Ben-Yahtzee-Croshaw
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Hyperspace Beacon: The Gray Jedi
"For over a thousand generations the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times. Before the Empire." Ben Kenobi explained this to a young Luke Skywalker when he gave the boy Anakin's lightsaber. Although this statement introduced us to the Jedi, it gave us only a brief glimpse into what it means to be one. In subsequent movies and books, the Jedi Knights were fleshed out to be anything from Buddhist Monks, Taoists, and Knights Templar. Maybe they are really a combination of all of them. George Lucas has never specifically mentioned where his inspiration for these warriors of a more civilized age came from, but one thing has been consistent: Jedi are the heroes -- or at least they are supposed to be. In a brief conversation at PAX, Daniel Erickson, Lead Writer for Star Wars; The Old Republic, told me that BioWare is exploring a more "gray side" to its storytelling. Those who have played Knights of the Old Republic or either Mass Effect game know that this is new ground for BioWare. If your character walked the line between paragon and renegade in the Mass Effect games, your choice made it quite difficult to get a good ending. I believe Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw, a reviewer for the Escapist, explained it most succinctly in his review of Mass Effect 2: "When you're choosing to free a race of slaves or force them to dance about while you take pictures of them, you're not thinking 'What would I do in this situation?' You're thinking, 'Which option gives me the best $%^&head points because I need them to persuade Crewman A to take her top off?'" Will SWTOR change this perception of BioWare moralism? Continue reading after the break as we explore this anti-heroic stance and the controversy regarding the Gray Jedi.
Yahtzee and others to open Australian video game bar
Rather than make a four-to-six minute video decrying the lack of gaming-themed bars in his current country of residence, The Escapist's Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw has partnered with three other gentlemen to open Mana Bar. According to the press release, the Brisbane-based bar will open in February and targets "a wider casual market, while still catering to the hardcore gamer crowd." There is no charge for entry or to play games (from "the latest video game systems"), and the presser details plans for tournaments and game release parties (among other things). The bar even has a Twitter and Facebook page up already with plenty of extra details and photos should you choose to follow along with the renovation process. Unfortunately, the only mention of refreshments is the "unique selection of drinks and custom cocktails" available, as well as the picture you see above. We are anxiously awaiting the presumably lengthy beer list.
GameX 2009: Victorian spaceships with Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw
Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of the infamous Zero Punctuation reviews on The Escapist is a bit tricky to track down, but we were able to get some time in with him at this year's GameX in Philadelphia. We pitched the fast talking reviewer some questions to get his opinion on the MMO genre beyond his reviews of Tabula Rasa and EVE Online, and found out some interesting things -- like victorian steampunk spaceships are awesome. So what breaks the MMO genre for Yahtzee? Will more MMOs be smash... er... featured on Zero Punctuation? If you're wondering the answers to these questions, then wonder no more! Just click on through after the break to check out our video interview!
Zero Punctuation takes on Guitar Hero III
Love him or hate him, Yahtzee always seems to invoke some sort of emotion with his crudely worded, flash animation reviews. This week, he tackles Guitar Hero III, and guess what? He hates it. It seems that Activision just can't get any love today.Watch him bash the game and defend his heterosexuality in the NSFW video after the break.
Zero Punctuation disembowels Phantom Hourglass
We've all played or heard of The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. We all know that everyone who played it loved it. Let's move on. Wait ... what's that? Not everyone loved it? Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw, in fact, despised it?Apparently so! But hating on a game is never as amusing as it is in The Escapist's "Zero Punctuation," so we don't mind. We found this review to be rather funny. If you don't feel like your poor heart can take it, though, feel free to watch some other reviews of Phantom Hourglass that involve girl cosplayers.Warning: The audio in this video makes it NSFW. Oh, and there's some bad visual bits, too.[Thanks, Brian!]
'Zero Punctuation' covers Super Paper Mario, gives us lulz
If you've been around the internets, you might have heard of a fellow named Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw. If not, we can assure you that you're missing out. For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of experiencing Mr. Croshaw, let us explain. Every week he does a video game review for The Escapist aptly titled "Zero Punctuation," since he never seems to take a breath between words and sentences. So, why did we wait so long to bring this joy to you? Well, because "Yahtzee" did his first review of a Wii game, huzzah! That's right, folks, we bring to you a "Yahtzee" review of Super Paper Mario. Even when he's being downright mean (er, all the time), we have to love him because he makes us laugh in the process.Now that we've built up this video so much that it won't meet your expectations (oops), watch away! But fair warning: Mr. Croshaw's potty mouth and vulgarities make this video slightly NSFW.
