart-ass for something she had said and meant seriously, and she replies, "Objectively, I'd say I'm very smart but it has nothing to do with my ass."

For all these reasons I love this show. I could go on for hours about specific episodes, moments that made me cry etc. etc. I definitely recommend it. Period.

Fire Emblem frustration

As I hold my DS in sweaty hands at 12:47 in the morning, trying the same battle for the 7th time in a row, I realize I like being this frustrated with a game. The problem comes from trying to talk to an enemy character (who will only talk to ONE specific character in your group). The trouble is, the enemy character is an archer, and the character who needs to talk to him is a winged unit. In the Fire Emblem world, that's TROUBLE! My Pegasus Knight can't get close enough to him in one turn to be able to talk to him, and every time I try and move her sort of close and cross my fingers he won't target her....he targets her. Aaaaaand she dies. Reset!

But that's the appeal of Fire Emblem to me. It's NOT easy and you have to actively think about where your characters will be and if they'll be in range of an enemy they are weak against! You can get a real sense of accomplishment when you finish a battle in this game. This is why I hope Nintendo continues to make Fire Emblem the way it has always been...challenging to the point of crying. If they sell out and make an easy Fire Emblem game, well, Nintendo just might lose most of their hardcore fans. Think about it Nintendo! All of those moms and grandmothers and kids that you're catering to right now? They're fickle! Marketing to them may get you alot of money right now, but you aren't doing yourself any favors by ignoring your hardcore fan base. But that's another issue for another day.

Yay for Fire Emblem!

So hopefully today I'm going to pick up Fire Emblem. It's going to be amazing.

A great day....

It's a great day for video gamers folks! This week, we have the classic arcade game Street Fighter returning to the 360 and the PS3 in its fourth installment. For those RPG folks with a DS, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon is releasing...TUESDAY!!!!! Get them both. Seriously.

New RPGs for the Wii

Since the release of the Nintendo Wii, the smattering of RPG entrees has turned into an after-the-wedding selection of hors d'oeuvres. This year, however, Nintendo may just redeem itself. At least two new RPGs (that I was able to read published reviews about) are set to release sometime this year. Arc Rise Fantasia, developed by relatively unknown-in-America Image Epoch. The other is Muramasa:The Demon Blade, developed by Vanillaware.

Arc Rise Fantasia has the standard save the world rpg plot, but adds enough of its own details to make it unique. Monsters invade the land, causing turmoil and strife throughout the land. The player must journey throughout their world and set things right again. The game won't incorporate the Wii's motion controls that I know of, utilizing the classic controller instead. I predict that the game will allow you to play with the GameCube controller if you choose as well. The battle system is traditional turn-based, but with a twist. Instead of each player having their own mp, ap, or other points to draw from, using an ability takes point from a community point pool. Because of this, strategy and planning will be important. Depending on strategy, the player could either have everyone attack, or have one player do a super attack. But what happens if the enemy attacks and there are no points to heal the characters? .........game over? Maybe. Not enough details have been released about the game to know for sure. Curious about Arc Rise Fantasia? Check out IGN for screen shots and other reviews. The game has a rather nebulous release date of summer in the states, so keep your fingers crossed Wii RPG fans!

Muramasa: The Demon Blade has my slavish devotion and it's not even released yet. Vanillaware was responsible for Odin Sphere, a game on the PS2 that garnered major approval points across the board, and Muramasa looks set to do the same. The 2-D visuals are gorgeous and colorful. The action will likely be simple, perhaps a little like Valkryie Profile on the original playstation. However, I did read a review in GameInformer that said weapons could break against certain bosses, so that could add a difficult twist.
The basic story is the current shogun of Japan in the Genroku era wants to use objects called the Demon Blades for his own power. By doing so, he unleashes evil into the land. Demons and dragons run amok, wrecking bath houses and the like....sorry, that's my imagination running rampant. You can choose to play as a male or female character, each with their own special abilities and attacks probably. The different levels and areas of the game each have their individual look, so gameplay wouldn't get boring. Again, IGN has a great outline of the game, so check them out for more details!

Fan boys at work....

So I was at work last night and had so many of my thoughts about Final Fantasy VII fanboys confirmed. I don't understand how you can say that a certain game is your "ABSOLUTE FAVORITE!!! OMG!!!" when you have played less than a quarter of the games in the series. Really, play a few more and form your own opinion instead of saying what you think makes you look cool. Then come talk to me about what you think is the best Final Fantasy ever!!! And stop asking me if I really play video games!! Honestly, just because I'm female. 

A New Type of Game

I read about this game on IGN, and thought it sounded pretty cool in concept. Whether the general populace thinks so remains to be seen, but I would give it a try. The game is called Flower, and seems to be an open-ended exploration type game. Check it out.

Stayed up waaay too late playing this

I started playing Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core in my break at school lately. I'd started playing it when I got it, and put it down when Genesis completely destroyed me. Demoralized I guess. Anyway, I did the necessary level grinding to get past that point of the game, and WOW! I'd forgotten how amazingly cool the story was to it! For those who don't know, Crisis Core is the prequel to Final Fantasy VII. Which is the Final Fantasy that EVERYBODY and their MOTHER says they love. Whether they all do or not, I don't know. I think they just say that so they'll look cool. Anyway. So much is explained in it, and so many more questions raised. Hopefully, once I beat the game, I'll have my questions answered. Right now though, I'm going to stay up indecently late and keep playing.

On reality shows...

I find it interesting how the American public has taken overwhelmingly to reality TV shows. I'm not judging. I used to watch Survivor, and still watch The Biggest Loser. I think that we all like to hear other people's stories, to see their journeys for ourselves. Watching their struggles and accomplishments, we think to ourselves, "I can do that!" We can learn so much about ourselves by seeing what we identify with when we hear other people's stories.

"I could have had carpets THIS thick!"

I bought Prince of Persia before I even bought a system I could play it on. Needless to say, I was psyched about being able to play it soon. Everything I had seen and heard about the game was good and early reviews were strong. The visual look to the game was gorgeous, and the action part sounded awesome.

The games graphics are beautiful. In an age of gaming where realism is the new sliced bread, Prince of Persia's visual style is a refreshing change of pace. The easiest description is that the visual style is a variation of realistic cel shading. (Think Legend of Zelda: Windwaker). From the opening scenes, you can't help but think about how pretty it looks. More importantly for me though, was the introduction of the characters.

The Prince and Elika are the characters whose journey you follow. The dark god Ahriman has caused the world to be corrupted, and the Prince and Elika must cleanse the lands and defeat Ahriman. Traditional, epic story right? Sort of. Except the Prince is cocky and complains about sand in his boots (and other places) and Elika is sarcastic and rather cold at first.

As you play the game, the Prince and Elika change. Although I have my issues with the game play and can admit there are certain aspects of the game I really don't like, I have to keep going. I have to find out what happens. The storyline is what keeps me playing.

Want a more official review of Prince of Persia? Game Informer online usually does a really good job, so check them out for more information.

Last week's Supernatural

Last week's episode of Supernatural, "After School Special," was what is generally called a "Monster of the Week" episode. Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) investigate what seemed to be a case of murder by demonic possession. It turns out, the high school where the murder occurred is a place of fond, and not so fond, recollection for the boys.

Why did I absolutely love this episode?

Character development and insight. So many shows today are character driven, but rarely spend enough time developing them to the point where viewers care about what happens to them. Not so with Supernatural. We finally got to see the boys when they were younger and in high school, and maybe understand some deeper things about their natures. Sam had always wanted to be normal, and never had the drive for hunting that Dean and their Dad did. Sam's English teacher told him in this episode that nobody can make you do what you don't what to do, and that you control your own destiny. Something got started in Sam's brain when he heard that, leading to his eventual decision to attend law school at Stanford.

Poor Dean. All he ever knew was hunting. Nobody was there to tell him that there was more he could do with his life. As it's been pointed out in so many episodes, Dean doesn't value himself at all, and the only way he feels he is anything is to save people. "I'm a hero!! I save lives!" Dean shouts this in the halls at school, but somehow, I just can't believe he's convinced of it himself.

I see Sam and Dean as real people, people that could exist. They are SO convincing in their roles and emotions. You feel what they feel. You hurt when they hurt. And all of this comes about because of the story being told. It pulls you in and makes you care.

Introductory Statements

To have a story, a good story, certain requirements must be fulfilled. There must be characters. There must be a conflict. There must be something that can draw a person in and make them care what happens. The sheer variety in all forms of the entertainment industry has given those who long for a story plenty to choose from. So many TV shows, video games and books create worlds that can pull us in and entertain us. For me, the story is why I play a video game, read a book or watch a TV show. Sure, the flashy special effects, the smoothness of game play will help; but if you don't care about the outcome, what's the point?

I love a good story.