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I don't think so. The game I'm playing has big guns that make the baddies explode. That's why I said it was fabulous. Do you see? I really enjoyed playing a game, called F.E.A.R., it had guns in.
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Now you see THAT'S the kind of game I like. And review, for that matter.
Thanks all for the balanced and non-partisan recommendations, by the way. If I have this right, I have to decide whether I have real friends, imaginary friends or no friends (but lots of money). Innit?
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I suppose if you're like Black Mask and you don't play many computer games, it might be easier to overlook the massive flaws in F.E.A.R and just enjoy the better elements, like the occasional moments of slightly derivative horror.
But I will agree that though F.E.A.R has the occasional moment of greatness, for the moment it's a fairly repetative linear shootemup which has you walking through endless identical buildings with flickery lights.
If you really want a gripping and exciting scary shoot em up then I'd say Dead Space ticks every box and sets some kind of standard. Despite what ZP might say.
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Yeah, it was quite a stressful week, so, you know... glass of wine, headphones on, incinerate some ninjas. The guns in f.e.a.r. rock. I don't know which I prefer the spike gun, the particle gun or the cannon. Anyway... fabulous.
Dead Space has attracted a fair amount of opprobrium on Amazon. Is it just shit on PC? Also, I think it might run too slowly on my PC.
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I haven't played it on the PC but I can imagine that the graphics are pretty demanding, judging by the level of detail on the console versions. If you've got an older PC then maybe it wouldn't be so great.
Dead Space seems to polarize opinions to a certain extent. I thought it was one of the best games I played last year, while I've read other people saying they thought it was terrible. I can't really agree with any of the criticisms I've seen though. I thought it was scary and atmospheric, and while it may have relied a little to heavily on making you jump, I felt this helped maintain the level of tension throughout the game. Sure there's nothing awfully original there, but it does everything so well that i can completely forgive any little issues there might be.
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Actually it seems pretty much all of the complaints about Dead Space on Amazon centre around the fact it uses that terrible Securom DRM nonsense, and the fact that it's not a good port to PC, so there you go. Probably if it had been a FPS it might have fared better as a PC game.
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This is the internet, I thought it was customary to form an opinion based on zero actual facts, and then pass it off as the truth?
Also, it's worth bearing in mind that by purchasing anything produced, or even relating to fiddy, you are in fact putting his cock right into your mouth and sucking down his lumpy spaff while he laughs at you for paying money for the experience.
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plus, I like some of 50 cent's music. You know, his first two albums are okay. They aren't masterpieces, but they're not terrible. I think they've mostly fallen foul of snobbery from critics. You'd have to be a major douchebag to deny that 'Hate it or Love it' or the Disco D produced 'Ski Mask Way' aren't great slices of pop.
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Hmm I'm not convinced you're correct. I'm pretty sure his music is the very embodiment of everything which is wrong with modern hip hop. Every track is about shooting someone, or having loads of money, or how awesome he is. It's just... ugh, it's just rubbish, complete and total rubbish. Only bought by the kind of sad person who would fantasize about that kind of lifestyle.
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quote:Originally posted by Ringo: Hmm I'm not convinced you're correct. I'm pretty sure his music is the very embodiment of everything which is wrong with modern hip hop. Every track is about shooting someone, or having loads of money, or how awesome he is. It's just... ugh, it's just rubbish, complete and total rubbish. Only bought by the kind of sad person who would fantasize about that kind of lifestyle.
Well, yes, he clearly doesn't stretch his range very often but I wouldn't say that it was all on him. Shit's been going on for like twenty years. I don't know, I'm not his biggest fan, but as I said, his first two albums are pretty slick, some good production, and as for his attitude and front, it's just theatre man, same as most pop music. Pretty offensive you might say, but I think that there's some merit in looking at it all as a pretty damming condemnation of the American dream. That's generally how I approach it. It's a critique - it's celebrating this lifestyle because that's what we're told is the best you can get, and if you don't like it, then you have to ask yourself what success means, what the value of money is. It's thought provoking I think. Or at least, I find it thought provoking. Plus, you know, I guess being a white middle class male, I'm hardwired to enjoy dudes talking about escapist fantasy violence.
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I mean, any rapper that makes a game about themselves travelling to the Middle East to take out terrorists with rocket launchers... You've got to approach that shit from a certain perspective to appreciate it. But maybe you could excuse any cultural atrocity by taking that attitude. I'm going into the kind of territory that justifies the career of Steven Seagal, and that doesn't feel good. I don't know. MTV generation, man. I don't negotiate the moral arguments in my pop culture, I just hoover it up undigested. I'm an idiot for not joining the chorus when it comes to 50 cent, clearly.
quote:Originally posted by Black Mask: You're talking about ralph, aren't you?
quote:Originally posted by New Way Of Decay: I think some of the other forumites feel indifferent to it all. I can see how it would frustrate people. I don't think we have to stop being mean to Ralph, I just think BM and R are not allowed to interact with each other because it goes like this.
'Ralph, you are a despicable, loathsome creature whose fabric of existance is a perpetual symbol of all that is wrong in the world'
'I know you are but what am I? Did you see that Miss? Poor Ralph. lol '
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I think there are two big problems I have with his music. The first being the fans. As you point out, the fans seem to be made up mostly of white, middle class guys who are seduced by the idea of this violent fantasy lifestyle. There's something about his specific brand of hip-hoppery which seems targeted specifically at this demographic. It's almost comparable to the likes of boy bands which are dreamt up by marketing departments. His music doesn't seem to be about spreading the word of gritty urban life, nor is it a celebration of big beats and clever rhymes. His music seems, if anything, to be designed to appeal to a certain type of person who will willingly part with the most amount of money. And I kinda feel that by buying into his music, and by buying his albums and other merchandise, you're sponsoring the 50 Cent corporate money making machine.
The content of his lyrics is very violent, misogynistic and egocentric. All the worst possible sentiments, and not something I think should be glamorized. The underlying message being that it doesn't matter what kind of a complete shit you might be, so long as you get money from it, which is the most important thing in the world. Sure, if you're looking at this as some kind of scathing commentary of modern American values, then you can justify it, but I don't really think it's done with any sense of irony or parody. To me, it's just an acknowledgement that this is something which seems to appeal to a worryingly large number of people. I suppose there's something a bit meta about 50 Cent in that respect.
Ultimately it boils down to this for me - his music is made with one goal in mind, that goal being to make as much money as possible. Even without the content of the music (which I find just too unpleasant to enjoy) I find this sentiment to be almost offensive.
So, y'know, fair enough, if you want to enjoy it then fair enough, up to you I guess. But I certainly won't be lining his pockets.
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yeah, but aren't you just kidding yourself to pretend that the music industry isn't there to make as much money as possible? Sure he's being open about it in his lyrics, but isn't that just an artistic angle, just one component of the music? It's like, you can't criticize a pop artist for making really successful pop music because the goal was for it to be really successful. Like, his beats and samples hitting the mark is also pretty important to making money, and that's also a large part of what make the music good. That he's open about it in the lyrics might be distasteful, but he's just exposing the machine for what it is, and doing so over some not so good and some excellent hip hop tracks. Plus, I don't think he's peddling tastefulness. Being offensive is part of the hook... although personally I'd argue that the problem with his lyrics is how completely mundane they can often be. I can see why people wouldn't like the music because of his angle, and I didn't for ages. It's cynical because it's blatant pop music, gunning for the charts. Same as black eyed peas etc. But as I said, I think that his first couple of albums did have some fresh and enjoyable tracks on them.
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anyway, the game looks good. I wouldn't buy it at full price, but when it's £20 in like a month, I'll probably pick it up. G - G - G - G - UNIT!
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quote:Originally posted by Deep Freeze: yeah, but aren't you just kidding yourself to pretend that the music industry isn't there to make as much money as possible?
'Music industry' usually seen as distinct from 'musicians'. Disingenuous to conflate them.
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I think the difference is that most pop artists won't attempt to pass themselves off as having some kind of urban authenticity or integrity. Fiddy doesn't seem to have that knowingly kitch quality you get from a lot of really enjoyable pop acts. He seems to be wanting to exploit the background of hardcore gangster rap to give credence to his music, when actually it's just completely shallow and empty. I don't think it's useful to try and find any real depth to him. Either in terms of social commentary, or as self parody. I think to do either gives him more credit than he's really due. If you want to give him any credit, it should be for simply noticing that there was a niche for offensive, hardcore rap music as part of a successful mainstream act. Fair play to him for that, but I still couldn't listen to his music without feeling like I had been suckered.
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I'm waiting for Melle Mel: Pyrenees panic to be released at the end of this month. It's got a Slick Rick demolition DLC released in the summer, so there's one to watch.
quote:Originally posted by Ringo: I think the difference is that most pop artists won't attempt to pass themselves off as having some kind of urban authenticity or integrity.
What would qualify somebody for 'urban authenticity'? Does such a thing even exist? He's explicitly made connections between his current life as a music artist and his past life as a hustler. Jay Z did it, nobody cared. Dude played Glastonbury. I'm not saying that 50 has got flow like Jay Z, but they're pretty much doing the same thing, albeit, marketing themselves towards different demographics.
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Well yeah, but I don't much like Jay Z either. But at least his music seems to be more about bringing something interesting to the music itself, whereas to my ears 50C uses rudimentary hip hop beats as a vehicle for the content of his lyrics. The lyrics being the main draw for his fans.
But I just can't stand the whole 'feuding rapper' thing. It's as lame as feuding wresters in WWE. It's the kind of thing you hear commentated on in showbiz segments hosted by bubbly blonde american girls with fake smiles.
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maybe, but have you ever listened to his albums? You've got some top class beats / production on enough of his stuff to make it listenable. Have you heard the tracks I mentioned and linked to above?
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I heard most of Get Rich or Die Tryin'. I think I got to a track where he's going on about how he's going to blow people's brains out, over and over again. It was about there that I felt I'd heard enough and turned it off. I've probably heard some of his newer tracks but I just tune it out these days, and my brain processes it into the big file of Things I'm Not Interested In
You can probably tell me lots of compelling reasons why this is something I should care about, but you're not going to convince me I'm afraid. Well produced garbage is still garbage no matter how you look at it.
![[Frown]](frown.gif)
lol ![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
' 
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