A Blog!

Okay! Well, let's see how this works out! I just Googled 'Blog', and obviously this was the first thing that came up. Well, why not, I thought. I might as well start somewhere, and if I come across something better, I can always switch, I suppose.

So yeah, a blog! With this being my first ever attempt at something like this, I wonder, are there any rules for doing this stuff? I suppose there are, just like, apparently, there are rules for Twitter. I've heard that it's not done to tweet about food. Why is that? It's my Twitter account, isn't it? I think I'll bloody well tweet about anything I bloody well want to, thank you very much! And if that happens to be food, then food it is.
So, I guess I should just apply that same logic here. It's my blog, so I'll bloody well blog about anything I bloody well want to, in my own inimitable way.

But, why blog? Do I feel like the stuff I do is interesting enough to share with the world? Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, I don't know. What I do know is that a few years ago, I used to do Vinkin's Diaries on a forum, and everyone seemed to like it. So much so in fact, that I still get asked about it every now and then. So I guess one of the reasons I am now doing this is simply 'popular demand'. Or something. That, and I just love to write.
I really do, but the trouble is... I'm lazy. Very much so. You know, to actually sit down and write something, I don't know, I just never seem to find the time. As in that I'm always busy doing other stuff. Like gaming, for example.
Indeed, gaming is what most of the subject matter in this blog will be about, in all shapes and forms. I might write about what I did in a certain game, I might write about what I think about it, and lots of other stuff.

I suppose, at this point, it's only fair to point out that I have another possibly bad character trait. Besides being lazy, if and when I do write, I tend to ramble on a bit. At times. Is that a no-no in blogging? Should I think about what I'm going to write before I do? You know, for the sake of clarity? I suppose I could, but then... I don't really want to! I prefer making this stuff up as I go, actually. I'll just do that then, for the time being.

So! I suppose I should really write about something now then, instead of going on about how I'm a blog-noob. That has been established now, so we can move on, thank you please. Yes. I guess I can rack my brain trying to come up with something really relevant and what have you. I can also just play it safe for now, and write about a game. Or games, as may be the case. Yes, that is what I will do. I'm going to play it even safer by writing about the game I'm currently playing. My memory is freshest about that. Yeah, see, I've got a bit of a bad memory. Something I'm sure I'll be mentioning more than once, in the future. You have been warned!

Well then, the game here would be Dante's Inferno, for my PlayStation 3. I also own an Xbox360, by the way. But, since a good friend of mine only has a PS3, and Dante's Inferno is going to have co-op DLC... Yeah, I'm a social kind of guy. Sometimes.
Anyway, DI, as I shall call it from now on. I'm lazy, like I said, and I don't want to have to type out the words Dante's Inferno every single time I feel I need to. Abbrevations, acronyms... you gotta love 'em!
See? I'm rambling again. DI then! A lot has been said about this game, in lots of different places. What can I add? Well, how about my opinion? Indeed. I'll try to tackle a few things then. First, I've read that there are people that have problems with how Visceral Games interpreted the source material. To that I say, I don't give a toss! Sure they've mangled the story into an almost unrecognizable mess, but who cares? The result is a really cool game, and to me, that's all that matters. I think it would have been a boring as hell game had they stayed true to the original, no pun intended.
So yeah, a really cool game. Really though? I mean, you can't talk about DI without mentioning God of War, now can you? And the comparison is, well, truth be told, less than favourable. That is not to say that DI is a bad game, mind you! It's GoW's fault for setting the bar so impossibly high, is what it is. DI just does almost everything GoW has done before, only less so. The fighting system is less exciting and satisfying, the platforming bits are horrible, and, well, it really is a good game, just not as good as, you know?
What makes it all good for me though, is the subject matter. Or, more specifically, the overall graphic design. Graphic design, see? Not level design, because, well, never mind... Not as good as, you know? Seriously though, the design... I love it!!! All that stuff is just so up my proverbial alley! The highlight so far being the unbaptized babies with bloody knives for arms. I really love that sick and twisted stuff. I also really love Visceral for having had the guts to put them in! I think there are a lot of developers who would've steered well clear of sensitive subject matter like this. In that respect, I was quite worried about DI, before it was finally confirmed and released. I mean, all the stuff I had read and seen about it, I was so worried they'd censor the whole thing to bits! But no, it's all there, in all its deliciously sick glory.

Again, I love the subject matter, you know, demons and stuff. And angels, I like them as well. A design development of late that I'm really happy with. Bayonetta, Dante's Inferno, Darksiders, God of War... All of these games use angels and/or demons in different shapes and forms. Which is so much better than using human enemies, in my opinion. Or, more specifically, undead humans. Zombies have been in fashion for quite a while, which was cool. Nothing wrong with zombies, except for one thing. Design-wise, there isn't a whole lot you can do with them, I feel. Sure you can give them cool looking wounds, festering or not, sure you can change their size and behaviour, but in the end, they almost always have a human form.
Demons and Angels however! Indeed, what do these look like? No one really knows, right? Exactly, and that gives designers all the freedom they could ever want. A head, a torso, two arms and two legs? Boring! How about no head, a split torso with teeth in it, six arms and one leg? Much better, much better... Really, as far as I'm concerned, designers can go as far as they want, and then some. Man, I should really be a designer as well. If and when I get the opportunity to do so, I'll add some of my own work to this blog. Sick and twisted are definitely two words that very much and very accurately describe it, so...

Anyway, I think I'll leave it at that, for now. I'm working a nightshift here which is almost over, so I need to shut down anyway. Only forty minutes to go! And then what? There's a small chance that I'll be playing Borderlands with some friends, but failing that, well, I think I'll just play some more DI. Good times!