Welcome to Jax's Lightspeed Reviews. These are just like any other of
my regular reviews, though they're much quicker to read through and
write - hence the title. The review is split up into 5 pieces: The story
overview, the positive elements of the book, the negative elements of
the book, a final verdict, and a recommendation level.
Today's book: 'Book Scavenger' by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman
"Life is a game, and books are the tokens."
The Story:
Book
Scavenger is split into 3 main plot pieces that work around each other.
In this story, a fictional game exists called 'Book Scavenger', where
patrons can hide books for others to find in the real world, then
pinpoint their book's location using a clue system built into the 'Book
Scavenger' website. The admin and leader of the Book Scavenger games, Mr
Garrison Griswold, is often considered the self-proclaimed 'Willy
Wonka' of the book industry. Griswold starts plans on a new
sub-competition of the game, where players will have to track down one
of many copies of 'The Gold-Bug' (which is a REAL book by Edgar Allen
Poe), which contains clues to where a special prize is located in San
Fransisco. However, Griswold is mugged by a group of thugs prior to the
start of the competition, causing the new game to be postponed.
...then we get to the other main character of the story: Emily Crane, a
passionate player of the Book Scavenger game. Emily's family has a
dream to live in each state in the U.S. at least once for a full year,
and their next stop is - coincidentally, - San Fransisco. Once Emily and
her family arrives, she meets up with James, a puzzles enthusiast, and
they find a mysterious Gold-covered version of 'The Gold-Bug'. Emily
doesn't make much of it at first because nobody actually knows of
Griswold's cancelled game, but once she finds out a secret lying within
the book, she starts a quest to complete the game - with the help of
James, of course.
The Good:
Book
Scavenger is the best kind of Fiction because it's a completely
plausible story. The whole tale is obviously made up, but because of how
clever the Book Scavenger game within the story actually is, it could
easily be played in real life. In fact, the official website for this
story has a mini-'Book Scavenger' built into it that you can play right
now! Check this link: http://bookscavenger.com/hide-find-books/ Sure,
there aren't many books hidden around our Lake County area as of right
now, but we could change that, couldn't we? I challenge all of you
readers to hide at least 1 book within the next few weeks and record it
on the website. Think you're up to the challenge?
The primary genre of Book Scavenger, 'mystery', is implemented to
perfection here. It's fun to keep up with all of the puzzles that Emily
and James encounter on their quest to finish The Gold-Bug's hidden
adventure, and it's not very hard, either. There were at least 2 or 3
times within the book where the main characters stumbled upon a new step
they couldn't solve, even though I already had a hunch on how to solve
it. I like this style of the 'mystery' genre better than the
stereotypical 'Sherlock' kind of mystery because they feel interactive.
The Bad:
I
didn't have any immediate distaste with Book Scavenger, but on the
other hand, not too much about the story really struck me. In easier
terms, I couldn't find any flaws in the book that detracted from the
experience, but aside from the fun setting of the book and the mystery
aspects, the writing itself is rather run-of-the-mill. Not much about
the story stands out from other tales of this caliber.
As a side note, there's a very weird mis-match of plot twists near the
end of the book. I don't mind plot twists, but in this case, at least 3
twists occur within the same chapter. This kind of writing can throw you
off, and it should especially be avoided during the climax of the
story.
Conclusion:
Book
Scavenger is a simple story at face value, but the simplicity of the
story helps contribute to how fun it is to read. Pick this one up if you
can, and if you get a spare book and some time, try out the Book
Scavenger game online! Or, perhaps you should wait for another month to
do that, since it is still winter right now...
Recommendation Rating: Moderate (Read it if you can!)
Are you participating in the 2015 Teen Read Week Challenge?
Here is a video of the Highland teens throwing down the gauntlet to the other branches with their own take on the quintessential inspiration song during a reading marathon.
Come in and fill out raffle tickets so our branch can WIN!
Did you know that Jim Peterik (founding member of Survivor and co-writer of "Eye of the Tiger") will be visiting the Merrillville Branch Nov 6th, 2015!?
No. Just No. I am required to read this for school. Just no. I was excited because I love the Greek Myths, but, just do yourself a favor and don’t read it, please. Just No.
Dealing With Dragons by Patricia Wrede is a really really great story! If you like Adventure, Dragons, talking amphibians, or even a rebellious princess, this is the series for you! A wonderfully brave princess Cimorene travels from her homeland fleeing being betrothed to a somewhat idiotic prince. Cimorene could be a good example of a jack of all trades, master of none, she knows some fencing, how to turn herself invisible, and best of all how to make a mean cherry jubilee!
This book has a sarcastic flair as well which can be hard to find in fantasy novels,but it really helps progress the storyline. The rest of the series is just as amazing so far! There are a total of four books so this can be a great way to spend a long weekend! I hope you all can make the time to read sometime soon!
Dr. Stiffler came to talk to us about atomic structure and he was a phenomenal presenter! He brought a variety of hands on equipment to illustrate his points the video below is two of the teens getting to play with sound waves!
Around here, I'm usually known
as 'The guy that only reviews things he doesn't like', and it isn't a
lie. Like I've mentioned, I prefer to tackle things that I think are
bad, because comedy is richest when it is derived from something that
isn't pleasing.
However,
instead of being the usual me, I want to step out of my comfort zone
and do something different. Something that is, dare I say it, ENJOYABLE!
(dun-dun-duuun) And, honestly. I don't think that I can find anything
more enjoyable than Video Gaming.
I've
never personally done a Top 10 here before, but like I said, that
comfort zone is pretending to be on a coffee break today. He isn't here,
so I can make this list however I like. So, my personal Top 10 Favorite
Video Games I've ever played! Any rules for this list? Just one. I'm
only list 1 game per franchise, so don't expect to see 2 or more 'Sonic'
titles on here.
So, as 'The Black Eyed Peas' always say, "Let's get it started in here!" Top 10, go!!!
#10 Pac-Attack (SNES, GENESIS)
Pac-Attack
is nothing more than a simple puzzle game. Think along the lines of
something like 'Tetris' or 'Dr. Mario', and you should get the picture.
Tiles
and Ghosts are falling down, and you direct them to the bottom of the
screen. Once in a while, a Pac-Man will start falling, and it will eat
any ghosts in his way. The game is simple, relaxing, and absolutely a
blast to play with friends, thanks to the inclusion of a nifty 1 on 1
mode. Combine it with a catchy soundtrack, and I'd say that Pac-Attack
is quite a pleasure.
My family has owned the game ever since the
days of the original Sega Genesis, and I've played it ever since I was
three. Any age should be able to find out how to play quickly, and even a
grand-parent could learn it, earning this number 10 spot easily.
#9 Dance Dance Revolution Extreme (PS2, ARCADE)
Music
games, you love 'em or hate 'em. Me? Love 'em. It is kind of hard to
grasp them if you aren't talented in the rhythmic category, but DDR
Extreme is still a blast.
All you have to do is hit notes as they
rise to the top of the screen, while following the beat of music. The
reason I chose DDR Extreme over any other DDR game for this list is
because it has my personal favorite selection of songs to play to,
including 'YMCA'.
The more curious thing about DDR Extreme is that
even though the Arcade version was Japanese exclusive, many spots in the
USA have cabinets for the game, including Six Flags Great America. If
Six Flags can import DDR, you KNOW they have good taste. Don't question
it.
Many
games can take a huge team to develop. Some games even require the work
of several companies! How many people made Cave Story?
Just one man, named Daisuke 'Pixel' Amaya.
While
the game does have a very simplistic art style, this can be forgiven
easily thanks to pretty much everything else in the game. As the name
implies, Cave Story has a very grand tale that contains many
heart-warming moments, along with even a few plot twists that might jerk
a tear out of you.
The gameplay is incredible, mixing up
Metroid-Vania exploration with the brilliant projectile combat from the
Mega Man and Contra franchises. The worlds are varied, the weapons are
all unique, and that soundtrack.
THAT. SOUNDTRACK.
Cave Story is
brilliantly composed, with a varied amount of tracks that always mix up
the tone of the game in just the right way. Some are catchy, some are
dark, and others just feel so nice.
If you haven't played Cave Story
yet, there is literally no reason not to. The original japanese game is a
free download from the creator itself, and you can probably find a
translation patch for it without much difficulty. The game has also seen
several re-releases on WiiWare, Steam, and just a few years back, a 3D
remake was released for the 3DS. All the versions are great, so pick up
at least 1 of them!
#7 Gunstar Heroes (GENESIS)
Most
of my descriptions for the other games on this list have all been
because they mix solid gameplay with a very nice atmospheric feel.
Well, Gunstar Heroes takes those games and throws them into a First Class airplane sent to Norway, because this game is crazy!
Gunstar
Heroes is a mess, in a good way. It was developed by Sega alongside
Treasure, a company that is famous for many cult classics like Dynamite
Headdy, Sin & Punishment, and even Alien Soldier.
This game is
truly madness incarnate. The game starts up quickly, you choose a weapon
and level, and then go. Enemies are all over the place, the soundtrack
pumps up every moment of the game, and everything is just, WOW.
Literally, the best word to describe this game is with the word 'wow'.
Oh,
and the boss battles. If you want to play a game just for boss battles,
play Gunstar Heroes. Right now, guys. The boss battles are awesome.
Couple
everything I just mentioned with a fantastic 2 player mode, and I don't
really think anyone can call this game 'bad'. It may not be my favorite
game on this list, but is probably one of the most flawless of the
bunch.
#6: Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door (GameCube)
Mario
is the Mickey Mouse of gaming, really. Pretty much every Mario title
out there is great, and Paper Mario TTYD is my favorite.
I'm not
really an RPG guy, but I can really say that Paper Mario TTYD does an
excellent job of mixing story telling, unique art styles, and swell
combat. Everything is user friendly, and isn't hard to learn at all.
Experience
Grinding is nowhere to be found here, which really allows the user to
control the pace of the game. Do you want to continue your quest, or do a
side quest first to obtain a new item? The little choices like that
help make the game feel fresh in spots that would normally feel mundane.
Paper
Mario TTYD (I should stop calling it that) is almost like a children's
pop-up book. Everything is so delicately crafted, and anyone that can
still afford a copy of this game should defenitely play it. It is worth
it in every way.
#5 Pokémon TCG 2: Here Comes Team Great Rocket! (GBC)
If
it wasn't painfully obvious by the constant notes I leave at the end of
my entries, then I'll say it again: I love the Pokémon Trading Card
Game to death. So much so, that this game is the only entry in the list
that was exclusive to Japan!
So, if this game is Japanese, how have I been able to play it? Simple. English Patch, works every time.
Onto the game itself, it's the Pokémon TCG, no duh.
Here
Comes Team Great Rocket features Base Set, Jungle Expansion, and Fossil
Expansion from the first game, and much more. The biggest addition to
the game is the inclusion of Team Rocket, the set released after Fossil.
In addition, many cards that were originally Japan exclusive, like the
Vending Machine cards and promos from the Ivysaur vs Wartortle Deck Set
are available, and it really helps make the battles feel varied, based
on the kind of deck you choose to play.
Outside of the cards
themselves, many of the players you fight against in the game have their
own rules on how to play against them, such as Lightning Types doing
more damage, or Special Energy not allowed. The little things like this
help this game go from a simple TCG to a curious melting pot full of
lots of creative ways to play.
#4 Little Big Planet 2 (PS3)
If my 6-year old self knew what LittleBigPlanet was, he probably would have fainted from happiness.
I
love Level Editors. A lot. I've always wanted to make my own game, and
thanks to Little Big Planet 2, I've been able to create so much.
Little
Big Planet, as a franchise, isn't about the main campaign and the
standard platforming it features. It's about that amazing Creator mode.
I'm serious when I say that if you can think it, you can probably make
it in LBP2 in one way or another. An battle tank? Sure. A jet-propelled
sled? Probably. An entire castle to explore through? Go right ahead.
I've been able to create a headset that fires blobs of glue that cement
themselves into traversible platforms. Yeah.
There is nothing else
like Little Big Planet 2 in terms of creativity scale. There is so much
you can do in this game, if you know how to.
Do you know limitless
this game is? I found a playable level that recreates the entirety of
the first dungeon from the first Legend Of Zelda game.
There. Is. No. Comparison.
#3 Super Smash Brothers (2014) (Wii U, 3DS)
Nothing can even begin to descripe Super Smash Brothers, and it is honestly the greatest Nintendo franchise in existence.
Super
Smash Brothers has a perfect blend. Unlike more complicated fighting
games like Street Fighter and BlazBlue, Super Smash Brothers plays out
more like a platformer game where you fight other players. The controls
are really simple to pick up and learn, allowing for pretty much anyone
to start winning within a round or so.
Because of the near-endless
amount of customization, you can change the game from an ultra
competitive 1 on 1 match, to a randomized 8-player brawl with randomly
spawning items. On the more technical side, Wii U/3DS Smash excels over
Melee and Brawl because of how much balance there is in the speed. Melee
was too fast, Brawl was too slow, but this one is just right.
Oh,
and the character roster? Probably the best of any video game ever made.
You have your popular guys, like Mario, Link, Sonic, Pac-Man, Pikachu,
but then there are the more obscure ones and fan favorites, like Mega
Man, Robin, Ness, Shulk, Wii Fit Trainer, and more. The sheer amount of
diversity in the choice of characters is so grand, that pretty much
anyone could find someone that they can cling to.
The soundtrack may
just be one of the most diverse ever written. In addition to several
original compositions, the game features several remixes of songs from
other games, of many vary genres.
Super Smash Brothers for Wii U and
3DS is kind of hard to really give a true opinion on, because you
really have to go into the technical portions of the Smash chronology to
really be able to make opinions about it. So, I will leave you with
this:
Super Smash Brothers for Wii U and 3DS is my favorite Nintendo game ever made.
#2 Mega Man Battle Network 6 - Cybeast Falzar (GBA)
When
I started getting older, I'd say about 10 years old, I went through a
phase where I started noticing flaws in video games much easier. Many of
what used to be my favorite games, like Mario Party 5, Sonic Adventure
2, and movie tie-in games. Yet, there was one game that I could just go
and play any time, and I would feel nothing but happiness...
As I've
said before on this blog (An obscure DS vs PSP post) and elsewhere, I
really love Mega Man Battle Network 6, more specifically the Cybeast
Falzar version. The gameplay is kind of like an RPG, but throws so many
curveballs into the mix that the game ends up feeling like nothing else.
Battles
are done on a 6x3 grid, and fights are played through in a complex
formula revolving around 'Battle Chips', which are kind of like Pokémon
cards to a certain extent.
Just like the Pokémon TCG, the huge
amount of Battle Chips is what allows for complex design when building
your strategy, and the game has a very futuristic art style and
soundtrack that compliments each of the characters very well.
The
story is very difficult to understand if you haven't played through 1-5,
but it is quite an interesting conclusion to the series.
Mega Man
Battle Network 6 is a greatly underrated game, and it's a shame that not
many people have played it. Considering that Battle Network 1 and 2
have already come out as downloads for Wii U, it's just a matter of time
before the eShop sees the release of this one. It's defenitely worth
the price, as I've spent 100+ hours on this game already!
#1 Sonic The Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles (Genesis, PC, GameCube, Wii, PS2, PS3, Xbox, Xbox360, DS)
Sonic
is a great platformer series. It combines complex platforming with
incredible speed that can literally be found in no other game. On the
top of that Sonic pyramid is Sonic 3 and Knuckles, which is my favorite
game ever made.
Sonic The Hedgehog 3 was originally planned to be a
complete title, but it had to be cut in half because of release date
deadlines. The second half was later released as a sequel called 'Sonic
& Knuckles', which featured a special bonus cartridge slot that you
could connect many other games to. So, what would happen if you
connected Sonic 3?
Boom, now you can play Sonic 3 & Knuckles.
Not
only does it allow for the entirety of the game to be played in 1
straight save-enabled file, but it allows you to play as any of the 3
characters, along with many new soundtrack changes and slight variations
to certain levels.
As for the game itself, It's brilliantly designed
to the point of near-perfection. Every level is unique, and none of
them are dull. Because of the endless supply of alternate routes in each
level, the game allows for lots of creativity in the choice of
traversing through each level.
Just like every other game I've
listed, the soundtrack is great. However, what makes it so great? Well, a
very special person helped compose it. A fellow you might know by the
name of Michael Jackson.
I
have already played through and Completed Sonic 3K at least 7 times,
and I would be willing to do it again any day. In fact, I think I might
do that right now.
If
you happen to have a favorite video game, leave your thoughts below.
The viewership is what helps this blog stay alive, so all opinions are
appreciated!
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