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League of Legends: A Guide For Season 6 Vladimir

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League of Legends: A Guide For Season 6 Vladimir

League of Legends: A Guide For Season 6 Vladimir


1/13/2016
Tweet to: @Slickster_Mag

 

Last night, as I lay in bed unable to sleep, my mind was occupied with thoughts on the best way to use a particular male vampire. I know what you are thinking and no, this is not the next installment of my steamy Twilight fanfic. I was however formulating a guide on how Vladimir can easily carry you out of your elo hell and why you should consider mastering him for LoL’s upcoming season 6.

First thing first, why Vlad and not one of the super broken flavor of the month champions? Many people do indeed play like this, going month to month on whatever the most OP champions are. Yet these people are slaves to the meta and never quite fully master the champions they play.

Importantly for Vlad, the meta from beginning to end of the season will evolve drastically. I personally believe that Vlad is essentially “recession proof,” meaning even if the LoL landscape is unfavorable he will always be viable. For starters, his kit is incredibly useful and easy to use. His “Q” skill, transfusion, gives him much needed laning sustain, while his “E” adds both potency and wave clear. Most useful in my opinion is his “W” ability, Sanguine Pool, which makes him quite a safe champion. Next time a blitz or thresh hook comes your way, press “W” and it will feel easier to dodge than a 2016 Mohammed Ali right hook. Finally, his ultimate is just so powerful in terms of team fighting. It causes whoever is infected to take 12% extra damage, and this includes damage from your teammates. This makes Vlad perfect for any teamfighting comp.

For summoner spells, always take Flash, but the second spell is up to you. Top lane of course should run TP, but for mid-lane both Ignite and Ghost serve different purposes. Ghost gives a bit more survivability, but also the ability to hunt down fleeing enemies. I personally like Ignite because it synergizes perfectly with the bonus damage from Vlad’s ultimate. If I hit level 6 first with a health lead I will Ignite and all-in my opponent to at worst push them out of lane, at best get a kill. For masteries I tend to go 12/18/0 with the keystone mastery point in Thunderlord’s Decree. Runes will almost always be the same: AP quints, scaling CDR glyphs, scaling health seals, and magic pen marks.

This seems to be the most effective way for Vlad to become a late game monster.

Let’s talk items next. Most pros seem to like to start Doran’s Shield, but let’s not compare ourselves to them quite yet. I personally like to start boots and pots. The added move speed coupled with the extra health pots really makes it easy to survive your weak early game. Vlad straight up sucks (not a vampire joke) early so I prefer the safer route. Once you hit level 6 and gain your ultimate, you finally gain some kill pressure. Yet your real power spike is level 9 when your “Q” is finally maxed. By now you should be forming your core items. For Vlad it is important to rush Will of the Ancients and CDR boots. These two items are Vlad’s bread and butter. The cooldown reduction and healing from Vlad’s “Q” make him incredibly difficult to remove from lane.

What I love about Vlad is that unlike many champions, there is no real cookie cutter build. You have to adapt more to the enemy team and your builds will be much more fluid than a champion like Corki of MF. After the core two items I like to build a defensive item. In the current meta which favors AD carries, Zhonya’s should almost always be your next item. The active is often the difference between life and death for Vlad as the extra few seconds is invaluable for reducing his cooldowns.

The salt the enemy team will exude from seeing you go from golden and a tick away from death to half-health never gets old. If you find yourself in the now-rare situation where the other team is AP heavy, then you can choose between Spirit Visage and Abyssal Scepter. Personally, I find Abyssal to be superior for the added damage, but Spirit Visage does make Vlad near impossible to kill against AP comps. The next item, again, is entirely game dependent. If the enemy team is tanky and stacking MR, build Void Staff. If you need a little bit of tankiness and damage, build Rylais. For pure damage output go Deathcap.

The build versatility is one of the main reasons I love playing as Vlad. It adds an element that makes each game feel unique rather than playing the champions who essentially build the same 4-5 core items regardless of the situation.

Vladimir_League of LegendsSo, I’ve sold you on Vlad for Season 6, but how does he fit into the current meta? In this AD-centric meta it makes Zhonya’s an absolute must for many AP champions. This synergizes perfectly with Vlad’s kit, as Zhonya’s is an item that is extremely useful on Vlad. The current meta also seems to favor tanks which usually leads to extended and more drawn out fights. This is also advantageous for Vlad as the longer the fight the more likely you are to survive. You can employ the Rocky technique of letting your opponent tire themselves out before you finish the final blow.

There are, however, some definite drawbacks to Vlad, currently. AP items, specifically Zhonya’s, are too overpriced at the moment. This makes his power spike even more delayed than it used to be. With the snowball nature of the current meta, this does make it more difficult to become the unkillable healing god that is late-game Vlad. With many teams running double ADC comps, this adds even more pressure to your early game. If Vlad falls behind to a siege comp you may as well just afk because you are going to be quite worthless for your team.

While Vlad does have a number of favorable match-ups, if the other team locks in Swain you should do yourself a favor and dodge the queue. It will save you 20 minutes of banging your face against the keyboard as you frustratingly get pummeled by Swain’s DoT damage. Unless you are a masochist, which may well be true if you enjoy this game, click exit immediately. Even a slightly competent Swain absolutely ruins Vlad’s life to the point where you are tilted beyond repair. Other rage quit-inducing champions include Malzahar and Riven.

Overall, Vlad has some problems currently but can still be relatively safe before becoming a late-game monster. He is a solid pick that should carry you through Season 6. Let me know if you have any critiques or just think I’m plain idiotic for picking Vlad in the current meta.

The Walking Dead Recap – Season 6

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The Walking Dead Recap – Season 6

The Walking Dead Season 6 Part 1 Recap

 

Caution: Zombies ahead….I mean spoilers for those who haven’t binged watched this yet on Hulu.

The Walking Dead is obviously one of the biggest television shows on the air nowadays, generating a huge fan base and merchandise that is sold almost everywhere. The Walking Dead is a TV show that adapts the graphic novels of the same name and adds a few things to keep originality, while staying along the main bullet points on the story, and this story is one you don’t want to miss.

TWD knows how to play on every emotion on a lot of episodes and they do it perfectly by tugging on our heart strings. I know there have been a good couple times where I have stood up and said out loud, “What the shit is going on?” TWD also cuts their season into two parts with a mid-season finale and premier. The mid-season premier for the second half airs on February 14th at 9PM Eastern time. What a perfect way to spend Valentine’s Day with your sweetie, right?

This is going to be a recap of what has happened so far in the first half of season 6, dealing with deaths and major plot points. If you are new to the series and want to begin it from the start you can stream all of seasons one through five on Netflix, so if you want to avoid spoilers then stop reading now.

Starting with season six, we find the group still in the town of Alexandria, which is steadily going downhill. Father Gabriel is no longer trusted by the group due to a previous defiance and trying to have the group removed from the town. All the while, Glenn reveals that he was almost murdered by Nikolas after being lured out into the woods by him.

While this is happening, Rick and Morgan take a walk outside of Alexandria and come across a huge quarry, which is filled with thousands of walkers. For now they are trapped but Rick sees that the truck that’s holding them in is soon to fall letting them all loose and it will lead on a direct path to Alexandria.

Rick compiles a plan to use blocked roads and vehicles to almost cattle drive the entire horde twenty miles away from the town then let them loose. This plan seems like it’s going to great until a blaring horn coming from Alexandria which causes half of the horde to break off and start headed right for town. A couple members of the group break off and start running towards town to warn everybody with some of the members of the town but run into some walkers resulting in a few of the town’s members being killed.

While amidst the chaos Glenn, Nikolas, and a few others get separated and come across a nearby town. The horn that was blaring at Alexandria was caused by a wrecked tanker truck driven by a member of the new group, The Wolves; a group dedicated to only preying on others. A whole attack is set upon the town with everyone fighting for their lives. Carol, being a badass, has the best moment of this sequence. While this attack is happening Morgan fights off a few members but refuses to kill them and they escape with a gun.

It is a long and brutal fight but with everyone arming themselves from the armory they eventually take back the town. Morgan gets confronted by the leader of The Wolves and Morgan ends up tying him down in the basement of a local house. This starts the longest and worst episode of the season so far, it giving Morgan’s back story of how he went insane but met a man who taught him that every life is precious and killing will never be a viable punishment. He tells the Wolf this story, causing the Wolf the admit that he has been bitten.

This marks the biggest cliffhanger that I think has happened throughout the series. Glenn and Nikolas go off by themselves to light a fire and draw the horde away, but on the way plans go different and they end up on the run. The get trapped on the top of a dumpster and Nikolas has a mental breakdown resulting in him saying thank you to Glenn and shooting himself in the head, causing himself and Glenn to fall off of the dumpster where we see Glenn’s face screaming and getting covered in blood as walkers start devouring his stomach area.

Before the start of the attack on Alexandria, a girl named Enid leaves the town to go out on her own, and her boyfriend attempts to murder Carl.

Meanwhile, Rick reaches an RV used to lure the walkers and tries to coordinate plans with Daryl, Sasha, and Abraham, as well as Glenn and Tobin, though the latter two do not respond. Rick is ambushed by the Wolves but manages to kill them. As Rick tries to leave, the RV’s engine won’t start, and the RV is surrounded by walkers.

Rick appears at Alexandria slightly ahead of the horde as Alexandria is cleaning up the mess of the attack and we learn here that Maggie is pregnant with Glenn’s baby. The leader of Alexandria is bitten by a walker while trying to fight it off.

Daryl is separated from Sasha and Abraham when they are ambushed by strangers. When he recovers, he is captured by a trio of survivors who suspect he is one of the assailants. Daryl steals their bag (which contains his crossbow and their gear) and escapes. Meanwhile, Abraham and Sasha search for Daryl in a nearby town, and decide to set up camp in an office building. They discuss their past actions, with Sasha concluding that everybody is accountable for their own actions. Abraham goes to scavenge supplies and manages to recover an RPG launcher. When he returns, he tells Sasha he’s found a new purpose for living and begins to flirt with her.

Daryl decides to return the three survivors’ bag when he realizes it contains insulin, and at that point they are confronted by an armed group. Daryl helps the trio hide until the armed group gives up the search and moves on. As Daryl and the survivors continue on, one of the survivors is killed by walkers. Daryl tries to recruit the remaining two survivors, but they betray him, and steal his crossbow and motorcycle. Daryl finds a working truck and manages to reunite with Abraham and Sasha. As they return to Alexandria, Daryl tries to reach Rick on the radio, and an unidentified voice responds: “Help.”

After this we learn of what happened to Glenn. We findout that the walkers were digging into Nikolas’ body that fell on top of him and he manages to crawl under the dumpster the escape the danger. He is there for quite a while when eventually something draws the walkers away allowing him to come back out. Enid is on a roof at this time in the town and throws a bottle of water to him. At this time Glenn takes chase to catch up to her and find her.

At the same time, Carol discovers that Morgan is holding the Wolf leader in the basement of a nearby house and follows him into it and makes a stand, telling him that the Wolf needs to die or he will kill everybody and Morgan fights back saying his life is precious. A fight ensues with Carol trying to kill Morgan to get to the Wolf. During the fight Carol gets knocked unconscious, the Wolf gets free and knocks out Morgan and takes one of the towns members hostage.

After this, Glenn finds Enid and even through her teenage angst Glenn forces her to come back to the town with him after she tells him the town was overrun with the Wolves. They gather up some of the balloons from when they were driving the horde and use them as a signal to the town to let them know they are still alive, Maggie being the one to see this first from on top of a watch tower.

At this time, the walker horde breaks through the hole in the wall, caused by the tanker truck, and makes their way into Alexandria. Everyone is in a fight of their life trying to escape while the Wolf leader takes the town member he had hostage and makes an escape into the horde. Rick gives Deanna a gun to end her own life if she chose but she instead chooses to spend the bullets taking out some walkers.

Rick takes himself, one of the town members, Jessie, whom he is in a sort of relationship with, Carl, and Jessie’s young son and cover themselves in the inside of dead humans to blend in with the walkers. As they leave and enter the horde, Jessie’s young son begins asking for his mom out loud. All know that the walkers can hear him. We learn at this time the “help” that Daryl, Abraham, and Sasha hear is from Eugene, another member of their group, who is in the town at the time of the horde outbreak.

In the post-credit scene we see the three of them get stopped in the middle of the road by a gang of bikers (the same group Daryl escaped from earlier who call themselves The Saviors) who threaten the kill them all if they don’t relinquish their possessions and their vehicle. As they do the biker leader says the last words, “You and all your stuff now belongs to Neegan.”

So it was one hell of a season so far, and be sure to keep a lookout for my episode-by-episode reviews every Sunday night, starting February 14th, and tune in for the second half of season 6 of The Walking Dead.

The Mist (2007) Retro Horror Movie Review

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The Mist (2007) Retro Horror Movie Review

The Mist (2007) Retro Horror Movie Review

1/13/2016
Tweet: @Slickster_Mag

At it’s core, The Mist is a good, old-fashioned monster movie. Let’s return to 2007 and peel back the layers of fear that master author Stephen King weaves into this movie adaptation of his novel. There is something primal and visceral that everyone can relate to about monsters. Every child has their own version of the beast under the bed, the thing that goes bump in the night. Unfortunately, some kids have much more palpable and sinister monsters to overcome. (Psst….Don’t ask Jerrod for his five-dollar footlong.)

The Mist (2007)There are many things that frighten us. As is common in many of King’s novels, dread of the loss of a child is a major theme in The Mist. Similar to the death of the child in Pet Cemetery or the Running Man (…you didn’t know that King wrote Running Man?), The Mist chronicles a father and his son as they attempt to survive an unthinkable super natural horror that has descended on a quiet Maine town. Cut off from their wife/mother, the duo is trapped inside a supermarket when a dense and deadly fog shrouds everything in sight.

The Mist starts off with two types of fear. It literally begins on a dark and stormy night. OK, maybe not the most scary thing in this review, but when a tree smashes the protagonist’s boathouse, he has to confront his neighbor about this. While fear of confrontation may not be a physical harm it is no less phobia that strikes many people. We all know someone who stands by and lets a offense to them go without speaking up because they are afraid.

King often puts a lot of his personal experiences into his characters. When the aforementioned tree crashes through the window it lands square in the heart of the main character’s (David Drayton, played by Thomas Jane in the movie) studio. Drayton is an artist. The morning after, he surveys the damage with his wife and talks about the total loss of the piece he is working on. It doesn’t seem to be a far stretch of the imagination to think maybe something similar happened to King at some point in his career. If anyone knows if this is the case, please let us know in the comments below.

The movie really picks up steam from here on. After rushing through the obligatory horror cliche of demonstrating that phones don’t work, there are several major plot hints dropped. We first hear of “Project Arrowhead” and we are introduced to the town’s crazy cat lady, Mrs. Carmody. At this point the we get the ensemble cast that will make up the rest of the movie. It is a strong cast with believable characters. The dialogue is well written and sounds like it could have been overheard in any small town.

Suddenly the adrenaline pumps as an elderly townsman, Dan Miller (played by Jeffery DeMunn, now in The Walking Dead) comes running into the store. His face is bloody and he is frantically screaming the iconic line, “There’s something in the mist!” While no one has any reason to believe him, they do and slam the doors. Surely, the fear of the unknown is another type of fear, but the movie shifts from causing a sensation of fright to one of guilt. The single mother in the store sobs as she tells how she left her kids at home and she has to return to protect them. Begging for help, no one steps forward to go into the mist to escort. Even Drayton, now consoling his own child, feels the shroud of guilt.

At this point in the movie, the main point takes shape, but it is verbalized much later in the movie by Miller. He says, “If you scare people bad enough, you can get them to anything. They’ll turn to whoever promises a solution… or whatever.” After a gruesome monster attack in the loading down the towns people divide into two groups. Here King infuses a myriad political and religious beliefs into the story. Mrs. Carmody, played superbly by actress Marcia Gay Harden, begins a tirade of Old Testament hellfire and brimstone. At one point the director even has her doing a confessional while praying into a toilet bowl. Symbolism, perhaps? Yet the other people trapped in the supermarket express their more moderate religious philosophies throughout the movie, as well, to counterbalance Mrs. Carmody.  

The Mist Arrowhead Patch
Alexa Davalos and Sam Witwer have a last kiss in The Mist (2007) Noticed the Project Arrowhead patch on his shoulder.

Roughly an hour into the movie, they touch on other types of fear. There is fear of rejection when the young solider and cute cashier converse in private. She wonders why he never asked her out, and he has no answer. There is a fear of bugs. There is a fear of being made a fool, as when the trial lawyer states defiantly, “There is nothing out there,” then leads a small group out into the mist, never to be seen again. Then, most important to driving the plot, is Mrs. Carmody spreading the fear of damnation and hell or, in another sense, the fear of life after death.

You know it’s bad when suicide becomes an acceptable solution. (Hmm, “Suicide Solution,” that sounds like a good name for a song…) Mrs. Carmody’s insanity becomes critical and demands blood sacrifices for the monsters. When she calls for Drayton’s child, enough is enough and a small band of survivors make an escape into the deadly mist. Five escape the store and start to travel southbound in the hopes of clearing the mist.

While the original ending in the 1980 King novella is different, King himself sanctioned director/screen writer Frank Darabont‘s new ending. The most controversial and shocking ending to any movie in recent times, The Mist left its viewers stunned. The movie received high marks across the board from critics and holds up well with time. The special FX animated monsters look a little phony; however, for their time, they were cutting edge. Composer Mark Isham also does a great job capturing the eerie ambiance, but goes a little overboard with sinewy vocals at the climax of the escape scene.  

Do you have any memories of watching The Mist? If so, leave a comment and be sure to check out our other horror movie reviews. Thanks for reading, and subscribe for more content published daily.

Resident Evil Retrospective

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Resident Evil Retrospective

Resident Evil Retrospective

Written by: Jay Tolliver
1/13/2016

Tweet to: @GetGoodGamer

 

Are zombies real? If you would have asked me this the first time I played Resident Evil I probably would have given you the wrong answer. But hey, it was the mid nineties and my age was a single digit. I can still see the consistent low ammo numbers and challenging camera angles like it was yesterday.

Thanks to the Resident Evil remake for the Xbox One, it might have actually been yesterday. I am personally a sucker for nostalgia. I tend to tread back into the gaming world from time to time to fish for it. But with the inevitable poor graphics riding the waves, it’s me that will occasionally get the irritable hook. I am loyal to the classics, but evidently my eyes have a favorite word… Comparison.

With modern consoles coming into play, most games that young adults such as myself used to lose friends over are now tolerantly ugly. No, that won’t stop us, but I am positive I am not the only saint who chuckled at a YouTube video displaying a game we’ve conquered over a decade ago. Thankfully, that is not the case with the next-gen Resident Evil remake. Using the latest resolution enhancement and 3D model technology, game resolutions and textures have been significantly upgraded, including 1080p support, resulting in characters and backgrounds coming to life in greater detail never seen before within the Resident Evil franchise.

 

jill.jpg

 

CONCLUSION

I don’t have my zombie survival guide handy anymore, but I definitely enjoy diving into these remakes. With Resident Evil 0 being less than a week away (1-19-2016) and Resident Evil 2 awaiting its next-gen debut, you should eagerly take advantage and get some zombie revenge, of course, in HD this time around.

Will Indie Games be the Death of the Industry?

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Will Indie Games be the Death of the Industry?

Will Indie Games be the Death of the Industry?

1/11/2016 – Indie games are on the rise and we all know it. The popularity of indie games has spiked drastically since the release of current-gen consoles, and they seem to be everywhere and, most of all, cheaper. But what does this mean for the industry we have all come to know and love? Even though they are getting widely known, can they stack up against the battle of big triple-A games? If they do, then what will happen to easily ignored lesser-known development teams? These questions don’t have answers – yet. They will, though, and only time can tell when, but for now we can look at the facts in front of us and make our own judgments. This is mine.

Now, please don’t get me wrong, everyone is entitled to their own preferences, I am not saying they aren’t. Indie games have hit big, though, certain ones much more than others, but those are the games that are really opening people’s eyes. Some of these games are Ori and the Blind Forest, Her Story, Journey, Flower, Castle Crashers, and Super Meatboy. These are all good games that hold up well on their own, but they are some of the most popular games on the market with a huge fan-based standing right behind them.

What are indie games? Indie games can be special given that they offer something pretty original most of the time and have a strong execution of play style. Sure the graphics aren’t run by the Unreal Engine or Frostbite but they can still look great nonetheless. However, big game companies such as Ubisoft, Activision, Treyarch, Naughty Dog, and Insomniac, have a tendency to put out amazing looking games, but lack more of the essentials such as a compelling story, play modes, and originality. Call of Duty, being a favorite among many, is an annually-released game that stays pretty much the same just with a fresh coat of paint.

Just this year two indie games made a big splash at the annual VGAs, these games being Her Story and Ori and the Blind Forest. Each won at least one, if not multiple, awards in certain areas. Now these small, privately developed games went up against some pretty huge triple-A blockbusters and still managed to beat them out. But how? Yeah, they are good games but the others have huge companies and development teams backing them, and some people think that is what truly makes a game great, or at least award worthy.

I, for one, have gotten bored of the constant sequels cranked out of companies like Big Macs from McDonald’s, and plenty of games do this, Assassins Creed being another contender. Still, does that make it a bad game? No. But indie games are a valued thing being released by people who work with small budgets and create true art out of it. So instead of jumping all over the place, I am going to point out certain aspects that make or break the popularity of indies and triple-As, how they go about achieving it, and why it works for that type.

First off, accessibility. Digital downloads are more popular than ever now. Even GameStop is trying to curtail this movement as you can read about here. Most people that have a current-gen console have at least one digitally-downloaded game on their hard drive. True, some of these are probably the free offered games if you have Xbox Live Gold or PS Plus. But a fair amount of people find it easier to input a credit card number and do all their purchasing right from their couch, and this makes indie titles very easily obtainable, since most of them don’t release physical copies due to the budget constraints, while you can go into any third-party store like Gamestop and purchase a used physical disk of that new Call of Duty for a cheaper price point than on the online stores.

The price of these games is also a huge factor. Indie games have a tendency to have a much lower cost than these big games, most indie games selling for a price around $40 and cheaper, while big named games have the much-dreaded $60 price tag. Also, with indie games you typically don’t have to deal with all the “fine print” that the big development games come with now, examples of this being day-one patches, day-one DLC, season passes, and late-released DLC.

When you purchase an indie game, that’s it! There is your game, in its entirety, and the best part is that it’s guaranteed to work! They don’t get released broken and needing to be patched, or put out to the public at only 30 percent so they can sell the other 70 percent to you later in add-ons and downloadable content. Are big game developers trying to rip us off and use us a cash grab? I am starting to think so. Just look at how many hundreds of dollars are spent on Skylanders and Amiibos. It’s a load of shit.

I remember back in the day where I would walk into a buy-sell-and-trade store, the walls would be lined with actual physical copies of great games you loved and wanted, you’d pick up the beautiful looking golden cartridge from Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and take it home, then you’d put it in the console, and you were done! Holy fuck, that was a great time. No downloads, no installs, no season passes, no DLC, no day one patches, and no recycled piece of trash that you played last year with a few new guns and modes, most of which you have to pay for anyways.

Not all big games are guilty of this, though and those are the ones still kicking through the dirt and clawing their way back up to the top of favorability. I just feel like the rest of the market is souring the name of what used to make games great and the current great games, while indie games are still protecting what makes them so loved.

Now, big game developers need to be defended in some way. Why fix what isn’t broken? If you know that you can put out a sub-par game and still profit millions of dollars, then yeah, go ahead, that’s basic business. I am also sure that the money made from that goes into the huge beloved games that grip our attention for dozens of hours.

A big problem with indie games is that they come with a cheaper price point, and there is a reason for that. The developer of that game didn’t put a shit load of money into the game, with most being funded by a simple Kickstarter campaign, which typically means it won’t be as long, as good looking, or have as much replayability value. But it looks like the ones that make it great will stay great and remembered for years to come, while others will be mass downloaded but easily forgotten.

There is no right or wrong answer to if indie games will consume the industry or if all games can live in harmony and eventually learn from each other. The fans of indies will still supply that genre with plenty of dollars and the Activision lovers will keep cranking out 60 bucks a game. They both have shortcomings and great advancements and I personally love both and can’t wait to see what will continue to be released for both.

Leave a comment below and let me know what you think. Do you prefer to play indie games or go for the newest games put out by your favorite studios?

Xbox Live Arcade Gems You May Have Missed

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Xbox Live Arcade Gems You May Have Missed

XBLA gems you may have missed while you upgraded to the Xbox One

The Xbox Live Arcade, the perfect place to go for a game that doesn’t require 80+ hours to complete but just enough for you to squeeze in a quick fix if you’re strapped for time. With the wide array of titles via this service, it can be easy to overlook some gems. I’m going to ignore popular titles such as Castle Crashers, Battleblock Theatre, any classic remakes, ‘Splosion Man, and titles like it that have been covered countless times. This isn’t what this list is about. Here are a few titles that, to the unknowing gamer, might have been glossed over and never played, or should be revisited:

Pac Man Championship Edition

PacMan

The iconic classic with a twist. PMCE is the one of the best in Xbox Live Arcade style score-based competition. It has mazes that change constantly as you’re clearing out dots, funky music to keep the tone exciting and tense, and simple, but challenging gameplay. Remember when there were four ghosts chasing you? Try having 20 tailing you! It’s not as scary as it sounds. Its addicting gameplay definitely has some allure, and before you know, you’d have killed half a day trying to top your score and maybe even have a go at the leaderboards. If you haven’t already, give PMCE a go!

The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai/Vampire Smile

newaxeguitarplay3

Gratuitous violence? Check. Impossibly awesome selection of weapons to slaughter the masses? Check. Cyborg-demons coming in by the droves only to be brutally maimed in their attempts to stop you? Double check! Both Dead Samurai and Vampire Smile (sequel) are action games that don’t relent on the gore and fighting. With an arsenal of seemingly odd makeshift weapons, you are pitted against a giant robot wyvern, hockey goalies, and tank/giant hybrids in a seemingly endless battle. The abilities available to you from the start are enough to put down any resistance, but the ones you unlock later only add to the twisted and awesome ways you can end your foes. Not many games can make use of your guitar hero controllers, but if you have a friend who wants to watch but still would like to contribute with minimal effort, toss them your mighty plastic Axe and have them shred away on those five buttons of pure pain!

 
Small Arms

Small Arms

One of the initial releases of the XBLA. Small Arms is, at best, described as an extremely watered down Smash Bros. wanna-be. Up to four players duke it out in arenas of various sizes, and hazards and items appear over time. But instead of punches and kicks, every character dons a mid-to-long range weapon of sorts; flame throwers, chain guns, you name it. Although that’s all you’ll need to rip into your opponents. There are some balancing issues in terms of character strength and playability, but that shouldn’t deter you from loading this bad boy up and trying something different for a little while. It definitely had its charm with me, long enough for me to go 100% on the achievements list.

Dorito’s Crash Course/Dash of Destruction

Okay, let me just say this: Dorito’s has some pretty sweet programmers at their disposal because both Crash Course and Dash of Destruction were really awesome games in their own right. The best part? Both games are FREE! That’s right, at no cost to you, you’ll be able to test your mettle with some interesting platforming action and dodging skills, respectively. Let’s tackle each game separately though, shall we?

Crash Course
Crash Course

An American Warrior-styled obstacle course platforming game that throws your avatar into the fray to compete with other players for the best time on the available courses. You can either tackle the leaderboards, or go head to head with another player, via online or local. Again, there’s a particular charm to this game that pulls you in. Some light and moderately difficult courses make for a great time among veteran and casual gamers together. Definitely worth checking out, and why not? It’s free!

Dash of Destruction

Dash of Destruction

You’re a Dorito’s delivery truck, putting pedal to the metal trying to out-run a giant T-Rex who wants your shipment of delicious snacking goodness! Yup, you read that right. Although, I almost forgot to mention you can turn the tables and BECOME the T-Rex! That’s right, eat or be eaten! Four players can join in on the fun as either truck or rex and compete to see who can eat “X” amount of trucks (as dino) or make all their deliveries (as truck) before the rest complete their objective. Get your thumbs warmed up because if you’re not quick enough, victory will be NACHOS! (I know… Terrible puns are terrible.)

 

Half-Minute Hero

HMH

 

Originally a Playstation Portable title, HMH makes its way to the Xbox Live Arcade so a new audience can see what made this game so awesome. Granted, its much better “on-the-go” and the pixelated graphics can be a bit of an eye-sore on bigger screens. Still, everyone should have a go at this game. You play a hero who has to defeat an evil monster who learns a spell that can destroy the world in 30 seconds! This isn’t your Final Fantasy time zone where meteors can stay in the air forever while you go race some birds at the local carnival. No, this is 30 seconds of real time to level up your hero via conventional means of grinding baddies and buying weapons until you can take them head on. Sounds daunting, doesn’t it? Trust me, the gameplay and system in place is far from unforgiving and is surprisingly deep for a game meant to last 30 seconds (sort of). Though, thanks to the port to consoles, the multiplayer mode adds a new layer of competition to the formula that I was quite impressed with. If that isn’t enough to reel you in, then at least know that the story across the entire game will blow your f***ing mind! See for yourself! You’ll thank me later!

Hard Corps Uprising

HardCorpsUprising_Screenshot2--article_image

Ready for a challenge reminiscent of Konami’s trademark “TLC”? Then step right up to Hard Corps! Essentially the spiritual successor to Contra, HCU is a side-scrolling shooter with graphics similar to the visuals of Guilty Gear and the playstyle of Contra III: The Alien Wars. The difficulty is on par with Contra and is definitely satisfying with every level you complete; that is, if you actually live long enough to complete it! The DLC characters are fun to play with, though, they provide a different kind of difficulty as they play different than the two characters you start with. Give it a go and let me know what the ending is… I’ve thrown a few controllers too many trying to finish this game… hehe…

So, there’s my list of gems you may or may not have missed. If you think I may have missed an obscure Xbox Live Arcade title or otherwise, let me know!

Back To The N64

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Back To The N64

Back To The N64
1/11/2016

 

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We’ve all had the yearning to relive the glory days of gaming on the N64. Thanks to services such as the PlayStation Network, Nintendo’s Virtual Console, and (to some extent) Xbox Live Arcade, we can. However, for some gamers, it’s just not enough. So you bust out your console of choice from that box you’ve tucked away in the back of your closet and get ready to relive your favorite classics the way they were meant to be played! Yes, there was a time before N64 emulators and roms.

The game loads, you navigate the old menus and reacquaint yourself with less-than-high-definition graphics, and you jump right in, relying on your refined skills of modern gaming to shine as you anticipate plowing through levels with relative ease as you once did in your younger days, right?

n64 Bomberman
Easily the most embarrassing thing to happen that day…

Wrong! You’re making mistakes and losing lives on the first level. You’re hit by an easily-dodged attack and the harsh reality that you’re not as good as you once were. Why is that? Fret not, you didn’t suddenly lose all your hard-earned skills and gaming prowess. There are several factors to keep in mind when you’re retro-gaming.

For the sake of this article, I’m going to use the Nintendo 64 and WiiU for reference, as the following are best illustrated with a comparison of the two.

First off, make sure your HDTV is set on gaming-friendly video settings. Input lag is a real issue and making sure your TV accommodates for that. That goes for any gaming console, but more so with older consoles since they were built primarily for televisions that sported component cable.

Next up, let’s take a look at that Nintendo 64 controller in your hands. Remember that monstrosity we used to play Mario Kart 64 with? You’re holding it in your hands once more, and as much as it’s like riding a bicycle you still have to reacquaint yourself with the feel of it. Keep in mind how responsive the N64 control stick is compared to the WiiU’s. Some games will remind you how sensitive even the slightest movement of that gray lever of death can be. Enough about the hardware itself, let’s talk about the games themselves.

n64-dual-analog-stick-controller-by-clarky
                 Where was this in our pre-teen years?!

When you’re in game, there’s going to be one major difference that modern gaming has spoiled us with, camera control. N64 games like Mario64 and Bomberman64 have some pretty solid camera controls for their time, and the WiiU’s right-thumb stick doesn’t exactly translate to the C-Buttons very well. A small adjustment of what we’re used to nowadays is really all we need. On the other end of that spectrum, try playing Goldeneye and Perfect Dark. First person shooters definitely play VERY differently back then than they do now. Never will you miss the presence of a right-thumb stick than when playing these games. Remember the glory days of having three of your friends over for some Golden Gun action and laying waste to them every time? Well, get ready to walk into walls trying to turn the corner, only to get shot on the foot by your buddy trying to use the targeting system to aim for your head. At the end of the day, you just need to relearn your favorite games over again. After all, it has been a long time since you played those games.

Let’s not get the wrong idea though, these are, in no way, complaints. In fact, the best part about video games is learning how to play them and applying your rage-inducing lessons to beat those unforgiving levels. Although, just keep in mind that there are certain hurdles you should probably be aware of, because you are going back in time, where the technical limitations and gameplay had to be designed differently.

The curve of establishing a comfortable playstyle for your favorite consoles will vary, but they’re very present. However, you shouldn’t have to do it alone – invite your friends over, pop in your favorite games, and make a night of it! Just make sure you’ve got plenty of gloves ready, Mario Party is still painfully great for game nights!

Slickster Girl of the Week Fulya Sezer

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Slickster Girl of the Week Fulya Sezer

 

Favorite band or musical act. Nipsey Hussle
Measurements (Bust, Hips, Waist) 32C,36,25
Movie that scared you the most. Paranormal Activity
Truth or Dare? Dare
Tell us about your hobbies OR The worst date you ever went on. Travelling, Eating & Talking
Model Mayhem Link http://www.modelmayhem.com/fulyasezer
Facebook Link https://www.facebook.com/MSFulya/
Twitter Link https://twitter.com/fly_ssss
Instagram Link http://www.instagram.com/fly_ssss

Think you have what it takes to be a Slickster girl?

Best games on each home video game console

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Best games on each home video game console

Best games on each home video game console

I decided to let everyone know of the 3 absolutely must play games on every single gaming console starting from Atari. May these games still help people relive their youth and never be forgotten.  Note: I will not be putting in large descriptions as to not spoil experiences and I will not be putting handheld devices on this list as it would just make it much too long. So don’t yell at me when you don’t see Pokémon red on here for Gameboy. This is just systems that go to television.

Atari

Starting with the classic Atari home console, the main games everyone usually remembers being their first are obviously Pong, with number 2 coming in right behind being Pac Man. Who could forget the loveable little yellow ball that munched on all those power pellets? Even now there is controversy and gamers still trying to get the highest arcade score possible.  Number three comes in at Asteroids. This being so loved I still play it on my phone.

 

GameStop Could Learn a Lesson or Two From Blockbuster Video

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GameStop Could Learn a Lesson or Two From Blockbuster Video

GameStop Could Learn a Lesson or Two From Blockbuster Video

Having received a GameStop gift card from a family member for the holidays, for the first time in at least two years, I stepped foot into a GameStop. I noticed something interesting. They had a whole section devoted to used cell phones and tablets. At fist I did not think much of it, but as I continued to walk around the store I could not help to notice other oddities. For instance, GameStop had at least two racks with peg hooks filled with DLC content and download cards for full games. Then it hit me, you see I used to be a manager of a Blockbuster Video towards the end of their bittersweet downfall. I instantly was reminded of those days upon leaving the store and the correlations between the two started racing through my brain.

Towards the end of my tenure at Blockbuster we were focused heavily on our Blockbuster Total Access program. For those not familiar, this was a way for Blockbuster to try and compete with RedBox and Netflix at that time (2006-2007 era), we would up-sell each customer on the idea of signing up for our service upon checkout. Those who signed up would receive movies directly in the mail and then, when done viewing, simply return them to the store, exchange them for free in-store movie rentals and be able to order more online. Not a bad idea in principle, yet it did not catch on like they were hoping, causing them to shut down most of their locations. For the time being, RedBox and Netflix had won.

Through the next 7 years or so, Netflix saw huge increases in revenue and market share. While making the not-so-subtle switch to online streaming. RedBox, much to most everyone’s surprise, saw an increase in revenue as well, as the years went by. That is until this past quarter, when they posted that shares were down more than 22% with a loss of $286.4 million in market value, and that they were going to fall short of 4th quarter expectations. Even with that loss in revenue, to be fair to RedBox, it is impressive that they have stayed profitable this long. With the average movie viewer getting hooked on steaming, a form of DLC in itself arguably, Redbox’s best days may just be behind them.

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So what does all of this have to do with GameStop? The crux of GameStop’s success will all come down to whether or not it is profitable for the companies to continue making physical copies, in the end. When you put something available for digital download, this increases their profit margins by cutting out shipping, box/DVD material, etc. In a way, this progression had started back while Blockbuster was going way of the Dodo, as the some companies in the video game industry stopped putting instructions in with the games all together. These days, it is rare to find a game with the instructions included, even rarer if the instructions are in full color.

GameStop is currently trying to block big publishers from selling download only system/game combos in their stores. Evident in the recent Madden bundle for the Xbox One they boycotted selling. It also seems that GameStop is reaching to make up for some of their lost revenue by selling used phones and tablets; something similar to what Blockbuster did when they started their Total Access Program.

With the younger generation of gamers perceiving downloadable content as the norm, it would seem like GameStop’s days may be numbered. The question remains, how long will they last? Five years? Ten? I do not have the answer, but would not be surprised if the former was the case. What do you think? Or perhaps a better question for you would be if you had the chance to buy stock in GameStop right now, would you do it? Personally, I would rather take my chances trading my used games in and getting some “decent” credit.

Thanks for reading and be sure to leave your thoughts below! How much longer do YOU think GameStop will last?

Top Ten Easter Eggs in Video Games

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Top Ten Easter Eggs in Video Games

Top Ten Easter Eggs in Video Games

Gaming has always been full of moments of wonder, surprise, and amazement. They can normally do these on their own, but every now and again the development teams behind these amazing pieces of art decide to put little hidden things and subliminal messages in their games for us to find, and when we do it’s an achievement all in itself. Recently we covered one of the hardest and most complicated easter eggs in any game ever. Check out the extremely difficult Battlefield 4 La Dice Camo easter egg walkthrough here if you are up to the challenge. So, here is my official Top Ten Easter Eggs in Video Games that I have personally found in games through my gaming career.

10. Nicole is dead – Dead Space

Dead Space is one of those games that definitely sticks with you. It is a game that is still known today as one of the best survival horror games out that is filled with creepy atmosphere, fantastic jump scares, a typical and relatable protagonist, and one very subtle subliminal message. You play as Isaac Clark, a basic engineer who boards a planet cracker ship that has lost contact that also has the love of his life aboard named Nicole. With every new chapter you start if has a specific title, i.e. “Chapter 1, New Arrivals.” But after you beat the game you can take the first letter of all the chapter titles which ends up spelling out NICOLE IS DEAD, which isn’t found out until the end. This is definitely a must-play game.

 

9. Guybrush Threepwood – Star Wars the Force Unleashed 2 

Anyone who has played any of the Star Wars games knows that they were developed by LucasArts, the same team responsible for the wildly popular game The Secret of Monkey Island, in which you play as main character Guybrush Threepwood. In Star Wars, there is actually a room with three statues of Threepwood, and if you smash a certain slot machine you can play as the memorable character.

 

8. Death of The End – Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Metal Gear is known for its crazy and hard-to-follow story, very special characters, and all the little secrets that are hidden about. One of the best hidden moments I discovered is that when you start the battle against the boss, The End, you can save your game and turn off the console. When you restart your PS2, you can go into the settings and advance the time and date settings by two years. After you do that and save it you can restart MGS3 and reenter the battle but with a subtle difference, nobody is attacking you. If you search long enough you can come across The End’s body dead signaling he perished from old age.

 

7. Killing the past – Assassin’s Creed

In Assassin’s Creed, you play as Altair, the main protagonist who is in the Assassin Brotherhood. During his time in the Brotherhood, he kills countless people, resulting in different historical outcomes. The fun thing is that Ubisoft, developer of AC, did their research and did it very extensively, to the point where every named character that you kill, with style and flair, was a real person from history and you end up killing them on the exact date and location in the game as they died in real life.

6. Jason Voorhees – Dead Island

Dead Island is a fantastic game mixing in a bit of everything we gamers long for. It has decent characters, big beautiful and lush environments, smooth and great melee combat, and oh yeah a shit-load of blood thirsty zombies. One of these zombies is very hard to miss. Anybody who is a fan of old school horror movies will recognize him immediately for it is popular machete slasher, Jason Voorhees. If you wander around the jungle long enough, he will stalk you out, and, with his high level, make sure he is the death of you. Check out that hockey mask.

5. No Easter Eggs – GTA: San Andreas

Grand Theft Auto is one of the most popular games out there, to date, with the current game being GTA 5, which allows you to do damn near everything. This secret isn’t found in this game, but in the still-dated-as-best-GTA-ever game, San Andreas. If you fly to the top of the golden gate bridge whether it be by jet pack or a skilled jump from a plane you will come across a sign that says, “There are no Easter Eggs up here. Go away.” Good call, Rockstar, thanks for the slap in the face.

4. Zork – Call of Duty: Black Ops

CoD is one of the biggest games out, with the release of a new game happening annually and a mass amount of fans standing behind every game, it was just a matter of time before someone found something. In the beginning of CoD: Black Ops, you play as Mason, who is tied to chair. If you hit the left and right trigger buttons fast enough and long enough you can eventually break out of the ties and escape. Once you do that, you can run over to a nearby computer where you can sit down and enjoy the classic game Zork.

3. Robbie the Rabbit – Silent Hill 4 

Silent Hill is a game series that is sure to give you nightmares. They have the creepiest atmospheres, best and most mentally disturbing stories, and one creepy Easter Egg that I absolutely love. If you played SH3, you are well known of the disturbing bloody-mouthed pink rabbit mascot, Robbie. Well in SH4: The Room, you can look through your neighbors peephole, where you will see Robbie sitting carefree on the bed. But, if you go back and look through the peephole after completing the mission “Eileen’s Gone Missing,” Robbie will be staring directly back at you with a look of horror, with its arm stretched out pointing at you.

 

2. Jill’s Sandwiches – DeadRising

DeadRising is a great game filled with blood, weapons, zombies, and hilarious secrets. For any fans of the Resident Evil series, I am sure you remember the incredible cheesy line, “That was too close! You were almost a Jill sandwich.” Well as you go along in the mall of DeadRising, if you keep close enough watch to the stores you can come across a restaurant named “Jill’s Sandwiches.”

1. The Cake is a Lie – Portal

Portal rocks! The puzzles are great, the portal gun is fantastic, and GlaDoS is so funny. Throughout the length of the game you will find many writings on the walls saying the cake is a lie, all with GlaDoS teasing you about the idea of a party and a cake. As you progress, she starts to insult your intelligence and make you lose hope in any idea of a cake waiting for you. Damn. But wait! There is actually a way after the boss fight at the end of portal to escape down a shaft, leading you to ventilation duct that, if you follow down, down, down, will take you to the basement of Apeture Science, and what is waiting for you? A great-looking cake with candles, all for you. So who made this cake, why is it there, and why were you deceived? Well, these all go unanswered.

 

Well everyone, this was our Top Ten Easter Eggs in Video Games. If you have any others you have found that you feel could make this list please comment below.
HAPPY HUNTING!!!!

Here are some other Top Ten lists that you might enjoy too.

Top Ten Hottest NBA Cheerleaders

Top Ten Sexiest Gamer Girls

THE BABA-WHO? THE BABADOOK!

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THE BABA-WHO? THE BABADOOK!

THE BABA-WHO? THE BABADOOK!

Ah, the movies that come out of other countries. Some are weird and demented like A Serbian Film. There were some parts in that one that I actually had to turn away from. Because there is just some stuff you can’t un-see. I am still trying to burn the images of Human Centipede out of my brain. It’s really only one main part, but I could have lived my life happily without seeing it. So every once in a while you’ll find one of these low-budget, independent films. This one comes from Australia.

It’s called The Babadook. It’s a creepy story that centers on a mother, Amelia, and her son, Samuel. Sam is not the most “normal” child on the block. He gets in trouble at school, and has this fascination with fairy tale monsters, to the point that everyone is questioning Amelia’s parenting. So one night, before bed, he picks up this red book that just appeared on the shelf called Mister Babadook.

THE BABADOOK

As Amelia reads the images get more disturbing, and completely terrifies Samuel. He insists that the Babadook is real, but Amelia keeps repeating “THERE IS NO Babadook!” She rips the book apart only to have it appear all taped up on her door step. As the film goes on, more and more things keep occurring, and Amelia gets infected by the story-demon. In order to get inside of her, sexual pun intended, he taps into her deepest pain: the tragic death of her husband. And in doing so, she begins to lose herself and her sanity.

After being infected, and many sleepless nights, Amelia finally gets completely taken over and is on a rampage. She’s going after Samuel, but he manages to fight her off. Which I have to say, is pretty impressive for a 6-year-old. He used back-pack-catapult, and a dart gun that he made himself. They’re now in the basement when the final “battle” takes place. Somehow the power of his love is what saves her. Which I guess could make sense because it technically is a dark fairy tale. She is saved by the power of love (anyone else singing that song?), when Samuel reminds her, “You can’t get rid of the Babadook.” Finally, after one more encounter, she is able to subdue the entity and keep it contained, protecting herself and her son. But not before the final confrontation with her deepest pain.

It’s a dark, kind of slow-paced, and story-driven tale. It probably won’t end up in “top movie” lists, but I enjoy these independent flicks. There’s a certain charm to them that high-budget films don’t. It’s different and that’s what I like about it. The acting is pretty descent and there are some parts that make you scream, “Shut that fucking kid up!” The lady that plays Amelia does a great job. The character arc that she has to go through is kind of universal. She starts off practically resentful of her son, and she has to go through shit to become a whole person again. I think it is definitely worth checking out.

Watch The Babadook online now

League of Legends and why eSports skeptics should give it a chance.

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League of Legends and why eSports skeptics should give it a chance.

League of Legends and why eSports skeptics should give it a chance.
1/6/2015

 

 

The League of Legends professional season 6 starts up once again on 1/14 for Europe (EU) and 1/16 for North America (NA). This seems a good a time as any to try and convince the skeptics that your time is worth investing in watching these highly entertaining matches.

I, along with many of you, always scoffed at the idea people would spend their time watching kids play video games. In fact, I probably felt much like Colin Cowherd, albeit without the narcissism and vitriol. Colin Cowherd has recently made numerous attacks on those that participate in eSports and its audience. Many of his arguments are uninformed and idiotic, AKA classic Cowherd. Yet, I found that many of his generalizations about the genre I too experienced before I finally gave watching eSports a chance. Colin Cowherd Booger eaterHe described the players as “booger eaters” and even did his own fake play-by-play which involved a player, 29, who leaves a match to go back to his mother’s house and eat Hot Pockets. Very creative, Colin. Sounds like the snappy repartee one might find buried deep in the depths of a Reddit conversation. Despite being booted from E!SPN, Colin is staying true to their core values of shoddy journalism and the belief any sort of relevant research is passé. There are mountains of evidence to suggest his claims are worth as much as those Beanie Babies you stockpiled in the late 90s.

It pains me to say this now, but I held similar misgivings not so long ago. Sure, I grew up playing an unhealthy amount of video games, but that didn’t stop me from holding these same prejudices about professional gamers. To me it was always all about real sports. Baseball, football, soccer, basket, golf, tennis; basically anything but hockey, I watched deep into the night. I couldn’t imagine giving the devotion I gave these freakishly athletic and world-class athletes to some group of kids who look like they should be preparing for the National Spelling Bee. While there are indeed eSports players who fit this mold, there is a whole other side to how these players look and act. The personalities, feuds between players and managers, in-fighting, and trash talking are so much more enjoyable than mainstream sports. The media has not quite caught onto the eSports phenomena and, as such, the players are much more approachable via social media. There is closeness between fan and player that is vastly different than the maximum security set up around NFL players to ensure they don’t say anything too stupid.

All of this is to say that Cowherd’s malformed ramblings couldn’t be farther from the truth. League of Legends draws in massive crowds both domestically and abroad. Live matches of screaming and chanting fans have sold out Madison Square Garden, the Staples Center and the South Korean Olympic Stadium just to name a few. According to journalist Patrick Dorsey, in 2014 the League of Legends finals had more viewers than Game 7 of the World Series and any game of the NBA Playoffs. These numbers are indeed impressive in legitimizing eSports as a viable worldwide source of entertainment.

Madison Square Garden Esports

A sold out Madison Square Garden for the 2015 NA Finals

While numbers are a nice supplement, what really won me over is the sheer level of quality and excitement that is exuded each and every game. The game was described by one of the top League players as “chess on crack,” which is actually a somewhat apt description. While the only shakes after a match are handshakes, the frantic style and movements make the game fast-paced entertainment.

The games are 5v5 and teams need to utilize some Kasparov level strategy infused with a Steph Curry level of precision. The games last anywhere from about 30-50 minutes and there are multiple games being played throughout the day. What makes this schedule great is that the European matches are broadcast early enough in America so that they can help get you through the workday. They stream on both Twitch and YouTube, but the latter is preferred, as you can quickly pause when you have to pretend like you are busy at work. For me and my friends, the League season has helped us survive a long Thursday or Friday for the last few years.

Another reason to be excited for this season is the complete changing of the international landscape. Much like quality ramen noodle, this game is absolutely dominated by the Far East. While they have shops that produce the most delicious ramen from seasoned chefs, we here in North American and in Europe are stuck putting a cup in a microwave. This is essentially the gap of skill between the East and the West. However, the landscape is changing thanks to huge contributions from some major companies. As the Coke, Intel, and Nissan money keeps pouring in, the highly skilled Korean and Chinese players are making long flights to America, Europe and even Brazil. The teams are looking to be as balanced as ever and this is cause for great excitement. This season will most definitely be the highest level of competition that the game has ever seen.

As someone who was, and is, a sport fanatic and former eSports skeptic, I implore anyone who thinks similarly to give it a try.

You will obviously be best served just playing the game for a few weeks to learn the ropes. As luck would have it, the game is entirely free to download via the League of Legends website. Yet, if you are more interested in only watching the competition, there are some great videos that break down the basics of the game, such as this one by PBS Digital Studios. You only need a basic knowledge of MOBAs or the game itself to understand how good these kids are.

If you want to just jump right in and watch one of the most exciting games of all time, check out this game from the 2014 World’s group match between Europe’s Fnatic and China’s OMG by clicking here.

Any questions about the scene or you feel the need to call me a Hot Pocket loving booger eater, feel free to comment below.

“Jason vs Michael” Filmmaker Trent Duncan Interview

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“Jason vs Michael” Filmmaker Trent Duncan Interview

“Jason vs Michael” Filmmaker Trent Duncan Interview.
1/5/2016

Straddling the thin blurry line between, “Am I hungover or still rip roaring drunk?” in the post-New Year’s haze, Slickster Magazine caught up with independent filmmaker, festival organizer, and director, Trent Duncan. His fan film “Jason vs Michael” (#JvM) has grown to over half a million views in a less than six month’s time. We talked about some of the behind-the-scenes of JvM, the upcoming apocalyptic film festival, End of Days, the overall state of horror films, and a whole lot more.

Slickster: Anything you want to say upfront before we start the questions?
TD: How do I get the Girl of the Week from the website? (Laughs)

 

Trent Duncan with Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger)
Director Trent Duncan with actor Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger).

Slickster: You kind of look like Robert England. Did you ever get that before?
TD: I used to hear that quite a bit; not so much anymore, but most people don’t know who he is anymore. They used to say “Freddy Krueger,” but I was like, “Come on guys, he looks horrible!”  Yeah, I used to get that.

Slickster: Well, if you ever needed someone to play Freddy Krueger, I guess you can cast yourself.
TD: (laughs) I actually met Robert at a horror convention here in Orlando. We got a picture together and I offered to be a stunt double for him.

 

Slickster: So, #JvM (“Jason vs Michael” fan film) is at 500k+ views on YouTube now. How did all that come about?
TD: Thank you. JvM came about because I have done several other fan films and I read a lot of the comments that are placed on YouTube. A lot of the fans have been bickering back and forth about who’s better at this and that, and a lot of folks are really into Jason Voorhees and Michael Myers. Those are the two most popular horror characters. People keep mentioning, “Hey, you should do ‘Jason vs. Michael.‘” Realizing that, outside of Freddy Krueger, they are the most popular and they haven’t been featured in any sort of battle together, other than a few small fan films, so I thought, let’s do it. Let’s do Jason vs. Michael and give the audience what they want. So, that’s how that came about.

 

Slickster: Why, in your opinion, is Jason Voorhees such a timeless slasher?
TD: I think that, just like a lot of movies that came out of the late 70s and early 80s, that was the first and most creative era in WIDESPREAD film-making. It started where you didn’t need a big studio. A lot of small independent people started making their own movies, and they came up with these creative characters that really stuck. They are iconic. This was the first time a lot a moviegoers could see variety in movies, and so some of these films stuck. It was Jason Voorhees, and the other iconic horror characters as well. I know he wasn’t even in the first one! The kid just kinda came up out of the lake at the end and that’s how they got the idea for Jason. So, sometimes people just relate and latch on to stuff.  You never know how stuff catches, but when it does it’s there for a long time.
Slickster: As we’ve seen in the past thirty years! All the different incarnations, it’s amazing Jason has been around that long.
TD:  It’s is! I think a lot of people who were younger back then are older now, and they are passing that old school horror stuff along to their kids. It’s kind of dying out a little bit and there just aren’t those classic horror movies or characters that there used to be.

 

Slickster: Among the new slashers, do you have a favorite?
TD: In the past decade? You don’t really have too many. I guess Jigsaw is kind of new. Scream and Ghostface were in the 90s, but you don’t have those iconic characters emerging like they did back in the day. Nothing that blows my mind right away.
Slickster: Right. Everything is just being remade.
TD: Yeah, there is something to be said about the creativity back then. They were the first go-getters for a lot of that stuff. Their creativity came from the early 30’s and 40’s kind of stuff.
Slickster: So, you’re saying that there just isn’t enough stuff being created these days for you to have a favorite?
TD: I worked on a feature with one of my friends called “The Laughing Mask,” and that was kind of cool and indie. I think a lot people are trying to come up with new characters, and there is a lot of creativity out there, but for one reason or another they just don’t stick or match up to a Jason or Michael Myers.
Slickster: I thought Hatchet had kind of a Wrong Turn vibe.
TD: Yeah, and those had a nice little spin for awhile. Where they had the mutated creatures… Hills Have Eyes, Wrong Turn… Then they got brushed to the side, and now everyone is on to zombies and stuff.

 

Slickster: Trent, are there any plans for you to get involved on the zombie bandwagon?
TD:  Ahhhhhh (…long silence….) In some of my upcoming fan films I might play little bit with some zombies. It’s a cool niche to hit up, but I don’t have too many plans to expose that at moment, but I’m definitely not opposed to it, if something cool was to come along. Something fun.
Slickster: At Slickster there is an ongoing debate if the zombie fad is over. Is it overplayed?
TD:  Personally I think it’s overplayed. The Walking Dead is pretty cool, but I’m not a die-hard fan. But hey, a lot stuff in movies is where we are in life as a society, and how people are feeling that. So, what’s popular now depends on a lot of things. Personally I like the rage zombies from 28 Days Later. Those are freaky ones that can chase you down and do some real damage to you. Those are my favorite zombies.

 

Slickster: Anthony Giovanni Elias was the fight choreographer on #JvM. How did you approach staging the fighting styles of those two iconic slashers?
TD:  Ahh, great question. Anthony is a good guy and we’ve worked together on some other projects. So, I wanted to bring a fight choreographer along just to add an extra dynamic to it. You know, think outside the box and see some things I couldn’t really see. We had a chat about these two guys and thought, “These two characters aren’t little fast ninjas. They are big juggernauts! They can take a punch and they can give a punch.” We needed something where they could go back and forth with some really solid strong hits. Plus none of this really phases either of them.

Cheyenne Trent Ryan JvM Shoot
The director and actors pause during the fight scene of Jason vs. Michael. Left to Right: Cheyenne Hess, Trent Duncan, Ryan Monnier

You can also say that Jason is a little bit of the bigger and stronger of the two, but if you pull stuff from Michael’s movies he’s pretty relentless too. He’s been crushed by cars and run over and shot. So he can take a beating as well. So we thought, let’s not do fast quick stuff. Lets do heavy, hard hitting… they’re not even trying to block it, they are coming after each other. We wanted to kind of approach it from that angle and Anthony did a great job exploiting that.
Slickster: Yeah, you don’t want them to be moving extremely fast and that. They are slower, walking, intimidating type of guys.
TD: Yes, and it’s kind of tough too, to do a long fight scene with slow fight stuff.   You’ve got to space it out a little bit and do a couple of different things to make it work.  The fast hits stuff can be fun, but that’s not what we we’re going for here.

 

Slickster: It looks like it was actually raining during the fight scene, how did that effect production?
TD: It was raining off and on, more like drizzling, and it did effect production. But I thought, “You know what? Let’s add the rain as a element.” I did have to add some special effects rain in post production as well to make the continuity through the whole fight scene even.  We worked through it and made the best of it.

 

Slickster: Throughout the #JvM you were using the classic music themes of Halloween and Friday the 13th. Did you have to go through any copyrighting issues to use that music?
TD: I’m glad you asked! Kenny Marshall, a really cool guy, does some composing for me. He grew up in the era and knows the horror genre really well. He is able to recreate the sounds of the original themes with a different kind of tune, so we don’t get hit with the YouTube copyright infringement. So what Kenny did was create tunes that are the same but different. Does that make sense?
Slickster: Yeah.
TD:  So basically, we made our own music that sounds like the original music.
Slickster: It’s uncanny.
TD: Yeah, I got hit with some (copyright) stuff from my original fan films. I knew Kenny could create something like that for #JvM. I mean, if you listen to it without the sound effects and no video you can hear that it is different, but with the movie going on it totally blends in. Yeah, so music copyright is tricky and that is one of the biggest things you will get slapped on, especially for YouTube. I’ve had to be creative and sneak my way around it.

 

Slickster: Awesome.  Yeah, YouTube has this thing about “censorship,” but in horror movies there has to be a lot boobies! Do think there will be any nudity in the next “Jason vs. Michael” fan film?
TD: (Laughs) I would love it! I realize that it is part of the genre and totally fun. As far as #JvM goes, the scene with the bachelorette party, it wasn’t as fun as I would have liked to make it.  It was originally intended to be a lingerie bachelorette party.
Slickster: Hell yeah!
JvM Set Bachelorette partyTD: But we didn’t have the extras and I needed to get some lingerie, so we just were like, ‘we’ll do a regular bachelorette party’.  So that kind of sucked, but I’ve had some visions of some really cool types of on screen slasher deaths with erotic stuff.
Slickster: Like Sorority House Massacre?
TD: Exactly! You’re on the right track, but I don’t want to give away too much. You know, lingerie pillow fights can be very dangerous.
Slickster: Anything could happen at any time.
TD: You never know! But I realize that it’s like, “Oh my gosh, we’re exploiting these women,” but that’s what all these old films did to attract people to horror films, the partial nudity and that kind of stuff. So it’s kind of a Catch-22. You know it still works today, but you do it in a fun way. Where it’s much more over-the-top, like, “That’s ridiculous and would never happen.” But it’s part of slasher movies and it is what it is.

Interview Continues on Page 2

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