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jmf_deluxe
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Name: Joshua
Country: United States
State: New Jersey
Metro: Newark
Birthday: 10/29/1981
Gender: Male
Interests: music, videogames, sports
Expertise: old Simpsons episodes
Occupation: Accounting/Finance
Industry: Banking/Finance
Message: message me
Member Since:
4/18/2002
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| I have a lot of videogames (too many), but there's one that stands out: Its called Rez for the PlayStation 2. It's one of those rare games that I think people beyond just game fans like myself should play: of course its a classic among us. Behold!
Rez is an average game at its core, it plays a lot like Star Fox or Panzer Dragoon. But all that matters is the style. See, it was inspired by an artist who was a synaesthete, that is, a guy who experienced one sensory stimulus for another - saw sounds as colors, colors as tastes, things of that sort. This is the kind of thing that, when I first heard about it (in New York Times I think), was like, awesome, but it might drive a person insane.
Anyway, games usually have their sound effects, their graphics, and their control. They intersect at the necessary points only. Rez ignores this. It pairs up simple wireframe graphics with stripped-down versions of tracks recorded by some apparently famous electronic DJs. Everything builds from the music. Everything moves in time with the music: the controller vibrates, your shots fire, and the world pulsates. The tracks are somewhat stripped down and killing enemies emit sound effects that fit in with the music. They often explode in waves of color that follow the pattern of the sound effect. It's simple to describe, but its stunning to look at and hear. The attention to detail is astounding and really makes the game what it is.
It's not like the game actually makes you experience synthaesia, thats probably impossible without some far-off VR, but the results are impressive. I quickly found myself picking out favorite enemies not because of their look or ease but the sound effect and splash of color (these little knobby guys on level 4, and the spaceships on level 2). Your character goes through different forms and not only the look but the sounds of the fired shots change. It starts all rather humdrum when your guy is a blocky human or a little ball but it becomes surreal and smooth as he becomes a field of energy.
I got the soundtrack and listening to some parts of songs, parts that are sound effects after killing enemies, instinctively bring up the splash of color. So maybe they were on to something.
And, of course, if you are under the influence of... whatever... whatever the sort of stuff is that modifies your reactions to stimuli, the game goes in totally wild directions.
The game also had, in Japan only, this thing called a trance vibrator, which was similar to the controller's rumble, but like four times more intense. It's really quite obvious what it can be used for and what it probably was designed for.
When it first dropped it really didnt sell and quickly hit triple figures on eBay. Now you can get it for the low low price of $33 on www.gamequestdirect.com. Which is an amazing price. There's obviously a lot more music fans out there than game fans, but this is a game that is definitely for the music fan, but just obscure enough that music fans may not know about it.
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| Last time I went to LA I went to Las Vegas. I've been there before but Vegas is always fun. This time, I am going to....... Palm Springs!
We wanted to go to Santa Barbara and chill and drink wine in the Santa Ynez Valley (it really is beautiful there), but it was just too damned expensive for me. But Palm Springs is good, and its an outlet store haven for cheap clothes and whatever (good for the girlfriend).
Its fun to visit LA because I can now afford to do things I wanted to do. Shame I cant go during Coachella though (actually I didnt even think about it, until now... damn).
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| Well UCLA couldn't get it done but that's alright. Florida was definitely the better team and I'd rather see the better team win. I am very proud of how this team represented my university and the class, dignity, and hard work they showed all season. Players were dinged up all year, they got beat up early in the season, but pulled it together and made an unbelievable run. At one point the team had like 7 healthy players, and they had to bring out this Asian walk-on dude.
When I first started watching UCLA ball (in 02) they were listless and dull, they slacked and just took it easy. This team, though, was great and it was awesome fun watching them all year. The way they laid a torch to the Pac-10, celebrating the Alabama victory with my girlfriend, watching the amazing Gonzaga comeback, the great victory against Memphis, it was just fun. And they'll be back next March. | | |
| Well here are some mundane tidbits. What is a blog without the mundane?
UCLA is in the championship game. Obviously this is not so mundane. I've never seen "my guys" win a championship, although they have reached the finals on a few choice occasions - the Mets in 2000, and the Nets in 2002 and 2003. However, it must be emphasized that each of these teams didn't have a particularly good shot at winning it all and went down in flames, mostly. I was way too young to care about 1986 and I didnt care about the Bruins in 1995 (though I followed basketball religiously). So this is the first time when my team has a strong chance of winning it all! This is awesome. Now if the Mets can take care of business this season...
I decided to exercise a bit yesterday so I took a walk around the neighborhood and shot some hoops at a local park. For no longer than 30 minutes, yet today my legs are killing me. The sedentary lifestyle of a working stiff is not natural. Well, Im going to incorporate some sort of outdoor activity into my exercise routine so I can do exercise 5-6 times a week. Im going to be in LA at the end of April so I dont want to look like a schlub.
I am so used to being nickel-and-dimed by my beloved alma mater I am shocked, shocked that I am being offered study materials and shit for free by my company. I got a free book (that costs $115 on Amazon) and free training on different things and so forth. It's really different. | | |
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I've never been so happy to be wrong. UCLA is in the Final Four. OH hell yea! Bring on LSU!
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