Children Of Mana

Posted Jan 19, 2007 by Doug Buel

Updated Mar 28, 2007 at 03:23 PM

System: Nintendo DS

Publisher: Square Enix

Reviewer’s rating: D

ESRB rating: Everyone 10+

Game type: Role-playing game

Kind of like: “The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past,” but not nearly as good

Best feature: Weapons have several different capabilities.

Worst feature: Enemies are extremely redundant.

The bottom line: “Children of Mana” may have some appeal for completists, but we can’t figure out for whom else.

It has cutesy graphics that seem aimed at a younger audience. It has way too much talking, though, for an action game or for a kids’ game. What action there is can be very repetitive, and the gameplay isn’t very deep. It’s as if the game is badly aimed at several different targets.

This series, which includes “Secret of Mana” and “Legend of Mana,” has always been a little, shall we say, indistinct. The games have worked differently from one another, so they almost constitute a series in name only.

In this game, you enter dungeonlike areas, beat down creatures that get in your way and fight a boss at the end.

You have several different weapons, each with a dual use. The sword, for example, deflects enemy projectiles or stabs foes. As another example, the bow fires arrows or puts enemies to sleep.

You also have a magical guardian spirit. We found this a diversion that doesn’t necessarily help you, especially when fighting the bosses.

The story often consists of someone telling you to go here or there and save everyone, leaving you to mash buttons to hurry through the dialogue.

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Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice For All

Posted Jan 19, 2007 by TBO.com

Updated Mar 28, 2007 at 01:32 PM

System: Nintendo DS

Publisher: Capcom

Reviewer’s rating: B

ESRB rating: Teen

Game type: Adventure

Kind of like: “Trace Memory”

Best feature: You get to yell, “Objection!”

Worst feature: Pretty much the same as the last one.

The bottom line: “Phoenix Wright” reminds us that video games are really just another medium for telling stories. That you can participate and influence how the narrative plays out is what makes it so compelling.

In these stories, you take on the role of defense attorney Phoenix Wright. In four separate murder cases, your job is to prove your client is not guilty. Trial proceedings are mostly text-driven, as the details of the case unfold with witnesses’ testimony.

It’s surprisingly engaging. Sure, it’s text-heavy, but this is a long way from “Zork.” (“You are standing in an open field west of a white house …”)

When a witness says something that doesn’t jibe with the evidence in the court record, that’s when the action begins.

On cross-examination, you can press witnesses on key points or expose their lies by saying (we prefer to shout menacingly) “Objection!” into the DS’s microphone when you detect an inconsistency.

Most of the fun comes from trying to figure out the truth, and then trying to find a way to prove it. Often, a key piece of evidence seems at first to be only tenuously connected to the case. Your assistant and client might give you hints, but it’s up to you to figure out how everything fits together.

Build your defense wisely—the judge can be harsh, and you might find yourself starting over at the beginning.

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Avast, Me Hearties!

Posted Jan 19, 2007 by Janine Dorsey

Updated Jan 19, 2007 at 11:52 AM

When you start work at the Tampa Tribune newsroom, it’s a given you will definetly be working in two scenarios: hurricanes and Gasparilla.

It’s hard to say which is more chaotic and leaves the bigger mess behind…

In the 15 years I have worked for the Tribune and TBO.com I have never seen the parade as a casual observer.

This year I am riding on the NewsCenter’s float. The cast of characters also includes Dave and Cindy from Daytime, Columnist Steve Otto, Jeff Houck of “The Stew,” TV Critic Walt Belcher and WFLA’s Traffic Report Alicia Roberts.

Some of us will be taking pictures and blogging from the float, other staffers will be taking pictures and blogging from the sidelines. Our eyes and ears will be open to all that is the Gasparilla experience.

Last year, with your help, we even made a movie.

Who knows what this raggedy band of pirates will come back with after the invasion this year?

There’s only one way to tell, check back here and at our Gasparilla Guide.

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“Heroes” Cheerleader Wants to Sing

Posted Jan 18, 2007 by Walt Belcher

Updated Jan 18, 2007 at 06:08 PM

  One of the attractions at the NBC media party Wednesday night (for TV stars and TV critics) was Hayden Panettiere who plays the indestructible Claire Bennet on “Heroes.”

The 17-year-old had traded her cheerleader outfit for a red party dress. She could hardly move because so many TV columnists were trying for an interview. They were gathering around her like flies on roadkill. (Read what she told me in Monday’s TV column).

Panettiere, who has been working since she was about 4, is a veteran of the soap operas. But now she’s on the verge of becoming a major star thanks to “Heroes.” She’s getting movie offers. Well, “Shanghi Kiss” isn’t exactly Oscar material, but it’s a start.

  She also wants to record an CD that she says will include some songs that she wrote. She said she didn’t have a title yet for the CD and didn’t have a record label.  One of the songs she wants to record is one she wrote in memory of a childhood sweetheart who drowned last summer. “He was one of my first boyfriends,” she said.

Also at the NBC party was George Takei (formerly Mr. Sulu on “Star Trek”). He will be a guest star on “Heroes” as the father of Hiro (Masi Oka). Look for Takei on the Jan. 29 and Feb 5 episodes. Oka said he is a big “Stark Trek” fan and it was a thrill to work with Takei.

Oka can do a dead-on impression of Mr. Sulu.

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Spudcast v1.0

Posted Jan 18, 2007 by TBO.com

Updated Jan 20, 2007 at 12:44 AM

After weeks of Lamaze classes, the Couch Potatoes huffed and puffed and squeezed out our first-ever Podcast last night. It’s available at the link below, for your downloading pleasure:

Couch Potatoes, Episode 1 [link]

Our super-special guest for Spudcast v1.0 was the esteemed William Vitka, contributing editor to Stuff Magazine, longtime pop-culture pundit and dedicated smoker.

Among the topics of discussion:

* Apple’s recently introduced iPhone.

* “Guitar Hero II” comes to the Xbox 360!

* Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD—is the war already over?

* Are they really going to make a “Hobbit” movie without Peter Jackson at the helm?

We had fun in the studio putting the show together, so download it and let us know what you think. If nothing else, it’s a 25-minute free pass from the mundane routine that is your life.

Speaking of that last item: If you owned the movie rights to “The Hobbit” and you couldn’t choose Peter Jackson to direct, who would you hire? Ridley Scott? Guillermo del Toro? Terry Gilliam?

Michael Moore?

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