Halloween To-Do List 2014

Okay, so 'The Evil Within' review hasn't necessarily materialized yet... Not because we're too damn scared to finish the game, but because we've been seriously busy around the R_2 offices (or basements as you civilians would call them). As time allows, more footage will be shared on our YouTube page and a final thoughts article will follow.

Okay, so maybe we are scared...

To keep the topic fully focused on horror, given that it's Halloween in TWO FREAKIN' DAYS, we're going to leave you three things to read, watch or play to get you in spooky spirits. We've already gone over several different horror films on the podcast. Reflecting on some that were frightening, films that went unnoticed, and those that are just downright ridiculous. Visit the Facebook to listen back to our old Small Talks on Mixcloud, there we have already discussed titles like 'Deathdream', 'Truth or Dare', and 'The Exorcist' for starters. Okay, here goes:


THE HELLBOUND HEART (1986) - CLIVE BARKER 

Adept readers could finish this novella in a few solid hours, and trust us you won't want to put it back down the whole time anyway. 'Hellbound' became the basis for Barker's famous film 'Hellraiser', which is another film to add to your monthly watch-list. Differing slightly from the plot of the film, it still involves the mysterious puzzle box and the Cenobites terrorizing Kirsty and her friend Rory (not her father in the book). Stephen King declared "I have seen the future of horror, his name is Clive Barker" and if King approves-- you know it's good.

RESIDENT EVIL 2 (1998) - Playstation / N64

Resident Evil 2 is currently available on the Playstation store for a download straight into nostalgia. The game has it's fair share of scares, from zombies bursting through windows to lying in wait on buses. It's also an early encounter with the elusive Ada Wong, who would reappear in Leon Kennedy's return to the franchise- RE4. While the controls don't hold up so well with the new generation of consoles, if you're interested in the history of the RE franchise this is a great place to pick up from...because trust us Resident Evil 1 will be frustrating for even the most hardcore survival horror gamers.

HALLOWEEN 3 - Season of the Witch (1982) - Tommy Lee Wallace

Too much candy can kill.

The original 'Halloween' by John Carpenter is a masterpiece, I won't dispute that, but my favourite of all the sequels doesn't even have Michael Myers as the titular character. A criminally underrated sequel in the Halloween franchise cannon, H3 focuses on a small town that produces Halloween masks...with an evil twist. It's campy, its scary, it's ridiculous- ultimately it's the most fun you'll have watching a sequel to Carpenter's original. Some have even said that it surpasses the original film, we haven't found out what drugs they were on when they said that but it's beyond the point. H3 deserves your attention and if you've already watched the original this month, don't skip part three.

Seriously, if these photos haven't convinced you to watch yet- what's wrong with you?

Keep your eyes peeled on the Facebook page for our weekly Small Talks and YouTube content, and we're always looking to answer your questions on the podcast!

End of the Year Forecast

Uh, hey hey Round_2 readers. We've been busy grinding away with games like The Evil Within, Destiny, Battlefield and the like (meanwhile Jordan is in Cuba neglecting Mario Kart 8), but when looking at the upcoming release calendar, it seems like we've already exhausted the majority of the GOTY contenders for 2014. We've got a new Assassin's Creed, a new Call of Duty, a re-release of GTA V, Far Cry 4 and Sunset Overdrive as far as "AAA" releases go. Notice how more than half of that list includes yearly release-cycled titles? Okay we won't open that can of worms right now and I think Jem will be livid if I trash talk Assassin's Creed....

He is probably stalking me right now...I take it back. 

So far the best experiences I've had gaming this year have probably been Dark Souls 2, The Evil Within and Destiny coming in a close third. As I mentioned, Watch Dogs was a huge letdown and most other titles this year haven't managed to be nearly as engrossing as some of last year's heavy hitters (The Last of Us and GTA V respectively). Has this year surpassed 2013 for gaming? It's not fair to judge yet per se, but as of right now- no. Sure, we had next-gen consoles get their first string of big releases, and I'm really enjoying my PS4 thus far, but none of the titles I listed required that I upgrade my gaming system. (Dark Souls 2 didn't even come out on next-gen systems!) Now again, I know that we've still got some strong titles to come. Far Cry 4 will most likely be a worthy successor to one of the best games for the last generation of consoles and hopefully Sunset Overdrive will be a great new IP for Microsoft...but these games have to stand up to GTA V and TLOU, arguably two of the best video games ever made. Remember how awesome 2013 was?

Tell me this wasn't you all year in 2013.

I've had enough of new COD games and new Assassin's games, and with games like Evolve and The Witcher being pushed into an early 2015 release, it doesn't seem like gamers are going to get very much new blood in the holiday season. 2014 had the chance to rival last year with titles like Watch Dogs and Destiny, but they still fell slightly below the expectations of the public. I hope that I'm proven wrong by December, but my wallet has been somewhat fatter this year than last. 

This sums up "what could have been".

Let us know what your GOTY predictions are on our Facebook and maybe we can duke it out on our next "Small-Talk". Rock onnnnnn!

Our back catalogue.

Hey everyone, It's Jordan. I know all of our awesome podcasts are only available to stream and that doesn't work for everyone. So for the time being this post will be an ongoing compilation of our older and current podcasts available for download as mp3s. Please message our facebook page if any link is dead.

Small Talk
Ep. 1-3
Ep. 4-5
Ep. 6-7
Ep. 8
Ep. 9
Ep. 10
Ep. 11
Ep.12
Ep. 13
Ep. 14
Ep. 15
Ep. 16

Round_2
Ep. 1
Ep. 2
Ep. 3

The Evil Within [2014] First Impressions, The Roots of "Survival Horror"

Hey all,

         Back again and just wanted to say a few words about my first hour or two with 'The Evil Within', Shinji Mikami's newest foray into survival horror. Mikami is famous for directing and producing several of the Resident Evil games, namely Resident Evil 4- the game that arguably changed the face of survival horror and action games for years to come. While the latest installments of the Resident Evil series haven't been very well received, the sixth especially, this was a chance to get back to the roots of why we really love survival horror games. Tense action sequences, limited resources, and a seriously dreary atmosphere to boot. At least that's what keeps me playing these games anyway. Personally, Resident Evil 4 was, and still is, one of my favourite games of all time. Any opportunity to play through another gaming experience like Mikami's RE4 is something I'll lineup for, so of course I'm already hooked.

You play as the poor sap on the left, Sebastian Castellanos

         Right away you can see that this isn't necessarily the spiritual successor to Resident Evil 4 in the sense that say Dark Souls was to Demon's Souls. Instead Tango has adapted the framework of the Resident Evil 4 over-the-shoulder action formula and added in some stealth aspects as well as good ol' "un-killable" enemies. A new aspect to the combat involves burning the bodies of the recently dead to ensure that they're in fact gone for good. However, your supply of matches will only last so long so you have to choose wisely as to which enemies you can handle fighting a second time.

Yeah, I'm burning that guy.

When you start the game you aren't even able to stand off with your first formidable opponent, instead you have to sneak away from his chainsaw-wielding ass before you get chopped to bits. Then just when you think you're done for, you wake up in what looks like a dingy mental hospital where a ghostly (I'm assuming ghostly) nurse walks you through how to save your game and upgrade your stats with a demented brain surgery tool. Much of this part of the story has yet to be explained, but once I delve deeper I'll share some more here.

Your brain on drugs. Ouch

So far I'm having lots of fun with The Evil Within. I found there to be a bit of a learning curve with the controls at first, especially in the stealth elements where I was staggered by my injuries, but we'll see if that remains an issue as I move ahead in the game. Keep your eyes peeled for some more "Let's Play" footage, as I'll be recording some of my favourite sequences as we go along through the story mode. Luckily you won't get to hear my screaming on the other end.

Check out the first video of our coverage here, a cool little Easter egg for Resident Evil fans:

-Will

Bungie giving gamers a poor story line? Hooplah! (Destiny)

Here it is...The Round_2 blog. It's quiet in here...I guess I'll start it off then.

     With all the small talk (pun fully intended) about Destiny the past few weeks, I decided it was about time I wrote some words down for all you dedicated readers, listeners and soon to be viewers out there. All...6? 7 of you? However, the fact that this article won't be read by the masses doesn't make it a moot point.

     I've been enjoying all of Destiny's ups and downs since it's early September release. Jem and I have already agreed on a few of it's faults. Farming can be exploitative and cumbersome for the rewards given, but then again, strikes and raids with friends make for one of the best gaming experiences all year. Perhaps the topic of most debate though, has been the story line. Complaints about how it's practically nonexistent are completely fair, and Peter Dinklage or Bill Nighy couldn't do anything to save the script given to them. It's gotten to the point where obsessive gamers are speculating on parts of the story that perhaps Bungie left out about 'the Darkness' and a Beta tester revealed the story was once drastically different. My advice; spend your precious time shooting into black holes and making green, blue and purple (ha!) stuff pop out. Stop dreaming that there's some hidden Bungie story agenda behind this world that they've created. 

This is the love you were "supposed" to feel for Dinklebot AKA DinkleGhost

     Several times Bungie has justified their alterations in patches by saying things like "this is not how we envisioned people playing Destiny". Perhaps a deep story line was not first on their "to-do" list when building the game. That might seem foolish, but there's plenty of opportunity for Bungie to expand upon the story in expansions, and boy I hope they do. I think their goal for this initial release was to get players hooked with the engrossing combat and online interaction with real life players- not NPC's. 

Seriously, the combat is awesome. 

     I'm not trying to defend the dialogue here either. I'm not saying "I don't even have to tell you why I don't even have time to tell you right now" or "I could tell you tales about tales or tell tales yadda yadda yadda" are remotely close to sufficient literary devices. Since Bungie has previously given us the Halo series, some of the most in-depth game lore in recent memory, players simply couldn't accept that Destiny didn't have any story to be found. All I have to say is, trust me, the story is coming and you probably won't find out what it is by listening to jibberish from a Dreg. Or maybe I'll be eating my shorts come Christmas when the expansion is out. Only time will tell.

"The Traveler is actually Pluto, and it's a PLANET!" 

Keep it locked on the Round_2 Facebook page for more articles, updates, videos, streams and life advice in the future. Seriously.