Cblogs of 12/19/15 - Tame The Force Awakens X

I didn't get a chance to do much gaming this week. Other than the occasional hour of Star Wars: Battlefront for a couple of days, I haven't really "had time" to touch either Fallout 4 or Xenoblade Chronicles X. While I did have some free time, I'm usually so tired or stressed out that playing something I consider "focus-heavy" would be pretty poor on my part: I want to give games like those my full attention, even going as far as to lock myself in my room with a water bottle and my cell phone turned off. But since I didn't feel 100%, I just either play a multiplayer shooter, or watch TV.

To be honest, I've been less motivated to play XCX after being stuck on a fetch quest (I made a short quickpost, but essentially, I have to find an item drop that the game barely gives you a hint as to where to get it, and you can't progress through the game AT ALL until you finish). I really like the game, but this is the most basic of game design and I feel like they failed hardcore in that department. I'll probably boot it up again because the rest of the game is so good, but like I said, I haven't felt like playing it either.

I even thought about buying a guide for it. However, apparently people tell me the guide is HORRIBLE, and doesn't even tell you much of anything. It's a Prima Guide, so their quality has always been hit-or-severely-missed: either they detail every tiny thing, or they glance over everything. There's seemingly no middle ground with them.

I finally finished watching Digimon Tamers (Season 3) and it's still as good as I remember! The final story arc involving Jerri and the D-Reaper is still as epic to me as an adult as it was to me as a child, and it's nice forgetting just enough of the show to be surprised (adult demon Jerri is hot as fuck!), and remembering just enough to bring the nostalgic feels. I usually just watch a couple of episodes every few days, but since I haven't been 100% this weekend, I just decided to binge watch the last...12 episodes? I went through the last two discs in one night because so much was going on in the final story arc that I simply wanted to see how it all played out!

Don't get me wrong, it wasn't all perfect. While Impmon had an amazing story arc throughout the series (I Goddess-damned teared up during "Beezlemon's Big Day"), I feel like he should've been more involved in the actual final battle. It's nice that he got to spend his last final moments with his Tamers, but for someone who had a much more personal stake in the rescue attempt, it's a shame he didn't get to be a part of it. There's also Alice and Dobermon, who literally appeared in one or two episodes and disappeared. I feel like she's supposed to have a story, but the TV show was like all "fuck it, we just needed her to play her part, now forget about her."

Now, I'm not going to spoil anything about Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but I decided to watch it on Thursday. I will say that it was a great movie that pretty much kept me entertained throughout. I'm not an action junkie, so I don't feel like the slow moments bothered me, but the film was visually fantastic and it did what it wanted to do well. A lot of people may comment about how it ends in a cliffhanger, but considering that's also what the original Star Wars movie did (oh, Ben Kenobi is dead, Darth Vader is still alive, the Rebels destroyed the Death Star but the war still wages on... but let's end the movie anyway), I can't say it bothered me. 

Thankfully, no one spoiled the movie for me beforehand, so I got to experience the weight of all the surprises. Also, seeing a movie in theaters reminds me how much I miss the experience: I LOVE seeing the crowd clap for all the cool bits, cheer when the surprises came into view, and laugh when the jokes hit hard. Yeah, sometimes the crowd can be a jerk, but when they aren't, they really helped enhanced the atmosphere. I remember this is the reason why Angry Video Game Nerd wanted to debut his movie at an actual movie theater; he also enjoys seeing the crowd's reaction.

Also, the movie Zootopia had one of the funniest trailers ever. It was simply a scene seemingly cut from the movie (not sure if they'll actually keep it in) but I laughed so hard that I would've looked like a complete idiot... if the others in the theater didn't look the same way! :D Check it out!

Also, the female bunny? I totally love her personality; she's totally waifu material. <3

* - There's no shortage of wonderful entries to the "Present" Bloggers Wanted blogs! Wutangclam decides to share with us his story about being a farmer that all the ladies fawn for, thanks to a very special Harvest Moon present given to him by a very special person.

* - Gamemaniac also answers the Bloggers Wanted call by talking about the gift that keeps on giving, the PlayStation 3. Opting for Sony's console over Microsoft, he got to play a wide selection of games exclusive to the console such as LittleBigPlanet and Demon's Souls.

A - Bry159 haven't made the jump to current generation consoles because of money concerns and their infamous libraries of re-released games, so he shares his thoughts about what it's like being a last generation console gamer.

A - Alfie wants to talk a little about how narratives are presented in video games, and how they may not be all that they're cracked up to be. He talks about how games constantly creates context to shoot something, or basically become walking simulators designed to ONLY tell a story.

S - Lord Spencer finally reviews what is often hailed as the best SNES game of all time, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Is this a link we should hold on to, or did it rust with time? Also, MAJOR props for finally finishing your four-year-long series!

S - TheKodu returns to the Critical Floor to analyze Batman: Arkham Knight and the recurring theme of fear and how it's portrayed. This blog is heavy with major spoilers from the game, so don't read this one if you haven't played the game yet, but bookmark it for a read later!

S - Rico the Penguin continues his list of the 12 Best Games He Played of 2015 with a rather recent addition, Fallout 4. While he may not enjoy the main story, the scenary, and the Settlement system, he loves accessing new mods and blasting raiders in Power Armor enough to make up for it.

C - SRVSLPS has the case of homesickness regarding old Destructoid. He decides to share a couple of relics from the Destructoid of the Golden Age, images with funny jokes written on them, and laments how things changed.

F - Dengar went to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens because he's a huge fan of the series, and he has some thought about it as well as the Extended Universe. There are both non-spoiler and spoiler-filled sections within.

C - While Grizzlebarron may just be advertising his YouTube channel, he narrowly avoid being a Failtoid by sharing with us his intents about the type of content he plans to make, the reasons why he's making video content, and why he wants to become a video game designer.

- Dreamweaver

FPotD

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