Author: Michael Beckwith

My VG Music Picks #1 – Opening (Super Smash Bros. for Wii U)

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(originally posted November 28th 2014)

For reasons that I won’t explain since you probably don’t care, I’m beginning to not have as much time to write articles. But since I don’t want to break the streak of doing them weekly, I figured I’d start a recurring series of articles that are short and simple to write up; specifically, articles about some of my favourite pieces of music in video gaming. And what better way to start this off than with a track from a game released in Europe today: Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Continue reading →

Persona 3 Portable – Thou Art Quite Good

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

(originally posted November 21st 2014)

(WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Persona 3)

Persona_3_AD

Persona 4 quickly became one of my favourite games of all time, so I naturally became curious about its predecessor, Persona 3. Turns out there are like three versions of the thing; I settled on the PSP remake since it played similarly to P4 (I’m not fond of the idea of not having control over my own party members; I don’t trust the AI). I was worried that my love for its sequel would cause me to view P3 as a downgrade, and while P4 is certainly a superior title, P3 is still a good game and has plenty of great things about it. So, I’m gonna dedicate this article to all the things I liked. Let’s pull out our Evokers and get this started. Continue reading →

Is Toy Story 4 Necessary?

/ Michael Beckwith / 3 Comments

(originally posted November 14th 2014)

(WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Toy Story 3)

toy-story-3-508098b122af2

No. No, it really isn’t. Anyone who grew up with the original trilogy of Toy Story films (still the best film trilogy – suck it Lord of the Rings) most likely had the same reaction as I did when this was announced – a tilted head, a slightly agape expression, followed by a slowly drawn out and confused “Why?” Continue reading →

Ten Personal Scary Videogame Moments

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(originally posted November 7th 2014)

WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for the following games:

Batman: Arkham Asylum
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Persona 4
Professor Layton VS Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney
Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions
Super Paper Mario
The Walking Dead Season One
Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward

I know I’m a week late to the party but I figured that with all the love for Halloween, I’d share some of my personal scary moments from videogames. Though I should note that I don’t play a lot of horror videogames. Hell, I don’t even like the horror genre all that much, so don’t expect the usual titles or scenes that plague most ‘scary moments’ lists. Continue reading →

Nine Characters That Should Be in a Project X Zone Sequel

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(originally posted October 31st 2014)

In case the month’s worth of articles didn’t make it painfully obvious by this point, I love Project X Zone and, though it may never happen, I still dream of a sequel. What would change? What would be kept the same? I dunno, but what I do know is who I’d want to appear in it. The only rule is that they have to be Capcom, Sega and Namco characters. Continue reading →

Five Crossovers That Should Have Been Like Project X Zone

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(originally posted October 24th 2014)

If it wasn’t clear enough by this point, a lot of my love for Project X Zone comes from its set-up and character interaction. As such, I couldn’t help but think how good some crossovers could have been if they adopted a similar route. A lot of videogame crossovers just have the characters fight each other, which is entertaining but it very much lacks that special charm that something like Project X Zone had, which is ultimately why it’s one of my favourite video games. It may be but a fantasy to never come but I can certainly dream of a world where these existing crossovers were a hell of a lot more awesome. Continue reading →

Ten of My Favourite Music Tracks from Project X Zone

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

(originally posted October 17th 2014)

I briefly mentioned it in the article I wrote two weeks ago, but Project X Zone has an amazing soundtrack. Granted, most of the tracks are remixes of already existing tracks but there are still plenty of original tracks and, regardless of originality, they are all really good. So, to honour it, here’s a list of ten of my top picks. Continue reading →

Ten Favourite Characters in Project X Zone

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

(originally posted October 10th 2014)

(WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Project X Zone)

Project X Zone has probably got one of the biggest casts in any videogame, featuring a ton of heroes, villains and mooks from across the libraries of Capcom’s, Sega’s and Bandia Namco’s franchises, as well as some original ones. However, since most of these characters have little to no recognition or recognisability in the West, the writers/translators had to do an especially good job in making them likable and interesting, without incorporating any character development or deviating from the character’s original personality. In my opinion, they must have done a good job, because I fell in love with many of the cast despite my lack of knowledge, so here is a list of my personal favourites. Continue reading →

Project X Zone – Three Game Companies, One Kickass Crossover

/ Michael Beckwith / 1 Comment

(originally posted October 3rd 2014)

project-x-zone

In October 2012, Project X Zone, a tactical RPG, was released in Japan for the Nintendo 3DS. That following year, we Westerners were fortunate enough to receive the game ourselves, despite less than stellar sales. Opinion on this game is noticeably mixed; those who have played it either love it for what it is or find it rather dull. I am one of the former. I adore this game for a multitude of reasons and I wish more people were aware of it. It did manage to sell ten times more in the West than the publishers, Bandai Namco, were expecting but it’s hardly a household name; even amongst gamers it’s probably overlooked. So, I’m dedicating this whole month to one of my all-time favourite games, and by the end of this, you’ll hopefully be convinced to give a game a shot. Continue reading →

Hyrule Warriors – The Most Metal Zelda Game Yet

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(originally posted September 26th 2014)

Hyrule-Warriors-Logo

The Dynasty Warriors series is one that may be very fun to play, but doesn’t really grab me. The setting of ancient China can really only appeal to those interested in the culture. So, what’s the best way of getting someone like me to play it? The answer: dress it all up in Legend of Zelda clothing.

I’m admittedly not the biggest Zelda fan (having only played five games in the series) but the image of Link cutting down swarms of Moblins with the grandest of spin attacks was enough to get my attention, and as more details emerged over the months, it looked more and more enticing. But now the game’s out, is it as awesome as it looks? Continue reading →