[Originally posted on PopMatters] When I was growing up, there was no need for the “J” in JRPG. There were RPGs from Japan, many of which featured similar conventions and drew from many of the same tropes, but only recently has the JRPG become a genre of its own. And for Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, … Continue reading Finite Fantasy: The Problem with JRPGs
[Originally posted on PopMatters] When it was first released in 2001, Devil May Cry was a hodgepodge of ideas strung together. Originally designed to be a part of Capcom’s main franchise, Resident Evil. Devil May Cry quickly took off in its own direction. It took the gothic atmosphere of Resident Evil, based the mechanics on … Continue reading Review: Devil May Cry: HD Collection
[Originally posted on PopMatters] Last week, Daniel Tovrov wrote a piece for Popmatters on the cult of iconic movie “bad guys”.1 Through the characters of Gordon Gekko of Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, Tony Montana of Scarface, and Patrick Bateman of American Psycho, Tovrov argues that, even though these figures are cautionary tales about unchecked … Continue reading Playing the Bad Guy Feels Good
[Originally posted on PopMatters] Fighting games are the old video game aristocracy. Once they were mighty rulers that had enormous influence on the medium’s direction. but after years of inbreeding to keep the bloodline pure, there remain only a few disfigured vestiges desperately trying to stay relevant in a world that has been perfectly content … Continue reading Review: Mortal Kombat Komplete edition
[Originally posted on PopMatters] In the weeks after the release of Mass Effect 3, the drama around its unsatisfying ending went to some interesting places. After some discussion over whether or not the ending ought to change1, the conversation muted into whether or not it should be “allowed” to change. And ultimately, the question became, … Continue reading The Undead Author: Artistic Ownership of Games
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