Sean Akizuki's Fantasy Critic

It's no doubt that Tekken couldn't have become better if it wasn't for the second entry called Tekken 2. It's nearly the same phenomenon that launched a couple of games in the 90s to early 2000s via their second entries. It reminds me of how the first Mortal Kombat game gets underappreciated eventually because of the second entry. It reminds me of how Street Fighter's first game gets ignored in favor of the superior Street Fighter II series. Tekken is no different and the second game is what gave Tekken the definition of what it means to be in the King of Iron Fist Tournament, right? Well, I thought of the reasons why I haven't been playing some retro games. Playing Mortal Kombat II? The most retro Mortal Kombat game I'd be playing today is the reboot which gets recognized as Mortal Kombat 9 by the fans! Playing Street Fighter II series? Street Fighter IV series for the win! I feel the same with Tekken 2. Tekken 2 maybe that fan-favorite game but like Morta...

I remembered writing about how I think Megaman X6 is just unfairly maligned . Now, I think that Megaman 6 shares a near-similar pattern with Megaman X6 in that area. Megaman X6 is known for being notoriously difficult but I'd pick that game over the overrated Megaman 2 any day. Now, I'd like to defend the overshadowed NES classic which was unfortunately released too late. That is remember Capcom already released the first Megaman X game during the same year! One was for the dying NES and the other was for the emerging Super NES. I've played this game over the NES and later replayed it over in the Megaman Legacy Collection for the PS2. I may be a bigger fan of the Megaman X series over Classic Megaman but I don't want to dismiss this one. The game was apparently meant to end the Classic series that was until Megaman 7 was released after Megaman X3. The series simply had "to be continued" written at the end of the credits suggesting it wasn't the end. D...

I did previously write why I think Megaman X6 is just unfairly maligned . Now, I think I'd write why I think Megaman X7 deserves all the flak it gets. I would admit that I do have a mix of popular and unpopular opinions. Why do I consider it to be really a very bad game? I decided to try and get some of the trophies for Megaman X Legacy Collection 2. Difficult can be fun - that's why I still think X6 is so unfairly maligned! Megaman 2 still has a lot of fans due to its challenge level. Megaman X7 can probably enter into the zone of "It's so difficult to the point it's more annoying than challenging!" It's safe to say I'd probably still pick Megaman 2 or Megaman X3 over this game. We could always start with the gameplay. Seriously, what's wrong with it? It doesn't take a gaming expert to find out. If you've played a series of Megaman games before it then you might relate to the frustration. The game itself really worsens almost everything ...

Some games really just got more popular during the second round, right? I think that's one of the many things Tekken has in common with Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter . All those games took better launch with the second game than the first. The first Tekken game was pretty much just an introduction. It was just an experimental game. If it succeeds then we're going forward. If not, we're not moving forward. It felt that way. The first Tekken game succeeded and sold a lot of copies. Then just like Mortal Kombat - they decided that just one year after the first game would mean another game. The second game now started with newer, more interesting characters and a new plot. The first game had Kazuya beat his own father Heihachi. However, the Faustian pact he made as a child corrupted his soul. This causes a new level of conflict as Heihachi must try to look like a hero after his own son's true nature (if ever) got revealed. Jun enters into the conflict that would birth...

It's no doubt that Optimus Prime happens to be one of my favorite Transformers characters though I can relate more to Hotrod/Rodimus Prime instead. So, what's the deal with me mindblown that Ginrai wasn't Optimus Prime? Back then, I watched that really sh*tty Takara Transformers trilogy dub. Who can remember calling Deszaras as Dezandras? A huge error in the dubbing by Omni Dub Productions in Hong Kong was calling Ginrai as Optimus Prime. So, it turns out that Optimus Prime had a backup body AND fused with a human named Ginrai. Hence, Ginrai looks like Optimus Prime but with some subtle differences to the late, great Autobot leader. Mindblown? Well, I would dare say yes. I haven't watched the Takara Transformers series in the original audio (which was no surprise had Toei's involvement too) so I just bought the sh*tty Omni Dub hook, line, and sinker. What was totally wrecking was when I got into the Transformers Wiki and found out that Ginrai isn't Optimus P...

Since it's December and there's the term Disneycember - I just want to throw in a bit of a joke right now. I always feel the return of Palpatine is simply asking the evilest Sith lord to bail them out of possible criticism. I also feel that Disney now has a hotter Mulan just as another desperate attempt to bail them out. So, I'd like to throw in a bit of a crude joke to make fun of the two situations. They could've done it last 2017. While I did write about casting Emma Roberts as Belle  - I just want to divert it on. Roberts is more or less a live version of Belle complete from the pretty face to rather being flat in some way. Since, Liu Yi Fei is actually a way hotter Mulan - I thought Disney could've thought of having a hotter Belle. My pick would be Gracie Dzienny as Belle. It's because she's not only pretty but she's also really sexy - she would have made Belle way hotter than she was in 1991. It was a beautiful desperation Disney could've pu...

The Street Fighter series wasn't officially launched as a hit game until Street Fighter II . I remembered the craze that it had with the release of the II series for the arcades and home consoles. Granted, I never had a Super Nintendo so I didn't really experience it that much. The Playstation which came during the late 90s for us brought me the Street Fighter 2 Collection disc and there was also Super Street Fighter II followed up with Turbo . I wonder what was in Capcom's head when they created the rehash of the II series. We never saw that for Mortal Kombat II being rehashed so often huh? MK3 which wasn't so popular had UMK3 and MK Trilogy as follow-ups that didn't do much either. I could remember these games to be what they are today - terribly imbalanced with the CPU that cheated you so often. The arcade machines were notoriously crazy. I remembered how it was so stupid that certain characters can do charge moves CONSECUTIVELY while you needed to charge back...

I remembered all the hype Marvel vs. Capcom 2 got WAY BACK in the 2000s. I don't want to deny that many people lined up to play the game. Three vs. three? Heavier hitter specials? Many endless possibilities? The game had a lot of potential to become a better game. However, the more I play it - the more I realized I may have been better off with some of the previous installments of the Marvel vs. Capcom series such as  X-Men vs. Street Fighter , Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter  or the first Marvel vs. Capcom game. I feel like paying extra credits to get the game's full edition, which wasn't available during the PS1 days. I remembered playing this game on the PlayStation 2 and before that - the arcade. It was a fun experience but fun while it lasted for a good reason. Three vs. three sounded fun. All the insane team-up hyper combo possibilities were there. I could remember how I started analyzing which beam-type supers would work together. It was pretty much a chees...

I'm so amazed at how Elizabeth Banks (who you may know is Rita Repulsa in the Power Rangers (2017) movie) is barking at the wrong tree. Blaming men for the movie's failure? Please, that's so stupid. I really hit my face on the desk just hearing about how Banks blames men for its failure. Somehow, with Banks on it, it was already predictable it was going to fail. That Power Rangers (2017)  movie really had it coming with the SJW stupidity (which sadly takes advantage of people with disabilities and identity crisis), boring plotlines, and annoying sob stories - the very same reason why Charlie's Angels (2019) just had it coming too. Better rename the movie to Charlie's Fallen Angels , right? Let's consider the fact that you may have women liking a movie with a male lead and men liking a movie with a female lead. As a guy, I usually don't mind the gender of the lead as long as he or she can do it right. Some of my favorite franchises have women protagonis...

There's no doubt that I'm a nostalgic gamer, I do tend to miss some old games but other old games are no longer worth revisiting. Okay, this is just an opinion so if you still pick this game then CHILL. However, I always feel my desire to rant my opinions, especially with some old school games. It's no secret that I no longer play all old school Mortal Kombat games before reboot - maybe except only Shaolin Monks which is an adventure spinoff. So pretty much let's begin in talking about what I think is probably one of the most overrated Mortal Kombat games ever. If you Google "MK Games Ranked" you may find Mortal Kombat II has a special place in the heart of the fans. I remembered how the 90s had MKII having more regard than MK3 . The popularity of the game no doubt influenced later installments such as Shaolin Monks and need I say the longest portion in Mortal Kombat 9's story mode is devoted to the Outworld tournament? It's true that it's...

I really hate to think of how Megaman X6 happens to be unfairly maligned. Maybe,  Megaman X7  is too though I happen to be one of the most passionate critics against it. Why do I think Megaman X6 is unfairly maligned? It's because after playing the game once or twice - it really isn't as HORRIBLE as some may think it is. I've played through all of the mainstream Megaman X games for the console (X1 to X8) and I could say X6 may not be the best but it's definitely NOT the worst! Its American import is kinda lazy if you ask me. Why aren't the Japanese voices removed? Then again, I'm not complaining because I get to hear better voices. There's also some erroneous spelling such as "overwrite" is written as "overwright". The game itself presents to be very hard. You can also miss a lot of rescuable Reploids if you're not fast enough. The game itself can be a challenge. Sometimes, you just need to punch in that Ultimate Armor code to he...

It's no doubt that Mortal Kombat Deception way back in 2004 won some recognition and awards. If you do some research - you will realize that the game was awarded Fighting Game of the Year by Spike Video Game Awards and  Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences . I was fascinated by the game during the PS2 era without thinking that Tekken 6 was just near. The game itself was transitioning the Mortal Kombat franchise into 3D. Many ideas sounded good but only good on paper. Multiple fighting styles per character? It sounds good to shift between fighting styles. 3D gameplay? Well, 2D seemed obsolete until you realize some good fighting games are in 2D! A new plot was unfolding namely the return of Outworld's previous ruler known as Onaga. It was discovered through the Gamecube version that Shao Kahn overthrew his previous master. Onaga is a menace that returned seeking revenge. The fact he was Shao Kahn's former master had plenty of room. Yet, there was one character th...

I remembered writing about Emperor Palpatine's sudden appearance in The Rise of Skywalker . Now, I heard Disney is retconning Palpatine as a figurehead which is WTF in contrast to the Lucas Canon. Palpatine himself under the strings of a woman? Why do I smell SJW stupidity again? Now, I want to consider the Mulan (2020) film which may actually be nothing more than a desperate bailout. So, they did get a less hot Princess Jasmine in Aladdin (2019) which did work in some way. Personally, I prefer the less attractive Jasmine. Though I still think Naomi Scott should've been Mother Guan Yin Though people know how much I yap and yap about how Belle in Beauty and the Beast (2017) was nowhere near as hot as Beauty and the Beast (1991). I just think Emma Watson was definitely not a good choice. Come on Disney, are you blind? I'd still consider this move a pathetic attempt at a bailout for Disney. So, I was wondering if they were thinking, "Okay, we didn't get a hotter Bel...

I'm not exactly a fan of the Vampire Chronicles series though I'd love to make a bit of a trick or treat nitpick. One movie I remembered seeing during Halloween during the 90s (at least on cable TV and I was still 10 at that time) was Interview with the Vampire which will celebrate its silver anniversary on November 5, 2019. However, I'd like to write it today because it's October 31. Speaking of silver, aren't vampires supposedly scared of silver? So, for a bit of a Halloween post - I'd actually just do a minor nitpick of who should've played the mortal woman on stage. I could remember the guilty pleasure of rewinding the scene and only watching the movie for this scene. However, I thought about my own wishful casting for the mortal woman on stage. Then I think of the curious tidbit behind why Laure Marsac was chosen... Vampires, especially the stylish sub-breed of those defiling bloodsuckers who group together onscreen in movies Oscar-nominated f...

Is it me or does Disney really RUIN everything now? Marvel is ruined by them with SJW agenda. Now, I even think they've ruined ALMOST. EVERY. CLASSIC. they made themselves. Now, it's time to think about how Star Wars itself is ruined by Disney one way or another. I really find the Disney Canon to be dull and uninspired in contrast to the Legends Canon. Yes, the Legends Canon by George Lucas. I could understand if Disney wanted to make their own Star Wars continuity to avoid conflict with the Legends Canon but it's not really worth a drop. Now, it's time to consider that Disney may have had the nasty habit of trying to bail itself out at the superficial level. Palpatine is indeed returning for The Rise of Skywalker, which is just a bailout for me. Everybody in the Star Wars fandom just loves Palpatine as a villain, right? If there's any Star Wars villain I'd say is also iconic aside from Darth Vader (who's apparently more popular) then it's Darth Sid...

I remembered writing a bit of an entry where I talked about Power Rangers girls that I find prettier than their Super Sentai counterparts . I just want to write a bit of a joke post (sort of). I was watching Beast Morphers and for me, I can't consider it terrible. If I could think of RPM right now though, I'd dare say that I might watch the rather overly idiotic Go-Onger for the reason that the latter actually had more character development space. RPM just feels pretty rushed like some of Toei's rushed projects such as Kamen Rider Amazon. Now, I'd like to do a bit of a crazy rant for the sake of it about Power Rangers eye candy becoming beautifully pointless! I'd be lying to say that I don't find Zoey prettier than her counterpart Yoko in Go-Busters or even Asuna in Ryusoulger. I even think she's taken the crown from Kimberly right now as being prettier than any Super Sentai or Power Rangers chick. Right now, I'm getting somewhat critical of Ryusou...

Toku has a lot of weird logic going on. While trying to enjoy the rather boring (at least for me) Showa era Riders - I do end up thinking of some badass scenes. Kamen Rider Stronger and later Kamen Rider Skyrider featured both Megazord-sized foes in the form of the Great Leader's two decoys. The Great Leader used a rock giant in Stronger and a dragon form in Skyrider which both could've easily been defeated by a giant Megazord driven by either a Super Sentai team or a Power Rangers team but would have easily crushed the Kamen Riders. What's so badass about it? I really think about it that Kamen Rider wasn't a show meant to fight giant monsters. The monsters are all human-sized yet there's the occasion when they are given problems too big for them to handle and emerge victorious in the end. I really find it funny (or stupid) to why we had these scenes. Are they trying to show off how great the Kamen Riders have become at the end to handle a Megazord-sized problem t...

If we're applying some reality-based logic -- Magneto himself would've probably won against some of Marvel's heroes without using his full potential. He can do cool stuff beyond metal manipulation such as firing dangerous magnetic blasts, fly, knock people into a coma, produce barriers, manipulate electrons, push you back with a magnetic wave but he can simply win by just using ferromagnetism in some instances. You can imagine how Magneto could just crush Ironman with his suit, fire back Captain America's shield, appeal to Hulk using the victim card, rip the Vision apart, deflect Thor's hammer, rip off Bucky's arm, and maybe even steal Thanos' gems because the glove is made of metal. Early on, Magneto also ripped off Wolverine's adamantium from the latter's skeleton or nearly shred Cable to pieces. You can imagine just how Magneto himself as an anti-villain could've also won against others like Ultron, Dr. Doom, the Sentinels (and that's why ...

Whether you like it or not but Beast Wars may be an entirely different group of characters but it's still part of the Generation 1 (G1) Continuity . How the Maximals and Predacons are supposedly descendants of the Autobots and Decepticons isn't explained. Robot biology anyone? What was certain is that Beast Wars Megatron simply took the name after the original Megatron. I wasn't ready to accept the new era of Transformers until I realized it was all part of the same universe. Why Hasbro decided to make Beast Wars part of the G1 Continuity rather than its own continuity kind of bothers me. But I'd like to give some praises to a series that actually deserved its praise. Trying to actually have a different set that managed to differ even more from its predecessor While Beast Wars is indeed part of the G1 Continuity but takes place sometime later (though they landed on a primitive Earth which may have disrupted the G1 timeline - go figure). I really love how the cha...

I thought I'd say goodbye to Beast Morphers but I decided to give it a shot to see how Hasbro can handle it. I don't know why the word "Saban's" is still in the title though. Did Toei just let that technicality pass now that their American partnership is with Hasbro? Or does Saban still have a partnership with Toei except now Hasbro is part of it? I decided to try watching Beast Morphers (but no episode reviews, sorry) considering that I still have had that soft spot for Lost Galaxy (though it's hardened somewhat due to Flashman which is a totally different show), Lightspeed Rescue , and Time Force . Side note, I still wish that both Lightspeed Rescue and Time Force were given 10 more episodes to develop everyone -- it suffers from the same pacing issues as did Metalder which I heard was canceled due to lower viewership from children! As far as the show is concerned -- I wouldn't call it total garbage or terrible. In fact, it's a huge improvement ...