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People seem to be putting books in, so I'll chime in with a trilogy I really enjoyed.
The Mars trilogy, by Kim Stanley Robinson (Red Mars, Green Mars & Blue Mars)
Very good series of books, very interesting. The story and characters are interesting and engaging, and there is a very big focus on the science. He put alot of research into the three books and it shows, he goes into some incredible detail on some very diverse subjects, from engineering, to politics and social dynamics, economics, all the way to atomic string theory and psychology, geology, meterology; in fact, pretty much anything that ends with "ology" is quite well covered at some point in the series
The amount of research that was put into the books is incredible, and he writes a very believable description of Mars' colonisation.
Play the Lonesome Road DLC, but DLC I ever spent the money on.
Yeah, it was pretty awesome, especially one of the ending slides if you have the Wild Wasteland trait. But my favorite DLC was Honest Hearts, mostly because of Joshua Graham and A Light Shining in the Darkness.
Looking back at NES games, designers had managed to wring a lot of beauty in terms of both graphics and sound from that technology. In that context, the SNES launch of 1991 (in the States at least) was nothing short of 16-bit divine revelation. Bright, colorful games like Super Mario World and F-Zero were the perfect launch titles but two months later Super Castlevania IV proved this new palette had dark depth. Many people criticize SCIV as a regression from the complex, multi-character brilliance of Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse, which itself seemed to prefigure Rondo of Blood and the rightly famous Symphony of the Night. But SCIV was not really a "next step" so much as a reaffirmation of roots.
Super Castlevania IV is a remake of the original game and it's linearity is an homage to that game's, and by extension the series', central themes. Among other things, CSIV cemented the driven personality of its protagonist. Simon is implacable to the point of barbaric compared to his sophisticated "metroidvania" compatriots. He steamrolls through Dracula's minions with a frightening clarity of purpose that eludes more conflicted or burdened heroes like Trevor, Richter, and Alucard. The comparison with Richter is particularly apt. Richter is surely pure of heart but he's fighting to save his beloved. Simon, by contrast, fights Dracula because fighting Dracula is his purpose. SCIV is a sumptuous reminder of this starkly gothic opposition of good and evil.
As Simon, you irresistibly assail Dracula's castle like the stake being hammered into the vampire lord's own black heart. And what a ride! The level design is mechanically ingenious and visually beautiful. Simon's iconic whip Vampire Killer could swing around and attack in eight directions for the first time -- and let's not forget this was the beginning of swinging the whip as an element of platforming. Alucard may be the coolest but Simon is definitely the badass of this franchise -- thanks to SCIV innovative reaffirmation of the series's origins. The most impressive thing about SCIV, however, is undoubtedly the sound design. Catchy if slightly creepy tunes tittering out of the NES suddenly became grandly dark pieces of epic macabre. One might think it'd be hard to explain to people used to hearing fully orchestrated "background music" how shockingly good SCIV's soundtrack was, but the music simply speaks for itself:
If you have a Wii, you can download Super Castlevania IV for 800 points. You will need a classic controller to play.
This message was edited 4 times. Last update was at 2012/06/11 16:51:20
Play the Lonesome Road DLC, but DLC I ever spent the money on.
Yeah, it was pretty awesome, especially one of the ending slides if you have the Wild Wasteland trait. But my favorite DLC was Honest Hearts, mostly because of Joshua Graham and A Light Shining in the Darkness.
I have Remnants Power armor and I use A Light Shining in the Darkness a TON. It's such a great weapon, plus it's fun to be a massive guy in power armor killing Death Claws with a tiny pistol.
"The Imperium is nothing if not willing to go to any lengths necessary. So the Trekkies are zipping around at warp speed taking small chucks out of an nigh-on infinite amount of ships, with the Imperium being unable to strike back. feth it, says central command, and detonates every vortex warhead in the fleet, plunging the entire sector into the Warp. Enjoy tentacle-rape, Kirk, we know Sulu will." -Terminus
"This great fortress was a gift to the Blood Ravens from the legendary Imperial Fists. When asked about it Chapter Master Pugh was reported to say: "THEY TOOK WHAT!?""
I'm both selfish and rational. I'm scheming, secretive and manipulative; I use knowledge as a tool for personal gain, and in turn obtaining more knowledge. At best, I am mysterious and stealthy; at worst, I am distrustful and opportunistic.
Game of Thrones obviously, but Joffrey is such a contemptible little that you have to admire the actor's performance for moving me to such loathing. If I ever met him, I wouldn't know whether to throttle him or shake his hand. Possibly both...
What's it about? Tokyo citizens driven to the edge of their endurance (which in a high-pressure city like Tokyo is just about everyone) Lil Slugger appears, a punk on roller blades who deals out brain-crushing blows with his metal bat.
No.
That's not what it's about. I mean that's what it says on the wrapper but that story gets taken care of in like 3 episodes.
What's it really about is a psychological thriller and a message about what it feels like to be in over your head, those days when you wish you'd get hit by a car because at least then you'd be free.
It's also about innovative story telling techniques that keep you sucked in.
And, like all great anime going back to Akira, the ending makes no damn sense. I mean seriously, I've been living in Japan off and on since '94 and I can say with some certainty it's not a cultural issue, it's not a translation issue, the ending makes NO DAMN SENSE.
But despite that, and for the theme song alone, Paranoia Agent is your 5*PD.
Come back tomorrow for Part II of SATOSHI KON WEEK!!!!1!!!one!!!
I would like to post this. I am no big fan of King, but I really enjoyed the feth out of this series.
I read mostly Scifi and some fantasy, so I found this completely different then anything I have read to date. I will admit the first book is kinda tough to get through but Im really glad I did, the rest is great.
Every Dakkanaught gets a 4+ Pinch of Salt save.
When you suffer a Falling Sky hit, roll a D6 - on a 4+ the hit is ignored as per the Pinch of Salt save. On a 1-3 panic insues - you automatically fail common sense tests for the next 2 weeks and get +7 to your negativity stat. -Praxiss
The single most original fantasy setting I have ever read. The world of Bas-Lag is totally fascinating and the characters and races unique and intriguing.
It is followed by two other books set in the same world.
I love Mieville's Bas Lag novels, I hope he'll revisit that setting before too long. I must admit that I struggled through Embassytown, though it was a fascinating book.
Another entry from me would be this: It's great, and I don't know why. But 5/5, heck, 7/5 for it.
Pretre: OOOOHHHHH snap. That's like driving away from hitting a pedestrian.
Pacific:First person to Photoshop a GW store into the streets of Kabul wins the thread.
Selym: "Be true to thyself, play Chaos" - Jesus, Daemon Prince of Cegorach.
H.B.M.C: You can't lobotomise someone twice.
Another entry from me would be this: It's great, and I don't know why. But 5/5, heck, 7/5 for it.
Agree with this x100,000,000. I first heard this album several years ago and it instantly catapulted Karnivool to my favourite band. A position they have maintained ever since. It sucks I missed the chance to see them live in 2010 :(
Can't wait for their new album, hopefully out this year
A little company in Seattle called Wizards of the Coast made it big thanks to a card game you've probably heard of. They made it so big, in fact, that they were able to purchase another little company in 1997. That other little company was called TSR and it had made it big years before on a roleplaying game you've probably heard of. In 2000, WotC released its own take on that RPG as Dungeons & Dragons Third Edition. Third Edition, and later its "3.5" revision, was a huge success for a variety of reasons -- not least of all the solid "core mechanic" of rolling a d20 and comparing the modified result against a target number. As you might expect, not everyone was totally sold on the complexity of the new rules despite the line's slick production values. Some D&D fans never abandoned their preference for the Basic/Expert version of D&D from 1977. By 2006, an "Old School Renaissance" (OSR) had been declared and indie publishers began to release "retroclones" of the B/X edition.
A year later, WotC announced the end of Third Edition and released Fourth Edition in 2008. WotC informed another little company, this one called Paizo, which had been printing the official D&D magazines, that its services would no longer be required. Paizo bristled and announced that it would continue to support the Third Edition rules, even going so far as to publish their own "retroclone" called Pathfinder. Across the internet, furious debates raged between fans of D&D 4E and fans of Pathfinder. This destructive period has been called the Edition Wars. In the meantime, the OSR continued to flourish. Perhaps the OSR reminded gamers of a simpler time when RPGs were about wonder and excitement rather than intense partisan debate. The trouble with the OSR games, however, is that none of them made comprehensive use of contemporary developments in RPG design. In short, they were characterized more by nostalgia than innovation.
Into the fray stepped Goodman Games, an indie publisher founded back in 2001. Goodman Games had made a name for itself by publishing "old school" style D&D modules that worked with Third Edition rules under the name "Dungeon Crawl Classics." Joseph Goodman sized up the Edition Wars and OSR not only with business acumen but also with what can only be described as passion. He realized that the market was missing a game that spoke authentically to the weird wonders of Gary Gygax's vision and at the same time transcended the clunkiness of Gygax's (and other's) rules. To little fanfare (at least outside of the cognoscenti), Goodman Games announced the Dungeon Crawl Classics RPG (DCC RPG) in 2011. This past spring, the DCC RPG finally saw print.
The reaction so far has been telling: a few folks have picked up the massive nearly-500-page tome with no great expectations. After all, we've seen an army of "old school" games since 2006. But after cracking the thing open, jaws dropped. Astoundingly, this is a OGL game (i.e., the rules were based on Third Edition) that genuinely captures the experience of discovering Advanced Dungeons & Dragons -- or hell, RPGs generally -- for the first time. The DCC RPG even insists on using "funky dice," strange things like d3s and d24s. In a world where a 20-sided polyhedron is taken for granted, rolling a d7 is a reminder of just how, well, weird, these dice really are. And the art reminds us just how, again, weird and wonderous the world of roleplaying is. Most importantly, the rules are exciting: every spell has multiple outcomes depending on the skill and luck of the caster; every player can begin with four 0-level characters fully expecting at least three of them to meet a gruesome end before making first level; warriors that are actually better at fighting than wizards (no kidding, that's not how things were in Third Edition) ... and much more ...
Earlier this year, WotC announced the end of Fourth Edition and the imminent release of Fifth, or as they insist on calling it, "D&D Next." WotC has very loudly declared that their intent with Fifth Edition is to unify D&D fans of all tastes and styles under one ruleset, something that has not happened since the earliest period of D&D's history (1974-77) and only then because there was only one ruleset. That's an ambitious claim and, unfortunately for WotC, not one that I think they can achieve -- something that their playtest rules release nearly a month ago only confirms. Whatever other problems WotC might face, the real trouble is that the DCC RPG has already been released.
And the DCC RPG is the best D&D-inspired RPG that has ever been written.
This message was edited 8 times. Last update was at 2012/06/13 16:15:20
@Manchu. Please explain the arcanes mysteries of a 'd7.' I have never heard of such a wonder, and am intrigued as to whether it's just a damaged d8.
Also. COMRADES! Do not fall for this man's lies! The wicked enemy seeks to confound and deceive you at every turn! The Edition Wars can be won! You must fight for (insert edition) until the perfidious foe are wiped from God's green Earth!
Seriously though, DCC RPG looks very interesting to me.
DC:80SG+M+B+I+Pw40k97#+D+A++/wWD190R++T(S)DM+
htj wrote:You can always trust a man who quotes himself in his signature.
Black Legion 8th Grand Company
Cadian XV Airborne "Flying Fifteens"
Order of the Ebon Chalice
Relictors 3rd Company 
that you have to admire the actor's performance for moving me to such loathing. If I ever met him, I wouldn't know whether to throttle him or shake his hand. Possibly both...
