All posts by duckofindeed

I like to work on art and writing and was inspired by video games and movies and other such things. I love when I find creative stories and characters, and I try to make my own. So far, I've been unsuccessful, but I'm trying.
Gamer's Life

Revisiting Old Friends

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Image from Flickr User: lucy photography
Image from Flickr User: lucy photography

For the first time in my life, I have so many video games that I haven’t had need to replay any of them for quite a while.  And yet, for the strangest reason, I have recently had the urge to take a break from my backlog (which involves unplayed games I bought a year or more ago, mind you) and relive some of my older games.  The consoles I most want to revisit: the SNES and the GameCube.

It all began the day I found my Super Nintendo was dying, which I didn’t know until I decided I so desperately wanted to play Donkey Kong Country 2 again, after writing a post for my other blog on the top songs from the game.  Unable to play the game on its original console, I downloaded it onto the Wii and proceeded to enjoy some DK goodness.  After beating it (with 102%, proof that I still have mad-platforming skills), I then decided to play the original Pikmin again, and now I have a mighty urge to download and replay The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.  And it’s all very strange, really, because I have not been having much fun with my games lately.  I used to love playing new games, but, with the exception of Ni no Kuni on the PS3, the only fun I’ve had lately is when I decide to replay an older game from at least a decade ago. Continue reading Revisiting Old Friends →

General Commentary, Secrets/Extras

Why Some Mysteries Are Best Left Unsolved

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Image from Flickr User: MultiKute
Image from Flickr User: MultiKute

By now, there should be no secret that I love games with a sense of mystery, whether this mystery comes from unlocking secrets like the elusive Stop ‘n’ Swop or is simply a result of something that can and will never be explained, like, for example, Stop ‘n’ Swop.  (And I don’t mean in the context of the real world; I know that whole story well enough.  But, in the context of the game…it kind of gives me an idea for a fan fiction, it does.)

Anyway, one game I always thought had an immense sense of this mystery I so love was Vexx.  This game just has so many unique locations that defied explanation, or at the very least, left the player wondering…what’s the story behind this?  The tower behind the waterfall, the skeletal remains of a dragon, the former occupant of Tempest Peak Manor, not to mention the identity of the sages carved into the Summit of the Sages.  The game never had a sequel as originally planned, as Acclaim was bought by someone else, leaving me with so many questions I’d like answered.  Again, a fan fiction or several may be in order.  I owe the world my very valued and interesting thoughts and opinions on this most pressing of matters. Continue reading Why Some Mysteries Are Best Left Unsolved →

General Commentary, Review

The (Tidy) Return of the Old RPGs

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Lately, I have really begun to lose my affection for RPGs, a genre I used to love after discovering how amazing they could be thanks to my first playthroughs of Square’s Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy X.  Those games were truly special and introduced me to some complex and deep stories and characters I could really fall in love with (but not in that way, you silly people!).  For this reason, I came to look to Square Enix for good RPGs, I found myself, nevertheless, underwhelmed with the release of FFXII and FFXIII.  While I did have a lot of fun checking out some of the old RPGs, like FFVI and FFIX, I still had quite a bit of trouble finding any good new games of the genre, and as my schedule became busier, I also had less desire to spend such a huge quantity of time on a whole category of games that, in general, felt slow-paced and tedious.

That all changed when I was first introduced to Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch on the gaming blog, RPG Square.  Something about it caught my interest, and I ended up finding it at Wal-Mart when I was in possession of a gift card.  And yet, at the same time, I must admit that my initial impression of the game was a bit reluctant.  I didn’t know about the cartoony style of graphics (I know, I’m a snob sometimes), and when I saw the creature on the cover (who turned out to be Mr. Drippy), I thought, oh, no, not another cutesy sidekick. Continue reading The (Tidy) Return of the Old RPGs →

General Commentary

A Discussion on Why Rayman Might Be a Criminal

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(This post was originally published on my other blog on 5/9/12, but I thought I’d share it here because I found it amusing.)  Video games often have you do things that wouldn’t make sense in real life, and usually we don’t question it.  I don’t even just mean the weird stuff, but the fact that we just direct our characters to go into peoples’ houses without permission, for example.  Or we attack creatures that do nothing to us.  The “Kirby” series comes to mind, as many enemies make no signs of aggression towards Kirby, but Kirby still attacks them.  What have the Waddle Dees ever done to him, aside from the fact that touching them is harmful (which makes no sense)?  It would be weird if you actually sustained physical harm from simply walking into someone, but then you still couldn’t just attack them.  And in “The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword”, Link sleeps in other people’s beds, for quacking out loud!  Have you no shame, sir? Continue reading A Discussion on Why Rayman Might Be a Criminal →

General Commentary, News

Top Anticipated Games: #gamersonwatch

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With E3 at a close, I must make a confession.  While I have certainly heard of this important gaming event, I admit that I don’t typically pay it much heed, and any news I do hear comes from random people or articles on the Internet.  Nevertheless, I have a short list for you all in celebration of E3 and our June community post, and I’m keeping it simple.  My favorite gaming news is whatever involves the release of interesting games, so I shall list (and briefly describe) the five games I look forward to most (whether they were mentioned at E3 or not).  In no particular order. Continue reading Top Anticipated Games: #gamersonwatch →

Resonance, Retro

Resonance: Cave of Bad Dreams

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I have recently been in a big Rayman mood.  I’ve been replaying Rayman 3, and I have also been reading a pretty great fan fic for the series called When the Tables Have Turned which I’ve been following for a good year or two now.  Seriously, it’s awesome.  Ahem, well, a time came when her story made mention of the Cave of Bad Dreams from Rayman 2, and I was thrilled and excited at this reminder of a level I enjoyed just as much as it chilled me. Continue reading Resonance: Cave of Bad Dreams →

Gamer's Life

A Day That Made My Heart Fill With Rainbows

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I recently experienced my second masquerade, an event I have been preparing for for the better part of a year.  My character of choice this time around was Lord Ghirahim, the villain of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and any details on the making of his (horrendously difficult) costume can or will soon be found on my blog, The Duck of Indeed.

I woke up that morning with a large task on my hands.  Putting on my costume.  It’s a lot harder than you’d think, really, as I had a great deal of body paint that needed applying, my own special blend of light grey to best match the Demon Lord’s flawless complexion.  I thought if I put the paint on first, then the clothes, it might rub off onto my clothing, but if I apply the paint after my clothes are on, it will be hard to get close to the clothing without getting paint on it.  This proved to be the most aggravating part of my morning preparation, and while I went with the latter method at first, I quickly found that I couldn’t get the paint under the edges of my clothing, nor could I hold the clothing away to a sufficient degree while applying said paint without painting my clothes.  I had to then switch to method one, which proved more effective.  But, it really didn’t matter in the end, because I had far more paint troubles to worry about in my future.  But, we’ll get to that soon. Continue reading A Day That Made My Heart Fill With Rainbows →