Time For A Nerd Post!

As I've previously mentioned, I'm a lifelong aficionado of video games....
And I make no apologies. I think video games are a true blue burgeoning artistic medium, on par with television, film, and perhaps even the written word.

(Well...OK, let's say games are at least on par with comic books then.)

Producing a top tier video game requires the same amount of manpower and funding as it does to produce a major film; completing a good video game requires the same amount of mind power as it does to (at the very least) follow a high-quality television series; the story of a Triple A video game is often comparable to that of most modern popular novels....I could go on and on.

Anyway, one thing that's been interesting to me has been to observe the evolution of the video game over the years. I've been deeply into them ever since I was a young boy, and the medium is, without a doubt, vastly different from what it was back when I first started. Why, back in my day, all we had were two buttons and a directional pad to make a mustachioed Italian jump over turtle shells. NOW, you whipper snappers have EIGHT buttons to make a Russian fella run a crime syndicate and beat prostitutes to death!


Well....

The POINT IS that the technology used to make great games has come a long way...and going hand in hand with that would be the systems on which the games are played (after all, Halo would never have been possible without the X-Box). With that in mind, I thought I'd take a few minutes to count down my top Top Ten Video Game Consoles.

Please note that, as always, this list represents my personal PREFERENCE, and not any objective claims of quality. I mean, it's not like I've actually been able to play every friggin' game console ever to be released. With this list, I am merely stating which consoles have meant the most to me, the Drewmeister, over the years. This is my idea of what each gamer ought to check out if he or she wants to have a well-rounded video game experience of what each generation had to offer. A few of these systems I still have; most have passed through my hands, even though I'll never forget them. Feel free to offer your own input and/or commentary.

Now without further ado....


--NUMBER TEN: THE NINTENDO Wii.

Yes, I know -- the Wii is a touchy subject. A lot of haters out there for this puppy, but I don't care. I LIKE it!

Hey, the technology may be behind the 360 and PS3, but that really never mattered to me. I've found some great fun with the Wii. The Virtual Console alone makes this machine a blast, and the waggle controls (don't forget the waggle!) were a big innovation. Who hasn't played Wii Bowling all night at least once or twice? Plus, you can find some unusual, and interesting, software on this system if you know how to look.

My favorite titles:
Little King's Story, Silent Hill: Shattered Memory, Shiren the Wanderer, Super Mario Galaxy

--NUMBER NINE: THE SEGA GENESIS.

I was never much of a Sega fan, but I do remember being irresistibly intrigued by this machine whenever I saw one at, say, my cousin's house. Sonic the Hedgehog was a true innovation, as was the Genesis "Blast Processing."

My problem with the Genesis was its attitude. See, I always thought of this system as the console of choice for schoolyard bullies. Like, they'd sit around playing Mortal Kombat while preparing to go out and beat up some Nintendo nerds. I dunno. Maybe that's my complex.


Favorite titles:
Rystar, Sonic series, Landstalker, Sword of Vermillion

--NUMBER EIGHT: THE SUPER NINTENDO:

I missed out on much of the Super Nintendo's legendary run, but am familiar with the system and what it could do. I had one briefly, and can certainly appreciate the quality of its library. Many of today's most dedicated gamers got their start with this baby, and it was indeed a worthy successor to the NES.

Favorite titles:
Super Mario World, F Zero, Yoshi's Island, Super Metroid, Earthbound, Secret of Mana

--NUMBER SEVEN: THE TURBO GRAFX 16:

Ah, the black sheep on my list.

See, when other kids were picking up the Super NES and Genesis, I went the much less traveled TG-16 route. This was a great, sadly overlooked, machine. The Turbo Grafx 16 had a truly special library of games that I'll never forget.

Great for shooters, platformers, and RPGs, the TG16 is a console that I recommend everyone check out. There's a small community of dedicated enthusiasts operating online to this very day, and I salute their work in keeping the memory of this excellent console alive.

I wish I still had mine, but it disappeared somewhere over the years. Good thing the Wii's Virtual Console offers Turbo Grafx downloads. Get yerself all the Bonks!


My favorite titles:
The Bonk series, Blazing Lazers, Neutopia series, Ys, Lords of Thunder, The Dynastic Hero

--NUMBER SIX: THE NINTENDO GAMECUBE.

This console, in my opinion, has the most unfairly bad reputation of all.

Heck, I LOVED my Gamecube. I was my companion through the best-worst time in my life, living alone in a remote, tiny town in the Thumb of Michigan, for four sad years. The Gamecube provided me with entertainment during many long nights of solitude, offering some truly special gaming experiences.

The fact that the Gamecube lacked the third-party support of its contemporaries mattered not to me; I found plenty of fine titles to enjoy with this little black box of wonder. Nintendo's Cube That Could dished out crisper graphics than the more successful PS2, and more memorable software than the X-Box. I have a special place in my heart for this console. It never got the credit it deserved. Hey, it didn't have many games, but those it did have were fantastic.

Favorite titles:
Metroid Prime, Super Mario Sunshine, Resident Evil 4, The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker.


--NUMBER FIVE: THE PLAYSTATION 2.

The console that gave us the most successful entries in the Grand Theft Auto series, no one could dispute the Playstation 2's significance. Any type of game you might want to play could be found in abundance on this machine. I had some fine RPG and platforming experiences with it.

The Playstation 2 owned all for a few years there, and rightly so.

Favorite titles:
Okami, Dark Cloud, Beyond Good and Evil, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

--NUMBER FOUR: THE X-BOX 360.

The best of the current-gen systems, the X-Box 360 defines the current state of gaming. Despite its shoddy hardware that is friggin' GUARANTEED to crap out on you after about eight months of regular use, this machine offers anything any gamer could desire. Its revolutionary approach to the online world kicked gaming up another (very big) notch, and an excellent library of games doesn't hurt, either.

I sure will miss the 360.

Favorite titles:
Dead Rising, Mass Effect series, Left 4 Dead, Tenchu Z, Condemned, Borderlands

--NUMBER THREE: THE GAMEBOY ADVANCE.

Yup, I'm actually ranking one of the Gameboys this high on my list.

I LOVE my Gameboy Advance. It's been with me through thick and thin since the early 2000s, and never stopped providing entertainment. This handy little gadget fits right in your pocket, and has an absolutely MASSIVE selection of games (even if, admittedly, a lot of them are crap).

The GBA SP was one of the best moves Nintendo ever made. Its sleek appearance, excellent lighted screen, and rechargeable battery took what was a slightly inconvenient toy (the original GBA) and turned it into viable gaming technology. I still carry my Gameboy Advance around with me.

My favorite titles:
Summon Night series, Sonic Advance series, Harvest Moon series, anything Zelda or Metroid

--NUMBER TWO: THE PLAYSTATION.

Ah, the first viable CD-based console. The PlayStation One made 3D games actually work, and those polygons were just so CHARMING. Many long nights were spent attached to my old Playstation. After missing out on most of the 16-bit era, this bad boy got my attention when I saw some friends playing Tenchu: Stealth Assassins. I picked one up, and never looked back.

Favorite titles:
Azure Dreams, Tenchu series, Alundra, Tony Hawk 2, Silent Hill, Resident Evil series

--NUMBER ONE: THE NINTENDO ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM.

The granddaddy of all video game consoles, this machine defined many a childhood...especially mine. Who could argue with all the NES had to offer? A massive library of games, and hardware that redefined the medium. Yes, back the dark days of the video game crash caused by Atari's poor quality control, it took the 8-bit Nintendo to revive an entire industry. This Japanese wonder rose from the ashes and showed us all that true fun could be found once again in the world of games.

It rules all.

(The King.)

Favorite titles:
Mario, Zelda, Crystalis, Final Fantasy, Double Dragon, countless others.

Oh, and for the remaining consoles, here are a few...

-----HONORABLE MENTIONS:

--The Atari 2600:

I know it probably should have been on the main list. This relic stared the whole industry, and deserves a bit of respect. Plus, it's got stylish wood paneling!


--The Sega Dreamcast:

I was never a Sega gamer, but I admit this machine really started the next-gen revolution. It did what the PS2 and X-box did before they even had the ideas. Plus, Seaman was hilarious!

--The Nintendo 64:

Some of the greatest games ever made came out on this system (too bad they were so darn foggy). Perfect Dark...Zelda Ocarina of Time...Goldeneye...This was a fine machine.

--The Nintendo Gameboy:

When I was about eleven, I wanted a Gameboy more than I wanted to grow up. I would have sold my soul for one. It was the first handheld that actually mimicked what a home console could do. A great library, as well. Too bad about the pea soup screen, though.

(It takes a licking and keeps on ticking.)

--The Sony PSP:

The first handheld that actually DID do what the home consoles could, this advanced little piece of hardware somehow lost in the marketplace to the DS, which I'll never understand.

So, there you have it -- my top ten favorite video game consoles. I take such subjects seriously, and hope to do, as well. Thanks for reading.

And as long as we're talking nostalgia, here's yet another zombie movie from my favorite director, the great George Romero.

Survival of the Dead (2009)
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1134854/


Netflix description:
Rebel military man Crocket (Alan Van Sprang) and his band of rogue soldiers seek refuge from the living dead, only to land squarely in a family feud between the undead-hating O'Flynns and the Muldoons, a cure-seeking clan determined to help their zombie kinfolk. Cult horror master George A. Romero rises again to deliver another delicious zombie fest where the festering question is: Can a caring family coexist with their flesh-eating loved ones?

Hey, this marks two reviews in a row that focus on something from George Romero!

Anyway, you may not have noticed, but apparently, George has been making more zombie films since 2005's Land of the Dead. Yup -- there was Diary of the Dead in 2007, and now this one, from 2009. Who knew?

So, Survival of the Dead takes place in the same zombie world we all know and love, as laid out by George in his previous films. This time, the story concerns a group of mercenaries who travel to a remote island off the coast of Delaware in order to escape the undead havoc happening on the mainland United States. We've got their semi-psychotic badboy leader; a stereotypical Mexican loverboy; a tomboy lesbian who "touches herself" at random moments out in the open in front everybody for no apparent reason; a bland sidekick; and some geeky techno kid who hooks up with them. They all arrive on this island -- Plum Island -- to find that its inhabitants (who seem to think they're actually in Ireland) have been working to cure the zombies, chaining them up to farm equipment and trying to convince them to eat anything other than people. Good luck with THAT.

The island folk fall into two camps: the Muldoons and the Fitzpatricks. They're feuding families, each constantly scheming to wrestle control of the island away from the other. Our heroes the mercenaries get mixed up in this battle, which needless to say, gets out of hand in short order. It all culminates when the penned up zombies get loose, and the warring families finally have to kill their own.

(One of the Fitzpatrick girls, I believe.)

Folks, I hate to say it, but our pal George Romero really has been slipping. I mean, Land of the Dead was a great movie, but the last two entries in this zombie saga have been alarmingly sub-par. Survival of the Dead introduces some interesting concepts to the genre, but is just so DARN CHEESY! I mean, the dialogue is at times downright laughable in this film. Why couldn't George have hired a script doctor?

Interactions between all characters in this picture are awkward and poorly-paced. I felt embarrassed for the some of the actors, having to portray such walking cliches. Then again, the actors themselves were, in many cases, noticeably bad, as well. Factor in some of the worst CG effects I have ever seen, and you've got yourself once heck of a disappointment.

Sure, I liked the whole isolated island setting, and ideas on the evolution of zombies explored in Survival of the Dead are fairly intriguing; but there's no getting around the fact that this whole movie just feels OFF somehow. Perhaps it needed a better editor.

Not that the film is poorly-made on all levels, mind you. Heck, it looks as good as anything else George has served up, and the action-packed climax is as exciting as the best moments of Dawn of the Dead. I'm just SAYIN' that Survival of the Dead comes across are too hokey to take seriously. It's a shame, as this one could (and should) have been much better.

2 out of 5.

b.