The Calm Before the Storm for console Street Fighter IV

So another blog post from Street Fighter IV, aka I never excited for a video game like this in forever...

I got my Tournament Edition Arcade Stick yesterday at Gamestop via pre-order and also the Prima Guide for SF4, which is surprisingly good as I skimmed through it seeing frame data, their own tier list, and in-depth character analysis. Then again, their unlockables section is pretty bare bones, more specifically the characters section because getting Akuma and Gouken does require specific tasks to get them to fight you for the opportunity to unlock them. As for the TE Stick, that thing is a piece of beauty and in mint condition playing SSF2T HD Remix. I do fine with charge characters with stick, but for shoto-like characters (Ryu, Ken, Sagat, Akuma for example), I need to improve double fireball motions better before Tuesday.

I have also been listening to the soundtrack to this game which is amazing. I thought HD Remix had one of the better soundtracks in the franchise due to the OC Remix support, but SF4's soundtrack actually tops that from the stage BGMs to the characters' themes (not all of them have character themes).

That's it for now. At this point, I'm could be set for gaming purchases with SF IV and Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion as I'm not really going to go crazy with other games. It is probably my state of mind that I should decidate my gaming time solely on SF4 and T6BR to get better and perhaps compete on a tournament level against the best. As for the console version review of SF4, I'll try to do it as soon as I can (next weekend will be the earliest). Speaking of reviews, expect a Flower review tomorrow.

ABDC Season 3 Episode 5 Recap

Alright, let's quickly recap another episode of ABDC now dealing with illusions!!!

America's Best Dance Crew (Season 3) - MTV Shows

Beat Freaks killed it again dealing with some magic ball.

America's Best Dance Crew (Season 3) - MTV Shows

Quest also doing well getting their money!!

With Dynamic Edition's elimination this week (thanks for the clogging), four crews are left. Then again, when Fly Khicks get out next week hopefully, the real competition begins between Quest, Beat Freaks, and Strikers All-Stars since they are the standout crews this season.

Another Streets of Rage Music Appreciation Post...

Due to the temptation of buying Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection for PS3, I'm reminded of my Sega franchise, the Streets of Rage series. I actually played the first SoR again today on my Wii while downloading Flower for PSN (review of that this weekend and its awesome). Other than the awesome and old-school beat-em-up gameplay (SoR2 as the pinnacle of the franchise), it has the best music in video games still to this day. It is probably because Yuzo Koshiro is my favorite video game composer because in games like these and the Wangan Midnight franchise, it is also feels like a party beating people up or racing at high speeds. These beats and tunes make you want to blast it real loud or go crazy at a club. Many remixes of these classic tunes are everywhere honoring Koshiro's greatness. It does feel like a shame that the Streets of Rage franchise was only on Genesis and probably for the best because they're still as good as they were in the 90s. Then again, the franchise has been getting the fan-made treatment lately with Streets of Rage Remake (version 5 coming soon and I can't wait) and a Streets of Rage 4 (trailer below and not made by Sega of course). Sure, I want Sega to resurrect this franchise on the new generation, but only on HD 2D graphics (a similar style to King of Fighters XII) for downloadable outlets.

Tekken Now with More Rage and Yodeling... The Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion (ARC) Review

Please note: This is the review for the arcade version of Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion and not the upcoming console versions. This is also a slightly altered review from Tekken 6.0 as it will be altered again for the release of the console 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: Bloodline Rebellion is the latest entry in Namco's famed fighting series and an update to the original Tekken 6 continuing 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: Bloodline Rebellion 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.

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 Bloodline Rebellion 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 single player game for Bloodline Rebellion 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. Let's just say be prepared to lose some quarters if you are really determined to beat Azazel, but he is beatable like past Tekken bosses such as Jinpachi from Tekken 5.

The overall gameplay mechanics for Bloodline Rebellion 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 Punch 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 arcade version of Bloodline Rebellion uses a card system similar to Tekken 6.0. Your card from that previous iteration can be transferred to Bloodline Rebellion keeping your win/loss record and your customized items. For those who are not used to the card system, you pick a character of your choice and customize it to your liking as long you win matches for more money. You still gain money from losing matches against human opponents, but not that much as well as getting lucky in roulette. Sometimes, there are opportunities for super roulette where the player can win rare items such as new rage colors. 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 Bloodline Rebellion 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. Even though it may be a little pricey to purchase a card and spend money playing lots of matches, it is worth it in the long run to brag about your winning record and show off a cool customization.

Graphically, Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion looks pretty sharp. For those who think it is Tekken 5 HD, think again because it improves significantly. 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. New to Bloodline Rebellion are stages ranging 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 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, Bloodline Rebellion is one of the better looking 3D fighting games around.

The sound for Bloodline Rebellion 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 to me. Musically, Tekken games deliver great soundtracks and this one is no different with lots of diversity. That diversity consists of various rock, techno, orchestra, and even yodeling in the new forest with sheep stage. My only gripe about the sound is that they changed the announcer again meaning he's not the same one from Tekken 6.0 and I get a similar Tekken 5.0 vibe from him, which I'm not a fan of.

Overall, Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion is another superb entry to Namco's successful franchise. 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 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. The card system still remains addicting for the arcade scene of showing with the best character customization in a fighting game and maintaining a solid winning record. Quite simply, Bloodline Rebellion is flat out fun to play at the arcade which is a rare opportunity these days since only a handful of arcades here at the United States have the game. If you're able to live nearby a place that does have it, I highly recommend playing it now because it will be a while till the console versions come out later this year.

Score = 9 / 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:

• I'm not a fan of the new announcer
• Those who expected a huge leap like from Tekken 4 to 5, you're not going to find it in Bloodline Rebellion as it builds from Tekken 5.

The Savior of the Skateboarding Genre Gets Refined... The Skate 2 Review

The original Skate was considered a savior to the skateboarding genre of video games two years ago when the Tony Hawk franchise is fading out. Its innovative controls and being a better representation of the skateboarding lifestyle gave new life to the genre and fans of the sport as well. Two years later, the sequel is finally here and while San Vanelona underwent some changes because of a natural disaster, the core game is still fundamentally the same with some additions that weren't in the first game. That same satisfaction of skateboarding is still there as well of nailing the perfect line or consistently executing harder flip tricks. Skate 2 is definitely what the first game should have been in the first game, but it does not have the same impact as the original in terms of establishing the innovation and originality.

Your character in the first Skate just got out of prison after a long stint ready to ride once again in New San Vanelona. Most of the city is generally the same from the first game, but it is definitely changed enough to be fresh for returning players such as new skateparks and mountains. Those who played the original will feel right at home with the controls as the core mechanics haven't changed significantly. New players may take a longer time to get adjusted to the flick it system, but it is still simple enough to learn fast. The new gameplay additions control-wise deal with tricks that weren't in the first game such as inverts, one footed tricks, hippy jumps, and finger flips. These tricks are easy to pull off being mapped to buttons that weren't used at all in the first game. They indeed add more gameplay depth to the already deep trick system in which you don't have to resort to the same tricks from the first game to succeed. Other nice additions to the gameplay are skitching on cars, grabbing while grinding rails, curbs, etc. as well as footplants and fastplants. Another big addition is moving objects around for custom paths, which requires getting off your board and going on foot. The off-board controls and animations feel mostly sluggish getting to a new area that your skateboard can't reach and for moving objects as well trying to get the perfect angle to complete a certain challenge. With all the new moves at your disposal, skateboarding does feel fully represented in Skate 2 tricks-wise.

The career mode in Skate 2 is fundamentally the same as the first game as there is an open city to skate around filled with challenges to complete. These range from specific tasks for Thrasher and Skateboard magazines, street and vert competitions, and those difficult pro challenges. Like the first game, the single-player portion can be difficult at times, but definitely beatable even if it has to take millions of tries to complete a specific challenge, which is really skateboarding in real life. EA Black Box has managed to replicate the skateboarding lifestyle very well in Skate 2 from deathraces, being chased by the cops, finding awesome spots to skate on, and more. Due to being in an open world, you can just free skate or complete sets of challenges in any order, which is nice to have. Eventually, the later part of the game does ask for specific tricks to complete certain challenges, which can be frustrating just like the first game not getting the flip trick or specific grind you want to execute, getting hit by a car, or bailing millions of times. There are many side tasks to do as well from emptying out pools, letting Mike cut out a path for you to grind easier, and complete Hall of Meat challenges, in which you have to bail in specific ways to complete them. Speaking of bailing, that mechanic has improved and sort of became its own metagame getting a high score for the worst bail braking as many bones as possible. 

As a single player game, Skate 2 does have infinite replay value due to its community features like the replay editor and the new Create-A-Spot feature. Speaking of the replay editor, the Skate Reel makes a return more improved adding more camera angles like a tripod view. Unfortunately, if you're into making clips of your skating skills, you have to buy the Filmer Pack for more options to mess with. The Create-A-Spot feature is basically your own Own Your Spot in areas that are used as spots where you can set a score for others to beat once they downloaded it. Even though Skate 2's single player is still as good and challenging like the original, the multiplayer has improved and perhaps the best part of the game.

Multiplayer consists of local Party Play games and online with a maximum of eight players. Local mutliplayer is nice to have around if others want to play on the same TV taking turns on modes like Spot Battle and S.K.A.T.E., but the online is where the multiplayer truly shines. The online is split up into freeskate and competitive modes. Freeskating online reminds me of Burnout Paradise as other players in the same room can just skate together as well as complete specific objectives. If freeskating is not up your alley, the competitive modes are the meat of the multiplayer with the same modes like Spot Battle, Jam, and Deathrace from the first game as well as Hall of Meat for the best bail. New features have been added which are cool like rating your competition whether or not they had a sick line. In addition, uploading replays and photos to the Skate Reel return as well as being able to rate them YouTube style. The level progression for the online multiplayer is the same from the original as long as you are consistently doing well getting 1sts, 2nds, or 3rds for more experience points. The online multiplayer can be as addictive as the single player competing online against others just like a random real life skate session.

New San Vanelona does look like a beautiful city graphically that is filled with diverse locations. From the Downtown area, the beach, the school, and the mountain overlooking the San Vanelona Hollywood-like logo, the game definitely feels more diverse to skate in unlike the first game. Unfortunately, the framerate consistently does not stay stable at any point of the game which is expected from Black Box considered they never fixed the framerate issues from the first game and the recent Need for Speed games. When the game runs at 60 frames per second, the game runs and looks beautifully, but at a consistent 30 frames, it does not recapture the same feeling playing it at 60 frames. The framerate issue as a whole can be distracting at times, but does not make the game unplayable. Some animations can feel sluggish, but that it is a nitpicky flaw. The characters look great as this game is filled with customizations from your own skater, your board, and even having custom graphics on your board. Skate 2's graphics are indeed good, but if it runs at a consistent 60 frames per second like Burnout Paradise, then it would be a remarkable achievement.

As for the sound, the licensed soundtrack is a mixed bag as expected for a game by EA. There are definitely some hits and misses, but at least all the tracks are tolerable to listen to. The characters' voice acting can also be hit and miss with the pro skaters saying their usual cheesy lines either by normal conversation or trash talk. Your camera buddy Reda can also be annoying at times, but he is not a huge distraction. All the other sound effects are accurate enough to the skating experience, which is fine by me.

Despite being a flawed experience, Skate 2 is still a great skateboarding game and being the only one around till the competition makes an attempt of a comeback. It is definitely what the first game should have been with more tricks that complete the core skateboarding trick list even though there are probably more tricks like flatland moves that could be added in a future installment. After a two year wait, it is nice to return to the innovative control system in a redesigned city that revitalized the genre to a new direction. The core gameplay still feels fresh and not yet stale with all the new additions. The career mode is still good and challenging, but the online multiplayer is the true shining point of the game with the freeskating, competitive modes, and all the community features that are filled with customization like the Skate Reel and Create-A-Spot. If the developers are able to fix the flaws like improving the on-foot controls and having a stable framerate at 60 frames per second, then the Skate experience would be perfect. Skate 2 does not suffer the sophomore slump as it is still the best representation of skateboarding in gaming for now.

Score = 8.5/10

Pros:

• The core gameplay still feels fresh and innovative with more tricks at your disposal.
• The career mode is as good and challenging for newcomers and fans of the first game.
• Online multiplayer is as replayable as single player with freeskating and competitive modes.
• The community features also make the game infinitely replayable.
• Still the best representation of the skateboarding lifestyle in gaming.

Cons:

• Framerate doesn't stay stable between 30 and 60 FPS.
• On-foot controls and animations feel sluggish.
• Doesn't have the same impact as the first game had establishing the control scheme.

Console Street Fighter IV = One week to go!!

The hype for the console versions of Street Fighter IV is getting crazier and crazier by the second with Gamestops calling people about their FightStick/TE Stick pre-orders coming in today (even though most of them are saying tomorrow) and lucky stores selling the game as early as today too. You never know when a random 7 Eleven or even Fry's would have the game at this moment.

Anyway, the hype has reached to another level!!!

For actual gameplay of Rose showcasing her "ShamWow" Ultra (This is what everyone is calling that move now), here's this video:



Okay, here's an example of the hype going too far, but still funny (3rd Strike related from last month's California Regionals).



As stated on my Twitter, I'm not going to the Downtown LA Launch Party anymore on Thursday as my weekend will be filled with "Flowers" (if u know what I mean). Plus, expect my reviews of Skate 2 and Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion later in the week.

Watch me try to hang with SoCal's best at Tekken 6 BR...

Yesterday was a long marathon arcade session for the whole day. First was some Street Fighter IV at Video 94 (costs a quarter to play compared to Super and Arcade Infinity) and I had a mini-streak going with my main man Bison for a bit with the decent competition. Considering how Bison is a top 5 character, his EX specials are great weapons, more specifically his EX Head Stomp (that move is no joke!!!). I'm still trying to improve my execution of some BnB (bread and butter) combos that lead to his Scissor Kicks (Bison's best move other than EX Head Stomp) and also I usually use his Nightmare Booster Ultra after a focus attack or on wakeup if the opponent whiffs something. I need to learn to do his jump strong, strong to Ultra setup soon. Speaking of Video 94, there is a tournament going on now for SF IV (Teams of 2) and HD Remix in which I thought it was yesterday, oh well.

Then, for the rest of the day was at Super Arcade playing more Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion with the regulars and SoCal's best. That night, the camera recorder made an appearance recording some matches and luckily I'm in some videos (1st time on YouTube ever). I'll admit I suck at this game compared to the likes of Kane, MYK, Suiken, Rip, Cynnik, and others that play the game reguarly, but I think I'm decent enough to hang with them winning a round or two (Luckily the games are 5 rounds now as of last week). If you're going to try to be good at games like these, every game is a learning experience whether if it is a winning one or a losing effort. I still had a great time last night at least just hanging out with the community again and at least there's a tournament coming soon like the end of the month (Like I have a chance of winning, but it doesn't hurt to try). Other than that, watch my scrubby Bryan get owned...

Note - I can't use my GUnitVer1 tag on BR because they blur it out assuming gun is a bad word, so I'm going by my old name, SlayerVer1 on Tekken. Plus, expect a review of this game soon too here. For more BR matches at Super Arcade, here's the channel link.

Me vs. Suiken

Me vs. Cyborg (I didn't have an answer or a plan going against Baek, so that's what I get for not really knowing the matchup = A classic beatdown or rape!!)



Me vs. How Wrong (This Hwoarang player is a Super regular and seriously his Tekken name is really how the announcer says Hwoarang's name).



Me vs. Kane (His Lili is too good and luckily my poking game worked for one round.)