Music Video Roundup (2/25/09)

This week's music video roundup features some radio and club bangers I have been blasting (That is what get for listening to morning radio shows and the Power Party Mix at noon on 105.9 FM).



"Right Round" by Flo Rida - My current jam now!!!!



"Beautiful" by Akon - Love or hate him, this dude is too many catchy songs as it is another hit.

On the Fence - 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand

50 Cent: Blood on the Sand is out today for the 360 and PS3 as it is surprisingly a good game. Of course, better games are out this week like Killzone 2, but 50's new Gears ripoff is a great rental at best from what I seen. If anyone is buying this, please have no expectations and just have a fun time, which I think this game is basically mindless fun with G-Unit music blasting while shooting random fools in the face. In addition, it is best to play this game when parents are not around in the household because the swearing is off the charts like every 10 seconds or something like that (It is rated Mature for a reason). At least it is better than Bulletproof, 50's last attempt into the video game world, but don't expect top tier stuff as seen in previous third-person shooters. I may rent this at a later time for kicks and giggles.

Highlights from 2/22 Video 94 Tekken 6 BR Tournament

Last Sunday was the first Tekken 6 BR tournament at Video 94 and I showed up along with about 16 others (among them are hosts Cynnik, MYK, and Rip). Two from SDTekken showed up as well (Chris, who is a Nina player and Cody, who plays Ganryu). Even though the turnout could have been better, at least the tournament lasted four hours and it was indeed good times. I already did my shoutouts in the Tekken Zaibatsu thread about the tournament, so go there if u want to see that. The next tournament is next Saturday at Super Arcade as Kane will host and if I don't have plans that day, I might as well make an appearance and likely the turnout will be bigger. At least the SoCal Tekken scene is alive and kicking now as I'm willing to support it. Anyway, here are highlights from the top 5.

Rip (Law) vs. Cynnik (Raven) on Winners' bracket:


Calsonic (Xiaoyu) vs. Juggernaut (Eddy) on Losers' bracket:


MYK (Steve) vs. Suiken (Lei) on Grand Finals "So Much Damage indeed!!!"

Music Video Roundup for 2/19/09

I haven't really done this in a month I think, but here's the latest music videos I have been blasting. (Also seen previously in my Twitter)

"Welcome to Heartbreak" by Kanye West feat. Kid Cudi (Sort of an official music video, but not really since "Amazing" is still Kanye's next single.)



"Dead & Gone" by T.I. feat. Justin Timberlake (Perhaps the hottest song out on the radio now)



"Day & Nite" (Crookers Remix) by Kid Cudi (This song is too sick right now too).

ABDC Season 3 Episode 6 Recap

With console Street Fighter IV mania running wild, I guess I could take a break (actually I do need one after beating arcade mode on Medium with all 25 characters) and watch this week's ABDC with surprising results.

MTV Shows

With the Chris Brown/Rihanna incident still on the music world's minds, I don't know why MTV still went ahead with songs from those two this week. Anyway, Quest killed it again keeping my #1 pick alive.

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

Another sick Beat Freaks performance doing "Hot & Cold" and perhaps Kid Rainen's infamous season 1 long headspin is beaten tonight. At this point, it is clear that they are the judges' pick to win this. As long they don't screw up, they will actually win and I don't mind that.

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

Oh hey, the Fly Khicks are still around upsetting Strikers All-Stars. This performance wasn't that bad.

With this week's curveball (about time MTV decided to so because it has been somewhat a predictable season till now), a girl crew has a good shot of winning now, which I can get behind I guess. Doesn't matter, I'm still rolling with Quest to win this.

More of me getting owned at Tekken 6 BR...

Even though it is console Street Fighter IV mania today, here's more of me getting owned at Tekken 6: Bloodline Rebellion. This is from last Sunday's session and more craziness (I probably had two or three matches in video anyway that night).

Me vs. Rip (aka Super Law) - It is been a while since I played him since the Dark Resurrection days at Cal Poly Pomona and he still has the best Law in SoCal.

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I'll be at Sunday's Video 94 Tekken 6 BR tournament to participate and hang out again with the SoCal Tekken community.

Flowers can blow minds after all... The Flower Review

The whole debate whether or not video games can be considered as art is still a mixed bag. While most games out today feel just like pure entertainment, a handful of others actually feel like a rare and special experience. Recent examples like Rez HD and Braid are rare gaming experiences that your mind was blown compared to games as entertainment. Flower is now the new artistic and special experience that is also calm and relaxing at the same time. It is another great example of how Playstation Network is filled with originality and taking more risks compared to Xbox Live Arcade and WiiWare being filled up with shovelware most of the time. The developers, Thatgamecompany, already established themselves with Flow early on with the Playstation 3's lifespan and now Flower is their coming out party with a crazy concept that keeps building up till the end. Even if flowers are not your thing, this is one of the best downloadable games on the Playstation 3 now and for ten bucks, it is truly worth it.

The Flower experience is six levels long, but that doesn't mean you're totally done with the game. Even though you run through it once, there is enough replay value to play it as a game rather than an experience getting hidden flowers and trophies. The experience does build up as you progress similar to games like Rez and Braid where things would get crazy in the end. At first, it may seem calm and relaxing blooming flowers left and right, but later on it actually becomes a game along with the experience. Blooming various flowers and painting the levels does remind me a bit of Okami where the reward of completing the levels makes the world a cleaner and brighter place. Also rare these days in the Playstation 3's lifespan is that game relies on Sixaxis controls heavily. Those Sixaxis controls are among the best I have dealt with even though I have the system for almost two months now. Turning in various directions feel really good and accurate when slight turns require a slight tilt while sharper turns require a stronger tilt. Along with being a petal gathering more petals to proceed through these six levels, there is also the wind mechanic where sometimes you have to go on one direction in the later levels. Flower's gameplay can be played both as the experience and an everyday game.

On the graphics department, you can tell that Flower is meant for the Playstation 3 taking advantage of the hardware. The game flat out looks beautiful from beginning to end as mixing in the wind effects and the environments together is remarkable stuff. It also feels like you're watching something on Planet Earth seeing nature in its high definition glory watching the trail of flower petals interact with the long grass having that whoosh effect. The same thing goes for the sound as well. When gathering more flower petals, Flower almost feels like a rhythm game similar to Rez as it triggers various sound effects. Unlike Rez and its techno style, Flower's music is relaxing and soothing as if you're in a yoga session or mediating. As a downloadable game, Flower is a pretty good showcase of the system both in audio and graphics.

Flower is best as an experience rather than an actual game with goals. It can be played both ways of just playing the six levels casually, or as an everyday game with certain goals to accomplish which are usually for trophies. There is enough replayability for those players that want all the trophies, but for those casual players, playing it as an experience is good enough. It is a rare special experience that keeps building up to a climatic finale. Who would of thought that flowers can blow minds? Flower is indeed a game unlike no other and a great contender for downloadable game of the year.

Score = 9/10