Troubling Tales From GameStop

Over the years I've become a frequent shopper at the local GameStop. Compared to most GameStop shops in the state the one nearest to me is actually quite large, and houses more merchandise than most. I go to it mostly out of convenience since it is a simple 15 minute drive from my house. Having to pay for games to be shipped to my house, and risking them coming in possibly damaged, or stolen is not the ideal scenario for a collector like me. While GameStop does have it's good side it also harbors an evil side built upon greed, mismanagement, and customer service that is either good or bad depending on who's working that day. Through the many shopping experiences that I've had at said GameStop I've had a few instances/encounters that made me rage inside, and nearly outwardly so. I actually spoke out against some things openly, and even took to the surveys, and online to voice my complaints in the past. Among said instances I've had pre-order bonuses nearly denied, and have even encountered employees (doing their job) trying to sell me a used game as new with a new price slapped on it. The latter happened to me again today, and that's what I'll be talking about in this very article ...

The "OtakuDante's Gaming Inferno" Youtube Channel

Unbeknownst to a lot of you I've had a Youtube channel since mid 2009. It started off with some modest home videos of me playing games (which are now lost to history), and slowly evolved into replay captured features when the option to provide such content became available to me. I did provide some commentaries along the way, but mostly stuck to gameplay videos without my own voice or myself included. I'm honestly not the best commentator, and often times stutter, say "Uhm ...", or get lost with what I'm trying to relay to my viewers. I wanted my commentary inclusive videos to be genuinely good, and non-scripted, but I've yet to release a totally coherent one. Despite these shortcomings I've made the most of my channel, and have gained over 200 followers in the process. I continue to offer replays from various games, and even include upcoming trailers when I feel like it. On the rare occasion you might also find an unboxing video of a new game with my thoughts on said product included.

HYPER VOID is Coming to Xbox One January 6th!!!

Earlier in 2015 I had the privilege to review one of the year's more interesting shmups (shoot'em ups). It was a unique game developed by indie studio, "IN|Framez Technology Corp". The title of said game was "Hyper Void". What "Hyper Void" offered the gamer was new-gen quality visuals, and a complimentary soundtrack bundled together with a retro style of 3D oriented gameplay which goes back to the earlier years of arcade experiences. The game was filled with vibrant colors, bullet hell madness, and even bosses to beat as you traversed the unique universe within. I personally ended up on the fence about the game due to the lack of replay value, but did find some good points to it. Being a shmup fan the gameplay definitely drew me in, but the lack of extra replay worthy features made it a bit of a disappointment. Luckily you guys, and gals (who own an Xbox One) will be able to give the game a proper try come January 6th, and with a new leaderboard feature in place. This new addition to the already interesting gameplay improves on one of the bigger faults I found with the overall experience, and thankfully so. I definitely suggest giving it a chance when it hits the Xbox Live store if you have the holiday cash to spare. In case you want to catch up on my original PS4 review I'll leave that here for reference purposes.

2016 at "OtakuDante's Gaming Inferno"

As 2015 draws to a close thoughts of the new year are racing through my mind. On one hand I look forward to being able to continue doing reviews, and articles for the lot of you. On the other hand I know that my busy life beckons more than it ever has. Family illness, and health issues have come into play, and as much as I hate to believe it some of my family may not live through the new year. Along with the increasingly bad weather, political nonsense, and war looming just over the horizon times are more uncertain than they ever were. Concerns are definitely plentiful in my life as I'm sure they are in yours ...

Blood Bowl 2 (PS4)

When it comes to football I know pretty much nothing about the sport. I do know of European futbol (aka, Soccer), and have participated in that activity in high school, but I've never really been an American football fan. I couldn't tell you any of the rules, or regulations if my life depended on it. Even with having watched football related movies like "Jerry McGuire" I couldn't tell you which end is up. That's why I proceeded to request this game with the hopes that it wouldn't be entirely football related, or at the very least that I would finally be able learn about the sport in a more fun filled atmosphere. Thankfully the game is a hybrid of sorts that combines both tabletop RPG mechanics, and basic football rules. By that I simply mean it is a combat dice game played on a playing field that is governed by tiled squares which houses game changing statistic modifiers. The teams which are controlled by the player/s, and CPU opponents each move as they would in an American football game, but do so square by square in a more SRPG (Strategy Role-Playing Game) fashion. While the formation changes, turnovers, half time events, rules regarding scoring, and time associated with said sport remain intact for the most part the combat centered mechanics that come with the characters'/teammates' blocking dice rolls changes the gameplay significantly. In doing so it becomes more brutal in nature, and actually gives the players a different way to win outside of the traditional scoring opportunities. Death, and blood are but two of the many things that are a part of the 'Blood Bowl' franchise. You can imagine my excitement at finding this out, especially with me being into the more violent side of video games.