Movies Galore, Lots Accomplished, Views on Various RPG systems – Oh, and 'Dawn of Justice'
March is rapidly coming to a close, and while it is fairly nice in some parts of the country, others are getting hit by springtime snow-storms. I recall several years in a row we had a snow-storm on the first of spring in Calgary.
All of this means nothing to me as I am sweltering in the 35 degree Celsius heat here in the Philippines. I know it sounds as if I’m complaining, but really I’m not, just making an observation. I don’t mind the heat, and thankfully I have a nice air-conditioned room and comfortable bed to sleep in!
Now if only I had seriously reliable hot and cold running water… 1st world problems to be sure.
Over the past few month’s I’ve purchased a number of OSR games to have a look at and simply to add to my massive book collection. The odds of playing any of these games is pretty damned slim, but I am a collector, and as such I enjoy having a massive library.
To be honest with you, I find these games are literally too simplistic to be used. They have the bare-bones basics, as almost all OSR games are, but it is too little. A great deal of the rules are left to the GM to make up on the fly.
A game like this is an excellent way to introduce new players to role-playing, but I personally do not care for them. I would much rather play a more complex system such as 3.0 / 3.5 / Pathfinder, which have the rules already clearly defined than be searching through rule books or trying to come up with a solution on the fly.
And ENOUGH already with the shitty artwork. Just because you have a game which is OSR, it does not mean you have to have horrible art! Get a good artist to do the work for you and stay the hell away from the shit artists.
I know, even artists I feel are terrible deserve to have their work displayed and to get paid for it, and this is something I agree on. All artists need to be compensated for the work they provide. I just have rather high and exacting standards when it comes to the artwork I like.
Speaking of games, a friend and I were discussing various systems a few weeks back, briefly touching on what we thought were the strength and weaknesses of each. Of course Pathfinder and the games it originated from are good enough when it comes to fantasy, but fall rather flat when you want a modern or SF setting.
Games like GURPS have at the same time too much complexity and are broken and simplistic in other aspects. It is a better system to use if you want a more modern game, in my personal opinion.
Then you have something like Shadowrun, which is a great system to use for both Fantasy and Science Fiction, but the amount of dice you need is rather obscene.
Really, out of all the systems I’ve tried over the decades, there is no single ‘perfect’ system to use for roleplaying. Every single game has its advantages and disadvantages, strengths and weaknesses.
It all depends on the type of game you wish to play and just how complex a system you want to use. I certainly don’t mind some complexity, as such games typically cover what you need without too much fudging or creating on the fly.
And then you have the Hero System. =)
Anyhow I have written and posted the usual two creatures for New Mutant Monday series 2, the Pustuloid, and the Swamp Fiend. The first was not inspired by anything I saw online, rather I believe it might have originated from the nightmare that was puberty. The second WAS inspired by an image which had been posted last year by one of my readers, so I finally got around to writing up the statistics for it.
Two more will be posted tomorrow.
If I have the time today I will finish the last few entries for the New Mutant Monday book today and send it to Michael O. Varhola. Then I need to finish the last little bit of work on the Weapons compilation book and get that sent to him as well. Both are too late to be included at this years Comicpalooza, which is a shame, but there is always 2017.
I also finished Staked by Kevin Hearne. I liked it far more than the last book in his Iron Druid series, although it still annoyed me it jumped from character to character like the last book did. And honestly, I’m getting really tired of Oberon. I found the hound’s antics amusing through the first few novels, but it has since grown to be tedious, not funny. That is of course just my personal view on it, as there are a ton of people who still enjoy it.
When the hell is there going to be a new Dresden Files novel? That is miss something fierce!
Before you read any further, SPOILERS abound!
Here we go, my thoughts on Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. One word… BORING! I kept yawning and checking my watch to see when this film was going to be over. I did not care for the plot, and I certainly did not give a damn about the characters. Ben Affleck made a great Batman – of that I won’t deny. Haters be damned. And Gal Gadot was hot as Wonder Woman.
A lot of what happened in the movie did not make sense or really came as a shock. There was several instances of foul language, and since when did Batman actually kill people? Brand them? And a whole scene in a post-apocalyptic setting where Batman was using handguns and machine guns and KILLING people with these weapons.
I’ve seen worse plots, to be certain, and this movie made the mistake of boring me. I will be honest and state I went in with no expectations to be impressed, and I am already quite biased to DC comics, having always been a Marvel fan. That will have clouded my judgement a great deal. Although there have been times in the past where I’ve gone into a movie with very low expectations and came out having really enjoyed it.
Unlike many movies, I will not be seeing this a second time, nor will I be getting it when it comes out on DVD.
With me being in the Philippines I have taken the time to see quite a few movies, from watching them on DVD to seeing them in the theaters. I watched London has Fallen, and was amused by this movie. It was pure escapism and had a completely unbelievable plot. Lots of action sequences though and that was what I had hoped for. Was it a good movie? Not a chance. Was it a fun movie? Hell yeah.
And then we have Gods of Egypt. This movie was visually spectacular, but it was like watching a movie made in the 80’s with better effects and only marginally better acting. A pure fantasy flick, one made just for fun.
If you went into the movie with great expectations and a huge, mind-blowing plot, well you are going to be rather disappointed.
Pure schlock. It had a few chuckles, but even me and my tolerance when it comes to certain movies was pushed to my limit.
Maybe catch it on pay for view (does anyone even do this anymore?), or maybe wait until you can stream it.
Speaking of visually spectacular movies that fell flat, Jupiter Ascending was one of those. I watched it and I could not help but think how good the movie could have been if it had been turned into a TV series instead of trying to cram so much background into a two hour movie. Maybe I’m right, maybe I’m wrong but if it had been drawn out over a series of at least 10 episodes, I do believe the movie would have been better received in that format.
I watched the DVD of ‘Extraterrestrial’ and it was a standard, cliché ridden horror flick with one twist. The monsters were in fact Grey aliens. It was pure cliché, but I found myself amused by the movie.
Then there was ‘Anger of the Dead’. I enjoy zombie movies, and often find gems hidden in the rubbish available. I should have known better when the name Uwe Boll showed up in the opening credits. The movie was BORING as hell and there was some sort of sub-plot involving a woman who had been held captive by some sort of militant group since the rising began. Confusing AND boring.
Avoid this one.
I also watched ‘Into the Storm’, a disaster flick about nature going bonkers and hitting a small town with a shitload of tornados. Visually it was satisfying, plot – come on… you expect anything really mind-blowing here? It’s a movie about storm chasers and tornados. Still I was entertained for 90 minutes.
We also watched one of Paul Walker's last movies called Vehicle 19. It's one of those 'wrong places, wrong time' kind of movie where the protagonist has flown from the US to see his ex-wife after getting out of prison. He rents a car, finds a cell phone in it, a handgun and then things really go from bad to worse.
It was... I hate to say it... boring.
And it was kind of scary watching Paul Walker since he's been gone for well over a year now.
Hey maybe you'll enjoy more than I did.
Finally I got around to watching the first 4 episodes of Star Wars Rebels. I like it! ‘Nuff said.
And that is it for this week.
I hope everyone is enjoying life as much as I am!
