Episode 58 General
- Clips from a game that basically seems like a glorified concert tour DVD: Visual Mix – Ayumi Hamasaki Dome Tour 2001
(PS 2, Avex). In this “game”, the player could switch between different camera angles and zoom levels. The songs she performs seem pretty good, but it's pretty obvious that she's lip syncing (except when she addresses the crowd). This game was the Book Ends for the episode before and after ad breaks.
In the clips, Hamasaki is wearing a sleeveless dress with a skirt like a tutu, kneehigh high heels, and a sleeve on her left forearm, all with a metallic, giraffe-like pattern. She is also wearing a sparkly, golden cowboy hat.
- Another weird budget game for the PS 2 called The Fire's Fighting Bancho, where you play as a buff, rough-n'-tumble Japanese bancho, or delinquent with a scar on his face. The only kind of gameplay they show has the delinquent intimidating other delinquents by apparently besting them in some sort of Bad Ass staring contest. This seems to be performed by charging up a meter at the bottom of the screen, probably by mashing the appropriate button. The delinquent's stare is apparently so powerful, it can even affect inanimate objects like toasters and soda cans. Because who's going to tell him when his toast is toasted? Not the toaster, that's for sure! He can also coerce a soda out of a vending machine with his penetrating stare.
- Innocent Black (PS 2), an “adventure detective” game with cool, albeit static, manga-styled graphics. The realistic, detailed art is a byproduct of the original character design having been done by manga artist Katsuya Terada. If the name sounds familiar, you may have heard of his mutual friendship with fellow manga superstars CLAMP, or his personal project where he adapted the legend of The Journey to the West.
BONUS: At 11:57, one of the original broadcast ads for Gears Of War. This was the wonderfully somber ad with the song “Mad World”, accompanying the main character's seemingly insurmountable odds against the Locust hordes. It came on during this episode's premiere and I couldn't resist recording it.
Episode 59
3:04: Love Ping Pong (PS 2), another classic budget title from D3. By “love”, they apparently meant “chicks who play ping pong in bikinis and fetishised costumes like a nurse uniform”. There are several characters, including a dude, for some reason. What's really fun about this clip is the music that they chose – a bouncy sort of flamenco tune.
4:26: A clip of one of the fatalities from the Celebrity Deathmatch game (multiplatform, 2003) where Tommy Lee pulls out Justin Timberlake's intestines and plays a rippin' riff on them. Wait – doesn't Lee play drums, not guitar? The special pyrotechnics played after the fatality look gaudy.
8:44: An old Midway arcade game based on the 80's band Journey. It appears to be a platformer with some surreal graphics, like a robot head based off of one of the band's album covers. The player assumes the role of one of the band members, who appear as tiny sprites dwarfed by their digitized heads. Of course, the game can't quite keep pace with songs like “Don't Stop Believin'”. Here is a short review of the game from “Heisanevilgenius”.
9:13: Footage from Koei's Destrega (PS 1, 1999). It features scenes from the realistic CG intro and some gameplay of characters fighting. The CG elements have aged pretty well. Intro video here and gameplay video here.
11:44: A clip from a surreal Japanese arcade game called Ganbare (Japanese for “persevere”, unless I'm mistaken). How to describe it? Well... you play as a little cartoon guy on one side of the screen who can turn into a “peeing boy” statue to put out a fuse in the middle of the screen.
13:03: The Japanese broadcast ad for Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty (PS 2, 2001). It shows how the series' signature Stealth Espionage Action has inspired some businessmen to partake in some stealthy hijinks at the office.
19:19: A PC RPG called Vanguard where the character stiffly rides a UNICORN! But it'd better if it were a RAINBOW unicorn. Which do you prefer, readers?
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