07/03/2004

Capcom Really Cares Part 2

by Matthew Edward Hawkins

The more I try to figure out what the deal is with the Mega Man Anniversary Collection, the more confused and angry I become. Seriously, it’s been virtually impossible to get a straight answer regarding anything, especially the GameCube version.

First off, I’ve learned that the remixed music for parts 4-6 is indeed from the Japanese PSone re-releases. So what about the remixes for parts 1-3? Apparently, they’re from Mega Man: the Wily Wars, which was the first three Mega Mans redone (a la Super Mario All Stars) for the Genesis! Very interesting…. I actually had Wily Wars (came with my Nomad) and felt that it did an admirable job of updating the classic tunes, though most people will probably strongly disagree. Then again, many seem to hate Genesis music for no good reason. I still prefer the vast majority of Genesis soundtracks to those on the Super Nintendo, simply because composers had to be more creative when dealing with the technically “inferior” hardware. But I digress…

But now I hear that the music for parts 1-3 is not from WIly Wars, but simply lifted from the Power Battle/Fighters games, the arcade Mega Man titles that are also in the collection. Plus some are even saying that the PSone versions of Mega Man 1-3 did indeed have remixed music, which if true, is pretty fucking infuriating since I paid $50+ for each, only to sell them off for peanuts on eBay since it seemed like there were no enhanced music.

Next, a Mega Man fan site asked the folks behind the collection, Atomic Planet, numerous questions regarding the GameCube version, and their answers were totally ridiculous. Apparently there wasn’t have enough room to fit all the remixed music since they barely had space to include all the games as there were. Yup, 1.35 gigs (the size of a GameCube disc) isn’t enough room to fit 2 old arcade games, an old PSone game, an old SNES game, and six really old NES games.

Instead of emulating the original NES games, Atomic Planet decided to emulate the PSone versions. So Mega Man 1, which was about 150k on the NES, became 273mb since that’s how big the PSone image size is. That’s almost the size of Mega Man 8, which came out originally for the PSone and Saturn, and which had far more levels, character animation, voice acting, full motion video, and a ton of extras! The PSone re-releases’ audio as the main reason for the large file sizes since all the music was redbook.

For those who don’t know what that means, basically a video game can utilize either of two methods to produce sound and music, and one is via the system’s sound chip. This means everything must be programmed to make the chip perfrom, but since it’s all one’s and zero’s, it takes up very little space. Redbook audio on the other hand uses sampled sound and the sound chip is not as involved, it’s simply playing back pre-recorded information. This is far easier than taking the time to actually do any programming, but as most people know, samples take up a large chunk of memory.

Anyways, the reason for such a move was so all the special features that were specially made for the PSone iterations, such as the assistance, or Navi, modes, could be included. But even so, how hard would it have been to convert all the redbook audio to mp3s? There would have been virtually no loss in quality, at least to a noticeable degree (we are talking about NES chip tunes here afterall). Hell, they could have just used the original sound files which anyone can easily find on the web and which is playable on any PC or Mac via WinAmp or other means. But that would require just a tiny bit of little effort or talent, which Atomic Planet has neither of (which is further reinforced if you take a look at their past work).

Then I hear that there’s black bars on the side of the image. This sounds just like the Japanese Saturn version of Mega Man X3, which also had bars to the left and the right of the image as well. Didn’t make sense, nor look good, back then, and I don’t expect it to seem any better,

Plus there’s the issue of extra content. It’s been known all along that the GameCube version gets a special retrospective and behind the scenes documentary, featuring an interview with Mega Man’s creator, Kenji Inafune, and the PlayStation version gets an episode of the ultra lame American Mega Man cartoon from years ago. Which system do you think got the better deal? Hence why hearing all the problems associated with the CG was so painful. But get this… the documentary is simply an episode from of Icons from G4, the video game channel! Icons is their show that highlights a prominent game character or creator, and is one of the better offerings from the network that aims to inform and entertain fan of video games, but simply reinforces negative stereotypes and makes me embarrassed to admit to being a gamer. And even still, the show is notorious for having glaring inaccuracies.

Someone actually ripped the video and put it online, which I just got the chance to see, and it was no different from any other episode. Granted, it was great to see Inafune being interviewed, but the rest of the show was simply a fluff piece, with nothing truly groundbreaking revealed. Hell, they didn’t even mention Mega Man Soccer or Mega Man Battle & Chase! But the piece did do a good job of getting across the importance of Mega Man to Capcom, which makes the Anniversary Collection’s piss poor outing even more mind boggling.
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Also, I saw The Frames last night with a small bunch of friends and they were incredible. I really wanted to see Spider Man 2 afterwards, but the majority overruled, so we ended up eating at an extremely shitty Mexican restaurant (not so much the food, but the service). Thank God I had hot dogs at the seaport before the show began.

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07/02/2004

Odds & Ends

by Matthew Edward Hawkins

It’s Friday and once again, I’m home instead of at work. It’s been another crazy week, but since I never took the time to let my body rest up, I’m now sick. So now that I’m enjoying some downtime, here’s some random stuff that also happened this week…

- On the eve of the MoCCA fest was the last show ever by the Beer Drinking Fools. Joe and I have been catching their shows for the past two years or so, ever since Joe starting doing artwork for them. Not only is the BDF the nicest band on earth, but they’re actually good, which I really can’t say for most punk bands in the scene today. Their last show was at the Acme Underground, and it was easily the best performance I had ever seen. They were just on, and the great crowd showed their love by moshing and maintaining a constant shower of beer cans and shot glasses aimed at their heads.

The BDF ended their careers with an encore of their most popular song Meet Me at the Bar, and everyone from the mosh pit was brought on stage to sing along. I really wanted to be up there, but since I didn’t know the words, I stayed behind, though it was soon apparent that neither did those guys. Oh well. Their set ran really long, way past the amusement of the band after them. After all was said and done, their guitarist Steve said it best… “Okay, we’re done.”

- On the subway, I saw the Magic guy again. He’s this angry guy who, as soon as he gets on a crowded train (I’ve only seen him during rush hour traffic), immediately starts yelling at people about how fat they are. He doesn’t resort to jokes, simply plain, old fashioned, cruel remarks. And he’s loud too, and you can see his targets’ will to live deteriorate right before your eyes. Plus, he’s a big dude, hence why no one says anything. Everyone just becomes rigid until he exits, then a huge sigh of relief can be heard from everyone.

This time, I was sitting on a seat and a couple right in front of me were reading magazines as Magic guy was doing his thing. When he left, the woman asked the guy “What was the deal with that guy?” And he responded with “I don’t know, I was ignoring him. But I did notice he had the world Magic shaved on the back of his head.”

- At work I have a coworker who has a problem: she gets hit on all the time, by mostly freaks and weirdos, like the annoying AC technician or the creepy elevator operator. Recently, a person from a different department started calling her under the guise of official business, but always ends it with an invite to dinner or something, much to her annoyance. This past week he showed up (along with a coworker, a cute girl) to learn how we handle security, which makes no sense on multiple levels since everyone uses the same security guards. So my boss showed them around the department, and next thing you know, they’re were getting a full blown, red carpet tour of our entire facilities and all its equipment, with the girl scribbling notes the entire time. We have some rather high end computers and cameras on our end, and people from other departments are always trying to find ways to use them. So I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole visit was simply a reconnaissance mission in disguise.

And of course, the guy took the opportunity to hit on my coworker in person. But what really caught my eye was his companion; as I said, that girl was cute. Really cute. I asked my coworker if she had any info on the girl, but she didn’t. Same with my boss. So now I’m determined to find out who she is and talk with her. And as soon as other coworkers caught wind of this, they suggested I repay her department by going over for some bullshit reason to spy on them. More on this as it develops…

- Also at work, a food delivery guy showed up with some weird shit on his face. It was a big, ugly moth. When a coworker (the same one from before) mentioned that he had a month on his face, he proudly proclaimed, “It’s a butterfly! Let him stay!” And we did.

- By now most people are familiar with my bitching about how disgusting the kitchen is, thanks to my ultra filthy roommates, to the point that some friends think I’m exaggerating. Well earlier this week, I brought someone over, and as soon as she stepped one foot inside, her reaction was “Jesus fuck that smell is bad!” And then after a few more seconds, it was so much for her, she started to gag.

- When it first became hard to speak on Wednesday, I simply thought I had shot my voice from all the talking I did at MoCCA. But by Thursday, I was full blown sick, with the addition of a nasty, phlegmy cough and an even greater sense of tiredness than usual, which made teaching last night really rough.

Started off by asking the class why they think Mario is no longer popular, which led into a discussion regarding how people relate to video game characters, both back in they days when all you could have was 2D, iconic cartoon characters and today where photo-realistic 3D people and worlds are possible. I also touched upon narratives in games, as well a game’s focus, and how having many things to do is often used to hide a game’s underlying mediocrity. I even spoke of my feelings regarding first person shooters and how multiplayer deathmatches actually go against some rather fundamental rules of gameplaying, which I don’t think most people were not able to follow me on.

Next up was the first ever in-class activity in which everyone worked in groups to design a game in which a character had to tackle one of three objectives: breaking and entering, defeating a strong foe, or collect all the pieces of whatever. Plus the character could only have two actions, and one had to tie in with the ability to fulfill the objective. Of the games the class came up with, the pro terrorist game was by far the most interesting. I think the class really enjoyed the classroom activity. Can’t say they enjoyed hearing what the homework was: to design a sequel to one of the other group’s games, and I choose which one.

But along with the in-class critiquing, plus speaking with one student one on one regadring a full blown game he’s creating for his portfolio and who’s asked me to be an advisor, my voice was totally gone by night’s end. And I was so tired that I didn’t even stay up to see the 2am repeat of Futurama, which is a first for me.

- Tonight I’m going to see The Frames at the South Street Seaport. Despite not feeling 100%, I could sure go for some fine Irish rock right about now (with a dash of WIly Wonka).

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06/30/2004

Handling the Truth

by Matthew Edward Hawkins

So I saw Fahrenheit 9/11 earlier this evening.

First off, I must state that I used to be a big Michael Moore fan. Roger & Me was one of the first independent films I ever saw (and still stand as one of the finest American films from the 20th century, IMHO), and played a large part in getting me interested in independent cinema, as well as documentaries (well, that along with Ken Burns’ work). Subsequently, I was a big fan of Moore’s first show, TV Nation, and became a strong believer in what he stood for.

Yet as time passed, I became somewhat tired of his antics, with the real turning point being when he accepted that Oscar for Bowling for Columbine. I didn’t have a problem with his message (I believed it wholeheartedly) it was just totally unnecessary to drag those other nominees into some self-serving stunt; there’s still plenty of debate regarding if those other nominees were properly informed on exactly what he was going to say. From that point on, Moore began to develop a penchant for twisting the truth (or even outright making stuff up), and making himself look like an angry bitter jackass in the process.

Though I figured it anything, with such topics as 9/11 and the war in Iraq, Moore would have plenty to work with, without the need to produce any outlandish (and often unfunny) gimmicks to get the message across, and I was pretty much right on the money. Fahrenheit 9/11 is Michael Moore at his best. When he’s good, Moore is an absolute master of presenting just the right juxtapositions to get the desired reaction or emotion. Moore had a very clearly defined point of view and did an excellent job of supporting it.

At times, the film was actually humorous. Going in, I was mostly afraid that Moore would try too hard to be funny, and thankfully, this wasn’t the case. And at other times, the movie got me really pissed, such as seeing the administration (along with our wonderful news bureaus) manipulate the public with fear. Mainly because, and as much as I’m ashamed to admit it, I was also one of those who was freaking out over nothing. Granted, I’d like to think living near where it all went down had a little to do with that, and it wasn’t like I went out and bought pounds and pounds of duck tape or was afraid to open envelopes. But as a certain point, and the same could be said for many of my friends, I was hating a certain group, plus supporting aggression towards them, and for no real justification, other than blind faith (and despite that a mockery of an election that had just taken place!) and a need for revenge. That and the copious amounts of misinformation.

But the parts of the movie which spoke to me the most were the ones that dealt with people in the military and their families. I grew up in a military community, near Fort Lewis in Washington State, and I can’t tell you how many times I was stopped in a store, or even on the street, by some army recruiter who feed me false promises of what I could see or do or even become if I joined the forces. And witnessing the angry reactions of those who have family serving in a time of war towards those who are against it is all too familiar; when the Gulf War broke out in ’91, I voiced my opposition towards it, since I saw it as a battle over oil, and became the most hated person in my junior high school. Not only friends, but my teachers, made me feel truly bad for voicing my opinion. Even though I felt I was clear in voicing my support for the troops…. because I knew some of them, they were my friends and loved ones too… I was still branded as un-American, and it really left a mark on me. And of course, most disturbing was witnessing American troops enjoy themselves as they treated the Iraqis, both dead and alive, inhumanely. Once again, from seeing how the military works from a bit on the inside (not just by my family, but those around me) and knowing how it manipulates people to do their bidding, I can see why such behavior exists. Not to say I condone it of course, it’s just sad to see conditions exist to see to allow it to happen.

And the most gruesome parts were seeing innocent Iraqis maimed and killed due to the senseless fighting. Many argue that such imagery is excessive, that war is not supposed to be pretty to look at, and that if Americans really saw what were on those battlefields in the middle of World War 2, that perhaps even that fight would have lost public support, and is therefore an inappropriate, as well as unfair, means of suppressing support for the war. Though the difference between WWII and the Iraqi war is that at least back then, we had just cause to get involved in bloodshed.

But still, is Moore being manipulative by showing such footage? Of course he is, because that’s his job. He’s a filmmaker and it’s his duty to build an argument with whatever he can use to his aid. I used to hate Steven Spielberg because of Saving Private Ryan, since I found it to be an overly-manipulative piece of trash that plays into people’s sense of patriotism and sentimentality. But I later realized that he’s just really good when it comes to using the viewers’ emotion responses to his advantage; can’t fault a man for his skills. But I can blame him for fucking up potentially good films like AI, but that’s for another time…

Then again, just because Moore was saying which I wanted to hear (by shedding light on facts which I had either found too confusing or simply suspected) didn’t mean I was going to soak it all in wholeheartedly. Like I said before, he’s a master of this craft, and has a reputation of twisting things a bit too much. This may seem like a very minor thing to point out, but in the very beginning of the film, during the title sequence, there’s a montage depicting the President and all the various figure heads in our country getting ready to be on television. Basically, it’s all of them getting their noses powdered and acting all nonchalantly just before they go on the air to address the incidents that had just taken place that morning on September 11th. Bush in particular looks like a confused dolt, but the footage was actually before a speech made much later down the road. Not sure if anyone else picked on this, and it is pretty minor, but still….

Anyways, for those who are opposed to Bush and everything his administration has done, this film is sure to shed new light and clarify some things. And for those who support the President and his endeavor, perhaps this film will change their minds, but it’s a highly doubtful. Guess it depends if they’re willing to believe some angry, smart-mouthed liberal.

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