"I Am Setsuna" ανασκόπηση

   Το "I Am Setsuna" ("Είμαι η Setsuna") είναι ένα νέο Ιαπωνικό παιχνίδι ρόλων (JRPG), με δημιουργούς το νεοσύστατο στούντιο Tokyo RPG και εκδότρια την Square Enix. Το παιχνίδι είναι αφιερωμένο σε όλους τους οπαδούς των παλιών στυλ JRPG μιας και συνδυάζει πολλά στοιχεία από εκείνα τα παιχνίδια, όπως το σύστημα μάχης ενεργού χρόνου (ΑΤΒ) και τους σιωπηλούς πρωταγωνιστές.
   Η ιστορία παίρνει μέρος σε ένα χιονισμένο χωριό και ο παίκτης παίρνει τον έλεγχο ενός πληρωμένου δολοφόνου ονόματι Endir. Του δίνεται μία αποστολή να ταξιδέψει στο χωριό Nive και να εκτελέσει την "θυσία". Ο Endir, όντας ο σιωπηλός πρωταγωνιστής που είναι, δέχεται την αποστολή χωρίς πολλές ερωτήσεις. Ωστόσο, μόλις φτάνει στο χωριό Nive και γνωρίζει τον στόχο του, τη Setsuna ( και την προστάτιδά της, Aeterna, της οποίας η παρουσία αποδεικνύεται καθοριστική για την εξέλιξη της υπόθεσης), ανακαλύπτει πως ούτως ή άλλως θα δώσει τη ζωή της για να διατηρηθεί η ειρήνη του πλανήτη, εξ ου και ο τίτλος "θυσία". Οπότε αποφασίζει να την ακολουθήσει στο ταξίδι που θα κάνει μέχρι τα "Χαμένα Εδάφη" ("Lost Lands") όπου θα θυσιαστεί, για να φροντίσει να ολοκληρώσει την αποστολή του. Στο δρόμο, γνωρίζουν περισσότερους χαρακτήρες, ορισμένοι από τους οποίους θα ταξιδέψουν μαζί τους. Υπάρχει ποικιλία στους ρόλους (μέχρι το τέλος του παιχνιδιού η ομάδα θα αποτελείται από 7 χαρακτήρες), ωστόσο οι περισσότεροι είναι μονοδιάστατοι. Η υπόθεση έχει μερικές επιπλοκές, ειδικά προς το τέλος, όχι όμως τίποτα που δεν θα το περίμενε κανείς.
   Το σύστημα μάχης είναι παραδοσιακό ΑΤΒ, ωστόσο προσφέρει τη δική του αίσθηση ποικιλίας. Ο παίκτης μπορεί να εξοπλίσει τους χαρακτήρες του (3 στην ομάδα, χωρίς εναλλαγές κατά τη διάρκεια της μάχης) με ορισμένα talisman (φυλαχτά). και πάνω σε αυτά τα talisman μπορούν να τοποθετηθούν ορισμένοι λίθοι με όνομα spiritnite. Υπάρχουν 2 ειδών spiritnite: command και support. Τα command spiritnite δίνουν στους χαρακτήρες τη δυνατότητα να χρησιμοποιήσουν ορισμένες τεχνικές ("techs") κατά τη διάρκεια της μάχης (μαγεία, skills, κ.ά.). Τα support spiritnite δίνουν υποστηρικτικές ικανότητες στους χαρακτήρες, π.χ. ανεβάζουν τους πόντους ζωής (ΗΡ), ανεβάζουν την άμυνα ή την επίθεση, προστατεύουν εναντίον επιθέσεις ενός στοιχείου (φωτιά) ή στις αλλαγές του status. Ανάλογα με το ποιο spiritnite χρησιμοποιούν 2 ή 3 χαρακτήρες (και αν αυτοί οι χαρακτήρες βρίσκονται στην ενεργή ομάδα μάχης), ο παίκτης μπορεί να εξαπολύσει ορισμένες συνδυασμένες επιθέσεις. Ωστόσο, για να μπορέσει να τις χρησιμοποιήσει, ο παίκτης θα πρέπει να περιμένει να γεμίσουν οι μπάρες ΑΤΒ και των δύο (ή τριών) χαρακτήρων. Μόλις οι παίκτες αρχίσουν να συνηθίζουν το σύστημα μάχης, μπορούν να αρχίσουν να το εκμεταλλεύονται, κάνοντας τις μάχες πολύ εύκολες από πολύ νωρίς. Κι έτσι έρχεται το πρόβλημα της επαναληπτικότητας, κάτι από το οποίο υπέφεραν πολλά παλιά JRPG. Ωστόσο οι μάχες με τα boss είναι έντονα προκλητικές και πολύ διασκεδαστικές.
   Η μουσική είναι απίθανη και ταιριάζει απόλυτα με το στυλ του παιχνιδιού! Κατά τη διάρκεια όλου του παιχνιδιού ακούγεται ένας απλός ήχος πιάνου, ωστόσο η απλότητά του και ορισμένες φορές η γαλήνη του είναι μια διαρκής υπενθύμιση για το τι υπόθεση έχει αυτό το παιχνίδι: την ιστορία μιας θυσίας. Τα γραφικά σε καμία περίπτωση δεν είναι άξια θαυμασμού και υπάρχει και το θέμα με το διαρκές χιόνι. Υπάρχει λευκό σχεδόν παντού εκτός από τον περιστασιακό πύργο, με αποτέλεσμα να καταντά κουραστικό.
   Εν κατακλείδι, αυτό το παιχνίδι είχε ενδιαφέρουσα υπόθεση και ωραία μουσική και... αυτά! Μιας και είναι ένα RPG που εκδίδεται από την Square Enix, έχω να σημειώσω πως με βοήθησε να δω πόσο σωστή κίνηση κάνουν που εγκαταλείπουν αυτό το στυλ συστήματος μάχης με το επερχόμενο παιχνίδι της σημαντικότερης σειράς τους, το Final Fantasy XV. Μερικές μάχες ήταν τόσο βαρετές που με έκαναν να θέλω να τις αποφύγω εντελώς αλλά ήξερα πως αν το έκανα αυτό οι χαρακτήρες μου δεν θα ήταν στο απαραίτητο level για να αντιμετωπίσουν το επόμενο boss. Οπότε αναγκάστηκα. Κι έτσι λειτουργούσαν τα παλιά RPG. Καιρός να πάμε παρακάτω...

"I Am Setsuna" review

   "I Am Setsuna" is a new Japanese Role-Playing Game (JRPG), developed by newly-founded studio Tokyo RPG and published by Square Enix. The game is a love-letter to all fans of old-style RPG's as it combines many elements of those games, most notably the Active Time Battle (ATB) system and the silent characters.
   The story takes place in a snowy village and the player is in charge of a hitman of sorts named Endir. He is given a mission to travel to Nive Village and murder the "sacrifice". Endir, as the silent protagonist that he is, accepts this mission without much question. However, once he arrives at Nive Village and meets with his target, Setsuna (and her guardian, Aeterna, who's presence proves pivotal to the story), he finds out that she is to be killed anyway in order to maintain the world's peace, thus the title "sacrifice". So he decides to tag along on her pilgrimage to the "Lost Lands" where she is to give up her life, so that he can see his mission through. On the way, they meet more characters, some of which decide to join the ride. There is some variety in the main cast (by the time the game is over it consists of 7 characters), however most seem one-dimensional. The story itself has a few twists, especially towards the end, but nothing too unexpected.
   The battle system is traditional ATB, yet offers its own sense of variety. The player can equip his characters (3 per party, not replacable during battle) with certain talismans (think accessories) and on those talismans certain stones known as spiritnites can be placed. There are 2 types of spiritnite: command and support. Command spiritnite gives the characters the ability to use certain "techs" in battle (abilities, magic, etc) and support spiritnite does exactly what the word implies. It can raise max HP, raise attack power, raise defense, protect against a specific element/status condition, etc. Depending on which spiritnite which 2 or 3 characters are wearing (and if those characters are in the active party), the player can execute certain combination attacks. However, in order to use them, the player must wait for both those characters' ATB bars to be full. Once players get the hang of the battle system, they can begin to exploit it, making battles very easy from very early on. Thus comes the problem of repetitiveness, something a lot of old-style RPG's used to suffer from. The boss battles are highly challenging and entertaining though.
   The music is incredible and it suits the style of the game completely! There is a simple piano sound heard throughout the game, but it's simplicity and sometimes serenity is a constant reminder of what this game is all about: a tale of sacrifice. The graphics are really nothing to marvel at and there is the matter of the constant snow. There's white pretty much everywhere apart from the occasional tower exploration. It does get pretty tiresome.
   Overall, this game had an interesting story and nice music and that's about it. Since it's an RPG being published by Square Enix, I have to say it helped me to see how much of a great move they are making abandoning this type of battle system with their flagship series' upcoming title, Final Fantasy XV. Some of the battles were so boring they made me want to just skip them but I knew that if I would, my characters would be underleveled for the next boss fights. So I was kinda forced into it. And that's how old RPG's worked. Time to move on...

World War III... is now!

   (That title might seem a little bit creepy, I know.) Today was a relatively good day. Nothing negative has been posted on the news websites about people dying anywhere in the world, so we don't need to take to Twitter to put up a "#Prayfor..." status, in order to feel like we're making a contribution and that we're not empty, hollow shells of people (which we totally are, but that's a converstation for a different time). But, hang on, what am I even talking about? I need to re-read that sentence... "Today has been a relatively good day."? Why? Because people aren't killing each other? Have we really become so accustomed to this type of thing happening on a daily basis?
   Something like that is easy to happen once someone takes a look at the current global events: failed coup d'etat in Turkey, truck driver running over people at a parade in Nice during Bastille Day celebrations, constant shootings in the U.S., people out in the streets rioting in Greece, Venezuela and Brazil, terrorist attacks in Paris, Belgium, Germany, Sydney, financial humiliation for people in Europe and Latin America, Syrian refugee crisis, ISIL attacks in the middle-east, people starving to death or dying from diseases in central Africa, constant war in the Gaza and Egypt, financial problems in Brazil due to the Olympic Games, and that's just the icing on the cake. I remembered these WITHOUT looking at any news websites. They've been written into my memory.
   One might take a look at the world and say "what is wrong with us..?" in a sigh of exhaustion. Well, the first thing to remember is that this is a "dog eat dog" world. Those with more power will inevitably attempt to use that power in order to dominate those that stand beneath them, whether it's financially, politically or even religiously (though that last one stands to one's own beliefs really). And this comes from a primal instinct that is within all living creatures as they fight to dominate one another and prove who is leader of the pack. For a prime example, you need not look much further than a group of male, heterosexual friends accompanying a nice young girl on a night out. The weaker ones may sit quietly and not speak much as the rest of the group tries to dominate the situation so as to show themselves off as the "pack leader" to the potential mate. And that's pretty much how the world works. Ever heard of the phrase "dogs of war"?
   Another thing to keep in mind is that, the world has never exactly been entirely "out of war". Maybe a long, long time ago, but not anytime recently. The only thing that changes is the opponents and/or the intensity of the wars themselves. There will always be war, no matter the era. However humanity itself probably knows when they cross a certain line (see Hiroshima/Nagasaki) so that they can stop themselves before it's too late for the planet.
   In our day and age, however, wars are fought a little bit differently and with different opponents than they used to. It's not exactly nations that are at war against each other (that would actually make things a lot simpler!), but religions and social poistions. The war against religious extremists is delicate because a) you don't want to offend anybody by telling them "Hey! My God's better than yours!" (when none of them even exist but again, that's another story) and b) you don't even know where they're gonna hit you from. We're talking about people that have been trained (brainwashed) from a very young age to sacrifice their life for (what they believe is) a just cause in order to punish the evil that is the rest of the world (in their eyes). And in doing this (they believe that) they will be rewarded in the after-life. It is incredibly hard to even argue with these people, let alone stop them from their "righteous cause". All they're doing is killing themselves to serve someone else's cause. Their deaths are meaningless. But it's easy to see how they would be easily brainwashed after the difficult life they have. They grab on to any single piece of hope that they can so, what they're doing, it's understandable.
   The war between social positions, on the other hand is NOT understandable at all. It's a war fought, not with guns, but with dirty, greedy money. Back in the late 2000's, there used to be a middle class between the rich and those earning average money, but making ends meet. Ever since the financial crisis began, that gap just keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger... This is mainly due to the fact that the wealthy are mercilessly taking advantage of the inability of the middle class to make ends meet with what little they earn. The people in charge (politicians, bankers, corporate heads) impose unbelievable taxes to the small and middle classes (rather than taking it from the upper clasees which, surprisingly, are rarely affected), to the point of there not even being a middle class anymore! It's just those struggling to survive and those that don't know what to do with their money! Imagine this for example: you live in a household in which the average monthly income is $1300. Up until that point your expenses would come up to $800, and the rest would be put to the side (which is still too little to survive a whole month, but anyway). Then the government and corporate heads come and put extra taxes on your head, reduce your incomes by $100, so now you have $1200 and have to dish out $1000 of that, which means you're practically living to pay bills. Meanwhile people with properties are just getting richer, personnel is getting cheaper, the market is also getting cheaper because most people don't even have money to shop so that means the upper classes just get more and more money. And that's how the gap widens and how financial warfare is waged. It is without doubt, the most sickening form of modern warfare.
   There's really nothing to do about the global situation. As I've previously stated many times in this blog, this planet is sufferring from a disease called the "human race" and it's just a matter of time to see whether the planet itself develops antibodies to get rid of us (i.e. earthquakes, volcano eruptions, tsunamies, etc) or whether we eventually kill it off along with ourselves. However, for us peace-loving, out-of-the-pack wolves, we can only live our lives like we normally do and just stay away from any news whatsoever. Because, as I said, wars have been going on forever. it's the fact that we're getting constantly bombarded with all these reports about said wars that make us feel "responsible", like we have to "change the world". The world's been like this for centuries. Nothing's ever gonna change. Just live.

E3 2016 Review - The norms, the shocks and everything else

 

   This year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (a.k.a. E3) is almost over, so it's time to go back and see what each of the gaming companies brought with them, what new products we have to look forward to and how it all stacks up to last year's phenomenal show. There certainly were a lot of highlights this year that the gaming community will be discussing for a long, long time, that's for sure!
   Starting the show this time around was EA, although not officially part of E3. The California-based developer had chosen this year to occupy the area across the road from where E3 is being held so that they could better showcase their games. Their conference on the other hand was performed at two venues at once; one in L.A. and another in London. EA had a lot of the same and pretty much showed what everyone had anticipated: Battlefield 1, Titanfall 2, Mass Effect: Andromeda and a couple of new sports titles like Madden '17 and FIFA 17. The highlights of show were three. Firstly the sudden appearance of newly-appointed Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho during the FIFA 17 presentation. Second, the announcement of not one, but 3 new Star Wars projects (an expansion to Battlefront, a new Adventure game with new characters and a mobile game) and the third and final moment was the 64-on-64 Battlefront 1 online match that included stars like Zac Efron, Jamie Foxx, Terry Crews and Snoop Dogg.
   A few hours later, Bethesda attempted to bedazzle audiences with their own line up of games. They opened their conference with the announcement of a new Quake game, and continued with a lot of impressive, yet predictable, announcements, such as the remastering of The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, new DLC for Fallout 4/Shelter and Doom, including VR versions for both titles. The news continued with a trailer for Dishonored 2 and the reveal of a brand new game called Prey. That was pretty much it for a rather poor Bethesda showing. However news did poor in afterwards that the company is working on 2 brand new next-gen IP's and a The Elder Scrolls 6, but all of these should be expected at future venues.
   The next day was the big day of the conferences and Microsoft opened with a bang. Having already confirmed the rumors of a XBox One S, a smaller, more compact version (but equally powerful) of the original console, the price makes this machine a lot more attractive: only $299! After that, the games began to come out and MS didn't hold back any punches! It was already known that Gears Of War 4 would be in this year's line up, but the trailer just left audiences craving for more. And thankfully, with an October release date, they won't be left waiting too long. MS showed off a few brand new titles such as Forca Horizon 3, Recore, Scalebound, We Happy Few (which made a great first impression to the audience!), Tekken 7, Dead Rising 4, State Of Decay 2 and Halo Wars 2, and also gave an extra look to some previously shown games like Final Fantasy XV and Battlefield 1. Then they announced some DLC for games like Killer Instinct, The Division and Minecraft, and gave the indies some time to shine (Cuphead especially looked great!). Finally, before closing the show, MS announced that they would be releasing a more powerful version of the XBox One. It is currently titled "Project Scorpio".
   Ubisoft took to the floor next as they celebrated their 30 years since establishment. Their showing was much more impressive than either EA or Bethesda and a lot more entertaining with Aisha Tyler as the host. An expansion to The Division (that was briefly shown during Microsoft's conference) was officially announced. Also a new Tom Clancy's title was shown called Ghost Recon: Wildlands. Then Watch Dogs 2 came out to play and it really shone, captivating audiences with its smart gameplay. Hilariousness ensued when South Park: The Fractured But Whole was finally given more info and a release date! Trey Parker and Matt Stone were present and so was their celebrity-slandering humor. New titles For Honor and Steep were also announced, as were VR projects Eagle Flight and Star Trek VR crew with LeVar Burton on stage to talk about the experience. All-in-all, Ubisoft had yet another great conference this year with promising new IP's, solid sequels to their existing titles like Watch Dogs and South Park and a nice take on VR.
   Finally Sony's conference was to wrap up day two of the E3 pressers. With a live orchestra performing during each of the trailers, this year the Japanese giants had absolutely no hardware to show off, despite rumors going around about a potential "Playstation Neo" (something that Adam Boyes had earlier confirmed is a thing, but would not yet be making an appearance). This conference was dedicated to games and those alone. The first grand announcement was the return of the God of War franchise with its protagonist kratos heading over to the north to tackle the Norse mythology. Next was a small playthrough of the delayed Horizon: Zero Dawn and another trailer for Detroit: Become Human. Then, at last, the release date was given for the long-awaited The Last Guardian, accompanied by a spectacular trailer. Afterwards a brand new Spiderman game was announced published by Activision. And speaking of Activision, the Santa Monica studio announced the remastering of Crash Bandicoot 1 through 3 and also the inclusion of the popular hero in Skylanders. Yet another original IP that was announced was Days Gone, a survival adventure game that strongly resembles The Last Of Us. The shock of the evening however occured when former Metal Gear Solid creator and developer Hideo Kojima appeared to announce his brand new IP (exclusive to Sony) titled Death Stranding. Sony then dedicated some time to their VR-enhanced titles like Batman: Arkham VR, Final Fantasy XV VR and Star Wars Battlefront: X-Wing Mission. The show closed with some gameplay footage of Days Gone.
   Nintendo both opened and closed Day 3 with their livecast of their Nintendo Treehouse show, where they only showcased 3 games. The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of Wind, Pokemon Sun and Moon and Pokemon Go. Yet the Zelda title was enough to get the whole gaming world talking about it and create endless lines of people wanting to try it out at the show. It proved to be an excellent idea as this didn't steal any of the thunder from any other games and it gave the game the necessary time to shine. After all, this is the biggest game in the history of Nintendo!
   All in all, a great E3 with some nice surprises like the return of Hideo Kojima, the God Of War and The Legend of Zelda franchises, some nice sequels to IP's like Battlefield, Titanfall, Watch Dogs, Dishonored, Gears of War, Dead Rising and new ideas like Detroit: Become Human, Days Gone, We Happy Few and a great first look at exciting VR prospects like working in the Enterprise with Star Trek VR or piloting your own X-Wing in Star War: Battlefront X-Wing Mission.
   However, especially for Sony, this year wasn't as impactful as last year, where the announcements of long awaited titles that had either gone missing for years (to the point of being considered vaporware) or weren't ever expected by even the most optimistic of gamers like The Last Guardian, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Shenmue 3, Persona 5 and others sent fans on a frenzy. Or even for Microsoft, with their impressive hololens that transformed Minecraft into legoland. Or even for Nintendo who held an amazing event last year with Mario Maker before the conference began, making it feel like a big party. This year gave the impression that companies and studios were beginning to run out of ideas.
   If we were to talk about the most controversial game of the expo, that title would undoubtebly have to go to Final Fantasy XV. With not one, but two disappointing showings at both the MS and Sony conferences, Square Enix began to show signs of desparation to reach those less acquainted with the franchise. Having one poor gameplay trailer in a battle versus Titan that didn't show off the battle system's strong points at MS and another at Sony that showed that VR would be included in the game (with music by Afrojack from all people!), the negative comments began pooring in. However, after the show floors opened up, Square Enix showed more videos of the game including an in-game city, a wait mode for the battle system, a new airship and much more that quickly turned those frowns upside down. What damage had been done was quickly restored. However, the question remains: have Square Enix spoiled too much of this game before it even comes out? 
   Once again, the gaming industry gave a strong presence at this year's biggest show. Here's to an even better and more pleasantly shocking next year! Happy gaming!!

E3 2016: rumors, facts, anticipations

 
   It's that time of the year again! Once more, E3 is just around the corner and console and game developers the world over are gearing up to bring their A-game to the industry's top stage! There are rumors going around like crazy, game announcemnets are becoming even more frequent as we approach the big event, others are coming out of the woodwork after a long spell of radio-silence and there have even been talks of new consoles coming out just 2 years after the last generation was released!
   Speaking of which, Microsoft is rumored to have not one but two new versions of the XBox One in store for E3. One that is smaller and planned for release this year and another that has larger storage capacity (2TB) and an ability to connect with the Oculus Rift so that gamers can enjoy Virtual Reality.
   Sony is already one step ahead in VR, with their Playstation VR being released in October, so it is expected their conference will weigh heavily towards supporting it. But also it is rumored that they too have a new version of the PS4 being prepared for release (a.k.a. PS4K or PS4.5), however the specs are not known at this point. Some say it will be a more powerful version of the PS4, whereas others speculate it will be a smaller, more compact version, something like the smaller PS3 version that was released a few years after the original.
   And then there's Nintendo. We already know that they're planning to release a new console codenamed the NX, but now they're planning a new handheld device as well. This is codenamed the MH. But don't expect either of them at this year's E3. It has already been officially reported that at least the NX will appear at next year's conference. This year will be all about the new "The Legend Of Zelda" game. With an entire presentation and a 90-minute demo, it's easy to see how much faith the Japanese giants have in Link's latest adventure.
   Speaking of games, there will be lots of them, to say the least! EA will be showing off their new Battlefield 1 game, and there are rumors going around for a new Star Wars title since a few weeks ago some screenshots popped up online. Also they will have their annual sports game line-up (FIFA 2017, NBA 2K17, Madden 17, etc). Other EA games that will be shown include Mass Effect Andromeda, and Titanfall 2.
   Bethesda have their own conference once again this year but it seems they won't be dedicating it to just 2 games like they did last year. They might show off a little more of Dishonored 2, a title which many have been eagerly anticipating, and The Elder Scrolls: Legends (a new digital card-game, kinda like LOL's Hearthstone), and also the new DLC for Doom and Fallout 4. Other than that, nothing's been leaked or rumored. Perhaps they could have a new The Elder Scrolls title in the works.
   Then there's Ubisoft. Considering their major titles have already been released for this year (Tom Clancy's: The Division and Far Cry: Primal) and that it's already been announced that there's no Assassin's Creed game coming out this year, there isn't really anything much one can predict for their line-up. Apart from South Park: The Fractured But Whole (lol) and their new IP For Honor, so far there have only been rumors about a possible Watch Dogs 2 (although after the first game's performance no one can be sure about the reaction from such an announcement). So the rest will be a surprise.
   Square Enix have quite a hefty line-up themselves this year! With the imminent release of Final Fantasy XV as their flagship, they're backing it up with a number of different (in style and in number) games. As always, there will be the popular MMO Final Fantasy XIV, which will have just released its brand new patch. Then there are old franchises that the company is bringing back to life with new titles such as: Star Ocean V: Intergrity and Faithlessness, Nier: Automata, Dragon Quest Builders and Kingdom Hearts 2.8. They will be combined with new IP's I Am Setsuna, The Turing Test and Black The Fall. And then of course they have their western studios bringing titles like Hitman (with its 3rd episode "Marakesh"), Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Just Cause 3 and the re-release of Rise of The Tomb Raider for PS4 scheduled for the holiday season. They could easily top all of this if they were to bring out the big guns called Final Fantasy VII Remake and Kingdom Hearts 3, however there are other titles in both those franchises that take precedence, and so it is said that SE doesn't want people to lose focus on them.
   There is a plethora of other games as well, such as Horizon: Zero Dawn, The Last Guardian (which will finally release this year!), Red Dead Redemption 2, Gears Of War 4, Crackdown 3, Mafia 3, Call Of Duty: Infinite Warfare, Nioh, Persona 5, Forza, Ni No Kuni 2 and more that are either confirmed or rumored to make an appearance. Not to mention that there's going to be a PC exclusive event this year, so there might be a few other games announced there. What's certain is that, once again, we're in for a great 3-4 days! Just a couple of weeks away now...
   

UEFA Champions League Final Preview: Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid

   Η ώρα του μεγάλου τελικού έφτασε! Αύριο το βράδυ στο "San Siro" του Μιλάνου, θα αναμετρηθούν δύο σπουδαίες ομάδες από την ίδια πόλη για το ιερό δισκοπότηρο του ευρωπαϊκού ποδοσφαίρου. Από τη μία η πολυνίκης του θεσμού Real, κι από την άλλη η διψασμένη Atletico. Κάθε μία ομάδα έχει τις δικές της φιλοδοξίες εν όψει του τελικού και θέλει για τους δικούς της λόγους αυτό το τρόπαιο, αφού όσες φορές και να το κατακτήσεις ποτέ δεν είναι αρκετές! Πιο κάτω θα γίνει μια ανάλυση της παρουσίας των δύο ομάδων σε τελικούς, το πως έφτασαν ως εδώ, με ποιές ενδεκάδες αναμένεται να παραταχθούν στην αρένα του Μιλάνου, κ.ά.
   Πρώτον και κύριον πρέπει να ειπωθεί πως αυτός ο τελικός θα είναι σαν ένας "επαναληπτικός" του προ δύο ετών τελικού της Λισαβόνας. Εκεί όπου η Atletico είχε προηγηθεί νωρίς με την κεφαλιά του Godin και πάλεψε να κρατήσει το αποτέλεσμα μέχρι τέλους, ωστόσο ο Sergio Ramos ισοφάρισε στις καθυστερήσεις του αγώνα για να στείλει το ματς στη παράταση και να δώσουν την πολυπόθητη decima στη Real οι Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo και Marcelo. Και τότε προπονητής των "rojiblancos" ήταν ο Diego Simeone, οπότε καταλαβαίνει κανείς πως για εκείνον ο αυριανός τελικός έχει επιπλέον κίνητρο.

   Φυσικά η Real είναι η ομάδα με τα περισσότερα τρόπαια (10) και τις περισσότερες παρουσίες σε τελικούς Κυπέλλου Πρωταθλητριών/Champions League με 14. Ο πρώτος της τίτλος ήταν το μακρινό 1956 με αντίπαλο την Rems την οποία νίκησε με 4-3 κι ο τελευταίος της τίτλος ήταν το 2014 κόντρα στην αυριανή της αντίπαλο Atletico, της οποίας και επικράτησε με 4-1 στην παράταση (1-1 κ.δ.).
   Ο δρόμος για τον τελικό του Μιλάνου δεν ήταν ακριβώς στρωμένος με ροδοπέταλα για τη "βασίλισσα". Προκρίθηκε ως πρώτη και αήττητη μέσα από έναν όμιλο με Paris Saint-Germain, Shakhtar Donetsk και Malmo, με μοναδική απώλεια ένα 0-0 στο "Parc des Princes" και εκκωφαντικά σκορ όπως το 8-0 της τελευταίας αγωνιστικής απέναντι στους Νορβηγούς. Στη συνέχεια βρήκε μπροστά της την AS Roma και με δύο νίκες με το ίδιο σκορ (2-0) την απέκλεισε με συνοπτικές διαδικασίες. Στους "8" οι "μερένχες" βρέθηκαν μπροστά στο φάσμα του αποκλεισμού όταν αντιμετώπισαν την Wolfsburg και έχασαν το πρώτο ματς στη Γερμανία με 2-0. Ωστόσο μίλησε ο... νόμος του "Santiago Bernabeu" και με μία μεγαλειώδη εμφάνιση η Real βρήκε τον δρόμο για τα ημιτελικά (3-0). Εκεί όπου την περίμενε η Manchester City. Το πρώτο ματς στην Αγγλία έληξε σχεδόν... αδιάφορα (0-0), ενώ στον επαναληπτικό η Real απλά σφράγισε το εισιτήριο για τον αυριανό τελικό (2-0).
   Από την άλλη, για την Atletico, αυτή θα είναι η τρίτη συμμετοχή σε τελικό, καθώς πέρα από τον χαμένο του 2014, έχουν άλλη μία συμμετοχή το 1974 στο Heyzel με αντίπαλο την Bayern. Το παιχνίδι έληξε 1-1 χάρη στα γκολ του Luis Aragonies και του Schwarzenbeck, και στον επαναληπτικό (καθώς τότε δεν υπήρχαν παρατάσεις και πέναλτι), η Atletico ηττήθηκε με 4-0.
   Η σκληροτράχηλη αρμάδα του Simeone πέρασε δια πυρός και σιδήρου για να φτάσει στη "γη της επαγγελίας" του Μιλάνου, καθώς πέταξε έξω ομάδες που θεωρούνταν φαβορί ακόμα και για την κατάκτηση του τροπαίου! Αναλυτικότερα: πέρασε ως πρώτη σε όμιλο με αντιπάλους τις Benfica, Galatasaray και Astana, αν και έχασε εντός έδρας από τους "Αετούς" της Λισαβόνας και έφερε εκτός έδρας ισοπαλία με τους Καζάκους, εκ των πιο αδύναμων ομάδων της φετινής διοργάνωσης. Στους "16" αντιμετώπισε την PSV, κόντρα στην οποία δεν κατάφερε να σκοράρει για 210(!) λεπτά, κι έτσι το παιχνίδι πήγε στην παράταση. Εκεί που είχε σωτήρα τον Oblak και πανηγύρισε την πρόκριση. Τα πράγματα έγιναν πιο δύσκολα στα προημιτελικά όταν η κληρωτίδα έφερε για αντίπαλο την Barcelona. Οι "rojiblanos" έχασαν το πρώτο ματς με 2-1, αν και είχαν προηγηθεί στο σκορ. Ωστόσο στον επαναληπτικό του "Vicente Calderon", η Atleti πέτυχε ένα γκολ νωρίς που την έβαλε σε θέση οδηγού, άφησε τους Καταλανούς να κυνηγάνε και με μία υποδειγματική αντεπίθεση προς το τέλος κέρδισε πέναλτι και έτσι διαμορφώθηκε το τελικό 2-0. Κι αν στους "8" ήταν δύσκολα, στους "4" ήταν ακόμα χειρότερα! Τα παιδιά του Simeone για να φτάσουν στον τελικό έπρεπε να τα "βάλουν" με την καλοκουρδισμένη μηχανή του Guardiola, την Bayern. Το πρώτο ματς του "Vicente Calderon" κατάφεραν να το κερδίσουν και μάλιστα χωρίς να δεχτούν γκολ (1-0). Στο δεύτερο έπρεπε να επιβιώσουν μέσα στην κόλαση του "Allianz Arena". Και τα κατάφεραν. Ένα γρήγορο γκολ του Griezmann έφτανε για να δώσει το πολυπόθητο εισιτήριο για τον τελικό, καθώς τα γκολ του Lewandowski και του Xabi Alonso δεν έφταναν στη Bayern. Τελικό σκορ: 2-1.
   Σε ότι αφορά τους προπονητές, ο Zinedine Zidane, ο οποίος είχε χαρίσει στη "βασίλισσα" το 9ο τρόπαιό της στη διοργάνωση χάρη στο μαγικό του γκολ στον τελικό της Γλασκώβης με αντίπαλο την Bayer Leverkusen το 2002, μπορεί σήμερα να γίνει ο έβδομος που κατακτά το τρόπαιο ως παίκτης και ως προπονητής. Οι προηγούμενοι ήταν οι Miguel Munoz, Giovanni Trapattoni, Johan Cruyff, Frank Rijkaard, Carlo Ancelotti και Pep Guardiola. Από την άλλη, ο ομόσταυλός του στην Atletico, Diego Simeone, φιλοδοξεί να γίνει μόλις ο τρίτος προπονητής εκτός Ευρώπης που κατακτά το Champions League, με τους άλλους δύο να είναι επίσης Αργεντίνοι (Luis Carniglia και Helenio Herrera).  

   Στα νέα των ομάδων, η Atleti δεν φαίνεται να αντιμετωπίζει ιδιαίτερα προβλήματα και αναμένεται να παραταχθεί με την συνηθισμένη ενδεκάδα της. Oblak κάτω απ'τα δοκάρια, πλάγια μπακ Juanfran, Felipe Luis, σέντερ μπακ Savic, Godin, αμυντικά χαφ Gabi, Saul Niguez, πλάγια χαφ Augusto Fenandez, Koke, επίθεση Fernando Torres, Griezmann. Από την άλλη, ο Zizou μάλλον χάνει τον Rafael Varane (ο οποίος ούτε στο Euro θα πάει!) ωστόσο τα νέα είναι καλά από το μέτωπο του Cristiano Ronaldo. Ο Πορτογάλος σούπερσταρ είχε μια σύγκρουση με τον Kiko Casillia στην προπόνηση της Δευτέρας κι αποχώρησε προληπτικά, παρ'όλα αυτά όπως δήλωσε και ο ίδιος είναι σε φόρμα κι έτοιμος να τα δώσει όλα για τον μεγάλο τελικό. Μάλιστα ο CR7 κυνηγάει κι ένα προσωπικό ρεκόρ αύριο, καθώς τα περισσότερα γκολ που έχει πετύχει σε ευρωπαϊκή διοργάνωση είναι 17, ενώ στη φετινή έχει ήδη 16. Η πιθανή ενδεκάδα του Zidane: Keylor Navas τέρμα, Marcelo, Carvajal πλάγια μπακ, σέντερ μπακ Sergio Ramos, Pepe, αμυντικά χαφ Casemiro, Modric, Kroos, επίθεση Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Benzema.
   Πριν τον αυριανό τελικό θα τραγουδήσει η Alicia Keys, ενώ αναμένονται κι άλλες εκδηλώσεις. Το παιχνίδι θα ξεκινήσει στις 9:30. Θα πάρει άτυπη εκδίκηση η ομάδα του Simeone για τον χαμένο τελικό της Λισαβόνας ή θα σηκώσει την undecima ψηλά στον ουρανό του Μιλάνου ο Sergio Ramos και η παρέα του; Υπομονή λίγες ώρες και θα μάθουμε. Το Champions League συνεχίζεται...   

When the light of a crystal is fading, it's a sign that it will soon shine brighter than ever before...

   E3 2006. Square Enix announces the future of its highly respected Final Fantasy series. This is to come in the form of a series of games that are tied to one another through the same mythos, titled "Fabula Nova Crystallis". This saga is to be composed by three individual games: Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy Agito XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII. The first trailers of all 3 games were revealed. FF XIII and Versus XIII were to be PS3 exclusives, whereas Agito XIII was to be released on mobile in Japan. Immediately, the trailer of Versus XIII caught the attention of both reporters and the public, due to it's realistic tone and new style of combat. Old-time FF character designer Tetsuya Nomura had taken the lead role in creating this game and through this he wanted to see the series "mature". After all, this was supposed to be the "dark side" of FF XIII.

   The first and main part of the mythos, Final Fantasy XIII was released in 2009/10 with mixed reviews, mainly due to its severe linearity. However, during all that time, from the announcement trailer till the release of XIII, the public had gotten little till no information about either Versus XIII or Agito XIII from their respective development teams, apart from some updated trailer of the original like the one shown at the 2008 Tokyo Game Show. Reports came in saying that members of the Versus XIII team had been helping out with XIII, so when that was finally released people breathed a sigh of relief because they believed they were getting closer to the game they were actually interested in. However, that didn't appear to be the case. Behind closed doors, Nomura had already been discussing giving Versus XIII a mainline title as early as 2007. 
   After reappearing at a Square Enix press conference in early 2011 with new footage, fans felt at ease. At that conference it was made official that a XIII-2 was to be released and that Agito XIII had been renamed Final Fantasy Type-0 and transported from mobile devices to the Playstation Portable. Hajime Tabata had now been named director of that title. What was still unofficial was the name and status of Versus XIII. Versus skipped out on yet another E3, reducing fan anticipation and leading some to wonder if this game actually does exist or not. Meanwhile, later that year, Type-0 released exclusively in Japan to great reviews.

   Nomura's vision of Versus XIII was too much for the Playstation to handle. All the way up to 2012 and he was still looking for a way to have as less as possible cut from the game, without making it unplayable in the process. Little did he know, at that time, Mark Cerny was going around pitching his idea of a next generation console to all major gaming firms. Square Enix didn't need much convincing, and neither did Nomura and his team! Although they struggled for a while with the idea of keeping it on both last and next gen, due to the fact that they knew a lot of people had purchased a PS3 mainly to play Versus XIII, it was eventually transferred because of the powerful DirectX 11 engine the new machines possess.
   Meanwhile, people were beginning to doubt Square Enix. The quality of the games they had been releasing (XIII, XIII-2, XIV) was damaging their reputation and they didn't seem to care about their fans. Having only delivered Type-0, which had received good reviews, to Japan and not giving out a single peep of info about Versus, the web was starting to make up rumors. Like the one that Versus was "vaporware" or scrubbed, which was almost immediately turned down by then-CEO Yoichi Wada with a single tweet. However, Wada was not to remain at his position for much longer and took responsibility for the situation by handing in his resignation on March 26th, 2013. He was then replaced by Yosuke Matsuda who decided it was time to make the company more "vocal and connected to it's customers".
   After the official unveiling and release of the new consoles, it was finally time for Versus to make its grand reappearance. This event occured at E3 2013, where after a long and impressive trailer, it was announced that Versus had been renamed and given mainline status: XV had been born! Also during a press conference at E3, it was made known by Square Enix that Hajime tabata and his team from Type-0 were brought in to help speed up development. However, despite the impressive trailer and the rename, people were sceptical. How long until they would hear anything about this again, or until Square Enix decided to break the radio silence?

   Yet another year went by and XV had missed out on quite a few video game conventions, and the public began to grow impatient. Some articles claimed that even if it were to be released, it would never make up for all the waiting that the fans had been put through. Yet another E3 was approaching swiftly and XV was nowhere in Square Enix's lineup for the convention. However, during that particular E3, Square Enix began to show signs of moving towards new CEO Matsuda's way of doing things. They finally listened to the outcry from their fans who had been begging them to release Type-0 to the west and announced Type-0 HD for next gen consoles. Also it was announced that Tetsuya Nomura had been removed from the XV project and that now Hajime Tabata would be the sole director. To top it all off, they also announced that a demo of XV titled "Episode Duscae" would be made available to those who purchased Type-0 HD.

   Once Tabata took the captain's seat, XV was mentioned a lot more occasionally on gaming news sites. Also, he began this live stream broadcast sessions called "Active Time Report" (ATR), during which he would show a couple of trailers and inform the public about the game's progress. Up until the release of Type-0 HD, it would for both games but since March 2015, it has been specifically for XV. During one of these ATR's, Tabata mentioned a few things that had been changed during the games' transition from Versus to XV, like the replacement of Stella Nox Fleuret with Lunafreya Nox Fleuret, or how some scenes were replaced. Hajime Tabata did things differently from Nomura and didn't just tell the people about how game is coming along, he actively used them as a means to improve it through questionnaires from those who played the "Episode Duscae" demo or by organizing get-togethers with FF fan clubs around the world.
   Things were finally running a lot more smoothly for XV and the development team. The people had begun to understand that such a tremendous project demands time, and were willing to be patient, and in return, Tabata was aknowledging their thirst for information. The game skipped out on another E3 in 2015 (possibly so it wouldn't steal the thunder from FF VII's Remake announcent), but Tabata put the marketing campaign into high gear with that year's Gamescom in 2015. However , the lack of information left the public a little underwhelmed due to the severe advertising from Tabata's part, so later on at PAX prime he gave out a little more, like that the game was going to be released in 2016. When asked about airships and if they were to be implemented into the game, Tabata had mentioned in the past that his team had no experience in the field and did not know the mechanics. However, at PAX, it was announced that the team behind "Just Cause 3" AVALANCHE would be assisting Square Enix in this matter. Also, it was officially announced that XV would no longer play part to the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" mythos. 

   After that and until January 2016, Tabata and his team went quiet so that they could focus on finally completing the game's development. Late November 2015 it was announced that the pre-beta had been done and that the game was fully playable from start to finish. All that needed to be done was the de-bugging and the transfer to consoles. Tabata re-appeared for one last ATR in late January where he showed a new form of the battle system, which was very close to what fans had seen in that very first Versus XIII long ago. He also announced the grand venue at which the release date of the game was to be announced: the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, on March 30th.
   And what an event it was! It felt like a big "thank you" letter to all the ones that had been waiting in anticipation for 10 years for this masterpiece. Presented by Tim Gettys and Greg Miller, opened by Hironobu Sakaguchi, what was announced at this event, in short, was: an anime adaptation, a CGI movie starring Sean Bean, Aaron Paul and Lena Headey, a theme song by Florence And The Machine, a series of incredible new trailers, a(nother) demo, a free-2-play app that is also a mini-game within XV, a collaboration with Audi to release a one-of-a-kind R8 car based on the one the main character drives around in, new Play Arts Kai figures, a deluxe edition for the game, an ultimate collector's edition for the game and finally... the release date!

   This game was meant to be a masterpiece, ever since it was conceived by the brilliant mind of Tetsuya Nomura. However, the fact that so many people have come together to make it happen and have expanded it to an even bigger project, makes it even better. Nomura may have had a different vision about Versus XIII and this might not be the game he intended to create. Tabata felt it more proper to be open and include others in his work. But what we are lucky enough to be getting is the final product of the collaboration of these brilliant minds and so many more behind them that most of them will remain unknown. 
   Now the light of the crystal shines ever brighter...