This every-two-weeks schedule appears to be working out, yet I've fallen behind all the same.
Gave the SMASH BROS. BRAWL sponsored cast a listen (Episode 38: Final Fantasy VII). I prefer shorter podcasts myself, but then again I'm not depending on them to provide remote stimulation while on the job like so many other loyal podcast listeners.
If the Virtual Console funds are drying up for Nintendo, then just releasing more games won't do the trick. They need to emulate Xbox Live Arcade in areas at this point. Bring in connectivity, and hope for a community to form.
Then they can dump loads of software without abandon (of which even SNES-to-Gameboy conversions should be included).
Musical Interlude:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atEybGf-OpkAnd now for those Shiren covers...
I still refuse to believe this is the year 2008 with decisions like these still floating around. Better to think it the early 90's, where I'm missing the releases of not only Pool of Radiance, but also
four other AD&D abortions that bloomed too late into the cycle. Figures that the goober who
informed me that D&D was about murdering people to level up (at the time) turned out to be the same lost soul who introduced me to Berserk.
Onward to...
Advanced Final & Fantasy Se7en
Advent Children, the most desaturated CGI Film Movie Not For Theaters is a perplexing object, as it simultaneously awed my friends in the first few minutes, yet had them sleeping like charmin babies by the time One-Winged Angel blared onto screen. In the end, the visuals (while daring) proved to be distancing. Fleshing out the cast beyond flashy tech demos might've helped too.
Question to the Square Employee: Before Crisis. Still listed as TBA, or dead in the lifestream? Crisis Core is one step closer to the inevitable Remake, but still a bridge too far. The quick sub-missions should be adapted to the series all the same. Less time input somehow made them more rewarding.
And now for the central rundown. GameFan had an interesting approach to making FF7 sound like the End All Be All in their previews. Sure, they were outright gushing, but it was how they attacked the design that perked up some attention. Centering on the environments, they pointed out how in all of this massive production designs of behemoth cannons and giant reactor cities, they managed to plop down a traditional farm into the mix. For kicks.
The Kitchen Sink approach is categorizing it... Nicely. This project threw in the whole damned neighborhood. EarthBound had done the same, but managed to keep it contextualized within an evolving world. One need only look at the seaside resorts in both titles to see how one is jammed in awkwardly, and how the other just naturally slides into place. What
did work was the instances of steampunk haphazardly intruding into whatever it damned well pleased to, a trait no imitator has equaled.
The graphical showcase, unfortunately, hindered gameplay. Routes were muddy, nearly hidden at junctures, and all-together '24-bit' as stated in the cast. If the Remake ever had to be justified outside of needing quick cash, this would be the most legit case. The masterful Midgar to Outerworld transition will likely be produced into a thirty minute cutscene, but at least you'll know where to guide your team of rebels without clues.
Bizarre cross-dressing will remain intact. The fangrrls get off on that stuff. However, the Materia system might be altered to a semi-Sphere Grid concoction. Not that I mind. Character specific leveling can bite me. For all the bluster on the quality of the soundtrack, I believe it remains renowned due to being comprised of melodies, (outside of the One-Winged Angel nonsense).
That the Remake did not occur on the PS2 was honestly... Surprising? It could be remade every generation and still sell a minimum of three million copies. No matter the roller-coaster of its popularity, the interest isn't going away until another series eclipses it in the genre.
Lastly, Titfa is a favorite. The escape from the gas chamber in Junon (entirely on her own with luck) was a moment of character scripting that other director would have simply made into an arduous rescue mission, filled with GAR and signifying nothing.
