Getting Hyped for New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Part 1 or ???)

Even though the biggest game of the year is less than three hours from official release here at the West Coast, I already blabbed about not joining the party right away and possibly getting it at a later time like maybe next month. In the meantime, I will blab about my most wanted game of the moment, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which is out on Sunday, or unless you're playing luckily early. While I'm not really into the first person shooter that will ruin my life (I already experienced that with Halo 2 and 3), I'm preferring a true hardcore game that feels old-school, but new again for everyone else. The hype for New Super Mario Bros. Wii has been there since it was announced at this year's E3 as if this one will be as good as the best 2D Mario games, which is a tossup between Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World, but that can be debated in a later time or somewhere else. Maybe its my little Nintendo fanboyism that is left in me that still loves their games to no end (Super Mario Galaxy being my favorite Nintendo game out this decade). I still love the Mario games for what they are and been in the past and NSMB Wii will be another love letter to the old-school bringing in lots of fan service if you have been following the game for yourself. In the meantime as my hype continues to rise, enjoy some videos of the first three levels from the game. Gosh I can't wait for Sunday, as I don't plan on doing anything else besides getting through as much of this game as I can.

The latest on my YouTube channel for 11/7/09

First off is the debut trailer of actual footage for the EA Sports MMA game featuring Strikeforce. That means, no UFC peeps in this one, but at least there's Fedor. Who knows if this game will provide UFC 2009 Undisputed competition whether or not its better than that, but we'll see. EA Sports MMA is out sometime next year. Maybe THQ and Yuke's should start telling us about their next UFC game already since Undisputed was a great success bringing MMA right to video games.

Super Street Fighter IV is still coming out in March (the arcade release seems 50/50 to me, some say yes while some say no), but here's a new video showing off the new modes from Team Battle, Endless Battle, Replays, and the return of the old-school bonus stages. These bonus stages from the Street Fighter II days are back meaning you're smashing cars and barrels like its 1991 all over again. I'm not sure about the new announcer change for this one since the original SF4 announcer was tolerable for me, so they made him worse? Who cares, I'm playing this game like crazy as my return to serious Street Fighter IV play (well, I play here and there despite Tekken 6 being my main fighting game for the moment). I'm just wandering when Capcom will reveal more characters...

I'm been going crazy lately with Band Hero watching YouTube FC runs even though I don't have the game yet. I don't know why it fascinates me to no other end... maybe its the mainstream focused soundtrack that caught my eye in which it is a pretty good one to a point I would buy it. Maybe its the random songs that are in it like "YMCA," "Kung Fu Fighting," "Happy Together," etc.? Or maybe its the magic of Taylor Swift and me finally breaking down listening to her songs that play too much on mainstream radio? I don't know, but let's just say Band Hero is surprisingly pretty dope doing what it is intended for being a Guitar Hero game for the mainstream audience with pop-friendly songs that everyone will recognize. And yes, I'm not afraid to put up "You Belong to Me" in this blog post, but it is true that she wears high heels and I wear sneakers.

Last, but not least, is one of the best game trailers I have seen this year, which is the launch trailer for my pick for first-person shooter of the year, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. It is pretty much self-explanatory how big this game will be for the holiday season with midnight sales going through the roof and kids wasting their money on those night vision goggles that came with the pricey Prestige Edition (then again, maybe they're good after all). Anyway, this trailer got me pretty hyped even though I'm not getting it right away, but its near the top of holiday list of games to play during my Winter Break. Eminem and Nate Dogg's "Till I Collapse" song was used very well in this trailer building up the hype to max levels. Then again as expected, this game is leaked already meaning people got it hella early before its actual release on Tuesday, but hey it is still going be insane.

My Rage is Tingling... The Tekken 6 (PS3) Review

Please note: This is the review for the console version of Tekken 6 as it is a slightly altered review from Tekken 6.0 and Bloodline Rebellion. Keep in mind also that videos here may not be from the console versions for the sake of high-level play in the arcade versions.



Namco Bandai brought back the Tekken games to their glory with Tekken 5 and its upgrade, Dark Resurrection. It focused on what made them great and also delivered on the storyline, which I think does the best job at it in the fighting game genre. Tekken 6 is the latest entry in Namco's famed fighting series combining what was there in the original game and its arcade expansion, Bloodline Rebellion, It also continues the story of the Mishima bloodline with Jin Kazama now heading the Mishima Zaibatsu, which was once owned by Heihachi in Tekken 5, and currently taking over the world being independent from the rest of them. The only other entity that can oppose Jin's company is the G Corporation, now headed up by Kazuya, and they offered up a huge price for anyone to capture Jin alive. All of this war and chaos starts the sixth King of the Iron Fist tournament for those fighters who want vengeance, the fame, and the power. While some may call Tekken 6 simply Tekken in high definition, its new gameplay changes make it enough of a different game for new players to learn new moves, combos, and strategies with their favorite characters, and that to me what makes the game fun. While the fighting is still as good as ever, I feell that Namco Bandai made some weird decisions with this console port that ended up as an unfortunate disappointment in the end.

The character lineup for Tekken 6 is a staggering amount, which is over 40. Other than the new characters that debuted in 6.0, which are Leo, Zafina, Miguel, and Bob, two more new characters make their debut in Bloodline Rebellion. There's Lars, who is supposedly a long lost son of Heihachi as Kazuya and Jin don't know about him. The other new character is Alisa, a female robot related to Doctor Boskonovitch, that crazy doctor in Tekken 3, having flying abilities along with chainsaws on both her hands. The returning characters are all back with favorites like Marshall Law, Paul Phoenix, Bryan Fury, the Williams sisters, Eddy Gordo, Steve Fox, King, and more. For veterans of the series, the old characters are still play the same way with the same moves, but some of them have different animations, which gives Tekken 6 some sense of freshness. Of course, there are also new moves for every character as well along with certain moves getting changed in terms of properties and priorities. Then you have your boss characters, which is a totally different story I will mention later.



The console version of Tekken 6's main mode is surprisingly not the traditional arcade mode you expect to see in fighting games. Instead, it is Scenario Campaign mode, which is pretty much a HD version of the Tekken Force mode from past games. This being the main mode bothers me because Namco could of spent more time on other things besides this, but I guess they wanted to make it more than just another off-shoot for the console version. In this Scenario Campaign, you play as one of the new characters, Lars, as he sets off on a journey along with another new character Alisa, to figure out the mess that Jin's Mishima Zaibatsu and Kazuya's G Corporation started hopefully preventing from causing further damage to the world. The good thing about this mode is you're not to forced to play as Lars as you unlock more of the huge roster to be playable by defeating them in the various stages. Despite having that feature, you get a feeling of disconnect as you play the stages as the character of your choice, but the cutscenes, which can be pretty lengthy at times, have Lars in them. Another weird decision Namco made with this story mode is the Arena, which is the only way to get character prologues and endings for every character rather than randomly unlocking them as you keep playing the game. Now back in the day, you would just play arcade mode with the characters to unlock these endings and even though the Arena itself is a mini-arcade mode, this is something that Scenario mode does not need as an extra and should of stayed in arcade mode. The gameplay in Scenario Campaign is pretty much Tekken Force, which is sloppy and bad as it is Tekken trying to be an old-school beat-em-up. Most of the stages do not last long, but is very repetitive facing the same enemies over and over again until a boss appears to fight. Other than fighting of your fists and feet, there are weapons such as a machine gun, flamethrower, and a leadpipe available to lay waste on random robots and suits. It is also one of the most frustrating things I ever played this year to the point I would throw a controller because the enemies can be pretty cheap against you as well as gaining up with you by numbers blocking the camera from seeing what is going on. Scenario Campaign as a whole is very sluggish and pointless as it should of remained an off-shoot rather than Namco actually taking more time trying to get better.

Other than the Scenario Campaign, the console version has the standard modes you expect to see in the genre. There is the traditional arcade mode of fighting a set of characters till the last boss. Along the way, a bonus fight occurs with a huge robot named Nancy, which is an example of the wackiness the Tekken series had provided over the years. The last bosses were kind of cheap most of the time and Tekken 6 is no different with Azazel, a huge dragon that fills up nearly half the screen that can use rock-like projectiles, lasers, and its size to its advantage. Other than that, the difficulty for the single player game not that hard, but the computer A.I. can give a fight most of the time. Along with the arcade mode is ghost battle mode, which is the arcade mode with Tekken 5 facing as many opponents as you can until you lose or stop. Then there are the time attack, team battle, and survival modes which are self-explanatory. The practice mode is also another disappointment in which Namco made another weird decision leaving out some sort of record functionality that tournament-level players use. For local versus play, the game plays great against buddies on the same screen, but the online play, on the other hand, is a different story, which I'll mention later.

The overall gameplay mechanics for Tekken 6 is still the same Tekken you know and love with some new additions. One of them is the bound system which refers to the juggle combos. This usually happens when you use a slam-type move like Paul's Hammer of the Gods or Law's Dragon Hammer to the ground during a juggle which gives you another chance to continue the combo with a low or mid attack. Sometimes, using these bound-type moves will cause the ground to break in certain stages that are multi-leveled to a lower level. The other major addition in Tekken 6 is the rage system. Your character will be in rage when he or she is less than ten percent in health and some signs of red glow will show up. Once in rage, you can inflict more damage to your opponent than normal and vice versa if your opponent is in rage. This usually can lead to comebacks in certain situations which makes the last seconds of a match more intense kicking in the nerves of not making a mistake. Despite those new additions, Tekken 6 is still a juggle festival for high-level players and fun for casual players because of its flashiness compared to other 3D fighters.

The character customization is still the same from Tekken 5 of various color changes and additional clothing that is full of insanity. More customizations and item moves are in the console version ranging from Miguel's guitar, Bryan's machine gun, Xiaoyu's magic wand where you can make your opponent wear a Panda head for the rest of the match, and more. The console version also has exclusive costumes for certain characters like Lars, Yoshimtsu, Asuka, Jin, and Kazuya as some cyborg robot. Other characters like Bryan, King, and Marduk are wearing Tapout t-shirts as their third costume since Tapout is one of the sponsors for the game advertising their name out there to more people. The in-game currency to unlock and buy all the customizations can be gained by mainly playing Scenario Campaign mode, but the random roulette opportunities come in when playing the game normally in hopes of getting more rage colors and rare items.

The online play in Tekken 6 ends up being the most disappointing feature for those that are looking forward to fighting other players worldwide. The lag can be at times tolerable to very unplayable not doing anything at all. With a fighting game like Tekken as frames and timing do matter when doing juggle combos, you are likely going to drop a combo here and there with the horrible lag. There is the standard ranked and player matches for online play as the Tekken ranking system (kyus, dans, Mentor, etc.) are still in tact along with an online ranking. In addition, a separate win/loss record will be placed for online matches rather than local matches for all the characters too. With the lag in Tekken 6 being pretty bad, it is the best to play local matches against friends, but at least Namco Bandai have listened to fans' complaints in which they release a patch in the future to fix its latency issues.

Graphically, Tekken 6 looks sharp enough as a fighting game. For those who think it is Tekken 5 HD, think again because it improves despite motion blur preferences. At times, Tekken 6 looks pretty good, but it can look pretty ugly especially in Scenario Campaign mode. Most of the cutscenes in that mode are in-game, but the CG scenes and endings look better. The characters look great with more details added to them than previous games. The environments also look beautiful and diverse with details, which is a staple of the franchise. These stages range from a forest filled with sheep, a Spanish-like arena filled with tomatoes, a skyscraper stage called Lightning Storm, and the Electric Fountain, an urban-like arena filled with multi-colored fountains. The ground does receive damage and will break as mentioned earlier in a handful of stages meaning there are destructible elements in some stages and look great as well. The water effects also improved from previous games with splashes acting somewhat like splashes. There is also motion blur effects with certain moves, which is a nice touch as well. In addition, certain hit effects like rage don't felt distracting. All in all, Tekken 6 is one of the better looking 3D fighting games around.



The sound for the console version is the usual expectations of the franchise. Blocking sounds different now which seems harder than previous games and the hits still sound the same. There is little character voice acting when they are introduced before fights, but they seem accurate to their personalities which is good enough. Scenario Campaign mode has more voices during the cutscenes, but sometimes it is just weird seeing Lars speaking Japanese and Raven speaking in English in a conversation as if they totally understand each other without no explanation at all. Musically, Tekken games deliver great soundtracks and this one is no different with lots of diversity. That diversity consists of various rock, techno (favorite being the Electric Fountain background music), orchestra, and even yodeling in the new forest with sheep stage.

Overall, Tekken 6 is another great entry to Namco's Bandai successful franchise with the core fighting mechanics. The new gameplay additions make the fights more entertaining and intense giving players to new ways to mess with your favorite characters. It looks sharp enough in high definition and sounds great as expected. The wackiness that the series has maintained since its inception is still here in various places with a cheap boss and playing as a bear. Even with the fighting still as great as ever, the console part is a slight disappointment with the sluggish and pointless Scenario mode, missing features in other modes, and the tolerable, but unplayable at times, online play. Luckily, there will be updates in the future in hopes of fixing the online, and co-op scenario campaign. Tekken 6 is still great as a fighting game, but as a complete package, the execution is just not there to be the premier fighting game to get this year.

Score = 8.5 / 10

Pros:

• The core fighting mechanics are still fun even in this sixth entry of the franchise.
• The new gameplay mechanics like rage and bound do spice up the fighting a bit making them more entertaining and intense.
• Still has the best and wackiest character customization in a fighting game.
• Great graphics and music (Perhaps the best right now in a 3D fighter).

Cons:

• Scenario Campaign mode is sluggish and arguably pointless (should of stayed as a side mode)
• Weird disconnects in that same mode with character interaction
• Missing features in practice mode
• Online play is the most disappointing feature with latency issues that makes fights unplayable at times.

By the Gods... My Eyes Are Bleeding from the Amazing!! - Hands-On with the God of War III Demo

I was able to pre-order the Ultimate Edition for God of War III yesterday and also got a code to play the infamous E3 2009 Demo as many times as I want to now. If you have seen the whole demo back at E3, there's nothing new to see other than playing it, but after unleashing hell as Kratos once again in this demo, it is pretty safe say that God of War III will be indeed epic and amazing just as the first two games were. The controls and combat are basically the same as before, but the scale of epic setpieces and quicktime events have turned up to 11 as if they were crazy enough. In this demo, Kratos has his signature blades of chaos, the gauntlets from Chains of Olympus (I think?), a bow that does not require magic, and Helios's head, in which he gains later on in the demo to illuminate dark areas. If you thought the first two games were bloody, think again as God of War III turns up the gore once again and it is truly badass seeing Kratos ripping body parts again like no one's business. Some of the new things Kratos can do are playable in this demo from Harpy riding, the battering ram move, escaping from hordes of enemies surrounding you, and more. The graphics and sound are once again top notch being another showcase of what the Playstation 3 can do (as if Uncharted 2 is already the defining showcase for the system too). A God of War game in true HD looks and feels amazing in every way possible. Sure, this demo may be some framerate issues since it is an early build of the game, but I'm guessing that the whole game will run at 60 frames per second the whole time with no slowdown at all. This brief demo is indeed a taste of what's to come in the conclusion of this awesome trilogy, and from what I played so far, Kratos's story will indeed end with a bang being something that all gamers should not miss when it comes out in March 2010.

The Chill-Fest that was the Tekken 6 Launch Party...

Yesterday, I was at the Tekken 6 Launch Party in Hawthorne, CA for a lot of console Tekken 6 goodness. I got there hella early for parking reasons as they were barely setting up as it took place at some random gym inside a hangar near Hawthorne Airport. At first, it seemed kind of crazy it is taking place inside something like that, but it worked out in the end despite starting a hour late, which is expected. Once it got started, I went to the VIP room right away to grab some free food and then it is a lot of playing of console Tekken 6 action for the rest of the night. There was free swag given out at various times of the event as I got a poster, Raven arm sleeves (which I'm rocking now) and Heihachi hair. I wished I got a Tapout Tekken 6 shirt because they look cool and obviously a free copy of the game in which they were raffling it to a few people. There was even a tournament for the Limited Edition stick bundle, but I'll talk about that later.

A good amount of people showed to this launch party even though it was not a packed house, which was cool and why it is very chill playing as much as I can whether casuals or the tournament itself. Obviously the SoCal Tekken scene showed up in force from MYK, Rip, SuikenUser, Aris, ChetChetty, and many more regulars from Video 94 and Super Arcade. Even some of the Street Fighter IV scene from SoCal showed up such as Alex Valle, Ken I, Mike Ross, StarSlay3r, Gootecks, Shoo and his girlfriend Naomi, Sanchez, Warren, Vic the Slick, and others. Of course I gotta hand it to MarkMan for putting the event together under short notice along with the ActiveGamersLA staff from DJ Vest and Hugo. Also, Get Your Tournament was there doing their thing as well taking pictures, doing interviews, and shooting random videos. There was a DJ doing his thing as well even though no one cared about that since its all about playing and hanging out with great people.



I had a great time playing casuals throughout the night against fellow Tekken players that are the same level as me as well as some of the Street Fighter folks that are willing to learn the game like Mike Ross, Alex Valle, who was the Tekken Tag champion at one point along with being a SoCal Street Fighter legend, and KillerKai. There were lots of setups (both PS3 and 360) for players to mess around with along with sticks and controllers. Namco Bandai was also there providing support for the event with the swag wagon and other stuff. A big HD setup was at the VIP room too, which was cool. Of course I was rolling with Bryan and Paul the whole time doing things I have been doing since Bloodline Rebellion was out at arcades. I'm willing to learn new things once I get to practice mode when I get the game on Tuesday (I didn't win a free copy = oh well).

The 64-man tournament happened as well being single game and single elimination, which I didn't mind to speed things up a bit. The grand prize was the Limited Edition stick bundle which was 150 bucks. I competed along with the best SoCal Tekken players and some Street Fighter 4 folks that are curious. The stream was showing the tournament too, so I was in it (the video above) for a bit. I'm playing matches at 2 hours and 55 minutes into the video and also 3 hours and 51 minutes into it. I rolled with Bryan for this launch party tourney as I won my first one against some Eddy player Mike C. Things went my way in that match, but I lost my next one against a Christie player Smash. It was a close match and a nailbiter coming down to the final round, but its all good. With a lot of Eddy/Christie players around here in SoCal, I'm starting to get used to them more seeing their shenanigans other than mashing kick the whole time dancing like a freak. Some of the big hitters were out early, but it was Aris, a top Dragunov player, who won the whole thing beating IronChef for the title. Even though the tourney setup was in 480i for stream purposes, complaints about the lag were definitely heard, but all of us pretty much dealed with it and didn't mind since the tourney was free to enter having more good times.



I actually decided to leave the launch party before midnight when the tournament was still going on, but I still had a fun time the whole night playing a lot of console Tekken 6 for the first time. I can't wait for Tuesday when I get it for myself to hopefully level up to get better (Yes, I'm still taking a break from Street Fighter IV, haven't been playing that for a while already). Its always nice to see my friends from both the Tekken scene and the Street Fighter scene especially when we are at an open basketball court trying to make half court shots (Damn u AJ and Warren!). Its about time Tekken is in the spotlight once again and I hope Tekken 6 is as successful as Street Fighter IV bringing the HYPE to the masses.

Also, you will not tap me out! (Lol Mark!!!)

Get Your Tournament's recap of the event

Pictures by GYT's Kelly Bracha

The Game of the Generation has Arrived... The Uncharted 2: Among Thieves Review

Please note: The videos in this review may contain spoilers, so watch at your own risk as well as the review itself may have some too.



There are so many words I can describe Uncharted 2: Among Thieves: awesome, amazing, epic, mesmerizing, breathtaking, mind-blowing, suspenseful, and lastly gaming perfection. While the first Uncharted was a great start for the franchise, this sequel is everything it could of been in the first place as it is way better than the original. Everything is improved tenfold from the story, the combat, the graphics, and everything else. This game is filled with so many memorable moments from beginning to end that no other game has even matched that same high quality the developers Naughty Dog have put into this amazing sequel. It is better than any summer blockbuster movie out in recent years (yes, I include Star Trek, Transformers, Dark Knight, etc.) Only a handful of games can define a console generation and Uncharted 2 is not only one of them, it is arguably the best game I have played this decade.

The story for Uncharted 2 is pretty simple. You play as the adventurous Nathan Drake as he attempts to solve the whereabouts of Marco Polo and the entrance to the hidden city of Shambhala to find the legendary Cintamani Stone. Your comrades from the first game return with Sully and Elena, who will be around later in the game. This sequel introduces new characters with Chloe, who used to love Drake in the past and a fellow treasure hunter as well having arguably the best looking ass in a game ever. The bad guy this time around is Zoran Lazarevic, a sadistic war criminal that is willing to get what we wants which the same thing Nate and the gang are going after, but obviously for different and evil intentions. The whole storyline is what you expect out of a high budget summer blockbuster movie, but Naughty Dog did a wonderful job of fleshing out the characters as more humanized having true reactions to everything they experience rather than filling up a generic slot. You do get a sense of attachment for these characters especially everything that Drake deals with his Indiana Jones-like persona in which you are motivated to get the task done. Just like the first game, expect a lot of twists and turns throughout the single player journey. Once the story is over, you feel like you experienced the best game and movie at the same time.

While the first game's combat of cover-based gunplay and melee fights were both great, they were both flawed because the enemies took the punishment not realistically. It is fixed in Uncharted 2 with better results. Shooting at the opposition feels very natural now as a headshot is an instant kill with the tougher armored henchmen being exceptions. Even though you face the same enemies throughout the game, it progressively gets harder as the weapons get better too. The enemy A.I. also has improved significantly as they will provide a fight at any time hoping in and out of cover, throwing grenades to make you move, and they will flank you as well so you gotta keep moving to stay alive. Good thing the melee system has improved too with more moves at your disposal to defeat enemies up close especially the stealth mechanic as well choking enemies from behind as an example. Of course other than the fighting and shooting are the platforming elements in which they work fine as well. The amount of puzzles compared to the first game have dropped, but they dropped in quantity not quality as these are still brillantly designed puzzles as your journal is your guide towards completing them. The treasure collecting also return as well being scattered throughout the game to find as there are 100 of them. Also, the checkpoint system is as generous as it has been like the first game too being lots of them and not too spaced out. The developers definitely amped up the action to eleven perhaps even further even though there is a good amount of platforming and puzzle solving.

What sets Uncharted 2 apart from other similar games is the amount of memorable moments and setpieces from beginning to end. At first you may think a certain scene will be just another cutscene, but you are actually this part and living it rather than watching it. With all the epic setpieces this game offers, all you can say is holy *** that was awesome and no other game I can think of at this point can match the intensity these setpieces deliver. From falling buildings, bridge collapses, train hopping, and a crazy vehicle chase scene, Uncharted 2 delivers the perfect marriage of gameplay and entertainment. Especially for highly anticipated games like this, you totally feel like you just want to keep playing to see what happens and that is indeed the case. The game goes on a beautiful and perfect pace spacing out the the big enemy encounters, platforming sections, and puzzles. Sometimes, after completing some of these memorable moments you ask yourself, did I just do that? On the normal difficulty, the game can be beaten in eight to ten hours, which works fine, as the game does get a little tough in the end and it would take longer to beat on hard and crushing difficulties.

Other than the single player, Uncharted 2 does offer a big team-based multiplayer component of a max of ten players that is five on five and it is actually pretty fun being better than most shooters out there today that have multiplayer. Everything that you can do in the single player from the shooting and the neck braking can be done against other players online. The standard modes are there online for players to mess with from deathmatch, elimination, capture the flag (called Plunder), king of the hill, and territory-type games (Turf War and Chain Reaction). The objective-based games definitely have that Uncharted twist especially adding the platforming to all the seven maps currently available. Just like any other big multiplayer game these days, there is a level up system that consists of gaining money by getting kills and medals for certain tasks being done (there is a medal system for the single player as well), a Call of Duty 4-like perk system with boosters giving you special abilities from aiming better with long guns or dropping a grenade after you die Martyrdom style. Also expected for games like this are a party system of letting your friends join along easier and playlist options of what to play from deathmatch-only, objective-only, to ranked games which have their own skill level. If you do not feel like playing against others online or wanting a break from the versus action, there is also co-op with up to three players going through certain areas of the single player game together with somewhat of a different storyline. Co-op is its own thing with different gameplay twists like a multiplier that increases by killing enemies gaining more points and the enemy A.I. also being no slouch like the single player even on the easy difficulty as they can kill you by shooting or by getting choked from behind if you don't get rescued by a teammate. If a player is temporarily down, they can be revived to get back in the action, but if all players die, the team loses a life and starts over at the nearest checkpoint (if the team loses all their lives, the game ends). Other than regular co-op, there is a survival "Horde-like" mode for teammates to mess with trying to survive ten levels of increasingly difficult enemies. The community features are also present from a replay mode that can be uploaded to the official web site, photo mode, and even Twitter support to letting your tweets be related towards your game as a whole. Whether playing co-op or versus multiplayer, you will have a blast online with friends as well as shooting other online players away for weeks and maybe even months.

I had not even mention the graphics yet in Uncharted 2 and how amazing it looks. This is the best looking game I have played in this generation of consoles and it just looks too good. Everything runs perfectly at a smooth framerate even with all the frantic action happening. The environments themselves are breathtaking sights as if they are real and the character models look awesome too showcasing their emotions. Even the draw distance is jaw-dropping when being at a top of a mountain looking at the Borneo jungle below and the top of a building in Nepal looking at the ruined city below that sometimes you just have to stop and look around. The animations also top notch showcasing true human emotion rather than some robotic clumsy moments that climbing ledges, falling off cliffs, and so on. This game is meant to be played on a big screen HD television as playing it in standard definition, you are missing out on the true beauty of this game. It is truly a visual and graphical masterpiece for both the single and multiplayer games.

As for the sound, Uncharted 2 delivers an amazing theatrical quality soundtrack filled with epicness with these big enemy encounters and setpieces happen. It is very orchestral reminiscent of an Indiana Jones movie. Not only the music is something special, the voice overs are among the best I heard in a while. They truly nail their characters perfectly like Nolan North reprising his role as Nathan Drake. He makes Drake feel alive like any other normal human being It is filled with so many lines from the in-game cutscenes to even random chatter while walking around and the co-op too. The other sound effects from the shooting and atmospheric sounds are also top of the line too being extremely polished.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is what I call "the game of the generation." It is everything the first game should of been and all the improvements made are perfect. It is definitely a feature-heavy game from the epic single player journey that takes eight to ten hours to beat on the normal difficulty and the endless replay value of multiplayer and co-op with its level up and booster system. I don't think any other game out now looks as good as Uncharted 2 as it is best looking game out in years with the jaw-dropping graphics. In addition, the sound is also the best of the business with awesome voice-overs and an epic theatrical soundtrack. Is it the definitive killer app for the Playstation 3? I think so because it has everything a gamer would want these days, which is a superb shooter that delivers from beginning to end by epic setpieces and intense enemy encounters. Sure, some decisions that Naughty Dog made into the game were not for the better like the stealth section in the beginning of the game and a game freezing bug near the end of the game, but those are really minor complaints. Uncharted 2 is simply gaming perfection and deserves to be played no matter what whether or not you have a PS3... you just to have to play this game to experience the amazing. Lastly, this game is truly one of my favorite games of all-time now.

Score = 10/10

Pros:

• Breathtaking single-player campaign (8 to 10 hours long)
• Epic setpieces to experience that are better than any summer blockbuster movie out this year
• The best graphics I have seen this decade.
• Amazing soundtrack and voice-overs
• Endless replay value with versus multiplayer and co-op
• Simply "gaming perfection"

Cons:

• None - please play this game no matter what whether or not you have a PS3.

Street Fighter Bar Fights II Megapost!!!

Alright, I should of wrote this earlier, but oh well (busy with things like school and Uncharted 2 - so good!). Anyway, I was at Pasadena again for Street Fighter Bar Fights II, aka the sequel to Ryan "Gootecks" Gutierrez's brainchild of an epic Street Fighter event. As if the first one was crazy enough, Bar Fights II was a crazy success among how many people showed up (the line was already long three hours before it actually started). Luckily, I bought myself a VIP pass to skip that line and go straight in to Jake's, again the venue for this event, to the VIP area. It was a Street Fighter IV-filled weekend for me because it was like I disappeared within the SoCal scene for two weeks and it felt like a long time. From Friday night at Arcade Infinity as Arturo "Sabin" Sanchez was wrecking dudes fresh off his level up campaign at Japan (I did play him one game and got wrecked as well), to the big show itself it was just a great time seeing all my friends from the SoCal Street Fighter scene as well as meeting new faces too.

Even some of the big wigs of the scene recognized me like Dogface, who MCed the event again, as that guy is cool and energetic every time I see him providing the jokes during the event (Dogface Show is returning soon too = Yes!), and James "JChensor" Chen, who has been around the scene for like forever as well. I also had a chance to meet the East Coast peeps "aka team Empire Arcadia" like Arturo, who I mentioned already, Marn, who I saw already at West Coast Warzone winning that and loves California (yes he does), Sanford Kelly, arguably the best Cammy player in the U.S., "ILoveU" Joe, the non-Empire member there and the East Coast's best Sagat player, and the man himself Justin Wong, now with brown hair. They're all nice dudes once you get to know them. Along with East Coast coming to town, NorCal and San Diego is there as well from Magus1234, who switched to Zangief from Viper the last time I saw him at West Coast Warzone, Filipino Champ, aka the hypest Filipino I know from Northern California rocking the Dhalsim, Yeb, aka the Gen master, and the infamous MarkMan himself from SDTekken.com and MadCatz. I chatted with MarkMan for a bit about the event itself and of course Tekken 6, since it will be the hotness at the end of the month (more on that later). Other than that, it was just great catching up with friends I haven't seen in weeks like Ciji aka StarSlay3r, who I haven't seen since the Ladies of SF4 tournament being busy with the Guitar Hero/Rock Band thing, traveling to PAX/Mexico/Japan, and more, as well as Mike Ross, still the nicest man you'll ever meet, and others. Of course it is nice seeing the regulars again from Keno, his girlfriend Teresa (her birthday was that day as that couple looked fabulous there), Shoo and his girlfriend Naomi (picture of those four above), Sherryjenix (aka "No You Cannot!"), Sanchez, Luka, Bebop, Dae, KillerKai, Colin aka Fade Out, ComboJack, Jeremy aka Vicious (aka "twin?"), DJ Vest, Hugo101, Vic the Slick, ChaiThai, Warren, Anna, the Get Your Tournament crew (Glenn, Kara, AJ, Kelly, and Cami), and many more I probably can't remember now.

The Beat A Pro Challenge returned and started off the event as there were lots of stations for players to face off against the main eventers (Justin, Alex Valle, Sanford, Arturo, Joe, Marn, Mike Ross, Edma, Ken I, and Combofiend) for an opportunity to win 100 bucks. I didn't really go there to attempt to do so since it was crowded like mad with players playing and watching. I think at that time I was just hanging out at the VIP area drinking a beer or something like that. I did stop by the area once in time to see Joe lose once and randomly played a game against Gootecks with the MadCatz SE sticks (that went quick and I lost). There were also drawings throughout the event for prizes like posters, shirts, stick art, and the grand prize being two Round 2 Tournament Edition sticks autographed at the main eventers (Dope!!! and I didn't win = :C) After Beat a Pro, the exhibition matches started proper as I hanged out with Bebop, Luka, and Ultradavid to watch the shenanigans unfold on top of pool tables (no joke).

Magus1234 (Zangief) & Filipino Champ (Dhalsim) def. UTJ (Dhalsim) & (Bryant the Tyrant) - These guys started things off and they were good matches. At first, seeing Magus switch to Zangief from Viper was crazy to me, but it seemed like he got his Zangief skills on lock beating Johann "UTJ" and Bryant easily. Bryant has been on the rise with his Balrog knowing how to do "jab ultra consistently" (I think). Seeing the Dhalsim mirror between Filipino Champ and UTJ was interesting as well since mirror matches are pretty self-explanatory. GS to NorCal for winning this one.

Yeb (Gen) defeats Tatsu (Vega) 5-2 - This matchup between these two is one I wanted to see because not features two characters you don't expect and two of the most talented players in SoCal. It is always great seeing Yeb's Gen in action executing his chop combos with ease (using his stick as a piano), but Tatsu's Vega is no slouch being the premier Vega in SoCal. Once Yeb got things going, it is hard for Tatsu to bring things back as you can hear Bebop getting advice left and right. Vega let Gen jump in too much and that could of been countered by standing roundhouse I think. Anyway, the match video is available to check out below, but these two players put on a great show with the two most unexpected characters.

Killerkai defeats shglbmx to become the new Roseball champion - Roseball "aka THIS GAME IS SO GOOD as Kai would say it" returned in better form as more Rose mindgames were put on the table other than standard Roseball. From EX reflects, FADCs, and other stuff, it looked Roseball evolved into something else. Anyway, Eliver "Killerkai" Ling took this one home against now former champ shglbmx. Yes, Roseball is still hella exciting to watch once the rallies go longer.

Kai (El Fuerte) defeats Shady K (Ryu) - This match was announced the night before, but it was a still a great match with these guys regardless. Kai still has the best Fuerte that I know of (and apparently still hates Street Fighter IV) and Shady K has been a consistent top player in the SF4 scene lately finishing top 8 at Evo with his Akuma, but decided to go to Ryu this time. Except going with Ryu didn't work in his favor as people thought Kai's Fuerte shenanigans brought him the victory.

Team East Coast (Marn, "ILoveUJoe," Sanford, Arturo, and Justin Wong) def. Team West Coast (Mike Ross, Ken I, Combofiend, Edma, and Alex Valle) 10-1.

The main event is what we have been waiting for since Evo 2009 and it turned out to be complete and total annihilation by the East Coast over the West Coast (as Glenn from GYT says, "Murder's Row"). I did expect EC to win it because of their stacked lineup by a close margin over WC, but I didn't expect the complete ownage they laid out. At first, there were signs of hope with Mike Ross (Honda) against Marn (Viper), but Marn laid out first blood from the get go. Ken I (Rufus) couldn't do anything against Joe's "safe" Sagat playstyle and Combofiend going with Abel against Sanford's Cammy was an interesting choice as Sanford's Cammy rushdown was too much for Peter to get things going. Another sign of hope of Edma (Akuma) nailing a Raging Demon ultra through Arturo's (Dhalsim) ultra which made the crowd go crazy. Then, Justin (Rufus) defeated Alex Valle (Ryu) easily to close out the 1st set and sweep for the East Coast.

The West Coast team was allowed to change up their order for the second set, but it still was not enough to beat the East Coast team's domination. The last sign of hope for the West Coast team was Alex barely beating Joe preventing the total sweep as if WC still had a chance, but nope. Sanford beats Combo again, Arturo defeats Ken I despite the matchup not being in Dhalsim's favor, Justin owned Ed, and then Marn finished it off against Alex. It was still a great main event to watch, but seeing East Coast destroying the West Coast easily demoralized the crowd into silence. Still though, GS to Marn, Joe, Sanford, Arturo, and Justin for getting it done while the West Coast team had a "bad day at work" as Alex Valle would say it. The East Coast/West Coast smack talk on internet forums escalated again after this happened the way it did and those who support the EC deserve to talk smack after the dominating performance. Despite that, it is still a game and we all love it, but if Evo and West Coast Warzone weren't wakeup calls for the top SoCal players, Bar Fights II definitely was.

After the main event ended, people started to leave even though a bonus challenge for the winning East Coast team was laid out by Gootecks with another team of five (himself, Tatsu, Yeb, Kai, and Shady K). The EC guys were allowed to use their secondary or other characters so Sanford used Dan as an example and Justin used Fei Long. It was getting a late too on a Sunday, so I left before that went going. This contest went a little better for the West Coast, but East Coast still won using their other characters.

In the end, Bar Fights II was a great event regardless of the results with East Coast coming in to our house and owning. I had a great time personally just hanging out with all my friends in the whole Street Fighter scene as they are great people and having drinks as well. Get Your Tournament provided the amazing coverage for the event from photos, videos, interviews, and podcasts. The event was handled better than last time from the VIP area, free drinks, free appetizers from Jake's, streaming of the matches, and more. Thanks again to Gootecks and the crew that helped for putting ever another amazing event as well as my friends for more good times. As for what's next for me with Street Fighter IV? Well, I'm taking a break from the game to focus more on Tekken 6 since console versions are out at the end of the month and the SoCal arcade scene is slowly evolving seeing more people compete in Video 94 tournaments. I'm willing to get better at Tekken again by playing more against the regulars and hopefully learning a thing of two other than improving on fundamentals (spacing, techs, okis, hit confirms, frame data). I'll be still around the Street Fighter scene because of my friends from random trips to AI, AI Ranbat 2.6, and other events. Check back this post for more video and other stuff that I missed.

GYT podcast recapping the event.

Torrent for the event stream.

More pictures by GYT's Kelly Bracha

Photos by Kara "Karaface" from Get Your Tournament