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Re: Your personal saddest moments in Gaming *SPOILERS*

when Splinter Cell conviction was born.

Or a tiny sidequest in Nier when you go searching for an old, dying man's Dog who has run away into the wilderness.. ....and you find it dead with an antidote in its mouth
by Luvly KM
Fri Oct 12, 2012 6:43 pm
 
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Utter Nostalgia Trips? Experiences welcome...

Ok so i have never cried at a game before like i have with cinema and you know, switching on Jet Set Radio HD i just wasn't prepared for the nostalgia trip!!


I knew the music was memorable, i remembered how characteristic the graphics were but Its just all about the tiny little things that you could never wilfully recall... the sound of the skates , the incessant dancing , the load screen , the colour , the animation , the Dj telling you to go brush your teeth and of course that music : It all rose up to a compendium of nostalgic awesomeness to which i actually felt like crying with happiness.

It took me back as if i was holding a dreamcast controller in my hand and my room, the same room i had my dreamcast within, regressed back to how it was. the TV may as well have been one of those old portable ones. I felt like i could press the 'open' button and slip in Shenmue, or perhaps Crazy Taxi or Virtua Tennis. It took me back to a place in my living memory where times were more simple, naive and in a way more true. Even now i can barely mouth the correct words to describe it and in fact doing so merely diminishes the purity of the experience.


I didn't actually cry, but it is the nearest i ever have from playing a game. And that is not to diminish games, it is perhaps questioning whether emotion in games is in the playing, this is true of course, but is true gaming catharsis to be found in actually re-playing our older memories?




Your experiences are welcome. What games have made you cry?
by Luvly KM
Fri Oct 12, 2012 6:19 pm
 
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Re: Crying at Games? Experiences welcome...

damn. i haven't been here in a while. But anyway, mine is more emotional and is asking a more artful question :>
by Luvly KM
Fri Oct 12, 2012 6:30 pm
 
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Re: Gaming thoughts of the day

So its my birthday (not why im posting) and i have a good friend who works quality assurance at sega... He knows that i like shenmue etc etc.. And he has just sent me a birthday message saying that he is currently looking for sailors... Lets just say that I know him well enough to know what that could mean :)

also, i just finished Nier. Good ending revelation... Although i Thought the character could have been more philosophically shocked and inquisitive.. An idea such as that has the potential for a full blown charlie kaufman movie... A well earned 7/10
by Luvly KM
Sun Oct 21, 2012 1:16 pm
 
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Re: Random Thoughts! v2.0

we should do some kind of game of the year poll with accredited votes.. or game of the forever.. naturally shenmue will win but what will be second or third etc...

would be fun, call it the Shenmue Dojo canon
by Luvly KM
Tue Nov 13, 2012 10:43 am
 
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Re: Never Forget About Shenmue

This sentence:

It’s 10pm, and Ryo is walking home, crunching through the freshly laid snow after taking the bus back to town from work.

Is mindblowing.

It seems so 'un-gameish' and yet it is those exact moments why we love Shenmue. The simple essence of walking home in a videogame (from work no less!!!) is mindblowing. Every Night, As we pass by the neon lit arcade, the sushi bar on the left and the wintery park on the right - Those numbing walks home are what bind us to the fiction and immerse us even further.

magical memories. that we all share
by Luvly KM
Fri Nov 23, 2012 7:40 am
 
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Re: Shenmue retrospective

This was surprisingly vibrant and freshly written... you can tell he really enjoyed the experience of visiting Dobuita, laptop in tow.


To any Shenmue non-believer this would be a good touch stone. Very readable and informative... also his thesis of 'travelling to games worlds' is very clean and precise. now it sounds like i'm describing champagne...
by Luvly KM
Sun Nov 25, 2012 9:58 pm
 
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Re: Unpopular Opinions

casual Religious garments (such as a head scarf) are stupid... They serve nothing but to differentiate and ultimately divide people.

Diversity is superb and should be supported but purposefully wearing garments which say, "i am different to you" is not helping society.

And of course, i understand the religious element. I would only question why one needs to wear an external, materialised garment for an internalised, loving belief. surely that transcends the need to materialise.!

An unpopular opinion 101
by Luvly KM
Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:07 am
 
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Re: Shenmue retrospective

whilst i liked the other one very much.. It isn't as sharp, the first few paragraphs are dulled with platitudes you see in many articles. Shenmue is this, Shenmue is that. It bogs down the message but I don't want to be too critical as the underlining essence is great.
by Luvly KM
Mon Nov 26, 2012 9:17 am
 
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Re: Shenmue retrospective

I hear you on that. Perhaps I was too all-encompassing in my approach, but I wanted to appeal even to the uninitiated (Newb Review) - in that even if the essence of Shenmue doesn't impress them, I wanted for them to at least appreciate the game for its superficial accolades, while engaging fans at the same time. Not easy.

This will not be an issue in my Shenmue II write-up, as I now have that out of the way.

Perhaps i was being critical because i know how hard it is to write about Shenmue. Talking about all the crucial nuances which make it what it is: a thousand words can disappear in a flash. I bet you deleted just as many notes and paragraphs as there was published :] all equally important to the essence of Shenmue
by Luvly KM
Mon Nov 26, 2012 11:04 pm
 
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Re: Gaming thoughts of the day

The new wii looks like something a toddler would smash against his wall
by Luvly KM
Wed Nov 28, 2012 9:25 am
 
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Re: SHENMUE II CHARACTER DATABASE - ALL 700 CHARACTERS!!

this is fantastic work BUT its a shame it still isn't as detailed as Shenmue 1's Biography's.. I would have given my soul if the people who created this wrote their own in line with what the chracaters did in the game
by Luvly KM
Thu Nov 29, 2012 9:33 am
 
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Re: Whatever Names You Want To Post Because Nobody Gets "Epi

Henk ten Cate

/thread

But seriously, Anything Dutch. They names ze crazy.

Furkan Alakmak [jedi?]
Patrick Ax
Soeris Baidjoe [just wow]
Istvan Bakx
Dick Been
Remco Boere [seriously Remco.. what a name]
by Luvly KM
Sat Dec 08, 2012 10:02 pm
 
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Re: GOTY 2012 what's yours and why.

Xcom: Enemy Unknown

- Balanced, well oiled gameplay
- Role playing with your characters. You really begin to care about them and afix them with certain personality traits (xcom is more a story about a bunch of humans than an alien invasion)
- Punishing but fair: a game which values your decisions
- excellent in-game economy makes the base management matter
- Overall just very well designed, its one of those games you know the team enjoyed making
- Good multiplayer
by Luvly KM
Fri Nov 23, 2012 7:24 am
 
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Re: What movie are you watching right now?

Last life in The Universe [2003] - 8/10

Very careful film which cleverly says more with less. The realm of the unsaid. Also had a hot babe in it.

very good
by Luvly KM
Wed Dec 12, 2012 8:29 pm
 
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Re: What Game/Games Are You Currently Playing?

Planescape Torment.

More game should utilise the A D&D ruleset. I don't know why they don't.. Its under the bonnet stuff
by Luvly KM
Sat Dec 29, 2012 9:04 am
 
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Re: Great Videogame Music

I had a lurid, heady dream and then woke up with this in my mind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=li9TM_qqI60

Funnily, i thought it was from Persona 4 (i could swear) and spent ages going through the OST to no baffling avail!

Either way it has raised my appreciation of Catherine in my mind. Rarely can one track summaries the emotion, the atmosphere of an entire game.

An emptied glass and a coated stare.
A somber saunter to the pillow.
by Luvly KM
Sun Jan 06, 2013 1:45 pm
 
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Re: What movie are you watching right now?

Kenneth Branagh's Hamlet [1996] 242mins

9/10

Shot in 70mm which greatly adds to the wonderful sense of place (the palace and all its hidden doors feel traversable from the mind) and some great acting all-round; all upon the bountiful tapestry of Shakespeare, who it must be said, understood the human condition with such ease and eloquence.

The post 4 hour running time really allows the work to breathe: Shakespeare's plots were never groundbreaking, but the dimension he adds to characters is astonishing. Their inner turmoils and unsaid tangents. Even characters such as Horatio feel real.

My favourite monologue from the whole play is as follows:

“Seems,” madam? Nay, it is . I know not “seems.”
'Tis not alone my inky cloak, good mother,
Nor customary suits of solemn black,
Nor windy suspiration of forced breath,
No, nor the fruitful river in the eye,
Nor the dejected 'havior of the visage,
Together with all forms, moods, shapes of grief,
That can denote me truly. These indeed “seem,”
For they are actions that a man might play.
But I have that within which passeth show,
These but the trappings and the suits of woe.


Its about not needing to display anything to anyone when you know something to be true from within. When you are happy you shouldn't have to show anyone that you are happy to be justified in your happiness. And likewise for sadness: crying, sighing and looking utmost morose does not truly denote the deepermost feeling of grief. For these are humane gestures which people can play -- like cards -- to 'seem' some certain feelings or another. Never do these tangents touch upon the absolute truth of the soul.

And so Hamlet doesn't need to show his sadness for validation of it. He is upset, calcified even more so without any of the outward shows of it... It is. Emotion is . Why dress it up.

I am Hamlet. I love my sister but rarely do I outwardly show it. As for anger, as for sorrow, as for argument, as for passion. These things reside within me with such raw, flipping, spooling fervour that not only is it difficult to filter them outwards, but rarely do i feel the need. They have already reached truth within. Anything more is a facsimile of it.

And it is not that i don't want to outwardly show affection or personal passions but with Hamlet, Shakespeare has noted the pitfalls and sometimes folly of the attempt. Of ever being able to truly denote ourselves to others through the hazy medium of gestures and almost-truths.

We must simply be how we feel.




TL:DR - Just 'do' shakespeare. In any form.
by Luvly KM
Sun Jan 06, 2013 4:42 pm
 
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Re: Did Shenmue have the best music ever?

I agree that it is the most atmospheric and emotional music ever made for a game.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqtkgzFeoww[/youtube]

such strong recall of the time: the portable Tv, the contentment, as innocent as Ryo himself.
by Luvly KM
Fri Feb 01, 2013 8:47 am
 
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Re: Shenmue HD/3 Kickstarter

I would donate up to £200. Oxymoronically I would still rather not have a shenmueIII.

Conclusions are always better in the mind. Answers always deflate the original mystique. MGS4 told me this.
by Luvly KM
Tue Feb 12, 2013 8:08 am
 
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Re: Official Automotive Discussion

my Shenmue car 'tattoo'

Image
by Luvly KM
Sat Mar 23, 2013 1:06 pm
 
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Re: Shenmue 3 on PlayStation 4 ?

yes! YES! YYEESSSS!

Cerny Understands.

To be serious for a second, i can't help but feel it would be a good strategy for PS4. They are inherently gathering the casual market and so this would guarantee some 'hardcore' sales... being modest i would say at least 500,000 console sales right there.
by Luvly KM
Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:13 am
 
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Re: Shenmue 3 on PlayStation 4 ?

disagree. Exclusivity can incentivise sales. HD remasters could perhaps even damage sales. Hinting that casuals must play 1 and 2 to appreciate 3 would just result in them not bothering at all. Only a few completionists (and us) would relish going through them all.

Plus, if you don't call it Shenmue III it can be marketed almost as a brand new game to a brand new market...

Edit: Plus, if Shenmue III is EVER going to happen then the deal is always going to be struck for a new console. This is when publishers are scurrying with their war chest looking for diverse IP for their portfolios. stuff like Lost Odyssey arose out of 'portfolio moneyhatting'.

"Hey guys we need a JRPG to penetrate the Japanese and enthusiast market, Lets make it Happen" "We've got racing, FPS, puzzle and online covered, we need to tick all boxes around launch day" (etc etc)
by Luvly KM
Fri Mar 29, 2013 7:22 am
 
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Re: The Bioshock thread

yes i'd relay to just jump straight into Infinite.

Responding to Mue 26 regarding BioShock 2's narrative: i just really like the sense behind attempting to create the "Utopian".. As Rapture had shown, it was Humanity itself which had failed and no particular individual. The rationale behind supporting a Utop ian before a Utopia can arrive is sound, empatheic logic. But then of course the game asks if the sordid, behavioral conditioning means can justify such ends! and for this instance it actually might!! which for myself is a shocking revelation in a medium where baddies are drawn with very crude motives.

Such was the philosophical questions it pondered however, i found myself very much disliking its gamey conclusion. A la Deus Ex HR, it needed a grand sit down conversation battle where ones tongue and mind became the most powerful plasmid!
by Luvly KM
Sun Mar 31, 2013 11:00 am
 
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Re: The Bioshock thread

I'm happy you enjoyed it so much. Battleship Bay was an ultimate highlight, when Elizabeth began skipping stones i actually got a real life deja vu which i found to be incredibly strange. it was an enigmatic moment. Girls just wanna have fun echoing in the background...

All i can say is that despite my misgivings I still greatly appreciate what it is doing. rarely do i want to replay a game so earnestly and i'm thinking that 1999 mode shall alleviate some of my gameplay concerns. But yes major plaudits have to be given to the Levine for the Songbird death crawl in Bioshock 1 internet finding. A beautiful bow to the series whilst duly underlining the multiverse thematics.

Also i am positively certain that the Songbird design was stolen from a big Daddy via a tear into Rapture, no other way can we explain its strong mutual link to Elizabeth. Our very own 'little sister'.

Further small details like that really make the game appreciable. [the police drawing of Booker looking a bit like Comstock too!!]
by Luvly KM
Fri Apr 05, 2013 3:51 pm
 
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Re: This just blows my mind

i have just been re-impressed by this. I love light coming through the dojo and the added grunginess of the graphics really adds to the sense of poverty in Kowloon..
by Luvly KM
Tue Apr 09, 2013 3:54 pm
 
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Re: Vote Shenmue in Empire poll

As an internet forum which values discussion, why don't we detail why we choose Shenmue et al. i.e. what did you tell empire?

Myself:

1. Shenmue II

Fondest memory: The final chapter where one must simply walk through the countryside and converse with a local upon topics of nature, life and friendship. There are no cuts or forced concessions to gaming action, the player is simply allotted the time and freedom to appreciate the essence of gaming. This final chapter is gaming by way of Akira Kurosawa and for myself, there is no higher accolade...

2. Shenmue

Fondest memory: The audacity of having to earn a living every game day, physically travelling to work with no ellipses placed upon time and meeting quota with your menial warehouse job, this is a game which is closer to Italian neorealism than its brethren in the stable of adventure games.

And most importantly, it is this stark setting within the mundane which elevates its eventual action to that of a crescendo: contrast and juxtaposition working its wonders. A gaming feat well ahead of the mediums current fixation in its own peculiar version of the exploitation milieu.

3. Star Wars: Knights of the old Republic

The twist and how it is only through gaming that it could work so brilliantly... You chasing yourself over an epic course of exploration, companionship and well-judged D20 action....

4. Killer7

Fondest memory: An ode to insanity: How the glasses of the main character's schizophrenia is filtered over the player in all of its cackling enemies, brooding ambience and enigmatic tone. I do recall shooting floating rubber ducks over a maniacal score of bizarre happiness. Master, this is hot!

5. Shadow of the Colossus

It is the solemn quietude of the environment, the howl of the wind and distant birds which beautifully underline this tale of love and what one must do to sustain it.

Fondest Memory would be the sincere emptiness of the environment...
by Luvly KM
Fri Nov 01, 2013 9:14 am
 
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Re: Review The Last Game You Beat

Planescape Torment // Black isle Studios // 1999

7/10

"A very well written game, spooling with creativity marred by rather dour combat gameplay"

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b309/Matrix5904/ps_arm1.png [/url]


Many gamers regard this as one of the best games ever made and to be fair I can understand why: the setting, ambience, writing and original soundtrack all hit the mark but it is the crude representation of the D&D ruleset which hinders this game from being truly special.

Even the companions, whilst initially very interesting devolve into typical fantasy blather as the game progresses. It really is quite bizarre! Each character is given a great premise or high concept but then nothing ever comes of it, they are characters by way of the back of a very creative cereal box, scissored into the game with charm but little substance.

But don't let that dissuade you as this is one of the most creative games ever made, we see street performing mimes doing their stuck-in-the-box routine -- except here, they are actually stuck in an invisible box set by a facetiously bored mage. Or a stolen head that you find in a box who wishes to be taken back to his body! You can really tell the developers had a good time in envisioning this world. And it is a world, so vivid in its conception that you could perhaps even envision it as an actual extension of our own. It's multi-verse setting encouraging the imagination that Earth could be but one faint strand of its entourage.


Overall, this is a game which regularly touches upon greatness but it is it's baseline game play and mechanics which have either aged rather badly, or indeed weren't very great to begin with...

Tis a shame, but in a game successfully meditating upon themes of identity, memories and mortality, I can proffer that this is a game worth playing before we ourselves face our mortality... Tooth, arm and nail.
by Luvly KM
Mon Nov 04, 2013 10:56 am
 
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Re: Ryuichi Sakamoto -- Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence

The Music at Shalour City from the recent pokemon X/Y strongly reminded me of shenmue in its tone!!

phpBB [video]


love it
by Luvly KM
Sat Nov 09, 2013 2:43 pm
 
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Re: Look at it!!!

bad image macro, but the message still stands.

Indie darlings such as Cart Life are heralded for their focused monotony and yet Shenmue was slated for it. 1999 wasn't ready for it!
by Luvly KM
Sat Nov 23, 2013 10:23 am
 
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