Here is where I'll make "Top 10" lists on topics that come to mind or topics that have been brought up to me. Anyone is free to suggest a category for me to write up. It does not matter what that certain category is. It just has to be something that can have multiple genres/answers to it.
This list is in no particular order and was NOT stolen from another individual. Copyright Infringement will not be tolerated and all property goes to Steven Chung....AH SCREW IT! I don't care...do what you want. :)
- Blog #44: There comes a time in our lives where we have to say goodbye. Sometimes you go through your high school years and you tell yourself that you're ready to leave at any time. Believe me. You WILL have those thoughts on your mind. I went through four years of hell-and-back, only to realize that certain little details should be acknowledged and accounted for. My last list contained the things I won't miss at high school. However, I want to make sure that all the good times are in check. This entry may sound a bit more personal towards me, but that's because it is a bit more personal. It's time to give one last tribute to my time at Quincy High School and maybe you'll find a mutual agreement with what I have to say. Wherever you may be from, these are the things that we all may love about high school and we all may miss.
1. Student Council. Yes, it wasn't exactly meant for me. It turns out there were better individuals for the leadership role. I am, however, glad that I got to spend some wonderful experiences with my fellow classmates, both younger and older than I. Pride is a very important thing to gain from this.
2. Senior Prom (and Senior Night Out)! Man, was ours fun or what!? It was great!
3. Gossip. Admit it. Listening and talking about gossip is a guilty pleasure to many students far-and-wide. It's not fun when it's about you (when you know about it), but it's always fun to listen about everyone else's problems. You have the free will to give input on the matter. I don't like to gossip or partake in it much myself, but I am entertained when hearing about others. It's just pure entertainment.
4. Days where teachers aren't in class and you might get a free, kick-back period.
5. Broadcasting & Band (The elective courses, because those are most important)!
6. Sport-team rivalries! Quincy High PRESIDENTS V.S. North Quincy High RAIDERS!
7. Lunch Periods! A time to eat, a time to talk, and a time to watch some cat-fights!
8. Knowing exactly when school was over...all by the sound of a bell.
9. High School Graduation!
10. You guys! You know who you are! I know who you are! My Quincy Peeps!
- Done. See you later, Quincy High School...I'll be back!
This list is in no particular order and was NOT stolen from another individual. Copyright Infringement will not be tolerated and all property goes to Steven Chung....AH SCREW IT! I don't care...do what you want. :)
- Blog #43: Ah...Quincy High School. That is the school's mascot above. A hat to represent the President's pride and excellence! Was everything excellent? Well...no. Of course not. Far be it for me to state that everything in high-school was enjoyable. Think about this. It seems like time really does have the upper-hand on us. Time just flies by. Occasionally, the time will come where students are ready to advance in their education and move on to bigger, better things. College, that is! As those students are more likely to look back and remember the good times in high school, I tend to remember both the good times and the times where I would want to pull my hair out. So, here we are. This is where I will recall all the bad qualities of high school! The things that always bother me and the things I shall not miss. Not everyone has had these problems, but they should be addressed.
1. Stupid rules that don't make sense. No hats! No texting! No cell-phones! No bringing a laptop to class! No gum-chewing! Bring two passes to the library and other places! Are these seriously necessary? So long as we're not arrogant about it, some of these things should be changed.
2. Being in a dirty environment. It's not fun being inside a sh!t-box of a building, especially when it feels like it's about to implode on top of you. Graffiti, wads of gum where you least expect them, wobbly chairs, asbestos everywhere, trash, holes in the wall, bathrooms being a pigsty, etc.
3. Horrible schedules with bad teachers or a lot of walking in-between periods.
4. Being in poorly-funded school programs (*cough cough*...band...*cough cough*)
5. Unnecessary homework assignments...duh!
6. "High-School Drama!" A pain that we can all live without!
7. Being around people who do immature things, like pulling a fire alarm four times! I'm not even joking! That's happened at my school! This involves students who are just plain stupid. Walking slow in the halls, skipping class, doing drugs, thinking you're the man with the swag or whatever, etc. Grow up!
8. Being in a school where the internet service crashes every 20 seconds.
9. Early mornings...
10. Lackluster of topics that we really should be learning in high school. Topics that we should be learning because we're actually going to need these skills in our future lifetime. Topics like CPR, personal finance, social skills, and time management should all be mandatory.
- Done. Yes, I'm aware these things might exist in college. I'm well prepared for it!
This list is in no particular order and was NOT stolen from another individual. Copyright Infringement will not be tolerated and all property goes to Steven Chung....AH SCREW IT! I don't care...do what you want. :)
- Blog #42:Don't get me wrong. Those 10 words, shown in the chart above, are bad (and creepy). Though, if you really think about it, there are so many other problems with social media. This is aside from the urban-language barrier and the other typing anomalies that exist. When it comes to the internet, you'll be darned if you don't come across a certain line of redundancy. I've been stuck at home for a few days, because I've been feeling down in the dumps. Try vomiting in the toilet, for reasons I have yet to figure out. It left me some time to explore the well-known parallels of viral communications and to seek out some of the abnormalities. These are the some of the most common phrases in social media through a computer screen. These are the phrases that make you go haywire, every time you are forced to gaze upon this common lack of creativity. Now, these are phrases. Not slang terms. Thank you for listening! Enjoy!
1. (insert song lyric here) - "My life be like Ooh Ahh!" No, dear. "Your life be like Ohh Noo..." In my very first blog, which was written about two years ago, I had already ranted on the usage of song lyrics for facebook statuses, or anything else of the sort. I don't want to talk about it too much here, but...really? I thought the point of facebook statuses was to express what's on YOUR mind. Taking a lyric from a song, written by somebody else, and then using it to express yourself is just plain stealing. That's if you ask me. I, personally, like to come up with something interesting on my own. No cliff-notes.
2. "TEXT MEEE!" - What if we don't want to text you? Why don't you text somebody? Huh?
3."(so-and-so) is sooooo bored..." - Well, do something productive! Goddamn...do SOMETHING! Get off your ass, make something useful out of yourself, and DO SOMETHING! Making a blog is something. Practicing an instrument is something. Going outside to practice some basketball (or something) is something. Preparing for college is something! No. Sitting on the couch, watching your life go by, doing drugs, isn't doing something. Not properly, anyway. C'mon!
4.WhEn YOuR TyPiN' liK Dis aNd U fell sOOO cuuul! - Ugh...
6. "Bitches these days..." - (sighs)You're just joining the statistics, aren't you?
7. "Don't feel good... :(" - Really?Get some rest.You also might want to see a doctor to get a check-up, either for a cause of illness or a reality check. WHY ARE YOU ONLINE, TELLING EVERYBODY YOU'RE SICK!?
8. "My b/f (g/f) is the bestest! Love you, babe! <3" - Uhhh...ok. I'm not so sure why you felt the need to write that, but...you don't really need to boast. Oh, and "bestest" isn't a word. Besides, I've seen these kind of statuses enough to know well-enough that relationships like these usually don't last that long. Give it time.
9. "Wow, just wow..." -No, just no. What are you trying to say? Come out and say it!
10. "That's awkward..." - No. You're awkward. You're also boring. Since you seemingly can't hold up your end of the conversation, I'm just going to end it here.
- VENT TIME!: I always hate when I feel like I've put something wonderful on my facebook status, and it STILL can't get more likes than your average Joe's status, that which has no meaning. It reminds me of a famous Family Guy line from Stewie. "The fat man makes a pun, and everyone wets themselves. I give you gold, and I get squat." Why is this? Is it because of my looks? Am I not funny? Is what I'm saying wrong? I'm really not trying too hard to grab attention from the peeps, but I'm just wondering. It doesn't make sense. Why won't you appreciate what I've used my heart and soul on? Do I just not compare to someone who's lived their lives the wrong way? Doing this blog has made me reflect on some of these questions. Tell me what YOU think! Have you ever had this same experience? Make your voice known! Leave a comment!
This list is in no particular order and was NOT stolen from another individual. Copyright Infringement will not be tolerated and all property goes to Steven Chung....AH SCREW IT! I don't care...do what you want. :)
- Blog #41: This is one of those topics where you wouldn't realize when something is good, until it's gone. Classical music is slowly fading away from the likes of many youths, what with this new sensation of hip-hop/rap music that's been spreading the nation on a 24/7 scale. Aging from the 11th century, and even lasting in our present day culture, classical music is largely distinct from any other genre of music in existence. It laid a foundation for every other style with it's introduction to the Grand Staff. Highly underrated, more or less disregarded. Classical music was what really brought art through note-taking and pitch-making. While the form of it isn't always that enjoyable to many musicians, there are certain pieces that stick out in the mind. A lot of us don't really know why they do. They just...do. Let's say you're listening to a classical song on the TV/radio/etc and you say: "Hey, I love this song! Uh...I don't know the name of it, though..." Isn't that always the case? Well, isn't it? You may think you know music, but you don't unless you can discover and learn about the roots of origin. For the purpose of this blog, I'm reliving some of classical composer's finest moments. These are the pieces that, whether we know the title/composer of them or not, are beloved by music fans everywhere. These are the ones that, upon listening, makes you recognize that song in an instant. WARNING: You may need to turn the volume up for these videos, as they may be on the soft side!
1.Toccata and Fugue in D Minor- Here's Johann Sebastian Bach's most "supposed" famous musical composition for the organ. I say "supposed" to emphasize the fact that there have been theories that Bach didn't even compose this piece. "Toccata" means "touch" in Italian, which indicates how delicately the fingers should be to perform on a keyboard instrument. The "Fugue" part of the piece is a compilation of the same tune repeated over and over again in different voices and different key signatures. Eventually, it returns to the original key that it began in, and it will end in a major or minor key. In this particular video link (seen below), the Fugue starts at around 2:46. I plan on being a music major in college. Don't worry if you're having trouble understanding some of this! The main focus here is the reason as to why this song is so noticeable. What is that focus? The first eight measures of the piece. Maybe even the first three notes. You hear them, then a light bulb blinks on. "I've heard this on The Phantom of the Opera and Fantasia!" I'm sure that this piece wasn't exactly written for the purpose of it being in a majority of horror movies. Horror movies, along with the occasional movies that are named Rollerball.
2.Bridal Chorus - Of course! Ladies, this one's for you! If you've ever attended a wedding ceremony, then you've definitely heard this song before. If you haven't been to a wedding yet, then you're bound to hear this song eventually. If you don't plan on getting married, well...that's about that. This song most often gets referred to as "Here Comes the Bride" or "The Wedding March", but Richard Wagner intended this piece to be played during the bride's entrance at the wedding. There are lyrics to this song, but you almost never hear them at the ceremonies. The chorus is usually replaced by an organ or another group of classical musicians. Why is that? I don't really know. This piece originated from a love-story opera, called Lohengrin. The opera does not end happily, however. I won't summarize the entire opera here. Look it up.
3. Overture to William Tell (Finale)- Warner Brothers' Looney Tunes made many classical pieces popular to the young television viewers. Not only Looney Tunes, but a large variety of other cartoons use this song. There's even a good number of advertizements that use this piece. It's a beautiful arrangement. The movement that's most recalled is the finale of this piece. You can't help but picture a large fleet of galloping horses during this section. Horses...or The Lone Ranger. This entire overture, which was written by Gioachino Rossini, lasts about 12 minutes and gives you the vision of life in the Swiss Alps, which is the setting of the Guillaume Tell (in English: William Tell) opera. There are four parts to the overture and each part transitions into the next one without any gaps in between. So, it's not like most other symphony performances.
4.Ride of the Valkyries -Another piece that was mainly made famous by the likes of Looney Tunes, Apocalypse Now, and the WWE. It's also the second piece on my list that was composed by Richard Wagner. It was made for the opera, which was called Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung). It's an opera that's composed of four different cycles of operas. This is interesting, because a cycle is often in a shape much like a ring. Along with the "Bridal Chorus" piece, the second movement of Der Ring des Nibelungen is Richard Wagner's best-known work. The second movement is called Walkürenritt/Ritt der Walküren, or as we like to call it, the Ride of the Valkyries. The Valkyries are minor female deities. The Valkyries' purpose was to choose the most heroic of those who had died in battle and to carry them off to Valhalla, where they became lone warriors. This was necessary because the Valkyrie leader, Odin, needed warriors to fight at his side for the preordained battle at the end of the world, Ragnarök. Just imagine a large army of flying horses and warriors. If it's easier, just picture Elmer Fudd chasing Bugs Bunny through a parody of operatic movements.
5.O Fortuna- This may be one of the most continuously used classical pieces of all time. Even today, many trailers for many movies are never complete without the addition of a 13th century medieval poem. A poem that, obviously, written into song by the German composer Carl Orff. The piece opens up with a slower pace of thundering drums and a choir that drops quickly into a whisper. This builds up so that the song transits into a steady crescendo of drums, plus some short strings and horn notes peaking on one last long powerful note. Ending abruptly. The word "dramatic" is an understatement for this. The poem was part of a much larger collection of words, known as the Carmina Burana. Carmina Burana's transformation of O Fortuna remains to be one of the most popular pieces of music ever written for pop culture of the 20th century.
6.Für Elise - (A.K.A.Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor (WoO 59 and Bia 515) for solo piano) One of Ludwig van Beethoven's most popular compositions for the piano. It wasn't until 40 years after Beethoven's death that this piece was ever published. The original manuscript of the Für Elise was dated all the way back from April 27th, 1810. This manuscript was lost. There have been ongoing arguments that Beethoven was not the one who structured this piece into the form we know today. This seems to be a constant point of discussion where there is no one solution to the issue. Another issue was that nobody had ever discovered who this "Elise" was, that whom which Beethoven had named the piece after. It seems as if many classical pieces were made famous by cartoons, as this was featured in one of Charlie Brown's shows. A solo pianist will often choose this piece to play, due to it's familiarity.
7. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (Allegro) - You can't have a classical "Top 10" list without one of the most renowned composers in the classical era! Having composed over 600 works, it's not a wonder that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart became so popular amongst musicians of the world. This was intended to be performed by a small chamber ensemble of string instruments. It was composed at a time where Mozart was working on a second act for his opera. Mozart, apparently, had written this piece on commission for someone who needed some jaunty music for a ball. The serenade has a light feel to it. It's widely performed and recorded by many orchestras and chamber groups across the globe. There are four movements to this piece. The first movement is the most well-known of the bunch. It is the Allegro. Allegro means fast or lively. However, the term is not always to par with the laws of music. Some artists tend to use the word more loosely-based on the emotion, not on the specific tempo markings.
8. Hallelujah Chorus - It was written by Händel Messiah and that's about all I can say. You've heard the song and all of it's holiness before to understand the idea that the chorus is deeply in gratitude for Our Lord and Savior.
9. 1812 Overture - Ah...a song that just screams: "FIREWORKS AND THE FOURTH OF JULY!" Written by Russian composer, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. This piece was to commemorate Russian defense of Moscow against Napoleon's advancement at the "Battle of Borodino" in 1812. The overture is climatic for it's imagery of cannon-fire volleys and ringing chimes. Actually, no. It's not just imagery. There are 16 cannon shots written into the piece. Can you believe it? There's no specific arrangement for this piece, so long as it contains a brass band, woodwinds, percussion, and strings.
10.Any song composed by John Williams- I don't believe I'm going over the top with this entrant. It's very likely that I've never heard a bad classical composition from John Williams. He is one of the best film scorers in history, if not THE best. He's scored so many songs for big name movies, such as: Star Wars, Harry Potter, Saving Private Ryan, Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, E.T. the Extra Terrestrial, Dracula, Superman, Jaws, and so many more! John Williams even wrote the themes for certain events, like the Olympic Games and the NBC Nightly News. Six long decades and he's still making music. Williams has been awarded five Academy Awards, four Golden Globes, seven BAFTA Awards, and 21 Grammy Awards. He's basically done it all! Together with the great composer, Alfred Newman, Williams is the second most nominated person under Walt Disney. Around the world, John Williams has conducted with some of the greatest groups of musicians, from the New York Philharmonic to the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Since I'm only including one video for each entrant, I've decided that it didn't matter which one I included. This is because...John Williams is the man. Any piece is a good piece when it comes to John Williams. I suppose I will just put my personal favorite song by John Williams on here. It's good to end the list with a more modern-day approach to classical music.
This list is in no particular order and was NOT stolen from another individual. Copyright Infringement will not be tolerated and all property goes to Steven Chung....AH SCREW IT! I don't care...do what you want. :)
- Blog #40: What do you know? My 40th blog!The squeaky wheel gets the grease. Here's where things start to go bad. Many people have a bone to pick with Sega, after making a large lineup of Sonic games that suck miserably. We know it's not Sonic's fault that this was meant to be, but it's a problem that needs no introduction on address. Just like Mario, Sonic had his share of good and bad moments in video-gaming. The only difference is that Sonic has had...a ton of bad games made for him, more than Mario. There's a bunch! Which ones were the worst? Time to slow things down, because I'm about to show you the worst of the worst...
Worst Sonic Games
1. Sonic the Hedgehog (Xbox 360/PlayStation 3) - Yeah. Every Sonic fan must know the reason as to why this game immediately gets the spot on the "Worst Sonic Games" list. Before I even begin to review this game, I would like to point out that I am not a fan of the Xbox 360...at all. The same goes for the PS3, but not as much so. This game was all a broken promise. First off, the title is confusing enough. If you're trying to do a search on this game, you're not going to get the right results you're looking for unless you added a "360" or "PS3" at the end of your search. The main problem is the gameplay. It's horrific. There are many glitches in the animations and the controls are very loose. The graphics are not bad, but by now we were expecting a lot more improvement. You're not even playing as Sonic for the whole game, when you should be. There are three different stories to chose from. One that stars Sonic, one that stars Shadow, and one that stars a new character. Silver the Hedgehog makes his debut in this game. He's nothing too special. He has telekinetic powers that can pick up and throw items, but he's nowhere near as fast or as interesting as Sonic. Each story has their own set of characters that you'll eventually have to use in the adventure. Aside from the adventures, the "town missions" in between each level are pointless. Action stages aren't that much better. The camera angles are terrible. You have basically no control over the angling of the camera. Another big problem is that this whole game gets delayed by the long amount of loading time that's spent, leaving the players hanging on a limb. The story is not even worth talking about, because it doesn't appeal to the original ideas of Sonic the Hedgehog. Shouldn't a game that's titled, Sonic the Hedgehog, feature Sonic for the majority of the game? Shouldn't we just be running through stages, playing as Sonic? This game was a mess and it did no wonders in reviving the, already on life-support, speedy hedgehog.
2.Sonic Shuffle - The worst example of copying Nintendo, at the finest point possible. Sonic Shuffle did a failure of a job in creating a Mario Party look-alike for Sonic the Hedgehog. You only have four characters to chose from at the start, whilst most Mario Party games have at least double that amount. You unlock four more, as you progress through the game. I just find that tedious. You go through a few different boards, shuffling cards, while playing a couple of mini-games and collecting Emblems. Whoever has the most Emblems at the end of the game is the winner. The mini-games aren't bad, but you could tell that some of the ideas for them were ripped off. Plus, it's also possible to go through an entire board without playing a single mini-game. Um...aren't playing the mini-games the point of having a party game? If there's a possibility that you don't have to play a mini-game, then you're just playing a board game on TV. You'd be better off playing board games in reality. Get with a group of friends or family! Fortunately, this game was released late on the Sega Dreamcast. So, it wasn't really played by that many people. Once again, the storyline is not worth going into. Besides, there's not much importance in the storyline when you're supposed to be playing mini-games and board games. Nothing special about this game. No fun, no satisfaction, and no speed.
3.Sonic's Schoolhouse -Any video game that has any sort of relationship with Nintendo, Sega, or Capcom should not be made into an educational game. End of story. This game failed in providing explanations. I don't even have anything to say about how poor this game is. It's meant for kids, sure. It's not even a good kids game! I'm sorry, but even giving this one the benefit of a doubt for being a PC game won't help. There were better educational games for the PC, at the time, that had no affiliation with any video-game industry. Maybe I'm being a bit hard on this game, but it's just that there's so many things that bugged me about Sonic's Schoolhouse.What's wrong with Sonic's voice? He's not supposed to sound like what they made him out to be! He sounds like a girl. He's sounds like that Justin Bieber kind of person. I will say that this game beats any educational game that starred Mario. That's not saying too much. Besides, it doesn't seem like Sonic is the kind of person (hedgehog) that even attends school. Not to be encouraging anything, but he should be skipping class and running across the railroad tracks! Also, isn't Sonic supposed to be about speed? Where's the fast-motion gameplay? Was it too much for little kids? The gameplay somewhat resembles another game that I've seen, which is called Wolfenstein 3D. It's another pixel disaster. I don't remember how I ended up finding this game, but I regret ever playing Sonic's Schoolhouse. If you're looking for great educational games for the PC, get something from the JumpStart series.
4. Sonic R - ScrewAttack.com producers said it best when they reviewed this game: "This game can be filed under 'Absolute Suck!'" Taking the lousy controls from entry #1 on my list and pumping them up 10 times over both make this game even worse. I thought Sonic games were about racing anyway. Why make a game that involves a legitimate race course? Well, it was just an idea. An idea that transcended Sonic into a game that was poorly done. The controls are so bad that even tapping the control pad a tiny bit can send Sonic flying. That's no good, especially when you want to have the ability to control Sonic. There are only five courses in this game, which makes this one really short and it could be finished in a day. The graphics are...eh. It's 3D-ish, but the colors are almost blinding. The character selection is fine, but I barely see much difference with any of them. Knuckles can glide, Sonic is a little faster, Tails can fly for a little while. You know, the usual. Now, everyone's remarks on this game all revolve around one minor detail. The music. What's wrong with it? Nothing, if you're not playing a racing game! I think the music would have been much better received by the audience, if there were no lyrics. The songs were ok, but they were not meant for Sonic R. This game was just a huge disappointment. It wasn't really much of a game. I'll be it that it was a hell of a lot better than the likes of Sonic's Schoolhouse and the final entrant on my list. Which is...
5. Sonic Labyrinth - Just as Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega Genesis) was meant for the "Best Sonic Games" list, Sonic Labyrinth should be on everyone's worst. This is the SLOWEST Sonic game in the world! It goes against everything that is Sonic the Hedgehog! At least this game gives an explanation as to why Sonic is so slow. Dr. Robotnik/Eggman has replaced Sonic's speedy shoes with a pair of Slow-Down Boots. These takes away Sonic's ability to run fast or jump. They can't be removed without the collection of all of the Chaos Emeralds. So, you're forced to travel around Eggman's maze, in what feels like monotonous torture. In Sonic Labyrinth, there are a total of four zones. Each zone contains three acts and a boss battle. The goal is to guide Sonic through the maze and locate three keys that are hidden throughout the stages. Plus, THERE'S A TIME LIMIT! Are you kidding!? There's a time limit? That's so unnecessary! Your only attack is the spin-dash move. The controls are a bit clunky. When you move the control pad, you feel like you're not pushing hard enough because you're going so damn slow! The music/sound effects make you want to kill a bunny. Boring, stupid, and so freaking slow. Do not buy or play this game. Avoid it!
- As I've said before, there were a lot of bad Sonic games. So much, in fact, that I had some runner-ups that didn't quite make the cut for one of the worst Sonic games. Consider that a blessing, you "Dishonorable Mentions!" The runner-ups are as follows:
~ Sonic Drift & Sonic Drift 2 (Boring. Led to a great game in Sonic & Sega All Stars Racing)
~ Sonic Spinball (Gameplay was fine. Music/sound effects made you cringe.)
~ Tails Adventure (Didn't do Tails any justice.) ~ Tails' Skypatrol (Not that impressive.) ~ Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Game Gear version) (It was way too difficult.)
This list is in no particular order and was NOT stolen from another individual. Copyright Infringement will not be tolerated and all property goes to Steven Chung....AH SCREW IT! I don't care...do what you want. :)
- Blog #39: It's that time again! It's time for another "Opposites Attract" list! About a month ago, I made an "Opposites Attract" list for the best and worst Mario games in existence. I figure it would best to do the same thing for one of Nintendo's greatest rivals. Once again, this is not plagiarism. It's one man's opinion over a love of video-gaming phenomenons. Known for being Sega's money-maker, Sonic the Hedgehog has starred in some of the fastest-paced games in the world. Sonic is considered the greatest opposition to that of Super Mario. Let's start this off right with the best of the best games! Here's what I believe to be the greatest Sonic games ever made. They all have to have one thing in common. Speed, speed, and more speed!
Best Sonic Games
1. Sonic the Hedgehog (Sega Genesis) - At the top of the list, Sonic the Hedgehog on the Sega Genesis is a game that should be featured on everyone's "Best Sonic Games" list. It goes without saying that this was the first game that started it all for Sonic. Both the gameplay and the music are fantastic. It centers around Sonic's ability to run fast, breezing through the courses at a high velocity. This game was released in 1991, back when video-gaming was fun, simple, and made you pick up the controller to play the game all over again. Of course, this was also when Sonic was at his prime. Before there were Tails and all those other characters in the Sonic series, it was just a fight between a hedgehog and an evil scientist. Dr. Robotnik/Eggman made his debut here and becomes the main enemy of Sonic the Hedgehog. He captures all of Sonic's friends and is on a quest to obtain all the Chaos Emeralds. These emeralds give ultimate power to whomever wields them. Eggman seeks world domination. Sonic seeks to stop Eggman's plot. In this game, there's only six Chaos Emeralds. However, every game following Sonic the Hedgehog has seven Chaos Emeralds. I've never figured out why that was. Collecting all of the emeralds only reveals the true ending of the game. Nothing more. A brilliant game to kick off an amazing series.
2. Sonic Rush - Sonic Rush was released in 2005 for the Nintendo DS and it was very enjoyable. It was right near 2005 where Sonic was beginning to make his descent in great gaming. Sonic games were not improving and fans were becoming less attached to the Sonic games. Sega was driving Sonic away from his initial roots. What was great about Sonic Rush was that it stuck to the basics of 2D plat-forming, combining it with some graphic improvements and 3D designed aspects of the game. Being for the Nintendo DS, Sonic Rush also utilizes both screens in the gameplay. That's pretty cool, seeing as how the idea of using two screens was unique at the time. The storyline idea for Sonic Rush is similar to Sonic the Hedgehog, as most Sonic games are. Sonic has to collect all of the Chaos Emeralds before Dr. Eggman does. However, the story goes even deeper, as two colliding universes cause Sonic to meet a new friend. Blaze the Cat. Dr. Eggman Nega, Eggman's alternate counterpart, and Blaze somehow end up in Sonic's universe. Blaze must collect seven Sol Emeralds, which are the equivalent to the Chaos Emeralds, before Eggman Nega gets to them. This collision of two worlds unites Sonic and Blaze for an epic battle to the finish. Most Sonic games are known for their music. Sonic Rush is one of those games, as it has one of the most memorable soundtracks in the Sonic series. It includes an epic final boss theme for the final level. Speaking of the final boss (Spoiler Alert!), the final battle reminds you of the Sonic & Knuckles level named "Doomsday Zone." The details of the Sonic Rush storyline were made much more clear than that of its sequel, Sonic Rush: Adventure, which was boring and a little bit on the weak side. Plus, this game is handheld. You can play Sonic on the go-go!
3. Sonic CD - While the Sega CD console was considered one of the biggest flops in the video-gaming industry, Sonic CD was anything but a flop. This may have been called the best video game in the entire Sega CD library. It has all the speed that previous Sonic games had, impressive visual displays, and an incredible soundtrack from the system's CD-ROM usage. Not just a great soundtrack, but an INCREDIBLE soundtrack! I'll even include the video of the opening intro and ending to the game. It's an animated Sonic movie that features the main theme song of the game, which is called "Sonic Boom." It's so awesome! As for the gameplay, it remains ever-so diligent. Instead of collecting Chaos Emeralds, Sonic must collect seven Time Stones, as well as save your new friend. These Time Stones only reveal the true ending to the game, just like most 2D Sonic games. Amy the Hedgehog made her debut in Sonic CD, where she has been captured by Dr. Robotnik/Eggman. Sonic must travel through different levels and different times in order to save her. The time-traveling is great, because it's like having the ability to play four different versions of one zone, all at the same time. Also, making his debut in Sonic CD was Metal Sonic, a metallic version of Sonic the Hedgehog. Gamers are even saying that Sonic CD was the greatest Sonic game ever made. I'm just going to say that Sonic CD was the greatest Sonic game on the Sega CD, which I know doesn't sound like a whole lot. It truly was, and still is, awe-inspiring to any Sonic-lover.
4. Sonic Adventure - Released in 1999 on the Sega Dreamcast, Sonic Advenure was spectacular when it came to moving Sonic from 2D to 3D. It was the first, real success in 3D Sonic games. Over 2.5 million copies have been sold, which makes Sonic Adventure the best-selling Sega Dreamcast game. This game has six different characters you can chose from. You can play as Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Big the Cat, or E-102 Gamma. Each character has their own story and their own unique gameplay style. When all stories are complete, a final story is available with Super Sonic. Sonic's stages involve high-speed gameplay, where you have to reach the end of the stage as quickly as possible. Tails' stages require reaching the end of a level before Sonic or Dr. Robotnik/Eggman does. Knuckles' stages involve searching the level for shards of the Master Emerald (the source of the Chaos Emerald power). Amy's stages require her to escape from the E-100 Zero robot that is chasing after her. Big's stages involve fishing for his lost friend, Froggy. Finally, Gamma's stages involve shooting your way through levels to reach a specific target. The debut of the Chaos creature and Tikal the Echidna was also a nice touch to the story. Rehashes of the game have been made for the Nintendo GameCube, Xbox, and the Playstation. You're better to stick with the Dreamcast version, if you own one. Nothing has been majorly changed or improved, even with some extra material.
5. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 - It's the sequel to Sonic the Hedgehog. What more needed to be said? Since the first game was such a hit, you already knew that Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Sega Genesis was going to have a large fan-base in the waiting. The addition of the high-flying Miles "Tails" Prower launched a partnership with Sonic that would last forever in video-gaming history. It's a partnering that rivals Mario and Luigi. There are so many new, colorful levels that the player can play through. Dr. Robotnik/Eggman still seeks the Chaos Emeralds to conquer the world, with the new additional task of using those emeralds as a source of fuel for the "Death Egg" (which is a reference to Star Wars). This game would also allow you to play as Knuckles, if you attached this game through the pass-through cartridge of Sonic & Knuckles. Once again, the soundtrack is great! So many memorable tunes are brought to life through Sonic the Hedgehog 2. Here's another great game that was filled with speed, puzzles, and fun! The perfect sequel to "the one that started it all!"
- Before I get on with the usual "to be continued..." message, I would also like to recommended two other Sonic games. If you own a Nintendo GameCube or a Wii, then you should definitely purchase both Sonic Mega Collection and Sonic Gems Collection. Both games feature a wide variety of Sonic games that were both classic and memorable. Sonic Mega Collection features: Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 3D Blast, Sonic Spinball, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, the minigame Blue Sphere, Flicky, Ristar, The Ooze, and Comix Zone. Sonic Gems Collection features: Sonic CD, Sonic Drift 2, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Game Gear version), Sonic the Hedgehog: Triple Trouble, Sonic R, Sonic the Fighters, Sonic Spinball, Tails' Skypatrol, Tails Adventure, and bonus games (VECTORMAN and VECTORMAN 2). Both titles have many unlock-able items, as well.
- Alright! That was nice. All good things must come to an end, though. There is a substantial amount of Sonic games that are not good by any means. There are a BUNCH of horrible games for Sonic and I will reveal what the worst games are on the next part of this "Opposites Attract" list. So, keep on reading!
This list is in no particular order and was NOT stolen from another individual. Copyright Infringement will not be tolerated and all property goes to Steven Chung....AH SCREW IT! I don't care...do what you want. :)
- Blog #38: Addiction isn't always a terrible thing. It's just a matter of knowing when enough is enough and when to stop.When it comes to eating, who doesn't love a good munch? You love to eat, but you must know when to stop after you hear something growling. In the interest of keeping things alive as ever on my blog site, I'm continuing my long stretch of blog-writing and going into more abstract ideas. Time to go abstract into simple ideas. Having there be such a widespread world of delicacies can lead to having just as many food critics. If your favorite treat isn't on here, let it be known again. Right here is only one list out of many. Don't mark out. If this isn't for you, then look elsewhere and don't cause trouble. This list can consist of healthy foods or unhealthy foods, but they all have to have one thing in common. You can't stop eating them! Let the feast of pictures and words begin!
1.Rice! (with Soy Sauce...) - Originating from Thailand and all across the orient, Rice isone of thehealthiest grains in the world and also the second-highest produced crop, after corn. It may be the most important grain to satisfyhuman nutrition and calorie intakes. Yes, indeed. Rice is healthy. Unfortunately, for the purpose of it being addictive, there has to be something added in order to make this entrant possible. SOY SAUCE! In particular, Kikkoman Soy Sauce! Ok, there's a tiny bit of salt with each drop you put on the rice. So? Does that make it deadly to eat? I've never had a problem. Rice, alone, tastes excellent. Put a little soy product on there and you're got yourself a mouth-watering meal. The only problem? Rice can sometimes take a while to cook, unless you're eating out.
2. Buffalo Wings - I've never been to a place where there were horrible buffalo wings. It's something about the flavorings in these sauces that make the wings extra delicious. Fried, succulent wings that are covered in a vinegar-based pepper sauce with butter. There's often confusion as to whether people should call these "buffalo wings" or "chicken wings." I just call them "mouth-watering goodness." Literally, they can be very mouth-watering. Sometimes, they're so hot that you have to order two drinks in order to cool off the satisfying burns on your tongue. Another question that's been brought up is whether or not buffalo wings are better boneless or with bones. That really depends on how you prefer to eat them. Are you lazy or are you outgoing? Go through the bones or use those utensils? So many preferences, so little time.
3. Shrimp - A common case of an oxymoron, at it's finest. Not really being the smallest thing you'll ever eat, shrimp is one of the most popular seafood items on the market in America. You've heard rumors of how shrimp is unhealthy, right? Let me just throw it out there and say that that is not true. Shrimp may be high in cholesterol, but it is low in saturated fat. In a study published by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the percentage increase of LDL from shrimp consumption was lower than the percentage increase of HDL. Yeah...I looked that up. This means moderate shrimp consumption, not too much or not too little, is no where near dangerous towards your health! It's an ideal source of protein, vitamin B12, omega-3 fatty acids, and selenium (which is found to decrease cancer incidents). Sure, you can eat these all the time, if you want to shell out a couple of dozen bucks for these expensive small-fries.
4.French Fries - Speaking of fries,there was once a time in my life where I could go to no restaurant, unless they served some sort of variation of the french fry. Nowadays, there are barely any restaurants that DON'T serve french fries. It doesn't seem to matter to me now, as I've grown less picky. In English mannerisms, they were called "French Fried Potatoes." In Family Guy, they were pronounced "FRENCH FRIED PERTATERS...mhmm." While they are not of French origin, fries have become a popular snack item since it's first appearances in Belgium and Great Britain. Skinny fries, curly fries, chili fries, sweet potato fries, tornado fries (created in South Korea...YES!), and basically every idea possible for french fries have been invented. This shouldn't be taken for granted, though. "Too much of a good thing is too much of a good thing" is a saying that best suits this french fry mayhem, especially after watching things like Super Size Me. Ugh...common sense, people.
5.Pizza - What better way to relieve stress than ordering in some ZA? The Greeks knew that they were making something awesome that was going to become a work of art. I can't even begin to imagine how many possible ways there are to make a pizza. You can use pepperoni, anchovies, peppers, onions, pineapples, buffalo wings, mushrooms, MORE CHEESE! It's insane. It's especially fun to watch people make pizza in a pizzeria. My personal favorite pizza is a pepperoni thin-crust pizza from "Domino's Pizza." It's so hard to stay away from these. While some say pizza can be healthy, it really depends on where you buy it. Pizza can be high in salt, fat, and calories. A high intake in certain ingredients can actually even become a risk-factor for cancer. But, don't let those warnings ruin anything for you. Lots of people eat pizza, but nothing serious always comes from eating them. You'd be hearing a lot more about it, if that were the case.
6.Hershey's Kisses - You know what they are. I know what they are. Everyone in America has to know what these are. I'm not talking about those different flavors of Kisses that have been produced throughout our generation. I'm talking about the original, chocolate Kisses. Anything made of chocolate can be addicting, I suppose. It's more like candy than it is food, but nonetheless. I don't know if anyone else out there gets this same feeling where, when you eat one, you have to eat another one because you can't stand without them. Here comes a call for a "That's what she said!" joke. The longer Kisses are in your mouth, the more sweeter they taste...go ahead. Say it! You're thinking it! Anyway, the only problem with Kisses are those little strips of paper in each delicately wrapped candy, which are only there just for show.
7. Easy-Over/Over-Easy/Sunny Side Up Eggs - Whichever way you prefer to pronounce them, these babies are extremely delectable. Most of the time, these egg-fried creations are only eaten at breakfast. Of course, a large majority of people don't care about that! They want to eat eggs! So, crack the shells open and pour the yolks whites onto a frying pan, sprinkle some pepper and maybe a tad bit of salt on top, and there you go. I mostly eat eggs at breakfast time, with the exception of some dinners. However, when I'm given the opportunity, I will go all out to ask for seconds...or fourths. Depending on how you cook them, the result will always leave you happy. That's no yolk! HAHAHAHAHA...hehhhhhhhh...
8. Samgyeopsal - Korean pork belly/bacon. Here's a shocker! Bacon is bacon, but Korean bacon is just amazing. It's not like regular bacon where most of it is store-bought. This particular Korean meat needs no seasoning to taste great and it's always meant to be grilled to perfection. For the most part, it is served with gireumjang, which is a dipping sauce made from salt and sesame oil. It can also include hints of black pepper. While you have the ability to buy these in stores, you'll actually enjoy them more if you go to a Korean restaurant and learn to cook them by yourself. I've done it many times. It's easy! It's delicious! It's samgyeopsal! I think part of the reason people like this meat so much is because samqyeopsal can be customized to one's liking.
9. Saltines with Peanut Butter - Personal pleasure. That's all I have to say.
10. Jiaozi (Pot Stickers) - According to some myths and rumors, the invention of the pot sticker was made totally by mistake. Simply, a case of being too clumsy and making these, instead of making regular dumplings. This small package is filled with ground meat and vegetables, just like dumplings are. Pot stickers only difference is that they seem to be cooked more. That's why they taste so good. Call them, "Well-done Dumplings." Oh, why did I do this list? I'm so hungry now...
