Battle of the "Snakes"

You might notice something about my title for this blog. You might think about snakes like anacondas, pythons, cobras, etc. I won't be talking about these kind of snakes but the "snakes" from the Metal Gear series. (Note: I would emphasize this game on my next game review.)



You might be wondering about the "snakes". What are they?? or Who are they??
There are four "snakes" from the video game series.

1.Naked Snake

2.Solid Snake


3.Liquid Snake


4.Solidus Snake

For this blog entry about structuralism, I'm going to talk about Solid Snake and Liquid Snake. You might be wondering why I chose these 2 snakes. Well, Solid Snake and Liquid Snake are clones of Naked Snake. Same goes to Solidus Snake. Solid and Liquid has a huge rivalry. Solid is the protagonist while Liquid is the antagonist.
Their rivalry started in "Metal Gear Solid". Liquid resembles Snake in terms of facial appearance and physique coz they are clones. One of Liquid's motivations is his hatred towards Solid Snake, as Liquid believes that Solid received all of Naked Snake's superior genes, and that he, Liquid, was destined to be inferior. It is revealed after the credits, that Liquid was intentionally deceived in order to drive him to carry on Naked Snake's legacy. This is in line with the game's interpretation of the nature versus nurture debate. As the greater experience that Solid has on the battlefield enables him to defeat Liquid, despite his supposed "genetic superiority" and his personal grudge with Solid, due to him thinking Solid is in fact the superior one. Their rivalry ended in Metal Gear Solid 4 when Solid finally defeats Liquid via CQC (Close-Quarters Combat). The CQC battle between the two is very memorable and climatic because its show flashbacks between the two brothers during the battle. This emphasizes the the huge clash between the twin brothers.

The Twin Snakes




(I WILL FURTHER EXPLAIN THIS ON MY NEXT BLOG ENTRY ABOUT GAME REVIEWS)

Grand Theft Auto IV Review (Playstation 3)

"Welcome to America"-Niko Bellic

The American Dream. What does the American dream mean today? This is what Niko Bellic (protagonist) first thought about when he arrived to Liberty City (based on New York City). The Grand Theft Auto series,in my opinion, is one of the best! They redefined the sand-box genre or in other words Open World gameplay. The third chronological title, Grand Theft Auto III, was widely acclaimed as it brought the series to a 3D setting and more better experience, and is considered a landmark title that has subsequently influenced many other open world action games and lead to the label "Grand Theft Auto clone" on similar games. Games like Mafia,Saint's Row, Driver series, etc. are considered as a "GTA clone". The series gives you so much freedom, it got lots of controversy. The character you control can kill,steal , and rob. The series is very influential. There has been many cases of teenagers trying to imitate the character in the series. However, even though the series received many controversies, the series has been a major success, both critically and financially. Grand Theft Auto IV is the biggest game ever in the series.


The game is set yet again to Liberty City(Liberty City first appeared in the first Grand Theft Auto and second in Grand Theft Auto III).

The Grand Theft Auto IV rendition of Liberty City features a more striking resemblance to New York City.
City's Motto: "Worst Place in America."


This time the game stars Niko Bellic. He moved to Liberty City to forget his past and pursue the "American Dream". He was persuaded to move by his cousin Roman. During his stay in Liberty City, he was exposed to the city's criminal underground.
Niko Bellic

He started working for the Russian Mafia, Jimmy Pegorino (a mobster), corrupt deputy commissioner, drug dealers, Dimitri Rascalov (Game's antagonist) and the like. The good thing about Niko is that he is very down-to-business person, and is very protective when it comes to his family and loved ones, especially Roman. He even said during the game that if someone messes with Roman, he will be there to protect him. The game has two endings. The first ending is where Niko's girlfriend, Kate McReary, was killed Pegorino because of Niko's "Betrayal" to him. This made Niko furious. As the result, Niko killed Pegorino in Happiness Island. The second ending shows the death of Roman by the hands of Dimitri. Similar to Pegorino's, Niko killed Dimitri in Happiness Island.
Happiness Island: The game's version of real-life Liberty Island


The Verdict:
Rating: 6/5
Why 6/5? The game is truly outstanding! There is no other game like this. You have the freedom to do anything.

+ Good Story
+ Awesome Characters
+ Gameplay is similar to previous games but better
+ GAME OF THE YEAR!
+ Must Have or Must Buy!


Reviews
by G4TV:
Video Review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcxcLld5cAV
Complete Review:
http://www.g4tv.com/games/ps3/35421/grand-theft-auto-iv/review/

by IGN:
Video Review:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNYVh0lVeoE
Complete Review:
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/869/869541p1.html

"Dead Men's Path" by Chinua Achebe

The "Dead Men's Path" is a short story about a bright and ambitious headmaster named Obi who soon finds that his ignorance over the ancestry of his people can bring about the worst of fates. Here, he totally ignores the culture and the tradition by closing the path. This "path" is very important to the villagers because the "path" leads to a somewhat like a burial ground. After closing the path, karma struck Obi when the villagers destroyed the school he's working on. The story is about tradition versus modern-day methods. This is what Chinua Achebe emphasizes on. Most of his writings is about Western customs taking over old tradition. In my opinion, even though modernization is very common nowadays, traditions are still traditions. the story illustrates the importance of respecting and remembering traditions that may seem odd and old-fashioned, but have lived long in the hearts of the people who follow them. There are some tradition that my family thought me that I'm still able to cope up with. Until now, I have to "Mano Po" to my parents and grandfather. This is a sign of respect to them. I could say that I'm very modernized but following some old tradition isn't bad coz it is a form of respect to those who made the tradition and those who are still following it until now.

The Story of an Hour Resolution

She died out of joy after seeing her husband alive from the railroad accident. She was brokenhearted as soon as she found out the "death" of her husband. However, she began to feel an unexpected sense of exhilaration. "Free! Body and soul free!" is what she believes is a benefit of his death. This probably stressed her out causing her heart problem to worsen. After seeing her husband, her heart probably exerted too much effort because of her happiness, causing her death.
In my opinion, the shifting of "Mrs. Mallard" to "Louise" emphasizes that she is now a widow coz her husband died.