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Count_Zero

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  1. Count_Zero
    <div class="embed-blip"><iframe src="href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/ninja-gaiden/'>Ninja Gaiden</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-power/'>Nintendo Power</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-game-magazines/'>video game magazines</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2712/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2712/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2712&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
    <a href="http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/2014/03/27/nintendo-power-retrospectives-part-25/" class='bbc_url' rel='nofollow external'>Source</a>
  2. Count_Zero
    I recently picked up the role-playing game Wild World of Wrestling by Timeout Diversions from DriveThruRPG. The game is from the same people who brought us the underrated RPG WWE: Know Your Role, which I also own and like. As I’m reading through the game, I’m also working on setting up my own little promotion. This is partly with original wrestlers and in a large part with adaptations of real-world wrestlers. But, first, I’d like to do a little world-building and set-up the in-game organization.
    North-West Championship Wrestling (NWCW)
    North-West Championship Wrestling is a wrestling promotion based in Portland, Oregon, which puts on shows throughout the state, as well as Washington and British Columbia. The promotion is not affiliated the old Portland Wrestling promotion, but is affiliated with a newly resurgent National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), as well as several Japanese promotions, particularly Pro Wrestling NOAH, New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), and All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW). This confluence of promotional ties (partly permitted by geography) allows for wrestlers who have achieved success in Japan to get exposure to American wrestling fans in a way they couldn’t outside of the Indy scene, and without the travel needed to go all the way to the East Coast.
    Titles
    As of the start of the game, all titles are currently vacant, as the promotion is just starting out. Also, while the main titles from AJPW, NJPW, NOAH, and the NWA will be defended in NWCW, they’re not the primary titles in the promotion.
    Title belts pictured are more meant to give an idea what the actual belt would look like, and help inspire players, should you choose to run a game in this promotion.
    NWCW Universal Wrestling Championship (Primary Singles Title)

    The “Universal” in name is due to the fact that the defense of this title is not limited by weight class. Light Heavyweights/Cruiserweights are just as eligible for this title as heavyweights are. Also, to raise the prestige of title defenses, the title can only be defended at monthly events or Pay-Per-Views.
    The practical reason for this is that I realized that from a mechanic standpoint, Low Ki, who was one of the first ROH Heavyweight Champions, is technically a cruiser-weight, and additionally, I wanted the interesting mix of styles that we got when the X Division in TNA wrestling was at its peak.
    As far as the title design goes, this belt design reminds me a lot of the old WWE Undisputed Title, but more distinctive thanks to figures in the middle and the use of color.
    Benefit: Reroll any one roll once per card, unless original roll is automatic failure/miss.
    Bonus Gimmick Enhancements: Desperate Save, Feat of (choice) (2), Popular Appeal, Resources (5), Submission Threshold (2), Stick a Fork in It.
    NWCW Television Championship (Secondary Singles Title)

    If anyone has learned anything from the history of the wrestling business, it’s that title defenses get viewers. If you’ve learned anything else, it’s that giving away pay-per-view matches (like World Title defenses) on free TV is generally not good. So, the next best thing to do is have a good mid-card title that’s defended on television, to keep people tuning in to the TV show. This also provides a good way of elevating and evaluating mid-card talent, so you can see who’ll get over or not.
    For the design, I was in a dead split between the old ECW Television Championship, this one, and the WCW United States championship. However, this one won out due to the use of color (I’ve come to like blue) and texture. Also, the shape of the center piece is something that just works for me instead of the round center piece in the ECW TV Title. It draws the eye more.
    Benefit: Reroll any one roll to escape pin or submission once per card with all bonuses and penalties, unless original roll is automatic failure.
    Bonus Gimmick Enhancements: Desperate Save, Resources (3), Feat of (choice), Popular Appeal, Submission Threshold.
    NWCW Tag Team Championship

    Yes, the picture of the globe on these belts is god-freaking-awful, but visually this belt has everything I like in its design. Nice shape that draws attention to the centerpiece of the belt. It has a good use of color and a nice visual texture to it.
    Benefit: Reroll one tag finisher once per card, unless original roll is automatic failure.
    Bonus Gimmick Enhancements: Desperate Save, Resources (3), Feat of (choice), Popular Appeal, Stick a Fork in It (with tag-team finisher only).
    Related articles

    Independent Report: NJPW Invades This Weekend, Plus ROH and EVOLVE News (bleacherreport.com) 10 Wrestlers Who Should Have Been World Champion Before WCW Was Formed (bleacherreport.com) CM Punk and the 5 Best Wrestlers on Television (bleacherreport.com)
    Filed under: Role Playing Games, Wrestling Tagged: All Japan Pro Wrestling, National Wrestling Alliance, New Japan Pro Wrestling, Pro Wrestling NOAH, Role-playing game, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, Wrestling
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  3. Count_Zero
    Get "The Devil Came on Horseback" at Amazon.com
    This review is going to differ from my usual review format, mainly because in this case, the film I’m reviewing, which is a documentary about the Genocide in Darfur, asks a few questions, and I’m going to try to give some opinion based answers.
    The Premise:
    Brian Steidle was a captain in the US Marine Corps who, after his term of service was up, left the Corps and became an unarmed monitor for the African Union, tasked with monitoring the cease-fire between the Sudanese government and rebel groups. There he observed the Darfur genocide, documenting it with thousands of pictures and hundreds of reports sent to the AUC commanders, which were ultimately classified and ignored.
    My Thoughts:
    This is a touchy subject. Firstly – the situation in Darfur is a Genocide. Anyone who says otherwise is a damn liar. Anyone who says it shouldn’t be stopped is – at best – an assclown to the highest degree. The question is – how do you stop it?
    How do you stop a genocide in a land-locked country in Africa, which can’t be stopped through diplomacy – we’ve tried – and whose neighbors won’t put boots on the ground to stop it? And how do you do it without raising the specter of colonialism, without sticking yourself hip deep in a potentially drawn out war that could be just as prolonged as the wars in Afganistan or Iraq – and could lead to messes like the Battle of Mogadishu?
    That’s the problem.
    I don’t know if anyone’s thought about it that way yet. At this point – I don’t know of another way to fix it. The militias which are engaging in genocide are spreading it beyond the borders of Sudan and into neighboring countries like Chad, and the government of Chad isn’t willing to defend the refugees because they risk starting a war with Sudan. Humanitarian groups are pulling out of the refugee camps because their aid workers are at risk of being attacked. In theory UN Peacekeepers could be sent in – but Sudan isn’t willing to allow them in the country. The African Union didn’t act on this before, and aren’t acting militarily now.
    The United States is still in Iraq, though they’re slowly pulling out, and they’re going to be sending more troops into Afghanistan. From a military standpoint, we don’t have the troops to commit – no matter how many letters we send to the Government. Sure, if we start a draft, we could get the troops that way – but that’s not the right way to get the manpower we need.
    Ultimately, we need a (and I apologize for using this term again) “Coalition of the Willing” again – lead by someone else. The US doesn’t have the manpower to be the world’s policeman at the moment. We’d need UN Peacekeepers who’d be willing to start a war with Sudan to protect refugees, to get them back in their homes, and to keep them safe.
    I can’t see any way the US could provide that until 2013, and you’d need a president who was both a bleeding heart and a hawk to do it. Barack Obama might be that president – I don’t know. Sarah Palin definitely isn’t that president. John McCain, maybe – but I doubt he could get the Republican nomination again, and that’s assuming he’s dumb enough to run. Anyone the Tea Party wingnuts could bring to the table or could force a Republican Party nomination might well be a hawk – but the stench of racism from the Tea Party makes me doubt that any member of that group cares about black people – particularly black people killing other black people in another country.
    I, on the other hand, feel that the genocide in Darfur is an hideous atrocity, and one of the first of such in the 21st Century. I’d love to have it be the last. I can’t think of any way for it to be that way unless more countries take military action against genocide – and at least for a while, I can’t think of anyone who’d be willing to take such action.
    The Verdict (on the movie):
    If you’re not pissed about the genocide in Darfur – watch this movie, it will explain why you should be pissed. Also, despite what I said above about writing your Congressional representatives not necessarily leading to action – write to them anyway. Especially if they’re on a committee related to the armed forces, budgets, or foreign policy (especially Africa).
    Posted in film, Reviews Tagged: Darfur, Documentary, film, politics, Reviews
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  4. Count_Zero
    <p>This week I’m reviewing a whole slew of books at once, with a look at James Blish’s collected adaptations of Star Trek episodes.</p>
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='585' height='360' src='http://www.youtube.com/embed/5pjcMbG3xgQ?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent' frameborder='0'></iframe></span>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/books/'>Books</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/book-review/'>book review</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/james-blish/'>James Blish</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/science-fiction/'>science fiction</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/star-trek/'>Star Trek</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2646/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2646/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2646&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  5. Count_Zero
    <p><span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='585' height='360' src='href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/uncategorized/'>Uncategorized</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/final-fantasy/'>Final Fantasy</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nes/'>NES</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-power/'>Nintendo Power</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/retro-video-games/'>Retro Video Games</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2719/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2719/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2719&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
    <a href="http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/2014/04/23/nintendo-power-retrospectives-part-27/" class='bbc_url' rel='nofollow external'>Source</a>
  6. Count_Zero
    <p>This week I’m finally reviewing the final installment of <a class="zem_slink" title="David Eddings" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Eddings" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">David Eddings</a>‘ Elenium trilogy with <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/034537472X/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=034537472X&linkCode=as2&tag=themillenn0b3-20">The Sapphire Rose</a><img style="border:none!important;margin:0!important;" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=themillenn0b3-20&l=as2&o=1&a=034537472X" width="1" height="1" border="0" /></em>. <span id="more-2582"></span></p>
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='620' height='379' src='http://www.youtube.com/embed/8I-RXznKjIk?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent' frameborder='0'></iframe></span>
    <h3>Art Credits</h3>
    <p>Henry V – Renaissance Films<br />Monty Python & The Holy Grail<br />~Gentleman Thief~ by The Gryph<br />~Have Fun Storming The Castle~ by SneakingSoul<br />Knight Tournament (Photo) by RavenPine<br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Howard Pyle" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Pyle" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Howard Pyle</a><br />Berserk – <a class="zem_slink" title="Kentaro Miura" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kentaro_Miura" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Kentaro Miura</a><br />Granny Weatherwax – <a class="zem_slink" title="Paul Kidby" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Kidby" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Paul Kidby</a><br />Christian Nauck<br />Sir Galahad – George Fredrick Watts<br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Bedivere" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedivere" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Sir Bedivere</a> – Aubrey Beardsley<br />Cover art from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345367693/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0345367693&linkCode=as2&tag=themillenn0b3-20">The Diamond Throne</a><img style="border:none!important;margin:0!important;" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=themillenn0b3-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0345367693" width="1" height="1" border="0" /></p>
    <h3>Music Credits</h3>
    <p><em>Nazgul On Your Back</em><br />Written and Performed by<br />Weirdland</p>
    <p><a href="http://www.weirdland.fr/" rel="nofollow">http://www.weirdland.fr/</a></p>
    <p>Released under Creative Commons License</p>
    <p><em><a class="zem_slink" title="In the Hall of the Mountain King" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Hall_of_the_Mountain_King" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">In the Hall of the Mountain King</a></em><br />(<a class="zem_slink" title="Peer Gynt (Grieg)" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peer_Gynt_%28Grieg%29" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1</a>, Op. 46)<br />Composed by <a class="zem_slink" title="Edvard Grieg" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edvard_Grieg" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Edvard Grieg</a><br />Performed by Kevin MacCloud</p>
    <p><a href="http://incompitech.com" rel="nofollow">http://incompitech.com</a></p>
    <p>Released under Creative Commons License</p>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/books/'>Books</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/book-review/'>book review</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/david-eddings/'>David Eddings</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/fantasy-literature/'>Fantasy Literature</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/speculative-fiction/'>Speculative Fiction</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/the-elenium/'>The Elenium</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2582/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2582/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2582&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  7. Count_Zero
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='585' height='360' src='href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/cyberpunk/'>Cyberpunk</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/lets-play/'>Let's Play</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/remember-me/'>Remember Me</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/science-fiction/'>science fiction</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/transhumanism/'>Transhumanism</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-games/'>Video games</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2684/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2684/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2684&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
    <a href="http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/2013/12/22/lets-play-remember-me-part-12-bar-fight/" class='bbc_url' rel='nofollow external'>Source</a>
  8. Count_Zero
    We’re continuing on to Nintendo Power #37 for June of 1992. Our cover story is Lemmings. No, not the lead singer and bassist of Motorhead, that’s Lemmy – I meant Lemmings. Clean out your ears. The call for letters this issue were for feedback about the changes in the magazine. The responses are generally favorable, though we do get a complaint about the George Column, saying that it’s wasted space that could used be for more strategy guides, adding “I don’t care about two guys opinions on video gamesâ€. I hate to bust your bubble mate, but that’s the future of games journalism. The same guy also complains about the comics too. Another letter complains about all the coverage the SNES is coverage – again, I hate to burst your bubble but despite what Nintendo was saying several CES events ago, 16-bit is not a fad.
    Lemmings Guide
    We get a run down of the different Lemmings and what they’re capable of (which is important, because you’ll need to know what they can do on the fly). We get some maps for some of the trickier levels, like Fun 13, 19, 21, 22, 25; Tricky 5, 7, 20 (which has a title that references Blackadder), 23, 25; Taxing #2, Mayhem #1.
    DragonStrike Guide
    This is the guide for the port of SSI’s Dragon Riding Combat Flight Sim. We get maps for the first 11 stages because, basically this version of the game turns it into a shump.
    Stanley: The Search for Dr. Livingston Guide
    We get a run down of the items in the game. We also get some notes for levels 1 through 8, but not maps.
    Legend of Zelda Comic
    Link defeats Aghanim by deflecting his magic back at him with the Master Sword. Unfortunately, this sends Link and Zelda to the Dark World with an almost two-page spread. Here Link learns of Ganondorf, who, in this world, holds all of the pieces of the Triforce and with it has plunged the realm into darkness. Link saves a fairy from a group of goblins to wrap up this issue’s installment of the comic.
    How's that for a 2-page spread.
    Metroid II: Return of Samus Guide
    We get maps (not screen shot maps, but more drawn maps, which is fine, because the environments are big) of areas 1 through 9 and the final boss fight.
    Star Wars Guide
    This is for the Game Boy version of the game, which doesn’t look too dissimilar to the NES version actually, aside from the basic visual differences, such as Greyscale.
    NBA All-Star Challenge 2 Guide
    Since this is a sports game most of the detail in this guide is spent on what athletes are in the game, like Larry Bird, Michael Jordan and, representing for the Portland Trail Blazers, Clyde “The Glyde†Drexler.
    Super Mario Adventures Comic
    We see Peach and Mario at the chapel, about to marry, when Bowser carries off Mario and is about to take Peach as his own, before she wakes up from her nightmare… in Luigi’s outfit. Okay, so who precisely undressed Peach so Luigi could follow in the footsteps of Darcelle last issue. However, Peach figures out what’s going on, and gets brought up to speed by her retainers. On the inside, Luigi still in disguise, gets the signal to Peach and her retainers, managing to get the Trojan Pizza Delivery person into the castle. You know, if this story had been done more recently, I would hope we would get the following exchange.
    Peach: Well, it looks like we got hear in the nick of time. What does that make us?
    Toad: Big Damn Heroes, Princess.
    Peach: Ain’t. We. Just.
    At the Arcades
    Nintendo Power tends to ignore the Arcades. That’s kind of reasonable – it’s a magazine dedicated to a specific company’s home console and portable systems. However, they’re going to take a moment to talk about the big games at the Arcade. Most of these have already gotten covered in the EGM recaps, so I’m not going to go really in depth about what the games are like. We start out with Street Fighter II Champion Edition (with Street Fighter II for the SNES getting covered next issue), along with Capcom’s 6-person X-Men arcade game (which doesn’t get a home release – so you either have to go to an arcade that has it like Ground Kontrol or get it on MAME).
    We also have a sequel to Smash TV titled Total Carnage from Midway, as well as a football game titled Super High Impact. Namco has the racing game Driver’s Eyes, which uses 3 screens to the driver some of the peripheral vision that most racing games lack.
    Arcana Guide
    There’s a new RPG for the SNES. This one has a bit of a first-person perspective thing going on, with a 3rd person world map. I’m kind of interested in giving this a try. I could be wrong, but it looks like it’s got a bit of auto-map, instead of needing to bust out the graph paper. We get a map of the first dungeon in the guide itself, and a bunch of additional maps in the posters.
    Top Gear Guide
    No, this game doesn’t let you control the Stig. It also doesn’t have licensed cars. We get maps and notes for 12 of the courses in the game, with potentially 6 more courses to come in the race series.
    F1 ROC: Race of Champions
    Formula 1 Racing game with a potential death spiral option if your winnings don’t earn enough to cover damages to your car over the course of the race. We get maps for 5 of the courses.
    The Simpsons – Krusty’s Super Funhouse
    We get a map of the hub plus 5 of the sections of the game.
    Nester’s Adventures
    This time Nester is playing RoboCop 3 and the hint is basically that you need to grab every power-up you possibly can… which I already stated when I discussed the guide an issue or so ago.
    Now Playing
    George and Rob think Baseball Stars II is okay, if you never played the first game. They also liked Casino Kid 2, which is a casino game with boss fights. They kind of like Defenders of Dynatron City from Lucasarts. They also kind of liked Power Punch II, though they thought it was pretty hard. In their opinion, the Game Boy version of Pit Fighter was superior to the SNES version, which is rather impressive.
    Top 20
    Metroid II has regained the top spot on the Game Boy, while Mario retains the top spot on the SNES and NES.
    Celebrity Player Profile
    This issue we get a profile of David Faustino, who was at that time appearing on Married with Children, and since that show ended he’s basically just had lots of guest starring roles.
    Pak Watch
    So, the only upcoming title that I find notable is Out of this World from Interplay.
    That wraps up this issue of Nintendo Power. My Quality Control pick for this issue is going to be Arcana. That’s right, I’m going to try another RPG. I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to beat it, but I could be surprised.
    Filed under: Video games, Where I Read Tagged: Nintendo Power, video game magazines, Video games, Where I Read
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  10. Count_Zero
    <p>What bugs me about people who rip into the stories of games which try to tell good, interesting stories but fail (at least in the eyes of the people doing the ripping), like, for example, Bioshock Infinite, is that the language used to mock the games often comes in the form of saying “Games can’t tell good stories, why should you try?”</p>
    <p>Not that they’re saying games can’t be art – they know that games can be art, and often the people saying these things want more games to be art. However, dismissing the narrative of the Bioshock games as being too simplistic or too trite or playing with the players heartstrings too much is a bit like making fun of little league baseball players because they’re not hitting home runs like the pros. They may get there someday, they may not – but what good can mocking them for trying do?</p>
    <p>If you really, really want better video game stories, then signal out the people who do what you want to see for praise, and if someone does something wrong, don’t just mock their decisions, talk about why it didn’t work for you.</p>
    <p>I can’t code well enough to work on a AAA, but I can tell when a story works, and when it doesn’t and if it doesn’t work I can tell why. Hell, depending on why the story doesn’t work, I can tell you what it would take to fix it.</p>
    <p>Shifting the topic somewhat – games like EVE Online and DayZ aren’t “fixing” game stories, or “telling” better game stories. People are using those games to tell interesting stories, sure, but describing them as the future of game storytelling (as I got the impression P<a>atrick Klepek</a>â was kind of alluding to in <a href="href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/irrational-games/'>Irrational Games</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/ken-levine/'>Ken Levine</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/news/'>News</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/shawn-elliot/'>Shawn Elliot</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-game-stories/'>video game stories</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-games/'>Video games</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2710/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2710/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2710&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
    <a href="http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/2014/02/19/a-bunch-of-random-thoughts-related-to-discussion-coming-up-around-the-closure-of-irrational-games/" class='bbc_url' rel='nofollow external'>Source</a>
  11. Count_Zero
    This time I’m taking a look at another out-print anime, in the wake of Lodoss getting license rescued by Funimation, in Armored Trooper VOTOMS.
    Oh, and if you want to pre-order Lodoss in the wake of its license rescue, it’s available from Amazon & RightStuf
    Please support my Patreon at http://www.patreon.com/countzeroor
    Member of The Console Xplosion Network: http://www.theconsolexplosion.com/
    Watch my Live-Streams on http://twitch.tv/countzeroor/

    Filed under: Anime Tagged: Anime, anime review, license rescue please, mecha, out-of-print

  12. Count_Zero
    <p>(Originally Published on Goodreads)</p>
    <p><a style="float:left;padding-right:20px;" href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1409781.King_of_Thorn_Volume_2"><img alt="King of Thorn, Volume 2" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347716987m/1409781.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1409781.King_of_Thorn_Volume_2">King of Thorn, Volume 2</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/665288.Yuji_Iwahara">Yuji Iwahara</a></p>
    <p>My rating: <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/492933090">4 of 5 stars</a></p>
    <p>This volume is causing the series to risk becoming cluttered, from a plot standpoint. Coming into this volume, the plot had the main driving conflict of “How do these characters, which are almost all infected with a disease that could kill them, survive in this post-apocalyptic world with massive thorny plants that have consumed everything, and freaking dinosaurs?”<span id="more-2512"></span></p>
    <p>There was also the question posed last volume of “How did we go from the world that these characters were in when they went into cryo, into the world with the said plants and dinosaurs?”</p>
    <p>This volume, unfortunately, does nothing to answer these questions, and instead Iwahara decides to add a third plot thread to the mix, related to some sort of conspiracy theory about the virus – which does nothing to explain any of the earlier questions.</p>
    <p>I’m going to keep reading this series, but I do hope that Iwahara learned something from the X-Files and Lost, that too many questions without a hint that there are answers coming doesn’t keep your audience hooked – it burns them out.</p>
    <p><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/2002695-alexander-case">View all my reviews</a></p>
    <p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1598162365/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=themillenn0b3-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1598162365">Get King of Thorn Volume 2 from Amazon.com</a><img style="border:none!important;margin:0!important;" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=themillenn0b3-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1598162365" width="1" height="1" border="0" /></p>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/comics/manga-comics/'>Manga</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/reviews/'>Reviews</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/king-of-thorn/'>King of Thorn</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/manga/'>manga</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/post-apocalyptic/'>post-apocalyptic</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/reviews/'>Reviews</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2512/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2512/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2512&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  13. Count_Zero
    <p>This time we get to meet Madame for the first time.</p>
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='585' height='360' src='href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/lets-play/'>Let's Play</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/cyberpunk/'>Cyberpunk</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/lets-play/'>Let's Play</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/remember-me/'>Remember Me</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/science-fiction/'>science fiction</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/transhumanism/'>Transhumanism</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-games/'>Video games</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2694/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2694/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2694&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
    <a href="http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/2013/12/27/lets-play-remember-me-part-17-the-warden-is-a-jerk/" class='bbc_url' rel='nofollow external'>Source</a>
  14. Count_Zero
    <p>This week the Nintendo Power Recaps reach issue #6 of Nintendo Fun Club News.</p>
    <embed src="http://blip.tv/play/h6Vcg4uXZAA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="392" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="true"></embed>
    <p>Games Reviewed:<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E7KSN8/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000E7KSN8&linkCode=as2&tag=themillenn0b3-20">NES Golf</a><img style="border:none!important;margin:0!important;" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=themillenn0b3-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000E7KSN8" width="1" height="1" border="0" /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E7FTPA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000E7FTPA&linkCode=as2&tag=themillenn0b3-20">Double Dragon</a><img style="border:none!important;margin:0!important;" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=themillenn0b3-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000E7FTPA" width="1" height="1" border="0" /> (Pick of the Issue)</p>
    <h6 class="zemanta-related-title" style="font-size:1em;">Related articles</h6>
    <ul class="zemanta-article-ul">
    <li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/2012/10/13/nintendo-power-retrospective-part-1/" target="_blank">Nintendo Power Retrospective – Part 1</a> (countzeroor.wordpress.com)</li>
    </ul>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/games/'>Games</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo/'>Nintendo</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-entertainment-system/'>Nintendo Entertainment System</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-fun-club-news/'>Nintendo Fun Club News</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-power/'>Nintendo Power</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendopower/'>NintendoPower</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-game/'>video game</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2489/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2489/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2489&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  15. Count_Zero
    <p>It turns out Madame has left some traps in her Membrane’s. That doesn’t sound weird, does it?</p>
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='585' height='360' src='href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/lets-play/'>Let's Play</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/cyberpunk/'>Cyberpunk</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/lets-play/'>Let's Play</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/remember-me/'>Remember Me</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/science-fiction/'>science fiction</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/transhumanism/'>Transhumanism</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-games/'>Video games</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2698/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2698/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2698&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
    <a href="http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/2013/12/29/lets-play-remember-me-part-19-intrusion-countermeasures/" class='bbc_url' rel='nofollow external'>Source</a>
  17. Count_Zero
    Moving right along with the EGM recaps, we come to issue 84 for July of 1996. Our cover story for this issue is a series of Star Wars previews. To be specific, among other things, the big Star Wars mega-event Shadows of the Empire is coming out, in comic, novel and now video game form. Our Editorial from Ed Semrad talks about this year’s E3, which is also the second E3. Already it’s gotten really big really quick. On a bigger note, the Sendai Publication era of EGM is over. Ziff Davis has bought out Sendai Publications. I don’t want to be all cynical and grim and say that this was the beginning of the end for EGM or anything. However, the reason 1up was sold and EGM was closed, was because of the massive debts that Ziff Davis had incurred and poorly managed. Former EGM staffers like Dan “Shoe” Hsu have gone on record on podcasts about this. Unless Sendai Publications had the same debt problems (or worse), Ziff Davis hadn’t bought Sendai, EGM wouldn’t have ceased operations a year or so ago. That said, I am pleased as punch that it’s back, and that Steve Harris is back at the helm (though I should note that Steve Harris is still on the masthead as the Publisher for EGM on this issue). Anyway, with this issue, the roster of EGM that would later carry on to 1up continues to grow–Crispin Boyer is now on-board as an Associate Editor. I have no idea what he’s up to now. He left Ziff Davis in 2008, before the Great Purge.
    Press Start
    E3 1996 basically threw the price wars between Sega and Sony into sharp relief. Sega slashed the price for the Saturn in the US to $249 earlier in the year in an immediate price cut, and at E3 Sony did one of their own, slashing the price of the PlayStation to $199. Meanwhile, people finally got to take a look at the Nintendo 64, and they’re not too impressed with it from a hardware standpoint. From a software library standpoint, the system’s killer apps at this point are Shadows of the Empire and Super Mario 64. All that said, this is still just a hands-on demonstration of the system at E3. The N64 still isn’t in stores yet and reviewers haven’t gotten their debug units (to my knowledge).
    Also, Nintendo is announcing the Game Boy Pocket. It is what it says it is, a Game Boy that can fit in your pocket. Smaller, thinner, and with a better screen resolution. The Game Boy Color comes shortly later. Meanwhile, 3DO finally made a profit. No, really, it had never, ever, in the company’s history, made a profit, and it only made a profit this time because they licensed some of the technology behind the system to other companies. The system itself is not able to stand on its own.
    Going back to the Saturn, it’s getting a modem. My concern about the design is that the modem goes into the system’s console cartridge slot (the system has a cartridge slot and a CD-ROM Drive). Basically, this means that if you’re doing a game that’s designed for online multi-player, you can’t do it as a cartridge game.
    Review Crew
    This issue the Review Crew has been dramatically changed from last issue, to a form more familiar to EGM readers who came aboard more recently. The crew this issue is Shawn Smith, Dan “Shoe” Hsu, Crispin Boyer, and Sushi-X.

    Fade to Black (Electronic Arts, PlayStation): Flashback has gotten a narrative sequel, one that changes the game-play style to a side-scrolling action game to a 3rd person action game. The game has excellent animations, like the earlier 2 games in the series. Also, like the earlier 2 games, this one controls well, at least by 1996 standards. The game gets an 8.5 from Shawn and a 7.5 from Shoe. Crispin gives the game an 8, and he also mentions that a lot of the traps tend to be instagibs. Sushi also gives the game an 8. Overall: 32/40, and it receives the Editor’s Choice Gold Award and is Game of the Month. Arcade Classics (Sega of America, Sega Genesis): This is a collection of various other arcade classics from developers other than Sega. Stuff like Pong, Centipede and Missile Command and that’s it. The problem is that all the ports are bad. Shawn, Shoe and Christian give the game 4s, citing bad graphics on the ports, limited selection (compared to the other retro arcade collections, and the controls aren’t very good as well. It doesn’t help that 2 out of 3 of these games used track balls in the arcade, and the 3rd used a paddle controller. Sushi feels that these games should never have been re-released at all and gives it a 3.5. Overall: 15.5/40. Shining Wisdom (Working Designs, Sega Saturn): We have a new game in the Shining series, and it’s not being published by Sega. The problem is that it’s semi-generic. Shawn doesn’t like RPGs very much, but he doesn’t like the fact that this RPG rips on another RPG and gives it a 5.5. Crispin also gives it a 5.5, finding that the game doesn’t really cut it, particularly considering the poor music, and ultra-linear plot. Shoe finds it very generic and without much character, and gives it a 5. Sushi has the highest score with a 6, saying that if the game had come out a year or two prior, on a cartridge, it would have been much more highly regarded, but now it’s just behind the times. Overall: 22/40. Shellshock (U.S. Gold, Saturn): This looks like a Tank simulator. Shawn & Dan give it 5s, with the main criticisms being with the pacing of the game, and the game tries to have some sort of bizarre hip-hop gangsta attitude. Crispin gives it a 6, adding to Dan’s criticisms the fact that the game’s levels are far too small, making it easy to accidentally stray from the level’s boundaries, causing an unintended Game Over. Sushi gives it a 4.5, finding the gangsta attitude grating and the game-play repetitive, though he does applaud the fact that U.S. Gold is willing to take risks with new game types. Overall: 20.5/40. Wipeout (Sega of America, Saturn): Port of Psygnosis’s high-speeds sci-fi racing game. Shawn gives the game a 7, lauding the weapons and the speed of the racing. Shoe considers the controls way too floaty, enough that it’s a deal-breaker, and gives it a 5.5. Crispin and Sushi give the game 8s, considering it an excellent successor to F-Zero. Overall: 28.5/40 Golden Axe: The Duel (Sega, Saturn): Considering the failure of the brawler genre from around this time, I can kind of understand why they decided to make the next game in the Golden Axe series a fighting game, but that doesn’t mean that it’s a good move. Shawn, Dan and Sushi give the game 6s, and the three agree that the game is fairly generic and uninspired. Crispin gives it a 6.5 for the same reasons. Overall: 24.5/40. Alone in the Dark (THQ, Saturn): The first Survival Horror game finally comes to the Saturn… after Resident Evil came out on the PlayStation. Shawn & Sushi give the game 5s, citing the fact that while Resident Evil included a certain degree of auto-targeting (if you were facing in the right direction) this doesn’t. Plus there’s a lack of clarity in some scenes. Crispin gives it a 4, because of the poor (even for the time) graphics and worse control, and he doesn’t like the fixed camera angles. Dan gives it a 3 for the same reasons that Crispin gave it a 4. Overall: 17/40. Top Gun: Fire At Will (Spectrum Holobyte, PlayStation): Combat flight sim. Shawn, Crispin and Sushi give it 6s, saying that the story is better then Air (Ace) Combat’s story, but the missions are somewhat repetitive. Dan also gives it a 5 because of the repetitive missions. Overall: 23/40. Horned Owl (SCEA, PlayStation): This is a light-gun game. Or rather, since the PlayStation doesn’t have a light gun yet, it’s a shooter you play with the directional pad (D-pad). Ugh. I wouldn’t mind playing this with a light gun. I wouldn’t mind playing this with a mouse. I wouldn’t mind playing this with an analog stick. I’ll pass on playing this with a D-pad. Shawn gives it a 6.5, saying that while you’re playing this with the D-pad, the game still controls pretty well anyway, though it’s unfortunately too easy. The difficulty also leads to Dan giving it a 6 and, for that matter, Crispin giving it a 7. My mistake, Sushi is able to play the game with a Light Gun, and says it’s even more fun with the light gun, and gives it a 7.5. Overall: 27/40. Metal Slug (SNK, Neo-Geo): SNK’s longest lasting run-and-gun shooter series has begun. Shawn & Sushi give it 7s, but they disagree with why, sort of. Both think that the unlimited continues that all Neo-Geo games have slows the amount of time it takes to beat the game, and they also agree that it reduces the replay value. However, Shawn feels that it has no replay value at all. Shawn feels that there is some replay value, but not much. Dan and Crispin give it 7.5s, applauding the game’s character (as opposed to the characters in the game, though they tie togeather). Overall: 29/40. Kirby’s Blockball (Nintendo, Game Boy): This is basically an adaptation of Arkanoid with a Kirby theme. Shawn gives it an 8, lauding how the game puts a new spin the Arkanoid formula, and also appreciating the game’s save feature. Dan gives it an 8.5 for a similar reason, though he’d rather that the game’s ball physics were better. Crispin and Sushi give the game 7.5s, finding the game too easy (and Sushi has some problems with the controls). Overall: 31.5/40
    Gaming Gossip
    Namco is working on Tekken 3. Q-Mann is predicting late 1997 or early 1998 for the release of Mortal Kombat 4 in arcades, which is a pretty good guess, Wikipedia says the game is released on October 17th in arcades. Sony has killed Vic Tokai’s entire lineup for the PlayStation, as well as Tecmo’s lineup. Capcom is also giving Sony an ultimatum – give us more latitude in making our next Mega Man game, or we jump ship and take all our IPs elsewhere, like the Saturn. Considering how console history turned out, I’d say Sony let Capcom have their way. Rare is working on Donkey Kong 64. Speaking of the N64, Nintendo is considering dropping the N64 to the $200 price point, with a $250 SKU with a Mario 64 pack in. Finally, Sony’s working on a modem for the PlayStation (which doesn’t amount to anything).
    Feature Articles
    We start out with our run down of all the upcoming Star Wars games. We get some coverage of Shadows of the Empire and Rebel Assault 2, as well as Dark Forces, with the first and the last game getting the most coverage. I’m surprised they don’t mention the Live Action video cut-scenes for Rebel Assault 2, especially considering that the game had the first new life-action footage shot for any official (as opposed to fan-made) Star Wars related project after the release of Return of the Jedi. We also get a look at the newer, “ultra-realistic” (uh-huh) fighting game Kumite: The Fighter’s Edge, which is also vaporware. Considering how much they’re hyping it over not only Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter, but Tekken and Virtua Fighter as well, they set themselves a very high bar to beat.
    We continue with the more direct E3 coverage. The notable games getting some coverage include Killer Instinct 64 (the system’s first fighting game listed), Mario Kart 64 (the system’s first racing game), Blast Corps (a game which requires that you destroy everything in the way of a rampaging vehicle), Starfox 64, Cruisin’ USA (yeah, it’s a racing game too, but Mario Kart is a lap-based racing game, while Crusin’ is more point-to-point). There’s also in the FPS front Turok: Dinosaur Hunter and Doom 64. Williams is publishing War Gods and Mortal Kombat Trilogy. There’s also a Robotech game which I think becomes vaporware. For the SNES we have another Donkey Kong Country game. The PlayStation is getting a Batman Forever fighting game, or maybe it’s a brawler–the screen shot makes it look like a fighting game. Psygnosis is working on a City of Lost Children licensed game. I have to admit that’s probably one of the movies that I can’t imagine getting a licensed game.
    The PlayStation is also getting ports of Final Doom and Duke Nukem 3D, as well as Quake. Crystal Dynamics is working on a Ghost Rider licensed game (which I think becomes vaporware). Sony Interactive is putting out Twisted Metal 2, and Williams is also putting out Mortal Kombat Trilogy on the PlayStation as well. Mindscape is working on a game based on Marvel’s cyberpunk-ish Marvel 2099 universe. On the Adventure game front, we’re getting a second Diskworld game. Square is branching out into fighting games with Tobal No. 1, and Konami’s getting into RPGs with Suikoden. Frank Miller’s comic through Dark Horse Hard Boiled is getting adapted to a video game. Command & Conquer is getting ported from the PC to the PlayStation. There’s a licensed game based on the second The Crow movie. Policenauts is set to get a US release on the Saturn, but it doesn’t pan out. Koei’s porting PTO 2 and Aerobiz 2000 to the Saturn. Tecmo’s also putting the first Dead or Alive game out on the Saturn.
    Next Wave
    We’re starting off with Kirby’s Super Star for the SNES, which is 8 different games in one. Or, to be more accurate, it’s 8 different Kirby stories in one game, each with a limited number of levels, with some having different game mechanics. The Genesis is getting Bugs Bunny in Double Trouble, which adapts several Bugs Bunny cartoons to video game levels (including Duck, Rabbit, Duck — the “Rabbit Season! Duck Season!” cartoon), which requires the player to beat the level in a similar way to the way Bugs triumphed in the cartoon. There also is some coverage of Arcade Classics for the Genesis–coverage that looks much more favorable then the final Review Crew scores were. Anyway, moving on to stuff that wasn’t in the Review Crew section, Virgin Interactive is working on Hyper 3D Pinball for the Saturn, which has at least 4 tables, going by the pictures, though they don’t give a precise number. Virgin’s also working on the Smash TV-style shooter Grid Runner for the PlayStation. We also get a proper preview of Iron Man/XO-Manowar in Heavy Metal for the PlayStation, which is a crossover game with the indy comic Power Suited hero and the Marvel Comics Power Suited hero.
    Letters
    We start off this issue with another political controversy over video games. Specifically, this is related to Primal Rage. You see, one of the characters has a finisher where he urinates over his opponent. It’s bathroom humor and I’m not a big fan of that sort of thing. So, a mother saw this finisher, was upset about this (not that I avoided the obvious joke), and passed around a petition (signed by, among others, Bob Dole) demanding that the game be pulled off store shelves. Best Buy (the retailer who the mother got the game from for her son) complied, and the game was re-submitted to the ESRB for re-rating. The game had previously received a teen rating, and still received a Teen Rating. However, Best Buy still kept the Genesis copy off shelves, because that’s the copy the mother was most upset about, even though the finisher is in all the other versions of the game as well. Tempest in a teapot. We also get a brief discussion of texture mapped polygons, and how they’re used for providing realistic graphics (and still are). We also get a letter from a spelling Nazi taking them to task for misspelling Sakura’s name in their coverage of Street Fighter Alpha 2. Of course, any Grammar Flame would not be complete without a spelling or grammar error, and this one the world misspell misspelled. Also, the version of X-Perts that EGM reviewed last issue was incomplete. They will re-review the game when they get a finished version.
    Filed under: Video games, Where I Read Tagged: EGM, video game magazines, Video games, Where I Read
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  19. Count_Zero
    A little bit ago I reviewed DC Comics revival of The Shadow, written and drawn by Howard Chaykin. This time I’m taking a look at the follow-up to the first sequel arc to that series.

    The story picks up not long after Chaykin’s miniseries, with The Shadow and his new network of agents following up on one of the murders from Chaykin’s miniseries, along with a series of mysterious spree killings in New York. The killings are traced to a corporation that turns out to be run by Shiwan Kahn. The Shadow immediately suspects that Kahn is up to something, considering that Kahn is his greatest enemy (keeping in mind that this comic still pre-dates the release of the film starring Alec Baldwin).
    It turns out that The Shadow is, in fact correct, and Kahn is up to something – particularly launching a mind-control satellite, but not to take over the world. With the rise of Maoist China, Kahn had adopted Taiwan as his new country, and he had come to resent the west throwing Taiwan under the bus in favor of closer ties to mainland China. His plan was to force world leaders to reject mainland China and throw their support behind Taiwan.
    However – another enemy of The Shadow and a rival of Kahn, Albert Renn, who I’m honestly not sure where he’s from – but the comic assumes you know who he is – resents a foreigner gaining so much political power, and is planning to turn Kahn’s plan against him and to take control of his orbital mind control ray. Through all of this, a religious zealot known as Reverend Light is also planning to take control of the world through his evangelical cult, and when he learns about Kahn’s plan, he also seeks to take Kahn’s Mind Control technology for himself.
    And this all happens over six issues. There’s an annual which provides Light’s backstory, but honestly it doesn’t come up at all over the course of this story – getting more or less lost in the shuffle. Frankly, narratively, these books are incredibly dense – trying to cram these three plots, and all the characters that go with them, over 6 issues. Ultimately, a lot of character development is lost over the course in the mix.
    There are some strong points here. Many of the issues that the earlier series by Chaykin had with female characters have been fixed in this book’s story. The female characters have more agency, and play more of an active role in the book’s story. In Chaykin’s story, Mavis (Harry Vincent’s daughter), basically goes from getting annoyed with The Shadow’s attitude towards women, to being turned on by it, to being seen getting dressed after having sex with Kent Allard within the span of a handful of panels. Here, her relationship with Allard is strictly professional.
    This is helped by the art by Bill Sienkiewicz. Sienkiewicz’s style, frankly, doesn’t really ever make anything sexy. Sienkiewicz, as an artist, recognizes that not everyone is sexy, and not everything needs to sexy and indeed, some things should not be sexy (as Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men discussed in their episode on the Demon Bear Saga).
    Still, the story is just too packed full of stuff – like writer Andrew Helfer had so many things he wanted to do in his time on the comic, but had too little time to do it in. By comparison, Watchmen was still ongoing when this book came out, and while it had a significant amount of narrative breadth, it was also paced well enough that you had enough time to take it all in. The same is true with what had gone on over at Marvel with Chris Claremont’s run on X-Men, and Walter Simonson’s run on Thor.
    Here, the comic has the same problem with pacing that Chaykin had – 20 pounds of story in a 15 pound bag.
    If you’re interested in picking this comic up, it’s been reprinted by Dynamite under the title of “The Shadow Masters Series”, and this arc is collected in volume 1. It’s available in digital and physical editions from Amazon.com. As with the earlier story, the digital edition is also readable in the Comixology app.

    Filed under: comics Tagged: comics, DC Comics, The Shadow

  20. Count_Zero
    <p>This episode we’re hitting Nintendo Power #11, with an unfortunately mediocre lineup, in spite of the cover.</p>
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='585' height='360' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/RuPEyqtEqa0?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent' frameborder='0'></iframe></span>
    <p>Games Reviewed:</p>
    <ul>
    <li>Silent Service</li>
    <li>Pinbot</li>
    <li>720</li>
    <li>A Boy and his Blob</li>
    <li>Wrath of the Black Manta</li>
    <li>Astynax</li>
    <li>Nemesis</li>
    </ul>
    <h6 class="zemanta-related-title" style="font-size:1em;">Related articles</h6>
    <ul class="zemanta-article-ul">
    <li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://blog.timesunion.com/tech/2545/retro-thursday-the-nintendo-power-line/" target="_blank">Retro Thursday: The Nintendo Power Line</a> (timesunion.com)</li>
    <li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.polygon.com/2013/7/10/4510146/nintendo-power-glove-documentary-in-the-works" target="_blank">Nintendo Power Glove documentary in the works</a> (polygon.com)</li>
    <li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://ngeeklife.wordpress.com/2013/06/21/geek-life-remember-the-power-nintendo-power/" target="_blank">Geek Life: Remembering the Power, Nintendo Power</a> (ngeeklife.wordpress.com)</li>
    <li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.wired.com/underwire/2013/07/power-glove-documentary/" target="_blank">There’s a Nintendo Power Glove Documentary Coming (Yes, It Has a Wizard Reference)</a> (wired.com)</li>
    </ul>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/720/'>720</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/a-boy-and-his-blob/'>A Boy and his Blob</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/astynax/'>Astynax</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/atari/'>Atari</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/game-boy/'>Game Boy</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/jaleco/'>Jaleco</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/konami/'>Konami</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/mindscape/'>Mindscape</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nemesis/'>Nemesis</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nes/'>NES</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-power/'>Nintendo Power</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/pinbot/'>Pinbot</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/retro-video-games/'>Retro Video Games</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/silent-service/'>Silent Service</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/tengen/'>Tengen</a>, <a href='https://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/wrath-of-the-black-manta/'>Wrath of the Black Manta</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2641/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2641/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="https://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2641&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  21. Count_Zero
    <p>This week I’m reviewing another film in the Criterion Collection – the samurai film “Sword of the Beast”.</p>
    <embed src="http://blip.tv/play/h6Vcg4yZYwA" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="392" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="true"></embed>
    <p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000AQKUGI/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=themillenn0b3-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000AQKUGI">Get Sword of the Beast at Amazon.com.</a><img style="border:none!important;margin:0!important;" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=themillenn0b3-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000AQKUGI" width="1" height="1" border="0" /></p>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/film/'>film</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/reviews/'>Reviews</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/film/samurai-film/'>Samurai film</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/chambara/'>Chambara</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/criterion-collection/'>Criterion Collection</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/film-review/'>Film Review</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/hideo-gosha/'>Hideo Gosha</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/jidaigeki/'>Jidaigeki</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/samurai/'>Samurai</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/samurai-movies/'>Samurai Movies</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2507/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2507/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2507&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  22. Count_Zero
    <p>This week we conclude of the Best of the Rest for 1988-1989, with the last 10 titles on the list.<span id="more-2597"></span></p>
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='620' height='379' src='http://www.youtube.com/embed/3PJ8dfRmtm4?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent' frameborder='0'></iframe></span>
    <p>Opening Music: ‘Super Buck II’ by Estradasphere – <a href="http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR00577/" rel="nofollow">http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR00577/</a><br />Closing Music: ‘Of Whips and Strings’ by Super Guitar Bros. – <a href="http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR02480/" rel="nofollow">http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR02480/</a></p>
    <p>Games:</p>
    <ul>
    <li>Rygar</li>
    <li>Bad Dudes</li>
    <li>Town & Country – Wood & Water Rage</li>
    <li>1943</li>
    <li>Rampage</li>
    <li>Double Dribble</li>
    <li>Top Gun</li>
    <li>Milon’s Secret Castle</li>
    <li>Mega Man</li>
    <li>Castlevania</li>
    </ul>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/194x/'>194x</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/bad-dudes/'>Bad Dudes</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/capcom/'>Capcom</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/castlevania/'>Castlevania</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/data-east/'>Data East</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/double-dribble/'>double dribble</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/konami/'>Konami</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/mega-man/'>mega man</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nes/'>NES</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo/'>Nintendo</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-power/'>Nintendo Power</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/retro-video-games/'>Retro Video Games</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/rygar/'>Rygar</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/tecmo/'>Tecmo</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2597/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2597/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2597&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  23. Count_Zero
    <p><a style="float:left;padding-right:20px;" href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1442349.To_Terra_Volume_1"><img alt="To Terra...Volume 1" src="http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320434656m/1442349.jpg" border="0" /></a><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1442349.To_Terra_Volume_1">To Terra…Volume 1</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/293645.Keiko_Takemiya">Keiko Takemiya</a></p>
    <p>My rating: <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/491327589">4 of 5 stars</a></p>
    <p>This is a kind of slow-paced manga. This volume does a <strong>lot</strong> of world-building with regards to Terran society and Mu society, as well as our two leads views of their respective societies, Jomy Marcus Shin for the Mu, and Keith Anyan for the Terrans. (Cont. below the Cut)<span id="more-2504"></span></p>
    <p>(This part may sound spoiler-ish, but it really isn’t).</p>
    <p>That said, thus far the story does a pretty good job of making the Terran society oppressive enough that you understand why the Mu rebelled, while also making the Terrans sympathetic – their society is oppressive, but it’s a society that chose to become oppressive for a specific reason – to make a society that could stay cohesive in spite of humanity’s diaspora to the stars, and could also remain united and focused on the task of restoring and repairing the damaged ecosystem of Earth – and would be in agreement on how to prevent it from being despoiled once again, after the planet had been rebuilt. Their greatest sin isn’t practicing eugenics, or having a non-traditional family unit (though their attempts to eliminate emotions from society is definitely something I’d consider a bad thing), as much as their greatest sin is treating the Mu, because they’re ESPers and are different, as freaks to be (essentially) dissected and studied, instead of as being human beings like everyone else, and putting humans over their order.</p>
    <p>So, I’m definitely interested in reading future books, and seeing how this conflict goes down. This is definitely a situation where both sides are shades of grey, rather than the situation being black-and-white, and I look forward to seeing this play out.</p>
    <p>(Review originally posted on Goodreads).</p>
    <p><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/2002695-alexander-case">View all my reviews</a></p>
    <p><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1932234675/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=themillenn0b3-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1932234675">To Terra… – Vol. 1 is available from Amazon.com</a><img style="border:none!important;margin:0!important;" alt="" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=themillenn0b3-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1932234675" width="1" height="1" border="0" /></p>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/comics/manga-comics/'>Manga</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/reviews/'>Reviews</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/earth/'>Earth</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/keiko-takemiya/'>Keiko Takemiya</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/manga/'>manga</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/review/'>review</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/science-fiction/'>science fiction</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2504/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2504/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2504&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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  24. Count_Zero
    <div class="reblog-post"><p class="reblog-from"><img alt='' src='http://0.gravatar.com/avatar/051199e8b2960417ee73aefb2ed75297?s=25&d=wavatar' class='avatar avatar-25' height='25' width='25' /> <a href="http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/10/fan-screwed-out-of-ni-no-kuni-wizards-companion-makes-his-own/">Reblogged from VentureBeat:</a></p><div class="wpcom-enhanced-excerpt"><div class="wpcom-enhanced-excerpt-content"><a href="http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/10/fan-screwed-out-of-ni-no-kuni-wizards-companion-makes-his-own/" target="_self"><img src="http://venturebeat.files.wordpress.com/2013/02/wizardscompanioncover.jpg?w=620" alt="Click to visit the original post" class="size-full" /></a>
    <p>Sometimes wizards have to get creative, especially when they're up against the evil of canceled preorders.</p>
    <p>An <a title="GamesBeat: Namco Bandaiâs Ni No Kuni preorder fail" href="http://venturebeat.com/2013/01/26/namco-bandais-ni-no-kuni-pre-order-fail/">error affecting publisher Namco Bandai's online store</a> jilted many would-be buyers out of the Wizard's Edition of Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch, a new PlayStation 3 role-playing game (you can read <a title="GamesBeat: Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch: Stupid combat mars a poignant tale (review)" href="http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/04/ni-no-kuni-wrath-of-the-white-witch-review/">our review here</a>). While the special edition includes a lot of goodies, the best was a real version of an in-game book called the Wizard's Companion, which contains detailed information on the world's monsters, items, spells, along with some charming fables and stories.</p>
    </div> <p class="read-more"><a href="http://venturebeat.com/2013/02/10/fan-screwed-out-of-ni-no-kuni-wizards-companion-makes-his-own/" target="_self"><span>Read more…</span> 171 more words</a></p></div></div><div class="reblogger-note"><div class='reblogger-note-content'>
    This is an awesome piece of work. I'd like to see the a picture of what PrimeJunt did with the spine of the book.
    </div></div>
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  25. Count_Zero
    <p>In this episode of the Nintendo Power Retrospectives, we continue our way through the Best of the Rest, with two movie licensed games, two puzzle platformers, and two shoot-em-ups.<span id="more-2590"></span></p>
    <span class='embed-youtube' style='text-align:center; display: block;'><iframe class='youtube-player' type='text/html' width='620' height='379' src='http://www.youtube.com/embed/RsZgmQWyuos?version=3&rel=1&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&wmode=transparent' frameborder='0'></iframe></span>
    <p>Opening Music: ‘Super Buck II’ by Estradasphere – <a href="http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR00577/" rel="nofollow">http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR00577/</a><br />Closing Music: ‘Mounted-Machine Gun Funk’ by Beatdrop – <a href="http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR00677/" rel="nofollow">http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR00677/</a></p>
    <p>Titles reviewed this episode:<br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Ikari Warriors" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ikari_Warriors" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Ikari Warriors</a><br />Rambo<br /><a class="zem_slink" title="California Games" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Games" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">California Games</a><br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Kid Niki: Radical Ninja" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kid_Niki%3A_Radical_Ninja" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Kid Niki</a><br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Solomon's Key" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon%27s_Key" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Solomon’s Key</a><br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Gradius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gradius" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Gradius</a><br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Bubble Bobble" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bubble_Bobble" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Bubble Bobble</a><br /><a class="zem_slink" title="Xevious" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xevious" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Xevious</a><br />Robocop<br />Jackal<br />Paperboy</p>
    <br />Filed under: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/video-games/'>Video games</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/category/videos/'>videos</a> Tagged: <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/kid-niki/'>kid niki</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/licensed-games/'>Licensed Games</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nes/'>NES</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo/'>Nintendo</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-power/'>Nintendo Power</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/nintendo-power-retrospective/'>Nintendo Power Retrospective</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/retro-gaming/'>Retro Gaming</a>, <a href='http://countzeroor.wordpress.com/tag/video-game/'>video game</a> <a rel="nofollow" href="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/gocomments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2590/"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://feeds.wordpress.com/1.0/comments/countzeroor.wordpress.com/2590/" /></a> <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=countzeroor.wordpress.com&blog=3836055&post=2590&subd=countzeroor&ref=&feed=1" width="1" height="1" />
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