Now I don't tend to do trailers other than share it and point out how cool it is (rarely) but I was asked to do a post on the third Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer and I thought, what the hell it's special. Now when people first heard about Disney buying Star Wars and that they were going to start making a movie straight away everyone else was all angry/ scared. Angry because nerd rage and scared as they automatically thought of the Lion King, Little Mermaid, Micky Mouse etc and they instantly thought of Disney as an evil corporation who were going to ruin the franchise even more than the prequels did. I on the other had was pleased to here of Disney purchasing some of my childhood memories as not only do Disney do the rare thing and give the fans what they want, they also have a lot of great live action titles under their belt that a lot of people forget are Disney movies: movies like The Rocketeer, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Mighty Ducks movies, National Treasure, Tron and who can forget The Pirates of the Caribbean and The Marvel Cinematic Universe movies. In short my hopes are up for the new movie.
Another reason we should be happy that these movies are going to be made by Disney is that the Star Wars franchise has always been first and foremost for kids. This is something the enraged super-fans always forget. Even the first three movies were made by companies who's target audience is young children and everything Star Wars is made with 10 year olds and the stuff 10 year olds like in mind. There's no one that does a better job of making kids movies that adults like than Disney and that's exactly what we want from a Star Wars movie. A movie we can take our kids, grand kids, nieces and nephews to see without being bored as our parents did with us with the previous movies. Judging from the trailers that's what we're going to get.
As for the trailer itself it's fantastic, it doesn't get me as excited as the second trailer did but it still makes my inner kid bubble to the surface. They've teased all the right stuff, especially the Millennium Falcon and the old characters. It doesn't shadow the new stuff too much though, the new heroes seem like I could back them easy and the villain looks so good, kinda like the Sith from the Knights of the Old Republic games. I'm a big fan of the way this movie looks so far: everything feels new and cool but at the same time there's no mistaking that you are seeing some Star Wars here. Also: Stormtroopers, they are probably the source of my obsession with white military equipment and are probably my favourite thing about Star Wars in general.
One thing's for sure: I'll be seeing this in the cinema, I can't wait to see this and I hope that it's going to be as good as it looks.
In preparation for Fallout 4 coming out I've recently replayed the previous two Fallout games and their DLCs. It's been 8 years since Fallout 3 came out in 2008 and with the exception of a couple of graphics issues and some bugs in the DLC the game still holds up pretty damn well today. The lack of emotional range with the NPCs may spoil the mood sometimes but it mostly adds to the charm of the game since in the apocalypse there's only three facial expressions: rage, indifference and over excitement. The game-play stands the test of time too, and although New Vegas is bigger, the capital wasteland feels larger. It still looks amazing too.
If you don't know already one of the best things about Fallout 3 is that you grow up in a vault, Vault 101 to be exact, and Liam Neeson is your dad. It's appropriate the vault is 101 as the growing up in the vault part of the game is the tutorial for all the basic skills in the game. It's still my favourite tutorial ever at this point. Later you escape the vault and you get mixed up in a war between The always cool and bad-ass Brotherhood of Steel (I mean that name alone is awesome enough), the ever-enraged super mutants and their messed up attack dogs the centaurs and the stereotypical bad guys, the Enclave (they are basically Nazis). Another thing I love about the Fallout games is the personal merc unit you build up with some awesome and some not so awesome companions. I love collecting a uniform to get them all to wear but stuff like that is easy for me to do in games due to my OCD. One of the best companions is Fawkes, with the exception of Uncle Leo, he's the only super mutant in the game that isn't hostile to the Lone Wanderer. I think any game fan will agree that Fawkes is one of the best companions in video games in general.
Pro-tip for you, everyone always warns new Fallout players about deathclaws but no one seems to mention the reavers. Stay away from these guys until you are a high level. There's a small chance of a low level player taking down a deathclaw (if you're lucky) but there's no chance of taking down a reaver as they will 100% kill you with one hit and are not only fast but can normally be found in pairs or amongst at least 3 other feral ghouls. You do only need to deal with them if you have loaded the Broken Steel and Point Lookout DLCs though.
The Fallout 3 DLC is some of the best DLC I've ever played, a couple of them like Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta could easily be stand alone games.
Operation: Anchorage
Operation: Anchorage. Enter a military simulation and fight in one of the greatest battles of the Fallout universe – the liberation of Anchorage, Alaska from its Chinese Communist invaders. Gain access to unique armor, weapons, and exotic gadgets while you build and command interactive Strike Teams to win the battle and defeat the Chinese base.
— official description
I loved playing this DLC and hope there's more missions like it in Fallout 4. I love the battle ground feel of the DLC and the best bit about it is the clean and pretty awesome looking power armor. Personally I also loved the novelty of playing a Fallout game without kicking cans every time you walk. I hope that's something that's changed in Fallout 4 cause it always annoyed me that even rich people or organizations like the Brotherhood of Steel and NCR lived in squalor.
The Pitt
The Pitt allows you to travel to the post-apocalyptic remains of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and become embroiled in a conflict between slaves and their raider masters. Explore a sprawling settlement ravaged by time, neglect, nuclear radiation, and moral degradation. The Pitt is filled with morally gray choices, shady non-player characters, new enemies, new weapons, and much more.
— official description
As with the previous DLC I loved The Pitt due to it's ability to give you something very different but it still feels like the same game. Love the prison break feel to the DLC and what's left of the city being turned into a mine for scrap that's mined by slaves and prisoners is such a great concept for a game. This DLC looks so moody and it's perfect at making you feel a bit gloomy.
Broken Steel
Continue your existing Fallout 3 game and finish the fight against the Enclave remnants alongside Liberty Prime. Broken Steel moves the level cap for your character from 20 to 30, allowing you to experience even more of the game, including new perks and achievements.
— official description
I think the missions in this DLC are my favourite, can't get enough of missions that have you expanding a military force (it's why I love the game play of Far Cry so much). Also we get to see more of Liberty Prime, one of the coolest robots in games.
Point Lookout
Point Lookout opens up a massive new area of the Wasteland – a dark, murky swampland along the coast of Maryland. So hop on the ferry to the seaside town of Point Lookout, for the most mysterious and open-ended Fallout 3 DLC adventure yet.
— official description
This DLC was so good, it was fantastic to be somewhere that wasn't a desert. I was also awesomely creepy and dark with a Texas Chainsaw Massacre feel to the place.
Mothership Zeta
Defy hostile alien abductors and fight your way off of the massive Mothership Zeta, orbiting Earth miles above the Capital Wasteland. Mothership Zeta takes Fallout 3 in an entirely new direction – outer space. Meet new characters and join with them in a desperate bid to escape the aliens’ clutches. To do so, you’ll wield powerful new weapons, like the alien atomizer, alien disintegrator, and drone cannon, and deck yourself out in brand new outfits, like the Gemini-Era spacesuit and even samurai armor.
— official description
This is the one that sticks in my mind most out of the DLCs. I love the whole concept of basically being in an alien horror movie where you are the "monster". Think about it, you break out of a cell by beating the guards to death, you and the other humans create a "nest" in one area of the ship, making it more habitable for humans then you go from floor to floor wiping out the ship's crew (some of which just run when they see you instead of fighting) where attempt after desperate attempt is made to stop you. It's basically Alien but with the roles reversed and it's awesome.
It also has one of the most nightmare inducing enemies in games ever; the Abominations, the only things worse than these super creepy guys in Fallout (so far) are the ghost people from Dead Money.
You should at least play Fallout 3 before Fallout 4 comes out if you haven't already. If you have played it you should play it again, it's still as good as I remember it.
Have you ever wanted a Supernatural playlist of (probably) Dean Winchester approved songs? Well I've spent the last week making one on YouTube from songs that appear on the show, I'm that awesome. It obviously consists of mostly classic rock (and that one Taylor Swift song), all songs are from the show, I've noticed most people that do these Dean playlists tend to just take a guess at the songs from stuff he says on the show or include absolutely every song from the show and both of these aren't what I'm looking for. I've just included the stuff we hear. So far we have up to season 10.
I would do one for Sam too but lets face it, he has terrible taste in music.
I've been wanting to do a post on this for a long time as I've noticed that there's still a lot of people under the impression that women are no good at rapping and it offends me quite a bit as I'm a big fan of many female rappers. The situation got even more annoying for me a while back when someone said that the only female rapper that matters is Nicki Minaj. Although I agree that Minaj is definitely an influential artist and she is one of the most successful female rappers of all time, she is definitely not the only one that matters, in fact there's a whole load out there, especially younger women, killing it. And they are rapping about stuff that matters without being sexist and homophobic and in my opinion they are doing it just as well or better than male rappers.
Iggy Azalea
Iggy Azalea for example is great and, I'm not scared to say, one of my favourite pop-rappers. There's been a lot of hate towards her from a small portion of the internet that seems to stem from nothing as I've tried searching for legit stories of her being a dick and can't find any. Yes the song with Britney Spears was a bit terrible but other than that I've loved all the other songs she's released as a single, my personal favourite still being "Work".
Azealia Banks
My ultimate favourite of the most well known pop-rappers is Azealia Banks. I am a east coast kinda guy after all (I prefer the grittier and darker sound). The Harlem rapper may not be my top rapper but she is up there. You will know her for the single "212" featuring Lazy Jay but what you may not know is that she's been releasing music sing late 2008, originally under the name 'Miss Bank$'. My favourite Azealia Banks song is the 2014 single "Heavy Metal and Reflective".
Dominique Young Unique
I also love the lesser known pop-rappers, you'll recognize their music if you don't recognize their names. Dominique Young Unique has a great, like the name says, unique sounding voice. Her debut single as lead artist "Throw It Down" in 2014 was a fantastic song.
M.I.A.
It's not only Americans doing well with rap in the charts, London born M.I.A. is big world wide and if you know who she is then you're cool. She's more experimental than any the others I've written about and I love the way she combines many different styles of music.
Angel Haze
Angel Haze is another one of my favourites though they're not well known in the UK. Haze has a more traditional rap style and it's bad-ass. It's no surprise that they're from Detroit, the home of many of the best rappers, Haze included. I love the song "Werkin Girls", I love it's pure gangsta style.
Cleo.
One of my favourite genres of Hip Hop is the London Grime scene and one of my favourites in the genre is Cleo. (formally Mz Bratt). She's released consistently good but largely unknown singles since 2009 starting with the pretty funky "Who Do You Think You Are?".
Baby Blue
My personal favourite British female rapper is Baby Blue. She is known for her work with singer Estelle and collaborations with John Legend, Madness, Sway, Shystie, Ms. Dynamite and Lady Sovereign. You might know her masterpiece of a song "Bump".
Awkwafina
Then there's the lesser known and comedy rappers that make up part of the alt-pop genre, one of the funniest is Awkwafine of New York. She's a great rapper and her songs are both good and funny, check out "Daydreaming".
Kreayshawn
Kreayshawn is one of my favourites and she seems to be one of the most popular of the lesser known rappers and when you hear songs like "Go Hard (La.La.La)" its easy to see why. She has a great sound with catchy songs and a great style.
Ruby Ibarra
Ruby Ibarra is a pretty talented and little known Filipino American rapper. Like many of the best rappers, she spits about her life in an old school style. "Fallin' Down" and "The Cypher" with SLTG are highlights.
K.Flay
K.Flay is my favourite female rapper and possibly my favourite rapper in general. I love her voice and alternative style and I love the fact that she can play a large amount of instruments. Her rap career actually started out as a parody of popular rap songs, making fun of the bigotry and sexism a lot of rap artists get away with. Then it turned out she was really good and the rest is history. "Cops" is one of my all time favourite songs, it features pretty heavily on my playlists. And "Rawks" is one of the best rap songs I've heard for years.
Gangsta Boo
Gangsta Boo, also known as Lady Boo is one of the best gangsta rappers I've heard. She was a member of one of the best rap groups Three 6 Mafia (1995-2001, 2013-2014). She's more suited to the hardcore gangsta rap fans, A personal highlight for me is "Just Anotha Crazy Click" - Three 6 Mafia feat ICP & Twizitd.
Tkay Maidza
Tkay Maidza is an Australian singer and rapper, born in Zimbabwe. I must admit this girl is new to me too but I love the way she flows, it's so fast and smooth. I'm surprised "M.O.B." isn't more popular than it is.
Jean Grae
Jean Grae is another rapper with a great old school style, which is no surprise if you know she's been an underground rap star since the late 90s. "My Crew" is a great old school track.
Rapsody
Rapsody is another I've not long discovered but I love every song I've heard so far and as she says she does seem to be one of the best rappers, female or otherwise. "Dark Knights" is a personal favourite.
Lauryn Hill
Now if you where a hardcore rap fan you'd probably forgive someone for not knowing about the girls I've mentioned so far as they are new, alternative or underground stars but what about the classics that have been big since the 90s. Lauryn Hill for example, one of the biggest names in music and the singer and rapper on one of the most famous female rap songs ever, "Doo-Wop (That Thing)".
Missy Elliott
Then there's the freakin' awesome Missy Elliott who's behind actual hip hop anthems like "Work It" and "Get Your Freak On".
Eve
You can't have a list of female rappers without Eve, who you may know as 'the woman that does some rap bits on some pop songs from the 00s but she's much more than that. She's one of the best rappers ever. She has a lot of great solo songs and she clearly still has it judging from the epic 2013 release "EVE".
This has been the largest post I've done and the first one I've done in a while, it's because I feel passionate about the subject. I believe there should be more respect and love for female rappers as well as more recognition because it's been too long that people have been talking shit about women in certain roles in music including rap. Even most girls that like Hip Hop have no idea about most of the women on this list and that's a sad thing. I mean all these women are fantastic at what they do and I hope the amount of women getting into rap continues to rise. Especially since a lot of famous male rappers are pretty crap these days (the new ones, not the ones that have been around for a while).
I've recently and finally been able to play the God of War franchise on PS3 and I've read the basic plot of the 2 PSP games and I loved the story. My only problem with this set of games is that there are rumors of a new game coming out and that bad thing about that is that the rumors say the game will be a reboot of the first game. Now that's not needed, there are a few things that need a reboot or a remake (Power Rangers) but God of War is definitely not one of them. If another God of War game is to come out it should definitely be a sequel and this is my own opinion of what that game should be.
At the end of God of War III we are lead to believe it's the end of Kratos but he has died a few times before and at the end of the credits we are shown that his body has gone but we didn't see it explode or turn to ash like the other main characters that die. The game also repeats that he will forever be haunted by what he's done no matter what happens.
Mysterious Angels
Now what I'd do is have Kratos come around in a lovely looking part of Earth and he thinks he's reached the fields of Elysium but it turns out he's been "saved" by a group of god-like people, some of whom look like angels. One in particular claims he is the rightful and one true God. He claims that if Kratos helps him hunt down and murder the remaining Olympians, Titans and other powerful creatures from Greek myth that he can re-unite Kratos with his family. We'd also find out that these new 'gods' have already successfully killed a few of the minor gods (throw in a few names people might recognize like Eros and Pan).
Eros
Pan
Apollo
Early boss battles could include well known gods like Apollo and Artemis. I'd say round about the halfway point of the game you'll be re-united with Prometheus, who has conveniently just came from the underworld where he learnt of this new guy who has Kratos' family captive. Guess who it is? It's Satan and not only is it Satan it's the guy from the beginning. And the angels? Yup, actually demons. Maybe the 7 Princes of Hell (That would give us a Titan-sized boss fight in the form of the massive Leviathan, the demon of envy). Now Kratos joins forces with Prometheus and goes after the latest bunch to betray him.
Leviathan
Satan
After all the violence is done with Prometheus would take role of top god. After all there is no other old god more like the common image of the Christian god than Prometheus, he's a wise old-looking muscular man in a toga with a beard who created mankind in his own image and who's greatest crime was loving mankind too much (after all they are all his children) and coming to our rescue when we needed rescuing the most. As for Kratos, it would make sense if he was to end up guarding Hades to make sure no one he's messed up gets out. An ending like this would be a great finale and leaves it open for potential sequels.
Smosh Games recently done another 'games that need to be made' video and it got me thinking about my want for a Predator RPG. This is something I've been saying for many years. When I first wished for it the technology wasn't there to make it, or at least make it good. Now we have everything needed to make this game and it has the potential to be one of the best games ever. Think about a space exploration game like Mass Effect with the collectible orientated game-play of Assassins' Creed. You could even have space battles, upgrade your ship and change its appearance.
The game would also need the customization of an Elder Scrolls game. We've learned from the movies and games that already exist that there are many different types and clans of Predators. We should have a system where we create and upgrade a character (like in Skyrim), customize your clan (similar to the saints row gang customization) then pick a side in a multi-faction war taking place between alliances of Predator clans fighting for dominance, get some political strife in there for a reason to play the game.
Another thing you'd need in a Predator RPG is the most obvious thing you'd need, a hunting system where you go to different planets (maybe even Earth) and hunt down the most dangerous beasts and best warriors of the planet and take their skulls to decorate the trophy room. This allows the developers to go wild and design any creature and the player to customize their Predator according to who or what they want to hunt.
And if they have the licence for Aliens they could have missions based on clearing out Xenomorph nests and collecting the heads of "legendary" Queens and special types. Basically there'd be a lot of cranium collecting in this game.
Fringe is definitely one of my favourite shows involving weird stuff. Love the whole idea of monsters and stuff coming through from another dimension or being created in labs. The show looks amazing too, very gritty.
I love Anna Torv's character in the show, I like me a FBI agent that means business and I've always had a bit of a thing for women dressed for business.
I also love Jasika Nicole's character, Astrid. She's such an angel for putting up with Walter's corpses and other gross experiments. She's also very pretty.
Talking about Walter, he's by far the best character in the show. John Noble does such a fine job portraying him that he has me on an emotional roller coaster. Walter suffers from a few mental disorders and is quite child-like. He provides a lot of comedy on the show as a result of being child-like so when he's genuinely upset about something it has you all upset too. Watching Walter is like watching a child.
I do love this show, it's probably one of the best shows of it's kind.
