A Collection of geekery. Featuring vintage and retro reviews of anime, video games, manga and figures. With a smattering of personal collection updates and miscellaneous geekery to keep things interesting.
There's a few shopping days left before mailing cut offs. So if you're looking for a unique vintage collectible, we've got you covered. If you've got friends or family with a flair for the geeky we've probably got the perfect something in stock at www.avaneshop.com right now!
We're going to do a series of these shopping guides over the next few days and this is our second Sailor Moon guide. If you've got a Sailor Moon fan on your holiday shopping list, we have a huge selection of vintage Sailor Moon items available. We have everything from Sailor Moon manga to Sailor Moon dolls to sailor Moon Stationery & Stickers and just about anything else Sailor Moon you can think of!
We have variety of unique and interesting Sailor Moon toys available.
This Sailor Neptune doll is part of the old "noseless" line of dolls released in North America way back in 1995. She's been opened but is still in the box with most her original accessories. Neptune is a hard to find doll and she'd be welcome addition to a lot of Sailor Moon collection a great gift for $38. Japanese Sailor Moon Bottle Opener:
There's a whole variety of Japanese Sailor moon kitchen items for the Moonie with Culinary interests but this bottle opener is great even for those who's cooking tends to be more about opening a take out menu. This bottle opener is still new on the card a great gift for a Sailor Moon fan who has almost everything else and at only $9 it's well within most gift budgets. Sailor Moon Sailor Mars Keychain:
This Sailor Moon Key Chain is from Sailor Moon's first merchandise revival around the year 2000. This is a flat PVC Keychain of Sailor Mars, it'd make a great stocking stuffer and is only $4.50. (If Mars isn't your preferred scout we have a few others in this style as well)
This is a plastic sliding style tray puzzle. It features a great Sailor Moon group shot that includes: Sailor Moon Sailor Chibimoon, Sailor Mars, Sailor Venus, Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Neptune, Sailor Uranus, Luna and Artemis. This is still in it's original package with the toei seal on it. Only $10 for this fun gift.
This Japanese set of magnets has 8 different designs. These would be great gracing the front of any Moonie's fridge. A fun and unique gift for only $8.
A vintage Sailor Moon Jewelry set dating from around 1995. This features the a 5 of the Sailor Senshi from the original anime in a circular pendant with star earrings, kind of dated looking at this point, but certainly a fun vintage accessory for any fan priced at $8.
This plushie features Makoto Kino, AKA Sailor Jupiter in her school uniform holding a bento bag. She's super cute and still has her original hang tag. And adorable gift for any Jupiter fan that's only $10
This tiny teacup was part of a Sailor Moon gashapon miniature tea set. This cup is a little larger than a US penny and is the perfect size for dolls or just as a display piece. It's new in package and is just $6.50, a really cute unique gift for any Sailor Moon fan.
This is a 2000 era "pretty face" 6 inch Sailor Moon doll still sealed in her original box. This is Sailor Moon herself. A cute little doll and would make a fantastic gift for just about any moon fan at only $15 it won't break the bank either.
For a gift that's truly unique, we have this Sailor Moon animation cel. This was hand painted by a Japanese animator and was actually used in the making of Sailor Moon episode 81. This one of a kind collectible is only $25 a great deal for such an amazing gift.
Those are some of our top toy picks, but we have loads of other Sailor Moon Merchandise available we certainly have something wonderful in stock for your moonie fan.
There's a few shopping days left before mailing cut offs. So fi you're looking for a unique vintage collectible, we've got you
covered. If you've got friends or family with a flair for the geeky
we've probably got the perfect something in stock at www.avaneshop.com
right now!
We're going to do a series of these
shopping guides over the next couple days and this is our first focusing on gifts for 80s kids. Being old enough to fondly remember our 80's childhoods means that we stock a decent amount of 80s collectibles. We have stuff from Care Bears, Masters of the Universe, Strawberry Shortcake, My Little Pony, Cabbage Patch Kids and at least a little something from just about every corner of 80s pop culture.
Here's our this years top gift picks for those of us who still fondly remember 80s toys.
Pac-Man was everywhere in the early 80s pretty much everyone succumbed to Pac-man fever at one point or another. This vintage twin sized sheet is an especially fun pattern as it shows the many faces of 80s Pac-man, big nose Pac-man, vaguely ghost shaped with legs Pac-man, and the more recognizable, pie with a slice missing Pac-man, who appears in both his 3d and 2d versions in this pattern. In addition to being great for for just $12.
Jem was one of the most iconic and memorable cartoons from the 80s and is currently in the process of getting a movie treatment. This is an original animation sketch of Jerrica, Jem's normal personality. This sketch signed by Samantha Newark who was the speaking voice of both Jem & Jerrica. This is a unique piece and would be an amazing gift for any Jem for only $55.
Fashion Star Fillies were like My Little Pony's elegant older sisters. It's very likely if you liked ponies you probably got a few of these Kenner made counterparts. This particular Filly is Chloe and is still looks lovely even though she's fast approaching 30. She's $10 and is sure to delight anyone who grew up coveting pretty ponies.
Anyone who knows someone who collects Masters of the Universe toys and collectibles knows that there's a ton of merchandise available but most of it is fairly similar. So if you're looking for something unique for a collector who has just about everything else, this He-Man Laundry bag is great choice. It's very rare, we've only seen a handful of them for sale, so most collectors don't even knew it exsists! $25 for this gift to surprise and delight your favorite MOTU fan. ALF Robin Hood Figure:
ALF the fuzzy cat munching alien from Melmac was an 80s phenomenon appealing to kids and adults alike. This little figure of him dressed as Robin Hood actually comes from the cartoon show, which actually ran into the early 90s, but ALF is defintely an 80s icon. This fun piece of Kitsch it's only $2 a great stocking stuffer!
I remember loads of these book and record combos from my 80s childhood. (records played on Fisher Price record players naturally) This Transformers book is in good shape for it's age and the accompanying record is in even better shape. This set is $10 and a really fun piece of nostalgia any Transformers fan would love to get as a gift. Double fun if you give it to someone with kids and watch them attempt to explain how the big black things can play music and sounds.
Fisher Price has been making toys since the 30s and is still making them today and there's a good number of fun memorable pieces from the 80s. This is a Toyland Radio Music box it still plays music and would be a great way to replace a childhood memory for only $5.
My Little Pony has rather successfully been rebooted as Friendship is magic, but many of us still love the cute chubby pastel ponies from the early days. This is Misty, part of the princess line of ponies with shiny hair and 3d symbols. This cute little unicorn is $6.50 and a great gift for any pony lover.
Rainbow Brite was a childhood favorite of mine a distinction I know I share with many other 80s little girls. I know I'd be thrilled to get this cute little plush sprite. This one is Romeo and he is 30 years old now, so he's got some wear, but still looks really cute. A wonderful gift choice for only $7.
As one of the most iconic films of the 80s Gremlins still has quite a following. This vintage figure of Gizmo is sure to please any fan and at $4 is perfectly priced to be a stocking stuffer.
We have so many great 80s toys that it was hard to limit this list to just 10! So if you don't see something in this list we probably still have something great on our site just waiting to be discovered. This is especially true for Vintage Super Mario toys which didn't make this list but are a huge part of our inventory!
Just about everyone interested in adventure games has played at least one game in the King's Quest series. The plights and perils of Daventry's royal families delighted gamers for about14 years, unfortunately like many venerable long running series, eventually quality declined, such is the case with Kings Quest VII.
Story:
The Story for this King's Quest entry is centered around Queen Valanice looking for her daughter, Princess Rosella (Star of King's Quest IV) after a not so well received talk about marriage ends up with both of them going into a pond and getting sucked in the magical world of Eldritch. Now sometimes the premise is silly but the rest of the story manages to be engaging and interesting, that's not the case here. It evolves into a convoluted drama involving a Witch who's angry with you for reasons that are never entirely clear and Rosella's gaining true love. It starts silly and not particularly interesting and stays that way
Graphics:
Graphics in the cut scenes are done to look like cel shaded animation in the style cartoons from the time period. The cut scene graphics are not great by current standards, but not bad either, serviceable overall. The on-screen graphics use the same animation style for the most part, but it's hit and miss in terms of how good it looks. Most of the background characters and enemies are done about as well as the cut scenes, but Rosella and Valanice often look terrible in motion and don't interact particularly well in their environments.
Controls:
This is the only King's Quest that is a pure point and click, no typing or keyboard necessary. You use your mouse to investigate, navigate and use your inventory. Additionally, making it simpler than earlier incarnations your pointer is a magic wand that sparkles whenever you're near something that you can interact with. Overall basically what you'd expect when playing a point and click adventure game.
Sound:
There's nothing to write home about in the sounds department, the ambient and action sounds go well with cartoony vibe of the game. The music is so-so, not bad, not good, very forgettable, but in keeping with the game. The only exception being the main theme/ending theme which is some and irritating pop song that sounds like it belongs in a barbie movie. It's fully voice acted game, something worth noting back in 1994, and the voice acting is surprisingly good given game voice acting was still in it's infancy. That being said by today's standards most of it isn't good, like most of the game though it ends up solidly mediocre.
Gameplay:
King's Quest VII's gameplay differs from the earlier entries in variety of ways. First as I briefly touched on in the controls section, there's no text interface at all, it's purely point and click. Second as I also touched on, the point and click cursor is a magic wand that twinkles whenever you're near something of note. Third you take controls of two different characters, in alternating "chapters".
There are six chapters where you take control of either Rosella or Valanice. At first each character is in different areas from one another, that span the
breadth of Eldritch ranging from a volcanic cave, to fairytale town, to a knock off Halloweentown. Eventually though they cross paths (though without actually meeting each other) so you get to see all these areas from the perspective of both of the royal ladies of Daventry. Aside from being cliched these environments are actually pretty well executed, they're bright, colorful and interesting. Sometimes the attention to detail can actually make it hard to find what you're supposed to interact with but the environments are a place where the game really does things well.
Of course what's a good environment without a few interesting inhabitants.The NPCs in these areas
self-segregate because you pretty much only encounter characters who fit the aesthetic of their respective towns. This is not the only game that does this by a long shot, but it's boring and predictable. that being said, there still are a few interesting denziens of Eldritch: there's foppish dog Arch Duke Yip Yap who's governing style seems to hinge on making sweeping generalizations, throwing parties and wearing masks, a talking bolder who spends most of his time sleeping, a troll blacksmith who's clearly got a sexual harassment suit on his hands and a surprisingly pleasant and helpful headless horseman. Although naturally not all of these inhabitants are particularly nice, several of them are more than happy to bring your quest to a premature end.
In typical point and click fashion in order to traverse these areas and meet these colorful personalities
you're going to have to do some item collection and puzzle solving. The magic wand pointer makes the collection parts fairly easy. Making things a bit more interesting, once you've collected the items you will need to examine them, most of them time it's just seeing what it looks like from different angles but occasionally it's necessary to continue with the game. Unfortunately this feature wasn't implemented particularly well so it gets irritating more often than not, because it's not always easy to spot where to interact with a given item. Still, most of the puzzles aren't particularly difficult. The biggest puzzle problems come from some poorly executed backgrounds which even with the help of the sparkly pointer can be difficult to navigate. That being said there were a few puzzles we had to look to walk-through for, mostly due to some pretty illogical conclusions, *almost a spoiler alert* that's just not how you use a rubber chicken.
Getting from world, to world, puzzle to puzzle is pretty linear. The swapping perspectives guarantees a lot of backtracking as the characters visit a lot of the same areas, though not at the same time, Valanice and Rosella don't actually meet up until the very end of the game. There isn't a whole heck of a lot of back tracking while you're the same character though, just a few minor instances of it. This has bad and good parts, you know that for the most part assuming you diligently picked up the items in a given area you're not going to have to wander back there 100 times seeing if there's a new item to be found, on the other hand you're it makes the game more linear and less interesting.
Your reward for traversing these diverse lands, clicking and puzzle solving your way to victory of the evil witch is either a good ending or a bad ending depending on how you handle the last scene. The bad ending isn't really all that bad, it just doesn't really answer any questions for you. The good ending is a little better, giving you an ending that really only makes sense if you've played King's Quest IV, and a full animated ending sequences of cliches set to some really uninspiring pop music. In short, regardless of which ending you get, it's not worth the time put into getting it.
Conclusion:
Overall this is a mediocre title, it's playable if you like adventure games. It started off fun but it got repetitive and boring pretty quickly. Frankly it was a bit of a struggle to even finish it. Honestly while it's not bad I couldn't really recommend it unless you're a die hard King's Quest fan. I give it 2.5 cephalapoints.
When a gaming company attempts to put out a new version of a classic, beloved series, sometimes you just have to accept that it's not going to have that same flair your old favorites did. Sometimes you have to remember that the tried and true formula that made the original titles the masterpieces they were are going to be replaced by new and questionable features in an attempt to add freshness to an antiquated series. Sometimes you just have to accept that it's not going to be the same.
Luckily, in the case of Contra 4, that entire opening paragraph is entirely irrelevant.
If you want to run and gun, if you want to shoot up a base pseudo-3D style, if you want to search desperately for the spread shot while navigating the narrow platforms of the jungle, if you want to be irritatingly be hit by falling rocks on the way to an Alien Fortress on top of a waterfall, if you want to spend an RPG amount of time trying to survive 9 merciless stages with the brutal, console-throwingly difficult 2D gameplay that defined the late 80's and early 90's portion of your childhood, then you probably want Contra 4.
Get Psyched! Oh wait, wrong game.
Graphics: Graphically the game is an example of how instead of putting all of our energy into 3D rendering, we should also appreciate just how much we can do with 2D graphics in the modern era. This is a gorgeous game with very nice background visuals with some 3D effects added in nicely. The player sprites are a bit pixelated but animate very smoothly. The game doesn't suffer from intense flickering like the games of old do, which is nice because with all of the on-screen activity it's going to be hard enough to keep track of things. Artistically the game looks a lot like Contra III, which isn't surprising given how most fans loved that one the most. Many of the enemies retain their original look and the player sprites are very similar to their classic counterparts.
Alien breeding programs have eliminated the "ball arms" gene
Controls: The controls are as responsive as they need to be and simple to get the hang off for the most part. The direction pad on the DS may give you some problems, especially when trying to shoot diagonally which may prove frustrating while you're new to the game. It's a little harder to really mash the shoot button on the DS due to the small size of the buttons and the fact that it causes the whole console to shake. By holding the R button, you can at least stand safely in place while you fire in any direction, which also allows you to fire directly downward without having to jump. If you've only played Contra and Super C with lacked this feature, that's an incredible button right there. The simplicity of Contra's controls will lead to the same problems they did in the old days, such as accidentally dropping down from a ledge when you try to jump too soon after shooting at an enemy below you. The new ability to climb ropes affords itself many opportunities at accidental and deadly dismounts when you're trying to do too much at once and while none of these issues are necessarily new to this game, they are a perennial source of frustration.
Sounds: The sound effects are crisp although some are rather quiet, so you'll have to strain a little to enjoy that classic 'p-choom' sound unless you've got headphones. The classic ricochet noise which denoted a successful shot on an enemy returns for added nostalgia, though most of the sounds in the game will be more updated. The game's music features some new tracks and several remixes of the ones you remember. If you're playing on Hard then you're rewarded with an enhanced version of the original Jungle track. Arguably the greatest 8 bit music ever, the Base Boss music from the first Contra returns in two of the three base-style levels as you're fighting the final enemy there, offering a more percussive and instrumental version, coming off as more dramatic (though not necessarily better) than the original version.
Gameplay:
Mad Dog has chosen the passive-aggressive approach
After years of questionable titles and a few decent but very different ones, Konami's Contra 4 on the Nintendo DS is clearly meant as fan service to the long time fans of the run n' gun series, from the game itself, to the bonus unlockables, and even the booklet is made lovingly with long-time fans in mind. The game takes its overall design from the first three Contra games, featuring levels, weapons, music, and bosses borrowed or inspired from Contra, Super Contra, and Contra III: The Alien Wars. Contra 4 takes place soon after the events of Contra III, serving as a direct sequel to that game and ignoring all the rest that came in between (which is good because those storylines were crazy and the characters were wearing shirts). Midst the familiar features, the game brings fresh new ones to ensure that it isn't just a phoned-in reboot. While a few of the levels are clearly inspired by the look of some of the classics, they are set up in brand new, challenging ways while retaining the original feel. This includes the pseudo-3D shooting galley-like base levels which retain the "shoot the red things" goal but with beefed up enemies and hazards. One of the biggest new factors in the game is the simultaneous use of both the upper and lower screen, adding a huge new challenge to a game that was not exactly short on them to begin with. The insane difficulty remains intact, so only elite players will see the end. All in all, the easiest way to describe the game is...it's a Contra game, with all of the good and bad that comes with that status.
With the addition of only a few new tricks, the core gameplay is unaltered from what we've grown accustomed to, feeling the most like Contra III, which might seem expected, given the numbering, but let's remember that they're 15 years apart. Before starting the game you can select which character you want to use. So if you're like me and sad that you have to be player two to enjoy the benefits of red pants, now you can choose Lance (the red pants guy) instead of that stuck up Blue Pants Bill right out of the starting block. Two other characters, Mad Dog and Scorpion, are also immediately selectable, and if you're familiar with the regional differences between the original Contra games, you know why that's such a delightful addition. All of these initial characters are just color palette swaps of each other, but if you ever felt that Bill Rizer would be better represented as a black guy with a golden rifle then this game's for you.
This seems very familiar
After your support chopper drops you into the jungle, careful not to insult your manhood with a helpful missile or two aimed at your enemies, you'll find yourself in the same position in which you found yourself way back in the original Contra, with a big gun that shoots one small, pathetic round at a time. Even the sound effect is exactly the same as it was in the NES days. Your mission on every level is simple to say but nearly impossible to do, run to the end of the level while shooting everything in sight before it gets you. If you take one shot from anything, you lose a life.
Enemies come in all forms, from the backpack carrying cannon-fodder guys who used to irritate us on the waterfall (and still do) to durable gun turrets which take many shots to destroy. There's an increased premium on mid-bosses in Contra 4 which help give each level some added depth and challenge on the way to the eventual main boss. Mid bosses are among the most interesting enemies and may take the form of a large alien, a powerful tank, a giant robot, and more. It's not uncommon to encounter a mid boss that's actually more difficult than the level's final boss.
Spreadshot is love
To help you navigate all of these hazards, your character can climb certain walls, hang on bars and certain ceilings, and can now climb ropes or rope-shaped alien entrails, which does unfortunately open the door to the 2D platformer rope nightmares we all remember, and more than once you'll be lamenting the loss of a life while asking, "why didn't we grab that rope, Bill?" New to the series, you are also given a grapple hook which is used to latch onto hangable objects above you. The grapple hook with shoot all the way to the heights of the level but you're very vulnerable to attack while it's pulling you up there. In an effort to make use out of this new tactic, weapon pods can often be found over deadly chasms, forcing you to shoot them open, jump down just far enough to collect the item before it's lost, and then grapple back to safety before it's too late, which looks pretty darn cool when you pull it off, but is rarely worth the trouble. Perhaps you might feel the use of the grapple hook adds a needless new learning curve in a series that's already too damn hard, but you'd better get used to it, as several key parts of the game require it. Sticking to running and gunning and some light climbing would be ideal but the grapple hook just may save your life one day. Or possibly cost you one.
Grappling can also leave you temporarily headless
Better weapons and powerups are shot out of pods imbedded into the background, or from flying pods which look very similar to those found in Contra III. If you're hoping for some new toys to play with here then you'll be somewhat disappointed as all of the weapons within have been featured in previous titles. However, all of the weapons can be upgraded by picking them up twice, so their functionality will improve in ways you may not expect. In some cases, the upgraded weapon is If you're playing on Easy, they all start off fully upgraded. Being able to upgrade the weapons puts an increased premium on collecting them as well as making it more tragic when you're killed, and your weapon is lost. Like in Contra III, you're allowed to carry two different weapons which is awfully helpful, since you only lose the one who had equipped when you die. Unlike Contra III you can't fire both weapons at once although there was really no tactically sound reason to do so in the first place. You can also discard your weapon, tossing it to the ground. This is useful if you're playing with a friend and are generous enough to share the wealth. It can also be helpful if you know you're about to get hit by something that don't want to lose the weapon permanently. Although if you're new to the controls you'll find yourself accidentally throwing away your weapons at very inopportune times.
Crap.
The levels play similarly to how they'd play in Contra III, with most of them being a side-scrolling format allowing you to climb rails, walls, and ropes in order to get to higher plains. Many portions of the game give you the option to take the high or low path, so you can run along the roof tops of the crumbling city or try your luck on the mean streets below. This would be especially helpful on multiplayer so you can finally get your buddy the hell out of your way, relegating him to whatever path you don't take. One of the levels takes place over the ocean on a futuristic jet ski, sort of like an aquatic version of the hover bike level in Contra III. And to the delight of fans of the original Contra, there are three shooting-gallery levels reminiscent of the bases from the first game. These levels are even harder than they were in 1987 with more tricks and traps awaiting you, but with the faster pacing and new features, may be even more fun than the bases you remember. Or maybe just more infuriating.
Aside from the regular campaign, you can also unlock Challenge Mode, which sticks you in 40 different scenarios, demanding that you complete tasks ranging from completing a section of a level without being able to shoot, having to retain extreme accuracy, taking on a boss without sustaining a single hit, and more. Some of these are unimaginably annoying, and not in the good Contra way, but just in an unfair, irritating way, which I assure you is actually different. For example, when playing some of the Pacifism modes, where you can't shoot, you're basically at the mercy of what the game throws at you. Sure, it might give you 3 paths to take but say enemies are on all three paths, preventing you from jumping, dropping, or standing your ground. What do you do? Nothing, you're screwed. Most of the challenges are fair in some very hidden way, but some of them will have you contemplating just how important a DS really is while you're looking for a hammer. As you complete these tasks you'll be rewarded with various unlockable bonuses which actually manage to justify the injustice you've just suffered. These bonuses...these bonuses are perhaps the greatest example of fan service the game has to offer. The booklet specifically says it offers no spoilers on what these prizes are, and in honor of that they won't be mentioned here, but to give you a small idea, if Contra 4 itself were absent from the game and only the unlockables remained, it would still be worth buying. Seriously.
So the gameplay in general is pretty great, classic Contra at its finest with a few new abilities. But alas, we must also cover the grim matter of the difficulty. First the good news: It's not as hard as Contra III. But then, few things in life are. However, the difficulty of Contra 4 is still insane and will scare off the modern gamer used to endless life bars and unlimited continues. It's much harder than Contra and Super Contra and requires extremely skillful maneuvering and heroic patience. The game can be set to 'easy' but the last two levels won't be available, and it's not as if "Easy" isactually all that easy anyway. If you're feeling extra masochistic, you can put the game on hard, where enemy bullets are almost too fast to see and bosses boast a carpal tunnel inducing number of hit points. As eluded to earlier, one of the hardest things about Contra 4 is that it takes place on both screens, making it very hard to see threats coming from the screen opposite of the one you currently occupy. You either have to look at what's coming or keep and eye on what's happening on your screen, either option increasing your mortality significantly. Plus, enemy fire briefly gets lost in the space between the two screens making it extra difficult to keep track of it. Honestly this is one of the more frustrating facets of the game, and whether it's intentionally meant to increase difficulty or just an unfortunate side effect of an attempt to take advantage of the DS platform, it does beg for an eventual adaptation to a single-screen platform if ever possible. Fortunately the overall game is great enough for this not to ruin it.
Bill must eliminate all the Aliens before 20th Century Fox sues him.
Conclusion:
Contra 4 is a prime example of what can be accomplished two decades into a long-running series when its made with the fans in mind and not just the money. Contra 4 isn't made to appeal to a new generation of gamers. It doesn't even try. This game is solely for those who loved Contra, Super C, and Contra III, loved the punishment and tragedy they dished out, and wanted more. Fifteen years after the last classic Contra, this game proves it can hang with its iconic predecessors and is easily the best Contra to come out in the 2000's. It doesn't try to be new or different, it just tries to be good. There is no fathomable reason that any classic Contra fan wouldn't become an immediate fan of this classic Run and Gun experience.
*This is a cleaned up version of our Father's day post from last year. It's still relevant so enjoy it all over again.
In honor of Father's Day we present our top 10 list of notable video game dads. As in real life some of these dads are amazing and some of them are downright deplorable, but for better or worse these 10 are some of the most memorable.
10.Big Daddies - BioShock Series
Big Daddies aren't really dads in most meanings of the word however, they're not just here in name alone. Big Daddies share some similarities with more conventional dads, they don't say much, they like power tools (especially drills) and they're very protective of their little girls. Unlike most dad's though they murder and maim any no good looking degenerate who gets near the little sisters. They do this in spite of the fact that the little sisters frequently emasculate them by calling them names like "Mr. Bubbles". While I think many of us don't necessarily want mechanized dads with homicidal tendencies, you have to appreciate their careful guardianship. 9. Dracula - Castlevania Symphony of the Night
Dracula obviously appears in quite a few titles in the Castlevania series, but Symphony of the Night is where you get to see his fatherly side. Unfortunately for Alucard, the main protagonist in SOTN and Dracula's son, his fatherly side is severely lacking. Dracula lets a castle full of minions attempt to kill his precious baby boy and if they cann't get the job done he eventually comes after Alucard himself. Though showing a bit of a soft side he does offer his son the chance to eradicate the entire human race alongside him, which Alucard impolitely declines. Nothing seals a father son bond like a death duel punctuated with vampiric super powers!
8. Cervantes - Soul Calibur series
Cervantes is one of the worst fathers ever, basically his only acknowledgement of his child is when he's beating her or attempting to consume her soul. To be fair it's a two way street, Ivy doesn't acknowledge Cervantes as her father the majority of the time and only really comes in contact with him in order to kill him. Though even if Ivy were a loving daughter, Cervantes is a undead pirate who also happens to be a self-serving egomaniac who murders people and eats souls, it's a pretty safe bet he'd have never shown up to her rhythmic gymnastics competitions or chaperoned her sleepovers.
7. Big Boss- Metal Gear Series
It's kind of hard to blame big boss for being a crappy father when he didn't have a whole lot of say in the whole having children, or more accurately having clones process. Still though that doesn't really excuse the crap he's put his "children" through. Poor Solid Snake in particular has a lot of experience in both dodging his fathers bullets and cleaning up his messes and his "brothers" have a nasty tendency to turn up dead. Honestly Big Boss is a pretty cool guy, sure a little insane at times, but insane in a way most of us respect. However he's not someone you'd ever want to be related to.
6.Mike Haggar - Final Fight
Having your daughter kidnapped by terrorists/gangsters/thugs/neighborhood hooligans is pretty much a rite of passage for any mayor. Most mayors either send out the entire city police force, immediately give in to any ransom demands or send in the one man who can stand up to a crime wave on his own. Not Mike Haggar though, he teams up with Jessica's boyfriend and his best friend to take on the criminals with his bare hands. Notably Haggar is billed as a former pro wrestler and street fight champion, so it wasn't one of those ordinary people doing extraordinary things in the face of a tragedy situations. So, it's not be a total surprise that he's very effective at both punching his way to a lower city crime rate and smashing his way through the punks that took his daughter. Still, Haggar is great mayor and an even better father. I think many of us wish we had a Dad who could pile drive all our troubles away.
5. Barret - Final Fantasy VII
For a man with a gun arm Barret is a pretty caring father. He spends a lot of time worrying about Marlene (and complaining about it a lot during your inter-party chats). Like most fathers he worries about how to keep her safe in a bad part of town, and what will happen to her if he's gone. A little more abnormal though, is that he's also embarking on the extremely dangerous and often deadly quest to save the world at the same time. It can be argued that leaving your child at home to mix drinks in the neighborhood bar while on an epic quest isn't great parenting. However without Barret and the rest of the party questing Marlene wouldn't have a world to live in any more, so you kind of have to give Barret a pass on that.
4.Jecht - Final Fantasy X
Jecht was a terrible father (though really, no one in FFX would be winning any father of the year awards) and basically every issue you have throughout your adventures in Zanarkand is all his fault in some way or another. It can be argued that he did make the ultimate sacrifice for good, but that really didn't make a lot of difference to Tidus who had to deal with years of an emotionally abusive, then physically absent father. As if several screwing up Tidus' emotional health wasn't bad enough, Jecht's poor parenting culminates in him being your final boss (as Braska's Final Aeon). Clearly being the final boss is a pretty egregious action, but Ject wasn't content just to be a really difficult boss, he also makes you fight him with the worst boss music of any Final Fantasy character ever. This makes him not only a bad father but an all around bad man.
3. Heihachi - Tekken Series
Though there have been a lot of bad dads on this list. Hiachi is the worst of the worst. Tossing your young son off a cliff would be bad enough on it's own for any normal man. However, Heihachi won't settle for less than the best so he follows it up by later throwing him into a live volcano. Kazuya manages to survive his father's many assaults and eventually has his own son with whom he has his own awful relationship. Being a terrible father to Kazuya and attempting to kill him on multiple occasions isn't good enough for Heihachi so naturally he eventually decides to turn his fatherly evil on his grandson Jin as well. Wherein he spends his time constantly betraying and attempting to kill Jin (and Kazuya too when he pops up). Perhaps the thing that really makes him truly evil though, is that he appears in every single Tekken game. So every few years his evil just keeps getting a new platform.
2. Ethan Myers - Heavy Rain
Getting one son inexplicably hit by car and following that up by getting the other kidnapped by a murderous psychopath normally wouldn't make for a great father. However, Ethan is one of the best dads ever. He probably should have taken a few more measures to keep Shaun from being abducted in the first place, but once it happens he does things to find his son most of us would never dream of. I mean I don't have kids but there are people I would die for, but I'd still have a heck of a time cutting off my own finger using unsanitary tools in an abandoned building. And that's just ONE example of the insane things Ethan has to do to rescue Shaun. Ethan really goes the distance to not only atone for his early parenting mishap but also because he really, really loves his son and is willing to do literally ANYTHING to get him back.
1. Harry Mason - Silent Hill
Harry is the ultimate father. First he rescues Cheryl as an abandoned baby on the side of the road and raises her as his own child then 7 years later faces the worst demons and hell spawn imaginable to get her back. Now as much as I was squawking about Ethan's seemingly super human ability to sever his own digits, I'd more sooner cut off every one of my limbs using a rusty spoon than face Silent Hill. Harry however takes the experience like a champ. In spite of being an ordinary guy with no special skills, who's so uncoordinated he falls off stoops, harry manages to beat back the hell spawn and never lose sight of the fact that his little girl is somehow lost in this horror. Asking every reasonably human person he comes in contact with if they've seen a little girl after beating down scalpel wielding zombie nurses with a lead pipe. I personally would have probably given up on it and just cried and/or killed myself as soon as I'd had by first experience with the rusted chain link nightmare that is the Otherside. Depending on which ending you get, how Harry's quest ends changes pretty dramatically, but regardless if you get something good or something bad, Harry never, ever gives up on Cheryl. Given the tired trope of men ignoring/and or being less loving to kids who "aren't theirs", Harry shows there's a lot more to being a father than biology.
Doom recently celebrated it's 20th anniversary and few games since can get anywhere near the level of aural perfection contained in the soundtracks of Doom and Doom II. For this reason doom has arguably one of the greatest game soundtracks of all time. It's a perfectly laid soundscape which provides the perfect accompaniment to your journey to hell and back. With that in mind, we undertook the unenviable task of isolating and ranking the ten best Doom tracks from the original two games. The following ten songs are not only some of the finest in Doom, but some of the best video game music ever composed.
10. They're Going to Get You
The eerie, simplistic rhythm of the bass strings which introduce this track soon gives way to an unnerving choir which rises and falls upon the course of a simple yet haunting scale. The song stays unsettlingly quiet throughout and is effective in its attempt to instill what can only be described as a weird feeling as you proceed into the level. While other tracks portray the rage or despair of the underworld, 'They're Going to Get You' offers a mysterious side of hell; a tune that sounds as if you crossed into a new dimension, free of the fire and intensity most associated with hell, but an unknown place, housing the souls and spirits of the fallen as they watch you proceed. The song is laden with the occult yet never truly escalates beyond a loud whisper. Located in the heart of the second episode, 'They're Going to Get You' is the perfect soundtrack for your transition from the comforts of man-made familiarity, to the unknown world that Deimos is quickly warping into.
9. Waltz of the Demons
Waltz of the demons starts off with horror movie style staccato strings and slowly layers in strings while being punctuated with sudden upsweeps. It eventually moves into an melancholy baroque melody that seems like the background to a Danse Macabre. This is an unique Doom track in that it's eerie, but doesn't leave you feeling uneasy like some of the other tracks. It seems like something you'd hear played on a dusty old gramophone, more than the backdrop to demon killing. Somehow though the juxtaposition still works, like a film that uses classical pieces over scene of extreme violence. All told this is a bewitching tune and due to it's novelty is one of the most memorable in the game.
8. Into Sandy's City
Nobody thought a harpsichord could kick this much ass before Bobby Prince jokingly threw it into this track. But the boys at Id spoiled the legengary digital composer's fun by nodding their approval for this unique Doom II jingle. And it's good that they did, as few DOOM tracks can match the intensity and energy of this song's brilliant melding of rhythm and melody. It's a track that brings to mind the Doom Guy clambering to the edge of one of the mountains of the underworld, looking down upon the sprawling wickedness of hell as the burning winds and red sky swirl around him, before finally jumping down to take it all on at once. The only weakness in the song is when it hits the staccato strings section and remains there until the loop, somewhat tempering the original strength of the track.
7. Shawn's Got The shotgun
This starts off aggressive with a hard build up and relaxes into a heavy metal chorus of the main theme accented with some heavy rhythmic drum hits from time to time. This track is easily the best Metal based tracks on the whole Doom soundtrack and while it's inspired by Slayer's south of Heaven it manages to be a wholly different song. Hard, Heavy and Perfect for a bloody descent into hell.
6. Suspense
While most doom tracks are hard rock anthems to ass kicking, a few of them are haunting melodies that impart despair, dread and distress. Suspense starts with solemn solitary strings, and layers in ominous bass and melancholy melody. It feels old and eerie, you're grouping around in the dark, anxious and terrified but you have to press on to survive. It's almost a shame that such a great atmospheric piece is placed in Phobos lab as while it's got it's fair share of dark hallways it's a pretty open and airy level. This track also made it on to our list of creepiest game songs indicative of just how unsettling it is in any context.
5. Deep Into The Code
Robert Prince had a way of isolating the best part of whatever song he was sampling, and sticking with it throughout the entirety of the track. Heavily influenced from the opening to Slayer's "Behind the Crooked Cross," the unshakable riff of Deep Into The Code reminds you of how head-bobbingly fun demon slaying can be. In some ways it might feel out of place, featured exclusively in one of the original Doom's most demonic levels, but at the same time, something about a heavy metal band's riff accompanying your romp through Pandemonium just seems to click in such a beautiful way.
4. Untitled
It would be foolish of me not to start this out by pointing out this song is largely a remix of Pantera's Mouth for War. That being said this song zeroes in on the fantastic main riff of that song and hits and hits it hard throughout. It's the opening track for the first level of inferno and it's perfect in that capacity. It's got the dark gritty feeling that lets you know you're in Hell but the hard rock sound that let you know you're gonna kick some ass.
3. Nobody Told Me About Id
When the haunting accordion of this track fades into prominence, it hums almost tauntingly to the player, as if the level itself knows something you don't. By the time the pounding bass drum and
assaulting melody joins in, it is immediately clear that whatever awaits you in the Tower of Babel is unlike anything you've seen in the previous 15 levels. With the addition of the infectious percussion, the eventual battle with the iconic Cyberdemon is granted an ambiance of both fun and terror, something that seems to say "ready or not, he's coming for you...!"
2. Sign of Evil
Although unable to surmount the iconic status of the top-ranked song, Sign of Evil, in terms of pure musical quality, may be the best track in all of classic DOOM. The song first appears in Phobos Anomaly, the level many of us came to know as the final stop of the shareware version of the game. The plodding pace of the percussion greets the player before baleful voices fade in, like the choir of a godless temple. Soon after comes a somber guitar melody which creates a chill-inducing medley of mournful sound which seems to say "You have no idea how hopeless this is." An appropriate soundtrack to the level, for as the Doom Guy believes he's finally reached the end of his nightmare, he's given his first real look at the demonic forces which await him in the form of the memorable first boss encounter of the game. And all he gets for his eventual victory is an inescapable room swelled with hell-spawn who rip and tear at his flesh before the episode ends. All of which seemed to be prophesied by the haunting tones of Sign of Evil, which never once offers a glimmer of hope within its doleful story.
1. At Doom's Gate
This is the quintessential doom song. Every doom fan has at one time hummed this song while wielding a toy gun, random object that resembles a gun, or an abnormally passive cat. Sure it helps that it's the first track of the game, but that alone doesn't make it stick in our collective gaming memories. The fact is that it's a really great song and perhaps one of the greatest opening tracks in Video Game history. It's got a catchy pop sensibility with a hard metal undercurrent. It gets you pumped to start slaughtering the demonic hordes, without being overwhelming. It strikes just the right balance of badassery and cheerful optimism. The doomguy is not only perfectly primed to send a horde of demons back to hell with a shotgun in his hand, he's gonna do it with a smile on is face.
It was hard work to narrow down two games worth amazing tracks to just 10 but we feel confident we've presented with you with the best of the best Doom has to offer.
