Video game music has evolved from the bleeps and bloops of the Atari 2600 and early arcade titles to the orchestral scores found in Final Fantasy and Skyrim. For many of us, video game music played a bigger part in our lives than the latest pop hits. Join us on a bi- monthly journey as we celebrate the sounds of our favorite past time. In this inaugural volume of RF Jamz, we will be looking at arranged music from three iconic series. Each one of these series has amazing music in their own right, but the arrangements, like a cherry on top of sundae, add something special. Let's take a look at them now.
If there's anything I enjoy as much as video games, it's reading. With parents that started reading to me from the day I was born, I took a love to books quite early, and have been an avid reader since before I can remember. Much like games, they can be a source of profound learning, provide a fun, pulpy break from reality, or tell fantastic stories of magical realms. I can think of few better ways to spend one's non-gaming time than curled up with a book in a nice, comfy chair.
Sunday, April 23rd was World Book Day. A celebration of books, book stores, authors, and all things literature, I thought it would be an appropriate time to promote a melding of my two favorite hobbies. So, much like I did with my summer movies post last year, I've compiled a list of interesting books about video games. The selections below are presented in no particular order, and run the gamut from informative non-fiction, to biographical, to riveting science fiction. I haven't read them all, but I've finished most of them, and you can bet the rest are on my seemingly-endless to-read list. I'm also always open to good book recommendations, so if anyone's read any they want to share, or has some thoughts on the titles below, leave a comment and let us know.
I had an interesting conversation with someone not too long ago about how they want to collect on a larger scale, but just get overwhelmed with the task and had given up multiple times. I had two pieces of advice to offer. The first, and probably the most important, is to take a good look at your goal and make sure it's something that you actually want to invest the time and resources into. Collecting something like a full library can take years and thousands of dollars. If you're not committed and have stalled or even gone backwards in that goal, is it really something that is important to you or simply something that used to seem enjoyable, but maybe isn't quite what you though it was? Even on a smaller scale, such as collecting all the games from your favorite series, can be a huge task. There are dozens of games across multiple platforms in series like Mario, Mega Man, Final Fantasy, Zelda, Pac-Man, Harvest Moon, Pokemon, etc. Beyond the time and money, you had better enjoy research and have the space available in your home to display or store them like you want to.
If all that checks out though, then my next suggestion is to enter the delightful world of Sub-Sets!
Based on the popularity of our series, The People of RF Generation, I thought that it might be nice to not only learn more about our members and their collecting history and habits, but also about their game rooms! Members will not only answer questions about their game room or gaming area, but will also give us a glimpse of their setup in pictures, or for the more adventurous, in video format.
The success of this series will rely on all of YOU, our members. I am currently looking for (1) a catchy title for this series, and for (2) volunteers who are willing to provide us with a visual slice of their gaming lives. I'd also like (3) suggestions as to what questions each member will be asked about their game room, so be sure to get these ideas in as soon as possible!
**if you would like to share your collection with the other members here at RF Generation, please send a PM to singlebanana and maybe one month your gameroom will be featured on our front page**
As some on this site know by now, I have been a huge survival horror fan for a long time. I have even made it a point for the last several years to spend the month of October (and sometimes September also!) playing various titles from the genre as my own way of celebrating the Halloween season. During this time, I always like to go back and play some of my old favorites from the genre, but I always like to attempt to expand my horizons and play something new and unfamiliar to me. So when I obtained a copy of SOMA from the September 2016 Humble Monthly Bundle, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to try a new horror title that I had heard many good things about.
In the overall timeline of video games, it is quite easy to see a long list of games for a handful of settings. While games have a massively different way of being played its the background setting that can pull players in at a much more deeper level. With games many settings which were once limited to a niche genre of pulp fiction are able to become massive ideas and intellectual properties. Being able to visualize your favorite type of setting is powerful for many gamers. They will chase that feeling down. It could go all the way to the extent of enjoying an otherwise mediocre game, and blinding yourself to its flaws.
Warning: This review contains mild spoilers. I've tried to keep it as vague as possible while discussing things in game, but this article may divulge too much information depending on how much you already know. This is your only warning!
The latest release from Electronic Arts and Bioware is finally here...and they probably should have waited a few more months! Mass Effect: Andromeda had a rocky review cycle, but as we know, some reviewers wouldn't know a good game if it bit them on the face and asked them to collect three parts of an encoded message. However, in this case, the reviewers were right.
During the discussion of Diablo on our podcast, I remarked that the game, while mostly enjoyable, made we want to play more modern games inspired by the classic dungeon dive. One example of such a game, which I mentioned by name, is Dungeon Siege III, a title I purchased quite a long time ago, but had never even cracked the shrink wrap on. Having put the game back on my radar, I decided to finally give it try. Did the game satisfy the modern dungeon crawler urge that Diablo had lit within me? Let's take a look.
The mission seems simple, use the might of our Inner Sphere mechs to finally put a permanent stop to the advance of the Clans. With the eventual restoration of the Star League, our glorious leader, Archon-Prince Victor Steiner-Davion, will lead us to victory against the last of the clans, Clan Smoke Jaguar. For our part, we will perform a quick strike against Jaguar facilities on planet Traquil, where no doubt we will have to face the most vicious, genetically modified warriors the clan can throw at us. Here comes the mission briefing over the com. Oh, this is bad news. The second dropship in the assault, the Black Hammer, has been... Wait a second. I know that voice from somewhere. It sounds like -
[img width=630 height=480]http://www.nintendo.com/images/page/wiiu/what-is-wiiu/panel-1-hardware.jpg[/img] I guess it makes sense that Nintendo.com has pictures that makes me want to buy a third one.
Isn't it funny how we easily get caught in a trap of thinking that, because things have been a certain way for awhile, that is how they will stay? For years and years and years, Atari games were a dime a dozen at yard sales. NES games were everywhere, and a copy of Contra was $5 to $10 tops. Final Fantasy VII and Symphony of the Night were both twenty bucks new everywhere. Collecting N64 and Atari Jaguar games seemed like a silly idea. PS2 games were never, ever going away.
And before that a Coke was a nickel and gas was a quarter and yada yada, I get it. Different times.
My point; How many of us are kicking themselves for not buying that complete Earthbound from Blockbuster, or those last few Saturn games like Panzer Dragoon Saga and Burning Rangers on clearance? Wish we knew then what we knew now, right? Queue the classic discussion about time machines and grabbing retro video games.
Join RF Generation Playcast hosts, Rich (singlebanana), Shawn (GrayGhost81), and former Playcast co-host Steven (Disposed Hero) as they discuss one of the most well-known and genre-defining PC titles of the last 20 years. This month's Playcast crawls deep into the bowels of Hell to seek out and destroy it's formidable caretaker during March's site playthrough discussion of Diablo. One of Blizzard's first entries that helped establish the famed developer, Diablo thrilled fans of action/adventure RPGs during it's time. But, how does this game hold up after 20 years, and will this retro pick impress some of our more modern gaming centric hosts? How do the PC and PS1 versions compare, and which should you play? And does The Butcher still make us s#%t our pants just as he did in days of yore? The answers to these questions and many more in this episode of the RF Generation Playcast!
As always, we are happy to hear your thoughts on this game on our discussion page (linked below). We will respond to your comments and are always happy to discuss the game more. We hope you enjoy our show. Please be sure to rate and write a review of the show on iTunes to help us increase our listenership. Thanks for the listen!
I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream is a point and click adventure horror game. It skips the typical jump scares and gore and goes straight for an unsettling look at human suffering...and machines that rise up to kill us all! It's based on the story by Harlan Ellison and he even voices the misanthropic computer, AM, who is responsible for humanity's downfall and the suffering of the game's protagonists. This is a grim game, but one with excellent writing and characterization.
Welcome back friends to the April 2017 edition of RF Generation's Site News! In this issue, we announce May's community playthrough game, provide you with the latest info for Retro World Expo 2017, and of course, thank those members who sent in submissions to our site and registered approvals during the month of March. Thanks for tuning in to this edition of the Site News!
REMEMBER: If you have any news about upcoming events or topics that you think the site needs to hear about, please PM singlebanana and put "RFG Site News" in the subject line. Who knows, maybe your news will make our front page! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[img width=700 height=393]https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6SU4mbAGLqQ/maxresdefault.jpg[/img] Image shamelessly linked from YouTube. Nintendo Switch, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways...
To say I was excited for the launch of the Nintendo Switch would be a bit of an understatement. In the months leading up to the release of the console, even well before we knew its name, and it was still "Codename NX", I was eagerly scouring the interwebz for scraps of information, rumors, and more - any tiny morsel to sate my appetite. I was excited about the Wii U, before its release, but budgetary constraints kept me from buying one until well after its launch. I had never purchased a console at launch before, but based on all the details of what "NX" was supposed to be, I felt as though I may want to finally jump on that bandwagon. Once the system was revealed to be the Switch, my desire to have one intensified, and I watched every possible YouTube reaction video to the reveal trailer I could find, as well as several YouTube channels providing coverage of all things Switch, leading up to, and past its release. At least a couple of those have become favorites that I tune into nearly every day.
