Spider-man vs. Deadpool

Take none of this completely seriously.

It should be no surprise to anyone when I say Spider-man has been my favorite comic book character for the entire time I've been reading Superhero graphic novels. Bordering on creepy obsession, or cartoon crush, no superhero has ever held such a high place in my heart. It was a long time coming, but I believe that throne may finally be challenged by a slightly less mainstream (See; conventional) superhero.



The "Merc with the Mouth", Deadpool.

Spider-man.

Though Spider-man has been lurking in comic books since the 1960's, I wasn't properly acquainted with his quirks, wit, and nerdy-ness until about 7 years ago. Once I discovered the webslinger properly, I was endeared to his awkward nerd ways, and his nervous wit almost instantly - he's since held a special place on my wall.



Unfortunately with being around for so long, and his established story lines in the arena of Damsels in Distress, I had a bit of competition with Mary-Jane Watson and Gwen Stacey. Searching for a solution to this dilemma is about when I discovered the storyline where Spider-man/Peter Parker is cloned – so, I decided I could definitely go for the clone version of Spider-man, Ben Reilly/Scarlet Spider, who has a better suit anyway. If you're confused, good, this should be easy.



Basically what I'm saying is; While Spider-man is still incredibly Amazing, nerdy, witty, and Spectacular – he has entirely too much baggage. 46 years' worth of altered story lines, clones, aliens, two or three terrible movies and at least one death, is a little too much for a girl like me...

What changed?

Now, while playing the excellent game Marvel Ultimate Alliance, I'd discovered several superheros that I may connect with, but none so well as Deadpool, allow me to explain.



Deadpool is as close to a superhero spoof on superheros there is. He's spent quite a bit of time trying to steal the spotlight from the Anti-heroes like Spider-man and Wolverine, mocking and copying them as he goes. Normally I'd dislike a copycat, but he does this unabashedly while breaking the fourth wall on a regular basis.



Even if he doesn't completely overtake Spider-mans throne, there is no denying the amusement to be had by reading his dialog.

So, who is Deadpool, anyway?

Deadpool, aka Wade Wilson, was once an experiment of the Weapon X program, notorious for doing vile things to mutants in the X-men corner of the Marvel universe. Wade, however, was not a mutant, but rather, a human with terminal cancer. He was experimented on using Wolverines "mutant healing factor" (which, as it sounds, allows Wolverine to heal himself instantly) as an attempt to reverse the effects of the Cancer. This forced mutation, combined with the cruel experiments left Wade horribly disfigured, and mentally unstable.

My own captivation with the clinically insane had me intrigued by Deadpool and his eccentric outbursts in the game I was playing, so I became curious enough to start asking questions. A friend of mine had confirmed that his comics are completely hysterical, and I have since purchased individual issues for my own verification. Entire pages are devoted to his dialogs with himself, and hysterical hallucinations, while having an actual storyline accompany them. It's not all fun and games, just mostly.

He's introduced to us as a mercenary, but eventually teams up with the superhero Cable - together they fight things, and break stuff, and make some awesome along the way. Oh, and he has a lot of neat gadgets - especially the teleportation device. I want one.

I'm still learning about Deadpool, which may classify me as a n00b, but my graphic novel experience is in a slightly different realm than Superheroes come from (independent comics, mostly) – also, I have a bit of a life, believe it or not. So far, I can tell you this: I haven't laughed out loud to myself while reading almost every page of a comic in...well, ever.



Since I can't be expected to make such an important decision based solely on my limited knowledge, there's an obvious solution here...



Now, Imagine me, only creating a super-harem for my own amusement.

Also;

Spider-man: Web of Shadows (V)

Originally posted on PushingPlay.com for their review feature called Hour Play. This basically means I reviewed one hour of gameplay and gave my impression on what I've seen so far. This version is adapted for my own purposes. Enjoy!



If I had to choose a 'favorite superhero,' my choice would be Spider-man, hands down. Unfortunately, this admiration has led me to some very disappointing times when Spidey has transitioned from the familiar pages of Comic books to video games, and three unfortunate movies. This time, however, the trailer and news of Spider-mans adventure entitled "Web of Shadows" has been promising. I do realize looks can be and often are, deceiving, but that doesn't stop me from giving Web of Shadows a shot.

Developing team: Shaba Games.
System: Xbox360 (reviewed), PSP, PS3, Wii, PS2, Nintendo DS, and PC, Whew.
Genre: Action/webslinging/adventure.
Rating: Teen – some language, suggestive themes, and loads of spidey-violence.
Suggested for: Definitely a game for fans of Spider-man and action games, and probably a select few that just enjoy being a superhero for a few hours a day.

Story

What do we know about Symbiotes? Well, to summarize, they're slimy, space goo that have a tendency to take over other beings and imbue them with super-strength, while turning them an unsightly shade of gooey black – at least, that's what they are in the Spider-man realm. With Web of Shadows, the storyline appears to be focused solely around Spider-mans temptation with the power he possesses while “wearing” this Symbiote.

Symbiote storylines are always the super-villain Venom's storylines, so expect to run into him, and his slimy minions a lot.

It has been said this is a game of choices - meaning you, as the player, get to decide Spider-mans, and New Yorks fate. Will you allow him to succumb to the Symbiote black suit and be all-powerful, or depend on your own strength to banish the Symbiote and be remembered as the “good guy”. Where you start out the game, New York City is covered in Symbiote slime, and Spider-man is to blame. With the tried and true form of flash-back storytelling, you end up playing through previous events to discover exactly how you got there, before you're allowed to move forward.

Characters

Spider-man has a few friends to help him out along the way; including Wolverine, Luke Cage, and Black Cat. Each of these allies has their own set of missions, but the one I became most acquainted with in my Hour was Luke Cage. Apparently in charge of inspirational training, as only the bulletproof Defender of the streets can be, Luke Cage provides me with my initial missions fighting street gangs. There are seven Ally character slots available – who knows who else is bound to come along?

As the Marvel universe tends to do, there are a few references to unrelated characters throughout the streets of New York as well. Including a billboard hosting Iron Man advertising for Stark Industries. Keep an eye out as you're web-slinging around New York, other tidbits may catch your attention.

The Good Stuff



One of the primary selling points developer Shaba games used to advertise Web of Shadows, was the fluid combat. In previous Spider-man games, the combat felt like a bulky afterthought that was very boring, and took effort to switch between movement and fighting. This time, however, the combat system is more fluid than I could have personally imagined. Fortunately, they paid attention when spider-man was able to attack mid-swing in the comic books, and they allow us to do that very nicely. As Spider-man, you can switch between air combat and ground combat seamlessly.

They even added a wall combat, for those sticky situations against the wall-crawling symbiotes. The wall is your base of attack, and you fight sideways very stylishly. The only problem I had with this combat, was switching from ground-to-wall, or air-to-wall. Spider-man seemed to have a slight problem with grabbing a wall and holding on, without standing still in front of said wall, and crawling to his destination. This wasn't always the case, but it did get irritating when trying to defeat enemies crawling around on walls.



Web-slinging has been a great deal of fun ever since the Spider-man games have given the player the option to explore any part of New York City they desire – called Free-Roaming, or Open world gaming. Fulfilling random missions took a back seat for me, while I had the ability to swing wherever my heart desired in the city. This time, it's not only fun to swing around, it looks good, too. Spider-man will perform twists, spins, mid-air dives, and much more, as you're speeding through the city on your trusty webs.

Since the game is based around the Symbiote invasion, there has to be a black “Symbiote suit” Spider-man, plain and simple. The Black suit, while making Spider-man abrasive and rude, adds quite a bit of bite to his attack. Single button costume change is an amazing advancement in the Spider-man games. Spider-man 3 did have the option for black suit Spidey, but you had to bring up the menu to change into the power machine, which really dampened the flow of combat. You can now switch between two entirely different fighting styles mid-combat without interruption, simply by clicking in the left thumb stick.

Right from the beginning I was impressed with how closely they modeled Spider-mans New York City, to the real New York City. A few recognizable places, such as Times Square and Central Park were fairly accurate depictions of what I saw only two months ago. I suppose what I'm getting at, is the graphics are amazing, and a lot of research went into showing me New York City from a different point of view.



There was disappointment, too

My absolute favorite thing about Spider-man, is his sense of humor – which should be easily translated through different media sources. Whenever he gets nervous, he tends to crack one liner jokes, and clever quips. Unfortunately, whoever wrote this spider-man decided his humor attribute was overrated, and this Spider-man has become a very annoying, whiny superhero. His best line so far was: “These guys shoot first, and aim later”, in an hour of gameplay, that's just pathetic. I heard an interview with Stan Lee, where he said he'd wanted to write the story. Now more than ever – I really wish he had.

While the primary storyline is supposed to be Spider-mans internal struggle of Power vs. Will, there isn't much depth besides that. Maybe it was the bad, whiny voice acting that turned me away from the story – but I found myself not caring about that aspect as much. Since comic books are supposed to be books, it was a let down to see such potential go to waste.

Even though the combat system is beautiful and a lot of fun, it tends to be a bit mundane after you've bashed an hours' worth of enemies into submission with very few cut scenes, where you listen to Spider-man whine a bit. Some more focus on the storytelling may have fixed this issue, but there isn't much I can do about that



Many video games have taken to the “choose your own adventure” style of gameplay, where your actions effect the overall outcome of the game. I found an alignment bar in one of the menus, which apparently is supposed to tell me if I've been a good Spider-man, or an evil one. Helping injured civilians, and protecting things earns “red points” which are good, and neglecting or hurting people earns you “black points”. Sounds pretty straight forward to me – and if you really couldn't care less, ignore it. If I weren't looking for it, I certainly would have.

Will I play it again? I believe I will. But, for the level of depth offered by the story, and the somewhat repetitive fighting – I will be waiting until the price drops to something much more acceptable. Take from that what you will.

Burlesque Show

Burlesque; a humorous and provocative stage show featuring slapstick humor, comic skits, bawdy songs, striptease acts, and a scantily clad female chorus. Debauchery is a fun word.

Blend this style of stage show with historical Downtown Denver, and you get Naughty Pierre's Burlesque Extravaganza - a comedy show for the 21 and up crowd. Definitely not for the prude of heart.

I blame this adventure on the euphemism "Curiosity killed the cat" (see, Kat). At least, that's how I think I ended up in the basement of the D&F Clock Tower in downtown Denver.

Take a blast to the past with me now, and experience a modern day Burlesque show. Be sure to keep your hands and feet inside the Internet at all times, and keep your margarita and noisemaker in the upright and locked position.

The Venue

Once a department store that was demolished at the end of the department store era, the tower remains as a historical landmark. It's really a beautiful site downtown, with the time displayed in all four directions, and a magnificent chime to be heard throughout Denver.



Now that the tower is there, with nothing to sell us, it has been used for other applications - such as businesses and lofts. One of the uses after dark is the stage in the basement used to entertain, amuse, and inebriate those interested in a show of varying types. Decorated in mirrors, gold, tassels, and sparkles, the intimate room fits about 50 patrons, who will – I believe the technical term is “hoot 'n holler” through the shows.

Why it's Enjoyable

On romantic dates, finding a safe balance between both parties' idea of entertainment can be a challenge – guys are not generally eager to see Phantom of the Opera, as women are sometimes less into a basketball game. Something like this variety show balances nicely, with flavors of entertainment for both parties involved. Yes, I was on a date if you must know, with a gentleman, we went to the theater together. /Moneypenny.

Would you like a history lesson on Burlesque, as provided by Wikipedia? It's not as dirty as it sounds, really!



A burlesque show is not a strip club – Strip clubs tend to be seedy, smelly, and cater to single men looking to lose a fair amount of money - people are definitely lying if they say they go for the food. Burlesque is much more classy, lacking full nudity, but delivering enough to keep everyone whistling and twirling their noisemakers. Between the dancers, there is a comedic announcer – this is where “Naughty Pierre” comes in.

The Spice of Life...

Every part of the show was something different - with different girls, different music, and even different pasties. A wide variety of acts took place on stage; from singing and dancing, to classy striptease (complete with glitter, and feathers), and amazing acrobatics. Talent is the idea here, unlike the modern day strip clubs that leave nothing to the imagination.

The night I went, there was even a guest act by The Handsome Little Devils, who appeared to be a carnival style variety act of their own - they showed off hat tricks that were amazing and humorous , and a dancing skit with some kind of mad scientist and wonderful swing dancing.

For those of us in the crowd less interested in “scantily clad dancers,” the host was a brilliant comic, who introduced the different acts, had a bit of singing and stage time of his own. The idea of a variety show is...well, variety. So, to help Naughty Pierre in his entertaining ways, he had a puppet show featuring a “smewok” - the strange combination between an Ewok and a Smurf, and of course - sex jokes galore. I was thoroughly captivated the entire evening, so I'd say they completed their task nicely.

Now imagine me, only becoming a stage perv... I mean, stage connoisseur.

The images were not mine this time. My camera was left in the car, which was parked far away. I am, indeed, making excuses for forgetting it. Also, since I appear to have left out details, Margaritas are bad for ones memory.

Silent Hill 5: Homecoming

This review was written in the Hour play format for Pushingplay.com, which basically means I reviewed the first hour of gameplay. The active links have further explanation, otherwise, enjoy.



Since the Silent Hill V teaser trailer hit the Internet after E3 of 2007, I have been very excited to see what the world of Silent Hill holds for me this time. Silent Hill 5: Homecoming had created a bit of buzz around fans of the series - Primarily, because the developing team has changed from the familiar Japanese Team Silent, to the American Double Helix. I wasn't personally bothered by this enough to pass up the opportunity to explore this series once more, so I gave it a scary Hour Play.

Fortunately with the strange, scary, disconnected Silent Hill series, you don't have to play them in any specific order, so pay no attention to the number behind the Hill. What do you need to know before picking this up? You'll most likely end up in, or near, the very haunted “ghost town” of Silent Hill. There is a good chance a cult is lurking nearby, ready to convert or torment people in accordance to their beliefs. And, your mind will be considerably blown by the time the credits roll - partially because of the obscene monsters, but otherwise because of the twisting (twisted) story and circumstances.

System: Xbox360 (reviewed), PS3.
Genre: Survival Horror/action
Rating: Mature – gore, violence, disturbing...everything.
Suggested for: Fans of Silent Hill, or survival horror – may be enjoyed by fans of third-person shooters.

Homecoming, as with many other survival horror games, is very unclear on the complete story until you've complete the game - But, from what I've gathered in my hour, you're Alex Shepherd, discharged war veteran with nightmares and a troubled past. Alex is coming home to the town Shepherds Glen to be with his family, or maybe he's worried about something, since his nightmares revolve around his brother, Joshua – who is missing. You, as Alex, spend most of your time trying to find Joshua by interrogating townspeople and looking for clues around the ashy, haunted version of Shepherds Glen – conveniently located directly across Toluca Lake from Silent Hill.



Silent Hill is classified as a “Survival Horror” series, which basically means you should keep a change of pants handy while sitting in the dark to play, and you'll probably die a lot. Silent Hill 5: Homecoming will start you out in a very uncomfortable position...strapped to a hospital bed, wiggling for dear life. Unfortunately, the "wiggling for dear life" is a tactic they employed a lot in this game - By mashing the (A), (X), (B), or (Y) buttons frantically, you are able to get out of dicey situations, or simply slice open a doorway.

Wait, I got ahead of myself. Lets start over with how beautiful Silent Hill can be this time of year. With the paint peeling, and the rusty decayed walls and random blood or body parts, Homecoming is welcome on my xbox360 with shiny graphics any day. As I mentioned, the character you control will start out in a hospital once you've freed yourself from the bed, ready to wander, and explore. Along the way, you'll encounter sinks full of blood, “old medical supplies”, screaming dolls, bloody body bags on beds lining the hallways, and random holes in the walls, ceilings, and floors - all bound to make just about anybody a bit uneasy.

This is one of my favorite aspects in survival horror games, the ability to make your skin crawl before an enemy has even entered the scene, and thankfully – was not sacrificed with the new developers. Basically, I am trying to tell you, the environments in this game, even beyond the hospital, are beautiful. The characters are a bit unsettling in their facial movements and expressions, but the gruesome enemies and backgrounds make up for most of it.



Aside from being visually appealing, the sound quality is up to par with the rest of the series. Silence: the best way for ones mind to play tricks on them, which is implemented very well in Silent Hill – get it? Aside from holding your breath to make sure you catch every potential enemies' footsteps, I found myself backing up whenever scraping metal, or any kind of breathing could be heard, even if the threat wasn't yet visible.

Whenever an enemy would come near, Alex's radio would let off a fair amount of static warning. But, with the thick ash, or dark atmosphere, this “warning” leads to more panic, than preparation, as you spin around, squinting at your television to clear Alex's vision, looking for the source. There are also a fair amount of other, creepy sounds. Alex's brother whispering his name and giggling, and things like crying babies wrap the ambient sound in a nice package.

The same can not be said about the musical composition. I'm not sure if it was simply the volume control, but the music didn't seem fit most situations. Sometimes, it was fine, other times – it made me feel slightly frustrated when I was looking for something. I still love the music out of context, don't get me wrong. But, when I'm searching an empty parking lot that is supposed to scare me, the music was more distracting than anything. This is difficult to explain other than, it really didn't feel like it fit well.

What about gameplay?

In the previous Silent Hill games, fighting off enemies has never been very user friendly, but more of a “hold this button, and hit this button, and hope they die”, swinging or shooting randomly. This has become something we're used to, but I wasn't terribly sad to say goodbye to it. This time, the fighting is much more action oriented with two different ways to attack (strong and slow, or weak and fast,) and the new ability to dodge or block. It's still "hold this button, then use one of these three" but it feels much more fluid and controlled. Time the dodges just right and counter attack, or mix up the strong and weak attacks to string a nice combo.



Overall enemy difficulty depends on your ability to keep a cool head - Panic and you're in trouble, but calmly dodge and block, and they're a piece of scary, gross, cake. Though, the one thing I do actually miss after a successful knock-down, is the enemies used to writhe until you did a finishing victory stomp to silence them permanently, which is disappointingly absent this time.

Menu interface was a very interesting change this time, with two separate inventories linked to the bumper buttons. One menu contains weapons and practical things like your flashlight, while the other menu will hold key items for solving puzzles, and health items. Having the menu linked to two separate buttons encourages weapon changes during combat. This is handy, because enemies are defeated more efficiently with some weapons than others. Experiment, or follow the helpful hints during load screens, to find out what works best.

Movement has changed to incorporate both joysticks, which can prove to be a problem in a panic situation. Movement and camera are independent and user controlled, like many action games, which took a while to get used to in a genre that is notorious for fixed cameras. The first few times something would happen where I wanted to back up, reassess the situation, then barrel in with my trusty knife, I ended up looking at the floor or ceiling and running blindly into danger. First person view is also a new addition, click in the right joystick to look up close at something, which I'm not sure I really used except when I accidentally discovered it, when I panicked and pressed in the right thumb stick - making it impossible to move. Thanks, Double Helix, but no thanks.

In the world of increasingly popular 'choose-your-outcome' strategy of play to try to include the player in decisions and interaction, Homecoming tried, and unfortunately, failed at implementing this tactic. For many of the interactive cut scenes, you're given multiple responses to characters – from friendly, helpful, or concerned to mean, rude, or demanding – which seem to have absolutely no influence on how these characters react to you. I even saved, and restarted a few of these conversations to get different outcomes, but nothing changed.

One of the few things that bothered me a bit was the way the puzzles worked. while the puzzle solving aspect is still in this game like it's predecessors, it feels much more forced than usual. I'm glad to find a device that needs fixing, and going to collect the pieces, but they were mostly practical puzzles, rather than “find this colored key, that goes with this colored lock, that has a specific symbol.” Seems like a silly complaint, but it did make me miss the cheesiness of the original Silent Hill.

Finally, I will attempt to clarify my halted rant in one of the first paragraphs about wiggling free from the hospital bed by frantically mashing a button. I hate, no, I loathe button sequence cut scenes, especially unnecessary ones. When it tells me to rapidly hit the (A) button to pull my hand out of a hole or my hand will be ripped off, I will gladly comply. When it tells me to hit the (A) button rapidly to cut open a slimy, toothy door, I'm not as eager. Sure, it helps the player feel included, but really – just open the toothy door, I don't want to help. This feels like crying wolf when the same frantic button icon that means "open door" also means "preserve life".

Will I play it again? Most definitely, I plan on finishing the game, and suggesting it to other fans of the series that may have been deterred by the change in development team, or any of the other changes really. I found that the changed combat may actually appeal to a small portion of the third-person-shooter crowd, just something to consider.

Basket Weaving 101

To begin with, I'd like to apologize for the lack of functional links or references. College websites are surprisingly unfriendly to casual users unless you're registered with them. Otherwise, enjoy.



For the majority of my working life, I've been with corporations that will boast some form of tuition reimbursement program for employees wishing to continue their education. Every orientation for new employees will have a benefits seminar, with a speech about the available reimbursement program, that will emphasize that they only cover classes related to your immediate field of work - always using Basket Weaving (or, especially obnoxious speakers use “Underwater Basket Weaving”,) as an example of a class they will not cover.

I'm not sure if this is part of a generic curriculum distributed to every corporation in an attempt to sound clever, or if they're serious every time. So, off to the Internet I went in search of every accredited college that might teach Basket Weaving as a major, or even a class.

What I found, while not exactly Basket weaving per se, was amusing – by perusing several colleges, I found a handful of classes that are completely ridiculous, and mildly amusing. I instantly felt like I was in the top ten smartest people in the world for not taking college seriously, and feel I deserve a high-paying job for it. Er, right...moving on.

At Western Washington University, under the course for Interdisciplinary studies, I found a class called “walking”, no joke. If I were to take this class, would retail pay me more for being able to walk better than the average person? Does the course cover perfect technique, boosting your walking potential with perfect hip sway to attract a mate, fixing bow-legged-ness and pigeon toes, or walking flat-footed for balance. Or could it be making the most of each step, walking while chewing gum, or does it simply explain one foot goes in front of the other?



I got my hands on a course manual for Red Rocks Community College in Colorado – which I read through, until I hit "Reading" with several subclasses; Basic reading skills, foundations of reading, and college preparatory reading. I'm curious how "basic" we're talking here, and how much a college professor would make to teach the illiterate adults of the world their ABC's. I can do that, watch: A is for Apple, B is for Bonehead...

I will pick on RRCC a bit more, since I may end up there for some classes soon - where they have an extensive Hollistic Health program. If you're enrolled in this program, you could learn the "gift of self esteem." I don't know about anyone else, but I'd feel my self esteem draining, if I signed my name on the registration sheet for that class. Or, if you're feeling particularly unhealthy, the "digestive wellness" class will potentially teach your partially digested food to behave itself.

Back to Basket Weaving, which did not turn up a single serious article or class offering when searched for. Almost every related website I found basically stated that the art of basket weaving is a sport for morons. But, this woman disagrees. So, for anyone wishing to learn the art of basket weaving, it can be found in the state of Montana.

This is the part where I have to ask for your help. I was unsuccessful in my attempt to find an accredited college that teaches basket weaving, even as a simple course. I would like to hear courses that you've run across in any college-ing adventures! Anything that made you think "What could they possibly do here?" or "how is that a college class at all?" either at your school, or ones you've looked at. Leave comments, and I'll try to assemble a follow-up to this one if I get good ones!

Now, imagine me, only teaching “the long forgotten art of listening” at a college level.