Monday, October 18, 2010
A Super Meat Boy Contest, Valkyria Chronicles 2 Disappoints, and A Zombie Con!
*
Games: It's the newest indie darling to hit XBLA, it's the game on everyone's lips, and it's the title I've just completed (and submitted) a review for. That's right, it's Super Meat Boy.
 |
| Action!!! |
What do you have to do to win? Easy... just post a message here and tell me what the most exotic cut of meat you've ever eaten was, how it was prepared (if it was cooked) and whether it was good or bad. Simple, right? The winner will be drawn at random and announced at the next blog update.
That's just a little less than forty-eight hours from now, so if you want a chance to win, don't delay!
*
Games: After wrapping up Professor Layton and the Unwound Future (which was as good as the Layton games always are) I decided to fire up the ol’ PSP and give Valkyria Chronicles 2 a whirl.
I absolutely adored the first game on PS3, and felt guilty that I didn't play it in time to praise it on my top ten last year. After being reminded by a reader of that particular oversight, I figured I should probably get to the sequel this year to make sure I didn't make the same mistake again.
I'm extremely early in the game so I can't speak on it definitively, but what I've seen so far is quite a mixed bag. The combat is essentially the same as it was before, although levels are smaller and broken up into bite sized pieces. Also, Snipers have been replaced (at least initially) by an Armored class which can fix sandbags and deactivate landmines. This aspect of the game is fine since it's basically unchanged, for the most part.
 |
| Look at us! We're so goddamn interesting and unique!! |
It's just that terrible.
I'm still playing through it since the blend of real-time and turn-based strategy is a tasty mix, but I'm extremely disappointed that Sega took the low road with the characters and dialogue. I've got absolutely no desire to listen to a bunch of morons prattle on about things I don't care about in the slightest, and while the core game is still great, there is no chance whatsoever that Valkyria Chronicles 2 is going to end up on my year-end bests list.
Shame.
*
Undead: For those of you who are in the Pacific Northwest (or who'll be here at end of October), you might be interested in checking out the 2010 ZomBcon.
It will be taking place at the Seattle Center from October 29-31 and will feature appearances by world-class guests George Romero and (ZOMG!) Bruce Campbell… for zombie fans, it just doesn't get any better than that. In addition, there'll be some celebrity panels, exhibitors and vendors, movie screenings, and even a Prom Night of the Living Dead.
If you like your entertainment rotten, you won't want to miss out. For more information CLICK HERE, and if you end up going, drop me a line and let me know how it was!!
*
Posts
The most exotic meat I've eaten was alligator, at a Caribbean restaurant. I don't remember how it was prepared, but it actually tasted a lot like chicken, with a slight bitterness.
My biggest meat faux pas was a "Burger" that turned out to be a meat doppelganger. The fact that quorn burgers are made of fungus isn't the worst part, in this particular incidence it was over cooked (because they don't "cook" in the conventional sense, "heat up" is more appropriate) and lost all notion of taste, yet gained the interesting texture of carpet backing. Mmmm, yum yum...
The most exotic cut of meat I've had was cow penis, sautéed by Lillian as part of gross food themed Halloween party. It had the texture of crunchy rubber and was completely inedible.
The most exotic meat I've ever tasted was elk. My boyfriend had elk cubes (which he got from a hunter while we were visiting his parents in Northwestern Ontario), so he stewed the cubes and added beer to the drippings. It was pretty darn tasty.
Also, I hear ya on bad storylines in RPGs. The last few I've played have been so bad I've felt like sobbing every time plot even came up. I've never played the original VC though, so I feel it's my duty as an edit at RPGamer to actually play it at some point. :D
Also thanks for adding me as an Xbox Live friend! You have played a scary amount of games, sir!
The most exotic meat that I have ever tasted was Bear legs. It tasted real good, cannot remember how it was prepared tho.
The most exotic piece of meat I've ever eaten was Kangaroo at this Australian restaurant here in NYC. They were Kangaroo Bangers aka sausages but i'm with the Aussies; bangers sound so much more fun to eat.
These bangers were delicious! Almost like a cross between pork and ground meat. They did have some kick in it from what I remember though cause they were spicy.
They don't make it anymore unfortunately...maybe people thought it was too cute of an animal to eat. I'd definitely have it again though. Maybe the sequel should be Super Meat Boy: Bangers Incorporated.
Nothing really exotic, just your average Scottish country fare like rabbit, hare, venison, wood pigeon etc. Although I have had wild boar which was lovely. It was in a massive pie a buttery pastry and it tasted wonderful. A really thick flavour that lingered for ages after the meal.
Most exotic meat was probably dog meat my mom fooled me into eating. It tasted like chicken and I didnt find out till after the fact. It was just baked, seared.
I was eating some menudo the other day at a Mexcian restaurant. This oxtail is weird, I thought. It weren't that at all, it would seem. It's tripe. As in intestines - boiled and seasoned for your pleasure.
Spongy....
And, no, it wasn't quite my bag.
Mmmmmmm...
At a fancy tuscany restaurant I once had something called a "center double-cut" pork chop that had marinated in some kind of wood infused apple brine for 24 hours and was served with a port reduction sauce.
I can never remember the name of the place. I think I suffered some kind of brain hemorrhage when the waiter brought the check.