Category: EGM (Electronic Gaming Monthly)


EGM Review: Kirby’s Dream Collection: Special Edition

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September 11, 2012

The pink puffball still packs a punch

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 20 years since I first put Kirby’s Dream Land into my Game Boy and bounced the pink puffball—though he appeared more white on the limited color palette of the handheld—around Green Greens. With almost two dozen more starring roles across all of Nintendo’s platforms since then—and, of course, a couple of smaller roles in games like Super Smash Bros.—few other gaming icons are as deserving of their own celebratory collector’s edition.

Kirby’s Dream Collection compiles six of Kirby’s earliest and most iconic titles in Kirby’s Dream Land (Game Boy), Kirby’s Adventure (NES), Kirby’s Dream Land 2 (Game Boy), Kirby Super Star (SNES), Kirby’s Dream Land 3 (SNES), and Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards (N64) in their completely original versions. The package also comes with a detailed art book highlighting Kirby’s designs over the past two decades; a 45-track, 60-minute-long music CD with original and remastered tracks from all of Kirby’s adventures, and three episodes of Kirby: Right Back at Ya!, the Saturday-morning cartoon Kirby starred in for 100 episodes.

Now, the skeptic would say that Nintendo simply just slapped some ROMs onto a disc in order to capitalize on Kirby’s anniversary, and they wouldn’t be completely wrong. Nintendo fanboys would say that Nintendo’s simply trying to keep the experiences authentic and preserve the classic gameplay. And they wouldn’t be wrong, either. But I know that, personally I would’ve loved some updated graphics or even some color in the Game Boy entries—and for the games to completely fit my 42-inch TV screen.

The lack of new polish on these older titles also hurts the collection’s appeal to younger gamers who may be less familiar with Kirby and want to learn about this classic gaming protagonist. Don’t worry—this won’t turn into a “back in my day!” review—but I’m sure younger gamers’ heads will explode at the concept of playing a game that looked like the original Kirby’s Dream Land compared to the kind of graphical output they may be used to with modern systems.

Now, just because the aesthetics of these classic games don’t enter the modern era in any way doesn’t mean the platforming and puzzle action don’t translate. The NES and Game Boy games feel just as tight as they did two decades ago, and they translate perfectly to the Wiimote. But I was pleasantly surprised to find that the later games, especially Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, actually felt better than I remembered with the simple new Wiimote layout. Though, maybe it’s just that the Wiimote feels better in my hands than the N64 controller did.

Aside from the six original games, Kirby’s Dream Collection also features an interactive timeline showing key dates in Kirby history as well as a bevy of new challenge levels inspired by his most recent Wii adventure, Kirby’s Return to Dream Land. These unique levels have an old-school arcade feel as you specialize in one of Kirby’s powers, whether it’s Beam, Sword, Spear—or one of the many others featured in that game—and attempt to clear the level and set a high score while also beating the time limit. As you set certain scores in each level, you’ll then unlock the right to attempt other, more-difficult-to-wield abilities.

If you’re a big Kirby fan and grew up with him like I did, this is a nice total package. The games don’t completely stand the test of time, but this offers older gamers a nice chance to reminisce and see how far we’ve come. Plus, considering the $39.99 price tag and all the extra features the package comes with, Kirby’s Dream Collection reminds us that’s it OK to think pink every now and again.

SUMMARY: Not all of the games in this classic collection stand the full test of time, but for die-hard Kirby fans, the entire package is more than worth the price tag.

  • THE GOOD: Six games, an hour of music, an art book, and three cartoons makes this a sweet package.
  • THE BAD: No graphical enhancement whatsoever—really just a bunch of ROMs.
  • THE UGLY: You ever stop to think about what Kirby’s enemies must go through when they get eaten?

SCORE: 8.0

Kirby’s Dream Collection: Special Edition is a Wii exclusive.

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The Pullbox – Issue #11.2

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DC’s Issue #0’s started this week, but was there anything of any real note in them to check out? Couple this with a light week from Marvel and on the Indie front should make this an interesting Pullbox! Find out below!

Marvel – Venom #24 – Hellstrom has brought the demon inside Flash Thompson to the surface, but is he strong enough to force it back down? Or is the symbiote even stronger than both the possession and in his host combined? Agent Venom must find help as soon as possible before whatever it is inside him ends up destroying him though.

Seeing the Venom symbiote’s ferocity again like it was in this issue was a refreshing sight and seeing what Thompson’s desperation would push him to do again made this issue a fun read. The end reveal of what Hellstrom’s master plan felt a little cheesy and a little more oddball than I’d expect from the son of the devil, but could be entertaining if pulled off well in the next issue. As is though, I’ll be picking it up just to see what Venom does next as the demon inside him is ready for an interesting fight!

Marvel – Avengers Academy #36 – The Clean Slate nanotech meant to de-power the world of all its superheroes is ready to go and the Academy’s revolt against the plan has pushed up the timetable of its release by Jeremy Briggs! Half the team still has to reclaim their powers though if they have any hope of going after Briggs and his hired help in time to stop the missiles full of the nanotech.

I haven’t loved every issue, but most of Avengers Academy has been a fun and entertaining read and this 4-issue story arc has been no exception as you finally start to see many of the characters come into their own and mature. Much how real people might if there were in a real academy tailored to folks with super powers. The entire story does have a bit of a funny feel to it though as it’s also a bit too neat at certain points. It makes me feel that this is all just some Danger Room test or something and the last issue of the story will end with the kids coming out of stasis or the like. After all, how would you figure out if a bunch of super powered kids were ready to graduate to the big league? Maybe I’m reading too much into it. Either way, this book is only good at this point depending on how early you got into it, being the most rewarding for fans who’ve been there since Issue #1. As is, you might want to wait until after this story.

DC – Batman: Detective Comics #0 – Looking to go into the origin stories of every DC superhero, DC’s Issue #0 initiative for Detective Comics tells of one of Bruce Wayne’s last training exercises. In the Himalayas, he searches for a master of martial arts and body control called Shihan Matsuda. There, Bruce will learn some of his most valuable lessons of both mind and body, but they will come at a terrible cost.

I’ve been one of the biggest critics of the New 52 since it started a year ago. And this Issue #0 program is just another poor idea by DC to push comics as it delays current storylines of major characters by another month, forcing us to read stories we already know for most of our favorite heroes. At the very least though, this particular book, that could make sense as part of Batman’s back story, was a good read and helped us learn where Batman acquired some of the techniques that allow him to slow his breathing, control his body temperature, and increase his pain resistance. It also explains part of the reasons why he keeps most people at arm’s length in his never-ending crusade against crime in Gotham.

The worst thing about this book and the rest of the Issue #0 run though is DC blatantly ignoring the histories of some of their most celebrated characters. By claiming James Gordon and the Phantom Stranger (who is next in the Pullbox) just appeared in the DCU a few months ago literally throws away DECADES of history and sends the wrong message to new fans. Honestly, DC should be embarrassed by how they do things now and if I didn’t feel a responsibility to keep reading comics, I’d probably stop. Even with their relaunch of Spider-Man a few years ago, at least they didn’t suddenly change that Spider-Man’s first appearance wasn’t in Amazing Fantasy #15.

DC – The Phantom Stranger #0 – Judas Iscariot, one of history’s most infamous villains, has been brought forward to a council of wizards to pay for his crime against humanity. As part of the Trinity of Sin, Judas must now walk the earth for eternity until he atones for his crime, now as The Phantom Stranger!

The Phantom Stranger’s origin has always been in question, but the constant theme of dealing with heaven and hell has always been there, so making him Judas Iscariot and making his quest one for atonement isn’t a bad idea. And since he’s had so many origins over the years, banging an official one out and making it readily available for the public was a very good idea by DC. But completely ignoring his past 50 years of history though cannot be forgiven and on top of this slap in the face to long term fans, the book itself isn’t even that great a read once you get past the first few pages. Hopefully this can lead to some more interesting adventures featuring Phantom Stranger since he’s been eerily quiet (even for him) during the New 52, but DC better get their act together before long term fans stage a massive revolt.

Valiant – Archer & Armstrong #2 – After dispatching the lower level thugs of ‘The One Percent’, Archer is captured by some more imposing figures. Armstrong is there to help bust him out, but not before Archer has a vision and understands what he must do to save his friends. Now, in the vein of National Treasure and The Da Vinci Code, Archer and Armstrong are on a scavenger hunt around various holy locations in the hopes of finding the six pieces to The Boon, an item of immense power that everyone else is dying to get and only Armstrong has the clues to find!

This was an amazing read and is yet another feather in the cap of Valiant Comics and their triumphant return to Pullboxes and comic book stores everywhere. The dynamic between Archer and Armstrong is great to watch and this epic movie feel to what they’re doing makes it all the better. Not to mention, unlike many other comics out there, this still has a feeling of unpredictability while taking jabs at today’s more prominent organizations like the American government and the Catholic Church. Ninja nuns anyone? Fred Van Lente continues to show off as a tremendous writer in the industry and this is easily my favorite new indie of the year so far. Bravo on every front. Get on this book NOW folks.

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The Sleeper Hold – Episode 11

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September 5, 2012

A little late this week due to the Labor Day hangover, but it wasn’t the best episode of RAW this week either as, although we all love CM Punk as much as the next guy, as you’ll see, it was a bit too Punk-centric for my tastes. So here is this week’s Sleeper Hold!

Main Plot Overview: Things kicked off big time on RAW as Punk ambushed Jerry Lawler and kicked him in the back of the head again. Lawler was so hurt, he would not take part in this episode of RAW as Punk continues his rampage looking for respect.

Punk could do no wrong in his hometown of Chicago though until he decided to skimp out on the Champion vs Champion match he had lined up against Sheamus by GM AJ Lee. Punk, claiming to take a personal day (after all, it was Labor Day).

Punk would not completely leave the arena since his Night of Champions opponent John Cena was still to be in action though and when Cena’s Falls Count Anywhere match with Alberto Del Rio went to the back room, Punk intervened and hit a GTS on Cena on the hood of a parked car. This gave Del Rio the win and we also then saw our Shocker of the Night shortly afterward.

Match of the Night:  There wasn’t much going on this night in wrestling aside from CM Punk stealing the whole show, but one other rivalry that’s brewing is Dolph Ziggler vs Randy Orton and talk about putting on a show. These two guys are both some of the most technically sound wrestlers on the RAW roster and with each one hitting great spots, this match was a joy to watch. Although it ended on a classic heel move when Ziggler grabbed Orton’s tights, everything up to that point was terrifically tight and a shoe in for Match of the Night.

Promo of the Night: Just in order to break up the CM Punk love, we’re giving the Promo of the Night to the Kane/Daniel Bryan anger management sketches. They’ve been hysterical watching Bryan and Kane work out not only their personal issues with each other, but in general. Kane, of course, is angry because he’s the Devil’s Favorite Demon, his real dad being Paul Bearer, etc. And Daniel Bryan is just being angry at the WWE Universe. They also set up the hysterical ‘Hug It Out’ option, which the WWE voted for, but devolved into Kane wreaking havoc as always.

Shocker of the Night: Although it came in the final 15 seconds of the show, this was easily the most exciting moment of the night. After knocking out John Cena and helping Alberto Del Rio pick up a win, CM Punk got into a car and started driving away. But before pulling all the way away, the driver rolled down his window, and Paul Heyman stuck his head out. What this means for the WWE Champion and John Cena’s match at Night of Champions, we will have to wait and see until next Monday, but at least we have something to look forward to now.

Cheap Pop of the Night: Easily the Cheap Pop of the Night came during everytime CM Punk opened his mouth as he related everything to his Second City home of Chicago. Even when he stormed out of the arena, he expected his hometown crowd to understand as he related it to them taking the day off for Labor Day. So all night long, CM Punk’s lovefest with Chicago takes the Cheap Pop of the Night.

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EGM Review: Walking Dead: Episode 3 – Long Road Ahead

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Lee walks a lonely road

We play a lot of games here at EGM. So many, that as much as we may enjoy a game, fall in love with its characters, or gush about its premise, it’s difficult for us to find the time to ever get back to a game after we beat it that initial time through for review, unless we make a concentrated effort. After playing just the third of five episodes to be released by Telltale in their The Walking Dead series though, I swear I will make that effort and find time to play this through from the beginning once all five episodes are out. Episode Three, The Long Road Ahead, sealed the deal because the story is just that damn good and I don’t just want, but need to play through it all again to see how some of the critical, and even no so critical, choices I’ve made so far have affected my game play experience.

And that’s the beauty of what Telltale has crafted here. The replayability for this game is through the roof because they successfully found a way to consistently make you care about these characters via every decision you make, because you don’t want to end up regretting something. And this is mostly because the zombie apocalypse, much like in Kirkman’s original Walking Dead comics, is just a setting as this franchise has always really been more about the human condition and how people react in crisis. And this episode is no exception. There were literally moments that had me laughing out loud followed up immediately by moments that shocked me so much I dropped my controller. There are few other stories in gaming that have ever sucked me in and wowed me like this series has with its brilliant plot development.

Speaking of plot, this episode starts about three months after since Lee and Clementine had their fateful meet-up outside her tree house and the Motel has all but run its course in terms of usefulness. Lilly and Kenny are still at each other’s throats, with the events of Episode Two having only driven them further and further apart, culminating in Lilly refusing to leave and Kenny ready to just barrel out of there in his RV with just his family. The title, The Long Road Ahead, kind of hints at what happens, but I can’t in good conscience tell you more about the story. Not to mention, I’m sure that depending on the decisions that you make in the first two episodes, your story might set up completely different from mine beyond that.

The pacing of the episode was a lot quicker this time around and transitioned better, a major problem I had with the more leisurely paced Episode Two, and so in that regard The Long Road Ahead took a nice step forward as I was constantly progressing it seemed by doing even the most menial tasks.

There was one minor annoyance this time around though and it came in the form of a shooting gallery mini-game where Lee was wielding a sniper rifle. I understand Lee may not be the best shot in the world, but I felt like I could never line up my shot just right because of the lack of proper crosshairs and the controls’ sensitivity. This can be somewhat forgiven though since, after all, Telltale’s The Walking Dead is more of a point and click style adventure game and not some Call of Duty-like shooter.

Once again though, the key for me was seeing the evolution of the characters over just one episode, and how the group dynamic shifted as the roster of characters changed once again, sometimes very rapidly. If you care about The Walking Dead, zombie games, or just spectacular storytelling, The Long Road Ahead will hook you to this series if you weren’t already. And if you were hooked to begin with, then you’re like me probably, begging Telltale to get on it and release the next episode already.

SUMMARY: Somehow, Telltale finds a way to keep working in emotionally powerful moments with this series that range from humorous to heart wrenching. Either way, these moments make only one thought come to mind…that we can’t wait for the next episode!

  • THE GOOD: Finds a way to yet again amp up the emotion and consequences for your actions
  • THE BAD: A couple of rough/out of place shooting sequences
  • THE UGLY: The human condition

SCORE: 9.0

The Walking Dead: Episode 3 – The Long Road Ahead is available on XBLA (Xbox 360), PSN (PS3), and PC. Primary version reviewed was for XBLA.

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The Pullbox – Issue #10.2

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A slightly less busy Pullbox this week that looked very similar to last week in terms of what we’re covering, but very different in regards to content. Without further ado, here is this week’s Pullbox!

Marvel – Uncanny X-Force #30 – Evan, a.k.a. Genesis, a.k.a. the Boy Apocalypse, is on the road trip from hell as Daken’s new iteration of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants attempts to jog his memory of what his life’s purpose is as they hope if he remembers, they’ll be at the forefront of Apocalypse’s new army. So as Shadow King plays countless games with the boy’s mind, X-Force and the rest of the X-Men are lost as to what to do to go about getting Evan back before it’s too late.

Anyone who is a fan of Apocalypse as a villain will love this issue. Not only does it show off the lengths Daken, Sabertooth, and Shadow King are willing to go to torture the boy into reminding him what he is supposed to become, but we finally start to see Evan show off some of Apocalypse’s more infamous powers, like shape-shifting, as his rage forces him to push himself to the limits as The Brotherhood breaks down everything he has ever known bit by bit. Surprisingly, much of the book revolves around Evan, which hasn’t happened since X-Force took the boy in, and the X-Men themselves only get a few panels explaining their concern about the creation of a new Brotherhood. Again, if you’re a fan of Apocalypse, pick this issue up.

Marvel – Wolverine and the X-Men #15 – Wolverine and the rest of his school prepare for what will likely be the final battle with the Phoenix and everyone on campus, from Krakoa to Toad to Iceman have different ways of getting ready for what could be (but most likely won’t) be their final battle.

Okay, we get it. I’m honestly kind of tired of the whole Avengers vs X-Men event now. It’s coming to a head and this issue just felt like a waste of ink and paper. It was interesting to see some of the asides, like Toad with Paige Guthrie, and Professor X with Quentin Quire, or even Iron Man and his little think tank having at it before Broo the Brood shows them all up, but in terms of forwarding the actual story, very little happened of note here and it makes you wonder how long Marvel will drag this out at this rate. I’m ready for it to be over already and at this rate, I’m almost rooting for the Phoenix.

DC – Batman Detective Comics Annual #1 – During the Night of the Owls debacle at Arkham Asylum, it seems that Roman Sionis, a.k.a. the original Black Mask, had escaped and hypnotized much of the staff into believing he was still in his cell. Now, Batman has to find a way to stop him before he forms a new False Face Society and begins a new reign of terror over Gotham.

This is probably my favorite Batman related comic since the New 52 launched because it feels like an old-school Batman story in terms of its pacing, the action, and the villains involved. Bringing back Roman Sionis into prominence is a good thing, even if the entire mind-control battle between him and The Mad Hatter (read the book to better understand!) came out of left field a little bit. Batman fans should definitely pick up this book, especially if they’re looking for a solid point to get back into Detective Comics incase they missed some of the Night of the Owls stuff.

DC – Green Lantern Annual #1 – The battle between Hal, Sinestro, and Black Hand finally comes to a head. Meanwhile, halfway across the universe, some of the origins of the Guardians comes to light as they free the source of power that will drive their Third Army, which we also finally see just what that Army will be!

I really don’t know what to say about this comic aside that it is a must-read if you are at all interested in the upcoming Green Lantern crossover event. 16 issues (17 if you count this prologue) across four titles will change the face of the Green Lanterns forever as it seems a being called The Original Lantern and who can effortlessly wield all spectrums of light is powering a Borg-like entity for the Guardians. The Guardians have realized the only way to ensure order in a chaotic universe is to destroy free will. Therefore, making the universe of a hive mind seems to be the way to go and although I’m not really a fan of this direction, it could provide a very interesting new threat to the DCU. The most exciting part of this book though is that in freeing The Original Lantern as their power source, the Guardians have also stirred up a long lost remnant of their race! This could possibly lead to an entirely new cast of Guardians down the line to replace these power-mad ones. Time will tell on that front though as Hal Jordan first has to worry about coming back from the dead again.

IDW – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: April O’ Neil #1 (One-Shot) – April feels tired of sitting on the sidelines and wants the turtles to know she can be an integral part of the team as well. She may not be a ninja, and she might be able to bash skulls even like Casey, but her intelligence and ability for subterfuge can be just as valued as being a human for her has its perks. Of course, after the mess she caused, it’ll be unlikely she’ll be brought back to Stockgen again.

I wasn’t going to do a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic two weeks in a row originally. But after reading this and absolutely geek-gasming at what this book laid out, I couldn’t resist. Fans of the original cartoon series and Archie series of comics will immediately pick up on a failed experiment that April lets loose during her antics in this issue, best known as Slash, the Evil Turtle. Whether or not Slash will exhibit his same low-level intelligence as his previous incarnations is yet to be seen, but his obsession with palm trees at least remains the same. And considering how much of a fan favorite rogue Slash ended up becoming (he even had his own badass action figure), it’ll be interesting to see what other mutants start popping up in the issue of TMNT in the months ahead. We also see one of the main characters of this book finally have some direct interaction with Rock Soldiers, who up until this point, had been seen only with Krang and Baxter Stockman and kept hidden from the TMNT. All in all, this book may not look like much if you just glance at the cover but old-school TMNT fans must pick this up.

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The Sleeper Hold – Episode 10

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CM Punk’s quest for respect continued along with much more as RAW rolled into Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this week!

Main Plot Overview: After being kicked in the head by Punk the previous week on RAW, Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler was the one searching for an apology. But instead, CM Punk only apologized for Lawler being what he considered a low standard for the WWE Hall of Fame. A man who never won the WWE Championship and never had a Wrestlemania moment. A man who Punk considers to act far too juvenile for his position in the WWE Universe and for that, Punk apologized. Seeing how furious that made Lawler, Punk challenged The King to a match that would Main Event the evening and with the WWE Universe voting on the stipulation of it being a cage match (tables and No DQ were also options).

To no one’s surprise, Punk demolished Lawler. But Punk was not done after making him tap to the Anaconda Vice. No, Punk locked himself and Lawler inside the cage and continued to pummel the Hall of Famer, demanding he call him the best in the world. As Lawler refused, Punk continued to drop elbows and knees into Lawler’s cranium until finally John Cena, the now official number one contender after AJ Lee decided for CM Punk before his Main Event match, came running down and yelled at the crew to lift the cage. When it did, Cena rolled in, chased Punk out, and RAW faded to black.

Match of the Night:  Although John Cena wasn’t part of the Main Event match of the evening, he was in our best match of the night against The Miz in a non-title match. Just because the two needed some work I guess.

The lack of storyline aside, if you were looking for some solid in-ring action last night, this was the match to watch as the two wrestlers showed that they had worked in the ring several times before. Each hit very solid spots including reversing each other’s finishers into DDTs and other high impact maneuvers. It would finally be Cena though (of course), who would channel the power of his jorts and go SuperCena on Miz, hit his Five Knuckle Shuffle, and hoist Miz over his head and hit an Attitude Adjustment to end the match by getting the 1, 2, 3.

Promo of the Night:  It was very tempting to put Punk’s belittling of Jerry Lawler as the top promo once again, but instead, as scripted as it may have been, I think there was a few heartfelt moments there, and so HHH’s seeming goodbye to the WWE Universe, was my Promo of the Night.

With lines like ‘Thank you for letting me play the game’ and how hard a pill it is for any wrestler to finally decide to call it quits, I think HHH’s speech gave some interesting insight actually to the inside of a wrestler’s mind before he hears his music, steps through a curtain, and runs down that steel ramp all with the idea of entertaining people in mind. It was a nice moment, and for that, we thank you again HHH.

Shocker of the Night:  This was a difficult call as there really wasn’t anything shocking about last night’s RAW, so this week we’re looking at something that was just a bit more out of character.

A very solid tag match between the team of Randy Orton and Sheamus vs Alberto del Rio and Dolph Ziggler would be won by Orton and Sheamus as for once Orton worked as a solid teammate and helped Sheamus in his time of need.

As chaos ensued outside the ring between the ref and Alberto Del Rio, Ziggler, looking to take advantage of the distraction grabbed his Money in the Bank briefcase and looked to strike Sheamus down with it. In an unusual twist of character though, Orton jumped into the ring and wrestled the briefcase from Ziggler and then performed a signature backbreaker on the Show-Off. This set Sheamus up to hit a brilliant Brogue Kick and the two faces walked away victorious. Not the most shocking of moments, but definitely out of character for the typically loner-type that is Randy Orton.

Cheap Pop of the Night:  Last year, when R-Truth made his way to Wisconsin, he was definitely not in his right mind (well, even less so than he currently is) and even the likes of Michael Cole immediately got on his case when he confused Milwaukee and Green Bay. This led to a chorus of boos the likes of which has rarely been seen for even the most despised of heels.

But, looking to turn a positive into a negative, this time around R-Truth blamed the mishap on Little Jimmy pranking him last year. So when he grabbed the microphone and announced to Little Jimmy that he wouldn’t be fooled again and was well aware that he was in Milwaukee, there could have been no other moment that we picked as our Cheap Pop of the Night. Especially as the ensuing ‘Yes’ chant led to a count out win for Truth after Daniel Bryan went berserk and started arguing with the crowd again.

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EGM Game Over Podcast 010: German Moose Be Ballin’

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August 28, 2012

EGM Game Over Podcast 010: German Moose Be Ballin’

The EGM crew brings you the Game Over Podcast, our end-of-the-week conversation where we discuss some of the biggest recent events in gaming.

[Hosts] Andrew Fitch, Ray Carsillo, Josh Harmon, and Eric L. Patterson
[Date] August 24th, 2012

[Now Playing] NBA Baller Beats

[News] A whole lot of talk about Gamescom 2012, and then a little talk about how games journalists are racist when it comes to Japanese games.

[EGM Reviews] Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, Way of the Samurai 4

Want to send feedback to the show? Drop us a line on Twitter: @EGMLogin

[Subscribe via iTunes] http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/egm-radio/id538629924
[Subscribe via Feedburner] http://feeds.feedburner.com/EGMRadio

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The Pullbox – Issue #9.2

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A bit late this week. Clearly must still be recovering from the trip to Gamescom. Either way, after catching up from the missed week before, we ready for another edition of the Pullbox!

Marvel – Secret Avengers #30 – Many of the villains of the Marvel Universe start to get wise to Venom’s act and soon what seemed like an easy snatch ‘n’ grab turns into all out mayhem! And with it, Taskmaster bolts for Max Fury with the Third Crown. Lucky for them, it seems the completed Crown will not work on the head of a Life Model Decoy. That doesn’t mean the Secret Avengers are out of the woods yet though…

Tons of action, great banter between Venom and Taskmaster and later Hawkeye and Vengeance, and a cliffhanger that sets up this story arc possibly coming to an end soon. If it doesn’t end soon, you can expect a lot more conflict and action in the coming issues as it looks like some of the Secret Avengers are falling under the power of the crown. And it’s interesting how once again, being just a robot, how Max Fury is left all alone. If you haven’t been reading Secret Avengers, now is not the time to jump in, with such a convoluted story line, but if you have, keep going!

Marvel – Astonishing X-Men #53 – After being blown up at Northstar’s wedding, Wolverine starts to put himself back together and Beast helps this small team of X-Men figure out who has Karma, who put her up to this, and just what they’re going to do about it. And Northstar is none too happy about having his wedding crashed by exploding nanobots.

I think the best part of this comic was that we are really starting to see how far Iceman’s powers go. For a long time he was considered an Omega level mutant who was only held back by his own inhibitions and lack of imagination. In this book, as we have in a lot of other recent X-Men stories with Iceman, we see just how far he is able to push himself as he’s split up his consciousness, pulled himself back together from almost nothingness, and in this issue created an absolute monstrous ice creature. The rest of the issue though was rather lackluster, but hints at something larger as it looks like yet another new X-Men villain is in the business of existing simply to make their lives miserable and prove they are not as special as they think.

DC – Batman Incorporated #3 – In order to see just how far Leviathan has permeated the power structure of Gotham, Batman dusts off an old disguise, fan-favorite Matches Malone, to see if he can’t stir up some trouble in Gotham’s underbelly and get a few snitches to point him in the right direction. Unknown to him though, the snitches might be in Leviathan’s pocket, too.

Bringing this long-time alias back to life, after the real Matches Malone was killed by the Ventriloquist some time ago, and having Malone’s new crew being other members of Batman, Inc. was just a stroke of genius by Morrison. And he needed it considering how much momentum this book lost in the launch of the New 52. Finally though it seems to be back on track. And the idea of Robin having his own second identity now, although a bit too early in his life for my liking, was a nice touch as now everyone who has ever worn the yellow cape has matured into something more. And keeping with the red theme that now permeates Nightwing’s costume to match Red Hood and Red Robin, Damian decided to do the same as his new moniker is Redbird. What this means in the future, we will have to wait and see, but at the very least after ‘Matches’ stumbled into a Leviathan trap, I think he’ll be happy to have Redbird around next issue. 

DC – Green Lantern: New Guardians #12 – After finally realizing who has been pulling the strings of members of each lantern corps, Kyle and the others must band together to stop Invictus once and for all before he brings chaos to every star system in his path. But will the secret that Sayd has kept for so long also drive this group apart once their mission is accomplished?

Honestly, for what was supposed to be an epic final battle with Invictus, this issue felt flat in a lot of ways and was more about the upcoming drama within the Green Lantern Corps as Invictus folded like a house of cards after the Lanterns figured out what his power source was. It was also mostly about how no one in this New Guardians Group could trust one another, even after all they had been through and Kyle is left there twiddling his thumbs. The only interesting thing this issue brings up is the corruptions amongst the Guardians and how Kyle will fit into that picture as the fabled ‘Third Army’ that has been built up over the last few months will finally come to fruition in the next couple of issues. 

IDW – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #13 – The Turtles are still rattled after nearly losing Splinter to the hands of the Shredder and even Splinter himself isn’t the same. But when Casey Jones stumbles into the sewers, beaten and bloodied once again by his father, Raphael has enough and goes out to wreak vengeance on the old drunk. Splinter feels this is a perfect time to teach his son a lesson of ninjitsu though. Meanwhile, the Shredder realizes that Karai is not fit to serve him as his second-in-command, even though we find out that she was the one who resurrected Shredder, her grandfather. We also see Krang finally show off his true form, that of a living brain!

Even though Shredder and Krang were two short asides for the main part of this story, this is obviously setting up the team-up that fans of the 80s cartoon have been waiting for. Shredder needs a new second-in-command, Krang needs someone more competent than Baxter Stockman. The ending to this book was shocking though and makes me wonder just how dark Kevin Eastman will take his original characters in the next issue as Splinter is definitely different after his encounter after his old nemesis. If you haven’t been getting Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles yet, now is a great time to get on board as it looks like business is about to pick up!

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The Sleeper Hold – Episode 9

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After an eventful Summerslam PPV, the WWE found itself in Fresno, CA, the site of RAW episode number 1004, to witness the fallout of the biggest event of the summer.

Main Plot Overview: CM Punk continued his quest for respect last night and in the process earned the right from GM AJ Lee to name his number one contender for Night of Champions and to the delight of the WWE Universe, Punk wanted to name John Cena, but one condition. And that was that John had to admit CM Punk was the best wrestler in the world.

When John refused though, after a long tirade about how important it is to always believe in yourself and that no matter how many times you fall down you need to get back up, and a bunch of other trivial self-help garbage, the title picture remained muddied. CM Punk, still looking for that respect, then demanded Jerry Lawler, the man who said Punk turned his back on the WWE Universe, offer him an apology and say the same thing. Although Lawler did apologize, he refused as well to say that Punk was best in the world, and thus got what he deserved. A kick upside the head by Punk.

It’ll be interesting to see how this long, drawn out story goes and why the WWE feels the need to insert Lawler into this shenanigans (now dubbed Minister or Propaganda by Punk), but as long as CM Punk remains champion, as he has now for nine months and counting, things will definitely remain interesting.

Match of the Night: Quite honestly, as is typical of RAW as it shakes off the post-PPV hangover, many of the matches were very one-sided, not clear-cut, or just plain not interesting. There were a couple of contenders for the Match of the Night though.

The Divas #1 Contendership Battle Royale just because of all the ladies being in the ring at once. Randy Orton vs Alberto Del Rio was actually very enjoyable for the most part until the ending. But the match that stood out above all others was the Dolph Ziggler vs Chris Jericho rematch of Summerslam, with the stipulation that if Ziggler lost, he’d lost his MITB briefcase, and if Jericho lost, he’d lose his job.

This match had the great pacing and top-notch technical acumen that we saw the night before during the PPV, but this time there was actually something of worth on the line (even though if you follow Jericho at all, you knew he was going to lose because he’s about to start touring with Fozzy, his band, once again). The match started off with Ziggler coming out of the gates on fire, not wanting at all to relinquish his briefcase, but Jericho started hitting a few great spots including both an axe handle smash and missile drop kick off the top rope. When he would go for his patented lionsault though, things would go awry as Ziggler countered with a pair of knees to the gut, followed by his Zig Zag to end it. Great pacing and tight wrestling all around made this an easy pick for Match of the Night.

Promo of the Night: This was an easy one as RAW kicked off with none other that Mr. Paul Heyman and his client Brock Lesnar. The pair were coming down to the ring to obviously gloat after their huge win over HHH at Summerslam where Brock ‘broke’ HHH’s arm and made one the WWE’s most resilient fighters tapout.

But not only did they gloat, but Heyman, in classic feel fashion, deemed Brock the new ‘King of Kings’ and therefore the entire WWE Universe must bow down now to Brock Lesnar. The pure intensity on Heyman’s face, while Brock danced around in one spot like he always does like he’s about to hit someone, as he made this proclamation was absolutely a joy to watch and I recommend you check out the video of it over at wwe.com if you can find it.

The best part of the whole promo though may have been when they called Scott Armstrong down to the ring and Heyman told the referee to hurry up because it was live TV (of course, he may have been taking his time because they wanted to make sure they could fill three hours again), and then Lesnar got right in the referee’s face, who was told by HHH to let the two fight, and Lesnar said ‘Good job’. Armstrong then ran away before he wet himself. Absolutely brilliant way to kick the show off.

Shocker of the Night: The Shocker of the Night didn’t come in a promo or a match announcement, it came in an actual match when AJ decided it best for Kane to tag with Zack Ryder against Daniel Bryan and The Miz. This comes just a few months after Zack Ryder’s big push and feud against Kane where Kane literally push Ryder off the stage in a wheelchair and tried to do…things…with his girlfriend of the time, Eve.

Just as shockingly though was the two seemed to be working well together until Daniel Bryan, the latest target of Kane’s wrath, entered the ring against the Big Red Monster and Kane was ready to get revenge for his upset loss at Summerslam. Daniel Bryan would have no part of it though and ran straight out of the ring, through the crowd, and out of the arena, resulting in a countout win for Kane and Ryder.

Luckily, things resumed some sort of normalcy when in his rage at having lost Daniel Bryan a second time, Kane took his rage out on Ryder, delivering a Tombstone Piledriver that was originally intended for Daniel Bryan the night before.

Cheap Pop of the Night: During the Cena tirade about how important it is for someone to believe in him/herself, he kept dropping little facts about Fresno, CA, from their location to their football team and had the crowd eating out of his hand. Considering how polarizing John is typically amongst WWE fans, this was a rare moment where it seemed he had 100% of the folks in attendance behind him, even if he had to kiss their butts to do so. Therefore, it was with ease to name John Cena’s little self-help speech about Fresno the Cheap Pop of the Night.

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EGM Book Review: Fable: Edge of the World

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Every adventure begins with the first step and ever since fans of the franchise Fable took those first steps eight years ago, they’ve been clamoring for each subsequent chapter since. And Fable: The Journey is bound to be no exception. But to help possibly satiate fans a little while longer before its October release, a prequel book titled Fable: Edge of the World has been released to help bridge the time gap that takes place between each Fable game.

Written by New York Times bestselling author Christie Golden, who is more than accustomed to writing in the world of geekdom with several Star Wars, Star Trek, Starcraft, and World of Warcraft books already to her credit, Fable: Edge of the World provides unique challenges because as it follows the hero of Fable III ten years into his reign, she is shaping the world around decisions many of us may not have made. This disconnect to the main character immediately left a sour taste in my mouth, but I somehow found a way to push onward.

The book’s basic premise is that the legendary land of Samarkand, best known to Fable fans for where Reaver and Garth ventured to after Fable II, has been overrun by the shadowy forces that threatened Albion in Fable III. The king and his trusted aides must now meet this threat head-on before it spreads unchecked as new and old villains alike rear their heads to cause trouble for the entire kingdom while the king is off in a faraway land.

Now, I understand that the entire premise of the book is to simply provide set-up for the upcoming game, but I couldn’t help but feel cheated after reading this book because the story felt wholly incomplete. That there was almost no feeling of resolution whatsoever and after spending all this time introducing new characters and changing what was actually the story of my personal Fable, I was left twiddling my thumbs, staring at the back of the book as if another 50 pages would magically appear to finish what Golden started here.

This was nothing more than a 250-page tease that instead of holding me over until October, has driven me into a mad Fable-frenzy as I need to play Fable: The Journey now to know how the story ends, or at least continues. In terms of selling games, this is actually a brilliant maneuver. In terms of just being an avid fantasy reader though, this blatant attempt at playing off my consumerism is infuriating.

This does give me a glimmer of hope at least for the story of Fable: The Journey though in terms of providing an interesting and compelling tale that fleshes out the myths and legends of Albion, as well as making sure that we will all have a new and interesting adventure on our hands as the idea of exploring Samarkand in a game has me very excited indeed. Of course, this is just speculation from the book as the only times the character of Gabriel, your protagonist in Fable: The Journey, is even mentioned is in the Prologue and Epilogue, but with half the book taking place there and it having been referenced several times over in previous Fable titles, it only makes sense that we would visit there at some point and that something big is being set up.

Despite the potential opportunities for adventure this book may hint at though in the October game, as a read in and of itself, I found Fable: Edge of the World very unenjoyable. Considering Fable is an adventure game that revolves around choice and this book takes very little of what you have done before into consideration, I can’t recommend this at all. Maybe next time they should do a ‘choose your own adventure’ book? Do yourselves a favor, steer clear, and make the choice that when this book hits your local bookstores today to not pick it up.

SCORE: 3.0

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