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[alexriviello]

My favorite Wes Craven memory, from the 2007 New York Comic Con

This is probably my favorite memory from any New York Comic Con, and I've been attending since the very beginning. In 2007 while working at Creature-Corner.com I got the opportunity to attend a breakfast press event with Wes Craven for The Hills Have Eyes 2. The movie was garbage but he, as always, was a gentlemen, and it was an honor to meet him. Meeting a legend who was such an influence on myself was amazing but the best moment actually happened later on in the day, during the audience panel for the film. I attended the event with my friend and photographer Alfred, who managed to get some incredible shots of the proceedings while we all were forced to hear audience members ask the usual waves of idiotic questions, such as when the next Scream movie was comiing out (this was before the fourth hit with a dull thud) and what the process of producing a film was. After a while Alfred snapped and jumped into line himself, all to share a story that he has long told his friends, and was not at all concerned about sharing with a roomfull of strangers, about how Wes Craven was responsible for the “awakening of his sexual being.” This sounds like a crazy fanboy moment but I can guarantee you that Wes seemed to come alive during it and was grinning like a maniac throughout, finally free of the clutch of awful questions that had proceeded it. Here’s the video.

The audio is pretty hard to hear, especially over my chuckles, so below is my transcript from my original article. Enjoy. Alfred: Also for Wes- I saw A Nightmare on Elm Street when I was 8 years old and also raised in a somewhat conservative family. There's this scene in A Nightmare on Elm Street where Nancy, Heather Langenkamp's character, goes to the closet and takes off her shirt and puts on a button down shirt and you see her bare back for a moment and I always refer to this scene to friends of mine, and even people I don't know, like everyone in this room- as the awakening of my sexual being (laughs start in the audience) because it's the first time I remember honestly, first time I remember being aroused (massive laughs) Wes Craven: (grabs mic, brings it close) "Next question!" Alf: I don't really have a question, I actually just wanted to tell you this. (huge laughter and applause) I love a lot of your films so I thought it'd be interesting to tell you. I guess I just thought of a question, which is, do you get this a lot? Wes: No, that's the first time. (laughs) That's an interesting moment, because one of the things you realize when you're a director is that when you tell people to take their shirts off, sometimes they'll do it... you can really abuse it, but Heather was very young and the scene called for her to do that, and she turned away from the camera and it's like, that's sexy. Not even facing the camera, not even an exposed body at all. Alf: And if she was facing the camera I don't even know what would have happened. I mean, it might've had the same effect, because I don't think I saw anything like that. Wes: No, you didn't. Alf: Thank you. Wes: You're welcome. Glad I could help. I've got to tell Heather.

[alexriviello]

Fallout

It’s rare that I can look back at my older work and appreciate it- I’m one of those writers that hopes he’s always improving himself- but I took a look back at a preview I wrote of Fallout 3 from E3 seven (!) years ago and was pleased to see my excitement for the game still shines through. I knew even from just a half hour with the game that I was seeing something special, something that really resonated with me. 

Here it is- http://www.chud.com/15696/mcp-e3-impressions-fallout-3/

Those demos are always the best, the kind they just throw you into because they have complete faith in the product and know it will speak for itself. 

I’ve been reminiscing because I was supposed to attend E3 this week, and more specifically Bethesda’s first-ever conference tonight, in which they will be showing off Fallout 4. My plans got changed last minute and instead I’m home, watching the live stream and hoping nothing too cool happens for the people in attendance. (No offense, friends.)

[alexriviello]

Oh yeah, a tumblr.

I’ve been so crazy busy that I forget that this exists sometimes. I’ve been at GameNGuide.com for over a year now, still working as the sole editor, still watching it go up and up.

Funniest thing of all to me? A few Crossy Road guides are still the most popular things I’ve written. Something like 600k people have read my words on that game. Bonkers. 

We publish a LOT of articles on the site so I’m going to start using this to focus on all the reviews and original pieces I’ve written. I’m still happy I get the time to focus on a lot of cool, smaller games.

Reviews;

Titan Souls Review: Intense Boss Battles, No Soul

Sorcery! 3 Review: The First Open World Gamebook?

Crypt of the NecroDancer Review: Move To The Beat And Buy This Incredible Roguelike Right Now

Lost Cities Card Game Review: A Reprinted Version Of Reiner Knizia's Classic That You Need To Own

Evolve Review: Two Months Later, Is The Future Still Bright For The 4v1 Shooter?

Telltale’s Game Of Thrones Episode 3 'A Sword In The Darkness' Review: Finally, The Game Shows Its Promise

Hand of Fate Review: An RPG? A Card Game? This Kickstarter Success Is Unlike Anything You've Ever Played

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate Review: The Best One Yet? An Early Game Of The Year Contender

Previews/Articles:

Hardest Games Of All Time: I Beat Battletoads And No One Believes Me

Guitar Hero Live Hands-On Impressions: Chords, Star Power, And A Lot Of Useless FMV

Ghostbusters: The Board Game Wants To Capture New Tabletop Gamers: An Exclusive Toy Fair Chat With Cryptozoic About Their Kickstarter Success

Chasm IndieCade East Interview: We Talk To The Developers About Their Old-School Metroidvania Title

Extreme Exorcism: A Game Where Your Worst Enemy Is Yourself

[alexriviello]

Growth

Well, it's been seven months since I posted here after accepting the editor position at GameNGuide, and in that time we've managed to grow the site larger than a few of my former web homes. Traffic's grown a staggering 1900%, and I've assembled an awesome team of writers for it, if I do say so myself. 

I just need the community to get there. I'm still sad there's not nearly as much interaction with the readers as I'd like, but it will happen. 

But, we have lots of exciting stuff in the works and it's been great to see people start to find and enjoy our work, and return for more. I've really loved my time here.

[alexriviello]

To the next stage

This week I started up a new, full-time job at Game & Guide. I'm overseeing the whole site, working on content and schedules and making it as great as it can possibly be. It's pretty much what I've been working towards all these years and I'm excited as hell - got a lot of work to do but I can't wait to do it. 

[alexriviello]

Introducing...

I'm really excited about the upcoming Fantastic Fest tour. One of the only downsides of seeing great films at festivals is the long wait for everyone else to finally get their eyes on them, so I love that the Drafthouse is taking advantage of their theaters to get a good number of them in front of people around the country. 

I got so excited in fact that I offered my services to introduce a film or two, and gave a list of my three favorites that were playing. The two I was offered include my favorite film of the fest, Sion Sono's hysterical Why Don't You Play In Hell? and Stephen Chow's latest piece of kung fu mania Journey to the West. The films will be screening on November 24th at the Alamo in Yonkers- you can pick up tickets here.

I didn't get a chance to review either of those films at BAD during the Fest (that Evan cat is a reviewing machine) but I did provide a bunch more. Here's a list of what I covered-

Narco Cultura- http://badassdigest.com/2013/09/21/fantastic-fest-review-narco-cultura-is-a-highlight-of-the-fest/

Commando- A One Man Army - http://badassdigest.com/2013/09/22/fantastic-fest-review-commando-a-one-man-army-stunts-singing-and-silliness/

Almost Human - http://badassdigest.com/2013/09/22/fantastic-fest-review-almost-human-an-homage-to-the-80s-slasher-film/

Miss Zombie - http://badassdigest.com/2013/09/26/fantastic-fest-review-miss-zombie-is-a-bleak-fresh-take-on-the-undead/

Nightbreed - The Cabal Cut - http://badassdigest.com/2013/09/30/fantastic-fest-review-cabal-an-unrefined-yet-superior-version-of-nightbreed/

Ragnarok- http://badassdigest.com/2013/10/01/fantastic-fest-review-ragnarok-a-spielbergian-adventure-without-the-adventu/

Proxy- http://badassdigest.com/2013/10/03/fantastic-fest-review-proxy-or-yet-another-reason-not-to-have-kids/

And my coverage of the Fantastic Arcade-  http://badassdigest.com/2013/10/14/the-highlights-of-the-2013-fantastic-arcade/

A really amazing week that I can't stop talking about, and I'm glad that more people will be afforded a chance to see some of these great films. 

[alexriviello]

Birth.Movies.Death.

I'm going to be contributing to the Alamo Drafthouse's new magazine, Birth.Movies.Death., along with a bunch of other Badass Digest writers. Absolutely can't wait. There's something about seeing your words in print that makes it that much more exciting, especially when your words will be placed in Alamo Drafthouses across the country.

You'll be able to read the magazine online here for free when it finally hits. The first issue is Kaiju-themed in honor of Pacific Rim and I haven't had the chance to read the other writer's stuff yet- can't wait!

[alexriviello]

Night of the 1001 Murdering Maniacs

In sixth grade at my new fancy private school we were instructed to make a dust jacket for a fake book we had authored. This is what I ended up with- it's still one of my favorite things I've done.

Front cover

Back cover

Inside flaps

Not bad for an eleven year old on his parent's lousy typewriter (we couldn't afford a PC yet).

[alexriviello]

Bad. Ass.

I've signed on as Gaming Editor for Badass Digest. Incredibly excited. Love the site and everything about it- its voice, its readership, the incredible writers they already have on board, who are all experts in their specific fields. I've been bouncing around from site to site the last couple of years so for me to have a steady home like this means everything to me, and I can't wait to be able to write about things I really want to write about. 

Can't wait to really get things started.

[alexriviello]

Identity Crisis

Well, I've gone and moved to New Jersey. It wasn't something we planned (is it something anyone plans, really?) but an opportunity came up for a great apartment that's twice as big as my last one for 50 bucks more... and well, we needed the space. Two kids in a one and a half bedroom wouldn't have worked for very long. As a native New Yorker from the Bronx it's just weird to live in a place that I've done nothing but mocked for 30 years. Every single time I've ever traveled here I've gotten lost and pissed at everyone and everything in it.

But the neighborhood we're living in is beautiful and clean, and we're just a quick bus ride away from the city whenever I decide I need a quick whiff of bum piss or other human interactions.

There's certainly good from here- Lou Costello, Springsteen, The Sopranos, E-Town Concrete, Chiller Theatre, The Toxic Avenger. But still- Jersey.

This is going to require a lot of soul searching.

[alexriviello]

End of year lists!

I wrote two lists this year, both about games!

For Tapsauce I wrote a list of the Top Ten iOS games. My iPhone 5 has been getting a helluva workout the last month, and I've got it loaded with something like 60 games right now. These are my favorite ones of this year.

http://rocksaucestudios.com/tapsauce/post/top-ten-mobile-games-of-2012/

Badass Digest asked me to supply a Top Ten Videogames list so I kept it mostly retail games for consoles. Lots of great games came out this year, but I decided to spice it up with a few fun awards at the end.

http://badassdigest.com/2012/12/27/alex-riviellos-top-ten-games-of-2012-and-more/

My life right now consists of wrangling babies and packing boxes, because I'm moving out in a few short days, both from my apartment and from NYC. Crazy stuff, but more on that adventure later...

[alexriviello]

Weeeooo Weeeoooo

Six years ago, the Wii was released. I waited on line in the morning for a couple of hours in the freezing cold to pick it up after staying up all night for a party, coming home exhausted only to break it open and play Wii Bowling all day, with more friends coming over at night to keep things going. I wrote an article about the experience that pretty much kicked off my career writing about games.

Yesterday, the Wii U was released. I stayed home.

[alexriviello]

Hands-on with Aliens: Colonial Marines

My plans for this year's New York Comic Con fell through magnificently, but I did manage to attend an event for Gearbox Software and Sega's Aliens: Colonial Marines. Sadly I wasn't too impressed, even though I got to see Lance Henriksen and play the enjoyable multiplayer.

Full article is up here at Badass- http://badassdigest.com/2012/10/15/gearbox-softwares-aliens-colonial-marines-hands-on-nycc-preview/

[alexriviello]

A few words on August Derleth and The Cthulhu Mythos

I've been reading August Derleth's Cthulhu Mythos stories for the first time (I know!) and really enjoying them. For those unaware, Derleth was a contemporary of H.P. Lovecraft who basically became the caretaker of his work after Lovecraft's death in 1937, even expanding upon the Mythos in a series of stories. That Elder Sign, the five-pointed star with the eye in the middle that's supposed to keep the Great Old Ones at bay? That's Derleth's. (Lovecraft's description of it looked more like a stick.)

[alexriviello]

Video Game Review: Dishonored

These days it’s almost refreshing to see a major new vdeo game without a large number at the end of it. Thanks to Bethesda Softworks we have a new IP from Arkane Studios (Dark Messiah), a studio who once worked on an unreleased Half-Life installment called Return to Ravenholm. It feels like they finally got their chance at something similar with Dishonored, a game that meshes the dark and ruined world of a Half-Life or Bioshock with the stealth right out of Thief. It’s just amusing that the first original game we get in a while is such a mash-up of others.

Read the rest here: http://badassdigest.com/2012/10/09/video-game-review-dishonored/ 

[alexriviello]

Life! Taking Over!

Man, there's nothing like caring for kids to sap your creative energy. My youngest is three months right now, my oldest two years and change. Working nights and watching them both a few days out of the week is incredibly draining. I'd never change it for anything- how many men can say they spend so much time raising their kids?- but it's really getting brutal as far as my creative output. Sometimes when I sit down to do some serious writing my brain simply won't work and I end up just staring at the screen, my mind blank. It's frustrating and infuriating all at once, even more so when I'm content to do things I don't usually do, like sleep, whereas before I was writing like a insomniac madman. I haven't lost that drive but I just have less and less time to be able to let it loose.

Fortunately I've got a few projects in the wings, including covering beer fests and the New York Comic Con, and I'm still working steady on my weekly Tapsauce review column. That last one's been a great gig and thanks to it I've played dozens of games I never would have tried, but I really need a new damn phone. My Droid X is falling apart, most recently becoming completely useless as an actual phone. If I call someone it sounds like I fell down a well. I love Android but I'm looking at picking up an iPhone 5 merely for gaming. (Google Play's catching up but every developer prefers the app store.)

Besides that I've also been doing much more beer brewing and some great praise from my friends who say the beers have been getting better and better. That might be the alcohol talking but I'm definitely learning more and more about the craft.

I've also gotten ridiculously enamored with board and tabletop games over the last couple of years. I still play video games but for a guy who doesn't get to go out much my best chance at socializing is by inviting people over, and I'd much rather scream at my friends over a table than over a headset. It's been a blast to explore this new world- all kinds of games from Arkham Horror and Battlestar Galactica to Small World and Risk Legacy. I even started up a Pathfinder campaign a few weeks ago. Getting geekier in my old age and loving it.

But family takes up most of my waking hours and right now I'm looking for something to ease my schedule. I've been working nights for two years now and it's starting to really get to me. We're trying to get my wife to be able to stay home (she works part-time) with the kids, so the job search is on...

[alexriviello]

Inversion- when games copy other games.

I've had a copy of Inversion sitting on my shelf for a while now. I hadn't heard anything about it and hadn't really anticipated that changing, but a couple of days ago I decided to fire it up. It may have been late and beers might have been involved. But it was nice to find out that it's certainly not a bad game, although it's a familiar one. A very familiar one.

Let's see here.

A catastrophic event takes place where the planet comes under attack from an alien menace that burrows up from under the ground, destroying whole cities.

A beefy man and his ethnic sidekick fight back against them, grabbing rifles that have giant bayonets at the end.

Cover-based combat that lets you dive from waist-high wall to waist-high wall.

Brutal close-up executions, including curb-stomps.

An engine that apparently isn't the Unreal engine but sure looks like it.

A character searching for a missing family member.

Melodrama laid on thick as can be.

Yeah. It's frustrating to see how much it apes Gears of War because it's a solid third person shooter otherwise. The engine offers some nice destruction, a few of the bigger enemies are fun to fight, and the protagonist's quest to find his missing daughter works well enough, although not nearly as well as I Am Alive. I'm going to play through the whole campaign, something that couldn't be said for a couple of other titles I recently gave up on. (Just in case you were wondering the Battleship video game is not good. Sorry to ruin your day.)

The cover of Inversion hints at it but the big gimmick here is that the world's gravity can change. Soon into the campaign you'll find the Gravlink, a device that lets you control gravity, or at least send opponents and cars flying around like you were imbued with Jedi powers. The world can also change its gravity, forcing you to traverse the ceilings or sides of buildings, which are conveniently covered with signs and structures to take cover behind. Once in a while you'll even enter a zero-g environment which allows you to jump through the air... to cling on from cover to cover. In other words no, the gameplay never changes.

But it's hard to shake how much they've stolen from Gears of War, from the UI to the characters and enemies to nearly every single weapon. (The first guns you get are a Lancer, Double-barreled shotgun and Hammerburst. Not those names of course, but...) It's all enough to pull you out of the game and ruin the whole thing, to make you wonder why the company wasted years putting together this game that's not even trying to hide what it's doing. Why would anyone get the copy when they can just pick up the real thing?

And then I think about a title like Darksiders, which completely ripped off The Legend of Zelda's formula, and wonder why it was so easy to get over that fact and simply enjoy the game. Perhaps it was the post-apocalyptic theme which was so removed from Zelda's cartoony world, and thus felt new even though it was the exact same thing we've been playing since The Ocarina of Time.

Perhaps setting is key... as long as you change up the look enough it's easy to ignore the lack of innovation?