I just got this e-mail from Capcom's PR department:
It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. www.residentevil.com/kijuju It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju. It came from Kijuju.
And on and on for like 50+ more times.
I like this, though. It brings to mind a bit the days of early Resident Evil yore. "Today I see Steve. He have ugly face so I kill him. Tasty."
RE5 is defintely (obviously) on the "Games to watch in 2009" list. A write-up of said list should appear in one of the first issues of the DT next semester, so look out for that.
Monday, December 08, 2008
It came from where?
Saturday, November 29, 2008
The Worst Story Never Told
About an hour ago, while packing up for my trip back to Lubbock, I felt something. Something ancient and mystical, calling me.
"Child," it said to me. "Grown one, wisened one, keeper of stories and teller of tales." It used many names and titles.
I turned toward the call, my eyes resting on a small cabinet beside my bed.
"Open me, find me, release me," it implored. Who am I to disobey such a call?
Inside, admist several folders, binders, notebooks and GameBoy game manuals, a thin, manilla envelope shone brightly in the darkness.
Inside that envelope, I found a single page... of the worst piece of fiction ever created.
(Yes, Young Inklings, that's counting certain stories about talking snakes and detective stories that take place in the future.)
I know not when this page was created - it had to have been 1st, 2nd, or 3rd grade - or the full extent on the evils it could unleash on the world, but regardless, I submit it to you now for your personal enjoyment. It is raw, unedited, and unfinished. The beginning to what I just KNEW was going to be an epic.
Even then, I apparently dreamed big. Foolish young writer.
What I may find funniest is that for some reason I gave this story an ESRB rating (you know, the folks that rate video games with stuff like, "M for Mature") of "Kids To Adults," which came before the now-standard "E for Everyone." Why a book would have been rated by the ESRB I have no idea, but I felt it important to specify what age this story was appropriate for, I guess.
So without further ado, I present to you the unedited Page 1 of "The Game."
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Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
The Soldier, the Lady, and the Ally
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've realized lately that I've gotten WAY off track with my fiction writing. I could blame a lot of thigs for this, not the least of which being school, but the truth is that you should make time for the things you care about... I should have been making more time for this.
So to start getting back on track, I've been "exercising," as it were. Flexing my writing muscles by writing completely random scenes and such. I'd rather make sure I'm warmed up and back in full form before I start back into heavy "Tobias" writing, or pump out a short story idea that I've been pretty excited about lately.
So this is kinda the first bit of random writing I've been doing. More may come, depending on whether or not I end up happy with the results. I have a lot of scenes bouncing around in my head that simply dont belong to any known narrative (this is why much of my random crap doesn't have things such as names for the characters), so I may just type them up and see what happens.
----------------------------
The soldier sat as still and silent as he could, not daring to make a sound. He risked a glance behind him and saw her chest moving rhythmically up and down as she breathed deep.
He smiled. She was asleep. Finally.
A sleep too deep for dreams. Or nightmares.
He sighed and turned back to the task at hand. It had been some time since the magic had fully shown itself to him. Fully allowed him to take control. But he had felt something now, he was sure of it.
Something had nudged him. Letting him know it was still there, wanting to help.
He closed his eyes, concentrating. Find the strand… He let his mind flow over the room, picking, probing, searching… Not even entirely sure what he was looking for, only that it was calling him.
He jumped when he felt his mind brush against something in the air in front of him. In that instant, his concentration was broken and he lost… whatever it was. He nearly cursed, but didn’t want to risk waking the girl
He took a few deep breaths before trying again. It was easier this time, knowing where to look. He sent his mind out like fingers, their tips delicately examining every molecule in front of his face. Frisking the very fabric of the universe to find the magic that called to him.
The fingers caught again. Something rough, out of place.
He was excited – it had been so long – but he stayed focused. He sent the fingers of his mind forward just a little, pushing against the invisible wall they had found.
It wouldn’t budge. He couldn’t feel even the slightest give to his force.
He narrowed his eyes and concentrated again. This used to be so much easier.
Find the strand… he told himself.
Ever so slowly, he felt along the invisible wall. He could tell that it wasn’t one solid piece, but rather more like something was woven. Woven into the air itself. Not physical, but magical. Supernatural. The kind of thing angels are made of.
He grasped at the fabric.
Found the strand.
And pulled.
A sudden burst of light nearly blinded his eyes, but it lasted no more than a second. He quickly turned to the girl behind him, but she still slept soundly. Beautifully oblivious to the world as her body healed itself.
He breathed a sigh of relief before grinning to himself. Though somewhat neglected in recent weeks, his power was still there. He could still light up the darkness, at least, and his other skills were surely still accessible as well. It was harder than it used to be, but he would improve again.
It would just take time.
He quickly jotted down a message to the girl, letting her know of the breakthrough. He didn’t want to wake her now, and couldn’t stay until morning.
There was too much to do.
Satisfied, he rose slowly and walked over to her sleeping figure. He brushed a single hair out of her face before gently kissing her forehead. She moved ever so slightly toward him, but didn’t wake.
He left her room silently – thankful he wasn’t wearing noisy, heavy armor – and shut her door slowly behind him.
Outside, the soldier was unsurprised to see his ally keeping watch over the area, his back to the lady’s room as he stood at the balcony, gazing thoughtfully up at the stars.
“Still awake?” the soldier asked.
“Aye,” the ally replied simply, not yet looking at him. “As always.”
“Why aren’t you home?”
“I get lonely.”
The soldier nodded to himself. He understood. “Any news?”
The ally finally looked down as he sighed. “My front of the war fares poorly. We’re losing a lot of good men.”
The soldier frowned. “But you’ll break through.”
“Of course we will. We have to. But it’s hard to be happy about the situation.”
Again, the soldier understood.
The ally glanced at the girl’s door, then back to the soldier. “How is she?”
“She’ll be fine. She just needs to rest.”
The ally nodded and looked back toward the moonlit horizon. “I’m glad.”
The soldier sighed. “I know I haven’t been there for the others as much as I used to, and for that I--”
The ally cut him off. “Do you still serve our Lord?”
“Yes, of course.”
“And can you still use magic?”
That, of course, had just been reconfirmed. “Yes.”
“And will you still devote time to this war, knowing your role and playing it to the best of your ability?”
“For as long as I’m able.”
The ally looked at the soldier and gave a soft smile. “Then you’ve done nothing wrong, and have no need to apologize.”
“But I’ve been so focused on my own problems,” the soldier started. “Everything seems to be falling apart, more and more as each day passes. And sometimes I feel like my mistakes are just making it worse.”
“A hero isn’t someone who doesn’t fall… It’s someone who’s able to get back up again. In defeat, they don’t look down, but up.” The ally walked toward the soldier and put a hand on his shoulder. “We’ve all stumbled lately, my friend. The world wants to break us more and more, and it feels like our world is falling apart as a result. But you and I? We keep getting up again.” He lowered his hand back down to his side. “And as long as you vow to continue doing that, you’re still a hero in my book.”
The soldier smiled. “And you in mine.”
They stood together on the balcony, enjoying the peaceful night sky.
As they stood, another warrior, beaten and bloody, came riding up to the city gates. He sat straight and proud on his mount, stronger having been through battle.
“Our bard returns,” the soldier commented, cheerful to see another comrade again.
His ally nodded, but still wore a somber expression. “Yes, but there are still so many that are drifting, and many more still that could serve so well, if only they would enlist! In these days I wonder… Can we really succeed? Are we really strong enough?”
“We have to be,” the soldier replied. “The dark is rising, yes. What will come will come. But this is the way it was meant to be.”
The ally chuckled. “That old creed…”
“It’s true.”
“I know.”
The soldier looked back toward the girl’s door, as if staring at it would let him see that she was still alright.
The ally followed his gaze and said, “Don’t worry. You’ll protect her if she needs it.” Then he grinned. “This is the way it was meant to be.”
“Touché.”
“We’ll make it, my friend. We’ll win in the end.”
The soldier nodded. “We’ll go together.”
They looked back toward the horizon as a new day dawned, ready and waiting for the things that would come.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Saturday, November 15, 2008
First Footage of Jake Gyllenhaal as the Prince of Persia
Entertainment Tonight scored a first look at Disney's upcoming video adaptation "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" starring Jake Gyllenhaal, due out in 2010.
I've been keeping a bit of an eye on it, because as far as movie adaptations goes, this one COULD maybe have potential... I know that's said a lot, and that most of us wish that the Peter Jackson produced "Halo" film was still moving forward, but alas...
Movie producing megastar Jerry Bruckheimer is helming this one. He also produced the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, and interestingly, he's expressed that he wants "Prince of Persia" to be kinda the same... Only in Persia.
Despite making a somewhat weird choice in casting Gyllenhaal rather than a REAL Persian (and believe it or not, a legitimate Persian prince is an actor that was rumored to be getting the role), but maybe, just maybe, he'll work out.
Unfortunately, this video shows little of the movie other than plenty of opportunities for women everywhere to swoon over Jake's newly ripped physique.
Vid is here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOIDMKVwF8E
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Need to Relax? Chill Out? Slow Down? This Vid is for You.
Sometimes we just take life way too fast...
And it's times like those that we need to just slow down, take things in stride, and just relax.
When I need to relax, I watch this video of this dude beating Sonic 1 (via Sonic Jam on the Sega Saturn) on Easy Mode. He gives profound life lessons along the way.
It's life changing, bro. Sometimes when I'm stressed, I just let the soothing voice of this video play in the background while I get other stuff done.
Gotta thank Jeff over at Giant Bomb for sharing this deep, thought provoking video with the rest of us: http://www.giantbomb.com/news/laid-back-video-of-the-week/465/
Monday, November 03, 2008
Slave of the Serpent and the Servant
Author's Note: I don't write poetry... At all. So this is an extreme oddity and something you should all feel privileged to witness.
Ok, maybe not.
It's rough, it's iffy, and it's obvious that I don't know what I'm doing when it comes to this whole "rythym" and "structure" business. I'll stick to fiction in the future, no doubt.
But this is something that, for whatever reason, started telling itself to me awhile back. It came in small bits and pieces over time until finally the rest of it decided to pour out onto a Word document.
I guess God's just gotta shake things up in my head every now and then. Make me do something crazy. But it works out in the end, as life in general has a way of doing...
What will come, will come. We just have to meet it when it does.
This is the way it was meant to be.
- Britton Peele
The Slave of the Serpent and the Servant
Once there was a wunderkind
A jack of every trade.
And all these skills had served him well
So long as this man prayed.
But a Serpent ruled his world
With violence, sin, and brawn
Who couldn’t stand to see him rise
So he would make this queen a pawn.
This man’s potential haunted him
He could never make a choice
Saw truth in every argument
And couldn’t hear God’s voice.
In search for deeper meaning
He fell deeper into sin,
And with this sin came sorrow
The likes in which he hadn’t been.
The Serpent had a Servant
Who came as black and grey.
He said, “I can make you happy, sir
If I just come out and play.”
So the Servant drove the Puppet mad
Blurring lines between friend and foe.
Made the Puppet act out normally
So no one else would know.
He was helped while on his road
But seen only as betrayed.
Though many chances he was given
His life became worn and frayed.
A Prophet came from far away
To set the Puppet straight,
The Prophet pleaded for his soul
But may have been too late.
One day the Puppet was torn to shreds
The Servant told him, “See?
They cannot care or understand,
Just place your faith in me.”
But the Puppet, he still had a heart
Though now beaten, black and blue.
The Servant wasn’t happy, and said,
“Can’t have your cake and eat it too!”
The Puppet was found oh so torn
Filled both with hate and love.
Screaming ever louder
For help from up above.
But the Serpent and the Servant
Had him locked in evil ways.
Until he strengthened and escaped
He would be destined for the blaze.
If he listens to the Servant
He’ll consign himself to death.
Lies of ever happiness
Will be his dying breath.
His mind is splintered, fractured, sure,
Bouncing off the walls.
But what he often fails to realize
Is that every angel falls.
Deeper, darker, deeper still
Into the black abyss.
Far from friends, from Lord, from happy thoughts
Far flung from lover’s kiss.
More heartbreak came, from ones once dear
He cried, “They cannot understand!”
He’d give up, scorn, patronize
Not address the matter at hand.
He looked close at everyone
And could find naught but lies,
But he saw them through tinted lens
And not through heaven’s eyes.
For if he would glance closer
He would find more love and hope,
But he wasn’t close enough to see
Not through the Servant’s scope.
He looked at lives around him
And couldn’t see their point,
What filled his friends with happiness
Felt like a knife into his joint.
As each day passed and misery grew
Hope wore more and more thin,
Descent, to him, wasn’t an “if”
It was rather an issue of “when.”
Whether or not he finds the light
Is not for friends to say,
Forced to merely stand and watch
And hope he finds his way.
The lives they lead may cause him pain
And confuse him further still,
But they know their lives have meaning
This ride is more than just a thrill.
And so do – choose life and live
Pursuing chosen path,
They hope their friend will do the same
Or suffer the Serpent’s wrath.
He walks alone – or so he feels
Seeking what is true,
Voices always telling him,
“The world ends with you.”
Friday, October 31, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Britton's Writing Week: Starting Now
Hey, remember when I used to write a lot more stuff that was visible to the public?
Like, blog entries? Maybe more reviews and columns?
Yeah, those were good days.
In a sort of throw-back to old times, this week is "Writing Week". 5 reviews (for all 5 days that the Daily Toreador runs) and at least one column, if I can manage it.
The action will start being posted tomorrow (or, today around midnight) with my review of Dead Space. Here's a preview: It's freakin' amazing.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Updates
Long time no write.
I (hopefully) don't have long. I'm waiting on some other people before I can finish up here at work. Newsrooms are crazy business.
That said, some short updates are all you really need:
Work at the DT is fine. Hopefully I'll be writing more in the near future. In the next two weeks alone I'll be reviewing: Mega Man 9 (XBLA), Game Party 2 (Wii), and Season 3 of Robot Chicken (which I've never, ever seen). Best part: I haven't spent a cent on them, so I really am getting paid to review stuff at this point. Yay!
School sucks. Latin is hard. Very much so, actually.
Ummm... Books are good? Writing is slow. Hopefully that'll pick up.
Oh, sweet, dude is done editing my page. I'm out! More updates later, maybe.
Thursday, October 09, 2008
Monday, September 22, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
War of the World - Part 2
This is Part II of a story I never actually intended to finish when I started it. But now it has a middle (which will be continued from here), and quite possibly even an ending. So, since it was asked of me, I'm going to continue and see where it takes me.
In case you missed it, Part I of "The War of the World" can be found here: http://www.brittonpeele.com/2008/09/war-of-world-part-1.html
You would do well to read it if you want to have any idea what's going on.
- Britton Peele
II
Ashes to ashes…
Dusk to dust.
As the sun rose higher, the world grew hotter. Maybe this was hell after all. We had been walking for what felt like hours at least, and seemed to be getting absolutely nowhere.
“Why won’t you just let me die?” I asked Dennis more than once.
“Because the man in charge ‘aint done with you yet,” he would reply.
“Where are we going?”
“Town,” Dennis replied simply.
The sword he had handed me seemed to weigh heavier in my hand with each passing step. “Why the hell am I carrying this damned thing?” I asked.
“There’s a brutish fellow causing a ruckus in town,” Dennis explained. “Drunkard, brawler, womanizer… You need to take care of him.”
I stopped dead in my tracks, planting my feet firmly in the sand. “I need to what?”
Dennis stopped when I did, walked a few steps back to me, and planted his arm firmly on my shoulder. “Think of it this way. If you can’t do it, there’s a good chance you’ll die. And that’s what you want, right?”
Touché… Sort of.
“Why me?” I asked. As if the things I was experiencing could get any weirder. Was I supposed to be some sort of hero now? That wouldn’t exactly fit in with my lifestyle.
“You’ll see,” came the reply. “But you’re the only one who can stop him.”
How helpful.
“So when we get to town…” I began.
“We’re here,” Dennis interrupted.
I don’t know how or when it happened, but I looked up from the sandy tops of my shoes to see that a small town (or would “village” be more accurate?) now occupied the once empty horizon.
“How…”
“This way,” Dennis said as he trudged onward toward the buildings.
The town seemed simple enough. Very old-fashioned – practically medieval – and mostly made of wood. People walked around in simple clothing, with most of the women in long dresses and the men garbed in tunics. They moved to-and-fro in the streets, occasionally jostling one another as they performed their duties. Their lives moved ever onward, not a care in the world.
What a perfect place to wage a war.
But the way Dennis described this place, this world between worlds, implied that the war was already going on. You could never guess that from the people here. Were they oblivious to the events around them, or was something else going on here?
I was about to ask about this when we apparently arrived at our destination. Dennis stopped in front of a large building with the word “Tavern” on the front. No clever name, no claim to ownership… It merely was what it was.
“He’s in there,” Dennis said, nodding toward the tavern door.
I stared at the door for several seconds before looking back at Dennis. “That’s it? No explanation, no advice, no guidance?”
“What do you think I am? An oracle?”
“I don’t know what the hell you are, or what this place is, or why I’m even convinced that any of this is really happening! How do I know that I didn’t really pull that trigger? Maybe I’m not quite dead, and this is all one big shock and drug induced fever dream.”
“Maybe.”
I almost wanted to strangle him.
“Doesn’t change what you have to do,” he continued. “This is your task, whether you’re awake or dreaming.” He opened the door and motioned for me to enter. “Come.”
What choice did I have?
The noise in the tavern was deafening in comparison to the silence of the desert – or the emptiness of my apartment. There were just so many people in that one place at once…
I was never a huge fan of people.
Dennis exchanged polite nods with several of the patrons, as well as someone who appeared to be the tavern master. He had obviously been here before. None of the same people even gave me a first glance, much less a second one.
We walked through a crowd of people who were talking, drinking, singing, and even dancing. The whole scene made me feel slightly uncomfortable.
“That’s him,” Dennis said after quickly scanning the room.
I followed his gaze to the man I could only assume was my apparent target. A large, muscular man who was quickly downing what must have been at least his seventh mug of beer or ale or… whatever they drank here. Two women in rather suggestive clothing hung on either side of him, rubbing their hands over every inch of his body.
Drunkard, check. Womanizer, check.
Brawler… Guess it was time to see.
“Recognize him?” Dennis asked.
I found the question odd. I had never seen anyone who looked like this man before. “No.”
A sad smile tugged at the side of his lips. “You will.”
“So am I supposed to just walk up and pick a fight or what?” I asked. If so, it would be good that I had the sword, despite not knowing a thing about how to use it. I would never stand a chance against the brute with fists alone.
“He needs to die,” Dennis answered.
He said it so casually and so callously that I was a bit taken aback. I lowered my voice, afraid that someone would hear us conspiring. They would have to pick out our conversation amidst what sounded like hundreds, but I was still worried. “He’ll tear me to pieces!”
Dennis shrugged. “Not if you’re smart about it. You may recall that Goliath was bigger than David. This is nothing in comparison.”
“What do you want me to do, throw a rock at the man and cut off his head in front of all these people?”
“You could.”
“Damn it, Dennis!” I said in as loud a whisper as I could manage. This was crazy. Insane, even. It wasn’t as much the idea of taking this man’s life – he may, indeed, have deserved it – as much as it was the thought of his blood being on my hands. I wanted to go unnoticed, uncared about. This would draw too much attention. “I’m not doing this!” I declared firmly.
Dennis frowned. “You’re scared?”
“That’s not the point, but yes.”
He sighed. “Fine. We’ll leave.”
That was it? We could just go? I could decide to walk away?
Immediately, the world grew quiet. The clinking of glasses stopped. Conversations ceased. Music refused to play.
The crowd to my right parted as someone made his way toward the brute I was supposed to kill. People looked upon the newcomer with confusion, with awe, with concern… With fear.
I was with the ones who were confused. Confused and shocked.
It wasn’t a monster or a warrior or even a woman who stepped through the crowd, but a boy. Young. Simply dressed. Short hair. Couldn’t have been more than thirteen, at oldest. Had a strange air of familiarity around him.
Yet he was walking right up to the brute, both determination and apprehension on his face.
“Mr. Hyde,” Dennis said barely above a whisper, “meet Dr. Jeckle.”
I looked from Dennis to the brute to the boy, trying to put the pieces together. Suddenly the realization of what was happening hit me like a brick. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Dennis didn’t look away from the silent confrontation in front of him. “If you won’t fight and kill him, the boy will.”
“That’s insane! He’ll be squashed like a bug!”
“He has to try. If he doesn’t, he’ll die.”
“If he does he’ll die!”
“He may win. You never know.”
I wanted to pull my hair out, but restrained myself. “I thought you said I was the only one who could kill him!”
Dennis gave one small, short chuckle before looking at me. “You still don’t see, do you?”
“See what?!?”
“He’s you, brother,” Dennis replied as if it were the simplest thing in the world. “The boy and the brute… They’re both you.”
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
War of the World - Part 1
Author's Note: I say "Part 1" in the title of this blog because this story hardly has an ending. However, that doesn't mean it will ever continue.
It's a story that told itself to me during a class today, but what you see is the entirety of what was told. As the story has stopped telling itself, I refuse to force it out, calling it forth from whatever depths it came. Whether or not it will continue and/or conclude is up to the story itself, as well as the One who tells these tales to me.
So you probably don't want to expect any more parts to this narrative. It is what it is, and that's all that it is.
- Britton Peele
I sat quiet in the darkness, the cold steel of the weapon pressing hard into my palm. My body was shaking ever so slightly, but I controlled it. I had become accustomed to controlling certain motions and expressions.
They wouldn’t know. They couldn’t know. No one would ever understand. I would only see the immense disappointment on their faces as their hearts sank, so ashamed they would be at what I had become.
So I hid it.
Maybe they’ll award me a posthumous Oscar.
This was it, then. No more pain, misery, confusion, doubt, or struggle. The millions upon millions of stray thoughts bounding incessantly on the inside of my head would finally stop. No more voices, no more manic laughter, no more uncontrollable desires… No more worries or obligations. I could finally get some rest. This would be the way my world ends.
Not with a whimper, but a bang.
Safety off. Finger on the trigger. Now or never. Time to bore the thoughts out.
Couldn’t control the shaking this time. So easy in theory, but so hard in practice.
Time to die. Pull the trigger.
Click.
Damn.
No bullet in the chamber. Just another thing for me to screw up.
I had originally intended to just wait until I died of other causes, but that was taking too long. Chaos was taking over far too quickly. Funny how most people don’t even see how quickly the world around them is falling apart.
But I do.
One more try. Nothing left to lose, nothing left to gain. There would just be…
Nothing.
I was sure I had pulled the trigger. Is this what death felt like? Was I dead before my brain had time to tell my body it should be writhing in agony?
That’s almost a disappointment. I really deserved the pain.
I opened my eyes slowly, not entirely sure what to expect. My apartment, probably. Damn gun probably didn’t fire.
All I could see was barren plain in every direction. It might have been purgatory, because it sure as hell wasn’t heaven.
Not that they’d want me in the pearly gates anyway. I’d only muddy up the streets of gold.
No, wherever this place was, it wasn’t heaven, and it wasn’t my apartment unless a nuke had gone off and someone forgot to warn me.
It was in this desert that I met Dennis.
“Nah, you’re not dead,” Dennis told me when I stumbled upon him. “Least not yet. You gotta learn a lot about yourself before you decide whether or not you really wanted to pull that trigger.”
The gun in my hand had been long gone. Vanished when I arrived wherever it was that I was. “Then where am I?”
“The war between the worlds,” he answered simply. “Or the war of the world, you might say. You’re not here, you’re not there… You don’t know what or where you are, which in your case might not be that different from the world you’re used to.”
“Then why am I here?”
“You tell me,” Dennis said, resting his foot up on a large rock in the middle of the expansive nothing. “Why are you here? What are you looking for?”
I didn’t answer. Dennis prodded me further.
“You got a job?”
“Not really.”
“A home?”
“Lonely.”
“A woman?”
This struck a nerve.
“Ah. Lost her, huh? That’s a common one.”
“Look, I,” I started, trying to defend myself.
Dennis raised his hands. “Hey, hey, it’s not really my place to know. Maybe you’re like most of the male population and screwed things up. Maybe you don’t really know what went wrong. Maybe this girl was just a bitch. There’s a whole host of possibilities. But what’s done is done. No use killing yourself over it.”
I clenched my fist. “I’m not killing myself over her. Even though she was…”
“What, your life? Your everything? That’s what they all say, brother, and it’s only true a bit of the time. To be honest, usually when it doesn’t work out like this, it wasn’t really meant to be. Especially for you. You’re young. The younger ones typically find someone that’s more suitable for them in a shorter amount of time than they expected. Or sometimes they give up the opposite sex all together.”
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to ask what this meant, but Dennis caught himself. “No! No! They aren’t gay, man. I mean single. Celibate. Unmarried and abstaining. Do try to keep up. That life isn’t for everyone anyway.”
He was silent for a minute before speaking again. “Ah, but the girl was just the catalyst, wasn’t she? This had been building for quite some time. Something up there,” he bounced over to me and tapped me hard on the head, “has gone wrong. Has been for awhile, building and building and building until BAM!” he slapped his hands together with force, “You burst.”
He knew a lot. More than any other random stranger who casually decides to strike up conversation about potential mental abnormalities.
“So,” he said lightly. “Did you come here to fix it?”
I blinked. He made it sound so simple. Like my only problem was that I just hadn’t tried. But I decided to bite. “Can I?”
Dennis shrugged. “Depends on whether or not you’re actually seeking.”
“Seeking what?”
“The truth, of course. How do you expect to fix your life if you don’t have basic knowledge of how life itself works? You need to seek truth, light, salvation… God.”
I scoffed. “God’s voice is faint at best.”
Dennis stroked his bare chin. “Well, now. How do you expect to find God if you don’t know what he sounds like?”
He lost me.
“Looks like you’ve got a lot to learn, man,” Dennis said to me. “But are you willing to try?”
There weren’t a lot of options. On one hand, if I just ignored him, there was the good chance that I would eventually just die. For real this time. Could I still die from starvation in this place?
On the other hand… If there was any hope…
“Yes,” I said. “I’m willing.”
Dennis grinned. With his left hand, he held out a sword in a sheath that I didn’t see him carrying before now. In his right hand, he offered to shake mine.
“Well then, brother,” he said. “Welcome to the war.”
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Let the Games Begin
So... Just today I realized that Mercenaries 2 is coming out... Well, today. A Sunday. Which is kinda odd.
Tuesday? Viva Pinata 2 and Infinite Undiscovery. Thankfully Viva Pinata is releasing for the "low" low price of $40, which is extremely awesome. Thanks, Rare.
But still... Sheesh, is the year-end rush starting already? Because if I remember correctly, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is next week, in addition to who knows what else. I haven't looked at a schedule in awhile. I've been so caught up with Xbox Live Arcade downloadable titles (by the way, a Braid post may have to come at some point, and Castle Crashers is awesome) that I haven't looked in retail's direction.
I outright skipped Too Human (which I hear is just alright) and Tales of Vesperia (which I hear is great), and that kind of makes me sad as it is. Now I'm sure I have to skip at least one of this week's releases. Infinite Undiscovery, maybe? I mean, do I have time to play through an RPG right now?
I guess we'll see. Good thing I actually have a job this semester. Shame I also have bills.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Friday, August 22, 2008
Some Reminders
So give thanks to Arovis,
Give thanks to the Three,
For this is the way it was meant to be.
- Talebearer Creed, Britton Peele's Talebearer Trilogy
"There is a design, hidden in the chaos as it may be, but... It's there. And you have your place in it."
- Wesley, Angel
"A man who becomes conscious of the responsibility he bears toward a human being who affectionately waits for him, or to an unfinished work, will never be able to throw away his life. He knows the 'why' for his existence, and will be able to bear almost any 'how'."
- Victor Frankl
"Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved."
- Helen Keller
"To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket -- safe, dark, motionless, airless -- it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable. "
- C.S. Lewis
"A good friend can tell you what is the matter with you in a minute. He may not seem such a good friend after telling."
- Arthur Brisbane, "The Book of Today"
"I no doubt deserved my enemies, but I don't believe I deserved my friends."
- Walt Whitman
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.
If you point these things out to the brothers, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.
This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe.
Command and teach these things. Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.
Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
- 1 Timothy 4
In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:
Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.
But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.
- 2 Timothy 4:1-5
Monday, August 18, 2008
Ink of the Faithful, Blood of the Fallen
He sat in silence as the sun went down, the wood beneath him creaking on the few occasions that he made much of a movement. He merely sat, idly twirling his blade as he counted the breaths that moved in and out of his lungs, slowly filling his chest to capacity before flattening again.
At two hundred and forty one breaths, the truth hit him more fully than before, sickening his stomach and nearly making him shake.
At four hundred and sixty seven breaths, he was panicked, still unmoving as he was. Would he fail? Would he be forced to stand by as the beautiful city fell? Worse, would he become the villain, and not the hero? Would the soldier fall, taking some of his comrades with him?
At one thousand and nineteen breaths, the fear had ebbed. It was still there, but it had been moved behind more important things. The sickness had left him... For the time being. He was himself again, and knew that he would be able to weather the storm.
It was only a matter of how.
He could feel the angel behind him, not showing itself or speaking aloud, but offering what support it could... Which was all that was needed.
He decided to voice one of his many questions aloud. "Will I be able to save them?"
No answer. That was expected. Why should he, of all people, be told what would come to pass? Multiple potential futures, maybe... But nothing more.
After a moment he got a response. Not what he wanted, but it was something. "They have to save themselves... They have to let Him work."
The soldier sighed. Careful not to wake the others, he rose and walked to the window. The floor squeaked underneath him, but he hoped the sound fell on deaf ears. Let them sleep.
He gazed longingly at the city expanse before him, shining beautifully as the setting sun cast its light on the buildings at just the right angle.
"So blessed," he said to both himself and to the angel. "I've been offered so much... So much potential and so many possibilities. And yet I always find myself wanting what is worst for me."
The angel, unmoving behind him, said, "Others before you have made their mistakes. But still you can rise above them. Do what they did not, and do not do what they did."
The soldier sighed. "You speak of greatness, and yet I can't even save the ones closest to me... The ones I want by my side at the front line. How, then, can I help others?"
There was no movement by the spirit, but he felt its arms wrap lovingly, protectively around him. "That is not for you to know. Not yet. Perhaps you will help the ones you love, or perhaps they will be reclaimed by another."
The soldier closed his eyes. The pain, worry and sickness was threatening to encroach again. "Or else they fall, and I live life wondering if and how I could have stopped it."
There was no response from the angel. He took that as a solemn agreement.
"Do any of us even deserve grace, considering what each of us has done?"
The angel held the soldier tighter. "It wouldn't be grace if you deserved it."
"I need help. I'm dangerously close to breaking. I wasn't meant to handle this much."
"You are given precisely what you can handle, even if you do not think it at the time," replied the angel. "And you are not alone. You have Him. You have your comrades... And there will be others. Friends, partners, a lover... All in due time."
His mind raced through all the images of those closest to him. The men and women he would always live for. Fight for. Die for. Relationships of all kinds, yet none more important than the other.
He took several deep breaths, calming himself before the fear of the future overtook him. "As it was told..." he began.
"So it shall be," the angel finished. "Do you see what I see?"
A single star appeared in the darkening sky, brighter than any he had seen before. A beacon, he was sure. Leading him to something... His future? Salvation?
The shock of exhaustion hit him like a brick. He could fall asleep then and there if he wasn't sure that doing so would result in a painful fall.
There was so much to do... It was both exciting and terrifying.
But he was not alone.
And he would stand tall, victorious, with his loved ones at his side.
They would all stumble, and it was possible some would fall, but he would do everything in his power to bring them all up again... As he knew they would do for him.
Mistakes would be made, love would be lost, lives would be mourned... But as long as he lived, he would make sure that each and every one of his group would stand tall in the end.
Together.
This? This was the way it was meant to be.
As long as they all would see.
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Dawn Broke At Midnight
My sister and I made the trek out to the local Wal-Mart earlier this evening to pick up Breaking Dawn, the 4th book in Stephanie Meyer's Twilight Saga. Like Harry Potter before it, it released at midnight, 'cuz the buzz was big!
We were the only ones there.
Granted, we live in a very small area, but the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows launch at the same Wal-Mart at least had a line. This was totally a non-event. We just walked up to a lady unloading boxed full of the books and said, "Uhhh, can we grab a couple of those from you?"
Lady then said, "Not until 12:01."
(Note: It was 12:01 as she said this.)
So I looked at the other nearby books for a couple minutes (there are a LOT of Hannah Montana books, apparently. And they practially lined an entire shelf) before the lady handed us our spoils.
Then we checked out and left.
Thus, victory was achieved.
I'm sure the book will be great, though. My sister is already reading it. I'm probably gonna wait until work tomorrow, 'cuz I totally read on the job.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Dr. Horrible Is Back On The Interwebz!
http://www.hulu.com/watch/28343/dr-horribles-sing-along-blog
Yay for Hulu! I'm still buying the DVD when it comes out (with a 4th episode?!?), and this may (once again) only be online for a short time, so you shouldn't hesitate to watch it now that you have no excuse. It's probably the best online musical about a supervillain who blogs that I've ever seen.
From "Buffy" and "Firefly" creator Joss Whedon. Starring Neil Patrick Harris, Nathan Fillion and Felicia Day. Watch it. Kinda makes me wanna write a musical, until I realize that I can't write music or lyrics to save my life... Thank God my life will probably never rely on me writing music or lyrics.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
From E3: Wanted
No sooner did I see "Wanted" with my dad just yesterday and say, "Wow, that could probably make a pretty good video game, if video games based on movies were ever good!" and then I came home to see that it is going to be a video game. Yay for E3 news and me totally calling a game announcement... In my mind.
I've been meaning to write up WAY more E3 impressions this week, but my internet connection has been a real *insert naughty word here* and isn't working half the time, so I'm having trouble just keeping up with everything as much as I normally like. But I'm a bit more up to speed now, so maybe I'll write something up after work. There's some good looking stuff out there...
And no more than an hour ago Shigeru Miyamoto went all crazy at a developer roundtable and basically said, "I'll announce a new Pikmin Wii game when I'm good and ready," and then apparently was good and ready and said quite simply (and I quote), "We're making Pikmin." So yay for that. 'cuz while Wii Motion Plus looks great, and I'll totally play another Animal Crossing, and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars on the DS is huge news... Nintendo's press conference was kinda crappy.
Anyways, I'll probably talk about all this and more in more detail than most of you will care for at a later date.
Friday, July 11, 2008
E3 Interlude - Pre-show Wacky Game Announcement
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Sacrifice was announced earlier today for the Nintendo DS. I have a rather strange obsession for the show - even though I didn't get into it until after the series had concluded. I watched the whole thing on DVD - so this somewhat off-the-wall news caught my eye immediately. Kinda makes me want to start going through my collection of nearly twenty "Buffy" related novels (most of them unread, sadly. Many of them given to me as a single gift from my mom for Christmas) to get back into that universe. Vampire slaying is fun! Especially if a ridiculously cute blonde chick is doing it.
In other not-related-to-E3 news, my mom picked up the Day Watch DVD for me today, which I've yet to see, so I think tomorrow night may be dedicated to watching Night Watch, then Day Watch. We shall see.
Pre-E3 Blog - Anticipations
Long time no blog. It's been kinda a weird month.
Anyway, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is mere days from now, an while it's a much quieter affair than in years past (though it's back in LA, unlike last year when they made it WAY quiet), it's still set to be extremely eventful as far as video game coverage goes. Big announcements (and hopefully big suprises) are always a big deal, and news, previews, screenshots, and videos come by the truckload.
What follows is a brief, off-the-top-of-my-head-at-2:30AM list of games I hope to see coverage of from the show, as well as games that I hope to see (but may not). It's far, FAR from a list of everything these companies will be showing, it's just some of the known (or rumored) stuff that's caught my interest.
I'm going to try to make a prediction post on Sunday, the day before Microsofts press conference, when all hell begins to break loose. Nintendo and Sony have press conferences on Tuesday, and the expo itself begins on Wednesday, with amazing events such as a keynote address by my very own (Texas) Governer Rick Perry (?!?). Still not sure who made that decision, but hey, it could be interesting.
Microsoft:
New Halo Title (?) (Peter Jackson's Halo Chronicles?) (360)
Halo Wars (360)
Gears of War 2 (360)
Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts (360)
Fable II (360)
Avatars - Microsoft's answer to Miis (360)
Lips (only because the Elite Beat Agent guys are supposedly making it) (360)
Alan Wake (please?) (360 & PC)
Crazy motion controller?!? (360)
Nintendo:
Animal Crossing (Wii)
Suprises (Nintendo is good at those. Kid Icarus?)
Fire Emblem (DS)
Kirby Superstar (DS)
Sony:
LittleBigPlanet (PS3)
Killzone 2 (PS3)
God of War III (?) (PS3)
Resistance 2 (PS3)
Square-Enix:
Chrono Trigger (DS)
Final Fantasy IV (even though it'll be out really soon) (DS)
Star Ocean 1 & 2 Ports (PSP)
Star Ocean 3 (360)
Anything Kingdom Hearts related
Ubisoft:
Assassins Creed 2 (360 & PS3)
Prince of Persia (360 & PS3)
Beyond Good & Evil 2
Far Cry 2 (360, PS3 & PC?)
Konami:
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia (DS)
Castlvania Judgement (Wii)
Capcom:
Mega Man 9 (Wii, XBLA & PS3)
Bionic Commando (360, PS3, & PC)
Bionic Commando Rearmed (360, PS3 & PC)
Resident Evil 5 (360 & PS3)
Street Fighter IV (360, PS3, PC & Arcade)
Bioware:
Dragon Age (PC)
Sonic Chronicles (DS)
MISC:
Fallout 3 (PC)
Fatal Frame 3 (Wii)
Mortal Komabt vs. DC Universe (360 & PS3)
Dead Space (360 & PS3)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (Everything)
Tomb Raider: Underworld (360 & PS3)
Spore (PC)
Sonic Unleashed
That's all I can think of right now... Hopefully I'll be super excited about some of the announced titles.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
I Lied
Despite my better judgement, I pulled the whole fanboy/idiot/future journalist thing and toughed it out to stay up for the big Blizzard announcement.
They announced Diablo III about three seconds ago.
I'm pretty stoked about it.
Apparently they showed a short trailer and are going to show a demo here in a minute. Which is all well and good, 'cept I can't see it.
Tomorrow... Tomorrow I will hopefully see how awesome it looks.
And I'll be awake enough to enjoy it.
Hath Hell Frozen?
I had originally intended to stay up to see the streams/liveblogs of Blizzard's Worldwide Invitational. It's starting in Paris at 11:45 AM over there. Blizzard.com has been teasing fans with very mysterioius images that have been linked to Warcraft, Starcraft, Diablo, and even Lost (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42). At the last year's invitational in Korea - the utter pantheon of StarCraft fandom - they did something similar right before announcing StarCraft II.
Apparently, Paris is big on the Diablo. Blizzard, the "Makers of Diablo and Diablo II" have been hiring. Richard A. Knaak, author of various Warcraft and Diablo novels, hinted strongly in the past that Blizzard was working on Diablo III.
The idea of finally seeing Diablo III has me extremely excited, which is why I was considering staying up to see the news break live.
Then I realized that 11:45AM in Paris is 4:45AM here.
I don't think I'm staying up.
There had better be images of demons on my computer screen when I wake up, so I can kill them. I'm going to be super disappointed if this announcement is something else.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Mega Cool!
The game is a slated to be a downloadable title on WiiWare (no mention of Xbox Live Arcade or PS3 versions. But this news is coming from Nintendo Power, so it's a possibility I guess), so there's a very good chance it's only gonna cost $5 or $10...
This is absolutely mind-blowing and amazing news. A lot of us "classic" gamers have discussed how cool it would be if certain companies took this approach with their classic franchises - say, if Nintendo made "Super Mario Bros. 4" a WiiWare game that was just a straight-up NES game... But I'm not sure I actually expected it to happen. Major, major props for Capcom.
Now, if you need proof that Satan exists, the same Nintendo Power issue revealed that the next Castlevania game (besides Order of Ecclesia on the DS, which looks phenomenal) would be on the Wii. Great news, right? Maybe they'd even do a 2D game like the exciting news above!!!
...but alas, the world is not always a kind place, and Castlevania Judgement on the Nintendo Wii is going to be a fighting game.
Yes. A fighting game. With characters such as Simon Belmont and Alucard.
Now, I DID want Simon in Smash Bros.... But this? This I'm not sure I can stand behind. It just strikes me as a horrible idea, and I have to wonder who came up with it.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Friday, June 20, 2008
Updates/Freelancing
This past week, I've been counting down the days until the newest "Alone in the Dark" game. The 5th in the series, but the bajillionth game to follow the lame and confusing "trend" of naming a new game in a series the name of the original game. You know, so new people don't feel left out! So you end up with multiple games called "Sonic the Hedgehog" (one was great and I grew up playing it. One sucks and I hated playing it!), multiple games called "Bionic Commando", and multiple games called "Alone in the Dark".
But while I'm stoked to play a new survival adventure game in the acclaimed series that essentially started that genre (even the horrible Uwe Boll movie can't tarnish that), reviews (all two of them) are only average, with some European players (the game is out over there, apparently) really disappointed with it (granted, this is the internet we're talking about). Still, these haven't diminished my desire to play the game... Not at all! But discussions about the length did... There has been made mention that the game lasts 6-10 hours, ish... Not horrible, but maybe not something I want to spend $60 on. I mean, if I did beat it in 6 hours (additional playthroughs for Achievement Points not withstanding), then that's like $10 an hour. So I'm going to wait for more reviews and/or see if there's any sweet deals for the game on it's release date next week. Maybe $10 off or something could entice me... Again.
See, ideally Atari would send ME a copy of the game for review, and I could be telling YOU whether or not it's worth the money. But alas, the folks at Atari (and several other companies) are still trying to figure out whether I'm actually a member of the press, and not just some kid wanting free games for the sake of free game.
Nintendo, on the other hand, has been super helpful so far, and the folks at Capcom are already saying, "Hey, uhhh... You want a download code for Commando 3 so you can review it for us?" Granted, I still haven't recieved said download code, but maybe they just don't want anymore less-than-stellar reviews on the net?
So anyway, since I probably won't be buying Alone in the Dark immediately, I took advantage of a sweet GameFly deal and ordered used copies of Devil May Cry 4, Burnout Paradise, and Clive Barker's Jericho for super cheap! Shhhh! Don't tell my parents I'm still spending money on games regularly! They won't understand that all three of these were cheaper than one new game, and that's totally why I bought them!
Anyways...
- In addition to the stuff I already do for the Daily Toreador, I'm going to try my hand at some freelance video game journalism. This would hopefully mean getting paid to write stuff for magazines and websites, like GameSpot.com if they're interested. Wish me luck, give me prayers, all that stuff. This is gonna have to be in God's hands, 'cuz while I can write, and I certainly know video games I don't know what I'm doing as far as the business end of it all goes.
- "The Awakening" will be shipped out to the Writers of the Future contest probably on Saturday. I'm... Iffy about it. I love the story, but really think it needs more time... Like 12 months, and an additional 60,000+ words, making it a novel and not a short story. But alas, I must force it out of the nest and see if it flies...
- "Time Shop" will also be shipped out on the same day (most likely), to who knows where. I haven't decided on which market I want my next rejection letter from yet. It might come down to posting all the publishers' names on a dart board and throwing knives at them, blindfolded.
- "Tobias" is back in production... Or will be once I stop being a lazy idiot and write the darn thing. Seriously, I have no one to blame but myself here... Myself and work, but that's kinda making excuses, isn't it?
- I'm about halfway through Ted Dekker's "Adam", and will probably finish it tomorrow. So far, it's absolutely INCREDIBLE. Very, very highly recommended.
I think that's all. I'm going to bed.
Saturday, June 14, 2008
Encouragement
So... The prayers have been working, I think. God has been using not only friends and family, but complete strangers to tell me, "Hey, you're on the right path. Keep going."
Today at work (for those that don't know, I watch over a community pool [read: sit and read/write all day]) I had a guy who started talking to me about my life and what I intended to do as a career. When I told him, "I'm a writer," he kinda gave me a look and said, "What, like, for film?"
I said, "Yeah, a bit. I want to focus on Fantasy novels, but film and video games are definitely on the 'to do' list."
He said, "That's really awesome! I've worked in the film industry for about 20 years now... Done a bit of everything. Acting, art direction..." Before I could say, "Wow, that's awesome," and ask for advice/tips/anything, he said, "Well, keep working. It will happen for you." And before I could even thank him, he just swam away. This man whom I'd never met told me - with a bizzare sort of confidence - to keep doing what I was doing, and that if I did, it would pay off. And then, with his message delivered, he just left.
So this kinda excited me, and I got to thinking about how to revise the plot for "Tobias", changing the parts that certain people didn't really like in order to hopefully make it more marketable.
That's when the mystery guy returned, passing me as he was getting ready to leave. Unprovoked, he said, "Keep up the writing. And hey, just write what you love, and don't worry about what anybody else thinks. That's the best way to go."
This time I was able to get a somewhat shocked, "Thank you," in before he vanished, never to be seen again... At least until some other day that I might see him.
And this isn't the only instance of this happening in the past few days. Heck, the day after I posted my prayer request, I was telling another guy that I write Fantasy, and he got SUPER excited, saying that that's mainly what he reads. Talking to him was pretty awesome.
I got in my car after work that day at 9, and on the Christian radio station I keep it on they were having a discussion about success - mostly in relation to jobs and stuff - , and made a point to mention that if you're following God, he'll put what you're supposed to do with you're life, and he'll make it happen. I was just able to catch this stuff at the end of the program as they were saying it.
So God has definitely been saying, "Yeah, I'm here, don't worry," and He's been using a lot of different people for that, and I'm EXTREMELY grateful to each and every one of them.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Why I Need a PS3
Metal Gear Solid 4 is out today... And I'm dying to see how Solid Snake's adventure ends. I've always loved the MGS games for their crazy stories composed of hours and hours of cutscenes and codec dialogue. They're stories of war that intrique me far more than any Tom Clancy novel has.
And heck, they got the movie voiceover guy for their trailer, so you KNOW it's epic!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Fun With Bricks
After seeing Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull with my family today, I was driven to purchase LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures for the Xbox 360, which I've been having tons of fun with. I never played the LEGO Star Wars games (though I really want "The Complete Saga"), but I see how interesting of a concept it is. So it's little wonder that they're milking it, with LEGO Batman coming in September, which should be awesome.
But it got me thinking... What other classic film - and even game - franchises would make good adaptations to the LEGO universe? Some ideas I'm fond of:
Movies
Lego Harry Potter (Probably my personal favorite. All 7 movies/books! Make it happen!)
Lego Lord of the Rings
Lego Matrix Trilogy (2nd favorite)
Lego Pirates of the Caribbean
Lego Godfather
Video Games
Lego Halo (the Apil Fools joke that was kinda a fun idea!)
Lego Grand Theft Auto
Lego Myst
...that's all I've got right now. What about you guys? Any awesome Lego game ideas?
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Call for Prayer - The Plot Needs to Thicken
Hey, guys. I know I do this a fair amount, but bear with me... I do think that it's extremely important, as well as exceedingly helpful.
A sane person might wait until morning to type up a post like this, but I feel an extreme pull to do it now, at 2AM. Take that as you will.
I really need prayer in regards to my writing. Specifically, I need help with:
1) Drive. While this is what I want to do with my life more than anything, more often than not it's really, REALLY hard to push myself to write every day, which leaves absolutely nothing done and helps nobody.
2) Creativity. God has given me the skills I need to make my goals happen... And they improve with each passing day. However, there are still a lot of times where I look at something I've written and said, "No, this sucks." Almost to my relief, a few of my test readers have agreed with me (without saying those words) and reaffirmed my belief that bits and pieces of "Tobias" really need work. This thing can't just be good, it has to be great if it's to stand ANY chance of doing what I want it to do. At the moment, it could be better. I need help getting where I'm going.
3) Luck/Being in the right place at the right time. Authors - even the skilled ones - in this industry can't just walk into Random House and say, "Hey, I've got a book trilogy. How many copies can you get into Barnes & Noble?" It's a lot tougher than that. And while I (somehow) have no doubt in my mind that it'll happen for me at some point...
3) Time/Speed. ...I'm having this voice in the back of my head lately telling me that sooner is going to be rather than later for this stuff. I don't exactly know the specifics - I'm no psychic or god - but I think that God is trying to tell me something... And I really feel like there are people out there that need my help, and that this whole bestselling-fantasy-novels-then-speeches-and-Christian-books-akin-to-Lewis plan is the best (if not only) way for me to get to them.
Now, I know that God isn't a fool... He'll get me where I need to be, without breaking a sweat. But I'm only human, and I could use some help. I have no doubt at all that prayer works - if it didn't, heck, I might not even be here now. And in the past when I've asked people to pray for me about this - be them family, friends, pastors, etc. - I've been MUCH more productive.
So I could use some of that now.
I know, somehow, that this is what I'm supposed to do. And I have no doubt at all that God has been starting to position and prepare me for it over my first year of college. For example:
- Meeting Stephen Graham Jones. Getting to sit down and talk to an author - one nominated for the Bram Stoker award no less - and having him give me tips (as well as lots of encouragement) was a pretty awesome thing for me.
- Getting the job at the Daily Toreador. I hadn't seeked out the position too much (much to my mother's grief), so God was forced to shove the "Help Wanted" ad down my throat. I had never written for a paper or anything really like it before, so I didn't have a clue what I was doing. The thought of writing a column (for which I knew none of the details. Heck, I'd barely read the DT) actually scared me a bit. So I just said, "God, if you want me to do this, give me the job, and I'll trust you. If not, just have them turn me down."
After a literal 5 minute meeting in which editor-in-chief Michelle Cassidy talked to me and glanced and the writing sample I'd brought, she offered me a job on the spot.
That would've been enough for most, but God had to be all like, "Nu-uh, dude! You 'aint done yet!" and so after only one semester of writing for the DT, departing opinions editor Britney Drumm offered me the job as her replacement. Something that terrified me (and still does, a bit), but I didn't see it entirely as a coincidence. So after some prayer, I accepted. God, I hope I don't screw that one up.
- Having an English teacher that was actually competent. That was pretty nice. What's more, she seems to have a graciously large amount of faith in my chances of making it in the literary world (she's a published poet, so she has at least some experience). As with Dr. Jones, Michelle, and Britney, that confidence really help me.
So yeah, if you guys could keep me in your thoughts and prayers for awhile, that'd be HUGE. I'm of course willing to return the favor (though I hope most of you know that I'd do it anyway), and would be extremely grateful... I've got a lot of projects planned and in progress: "Tobias", plus the rest of the Talebearer Trilogy, several short stories, and another project I'll talk about later (if things go well), all while working a lot this summer and then working at the DT when school starts again.
At least in my opinion, this kinda stuff beats partying and lollygagging any day of the week.
So thanks, guys. I hope I'll be able to share the fruits of all this labor with each and every one of you very soon. More importantly, though, I hope to be sharing the idea that it was God that put me on Letterman to talk about my book and the overall power of storytelling. There are a lot of things that I think far too few people hear, and this is my contribution to try to change that. Help wanted, as it's far from an easy task.
God bless you, every one.
- Britton
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Atlanta Nights
When I was looking up information on joining Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, Inc. I stumbled upon this masterpiece of a tale, in which a team of talented science fiction and fantasy authors get together to pen the worst novel they possibly can, and then get it accepted for publication by a seemingly shady publishing house.
Mission accomplished. The book was picked up. Even though chapter 34 was written by a text generator. Even though some characters die, then mysteriously show up again later without explination or thought. Even though characters idly change race, gender, and motivation.
We "Young Inklings" (that is, my buddies and me who pretend to be C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien) have read many a bad short story and "novel"... Atlanta Nights sounds like a unique piece that I should totally buy for our collection.
My favorite bit from this guys' review:
"But the book’s moment of true genius comes, not when one of the characters wakes up and realizes that all of the foregoing chapters were a dream, but when that happens AND THEN THE BOOK CONTINUES ANYWAY."
Now that's a plot twist...
Friday, May 30, 2008
Where I Belong
"I spoke to the prophets,
gave them many visions
and told parables through them."
- Hosea 12:10
Friday, May 23, 2008
Beer Pong... THE VIDEOGAME!
Yes, the Wii game that nobody asked for has finally been announced! Now you can play the popular college game Beer Pong... ON YOUR WII! There's no joke to be made there! None at all!
And that's not all! Developer JV Games is planning on making even more games like this, under the "Frat Party Games" label. As the Kotaku story says, "Frat Party Games: Stomach Pump and Frat Party Games: Date Rape shouldn't be too far behind."
Now, I don't drink, so I could be wrong... But isn't one of the primary draws to Beer Pong, you know... the beer?
Here's the very exciting trailer!:
Look how much fun those people are-- Oh, wait... Most of them look kinda bored, actually. And perhaps stoned. And probably drunk.
The game will be downloadable over the WiiWare service at some point in the future. On that day, the earth will mourn.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Our Prince Has Come
Sooooo... The Hollywood Reporter did some Hollywood reporting today and announced that Jake Gyllenhaal (Donnie Darko, Brokeback Mountain, The Day After Tomorrow) will be playing the Prince of Perisa in the upcoming film based on the game series of the same name. Starring opposite Gyllenhaal in the leading lady role will be up-and-coming new Bond girl, Gemma Arterton (Quantum of Solace, RocknRolla).
The film will be directed by Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) and is being produced by Jerry Bruckheimer (Pirates of the Caribbean, National Treasure).
All told, I think that this has a chance of being one of the first good video game to film adaptations... But while I think Gyllenhaal is a talented actor, I'm pretty worried about that as a casting choice. A GameSpot commenter may have said it best:
"[I] was expecting Prince of Persia, not Prince of Caucasia."
Yep.
You Can't Beat 100%
As of about midnight this/last night on May 19th/20th (whichever you wanna call it), I reached 100% in the "Game Completion" statistic of Grand Theft Auto IV. Time taken: Around 52 hours (more when you factor in loading saved games and multiplayer).
Hopefully it'll be enough to earn a "Key to the City" prize from Rockstar... I may have just barely snuck in under the time limit for the contest.
That gives me 40 out of 50 of the achievements in the game. I still have to win some races, roll over my car 6 times, and then play a whole lot of multiplayer.
Review will come soon, but in the meantime, if you're over 17/18, I HIGHLY recommend the game. Which is still funny to me, since I've despised the series in the past for various reasons, not the least of which that I found the games boring after a short time. The story and moral conflict in the main game alone are worth the price of admission, easily.
Monday, May 12, 2008
(Partial) Summer Reading List
Apparently I'm also reading that Halo poster on top of the stack, there. Sorry for the sucky image quality.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Roll Call
I added a blog roll... It's over there on the right ------> It may move down a bit, closer to the other links. Who knows?
Shame it's not more like a Rick Roll... 'cuz that would be AWESOME.
Mostly it's just links to those other blogs I sometimes read (as they don't have fancy e-mail or even RSS subscription features like I do. Again, look to your right ----> ), but you can read them too. Heck, maybe you're one of the people over there? Again, who knows?
If you read this blog, are a friend (or not) and want a spot on the blessed blog roll with these other proclaimed people, make yourself known, peasants! Heck, make yourself known anyway, because I'm not entirely sure who reads this thing. I can SEE you, I just don't know who the heck you are. You see?
That said, I'm gonna go do something... Probably watch Sweeney Todd again. Maybe read some Twilight (by Stephanie Meyer. Good book so far, despite the fact that it's obviously written with young girls primarily in mind) or Infidel (by Ted Dekker, who's always awesome). Maybe play some GTA IV or Rock Band.
Who knows?
Monday, May 05, 2008
NHL Playoffs
So we've got two battles starting in a few days. The battle of the P's and the battle of the D's.
Dallas will take on Detroit, and we know that Dallas is the "Big" D, so they'll of course win that series. They're not favored to, but they weren't favored to win the last two rounds either, and look how those turned out. You'd think some of the analysts might have learned a lesson by now... Even if the Red Wings win the Western Conference (which I admit is possible), it won't be in 5 games.
Over in the Eastern Conference, it's Pittsburgh taking on Philadelphia. I'm gonna say the Penguins take this one, just like they've taken the others.
So it'll come down to the Stars and the Penguins in the Stanley Cup final, and since the West is the best, the Stars will take Lord Stanley home. A friend of mine (a poor Canucks fan) pointed out last night (after an epic overtime win to send the San Jose Sharks back home) that the West has much better goaltending, for starters. Whether it's Dallas or Detroit, I'm gonna say the West has this one... but maybe not.
Regardless, Go Stars! If we were ever gonna start winning against the Red Wings, now would be the time.
Friday, May 02, 2008
What I Would Rather Do...
...than study for finals/finish schoolwork:
1) Play GTA IV: It's really freakin' good... I'm still extremely impressed - maybe even moreso the more I see of it and the further the story progresses.
2) Read Good Books: Keyword being "good". GOOD books. Not this schol stuff that usually sucks... I'm stoked to read the latest Ted Dekker stuff, like "Adam". I'm suprisingly anxious to finally read the "Twilight" series (and I know my sister wants me to as well). I desperately need to finish "The Dark is Rising" sequence and start Steven King's "Dark Tower" series... The list goes on for awhile.
3) Write Good Books: I really need some days where I just do nothing but fix the numerous problems with "Tobias" (now that I have an idea of how to do that, I'm super excited again) and finish the story... Then move on to books II and III.
4) Learn To Play Guitar: I guess I bought that thing for a reason... Just haven't had the time to practice it.
5) Take A Long Walk on the Beach and Watch 'A Walk to Remember' Until I Can't See Through the Tears: This one may be a lie. Unless there's a gorgeous girl involved. Like that's gonna happen...
6) See Iron Man: It looks and sounds freakin' amazing.
7) Invent a Banana Phone: Then you could have your phone and eat it too...
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
I keep forgetting to mention...
I'm being promoted. And by "promoted" I mean "being given a job," as it pays... I've been chosen as the next Opinions Editor for The Daily Toreador. I'll be trying my absolutely best to replace the last editor, Britney Drumm, who I don't hesitate to call a good friend. She's done a great job as editor in the past (double editor, most recently), but she's graduating, so I'm taking her place. A lot to live up to. Please pray I don't screw it up.
I'm really excited, though. I've come to really love the DT over the last semester, so I'm excited to have a job taking care of it.
Story Done + GTA IV First Impressions
For whatever reason, I was up until around 3:30AM finishing up that short story I mentioned... So it's done, and if I recall correctly it's around 4,000 words... I haven't looked at it since completion, though, so it probably sucks.
I woke up relatively early (it was like... 10:00AM) to go pick up Grand Theft Auto IV, and since I only had one class - and it was my last class of the semester, not counting finals - I spent the better part of the day playing it.
It's amazing. 7 hours of stealing cars and I don't wanna go out and jack people in real life! Man, who'd have thought that?
But anyways, I'm actually extremely impressed. I think a lot of this is due to the storyline, which is really quite good. Fantastic dialogue, great voice acting... And most importantly, really likable characters. You just couldn't relate to previous GTA protagonists, IMO, but Niko is an extremely interesting character. New to America and Liberty City, he's conflicted... He wants a new start, wants to not live a life of crime, but ever since the war (whichever war he was in... I'm not sure), he finds himself doing nothing but bad things.
The story really has me wondering what comes next. By the end, it might actually rank up there with some of the great crime/gangster movies.
Gameplay is great too... It's weird, on the surface, it feels EXACTLY like a GTA game, which have typically bored me in the past after an hour or two. But I dunno, everything here is just so refined and so polished... It's a great and addicting formula that most certainly goes beyond running around a city causing mayhem.
I also played a fair amount of multiplayer, which is a whole lot more entertaining than I thought. It's chaoctic, but in a very good way. I've only done team stuff so far, but I really enjoy the modes I tried... Which wasn't even half of them.
So yeah. I'm not altogether positive that it deserves the bajillion perfect scores it's been getting from just about every review source in the nation right now, but my first impressions are VERY positive.
Note, however, that it's still very much a Grand Theft Auto game. While the story shows an existance of moral dilemas and an actual concern for doing the right thing (at least sometimes), there's extremely strong language, inappropriate dialogue, strong sexual content (a lot/most of which is avoidable, as per series standard), violence, etc.
'aint for the kiddies, though I really, REALLY hope there aren't still parents out there that think it would be.
But for those of you who are 17 and up? I'm really enjoying it so far. I kind of want to play it more right now, but I'm exhausted, and thus should get some sleep. I'll have more stuff to say later.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Waking Up
I have sent off the second draft of "The Awakening" to both a professor a several chosen/voluntary readers. So there's that... Hopefully they'll give me enough good comments and critisism to build on so my next draft is a winner for Writer's of the Future (*hint hint*).
I've already started another short story project, though it's pretty bizzare, and very likely won't be seen by more than, say... Six pairs of eyes. So that may not matter a ton.
The beginning of "Tobias" needs to be revised pretty desperately, but as more and more time goes on I'm more and more sure of how to fix it... And make it really, really awesome. I may write more (if not all) of the second half of the novel before rewriting the first, though.
In other news, GTA IV comes out tomorrow, and the fact that I'm so excited about it probably means that the world has turned upside town. Quick! Somebody flip it back over before Michael Jackson is black again!
Of course, the fact that it's currently tied with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for best game of all time (as OoT surely is) on Metacritic certainly helps things make sense... Sort of. Apparently the story is really, really good? Really? Then I shall play it!
In other other news: Go Stars!
