When somebody asked me what is my favorite in-game music, I just give them a lightning-flash answer. "It's the God of War theme where Kratos fights Ares, or when Kratos beat the hell up of mighty Zeus." Yes, what an answer but when asked of what the title is, I was left hanging on a far away cliff. Music matters, well, all the time. And whenever we hear something familiar -- even just a beat of a drum -- our ears tend to trigger memories stored in our brain. (I dunno if it's true but after I read a book last year telling me that the olfactory gland is the best memory trigger for man, I started to believe it.) For instance, one hearing the song "My heart will go on" by Celine Dion will trigger the individual's memories about the Titanic. Another is when you hear Beethoven's symphonies, one can remember someone playing it back in his childhood. Then thus the parade of pictures in one's mind theater. And it goes and goes, until you have an LSS again for the nth time.
Music is a very crucial element in all forms of entertainment because it can cause our mood to change like The Beatles songs in which they're hard to forget. The tempo and beat of a particular music serves as a trademark and we'll keep returning to the whatever form of entertainment it is and commemorate the good and the bad times. In terms of gaming, I have a couple of background music that cannot be erased because it became a part and parcel of me. Maybe it's just a simple ting ting ting , it can stuck. What more of a grand orchestra playing the famous Star Wars theme in a game of the same name? Definitely a winner.
In today's article, I gathered all my favorite in-game music for all the games I played since I was a little kid. I'm not that old already butperhaps I am now a kid of yesterday like everybody else in the same age group.
Take note, whether you're a gamer or not, music covers both. So relax and enjoy.
(All are in no particular order...)
Jin
1) Marvel vs. Capcom (1998)
Strider Hiryu
Marvel versus Capcom was the first fighting game I played in my whole life. And I only had the chance to play it when it's Sunday -- Church day. In the very heart of Manila where I grew up, the church we usually manage to attend every week is very close to a mall -- in which today it is closed -- where it has arcade machines that when you buy a token, you'll get the chance to play it. With the help of few coins to buy a token, thus started the journey of myself in the world of fighting games. Back then, in the hero select menu, I then heard the BGM I got LSSed with. Afterwards, I first picked Strider Hiryu and Jin as my two heroes. I played the game and got beaten up by the computer in the first stage. However, it never ended there. The music called me back, of course. What I did was to buy again another token (hoping I'll last until the third stage), listened to the song, choose a pair of heroes and fight your way to Onslaught (the game's boss). But, you know, it's the song I really loved at first and not the game. The game ranked second. What a boy, I was.
Here is the theme I loved in all Marvel vs. Capcom series :
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2) Red Alert 2 (2000)
~ (play the song if you want to listen to it...)
"For Mother Russia!"
If the previous game was my first fighting game ever, Red Alert 2 by Electronic Arts would be my first war strategy game. And come to think of it, it's been ten years since I laid my hands on a mouse and a keyboard and start my Russian army bombard enemy AIs. After my high school classes in the University of the East when I was in second year, me and my friends gather to a nearby mall in Recto, Manila to play arcade games where I spend only fifteen pesos to have three tokens to play MvC 1 or MvC2. After honing my fighting skills (yeah, I often used the term back in the days), I go home, drop my bags, eat some snacks, then go to a nearby computer shop to play this epic game. With a number of selectable nations from the Allied forces such as the America and France to Soviet forces such as the famous Mother Russia and the remorseless Libyan army, I managed to derive much and much of entertainment from the game. In-game music sets my mood like a real general in a battlefield that whenever I select a unit like the almighty Kirov airship of Russia, it will say, "Kirov reporting!" or maybe "Airship ready!" How glad I am because I'm a kid from that period.
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3) Resident Evil 2 (1998)
~ (play the song if you want to listen to it...)
Fear is a negative emotion -- an emotional perception where one may be in a hard situation or near danger zone. Fear is Resident Evil. Back in the late 90's where horror games are in fact -- in truest form "horror" -- players managed to travel the viral infected streets of Raccoon City in Resident Evil 1,2, and 3, or traverse the demonic realm of Silent Hill (I never lasted an hour playing the game. It really scared the shit out of me). In my own experience, if Nemesis is the unforgettable enemy in all RE universe, the save game BGM in Resident Evil 2 would be the same; only thing is that it's a soundtrack. Its sad and creepy theme made my spines chill. Even now, I still feel the same. But when one plays it in-game and you hear this BGM, it means you can save your progress via the typewriter (The problem arises if you haven't a spare ink ribbon to use the thing.), plan your next route, manage your inventory and even reload all your weapons. In any case, one is safe if he/she hears the song; however, not for long.
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4) God of War (2005)
~ (play the song if you want to listen to it...)
Kratos holding his family with Ares
"Jesus Christ, it's like a song of a religious cult!" That is the first impression I heard from a girl I knew after I shared the song to her. My reaction? Oh dear. She's a loyal subject to the Catholic Church and I usually convince myself that she has her own opinion with the song. And I'll just leave her with that. Moving on... Almost all of the GoW soundtracks are great because they are plotted in the right scenes and in the right moments throughout the game. For instance, a BGM when travelling to Athens, or to the Desert of Lost Souls, or even as you open the mythical Pandora's Box -- all are of worth remembering. But this song (which I picked) is the god of them all. This is played when there's a huge boss fight that can put players in awe with their mouths mouthing a "WOW!" position. But what I do love of this is when it is played as Kratos fights himself (dummies like him) in a closed space created by the god of war Ares to save his family. That particular scene is pretty amazing. As time passes by, structures around Kratos breaks into pieces, the earth he stands diminishes every minute or two. It's like an epic tale of a man who wanted to prevent the world to end. And the song? It really fits. Literally.
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5) Need for Speed: Underground 2 (2004)
~ (play the song if you want to listen to it...)
Riders on the storm!
I'm a big fan of cars let alone racing games. Since I was a kid, I usually fantasize of having cars and using them to race. BMWs, Mercedes Benz, the Audis, and the Chevrolets -- I want them all. The problem is they are really luxurious. Thanks goodness there are lots of games involving car driving and racing in the industry. We have Gran Turismo series, Burnout franchise, and yes, the Need for Speed empire. It's the freaking opening song that keeps me nuts up to this point! A groovy song that simply matched a racing game. It's perfect! Pick your car, select a race track, and play this song. Sure is, you will win. Hahaha! The memory plays its part to me nowadays just to remember not the game in particular but the song by Snoop Dog. FTW!
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6) Final Fantasy IX (2000)
~ (play the song if you want to listen to it...)
Looking back, moving forward
Final Fantasy is Final Fantasy. No doubt about that. Looking back in my days in highschool, I got the chance to play this awesome game. Exciting story, witty characters, interesting plot -- all of these are the ingredients of Final Fantasy 9. Nobuo Uematsu's compositions make all Square's Final Fantasy games rock. In FF IX, lots of BGMs are showcased. As for me who once traveled their planet called Gaia, I fell in love with the game's entirety. The choice I made to handpick this theme is hard because another theme (the theme which plays in-game when you're out in the world) entitled "Crossing those hills" bears the unmistakable mark of excellence. However "Frontier Village Dali" is still for me. Just listening to it relaxes me, sets my psyche at ease. Then I'll remember the times when I have my old friends back in the old days. Although sad in some aspect, it has, you know, a bit of happiness inside of it. And that is why I love the track. *teary-eyed*
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7) Crash Bandicoot 3 : Warped (1998)
(play the song if you want to listen to it...)
Look at Coco with his tiger. Cute!
I have to admit that I became addicted to this game. Platformer games are somehow comical in nature. I find it suitable for kids (also kids at heart). Yes, very suitable. But hey, I was a kid once and the game made me happy every time I have my controller with me. Even the death(?) scenes of both Crash and Coco are funny that keeps me smiling (even now I remember some of those infamous scenes). Anyway, when I had low life counts, I just keep on playing Coco Bandicoot on the Great Wall of China stage. Not only, its best for accumulating life counts and apples (yummy!), the BGM there is remarkable! Just listen to it. It's a positive thing to listen to. Trust me.
*~~*~~*
8) Ragnarok Online (2002)
~ (play the song if you want to listen to it...)
He's like my first character!
Ahh... The first MMORPG that I ever played (and possibly the last...). This game is extremely addictive that can cause your bank accounts turn into a pothole of eggs. In this light, this game is so fun you won't recognize the current time of day. Irrespective of the preceding points, BGMs of Ragnarok Online is very artistic and well composed. Tired of killing monsters to gain levels for your character? Take a rest to a nearby town or city where you can chat with fellow gamers and have some friends. Shop a little to maximize your abilities, or even fight other players through the Player vs. Player system (PvP). Every map or region in the game has its own BGM that serves as an identifier to a player. A chilly background like the one played while in your Glast Heim can trigger one's instinct that it may or may not contain enemies that are incredibly powerful than the character he/she has with its current level. Or it may be peaceful BGM like the one I chose. Prontera theme is probably the most popular of all in the Ragnarok universe. It can make your day wonderful just by opening your ears to it no matter how many times. Oh, it brings back memories...
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9) Super Mario Bros. (1985)
~ (play the song if you want to listen to it...)
A scene one will never ignore
Haha! I highly recommend you to click the play button for this one. Not that it's so funny (I'm laughing as I type this one), the song is the definition of IMMORTAL itself. The problem is that I didn't beat the game because whenever we have a Family Computer (FamiCom), it is either short-circuited or overheated. Nevertheless, the song is just...just incredible. Up to know, lots of people recognize its music. Even other die-hard fans have this as they're own ringtone or message tone. I can't blame them. I blame Nintendo for doing this masterpiece! And that is why Super Mario Bros. captured the heart of gamers and non-gamers alike. Its not the game, its the song itself!
(I was shocked when I saw that the game itself was released in 1985. I'm not even been born yet. Got the chance to play this game around '96 or '97, though...)
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To be honest, I have only nine of these music I really liked or loved when I first drafted the article. Come to think of it, there's still one I didn't yet consider. But anyhow, the theme would be this one:
This song is essentially included in all the Star Wars games. And I'm obsessed with it! God, just listen to it and close your eyes. Suddenly you'll hear lightsabers clashing, droids firing their laser guns, Wookies speaks, spaceships burst into hyperspace, and even Yoda speaks in reverse.
In just simple words yet profound, YOU CAN FEEL THE FORCE!
Thank you for reading -- and listening -- dear readers.
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(I did enjoy writing the article. I hope you enjoyed it as the same.)
Define antagonist. An opponent, of course. A person or event or thing that in its simplest form makes the protagonist’s life feel like hell – that is an antagonist. Antagonism is an automatic rule – more of a superior rule - whether, let us say, a writer wants to write a novel. Or a scriptwriter who wanted to do a script for an upcoming film sequel. Even in our daily lives, we can see lots of antagonists that always (yeah, I mean it) oppose our own goals. One can say it’s her father who is one of those opposing forces because her dad didn't allow her to go hang-out with her friends and do bar-hopping when the darkness fills the sky. Or perhaps a mother of a teenager who simply ignores his true ambition of becoming, for instance, a novelist instead of an accountant. Yet, how many times we keep pushing forward unto something, there will always be someone or something that will make us stumble and stuck. And nonetheless, will keep us mad and mental.
In today’s article, yours truly managed to collect some of the world’s famous antagonists. May it be fiction or not, real or just a fantasy, -- all will still be the same -- antagonists are such a pain in the ass.
(All are of my humble opinion...)
1) Yagami Light or Kira ( Antagonist rating: A+ )
First Appeared in: Death Note ( as a Manga, 2003 )
A light for the world
The anime` entitled Deathnote was really the best series of the last decade in my own opinion. Just an ordinary day in high school, Light found a piece of notebook lying on the grass within their school. After opening and reading a first few pages that are contained in the notebook, one thing is what truly he admired, “The human whose name is written in this note shall die." The character of Yagami Light was kinda protagonist and antagonist in the same time. (It’s like business law. Being a debtor and creditor of one’s self is called Confusion. Damn...) With his smart brain and wits to understand all that’s happening around him – chaos, murders,crimes, etc. – he insisted to recreate the world and create it as perfect as possible. No wars, no bad people. And with that, the notebook became his weapon to write thousands and thousands of names – which are deviants of mankind in his godlike view -- to showcase others or for others to realize that what he is doing is the work of a God. In the series, he lasted as Kira (people named him like that) for about 6 years until he made a wrong move to his plan. (It’s his colleague’s mistake anyway. Well both of them are.) What comes up will eventually go down. And not all plans worked as planned. I truly believe that.
2) Professors ( Antagonist rating: A- )
First Appeared in: Human Civilization ( dawn of mankind )
More and more!
Let’ admit it. Our teachers are such huge walls when we are schooling. The one thing to add up in that particular scenario is for the walls actually speak and show their tongues to annoy us. Study for an exam. Take the exam. Fail it. Reason? It’s not because you did not read your lessons and solve whatever thing you wanted to solve, but it’s the exam itself. And that is when you realize that this is not what I studied for. The exam is a flaw so as the teacher so as the school so as the entire education system. It really makes sense for some students when they experience this kind of a thing. Some teachers do not know what they are talking into class (Oh, yes. I know a teacher like that. May God bless her soul). Some instructors have only one goal and that is to fail some student/s every semester in their own disposal. Reason? It’s their tradition. Their own satisfaction which they derive from it. What a sadistic method, indeed!
3) Agent Smith ( Antagonist rating: A )
First Appeared in: The Matrix ( as a Movie, 1999 )
Grrrr!!!
In the Matrix trilogy, who will ever forget Hugo Weaving portraying the adamant and the relentless Agent “the goddamn” Smith? Hell, no! In a far away future where mankind was dominated by the Machines and where the sky is not blue but dark as charcoal, Matrix was born. A computer-generated world where humans live not knowing that the world they live in is just an illusion. Those who has a potential to “wake up” will literally be woken up in the real world. And that is where the Agents emerged. To prevent people from waking up and to protect from the people who are outside the Matrix are the basic purposes of these agents. Wearing suits and eyeglasses, they look like a common FBI operative or a federal agent. Plus one for their earpiece and their ability to use one’s body to make their own. Agent Smith is a rare agent. As described by The Architect as an anomally like Neo, he has the ability to copy himself like a simple computer file and multiply in his own liking. Neo really had a hard time dealing with this darn opponent like for example, fighting 100 Agent Smiths in one particular time leaving Neo to flee to the sky, blinding Neo in the real world, and many others which put this villain automatically in my list.
4) Nemesis ( Antagonist rating: A+ )
First Appeared in: Resident Evil 3 ( as a Game, 1999 )
What monster!
The Resident Evil universe has plenty of antagonists when one has the chance to play it. Actually, not all are great, I mean if they made a huge impact to the players. One may say that Wesker should be here instead of my pick. Well, no. Wesker is just a loser. He gets the T-virus, injects himself with it, and voila, he’s an over-powered human being. Nemesis is different from that man. As initially designed by the Umbrella Corporation as a biological weapon, Nemesis was deployed by the sinful company in the streets of Raccoon City for one thing – to kill all S.T.A.R.S. members. It’s a pretty simple thing to do for the monster. The hardest part is for the protagonists. I played Resident Evil 3 when I was in the first year in highschool and the game gave me the creeps. Nemesis runs to you, giving you a clothesline at first. Showing his tentacles that can paralyze and poison you. Using his rocket launcher to do critical damage. And the best part of it all? He (I bet he is a male, after all) shows up in the game which make players surprised and frightened to death (I've been his victim for so many times). How to kill the monster is another marvel for it. Nemesis has so many lives and keeps on regenerating and regenerating. The good thing in the game is that there is a Particle Cannon thingy in the end of the game that can kill the devilish hypocrite once and for all.
5) Fate ( Antagonist rating: S+ )
First Appeared in: Since time immemorial ( as unknown )
I think is the best example for today’s article. It’s really the wheel of fate that is our common enemy. Yes, one can argue that there’s no fate and that’s we make our own fate and etcetera, etcetera, blah...blah...blah. But how can we be so sure if fate is there (where? It’s over the rainbow), waiting for us to match its indicated plan/s for each and every one of us. How can one be so sure that fate is really not there? I have my two cents with this one. There are accidents that happen all the time no matter how careful we are. People die in a plane crash, or a car. Somebody accidentally hit by a stray bullet. Even the law associates the term “fortuitous events” in which they are events that unforseeable and unavoidable (even it is forseeable, it is still unavoidable). How can we manage these things? One can’t assure himself that he will live to die another day because he will be CAREFUL today. I highly doubt that.
Sisters of Fate
Ancient civilizations believed in fate. For the early Greeks, they have their so-called “Sisters of Fate” where according to them has the power to control one’s destiny. How long one will live, what are his accountable life scenarios – these are some of powers vested to these Sisters. They can even alter one’s life to have a different ending. Think about that. Well it is, in all honesty, a mythology like all other civilizations in the ancient times have. But what if it was true? Myths came from legends, in which legends came from history. I dunno. If there really is fate, it’s invincible. We cannot win over it. It’s the ultimate antagonist one cannot shatter into tiny pieces. But in all of these, I find fate not as an opponent in my life but rather a challenge to have my own version of life’s ending. It may be different from what the wheel of fate has; it may be similar to what I think of it. If so, what shall I do? The answer is simple. Build another wall beside the wall.
Oh no! Not again!
But wait, you may ask, "What is your antagonist that keeps you mad and all?" You sure wanna know? Here it is. But why, you say? He makes my day bad. I wake up everyday to have a great day then MP will just flash into the TV or in the net. And guess what? What can I expect. Take a look in the pic. It's non sequitur.
Thank you for reading, dear reader. ^_^
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I originally planned this as comic as it would be. Now it's finished, I think it's somehow not.
Been thinking if who I'll pick among The Joker, Agent Smith and Jigsaw. Smith won!
Been thinking to input Time here as well but I guess Fate includes time.
Since the dawn of human civilization, man has possessed some sophisticated yet possible ideas that shaped the world we live in today. Mankind – through the advances of technology – literally created things to patronize society’s needs and wants. From the first wheel to a lightbulb, from an abacus to a calculator, from an ordinary glider to the first airplane – are some of the famous inventions that up to now man are living with.
Technology is dynamic, so as the planet. There are things man invent to support life and to create life. Medicines to aid people who are sick. Surgeries to extend one’s life. Operations to save someone’s life. All of these are the best examples of what technology can do to us. It benefits us. It nourishes us. And ultimately, it saves us.
But what if... What if in one point in this era, another world war erupts? What if in all the possible things to happen, mass killings will emerge? And all of this happened by the hand, not of God, but of an ordinary people like you? What if the person is ME?
"Nuclear Strike" (4 out of 5 stars)
~ real world weapon
I asked my brother earlier today if what comes into his mind if he suddenly hears the phrase, “Weapons for Mass Destruction”. With no hesitations in mind, he eagerly answered Nuke. Why yes. Nuclear missiles – or simply a Nuke – can wipe out a particular area as soon as it is dropped of by a plane or by detonating it. Throughout history, perhaps the most popular nuclear attack happened back in the days of the World War II where "Little Boy" and "Fat Man" were dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki which killed hundred of thousands of people. Not only that, the natives who survived the blast later experienced the terror of radiation. Falling hairs, some organ side effects, are the most common aftermath of a radiation meltdown or outbreak. One may have been able to survive the blast of a nuclear warhead but the side effects, afterwards? It is a different story. Simply put, one shall die in a slow but painful death.
Man: "We survived the blast! Thank the heavens above! Jesus, thank you. Amen to that. Amen."
Woman: "Well the Geiger Counter tells us a +1k reading in this area. What does it mean, anyway? Looky here."
Man: "Oh shit... " and runs away..
"G.E.N.E.S.I.S." (5 out of 5 stars)
~ fictional weapon
It's no Genesis. It's Revelations.
Of all the weapons I read and fantasize to have, this particular cannon would be it. As seen first in the anime` Gundam Seed (2004), Gamma Emission by Nuclear Explosion Stimulate Inducing System or simply GENESIS is a superweapon made by the Coordinators (genetically altered humans living in the outer havens of earth, in particular PLANT) to destroy all Naturals (ordinary humans) residing on Earth to end the war. Using gigantic mirrors to harvest and use gamma ray beams, the force of a single fire of illuminating light can obliterate all things on Earth. Like Star War's Deathstar, GENESIS was designed to kill a planet, meaning, leave no one behind. With intense radiation that can permeate solid matter and break it down to molecular structures, this wonderful device can kill a planet in no time.
Genesis 1:3 "And God said, "Let there be light" and there was light.
"Religion" (A shocking 6 out of 5 stars)
~ ah okay...
I'm not a religious one. All I can say is that religion is like a virus in the world. Too many religious beliefs. Many do's and so many dont's. They always do things over and over again like, for instance, the Catholic Church. Sit. Stand. Pray. Sit. Stand. Kneel. Stand. Pray. Sit. They're like robots. And what's the essence of having every hour of mass during Sundays? I can't see the point of it. It's very illogical and so upsetting. Why religion is included in this list is simply because of power to command to others with no doubts in their hearts. They look like fools to me. I literally see them like as one of that. Obey what the priest said because it is no other than the word of God, the Creator. Holy macro! *sigh* In the light of this topic, they will be my slaves. "Hey kid, do as I command as God commanded". Pretty easy, huh? Dogmatic perception? It's up to you. Give me some money for tithing because the Holy Scriptures tells about tithing. And so they'll obey me like a cable TV or a cellphone perhaps. All is easy when it comes to religion. LOL.
I once watched an interview of a priest on the TV and it's about the Reproductive Health Bill in the Philippines. He said a verse in the Bible where God said to humans to cherish life and multiply. That's what their faith stands for. But what about him, as an individual -- a practical individual who thinks critically and intelligently -- will he still answer the same?
I chose all these weapons, well, only because they occurred in my mind earlier. I actually wrote about eight of these things but managed to concise it into three. Still, you might wonder why I wrote this. What if I or even you can have this some kind of power to have these things. Will you use them? Of course, that'll be a two-sided case like a coin. But the most important question will be, Why? Why will you do it? For what purpose? Or do you really have a purpose? If you'll ask me, my answer will be another question. Why not?
Thank you for reading, dear reader.
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(I dunno if this piece of paper mean anything to you or to others. I just wrote what's on my mind today. Sorry if it is not well polished. I really wanted to write. I really do.)
Dreams are like, what, like vision of something? A presque vu of things one didn't expect to happen but know will happen in some point in one's life? Hell, yes and a no. I've been dreaming lately. Nightmares. Some scared the shit out of me, leaving me sweating and my eyes teary. There are, about 10% of the time, dreams that occur to me that made me happy, wanting more; even I wanted to just live with that dream and abandon reality. But you know, dreams are like movies we pay and watch. After the show, no matter how great it was or not, everybody leaves. Downside or not, images that flash in our mind whenever we sleep wants to show us something or specifically wants to tell us about things we know, or we wanted to know.
There are instances where inside my head I was, like, I'm in a car driving, or rowing a boat in an unknown river under the sun, or even waiting for a train in a station I don't recognize. Absolutely, I have no idea of what they mean. Yes, I am the dreamer, the owner, and blah-blah. But how should I know? Rather, WHY should I know?
I was flying like him. No glasses, however.
I often visit a website in the internet to decode, somehow, my dreams. What they mean exactly. And what they really trying to make sense. Or is it just a non-sensible scrolls of images in my subconscious. I began tracking my dreams since I first stepped my right foot in the undergrad. (Yes, first the right and then the left.) Once, in my dreamworld, I'm flying like Neo in the Matrix movie. Heck, it was fun. I almost believed after I wake up that I can literally fly. The funny thing is, after the dream, I opened my eyes sleeping not in my bed but on the floor. That is by any means, gravity. What goes up, will always come down. Law of Gravity, baby. What if I really flew up in the air that's why I fell down from my bed? Who knows, right? But I believe I did -- in a literal way or the philosophical way. My side of the two? Either. To be able to fly is a remarkable feat, let alone the enjoyment one can derive from it. Who in this world never wanted to fly like the aerial animals is a total screw up. On the other hand, flying means freedom. That is its philosophical perspective (more of an in-depth analysis for me). And it makes sense, dear john. Transcendence is no joke. Freedom itself is very broad in its context and the ability to have it over the complexity that revolves around it is becoming a demi-god inside, likewise in the outside world. No kidding. I never proved this little theory of mine but why care? Fly like the wind. Embrace it if you must.
There are dozens of dreams one can harvest in a single sleep. Can we account all those short films inside our petty head? I read a book once telling me that he dreamed 43 dreams in a single sleep. 43?! Oh jeez. The most shocking about it is he wrote it in a piece of paper beside his bed. 43 is big number for a 6 hours of rest at the least of it. What more in a full 12-hour sleep?
In some rare occasion, there are symbols in my dreams. Alphabets, anagrams, numbers, and characters that I tend to categorize as ancient. Gut feel, big daddy. Gut feel. Numbers can mean many things. It may begin with your rank in competition you're into or perhaps your grade in a recent examination you took or will take. Two months ago, we had our first pre-board exam. But before I actually took the test paper and answer all the problems, T-minus two nights, a dream occurred to me that I'll rank number two in one of the subjects. To cut the story short, I didn't make it as rank number two. Instead, I was ranked as ninth. Pretty close but very fulfilling. And with that, I consider numbers important in my dreams. It may mean something, yes. The catch? It's a tricky stuff and very confusing. But once you know their meaning and what they symbolizes for, heads up girl. You're on!
Weird symbol
The symbol that I recently remember is the three letters that I don't what they mean at all. It gives me the creeps whenever I mention them. They simply showed in my subconscious and voila, I can't forget them. Somehow the letters mean something. An acronym maybe? More of an acronym to me. FTL. Born much of curiosity, I looked for its meaning. If it really meant something. There quite a few interpretations for these three.
Faith, Trust, Love
Faster Than Light
For The Lose
Fuck This Life
My girl friend (not girlfriend) told me the first one above. It made me laughing. Still, it occupied the three letters. What I really wanted to be its meaning, or whatever, is the second one. Faster than light. What is the thing faster than light? I have no idea. Really. All I know and theorize is that if humanity finds the way to break that light barrier, we can reach other worlds, travel through time, and sail an impossible journey. Well that's what I read. Going back to this particular symbol in my dream, I confide to you now that this makes no sense. In a debatable stance to answer the question whether what thing is faster than light? I would still answer and stand for ideas.
Same shit, different day
If dreams are recurring in a manner where there is a continuity (in some case, replay) like a TV series, or a book series, do we consider them as priority one, meaning significant? For instance, imagine in Year 1 you dream riding a bicycle with four wheels. Then in Year 2, same environment, you now riding a two-wheel bicycle. Afterwards, in Year 3, you still riding the two-wheel bicycle but now you're wearing a helmet. And it goes like in the succeeding days, or years, you still dream the same. It's like a loop in the head repeating the same crap over and over again. LOOP. And yes, they will occur over and over again until some thing is finished or attained or simply put, accepted. The question now is what to accept? I read that these recurring dreams are trying to pin-point something. It may vary a little, in a way, not so different from its predecessors. The fact they keep to replay is an indication that they're important. That they wanted to show us something. Wanted to visualize some things we barely set our naked eyes upon. Whatever it is, it's damn important! And from the looks of it, it defines us. A specific problem we should act immediately, a moral value we should have, a personal weakness we should face bravely, or in its simplest sense, a scene that we must battle because we haunt ourselves -- the monster inside of us all.
I remember these past few years. I had a recurring dream of me being in our old house. It is our second house actually. My brother and I have this table-cabinet thingy with two drawers on it. One in the left and one in the right. I was assigned to the drawer being on the right. And to be specific, this drawer of mine has no metal handle like my brother's, so I have to kill some time to open it. I dreamed about this drawer of mine several times in the past. Same thing over and over again. The scene is that I'm trying to open it but it won't budge at all. And then it occurred to me, in my dream (obviously), that I'm trying to recover something there. I don't have a clue what it is. And in all honesty that the furniture was left in that previous house of ours. I'm still curious what it is, though. Still curious until now.
Dreams can mean anything. It can be interpreted literally or in reverse (like what the elders tell us when we were kids. Yeah right, grandma.), or in some context that your own mind can comprehend. They can occur after watching TV or movie, after listening to some music, after reading a horror book (I am a victim myself under this. Stephen King's works are really scary. Often I dreamed them, I almost had a heart attack), or after having a conversation with someone else, or even someone you just met (Yes, it's you I'm referring to). The moment you close your eyes you now sail through the vastness of your subconscious, your own mind -- the place you keep returning aside from home. The place where mirrors are placed. Mirrors of yourself, your morals, your ego, your strengths, your weaknesses and ultimately, your own home-made demon. You can leave the cruelty of reality but can NEVER leave the realm of your mind.
Oo, mahirap. Mahirap ang mag-aral ng propesyong ito. Sandamakmak na mga libro, ga-bundok na papel na gamit para sa pag-solve ng mga accounting problems, at nakapapayat na stress -- ay iilan lamang sa mga produkto ng pagpasok sa propesyong ito. Masaya naman kahit mahirap. Sweet torture, ika nga. Kahit magkahalu-halo na ang mga rules na kailangang tandaan, isa-isip, at sa isa-puso, okay pa din. Kaya pa...kaya pa. Apat na taong pakikipag-patintero kay kamatayan nung kolehiyo para di matanggal sa accountancy program tapos ngayon pa susuko? Nakakaasar naman ata yun. *sigh* Para san pa ang pinagsisikapan kong pangarap? Mawawala na lang?
Ang pinakamahirap na exam daw ang Law dahil nga siguro na walang pagpipilian (multiple choice) na mga sagot para sa mga tanong. Sanaysay kasi ang isasagot dun kapag Bar Exam. At isa pa, Korte Suprema ang nangangasiwa sa eksaminasyong yun.
Sa CPA Licensure exam, iba naman. May mga pagpipilian naman kaso kung di maingat ang sasagot, yari siya. May mga pagpipilian kasi na akala mo na yun ang tamang sagot tapos di naman pala. May isa pang sitwasyon na mararamdaman mong "you are torn between two...answers (not lovers)". Yun ang nakakatawa sa lahat. Pero kung alam mo ang konsepto at tanda mo ang rule para sa tanong na yun, simple na lang. Kaso, masyadong maraming RULES sa pag-aaral ng accounting. Sadyang marami.
Pito ang mga subjects na kailangang aralin para makapasa sa CPA Board Exam. Ito ay ang:
Management Services
Business Law and Taxation
Theory of Accounts
Auditing Theory
Auditing Problems
Practical Accounting 1
Practical Accounting 2
Paborito ko ang Practical Accounting 2. Sa katunayan pag may mga quizzes/exams kami nung kolehiyo pa ako, magaganda ang mga lumalabas na resulta. Minsan ay ako pa nga ang pinakamataas. Pero bonus na sa akin yun. Gusto ko lang talaga yung subject na yun. Mechanical lang kasi at wala masyadong rules na tatandaan. Pero, sige ka, yun ang naturingang killer subject sa pito.
Una akong kumuha ng CPA exam nung isang taon (October 2010). Di ako pumasa. Pero di din naman ako bumagsak. Na-conditioned ako. Ibig sabihin? Kailangan kong kunin ulit ang mga subjects na may grado akong mababa sa 75%. Dalawa ang mga subject na yun sa kaso ko. Practical Accounting 1 at Practical Accounting 2. Yung sa P1, tanggap ko pa. Di ko naman talaga hilig ang subject na yun. Marahil ay dahil na rin sa propesor namin nung kolehiyo ako na akala mo kung sino at halatang hindi alam ang itinuturo.
(...after exam.)Professor : Mga hindi kasi kayo nagbabasa kaya ang baba ng grado niyo.
Ako: Nagbabasa kami. Hindi lang kapareho at kaliteral ng binabasa mo.
Nadismaya ako ng malaman kung di ko man lang nai-75% ang P2. 63% ang nakuha ko dun at yun ang pinakamababa ko sa pito. Paborito ko pero iniwan ako sa ere. Paborito ko ngunit pinabayaan ako. O kaya naman ako ang nagpabaya? Nakakapanghinayang man, dahil 88% ang pinakamataas ko, kailangan kong mag-aral ulit. Kailangang ipasa na. Kailangang malagpasan na.
Saan na ba ako ngayon? At nasaan na ba sila? Ang mga kaibigan ko na wala pa ata sa sampu, di ko na sila nakikita. Yung isa, nars na. Kapapasa lang. Yung isa, nasa Baguio, may 3DS na. Yung dalawang malapit sa akin, wala kaming komunikasyon. Kinukumusta ko naman pero wala. Zero backlog. Solo akong haharap sa Mayo. Solo lang. Hep, kasama pala ang water jug ko -- ang naturingan kong kasangga, karamay, at kung anu-ano pa.
Gusto kong makita ang mga kaibigan ko para maramdaman ko na may kaibigan ako. Pero kung ayaw, okay lang. Sana lang kung nasan man sila, kung ano man ang ginagawa nila, maabot sana sila ng mensahe ko. Na kahit kailan, kahit saan, kahit iilan lang sila, at kahit ilang tao pa ang makilala ko bukod sa kanila; iniaalay ko ang mga makakamtan ko sa buhay para sa inyo.
Miss ko na kayo...
~BWC
~LAR
~JO
~JPC
~MKT
at kay RDR, na hanggang ngayon, hindi ko pa rin mapagtanto kung ikaw ay talagang aking nakilala o isa ka lamang panaginip. Ang mensahe ko sa'yo ay...isa kang manhid. (Parang sinabihan ko ata ang sarili ko. Tinamaan kasi ako.)
I barely manage my blog nowadays because of the upcoming exam I will take. Study here, read there, solve everywhere. Good thing I have spare time to update this site and apply some minor changes. I wrote many ideas in a piece of notebook and contained it there in the meantime. Priority must come first, and that is to pass my licensure exam. Anyhow, here are the updates:
~Changed template
~Fixed bugs in particular for pictures
~Modified Movie XPerience page
~Modified 2011:Book Challenge page
~Added content in Movie XPerience. Details here.
~Added content 2011:Book Challenge. Details here.
A few movies showcased this type of film. Same plot, same mission. Aliens invade our planet with their own motive of who-knows-what. Humanity, of course, will not allow that. Then countless battles will pop out and voila, it's either we get annihilated or the invaders flee out of Earth. Does Battle: Los Angeles, in some way, managed to have something new that they can show the audience? Or is it still the same alien-versus-human type of film with no substance, just linear in any way.
Battle: Los Angeles is about the story of an alien invasion on the city of angels where Marine Staff Sergeant Michael Nantz (played by Aaron Eckhart) and his new band of comrades try to counter enemies they never expected. Initially reported as meteor showers, these things (and beings) from outer space landed in different parts of the world, particularly in bodies of water, to have their ultimate mission in effect -- to get our water supply.
To be frank, the film lacks something in the story. Its concept may not be original but the story can show more only if they managed to have more inputs. The CGI was great in every aspect as seen on some scenes. Sound effects also got its proper ranks in line with its great scenes.
Like Sucker Punch who copy-cat some of game elements, this movie also did the wrong thing. Not only that, Resistance 3 is being promoted in the movie. What a tactic for Sony.
Hate to say this but Battle: L.A. will last its charm only for a single viewing. Another round and you'll throw it all up.
Ups: ~Great action scenes with regards to CGI ~Eckhart's role fits him
I watched the movie yesterday (March 27th) along with my brother in Mall of Asia. And yes, we literally experienced this in IMAX. So yeah, to cut the chase, the movie itself is an abysmal. No more, no less.
The film is all about Babydoll portrayed by Emily Browning (The Uninvited) who was sent to an institution for the mentally insane by her uncle (stepfather actually). Poor old Babydoll, of course, wanted to escape the asylum. Hence, she created an alternate reality in her own mind to plot a strategy in order to break out along with her fellow inmates namely Sweetpea (played by Abbie Cornish), Rocket (played by Jenna Malone), Blondie (played by Vanessa Hudgens), and Amber (Jamie Chung); and by doing so, they need to collect things that can aid them in their so-called "plan".
It was only natural for any of us to have an eye-candy for this film's trailer. Hell, it was great. Stunning visuals, artistic sceneries, and the like. Plus one if the director was the one who made 300 possible. But all of these were obliterated by the story itself. Movies circling around the theme of a mental institution are common nowadays. A protagonist inside of it wanted to get out is a common goal in any related movies out there. So they say.
There are lots of downside in Sucker Punch. Emily Browning is a beaut. Yes she is. But her acting? Come on! It's a no no. Her face is angelic, some people may say that. But the moment she started to make face to have our sympathy for her, I started to be angry instead of showing pity. And it sucks when she does that. Her sworn portrayal of the lead is surely a waste. Another casting problem is of Carla Gugino who played the role of Madam Gorski (one of the institutions doctors). As the story impliedly tell the audiences, Madam Gorski is somehow a russian. Gugino is in no sense a russian, by the way. And when she started talking in the film in a russian accent, it irritates me a lot. Why Zack Snyder, why?
Action sequences are not that "great" to watch. Fighting samurai warriors thrice the size of you with one using a huge overrated machine gun, battling your way in to the enemy's base where your enemies are in fact dead and looked like bunch of Helghasts from Killzone 2 (and yes, Radec look-alike is also there too), killing a dragon to obtain gems inside its throat, and stopping a train with a ticking time bomb inside of it before it hits a city -- these are the film's "worlds" that Babydoll and her colleagues must travel.
The real deal for the movie is the god-damn story! No substance at all. Few minutes after the movie started, I felt that the film would be a huge disappointment and I even predicted the ending. And I was right, it was a BIG disappointment and the movie in its entirety is damn predictable. The story was not well-written. It's like an Inception "wanna-be" where in the former the protagonist dreams and in the latter, the lead role imagine things. 300 was adapted from the comics and so as the Watchmen. But Sucker Punch? Where did that come from?! Good job Snyder, good effing job. Tsk Tsk.
Ups:
~Pretty chicks
~Good graphics
Downs:
~Story
~Castings
~Action sequences
~Adaptations of action games and some movies
~Excessive use of "slow-motion" sequences
My rating of the movie ~ 5/10
Recommendation ~ Watch Shutter Island, instead. =)
When somebody asked me what is my favorite in-game music, I just give them a lightning-flash answer. "It's the God of War theme where Kratos fights Ares, or when Kratos beat the hell up of mighty Zeus." Yes, what an answer but when asked of what the title is, I was left hanging on a far away cliff. Music matters, well, all the time. And whenever we hear something familiar -- even just a beat of a drum -- our ears tend to trigger memories stored in our brain. (I dunno if it's true but after I read a book last year telling me that the olfactory gland is the best memory trigger for man, I started to believe it.) For instance, one hearing the song "My heart will go on" by Celine Dion will trigger the individual's memories about the Titanic. Another is when you hear Beethoven's symphonies, one can remember someone playing it back in his childhood. Then thus the parade of pictures in one's mind theater. And it goes and goes, until you have an LSS again for the nth time.
Fear is a negative emotion -- an emotional perception where one may be in a hard situation or near danger zone. Fear is Resident Evil. Back in the late 90's where horror games are in fact -- in truest form "horror" -- players managed to travel the viral infected streets of Raccoon City in Resident Evil 1,2, and 3, or traverse the demonic realm of Silent Hill (I never lasted an hour playing the game. It really scared the shit out of me). In my own experience, if Nemesis is the unforgettable enemy in all RE universe, the save game BGM in Resident Evil 2 would be the same; only thing is that it's a soundtrack. Its sad and creepy theme made my spines chill. Even now, I still feel the same. But when one plays it in-game and you hear this BGM, it means you can save your progress via the typewriter (The problem arises if you haven't a spare ink ribbon to use the thing.), plan your next route, manage your inventory and even reload all your weapons. In any case, one is safe if he/she hears the song; however, not for long. 
