The Road Home
Current mood: anxious

Flynn, Sky, Brian, Todd and I are heading back to New Orleans tomorrow morning. We rented a truck and are driving to our respective houses to grab our things. Then back to Atlanta on Sunday to unpack. Our new house is totally cute, it will be wonderful to have a home base again. This crashing on couches bullshit has got to stop. Our hosts John and Jason have been little saints, taking us in, total strangers. They've put up with our crap for the past month-and-a-half and are still smiling.

The whole hurricane experience has been really interesting. I have never lived anywhere but New Orleans. We have all been forced to reevaluate our whole lives because of Katrina and her nasty little sister. They just came in and scattered all of my friends throughout the United States. People who I would see on a daily basis are elsewhere. From being in New Orleans for so long, I had a delightful assortment of friends. New Orleans holds so many precious memories. Looking back at all of my experiences in the city, I have to say: I am truly blessed to have grown up in a city that spicy, there is no substitute.

Currently listening : Funkify Your Life: Anthology By Meters Release date: 28 February, 1995

10:50 PM - 4 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

New Orleans
Current mood: distressed

I'm about to go back to New Orleans next weekend. I'm not looking forward to it. Since this Hurricane began, I knew it would be the most difficult part. It's far too sad to think that the town I grew up in got devistated. I'm still in shock. More than a month later, it still doesn't feel real.

10:31 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Wanda, Wanda, where for art thou

Shadow of the Colossus is almost here and gamers are in a frenzy. It was developed by the same team that brought us ICO for PS2. The pre game buzz is really promising. Looks like Sony Entertainment will have a hit on their hands.
The game begins when the hero brings his recently deceased wife to an ancient temple, and lays her on a stone altar. Then the hero embarks on a long journey, tracking down, then slaying Colossi to bring his wife back to life.
The game has an elegant premise. From the previews and video it looks very similar to the presentation of ICO. The designers went for a minimalist approach in storytelling with ICO. So I imagine that there will be very little plot in SotC. The plot is the journey. The purpose of the journey is a testament to the relationship with your wife. The bond was so strong that the hero sets off on a seemingly impossible quest. Sending the hero across vast lands on horseback, slaying legendary creatures, to bring your beloved back to life. The player will spend a majority of the game hunting down the various Colossi. Once the player meets a Colossus, he must find it’s weakness, scale the creature, then plunge his sword in the weak spot. Track down some of the videos, it’s more impressive to see this in action.
SotC looks breathtaking for it's incredible use of scale. SotC has the largest creatures ever seen in a Video Game. It is a testament to the power of effective design over hardware. The PS2 has proven it’s staying power over the years and I believe that this game will be one of their greatest releases before the nex gen systems come out later this year.
Also, if you don’t own a copy of ICO, track it down before it disappears entirely. It is one of the most incredible games in the history of gaming. To experience ICO is to understand minimalist beauty in gaming. I will always cherish my adventure with Yorda through the treacherous castle prison of ICO.

9:49 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Loco Roco

I predict that Loco Roco will be the smash runaway hit that the PSP needs to boost the sales of this fledgling system. Lumines was the guaranteed hit, but Loco Roco is coming from left field. We haven't seen such innovative design since Katamari Damacy. Loco Roco looks like a flash game but it has style in spades. In Loco Roco you roll a bag of goo through various obstacles from stage to stage. It's completely flat, like a vector graphic, visually playing off of clean lines used in Vector graphic design and early cabinet games. It's a very Modern game with a retro feel, due to the limited color pallete of each stage. In the olden days there were vector games like Tempest, then came the bitmap games like Mario Bros. So Loco Roco takes the limited color pallete of 8-bit console gaming, mixed with the smooth vector lines of early arcade games to create a game bursting with originality but borrowing from successful sources. Trust me this game will push the PSP sales considerably.
I just thought I would get that off of my chest. I have been thinking of that game since I saw it a few days ago on IGN. I downloaded the preview and was instantly hooked. I am seriously considering purchasing a PSP because of this game. Just like the first time I saw the import of Lunar: the Silver Star for SEGA CD. I just had to have that system to play that game. I think I'm sold, once the PSP goes down in price. Sorry Sony, it's just too expensive.

1:01 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

First Blog in Atlanta since the big one
Category: Games

The Hurriance nonsense is a mess. We've been running for weeks and finally things are settling down here in Atlanta. Unfortunately I will not be in New Orleans for the next year. We just signed a lease for a house in Midtown. I already miss my beloved city, and my friends. Fortunately I'm with people I love, and everyone in Atlanta has been very helpful. There's a great gay bookstore in Midtown called Outwrite books, I plan on applying there soon. It's too cute. They have a great selection of Gay Liturature and Art books, Wireless internet and cute baristas. Sign me up.

Currently playing : Super Mario 64 Release date: 21 November, 2004

9:11 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment