JWH:
I've been with you people for two times now and you still don't know me?æ...

Anywho, seeing as I'm the only anime fan to have not ever seen Eva I can't really comment on the first part. However the second part I can answer! You're neglecting your literature! Melchoir, Balthasar, and Gaspar (Not Casper...he ain't a friendly ghost!) were the three magi which visited the (RELIGIOUS WARNING!) baby Jesus. Square just sorta stole their names and have used them repeatedly. Although, truly, they were unnamed in the Bible and only gained names later.....

Googleshng:
People randomly send me anime music videos in various formats. People also send me stuff like pictures of Ramza from FFT as a girl. I just seem to draw that sort of thing somehow. Anyway, yup, Melchior, Gaspar, and Balthasar are the Three Wise Guys from the bible. Not to be confuses with the three stooges, musketeers, or amigos. I should get around to reading the bible some time. Evidently there's a lot of mecha in it and stuff.

JWH:
A flame! Whee! Ok. Let's look at this from a logical point of view. Is Phantasy Star Online like any other online RPG? Yes. It's like Diablo 2. Did Googleshng play Diablo 2? Yes. Did he gush over it? Yes. Is Phantasy Star Online like any other RPG? No. Is it like Everquest or Asheron's Call? No. Phantasy Star Online is merely a hack and slash game that you can have up to 3 other friends play with you. It is not a world where thousands coexist. It is not a MMORPG. Any comparision of the two is not valid. They're completely different genres. We went over this last week, people!

There is no bias here. In fact, Google even stated that it was not worthy of the Phantasy Star name. Before you begin writing up a flame because you feel burned by something that is written in a column that is based on OPINION, look at the logic of your argument.

Googleshng:
Hmm, I almost got really carried away censoring that letter. Anyway though, yes. As I have said about 500 times by now, Phantasy Star Online is NOT a massively multiplayer RPG. It's a dungeon-crawl oriented Action/RPG which allows you to play online with small groups of friends. There is a fixed storyline, and the world is populated by computer controlled NPCs. You just have the option to have a couple friends tag along on your adventure. I've never said a bad thing about that sort of game, and in fact have been wishing for some examples of it ever since modems came about. Massively Multiplayer Online RPGs however I have always frowned on, since the concept is basically just to forego any attempt at a story or characters and just dump enough players into the world that hopefully a plot will appear, despite the fact that the vast majority of players has no interest in staying in character and only want to gain levels. At that, I don't grumble very often on the subject.

JWH:
It's really simple to learn how to write your name. I don't know of any websites, but just a simple look at the katakana chart can tell you how to spell it. Course, it helps if you know how to pronounce the characters. My advice? Just take some Japanese. Nihongo ga omoshiro desu.

My Sensei is gonna kill me for that cause I know I used the wrong particle....

Googleshng:
I'd post a chart right here except that mine's on paper. Oh what the heck, give me a sec... Here you go! Hmm... now that I look back at this, I suddenly realize I left off the N row. In the morning I'll try to fix that, but as is I spent way too long throwing this together. As is though, as long as you don't have any Ns in it, now you two can write your name in katakana! Enjoy.

JWH:
I have no idea. I sorta skipped over that part of the game. I found Chocobo Hot and Cold to be nowhere near as interesting as breeding them...

Googleshng:
Just hit the confirm button while riding through a forest and off you go!

JWH:
It sort of does, but you're forgetting about the whole SeeD thing. Frankly, having the heroes stop a mad empire trying to take over the world is the plotline of most every Final Fantasy game. In 4 it's Baron, in 6 it's the empire of Gestahl, in 7 it's the Shinra corporation subbing for an empire, in 8 it's Galbadia, and in 9 it's Alexandria. If that doesn't tell you that the series is getting redundant, I don't know what will.

Googleshng:
Yes, every FF game follows roughly the same plot structure when you get right down to it. There's no real connection between 2 and 8 by any stretch of the imagination, but I seem to recall FF1 and 2 actually have the same world map.

JWH:
So first I have to come up with answers and now you're asking me for a question? What do you think I am? AæQ and A guy? Oh wait. I am.

Ok...let me see. How about my opinion on the early review of Final Fantasy the movie? Frankly, this doesn't worry me in the least. Hopefully it'll lower my expectations, because god knows that hightened expectations of The Phantom Menace was its downfall. I trust Sakaguchi to put together a movie that stays true to the core of the series. At the very least it'll be cool seeing the words Final Fantasy up on the big screen. Gives me chills even thinking of it...

Googleshng:
Hmm... I haven't read said review myself, although I seem to recall hearing it was compared to various totally unrelated anime films that made it to the US, which basically boils down to "It's made by people from Japan." I probably should go track down said review.

JWH:
I figure Google will say this, but sending the same letter over and over is a no-no. It only leads you to getting banned.

Anywho, that's an intersting question. Let's do a search on Google (Heh!) and see what we come up with....

Porn site, porn site, porn site, fan FF site, fan FF site, porn site, bingo! Apparently he's from the Bahamut legend and he supports the world. Interesting. In case you care, this little site I found that gives the origins of FF names is at: http://www.rpgclassics.com/ffcompendium/name.html#esper It seems to be a handy little bugger....

Googleshng:
Actually, this letter here I meant to print when I first got it, but it came in during that querky little pocket of time RIGHT between when I finished one column and tossed the contents of my mailbox into the trash, and I lost it. Anyway, JWH saved me the trouble of looking that up. One of the few mythological fun facts I couldn't rattle off the top of my head.

JWH:
You bash Dancing Mad? You die now! Beware my wrath for I may unleash the deadly spoilers if you continue to taunt me! At least I have musical taste...

<Ahem>...Sorry. Got a little excited there. Phantasy Star has always been, IMO, the number 2 RPG series. It's notable for its futuristic setting, deep plots, interplanetary travel, and anime cutscenes. The first game was the first RPG released stateside and it was far deeper than any RPG out then. The second was my first RPG. It is known for its high difficulty, and lack of bosses. There's only 3 in the whole game! The third game was made by a different team, and was more of a gaiden than an actual connection to the series. It's the black sheep of the series and stands as a merely ok RPG as compared to the excellence of the rest of the series. The fourth was a brilliant conclusion to the series up to that point, and was ludicrously expensive back in the day. I seem to remember it costing more than $100 when it came out. Phantasy Star Online, which just came out, is nothing like the rest of the series. It's an action game that you can play online ala Diablo. It hasæa few connections the series but, as the producer has admitted, they merely wanted the setting and didn't want to touch the core story that runs through the series.

I do happen to agree with you on Kefka being stupid. When you can beat him before he gets a single freaking turn in, there's something wrong...

Googleshng:
That's a pretty good description of the Phantasy Star series, although it should also be noted that it offers a really nice blend of sci-fi and fantasy, and that the first game in the series was YEARS ahead of its time any way you look at it. As for Kefka, personally, I've always loved him as villains go. It's all a queston of motivation. Being evil incarnate, wanting to take over the world, and wanting to become a god are all pretty overused and dull when you get right down to it. Kefka on the other hand was simply insane, got a kick out of causing mass destruction, and got a LOT farther along in his plans than the average big evil guy. The only other really interesting motives for a final boss I can name off the top of my head would be the one from Skies of Arcadia, which is a rather interesting varient on the norm, and, since you mentioned it, Phantasy Star. The main antagonist is your standard evil tyrant, but he doesn't really want to become one with god or destroy the universe, and he rules the whole world befre the game even starts so he's not on the warpath. Honestly, he spends the whole game sitting around drinking tea until you barge in and kill him for having your brother executed in the intro. Come to think of it, the original Phantasy Star ALSO features Dr. Mad, who has the EXTREMELY evil desire to preform life ending eperiments on your cat!

Googleshng:
I don't usually get much mail along these lines, and it brings to mind something someone else pointed out to me today. The Grammy awards were given out this week, praising a huge variety of musical achievements, some in some very obscure categories. However, game music composers, who are constantly presented with the very daunting task of creating music to convey a huge variety of moods, and must compose a wide enough variety of songs to span the length of games that can run up to 80 hours really get no public acknowledgement of their accomplishments to speak of. That really demonstrates the odd tendancy of the general public to ignore any possible artistic content in games.

I don't care who you are, but you gotta love David Puddy from Seinfeld. In case you didn't know, that's whose playing the Tick

i am only on lvl 12.. i am so ashamed...

pso name~Ayana
screen name~silent bob

The Last Laugh: