Dungeon Siege 2 Review

Hi guys! Pardon me if this review seems a little off. This past weekend, I was under a horrible dizzy spell, that left be bedridden for half of Sunday. Luckily, I’m doing a bit better now, and I’ve done my research for my next review. If you enjoyed my Dungeon Siege review last week, then I’m sure you’ll enjoy this week’s review. Without any further delay, here’s my review of Dungeon Siege 2.

Story
This is one point where Dungeon Siege 2 improves over the original game. Whereas a lot of story points took place behind the scenes, much of Dungeon Siege 2's story takes place right in front of you. It doesn’t hide much from the player, except for certain moments meant to surprise and awe.

As for the actual story, here’s a summary of what goes on: You and a friend by the name of Drevin join a mercenary band controlled by the warlord Valdis. Consumed with dreams of taking over all of Aranna, Valdis aligned himself with the infamous Dark Wizards, ancient entities with control over equally ancient black magic. Valdis’s minions order you to assault a temple controlled by dryads (one of the races you can play as, but more on that later) in an effort to take a fragment of a magical shield. You do this, and Valdis thanks you by attacking the mercenary group, killing Drevin and leaving you unconscious.

You later wake up in a treetop village under control of the dryads as a prisoner. After being forced to do the jailer’s bidding, you’re eventually freed from their control, and go on your way to stop Valdis and the Dark Wizards. Without revealing anything else, you and your companions journey across massive swaths of landscape, fighting various creatures and uncovering more about the crisis at hand.

Setting
Like the Dungeon Siege: Legends of Aranna mission pack, Dungeon Siege 2 takes place on the land of Aranna, only this time it takes place on a different part of the land’s territory. This is one aspect of the game that is connected with the original Dungeon Siege game: many of the environments are those from the original game. There’s forests, deserts, mountains, caves, etc. This time around, the environments are more lifelike than the first game, and are more interactive as well. There’s all kinds of secrets in each environment, and they often hide numerous goodies, or a special pack of monsters to slay. All of this is a big improvement over Dungeon Siege, which at times had somewhat restrictive environments despite their looks.

Characters
This is another big improvement over Dungeon Siege, although it’s not as massive as one may think. In the original Dungeon Siege, the characters (major or minor) had no depth or personality. With Dungeon Siege 2, your party will sometimes talk with each other at certain moments, often showing their character. Along with your party, the other characters within the game have their own personalities as well. Valdis is a mad, power hungry lunatic, which meshes well with the sinister aura of the Dark Wizards. Even the secondary characters seem more lively than the secondary characters in Dungeon Siege, especially when you’re doing a quest for them.

Gameplay
More so than anything else within this game, the gameplay is the most improved aspect of Dungeon Siege 2. For starters, you can choose from a small list of races to play as. There’s humans, dryads, elves, and half-giants for starters, and dwarfs with the inclusion of the Broken Sword mission pack. Each of the races have their own strengths and weakness, which also happens to match them with certain class styles (half-giants = warrior, dryads = nature mages, etc).

Which leads perfectly into the next improvement. While the original Dungeon Siege was a remarkable game, it was very restrictive in terns of multiclassing. Most of the time, if you strayed from your primary class, you wouldn’t get very far, and would waste a lot of time. With Dungeon Siege 2, multiclassing into another path often gave your character a new path to power, and gave you more variety in terms of abilities and spells.

Even if you didn’t multiclass, sticking with one of the four paths (melee, ranged, nature magic, combat magic) still gave you a route to power. For example, a melee character can choose to increase his skill with armor & shields, or he can use two weapons to increase the amount of damage he deals. Ranged characters can use bows & crossbow, or he can opt for thrown weapons. Just sticking with one path gives your character numerous paths to advance oneself, and you even get special powers from leveling up certain skills. These powers are often the thing that can determine the outcome of a battle.

This also leads into another improvement. With Dungeon Siege, there wasn’t much of a difference between nature mages and combat mages. They both healed, did damage, summoned monsters, etc. Things have changed a bit with Dungeon Siege 2: combat mages are the death dealing magicians in Aranna, throwing fire, acid, negative energy, & lightning all over the place, while at the same time spouting curses to weaken enemies. Nature mages are almost complete opposites of combat mages: they like to stand back, heal, summon monsters, control the environment, and manipulate the power of ice when the times calls for it.

The monsters are the final improvement within Dungeon Siege 2's gameplay. While Dungeon Siege had a wide variety of monsters, they all seemed to become the same by the time you reached the end of the game. Dungeon Siege 2 has a equally impressive gallery of beasts and creatures to slay, but this time said beasts and monsters have weakness, strengths, and other traits that differentiate each other from the various other monsters in the world.

Graphics & Sound
These two items are also improvements in Dungeon Siege 2. Ironically, the one thing that this game and Dungeon Siege have in common is the graphics engine, but that’s the only thing they do have in common. The enging used in Dungeon Siege 2 is basically a advanced version of the original Dungeon Siege. At times it’s noticeable, but only if you’re zoomed in closely. When you have more of a “above everything” view, you take in the sights and peoples of the world, and notice many more landscape details than in Dungeon Siege 1.

The sounds aren’t a big improvement in Dungeon Siege 2, but they definitely are better than the sounds of Dungeon Siege 1. Actually, that’s kinda of a lie. The sounds, at least in my opinion, seem like nothing more than upgraded sounds from the first game. That’s not to say nothing sounds bad, as in fact many things sound great. It’s just that many of the noises sound like something that came from Dungeon Siege. It could just be me, but that how I hear it.

Overall & Rating
Dungeon Siege 2 is definitely more advanced than it’s predecessor. The story, characters, gameplay, all the way to the graphic and the sound show that this game is much greater than Dungeon Siege before, yet still retains the fun factor from the previous game. In my opinion, Dungeon Siege 2 is the best game of the Dungeon Siege franchise. This game gets a 8.5 out of 10.

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If any of you were curious, I don’t have any plans to review Dungeon Siege. While it looks better than the first two games, I don’t like the changes they made to the gameplay mechanics, as it feels more restrictive than Dungeon Siege 2, and even Dungeon Siege. That’s saying something!v

Dungeon Siege Review

Hi guys! Although my computer is fixed, I’ll be doing at least 2 more reviews on my laptop, including this one. In addition to that, there’ll only be one review this week, and one review next week. Also on top of that, the format will be different for those two reviews and beyond for what I’m working on. It’s not that I don’t want to do two review this week. It’s just that with what I’m reviewing, it’ll take some time to play and work on the reviews. Luckily, I did get my work done for this week’s review.

I had a pretty awesome birthday when I turned 15. I was close to getting out of 9th grade, my parents made me an awesome dinner, said parents also got me a ice cream cake from Ben & Jerry’s (get an ice cream cake from them when you have the chance), and my dad got me a game that I still play now from time to time. An RPG, no less. This game continues to fuel my geekness, and still manages to inspire awe within me. Despite some shortcomings, this game is a top favorite among the RPGs that I’ve played. So let’s dive into Dungeon Siege 1, a PC classic.

Story
This is perhaps one of the weaker points of Dungeon Siege, at least in my opinion. It’s clear that there’s a greater evil in the world, yet most of the time you’re basically going from town to town, killing things, and picking up snipbits of information along the way. You know that there’s something going on behind the scenes, yet you aren’t told exactly how certain events occurred.

As for the story itself, take a look at the except below from wikipedia:


“In the Kingdom of Ehb, a humble farmer's life is turned upside down when a small band of savage creatures, the Krug, as they are known, attack the farming community. They must be stopped and the player's character is tasked with seeking help from the neighboring town of Stonebridge. Along the way, the player may meet others willing to help them in their quest. The player soon discovers, however, that their story does not end upon reaching Stonebridge. It is revealed that all the Kingdom of Ehb is suffering because of evil creatures.

The farmer turned hero has to journey through the Kingdom in hopes of reaching the Castle Ehb in order to stop the Seck, a race of mysterious, spiteful humanoid monsters, who awakened from their imprisonment beneath the Castle. The hero has to face armies of wild creatures, Krugs, a colony of spiders, horde of undead, Goblins and their futuristic technology, Droogs, and even an ancient dragon, Scorch. The player's final objective is to enter the Seck lair under the Castle and defeat Gom, their leader.”


Setting
Even today, the scope of Dungeon Siege is relatively large. There are numerous types of environments within the game, and each of them gives off the “grand adventure” vibe. You journey through icy mountains & caves, valleys, swamps, deserts, deep forests, tombs, cliffs of various kinds, villages, a goblin factory (partial spoiler) and volcanoes. With the Legends of Aranna mission pack, misty jungles and coastlines were added, giving the world even more environmental depth. I loved each of these places, as they all seemed grand in some way. Despite the age of this game, the environments within Dungeon Siege still feel like living things, especially when you see some of the natural fauna wandering around.

Things take a turn when it comes to the races that live within the Dungeon Siege world, at least in this game. The two primary races that inhabit the game are Humans & Dwarves, both of which acknowledge the same ruler and work together in harmony. As a player wanders through the game, he or she will also encounter the small but savage Krug, the technologically advanced goblins (go figure!), and the mysterious but autonomous Droog. Half-Giants & Utraeans are added in with the mission pack to give a little more variety. That’s not a lot of races, but for the purpose of this game, it works.

As for the monsters that you’ll slay within Dungeon Siege, let me say that you have a Las Vegas sized buffet of monsters for you to eviscerate. Although some models are reused and slightly modified, there’s so many beasts within the game, there won’t be much time for you to notice it until you kill it.

Characters
Yet another weakness within Dungeon Siege. There really aren’t any characters, major or secondary, that stay within the player’s mind. Even the characters that eventually join your party, don’t have any depth or personality to them, save for when they speak to you when you first encounter them, or boot them out of your party. It’s really tragic, considering the size and scope of the environment.

Gameplay
This is the bread & butter of the game. Below is the complete list of what goes on within Dungeon Siege:


1) Find & kill monsters
2) Find, wear and/or sell loot
3) Find people that’ll give you quests, and complete said quests


Although this never really changes over the course of the game, the loot you do find and the monsters you kill do change. The difficulty also ramps up over time, making the challenge of saving the kingdom of Ehb more of a...challenge.

I should note that while you can’t avoid the main quests, you can avoid (if you want) the side quests. Many of them give you some decent loot, but a couple of the other side quests don’t exactly reward you for the time you spent on them. In the end, it’s your choice.

Graphics & Sound
This is an interesting part of this review. I should say that the graphics of Dungeon Siege haven’t aged well over the decade since it’s release. During it’s heyday the game looked great, but now it looks very crude. The models look somewhat blocky and jagged, and everything in general seems lackluster. As for the environments, they still feel believable despite their age. If you were wondering what my favorite areas to go through were, it was the forests. They seemed tranquil, despite the combat that took place within them.

The sounds within Dungeon Siege are a different matter. To me, they seemed to age relatively well over the decade, save for a few of the magical sound effects, but that’s just me. When you hear your weapon, whether it’s a sword or a mace, make contact with a target, the impact sounds believable. When an arrow hits an enemy, you know that they felt it, and that they heard it. Even the various spells used

Overall & Rating
In the end, Dungeon Siege is a nice game. Granted, the story and characters don’t completely stand out, and the graphics aren’t the best looking at this point in time, the sheer variety of environments, coupled with the still gorgeous landscapes, impressive gallery of monsters, decent sound effects, and the basic yet enjoyable gameplay makes for a fun time. Dungeon Siege gets a 7 out of 10.

See you next week, when I’ll continue this Dungeon Siege goodness. Until then, stay Otaku!

Otaku no Video Review

Remember when I said that my main computer was fine? Well, it's not. In fact, the damned thing died last night & this morning (don't ask how that works). I am hoping that my father can save something off of the harddrive, but I have a feeling that nothing can be salvaged. So, for the time being, I'll be using my laptop for my reviews and stuff. Hopefully, I'll have a main computer up in the next few days. This is my excuse for this review being a day late.

Gainax. These guys represent some of the finest animators in Japan, producing some of the most popular animes to have ever graced the world. From Gunbuster to Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt, the animators within Gainax have become a otaku powerhouse, and they show no signs of stopping their rising popularity. However, they weren't always the giants they area today. In fact, the studio originated from more...humble origins. With that being said, lets take a look at Otaku no Video, the OVA that pays tribute to all things otaku!

Directed by Takeshi Mori, Otaku no Video was released in Japan from September 27 1991 to December 20 1991, and was licensed by AnimEigo for a 2001 release. The story of Otaku no Video is a somewhat fictionalized account of the rise of Gainax, coupled with documentary style interviews involving former otaku and still current otaku, and sprinkles of real-world and anime history during the time of their formation. It's an interesting combination that plays out into a wonderful OVA, celebrating all things anime & otaku.

Starting things off, the first positive of this ova is Gainax. To me, these guys can do no wrong. They have produced some of the most iconic anime shows, OVAs, films, and other goodies. Even the shows that became sleeper hits are still considered to be some of the most finely animated and popular shows available. It also helps that they know how to make fun of themselves, and enjoy doing it in the process.

Next positive of Otaku no Video is how the various geeks and nerds (both in the animation and in the live interviews) are portrayed. Most of the time, those that proclaim themselves to be Otaku are portrayed in the media as awkward, strange, anti-social, and a host of other negative things. To an extent that's true, but in Otaku no Video, that's not completely the case. In this OVA, the otaku are portrayed as human beings. They have likes & dislikes, hopes & dreams, etc. When I was watching this, I kinda felt the vibes I felt when I first read the Harry Potter books in that the characters were treated with respect, and their intelligence was not downplayed.

This leads into Otaku no Video's third positive. Much like how the animated & live-action geeks and nerds were portrayed, the world of anime is treated with an equal amount of respect. In actuality, it's not just anime that's treated with respect. Manga, cosplay, video games, and all other things that are associated with otaku are treated with respect. To me, these are some of the most fundamental things in the geek/nerd/otaku world. They are, in a sense, living & breathing things. As we delve further and further into them, we discover more about ourselves and how we can change the world, for better or worse.

The fourth positive of Otaku no Video is the animation. Despite being a show from the very early 90s, how things look and move still manage be be of good quality. Although things look rough around the edges at times (this applies more to the characters than anything else), the quality of everything is right up there with the standard "polished" look that Gainax is known for. While there was nothing dazzling, I wasn't disappointed with how things look.

Otaku no Video's fifth positive is the mix of genres it contains. Comedy, drama, slice-of-life, history of the animated and real-world kind, and even sci-fi (Don't ask. You'll just have to watch to understand) are all within this OVA. In a way that only Gainax knows how, these genres are all swirled together to form the perfect story, complete with sorta a feel good feeling by the time you're done watching. If there's any lesson to be learned from watching Otaku no Video (and there is a lesson), it's that any dream how have can be accomplished if you're willing to work hard and sacrifice. That's sounds a little cheesy, but it's true.

The sixth positive of Otaku no Video is the time length. At 100 minutes, this OVA movie is perfect for an afternoon, or as part of a anime viewing party. It's especially good for a anime viewing party cause it offers an insight into one of the most popular animation studios in the world...and it's just fun to watch.

The last positives of Otaku no Video is the availability and pricing. Despite having been released a little over a decade ago in the states, there are plenty of copies both new & used on Amazon. The new copies start at $7.44 dollars, and the baker's dozen of used DVDs start at $4.11. Despite being a little more expense, you should just go for a new copy (which is what I did), as there really aren't enough used copies to make buying one worth it. Regardless, either new or used won't hurt your wallet, and the purchase is worth it.

Otaku no Video is a masterpiece of Japanese animation. It's unique, yet somehow familiar to otaku the world over. However, there is only one bad thing about it. Some people will comes to grips with it (like me), but others won't. Like Step Up Love Story, there is no dub in this. This makes it all the more complicated by the fact that a lot happens on the screen that requires the viewer's attention, and giving the subs some of that attention may cause you to miss something.

Otaku no Video gets a 9.5 out of 10. It's done by Gainax, the geeks and nerds portrayed are done respectfully, anime is portrayed in a more positive light, the animation is good, the mix of genres is impressive, it kills an afternoon, and it's easy to find and buy, but there's no dubbing.

See you next week. Until then, stay Otaku!

Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Isle

Once again, sorry about being a day late. I had honestly forgot about doing a review yesterday, as I was a bit tired. That day has passed, and now I'm posting some more Inuyasha goodness today. I will admit, I'll be a bit of a cheating hooker with this review, since a lot of things that were in my last review also show up in this one. To show this, sections of the review will have quotations around them (and some changes), and new sections won't have quotations. Now that has been addressed, let's dive into Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Isle.

Directed by Toshiya Shinohara and written by Katsuyuki Sumisawa, Fire on the Mystic Isle was released on December 23, 2004, just a few months after the last episode of the show was aired. Viz Media acquire the rights to release the movie in the states on August 1, 2006. The story displayed on the back of the DVD tells everything:


Within the dark recesses of Horai Island, a group of half-demons live under the demonic rule of the Four War Gods. Escaping with barely a shred of hope, Ai, the youngest of the half-demons, returns to the island with Inuyasha, who must face not only the Four War Gods, but the past he left behind on the island fifty years ago.


"This goes into the first positive of the movie. All of what goes on is typical, standard Inuyasha stuff: a happy-go-lucky crew, somewhat predictable villains, an equally somewhat predictable story from beginning to end (though this movie does have a few twists and turns in it). It’s things like these that cause those who hate Inuyasha to bust a nerve, and throw a conipshinfit. Fans of Inuyasha (including myself), on the other hand, like all of this stuff. It’s kinda like DBZ in a way, only a bit more happy, things are a bit more sensitive and emotional, and charging attacks don’t carry over to multiple episodes."

"The second positive of Fire on the Mystic Isle is the visuals. Unlike the shows, which at times seems outdated and rough around the edges, this movie (as well as the other films) looks more modern and smooth. The characters, whether primary or secondary, look and move more realistically. If you never watch any of the Inuyasha films before, you’d assume that it was released in the later half of last decade. Me, I think it looks like something that came out in the middle of last decade."

"The voice acting comes is the next positive of this film. All of the voice actors that worked on the show have come back to reprise their roles. Essentially, everything as far as speaking and other vocal sounds is concerned, is the same as in the normal show. If you liked the dubbing of the show, then you’re going to like the dubbing in this movie."

The voice acting leads into the fourth positive of Fire on the Mystic Isle. In my review of The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass, the second negative of the film I talked about was Kagome's whining. I specifically stated that:


"Everytime I hear her whine, it rings in my ears for at least the rest of the day."


So I was quite surprised to not hear even a tiny bit of whining. Perhaps a little bit of pouting, but no whining. I don't know when this movie was released according to the show's timeline, but I'm going to assume it's towards the end of the show, since Kagome (in my opinion) was much more mature at that point.

This leads into another surprising positive. With the first three films, the story was centered around the main villain or villains and Inuyasha and the gang. This time around, we have a story that concentrates on the villains, the gang, and the small group of half-demon children that live on the island. Many of the scenes have a even mix of the cast, and when there are moments that involve just one part of the cast, it stays exclusively with that part of the cast. The scenes and moments that focus on the half-demon children are the most memorable to me. In particular, the two twin boys are especially hilarious. Many of the scenes they appear in they act like a standard Manzai duo, coupled with hints of the Hitachiin Twins from Ouran High School Host Club.

"The availability and pricing of Fire on the Mystic Isle are the final positives of this film. This film is the newest in the United States in terms of how long it's been out, and because of this, there are plenty of copies over on Amazon. As I type, there are 38 new DVDs and 54 used DVDs on the website. The new copies start at $2.99, while the used copies start at $2.00. The pricing difference is much less than The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass, so have a go at which ever one suits your fancy."

Despite the presentation that this movie gives, Fire on the Mystic Isle has one blemish on it's face, and that's the predictability. While it isn’t on level with the show, the way the characters interact with each other, as well as how the story plays out, is relatively predictable. Anime fans that dislike/hate/loathe Inuyasha will gripe at this, but I didn’t have a problem with how the story played out.

Before I give the final score, let me say that, in my opinion, Fire on the Mystic Isle is the best of the Inuyasha movies. I think that by this stage of the game, Ms. Rumiko knew where the cast was going, and what was going to happen. So because of that, things played out more smoothly than normal. Fire on the Mystic Isle gets a 9 out of 10. It has all of the positives that The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass, Kagome doesn't whine in this film, and there more of a cast to concentrate on, but it still suffers from predictability problems.

See you later this week. Until then, stay Otaku!


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Oh, heads up on how my computer is doing. I don't know how, but it came back to life, and is doing well aside from a few small quirks.

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter to you all!! May you be with close family, may life bring you unexpected things, and may life not suck! As a present to you, here's one of my house's mascots. Enjoy!

 See you next week, where I'll have more Inuyasha goodness for you. Until then, stay Otaku!




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If you're wondering where my last post went, I deleted it. I won't get into all of the details, but suffice it to say, it was for...practical reasons.

Inuyasha The Movie 2: The Castle Beyond The Looking Glass Review

Hi guys. Once again, I’m sorry for delaying the review. Yesterday, the internet imported something bad, and destroyed my current antivirus system. Luckily, a new antivirus system was installed, but something else occurred that was much worse than before. Until that problem is solved (and I pray to the technolords above that it does get solved), I’ll be doing the reviews from my laptop. I’ll keep you posted on any further developments.

Inuyasha. Just the mentioning of that name brings up smiles & squeels in it’s fans, and frowns & growls in those that hate it. True, some things have occurred during the show’s airing that riled up some cages, but this review isn’t about the show. This review is about one of the movies that came out during the show’s airing. So, here’s a look at the second Inuyasha movie, The Castle Beyond The Looking Glass.

With a story written by the famous Rumiko Takahashi, and a screenplay done by Katsuyuki Sumisawa, The Castle Beyond The Looking Glass was released back in December 21, 2002, and Viz Media released it in the United States on December 28, 2004. The events of the film take placed between episodes 95 & 96: things start out in a small abandoned hut. The night sky is studded with stars, and the moon is nowhere to be seen. Things then move to one of the key starts of this film, Inuyasha, who’s currently in his human form because of the moon. Everyone else in the gang (Kagome, Sango, Shippo, and Miroku) is outside the hut protected their comrade from the advancing Naraku. He comes in a destroys the hut, but now it’s morning, and Inuyasha is back to his normal half-demon self. After an intense fight, Naraku is defeated, and the suffering that had befallen some of the crew disappears. After a moment of reflection, everybody goes their separate ways.

However, the peace doesn’t last long. Naraku’s two surviving minions, Kagura and Kanna, travel to a small shrine hidden within a watery forest grove. Inside the shrine is a mirror, of which Kaguya, the infamous Princess of the Heavens, resides. She commands the two to retrieve certain objects that can free her from the confines of the mirror, allowing her to go with her plan to plunge the world into a realm where the full moon is always around. Naturally, this machination of evil reunites the gang in an effort to stop the trio’s plan, and stick around with each other once again.

This goes into the first positive of the movie. All of what goes on is typical, standard Inuyasha stuff: a happy-go-lucky crew, somewhat predictable villains, an equally somewhat predictable story from beginning to end (though this movie does have a few twists and turns in it). It’s things like these that cause those who hate Inuyasha to bust a nerve, and throw a conipshinfit. Fans of Inuyasha (including myself), on the other hand, like all of this stuff. It’s kinda like DBZ in a way, only a bit more happy, things are a bit more sensitive and emotional, and charging attacks don’t carry over to multiple episodes.

The second positive of The Castle Beyond The Looking Glass is the visuals. Unlike the shows, which at times seems outdated and rough around the edges, this movie (as well as the other 3 films) looks more modern and smooth. The characters, whether primary or secondary, look and move more realistically. If you never watch any of the Inuyasha films before, you’d assume that it was released in the later half of last decade. Me, I think it looks like something that came out in the middle of last decade.

The voice acting comes is the next positive of this film. All of the voice actors that worked on the show have come back to reprise their roles. Essentially, everything as far as speaking and other vocal sounds is concerned, is the same as in the normal show. If you liked the dubbing of the show, then you’re going to like the dubbing in this movie.

The availability and pricing of The Castle Beyond The Looking Glass are the final positives of this film. Despite being almost a decade old in the states, there are still plenty of copies over on Amazon. As I type, there are 33 new DVDs and 44 used DVDs on the website. The new copies start at $11.46, while the used copies start at $2.59. As you can see, that’s a massive gap in terms of price, yet buying either of them really won’t put a damper on your wallet. So, have a go at which ever one suits your fancy.

Yet, despite how enjoyable The Castle Beyond The Looking Glass is, there are two negatives that for some (partially including myself), act like white elephants in a black room. The first of these white elephants is how predictable things can be. While it isn’t on level with the show, the way the characters interact with each other, as well as how the story plays out, is relatively predictable. Anime fans that dislike/hate/loathe Inuyasha will gripe at this, but I didn’t have a problem with how the story played out. On the other hand...

Kagome. What can I say. It’s a love/hate relationship with me as far as I’m concerned. On the one hand, I love her kindness, her understanding of those that can’t always defend themselves, and her occasional airhead moments. Also for the most part, I like her voice. The only time I don’t like her voice is when she whines, and holy hellraiser does she whine in this movie. Fortunately, you only her these moments of earsplitting pain a little bit in the beginning, a little more in the middle, and the rest of it at the end. Everytime I hear her whine, it rings in my ears for at least the rest of the day.

The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass gets a 8 out of 10. It’s standard Inuyasha fare, the visuals are better than the show, the voice acting is the same as that of the show, and the pricing and availability are nice, but it’s somewhat predictable, and bloody damnit does Kagome whine.

Until later tonight or sometime Sunday, when I reveal something very personal to you all. Stay Otaku in the meantime!

Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation Review

Hi everyone. Since I didn't do a review last week, I moved it to this week. So without any further delays, here's a review of Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation.

Directed by Shigeyasu Yamauchi and released in Japan in 1999, Manga Entertainment acquired it for a English dubbed release back in 2000. Coincidentally, this movie commemorated the tenth anniversary of the arcade release of Street Fighter 2. It's also quite interesting in the fact that it isn't a prequel, or sequel, to either Street Fighter 2 the Animated Movie or the Street Fighter 2 V anime series. Instead, Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation is it's own outing, while at the same time having some loose connections to the fighting game it's based off of.

As for the story, here's what is on the back of the DVD Case:


"A black cloud hangs over Ken and Ryu's reunion. Brought together by the mysterious death of their master, the two warriors must overcome a challenge unlike any they've faced before. Increasingly disturbed by the dark energies building within him, Ryu is unexpectedly confronted with the appearance of Shun - a boy claiming to be the long-lost brother he never knew. Soon signs of their common lineage are revealed as Shun enters a martial arts competition and displays the same power of the Dark Hadou."

"But Before Ryu has the chance to consider whether Shun's timely appearance might be more than coincidental, the boy is kidnapped by agents of the insidious Shadowlaw organization. To recover Shun, Ryu must undertake the ultimate journey of self-discovery and learn to control the power threatening to consume him."

"Ryu must undertake the ultimate journey of self-discovery and learn to control the force threatening to consume him. But with his confidence waning, will he have what it takes to confront Akuma, the vicious master of the Dark Hadou himself? Find out as allies old and new join forces against a sinister new threat in the pulse-pounding sequel to the phenomenally popular Street Fighter II V series."


Yes, it says in that last part that this movie is connected to the Street Fighter II V anime series, but it isn't. Trust me.

To start of the positives, let me say that despite the more modern look and appearance, this is still Street Fighter. There's still a lot of action, a lot of fighting, and some of the most recognizable characters within the world of video games. Fans of the game series will easily recognize the characters, and even those with a passing interest in Street Fighter will at least recognize the more popular characters.

The second positive of this film is how it looks. Like it says right above, Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation has a more modern look and appearance. If you were to watch both films back to back, you'd see why. This movie has a more cleaner and crisper appearance than Street Fighter II: The Movie, and the characters seem to move more fluidly than their predecessors. Even the colors seem to be more vibrant than the movie before it, but that's just me.

The 3rd positive of Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation is the story. This time around, things aren't as cheesy or predictable as Street Fighter II, as things are a bit more dark & bleak. Despite the hope and humor that was generated at certain points within the film, there always seemed to be a dark cloud hovering over everybody, including the energetic & cheery Sakura. I was genuinely surprised at many points within the movie, as I didn't expect certain things to occur. I can't say what those certain things are, cause that would ruin it for you. Trust me when I say that you won't see these things coming.

The 4th positive of Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation is how long it lasts. Coming in at two hours long, this is a movie that can kill an afternoon, or kill a portion of it at least. This movie is also has the distinction of beating Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie's time, which was just 98 minutes. Still large, but not quite as massive as this movie. However, you could easily include both movies together as part of a massive Street Fighter marathon with your friends.

Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation's fifth positive are the extras. Although there isn't a lot of them (I usually harp about this, but this time I won't), there are enough to keep you interested. There's interviews, a making of Street Fighter Alpha, a trailer for Street Fighter Alpha, a web link to Manga Entertainment, and Manga DVD Previews and trailers. Like I said there wasn't a lot, but their still entertaining regardless.

The last positives of Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation are availability and pricing. Although the VHS copies are slim on Amazon, the DVD release is incredibly easy to find & buy. As I'm typing this, there are 29 new copies for sale, and 57 used copies. The new DVDs start at $3.95, the starting used cost is just $1.24. Buying either a used or new copy won't cause your wallet to bleed, and it makes for a decent addition to the library of any anime fan.

Yet, despite all that this movie has going for it, there's a couple thing that go against it. For starters, there's a gap between main & secondary characters in terms of screen time. Much like Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie and Nightwarriors: Darkstalker's Revenge, some characters get a lot of screen time, while others get some or little screen time. This time around though, there aren't as many main or side characters. We've got 7 main characters (Ken, Ryu, Shun, Chun-Li, Dr. Sadler, Rosanov, Akuma), and 10 secondary characters (Sakura, Rose, Zangief, Adon, Vega, Birdie, Dan, Kei, Sodom, Wallice). Like I said, not as large of a screen time gap, but a screen time gap regardless.

The second negative is the movie's feel. I wrote eariler that this movie is more dark & bleak than Street Fighter II, and I wasn't lying. However, I didn't like that permeating feel of despair. I was hoping that this film would be a little more like Street Fighter II: Some more humor, a little more upbeat vibe, etc. This movie had humor at times, but those moments seemed smaller than those in Street Fighter II. I still enjoyed watching this however.

The final negative is the reception of the movie. In the eyes of many fans (whether they're Street Fighter fans or not) this movie isn't as likable as Street Fighter II: The Animated Movie. Whether it's because of it's darker mood, the beginning character interactions (Ryu & Chun-Li meet as if they've never seen each other before. Hardcore Street Fighter fans know better), or something else, the movie just doesn't have as big of a following as Street Fighter II. In general though, Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation has garnered a mixed to positive response, earning a 58% approval rating over on Rotten Tomatoes.

Street Fighter Alpha: The Animation gets a 7 to 7.5 out of 10. It's still Street Fighter, everything looks and feels more modern, the story plays out differently than it's predecessor, the movie lasts for a while, the extras are nice, and it's very easy to find & buy, but there's a screen time gap between main & secondary characters, the movie's feel may be too dark for some, and it just wasn't as well liked as the movie before it.

See you later this week. Until then, stay Otaku!