the other press Game Review Mechassault—When you blow a Mech up, they blow up real good. Phantasy Star Online—Looks like it’s orth the extra fee Brandon Yip DP Contributor ining. amed “Todd” and “Kyle.” eorge Carlin, the 65-year-old king of cynicism and ethodical dissector of the English language, played to a rowd of approximately 2,200 at the Orpheum Theatre anuary 21. When he came onstage, he was casually lressed in a faded black T-shirt and matching jeans. He en saluted the crowd and opened with “Here’s some- ing you never hear people talk about anymore, pussy- arts!” Yes, it was his time to shock and mock and be rude nd crude. There was no scent of Mr. Clean coming from Carlin’s breath, nor any behaviour resembling his Mr. onductor character on the TV series Shining Time tation. Instead Carlin held nothing back, eviscerating he crowd with his condescending razor-sharp wit and one of voice that could be both conniving and enlight- And old Georgey doesn’t play any favourites—he ttacked everyone and everything from answering achines, bumper stickers, Christians, Techno-geeks, harlton Heston and “gun enthusiasts,” people who buy fisors, parents who brag about their children, singers ith one name (Bono, Prince, Sting, Jewel,) and guys Carlin brought out his comedic gun and fired numer- us shots from his comedy holster, including a rant about Culture http://otherpress.douglas.bc.ca The Xbox has taken a lot of heat since it was first released. Being the newcomer into the console race, and being the offspring of the much-maligned Microsoft, it seems that so-called “hardcore” gamers have had a little trouble giving it a shot. Some peo- ple have even gone so far as to take a cheap shot at it by calling it the “Ford Truck of gaming.” Well, I am here as a hardcore gamer to tell you, that, yes my friends, Microsoft's heavyweight box is indeed a contender, and the way things are going, the future champ. Last year started out sluggishly for game selection, but then picked up exponential- ly, helped by a good kick in the ass from the most perfect gaming tool and service around, Xbox Live. Xbox Live (XBL) allows players to play against other players worldwide, via an ingenious online strate- gy implemented by Microsoft themselves. They have created a unified service for all games, meaning you pay one fee for every- thing, and you can play any Xbox live game. With already around 15 XBL enabled games available, and 80 more XBL titles slated for release in the upcoming year, the future is bright indeed. Even if you are an RPG fan, there is hope. Phantasy Star Online, (A Dreamcast classic) has been Berry blush. hit-and-run accidents, which would have made Halle Carlin brought out some of the old material and some new. One segment had him making cracks about suicide. He delved into the various methods of suicide and said younger people would be more attracted to suicide if they made it into a sport—and called it “Extreme Living!” He also went on a tirade about there being too many songs. He bitched about love songs making him sick, “Everyone sings about a broken heart. What about a punctured lung? Nobody sings about that!” He suggested that there should be a song made about tuberculosis—having a guy just “cough” throughout for three minutes. Throughout the show Carlin made many crude sexual remarks. One of those included, “Here’s something you never hear a man say, ‘Stop sucking my dick or I’ll call the police! ” He also incorporated bath- room humour, making several unmitigated fart jokes that had the audience smelling one bad pun after another. But the crowd was taken aback further when Carlin treaded (once again) over the boundary of good taste— making several jokes about cancer, telling the audience, “I know it’s touchy, but fuck you!” He later discussed in graphic detail—his enema experiment with his buddy redone for the big black and green box, so you wont have to leave your house merely to play an MMORPG. It may cost you an additional $10. per month, on top of your XBL fee, but it should be worth it. This is opposed to the sketchy PS2 online strategy, where you have to pay separately for each game, and have no guarantee of online support for the game you just plunked $70 down on. With the PS2, you also have to buy two more peripheral units, a network adapter and a hard drive. Each priced at around the price of a game, and both of which are included inside an Xbox. This is also opposed to the complete lack of online support with the GameCube. Another great feature of XBL is that every single game that uses it has Voice support. This means you can always talk to and hear the people you are playing with. While it is true that SOCOM: U.S. Navy Seals for PS2 uses this, it is not supported by other games, and adds to already terri- ble lag, as PS2 also has phone line users on its online arenas. Lag on XBL is a thing of the past. Well, because XBL is broadband only, and run off of dedicated servers, lag is about as common as Celine Dion being played on the Fox. For more info on Xbox live, check . The built in Network card also allows for be silent. February 19, 2003 some another seriously wicked option, LAN parties. This function is called “System Link” in the game. If you want to play eight-player Halo or Unreal Championship (or any other game that sup- ports it) merely get two TVs, your buddy’s Xbox, and an Ethernet cable, and you're good to go! System link currently supports up to four Xboxes at a time, allowing you to play up to 16 players, in one house, in a lag-free environment. (four consoles, four- players per console) eight vs. eight player Capture The Flag in Halo is intense. Not only this, but there are some amaz- ing single player experiences. The Shenmue series is now exclusively Xbox. Another awesome feature of XBL is down- loadable content. Splinter Cell, an amazing stealth action game uses this feature, which is made possible only by the Xbox’s built- in hard drive, has downloadable missions. Mechassault will soon be releasing new maps and Mechs. Updated rosters and sta- diums in sports games are all now possibil- ities. Well, I could extol the virtues of the box all day, but I will leave you up to see for yourself. Besides, what’s wrong with being the Ford Truck of gaming? It’s better than sedan. being the Honda family Cody_Sawatsky@hotmail.com Leon, which made some in the audience laugh, cringe or However sick and twisted some of Carlin’s shtick was, he is a polished veteran comedian with 12 HBO specials under his belt, along with two best-selling books (Braindroppings and Napalm & Silly Putty). On the acting front, he will be playing Ben Affleck’s father in Kevin Smith's Jersey Girl—to be released later this year. What more does Carlin have to do? George Carlin has been a pioneer for breaking down the barriers that often hinder comedians—topics that are controversial to poke fun at: abortion, cancer, anorexia, rape, suicide, religion. Carlin, along with Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor, and later Bill Hicks, challenged the uptight establishment. Carlin’s firing from the Frontier Hotel in Las Vegas in the early 1970s for using profanity seems laughable today—the Osbournes ought to be “fuckin” thanking Carlin! His brilliant “Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television” routine in the 1970s brought him notoriety and, ironically, some of those seven words have made their way onto mainstream tele- vision today. George Carlin used the adage of “saying what you truly mean” and he was truly MEAN in what he was saying at the Orpheum last Tuesday night. page 9 ©