Archview #47: Evoland

 'sgood. 'sgood.

 (There was a better cover, but it kinda wet itself with pink pomegrenade, so.... yeah, had to whip up something quickly).
 Anyways, Evoland is an indie game that prides itself on being a homage to games of olde. As such, it's hard to specify it's genre, it's equal parts turn-based RPG, adventure game(A la Zelda) with a stage inspired on Dungeon crawlers like Diablo. On paper, it shouldn't work, but I think that the end result is worth at least one playthrough.
 The game's main gimmick, and the reason of it's name, is the evolution of gaming. At the start of the game, it looks like a Monochrome gameboy game and you can only move to the right, as you open chests, you get to go from 2D to 3D polygons, then textures, etc. It's a gimmick, yes, but each evolution is presented with an achievement and a short, occasionaly funny, description.

 As for the game itself, there's a very light story element(Which you must retrieve from a chest, by the by) about saving a certain town from a dangerous threat. The usual. There's two main gameplay styles, first there's the Zelda-adventure like. When inside dungeons(Which includes forests) the game plays like Zelda, you have 3 heart containers(You lose quarters per hit), and must solve light puzzle elements by using your sword, bow, bombs and sometimes, time crystals. Puzzles are very easy to solve, yet they are engaging, most of the time.
 The other style is a turn-based RPG. This mode is used on the overworld, and it's extremely simple, Clink, and Kaeris(With a name like that, and the clothes she wears, you just know what her fate is) when you get her, have 4 actions: Attack, Magic, Item and Run. Fights are very easy, and you don't even have to deal with MP, although I did find the encounter rate to be a bit too high.

 I found the presentation to be as charming as it was endearing. Characters have a super deformed look, both in 2D and 3D, and it's a very bright world. It's also nice to see how the same character and world goes through the various graphic evolutions. The music is fitting for the game, although hardly memorable.
 As someone once said, a reference is not a joke, so while the descriptions try to be funny, they rarely work. The game is also more of a tribute to games of old than a parody. Names, weapons, characters, places... all resemble stuff from other games, including Final Fantasy, The Legend of Zelda, Mana series, Dungeon Quest and others, there's even a level inspired by Diablo(Full of useless loot!). Frankly? I think it's a fantastic homage, even if sometimes it tries to be funny(On the achievement descriptions) but it falls flat on it's face.

 As a whole, it might be a bit too simple. There's not much to the game, sure, there's a subquest to get a heart container, a hidden dungeon, 30 hidden collectible Stars and 23 hidden cards(To play Double Twins, a minigame), but the gameplay itself is very shallow. As for the lenght, I found it appropiate. It ends just a little bit before it starts growing old.
 7 out of 10. Way better than any of the Xenosaga RPGS, just saying.

Bound in Paper Quickie #5: Avengers VS X-Men vol. 3

 Quite interesting.

 (Includes A vs X 6, 7 and 8)
 Writer(AvX 6): Jonathan Hickman
 Writer(AvX 7): Matt Fraction
 Writer(AvX 8): Brian Michael Bendis
 Artist(AvX 6,7): Olivier Coipel
 Artist(AvX 8): Adam Kubert
 So, when we last left off, Iron Man on behalf of the Avengers, tried to do away with the Phoenix Force, but instead dividied it into five parts which went into Namor, Emma Frost, Illyria, Colossus and Scott Summer, the Phoenix Five. Now they use their powers to bring peace to the earth, although the Avengers don't agree with their ways.
 First off, the story in all three numbers is very interesting, as a matter of fact, I found the whole Phoenix Five story pretty fun, but these issues are focus a bit on the most interesting fights. Namor VS The Avengers is pretty cool and easily the standout moment of this issue.
 The art is very consistent, both artists have a very similar style, so it's there's no jarring change when you get to issue 8. Both artists are very detailed, the fights are pretty well drawn too, there's really no complaints in this area.
 All in all, it was a fun issue, easily deserving of...
 8 Onslaughts out of 10.

Hey, I'm Listening #1: The Connection- Papa Roach

 More Papa Roach is always a good thing. Always.

 Papa Roach is my favorite band, everyone knows it. Am I biased? Maybe. I'm a fan, I love them, and that is why I can be critical of them. I won't ever like their very first songs, I can clearly see that "lovehatetragedy" was a very experimental album, and it didn't pay out very well(even though it has a couple of songs I really like). My point is, am I biased? Possibly, yes, but that doesn't mean that I am a blind idiot that likes anything that carries their name.
 Papa Roach is a Band that keeps changing their style from album to album, most of the time, and this album is no exception. Gone are the harsher, louder sounds from their previous outing, going for a more... electronic sound. It's not bad, it's just different. Also, at least personally, I didn't find some of the lyrics as inspired as previous songs, there are good lyrics, just not as great as some of Papa Roach's finest.
 It seems like the major focus of the album resides in break ups and failing relationships, at least 4-5 songs deal with said issues in various manners. Not that I mind, but it's quite noticeable.
 Funnily enough, seems the lead singer, Jacoby Shaddix, said that this album meant to "connect" the dots from all their previous works, but truth be told, this hardly sounds like anything they've done before, the sound is different, the styles are different... it feels very different.
 Regardless, I enjoyed the album. While Paramour Sessions still hold the number 1 spot for me, this disc is not bad, Before I die and Leader of the Broken Hearts are actually really good, however, they lack a heavy hitter like Scars or To be Loved.

Bound in Paper Quickie #4: The new X-Men

 Uncanny.

 (Includes: All-New X-Men #6, Uncanny X-Men 2, Uncanny X-Men 3)
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist(All New X-Men): David Marquez
Artist(Uncanny X-Men): Chris Bachalo
 The issue opens up with All-New X-men, with Beast having brought the original X-Men from the past, in order to have 12-year old Cyclops talk with present-day Cyclops. The issue is interesting, showcasing Kitty Pryde trying to train the younglings and Wolverine having to keep track of young Cyclops. The next two issues are Uncanny X-Men, these two follow Cyclops and his rag-tag group, consisting of Magneto, Emma Frost and Illyana trying to add more mutants to their cause. Truth be told, All-New X-men is a tad more interesting.
 As for the art, David Marquez pencils are beautiful, but there are some really odd choices as far as panels go. Sometimes you are to read across both pages, then jump back to the right page and continue on the lower left page. It's a bit jarring and more often than not I found myself reading in the wrong order. Bachalo's art on the other hand, is a bit more cartoony, but it's not bad, and it certainly won't give you reading troubles!
 I give it 7 Cyclops' visors out of 10.

Bound in Paper Quickie #3: Kick-Ass

 It really is kick ass.

 Writer: Mark Millar

 Artist: John Romita Jr.

 Kick-Ass tells the story of Dave, a Highschool nobody who dreams of becoming a Super Hero, but soon he'll find out that it's not all glory. Kick-Ass is a very interesting read, with engaging characters and a ingenious set-up. Be warned, however, that it's also very vulgar, with cussing thrown left and right among other not to nice thingies, to be fair however, it does feel like a highschool student is narrating.
 As for the art itself, it's simply fantastic. Drawn by John Romita Jr, of Spider-man fame, he has a very distinct style, it's very cartoony, but I like it. Plus, there's loads of little details, like the scar that Dace aquires on his first outing that follows him to the last page of the comic.
 I award it with 10 Hit-Girls out of 10.

Bound in Paper Quickie #2: Deadpool kills the Marvel Universe

 The tagline is a lie.

 Writer: Cullen Bunn

 Artist: Dalibor Talajic

 For starters, I've the Spanish version, and the tagline was translated to "The World's bloodiest magazine". Prior to reading this, I had read Kick-Ass in it's entirety, so I was quiet offended by the tagline, it's barely bloodier than your usual Marvel magazine.
 In this One-Shot, for some reason, Professor X decides to have a certain doctor treat Deadpool. Right here I take issue, I find it a bit out of character for Charles to do this. Next, said doctor turns out to be Psycho-man, who tries to make Deadpool his slave using his Control box, but it goes awry and causes Deadpool to "open his eyes". Honestly? The set-up is a bit dull, but the ending is better. What I found disappointing was how many of the killings are mere foot-notes or overly simplified. Sure, they didn't have enough time or pages to make him fight everyone, but Spiderman gets about 3-4 pages yet Iron-Man dies in an explosion, alongside the avengers. Luckily, the dialogue itself, specially what Deadpool gets to say, is pretty funny.
 As for the art, I'm not a fan. The art is very simple, at times it looks a bit on the ugly side, specially the faces. Also, some panels look funny and not in a nice way, poor Wolverine got the short end of the stick on the latter parts of the comic.
 I grant it 5 Deadpools out of 10.

Bound in Paper Quickie: Joker

 Bound in Paper Quickie: Joker

 Writter: Bryan Azzarello

 Artist: Lee Bermejo

 Joker is a one-shot centered upon the eponymous villain and Jonny Frost, an aspiring criminal that serves as the narrator. After Joker gets released from the Asylum, Jonny volunteers to pick him up, he soon becomes fascinated with the Joker and begins serving him faithfully as the Joker gets his territories back.

 The comic presents a more realistic portrayal of characters, this is probably the most human Croc has ever looked, and it has some very interesting redesigns, notably the Ledger inspired Joker. Interestingly, there are two different ink styles throught the comic, most of the time, it uses solid colors, but occasionally, mosly on close ups or important scenes, it uses a softer style, it's an interesting mix.

 As for the story, it's a very interesting read, witty dialogues and book ends. It provides a closer look to Joker's attitude and mentality via Jonny, our willing narrator. The more down-to-earth universe the comic takes place also makes for an interesting setting.

 I give it 9 Nightwings out of 10.