Thursday 26 July 2012

Max 330 Mega Chapter 3 - Pie and Chips


Taking an interval from ‘variety’, I continue my Neo Geo round up.

Welcome to Chapter 3 and this is where we take control of a spaceship (most of the time) and use the most sophisticated weaponry created in pixels to blow every enemy and boss to kingdom come before achieving the inevitable tag of being the universe’s savior.

This is shmups - Neo Geo style and while there’s hardly a full magazine to go through, a few shells will be fired.

Unlike a territorial, the majority of which certainly don’t fire blanks.  Three in particular feature rather impressive visuals, will never be forgotten in Neo land and remain fantastic today. 

That’s quite a feat, considering that these were released in the early to mid nineties….

Hyperdrive engaged destination space, target – destroy all sprites that are trying to test out if your shuttle is bullet proof.

(Activate voice computer’s voice recognition unit).

“Computer, commence pixels in space.”

“Confirmed, mission accepted.”

“Additional information - running out of continues or patience must not result in the damage or destruction of any important input devices such as joypads and/or joysticks.”

“Thanks in advance.”

Yours faithfully

The sleek and mean, meg munching killing machine.

We’ll start with Ghost Pilots.

Let’s get this out of the way, let’s say it’s got a likeness to Capcom’s 19XX games.

After a brief intro, when it begins, you choose from two types of bombs (which do become more varied) and away we fly.

Throughout you can expect the usual power ups to add beef to your pea shooter and pointless bonus points.

These dollar signs achieve points appear after you’ve destroyed a full attack wave or formation of enemies.  The power ups appear when destroying certain enemies so that’s incredibly original…

Lives and bombs also can appear if you’re fortunate enough.

There’s not too many enemies that will surprise you (given the theme) so expect numerous types of planes, truck, jets, tanks and boats.

Well it would be pretty lame w/o huge bosses and this is not shy of them.

Expect varieties of meaty tanks, planes, hovercrafts and airships to stand in your way of a journey beneath clouds, followed by a deserved descent to the sea.

The game follows the same boring pattern after every stage which is completed.  For the love of delaying the action, let’s just get on with it.

I believe once, it will allow you to choose the next stage.

Terrain was nice and varied as you’ll fly over jungles, sea, airfields, mountains, volcanoes and runways.

Apart from that irritating mess when finishing a stage, it was really a decent game.

The visuals are very nice, detailed and feature some great touches as grounded enemies will send off by leaving a burning crater, enemies will appear from all manner of places, clouds passing as you soar through the sky.  There’s even some subtle scaling effects to appreciate.

Other effects include enemies catching fire before plummeting to an inevitable explosion.  It would be difficult to complain about pyrotechnics too.

Music and FX is pretty decent too as it suit you sir.

The highlights are the variety in bosses and quite an epic last level as numerous and large artillery stands in your way before becoming victorious.

Overall, you could certainly do a lot worse as it takes a while to play through, offers quite a challenge and for an early Neo game, it certainly looked pretty dapper.

Now I invite you to share some space with Alpha Mission II.

This is what we’re after, a proper shooting game in space with more mech and tech to shame a Manga cartoon.

What happened to the first Alpha Mission, well for that, you have to go back to 1985 and classic SNK arcade hardware….

In Japan, it’s known as ASO (Armoured Scrum Object) so they decided to call the sequel ASO II: Last Guardian.  Okay, I get the ASO part but again I scratch my head as it’s not and never was called Alpha Mission II: Last Guardian, instead just Alpha Mission II.

Why confuse things and what’s the fucking point in adding a subtitle if you’re not going to use it in an international sense.

Back to it, let’s blast off.

It’s sort of like Namco’s Xevious as it features ground and air weapons used specifically to destroy vertigo stricken or ground phobic enemies.

This was good too as it featured highly detailed graphics, a huge variety of enemies, weaponry and big boys as bosses.

Like Ghost Pilots, enemies could appear in an untraditional sense and perform a shrinking descent.

Using G, you could buy different weapons and each area presented some exciting space scenery.

Nicely, enemies could clamp together to form one.

It threw an early surprise as a large mothership enters the frame (that you eventually infiltrate).
Super weapons included Phoenix flames and black holes.

What I liked most is that regular enemies could effectively be bosses in themselves.

Like all good shooters, it also had a great end boss.

Nice!

Andro Dunos is served and after playing it, many would leave their food uneaten.

It was by Visco but unfortunately this was no Data East game…

Let’s dive in.

The basic idea, like so many before it, was to shoot an attack wave of enemies, which would result in a power up left that effectively gave you a choice of weapons as it allowed you cycle through.  A super weapon could also be used in the same way as seen in R-Type.

In attempting to induce a state of disorientation, action was multi-directional which made it mildly interesting.  There was a decent variety of baddies to blast but even then, its main problem was it looked worse than a mediocre SNES and/or Megadrive game

What could save it was the obstacle that stood in your way at the end of each stage but unfortunately, the bosses couldn’t fight their way out of a paper bag.

To be fair some looked okay and the end boss at least had a go at going out with a bang instead of a whimper but overall, a fairly limp attempt of intergalactic attack.

Things could only improve and they did (to an extent) as I next describe Zed Blade.  This was by NMK and was their first and only Neo game.

This was a hundred times better than the former but really, it didn’t have to try much.

 It reminded me so much of Silkworm but was most remembered because the enemies starting off as spherical cubes before becoming their true form.

It also had a nice trippy trance soundtrack, mixing it up with occasional odd speech.

It boasted a fairly great assortment of weaponry which could be beefed up to deal some delightful damage to the alien scum.

What made this a far better shooter than Andro Dunos as while not only looking meatier, I liked the way enemies acted as a shield by protecting the bosses’ weak point.

Bosses are always important and while this wouldn’t blow anybody away, it certainly featured some interesting looking bio-mechanical objects.  The final boss was a female alien with branches as hair.  It was indestructible until you eventually found its power source – a peculiar heart.

Backgrounds weren’t particularly great but did feature nice parallax scrolling.

So while not brilliant, it threatened to be good and well worth a blast or two.

Back to Visco next with the Aero Fighters series, but like Alpha Mission, it skipped to 2 as the first was arcade only.

It was like 19XX so had potential.

BTW, in Japan, this was called Sonic Wings and you could get Sonic Wings Special on PS1, which mixed all three games together.

Aero Fighters 2 is launched.

What struck me as odd was that the pilots of at least one fighter jet weren’t entirely human; a dolphin was available to take to the skies.  I mean, sure dolphins are intelligent but able to fly a jet.  Oh, a ninja hung up his katana for literally a change of scenery.

I guess it was the theme of the game but even so…

So that’s the weird shit outta of the way and this was another that was worth playing.

Enemies were not typical fare as buildings became robots and all kinds of shit would fly at you.

The usual stereotypes featured such as tanks, choppers, submarines, boats and types of plane.

I like odd, as long as it’s good ‘odd’ and this didn’t disappoint.

Bosses included large vehicles, a huge boat and stealth bombers.

Throughout the dodging, you could admire scenery as it included Paris, Hawaii and Australia which of course all feature famous landmarks.  Big wheels would tumble as most things could be destroyed – why not hey?

Graphics and backgrounds were nicely detailed and a nice effect was sparks upon impacting enemies.

It could be rather active and sometimes presented a decent challenge.

In the end though, it all gets rather weird.

The first end boss was a mutant monkey flying a spaceship.  The rest is normal and then after a few lines have been snorted, yeah just shove the ridiculous in.

What made it freakier is that it looked and sounded worried when mini-me’s were fired.

I thought we’d be drifting into Karnov territory but no, not really.

Okay, that’s fucked up but while the actual end boss was still out of sync with the theme of the game, it threatened normality.

Before that though, a due sense of dread preceded this with an audible heartbeat.  The end boss couldn’t back up this apparent fear…

It was an eye which used various amounts of attacks to shoot you down.  The worst was when it literally became a spaceship as the bullets came thick and fast.

The madness didn’t stop there as when it was nearly dead, it could sprout a large human arm…  Yes a floating, solitary eye sprouts a human limb.  I know it’s an alien but come on?

Wait, really come on, after that you think that’s it but no – it starts again and you think, am I playing Aero Fighters or Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts?

Anyway, go through the same shit again and you get a different end boss, even stranger but sadly not as good – a medium sized ghost, or is it a blob with a face?  Whatever, WTF?

So what’s the deal with the third, can we expect mutant chickens in a tutu or rampaging elephants with five legs as the final frontier?

Well let’s find out.

So the final game of the franchise is completed with Aero Fighters 3.

This is done what others have done on other systems, i.e. skip a sequel and/or game of a franchise as that began on another system.  Examples include Star Ocean and more famously, Darkstalkers as that jumped from Darkstalkers to Darkstalkers 3 on PS1, as the sequel was only on Saturn.

So that’s the digression over with, we’ll shoot straight on.

Don’t expect a radical change in ‘direction’ though….

The graphics were better this time (as you’d expect) and the madness in the enemies returned, as did the strange selection of chars.

Nothing original here folks as you soared through various countries dishing out some aerial destruction, fighting typical enemies and huge bosses.

What was disappointing is that some things were merely swapped around or recycled, but it wasn’t all bad as you got typically meaty new hardware which you introduced firepower to.

Odd things were said by your pilot at end of each stage such as “Stupid” and “Looks good, but it’s worthless.”

The game again climaxed in space so all set up for a showdown with a bizarre behemoth.

It didn’t disappoint, this time the monkey returned but this time, it hid on top of a huge, multi-eyed, mechanical black blob.

After a visual assault, we move on to another end boss, a spinning and angled flying saucer.

An ending rolled and like the sequel, you think it’s over but you start over again but this time it boasted different bosses.  Cool, but why just incorporate those into the normal game?

So battle way through the boredom, apart from the occasional new boss, you reach the end bosses again, but this time, they’re just the same.

What a load of bullshit and I’m sorry, the dancing chars during the proper ending just doesn’t cut it.

So overall, these were fairly nice games but smacks of laziness abound.

Next was a truly bizarre creature in Twinkle Star Sprites.  This WAS truly mental and an SNK/ADK hybrid creation.

It’s a shmup and Puzzle Bobble melded into one insane package as it saw combos created amidst the shooting and much would blag your brain.  Take on a string of weirdness, all set against a plethora of wonderful scenery and you have TSS.

The aim was to shoot better than the other which when done well, saw combos and eventually a K.O.  Well okay, it’s even a fighting game too.

Imagine your efforts transferred to the other side and you get idea.

Throughout the madness (and special lasers), exploding a chain of objects reaped a special explosion which can only help in defeating your human and/or computer opponent.

Colourful, crazy and nothing short of exploring the dizziest of minds, this was a sure and addictive winner.

I don’t where to start on this perspective, Viewpoint is a truly brilliant angle to focus on.  We are talking an undeniable classic in all its opulence and omnipotence.

Let’s cut to the chase, while there’s no doubt it was incredible, but let’s not discount its inspiration and that’s Sega’s 1982 elderly classic Zaxxon as that took you through the same isometric angle.

This was 10 years later and there were slight graphical improvements over Zaxxon.  Only the foolish will deny that it still refuses to look the slightest bit mediocre today.

In fact, it still holds up better than a pair of braces.  It’s really that well dressed.

Whatever your take on its gorgeous outlook, Sammy took you through a hellish challenge or sexiness and frustration as its bosses were harder than a matured pair of leather boots.

As a side note, it was Sammy’s only Neo Geo game and what a shame.

So it’s a shooting game, nothing original but my oh my, its looks were more seductive than a model applying that knot to your favourite tie.

It had no story, and really it didn’t need one as this was popcorn served at its most fondness.

Enough of revving it up, allow me to explode into action.

As mentioned, it’s largely in the mould of Zaxxon but with futuristic visual and audio overtones.

You’d swear its graphics were polys but they were actually just sprites.  This illusion didn’t detract from their greatness and all enemy types moved more graceful as a ballet dancer quartet on illegal substances.  Your CRT had never seen such smoothness, and then some.

How they moved was so slick, it was literally phenomenal, please bear in mind that this beast was released in 1992 and considering that it still looks mighty fine now, you can appreciate my excitement.

Towards to climax of Stage 2, dragons erupted from their respective holes and I’m afraid back then, and even now, you had to pick your jaw up from the floor…

Many occasions would see this familiar activity take place.

You could expect to fight a plethora of biological and mechanical malevolence, all intent in sending into a break up of sprite explosion.

The audio nearly matched its narcissism as that was a perfect mix of unrelenting dance, jazz and dreamy happiness.

You’ve got to love the boss music and Stage 2….

A standard pop gun was your main weapon (together with an R-Type charge beam), coupled with a duet of collectable pods.  You were finally helped by a variety of bombs aided you in your pursuit to destroy the baddies.

The bombs ranged from a huge pink explosion, flame walls and homing missiles.  The pink bomb and firewalls were the best as they happily ate the masses of enemy gunfire.  Speaking of enemy gunfire that was at a premium…

Even the levels offered some tactic as you had to shoot contraptions in order to ensure progress; and parts of the backgrounds attacked and flipped happier than a performing killer whale.

So the standard would be surely outdone by the larger stereotypical bunch of end of level pixels, and well, of course it did.

They were of familiar mix but considering they could go through more changes than a bored soap actor, you can imagine they offered interesting challenges.

My hatred extends to the multi-faced head and the butterfly.  I needn’t go into to its friend the caterpillar as this could have been a boss in itself.

The end boss was truly worthy of being an end boss and was inexplicably awesome.

I remember at the time of its AES release that it famously cost £225.  I think that was either in Mean Machines or C+VG, and they said something like, “Well it has the best graphics you’ve ever seen but after all, it is an arcade machine.”

Well despite that boast, it was never worth that much, or was it???

It certainly wasn’t w/o its faults as I have a few minor quibbles.

There were no speed up icons, as instead you had to get used to the maneuverability of your craft and due to its perspective, it did at first seem sluggish.  This was tolerable though.

2P simultaneous was missing (only alternate) and it only had 6 levels.

But while comparing it Last Resort, that only had 5 and to be honest, it felt like about twelve (thanks to those boss battles)…

The credits were rolled nicely like a Star Wars introduction as this was truly out of this world.

In truth though, compared to the game – it was an awful ending.

Its genius remains almost unmatched but there would be one, and I repeat one more Neo game of this type that threatened to dethrone its unparalleled excellence.  That my friends will be revealed.  That mysterious bunch of pixels won by a trot, but not a canter or gallop.

I think we all know what it was but even so….

Conversions followed and some where even okay but one in particular was frankly poop and that was on PS1.

That was the dress rehearsal so we’ll revert back to auditions as that’s very soon as Yumekobo gave us an unneeded sequel of SNK’s classic Prehistoric Isle.

Before we get into this, before Yumekobo, they originally were called Aicom.

Yes this was an 80’s classic and it seemed this was consigned to being an arcade relic that only SNK fans would be aware of, but years later it was resurrected as I suppose an attempt to rescue the Neo as it was released towards the Neo Geo’s demise.

Any new game was a welcome addition and wasn’t particularly bad but the Neo needed a miracle and not mediocrity.

This was just plain unnecessary.

For anybody who isn’t familiar with SNK antiquities, Isle saw you attack a series of largely exaggerated and probable overweight dinosaurs that shot ridiculous firepower.  Those who have played ADK’s Time Soldiers and fought the T Rex will know how ridiculous this was….

Innocents also played a big part.

This predictably also followed a familiar route and struggled to be called anything other than decent.

It took the rendering routine of a sequel (also by Yumekobo) of another ‘game’ and likewise, it didn’t look half bad.

I do have to admit that some backgrounds and sprites did look rather appealing.

Another positive was the large and attractive end boss.

So up there with the good, not the bad and definitely not the ugly.

No amount of surgery could it dream of matching the supreme.

I didn’t really like Psikyo’s Striker’s 1945 Plus; it was basically an upgrade, or apparent upgrade to Aero Fighters.  It was practically the same game and it really didn’t care.

Okay, it looked decent but the originality level deteriorated quicker than a bonfire in torrential rain.

The pros:

As mentioned, the visuals were pretty nice, it was very active and the bosses were two-faced…

The cons:

Watching paint dry was more exciting and we’d seen it all before in Aero Fighters (and obviously in many others).

That includes the bombers, planes, robots and various other bullshit.

As a further whinge, aside their original guise, why does every boss turn into a robot?

What most annoyed me was the ugly interface displaying the usual – lives, score and most stupidly, telling me what game I’m playing so unless I have the memory of a poorly functioning goldfish.  I know what fucking game I’m playing so why does it have to be in my face more than an unwanted set of garish advertisement breaks.

Help me.

Even the obscure shit STG Strike Gunner on SNES didn’t do this shit to me, having said that the music didn’t make me want to drown myself in cement.

I am now in a difficult situation so my Last Resort is keep shooting.

Irem will always be remembered for R-Type and why the heck not, it’s as influential as it gets.  It really did pioneer the genre but like I’ve said before, er SNK’s Vanguard?

So clone or not, its somber mood could depress the happy.

The force was known as the unit and could be moved about to shoot in a fixed direction.  The charge weapon varied the situation slightly as instead of a fireball, you shot the unit off at the angle as it was pointing.

Weapons were the usual peashooters, lasers and missiles.

This was pretty nice so it’s worth spending a bit of time on this one.

What you have to appreciate is some of intricacies in the enemies as some most were extremely detailed and Irem would be proud if this was their creation.

The first stage was quite illuminated with city lights and having shot down alien crafts, you knew they weren’t piloted by extra terrestrials as the drivers where humans as they plummeted to their unseen death.  Its boss was a large robot emerging from a crater.  Cool.

Stage 2 continued the detail as it was the most moody with pouring rain, featuring R-Type snakes and a cool flame throwing boss.

A decent shooter w/o a large battleship is like a Castlevania game w/o cogs and this was no different as the next stage saw you attack a large floating beast.

Eventually you’d reach the boss and this was the coolest of the lot.  Set against an industrial city in glorious sunset, a large mechanical leg would stamp down and after destroying its Achilles’ knee, it wasn’t finished as its body and head would attempt to finish you off.

It featured extremely detailed mecha and excellent design ensured a great boss.

The next level was were it got a bit tasty as the difficulty level was notched up a touch and featured some enemies that caused more than a headache.  The boss wasn’t very good though as it was basically a thing with an eye that extended itself.  What was most awkward is that it had two weak points but you had to swap sides to destroy each.

The final stage was the most spectacular and featured a great mothership and like it or not, you’re going in (and out).

After negotiating your way past that, asteroid field approaching and after some more shit, cue the final boss.

It was an alien head, with a mechanical overtone and a vertically moving mouth.  Protecting it were alien pods (above and below), that annoyingly were capable of regenerating, doing their bit as footsoldiers.

It looked nice enough but I was expecting more of an epic.

The main complaint was that it was shorter than a missing ruler but at least that third boss boosted its credentials…

So this is it, just two more to go and we’re done, but thanks to how stupendous Pulstar is and was, I’m the doctor so an operation is needed.

Pulstar was not just good, it’s really good, it’s actually bloody brilliant.

In 1995, Aicom chose the Neo Geo as the platform to release its masterpiece.  It was certainly out of the blue as many we’re expecting the diet of more fighting games but I would happily starve myself of those as this was one the best shmups ever, on any system.

Yes that includes any Sony, Sega or fanboys machine.  This was truly the shit.

The intro signaled the supreme and although practically pointless, it saw your pilot run and then a gorgeously rendered craft would rotate into view.

Check out those legs, sleek and efficient.

Rendering wasn’t a new graphical technique (even in 1995) as earlier in 1994, Donkey Kong Country on SNES boasted it used Silicon Graphics.  Before that, such graphics was also used in Killer Instinct.

Despite this, it was how solid and smooth the objects were as none threatened to flicker, come apart or look cheaper than a two dollar whore.  If the animation in Viewpoint was smooth, this was sleeker and slicker than the cast of Grease and wow, did it thrive on its looks.

It was pure eye candy and it just got better.

I’d never seen such graphics on the Neo Geo, so to say it wasn’t refreshing would be like saying that a cold beer on a hot day tastes terrible.

A myth still w/o an answer remains.  The first level looks so much like an upgraded R-Type, it’s perverse.  To call it a rip off would be generous so I’m thinking that Aicom were somehow connected with Irem and like Nazca, did employees depart from super company to form their own.

Whatever the complexities, let’s commence.

The basics are what you’d expect.  Usual shoot weapon, force, hovering friends and charge beam.

There were some innovations as using a technique I like to call rubber finger (button mashing to you) on the shot button charged up a better shoot weapon with a greater spread, whereas holding it down resulted in the familiarity of unleashing an energy beam.

Upon receiving the force, (each one looked different) and unoriginally, was indestructible. 

There was however, a few twists and turns.  I remember if you used both buttons, you could fire it off which would unleash a devastating attack (different for each force) to dish out major damage.

One minus side though, using this desperation meant the force was now destroyed, which left you extremely vulnerable.

Use it right and fine, do it not and you’d expect your remains to be scattered throughout the cosmos.

To mix it up, forces didn’t have their own weapon and only made itself known on charging and releasing.  So in other words, if you didn’t charge, all you had was the normal shoot weapon and any missiles you may own.

Again, this was good for strategic purposes.

It didn’t totally rely on blasting everything on screen as strategy was needed to be employed as the later levels were deviously designed to test your mettle (and patience).

When got, small units could be anchored to fire in a specific direction or move freely

As mentioned, there was a main intro and then a different one each stage.

Apart from the first one, I’m fairly sure these were CD exclusives so that’s a bonus.  These were not long drawn out epics, but remained particularly tasty.  These saw your craft enter the stage envions, all gloriously rendered in 3D.

Okay, I wasn’t really taken with the cockpit views but even so, yummy.

While other stuff was great, it’s all about the graphics. There was a wonderful amount of variety and enemies where placed and attacked with more cunning than an experienced fox.

Attack patterns and the predictably of zig zag formations thankfully departed.

There was so much to admire and appreciate and the bosses are up there with some of the best ever seen.  They wasn’t just tough, but almost defeated you with just how good they looked.

This was all thanks to rendering, as they to span, rotated and moved freer than a flock of migrating birds.

Only a few bosses in the game defied rendering and remained entirely two dimensional but that didn’t mean that they looked out of place.

These large bio-mechanical beasts were just to die for.

So the visuals were awe-inspiring so what beeps was set against this work of art?

Well I’m pleased to say that the sound perfectly matched the entire mood of each level as some were cheerful, epic and downright depressing.

FX themselves were competent and beefy with various pings and booms throughout the blasting.  I would suggest that although great, the downsides to each theme is that they didn’t really last long so would loop several times for each stage.

Level design was mighty fine as while it’s obviously all about destruction, there was some thought process needed as some enemies (on purpose) didn’t go down and you had to work out how to get through a seemingly impossible situation.

The difficulty was nicely pitched as it drew you in slowly and then about halfway through, things got tougher than a piece of granite.  Like Ikaruga, it wasn’t unfair but certainly needed some practice and respect.  This was definitely not a stroll in the park.

On CD, you could effectively skip the first three levels which were of course pointless at first but the option was there.  You’d think jumping straight to Stage 4 would make the game easier but if you’re still a novice, this is throwing you in at the deep end as that’s when things can start to get rather tricky.  In reality, this would only save time.

There’s not really too much replay value here as there are no extras but it’s always worth repeating this game just to marvel again at those graphics.

Completing the game rewards you with a very nice end sequence, the rotation is excellent.  You just have to see it.

Like Viewpoint, there are some imperfections.

Again there’s no 2P simultaneous, heavy slowdown and through experience and timing, your force kamikaze can literally take out a boss w/o hardly any effort, which is of course very cheap.

This is not always a guarantee but the odds of doing this are definitely in your favour.

So despite being hyper critical, this is still simply superb and you’d be mad to say otherwise.

Aicom did make a sequel (under their new name Yumekobo) and that was more exciting than a child’s first Christmas.  Well it’s good, but not that good.

The improvements:

You now have four selectable crafts, including the original and each with their own firepower;
2P simultaneous heavy duty action is now available; and

The graphics and most bosses remain excellent.

But:

Tactics are no longer employed which means it’s just all out shooting and the music (while not awful) just gets plain irritating.

The deal breaker for me is the god-forsaken irritant that is the otherwise harmless word - ‘Bonus’, I mean it’s not every so often you are informed of this, it’s virtually constant.

You could argue that choosing a ‘weaker’ ship ensures tactics in itself but the levels are just the same.

The graphics are worthy of Pulstar as rendering is still used but they don’t lack the silkiness and super cool look.  In an odd sort of way, the 'solidness' wasn’t there.  There are some awesome sights to be seen as most where undeniably impressive but I just have to generally favour Pulstar’s giant obstacles.

I didn’t really like the end boss either.

The music is just too ‘happy’ and lacks the grittiness and mood of Pulstar.  It’s okay but it doesn’t quite suit the game.  The audio is a bit like a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

The intro however, was superb – in a cutesy way.

So in short, I welcomed the ‘bonus’ of a sequel but it would have been more of a ‘bonus’ if the look, mood and gameplay of Pulstar was retained.

That brings us to the end of shooting shit in space with a journey that found us discovering a mixture of mediocrity, good eggs and two ostrich eggs.

Andro Dunos is the shooting equivalent of The Legend of Success Joe.  Wow, that game truly offends me.

Viewpoint or Pulstar?  I’d always go with Pulstar but Viewpoint runs a very close second and deserves recognition even today.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls - a final piece of the puzzle remains.

I am not one to insult intelligence as what follows next is more obvious than the day after tomorrow.

In the meantime, I’m shot to pieces.

Sunday 22 July 2012

If this isn't variety - you're definitely the greatest denier! Part 2 Ud 03/05/13


Welcome back.

So after a breather and a monotonous bollocking from the agitated manager, we’re ready to sit back, relax and gnaw on the next chunk.

The Second Half begins.

Stationery would seem incomplete w/o Paperclips.  If there is ever an unexpected drought, just make sure that Travis is on hand.

It’s a contradiction in terms that Radiohead are a huge Let Down.

Mumford & Sons gazed at a White Blank Page and Manic Street Preachers observed a Facing Page Top Left and The Smashing Pumpkins stared at a Blank Page.  The Charlatans failed to progress past Page One.

They say a Homewrecker is a third party that somehow causes devastating effects to a family.  Jarvis Cocker, how could you?

Glasvegas admitted that It’s My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry and Yeah Yeah Yeahs had to console Cheated Hearts.

Paramore knew that Ignorance is no defence in law and The Cribs chose to Ignore the Ignorant.

I bet it’s inconvenient to be Passion Pit as they are used as a constant source of emergency light, provided you have matches or a lighter as they have Eyes as Candles.

If you believe in Batman and Superman et al, you must believe that Athlete have a Superhuman Touch.

Rocket from the Crypt are found hanging On a Rope and Foo Fighters lent me a length of Rope.

When I see Mystery Jets and Leftfield, all I want to do is Melt like a neglected icecube on a hot sunny day.

Get saucy and have Sex on the Radio with Good Charlotte.

In case you didn’t know, TV on the Radio is a band.

Bowling for Soup experience Turbulence when in flight and they can think a situation or notion is Ridiculous.

I’m always nervous on a First Date, the timing of the jokes, the fear of an unwanted and awkward uncomfortable silence and most of all and not saying something stupid that would prompt an immediate walkout.

Blink 182 avoided all such dilemmas.

Similarly, the First Day in a new job can also be daunting and nerve-racking.  Seek advice from The Futureheads for support.

Public Enemy Ltd were Cruel and Inspiral Carpets pleaded Please be Cruel.

Bad things happen to good people and Good Things happen to bad people.  Apart from being a fact of life, spot the song by Public Image Ltd.

Why is it when I go to a Cash Machine it’s always empty, or more realistically my account is....

I bet Hard-Fi have no such problems.

Here are a pattern of song titles.

Glasvegas – Dream Dream Dreaming
Manic Street Preachers – Drug Drug Druggy
Boys Like Girls - Heart Heart Heartbreak

Ulysses 31 is a classic and pretty dark 80s cartoon series.  Ulysses is a Franz Ferdinand song.

Cyanide is a lethal substance, Metallica had the unfortunate business of been selected as testers.

Wesker introduced all us gamers to the Tyrant, a rather nasty and ultimate biological weapon in the first Resident Evil game and beyond.  The Bravery and OneRepublic sang of a different but same type of beast.

Babybird have a song called Cornershop.  It's also a band famously known for Brimful of Asha.

Shooter and Shooters are chalk and cheese films.

Outland and Outlander are both films.

Still and Stir Crazy are both films.

Whisper is a 2007 movie and Whispers in an Ian Brown song.

I'd do Anything for The Calling.

In food, Subway is famed for its meatball marinara.  In film, it’s an early 1985 Luc Besson effort.

Songs can be about anything, how about I take you on a Magical Mystery Tour through names....

We start moving with Christian and Surnames.

Kids in Glass Houses – Annie May
Mystery Jets – Lorna Doone
Feeder – Buck Rogers
Mindless Self Indulgence – Tom Sawyer
The Rolling Stones – Ruby Tuesday
Weezer - Buddy Holly
British Sea Power – Georgie Ray
Crocodiles - Billy Speed
Remember Remember - John Candy
Gomez – Rex Kramer
Morrissey and Son, Ambulance – Billy Budd
Gruff Rhys – Christopher Columbus
The Beatles – Eleanor Rigby
Mindless Self Indulgence – Harry Truman
Pixies - Alec Eiffel
The Coors - Peggy Gordon 
Scissor Sisters – Paul McCartney
The Shins - Pam Berry
MGMT – Brian Eno
Air - Mike Mills
The Farm - Suzy Boo
Bright Eyes – Laura Laurent
The White Stripes - Suzy Lee
The Maccabees - William Powers
Blur – Tracy Jacks
Fleet Foxes – Oliver James
White Denim - Tony Fatti
Barenaked Ladies - Brian Wilson
M83 - Steve McQueen
Ocean Colour Scene - Robin Hood
The Others - Stan Bowles
The Unwinding Hours – Annie Jane
Foster the People - Helena Beat
Ocean Colour Scene - Emily Chambers
Scouting for Girls - Michaela Strachan
The Twilight Singers – Martin Eden
Tapes ‘n Tapes – George Michael
Keaton Heston - Sarah Minor
The Summer Set and Atlas Sound - Mona Lisa
Girls – Jamie Marie
Summer Camp - Brian Krakow
Talk Talk - John Cope
Guided by Voices - Billy Wire
The Coral - Simon Diamond
M83 - Claudia Lewis
Seabird - Maggie Mahoney
The Wannadies - Uri Geller
The Who - Baba O'Reilly
The Kinks – David Watts
M83 – Steve McQueen
Cymbals Eat Guitars – Gary Condit
Bowling for Soup – Val Kilmer
The National – Anna Freud
The Stone Roses - Sally Cinnamon
Longpigs and Gay Dad - Jesus Christ
Ocean Colour Scene - Harry Kidnap
M83 – Claudia Lewis
Manic Street Preachers - Kevin Carter
The Beatles - Rocky Raccoon
David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust
Sonic Youth - Mildred Pierce
Alanis Morissette - Mary Jane
David Bowie - Andy Warhol
The Kinks - Johnny Thunder
The Horrors - Monica Gems
Cage the Elephant - James Brown
Deep Purple - Jack Ruby
The Coral - Bill McCai
The National - Val Jester
Faithless - Muhammad Ali
Lowgold - Eddie Lejeune
The Unthanks - Betsy Bell
Sonic Youth - Marilyn Moore
Incubus - Anna Molly
The Fiery Furnaces - Chris Michaels
The Soft Pack - Bobby Brown
The Jam - Billy Hunt
Ride - Mary Anne
Neon Neon - Michael Douglas
Graham Coxon - Jamie Thomas
Belle and Sebastian - Roy Walker
The Lemonheads - Frank Mills
Goo Goo Dolls - James Dean

Excuse me a second, I have to write a letter to the following films.

Hmmmm, Dear....

Frankie, John, God, Wendy and Diary.

A few more sheets of paper later and I switch to music.

Dear....

Avery, Prudence, Heart, Doctor, Vienna, Rosemary, God and Bobbie

Each were posted off appropriately to The Decemberists, The Beatles, Sanctus Real, The Rolling Stones, Owl City, Foo Fighters, Tricky and Yellowcard respectively.

The Wannadies sent me a Love Letter.  I never did reply.

Here’s a titbit, Simian were a band which is now defunct and then some former members formed Simian Mobile Disco.

Simian brought out an awesome song in La Breeze.

In the afterlife, somebody asked Slow Club why they were there.  They frowned but politely answered Because We're Dead.

Cherry Ghost wore a Dead Man's Suit,  Indigo Girls climbed Dead Man's Hill and Dead Man's Shoes is a great and gritty Shane Meadows drama starring Paddy Considine as a dangerous solider who returns to his hometown to dish out his own justice on the locals.

Bloodsport is cult classic 1988 Van Damme film and was inspired by the life of Frank W. Dux.

In 1996, a very similar film appeared in The Quest as it also centred around an international martial arts tournament.  It was also Van Damme’s directorial debut.

The Quest blatantly rips from Bloodsport as the Mongolian Bolo Yeung wannabe char also kills a fellow fighter and another char, adopts an exact ‘animal’ style of fighting as seen in Bloodsport.

The Quest can even be linked to Van Damme 1990 classic A.W.O.L. where a guy also gets punched in the happy sack and even the end fight has very similar happenings during the end fight with Atilla.  The Mongolian even stalks the ring like Atilla.

Speaking of Frank Dux, he trained the fighters in A.W.O.L (as per its credits).

I have a question.  Why is it that in most Van Damme films that when he gears up to perform his various forms of trademark roundhouse kicks, why do the baddies become hypnotised and suffer inevitable damage.

It’s hardly the most subtle move....

Believe it or not, the infamous villain of Kickboxer Tong Po (Michel Qissi), also portrayed a fighter in Bloodsport who got his leg unpleasantly broke by Chong Li, expertly played by legendary loony tune Bolo Yeung.  The same guy also played a different role in A.W.O.L. as Moustafa.

It's great stuff right?

To evade danger, hide in Shadows, as advised by Warpaint and Deep Purple.  If you want become a Shadow, become Wild Nothing.

Agent 47 is an assassin for hire in the Hitman franchise.  Agent 13 is a song by The Besnard Lakes.

I don’t need drugs to get High, I just slam Feeder on.

Instead of dialing 999, I call Simian Mobile Disco for an Ambulance.

Midlake made a small Fortune on the music scene.

I want to make it Crystal Clear that I like the Young Guns.

Modern Man and Modern Men; the former is an Arcade Fire song and the latter is a Only Fools and Horses episode.

There are Flaws in every song and/or album.  Bombay Bicycle Club clearly demonstrated this.

As a rule, a coin has Two Faces.  So do The Coral.

After listening to Barenaked Ladies, I just need Alcohol.  After copious amounts of the stuff, Evanescence requested Call Me When You're Sober. 

Thin Lizzy have such a Bad Reputation.

The Coors decided Black is the Colour, Blue is the Colour is an album by The Beautiful South and The Coral got jealous as Green is the Colour.

The Doors took to the high seas on a Ship of Fools and Villagers climbed aboard the Ship of Promises.

A word of advice, don’t get into a brawl with I am Arrows, Chairlift, New Fast Automatic Daffodils or Band of Skulls as you’ll be covered in Bruises.

The Hundred in the Hands enjoyed feeding Pigeons in the park.

If I could be Born Again, I’d choose to be Starsailor.

Before I Die, I want to do a lot of things but one of my main goals is to listen to We Are the Ocean.

Just Seventeen and 17 Again have a few references.

The former is a song by The Magic Numbers and the latter is both a Zak Efron film and Eurythmics song.

The Maccabees have Seventeen Hands.  It has its positive and negative sides...
Turin Brakes found having a Long Distance relationship pretty hard going.

I can think of A Thousand Beautiful Things, so can Annie Lennox.

Grave Encounters and Episode 50 are practically the same films.  The former is far better though.

Silence is golden or uncomfortable.  According to Starsailor, Silence is Easy.

F.E.E.L.I.N.G C.A.L.L.E.D L.O.V.E is a hit song for Pulp and Feeling Called Love is a song by Wire.

Keeping with acronyms, here are some more that exist in music.

Dirty Pretty Things - B.U.R.M.A.
Elastica - S.O.F.T.
The Maccabees - O.A.V.I.P.
Sleigh Bells and Young Guns - D.O.A.
Justice - D.A.N.C.E.
Green Day - F.O.D.
The Smashing Pumpkins - X.Y.U.
Kasabian - I.D.
Bloc Party - V.A.L.I.S.
Beach House - D.A.R.L.I.N.G.
Coldplay - U.F.O.
Ian Brown - F.E.A.R.
Blur – M.O.R
Ed Sheeran - U.N.I.
Manic Street Preachers – S.Y.M.M.
Dodgy - U.K.R.I.P.
The Kills - M.E.X.I.C.O.
Actress - N.E.W.
Pulled Apart by Horses - V.E.N.O.M.
Rocket from the Crypt, The Breeders and Abba - S.O.S.
Noah and the Whale – L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.
White Lies – E.S.T.
Lower than Atlantis - R.O.I.
The Bluetones - U.T.A.
System of a Down - P.L.U.C.K.
The Raveonettes - D.R.U.G.S.
Lambchop - N.O.
Actress - R.I.P.
Peter Gabriel - D.I.Y.
Sebastian - C.T.F.O.
Katy Perry - E.T.
John Talabot - H.O.R.S.E.
The Kills - M.E.X.I.C.O.C.U.
Doves - N.Y.
Blur - B.L.U.R.E.M.I.
Korn - B.B.K.
Semisonic - F.N.T.
Hurricane # 1 - N.Y.C.
Cream - N.S.U.
Placebo - I.K.W.Y.L.
System of a Down - B.Y.O.B.
Korn - A.D.I.D.A.S.
The Orb - S.A.L.T.
Deerhunter - T.H.M.
Nickelback - S.E.X.
The Hives - T.H.E.H.I.V.E.S.

L.S.F. by Kasabian cannot be included as it selfishly has (Lost Souls Forever) after the acronym.

Some curiously titled songs now:

Everything Everything - MY KZ, UR BF
Lambchop - Gar
Super Furry Animals - Mt
White Denim - Ieiei
tune-yards - Synonynonym
Atlas Sound - Te Amo
Big Sir - G7
The All Saints - 4H Trip
System of a Down - CUBert
Django Django - WOR
Tapes 'n Tapes - Swm
Lambchop - 2B2
Bad Religion - Ad Hominem
alt-J - Ms
TV on the Radio - DLZ
Justice - Dvno
System of a Down - Arto
The Phantom Band  - O
White Denim - El Hard Attack Dcwyw
The Wailing Wall - ()
Tindersticks - CF GF
Blood Red Shoes - ADHD
The All Saints - EIO
The Czars - Los
Weird Owl - Straj Proj
White Lies - WDA
Crystal Castles - xxzxcuzx me
White Denim - Syncn
System of a Down - Atwa
Liars - Wixiw
Actress - Iwaad
The Unthanks - Bird Guhl
Tindersticks - CF GF
Tori Amos - iieee
The Czars - Kiljpy
M.I.A. - XXXO
Little Comets - W - O - E
Flying Lotus - GNG BNG
Cream - SWLABR
The Lemonheads - 6IX

Throwing a postcode into the mix, NW5 is a great song by Madness.

Detlef Schrempf by Band of Horses may sound like a mental song title (well to me anyway) but it can only be about a former German basketball player.  If it’s not - then who in the Frak knows what it could be about.

Frak! is a 1980s BBC Micro game starring Trogg the caveman and his yo-yo.  Everytime Trogg dies, he says 'Frak!'.  I wonder what similar sounding expletive you could use as an alternative?

Peng! is a track by Iron & Wine but I don't think this would catch on as a swear...

Deep Blue was a famous chess computer that challenged world champion Garry Kasparov that pitted man against machine.  Sometimes it won, sometimes it lost.  Whatever, it’s also a song by Arcade Fire.

Prowler is a song by Iron Maiden and band.

Dare is a classic album by The Human League and songs by Gorillaz and The Wedding Present.

Lightning Seeds see things as Marvellous, Annie Lennox is Wonderful and according to The Hoosiers and Muse, life is Glorious.

Q can be described as a famous Bond char, a well known music resource or 2011 film.

The Lazurus Project is a 2008 movie and Iron and Wine sang about Me and Lazurus.

The Antlers begun their album Hospice with a Prologue and an Epilogue.

Who knows what The Velvet Underground, No Doubt and Maroon 5 get up to on a Sunday Morning and Last Dinosaurs come alive on a Sunday Night.  Death Cab for Cutie and Morning Parade woke up on a Monday Morning.

Maximo Park and Ceremony gave me a Nosebleed and Mansun with She Makes My Nose Bleed.  After listening to Pixies, I Bleed.

About a Boy is a 2002 film starring Hugh Grant.  About a Girl are songs by Nirvana and The Summer Set.

Mansun and Kesha refer to something as Disgusting and The Wonder Stuff think it’s Grotesque.  Vile is another 2011 torture horror.

Unthinkable, Unbreakable, Unspeakable, Untraceable and Untouchable are all films.

District 9 and District 13 are films that can be easily confused with each other.  The former sees aliens badly treated by humans meaning a different type of sci-fi and the latter is all about experts in Le Parkour which leads to some spectacular action scenes.

Annie Lennox is truly Twisted.

Jennifer Lopez is On the Floor, Hot Chip are Ready for the Floor and Starsailor bring Four to the Floor.

Tattoo can be two different films from 1981 and 2002.  The Tattooist is also a 2007 film.

David Bowie wrote an Eight Line Poem and The Wonder Stuff read a 38 Line Poem.

Gruff Jones survived Shark Ridden Waters and Starsailor make rubbish Shark Food.

Snow Patrol, Norah Jones and Adele were Chasing Cars, Chasing Pirates and Chasing Pavements respectively.

Breakfast at Tiffanys’ and Breakfast on Pluto are both films.  As many know but I’ll mention it just in case, the former film is also a Deep Blue Something song.

Cash notes have a Watermark and Watercolour is a type of drawing medium.  You can associate both with Pendulum, The Weakerthans and Our Broken Garden.

I was in the doghouse last night with the Mrs so I asked What Have I Done Wrong?

Thanks Dodgy, I’m still in the doghouse.

Case 39 and Glorious 39 are both films.

Little Big Adventure and Little Big Planet are both unrelated video games.  Little Big Soldier is a Jackie Chan film and LIttle Big Painting is pop art from Roy Lichtenstein.

Deep Purple worked my Fingers to the Bone.

10 Dead Men and Fifty Dead Men Walking are both films.

Incendiary and Incendies are similar sounding but unrelated films.

Same again with Abduction and The Abducted.

A Shoot ‘em Up is possibly my favourite form of video game.  It’s also a ridiculous, albeit entertaining 2007 Clive Owen film.

In Betweens is a song by The Only Ones and The Inbetweeners is well, I don’t really need to tell you, but just in case – a famous Channel 4 TV comedy and movie.

The Thaw is a 2009 horror film starring Val Kilmer, Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland is commonly abbreviated to THAW.

Bombay Bicycle Club were shocked at something so they stated My God and Oh My God as the Kaiser Chiefs can’t believe it as they’ve never been this far away from home.

It’s not just the police that require a Warrant, as Foster the People prove.

Call Out and Call Me are songs by Feeder and Blondie respectively.

In sport, you can be Blitzed by an opponent.  The Raveonettes do this at their leisure.

Suede asked after Sadie and The Beatles knew Sexy Sadie.

Cherry Tree Lane is a 2010 urban drama.  If you remove Lane, you’re left with a song by The Duke Spirit.

“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.”
“Satan’s greatest trick was convincing the world he doesn’t exist.”

The former is a memorable quote from The Usual Suspects and the latter is also a quote from the watchable Arnie film End of Days.

Hmmm, Gabriel Byrne starred in both films.  This is just too similar to be coincidence.

In Suspects, Spacey (as Verbal) is of course describing himself (as he is depicted as the Devil) and Father Kovak is describing Satan.  Gabriel Byrne is thought to be Keyser until the twist we all saw coming...

The End of Days quote is actually taken from French poet Charles Baudelaire and Suspects used it, with a subtle change.

Interesting hey?  Oh well!

After a short tea break, we move on to songs featuring just a single name.

Oasis – Lyla
Scissor Sisters – Laura
Baxter Dury - Claire
Metronomy - Corinne
Vampire Weekend – Walcott
Kula Shaker and The Killers – Ruby
Cloud Nothings - Morgan
The Sounds - Diana
Therapy? - Diane
David Bowie – Janine
Longpigs – Elvis
Foster the People - Houdini
Ocean Colour Scene - Justine
Atlas Sound - Sheila
The Cribs - Anna
Queen – Mustapha
Lykke Li - Jerome
The Young Knives and Indigo Girls - John
Saint Saviour and Little Comets – Jennifer
Surfer Blood and Slowdive - Miranda
Beach House - Irene
Bat for Lashes and Veronica Falls - Daniel
Elastica and James Blunt - Annie
Crytsal Castles - Alice Practice
Kings of Leon, The Subways, Scissor Sisters, Spiritualised, Supergrass, Foals and The Maccabees - Mary
Pixies – Ana
Therapy? - Josie
Evanescence - Sinead
Bat for Lashes - Sarah
Animal Collective - Derek
The Others - William
Laura Marling - Sophia
White Denim - Darlene
Barenaked Ladies - Jerome
Interpol - Roland
Neutral Milk Hotel - Naomi
Little Comets - Joanna
The National – Karen
Bad Religion - Billy
Yuck - Georgia
Sleigh Bells - Rachel
Duffy and Bjork - Isobel
Flyleaf - Cassie
Baxter Dury - Isabel
The Others - Johan
Pixies - Allison
The Zutons - Valerie
Metallica – Ronnie
The Wedding Present - Felicity
blink-182 - Josie
Jarvis Cocker – Angela
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Dudley
Shed 7 - Mark
Cerys Matthews – Evelyn
My Chemical Romance - Helena
Mindless Self Indulgence – Clarissa
Be Your Own Pet - Becky
Take That and The Levellers – Julie
Mindless Self Indulgence - Molly
The Proclaimers - Sean
The Rolling Stones – Angie
The Vaccines – Norgaard
Bowling for Soup - Andrew
Manic Street Preachers - Emily
The Kooks - Petulia
The Antlers and Pulp – Sylvia
The Kooks – Rosie
The View and Supergrass – Grace
Alt-j - Matilda
The Coral and Franz Ferdinand - Jacqueline
Foster the People - Houdini
Rage Against the Machine and Blondie - Maria
The Beatles – Michelle
The National - Ada
Bright Eyes – Lua
Pavement - Billie
Franz Ferdinand – Michael
The Wedding Present - Heather
Alt-j – Matilda
Girls - Alex
Jet – Timothy
House of Love - Hannah
The Wedding Present and Black Veil Brides - Carolyn
Norah Jones - Miriam
The Beatles and The Rubettes - Julia
Suede – Sadie
Tindersticks and David Gray - Kathleen
Chumbawamba - Charlie
The Kinks - Monica
Gomez – Rosalita
Delta Spirit - Vivian
Little Comets - Mathilda
Supergrass - Lenny
Midlake - Anabel
Talking Heads - Bill
Tori Amos - Emmanuel
U2 - Gloria
Tricky - Joseph
Midlake, Status Quo, David Gray and Citizens! - Caroline
The Czars - Val
Santogold - Anne
Glasvegas - Geraldine
Madness - Samantha
Thin Lizzy - Johnny
Perfume Genius - Perry
Show of Hands - Katrina
Bats for Lashes - Marilyn
Slowdive - Alison
Lifehouse - Simon
The Magnetic Fields - Josephine
The Phoenix Foundation - Sally
Thin Lizzy - Rocky
Anathema - Angelica
The Cranberries - Joe
Cold Specks - Hector
Deftones - Rosemary
The Police - Roxanne
The Magnetic Fields - Jeremy
The Cranberries - Deliah
The Feeling - Connor
The Wedding Present - Kennedy
Supergrass - Roxy
Grouplove - Chloe
The Airborne Toxic Event - Elizabeth

Purple Stain and Purple Haze are songs by Red Hot Chili Peppers and Jimi Hendrix respectively.  Purple Heart is a C64 action game.

It's worth mentioning that Purrple Splazsh is a track from Actress.

They say a Bag Lady is a homeless woman who carries her possessions in an obvious container.  Manic Street Preachers met such an unfortunate.


Foals found Blue Blood, The Naked and Famous and Cemeteries hunted Young Blood, Norah Jones and Frightened Rabbit couldn't keep up with Fast Blood, The Hundred in the Hands and Kids in Glass Houses drained Gold Blood, Eels craved Fresh Blood, Soulsavers seek Wise Blood and there is Mexican Blood pumping through the veins of Thin Lizzy.

The National were officially bigamists as they were married to a Sugar Wife and Trophy Wife.

Them and They are both films.  This is a track by Lorn.

1234 and 1-2-3-4 are songs by Feist and The Enemy.

The Dandy Warhols have a song called Plan A and Plan B is an artist.

The universe will surely remain a complete and fascinating mystery.

Paul Weller was Standing Out in the Universe, The Beatles journeyed Across the Universe, The Seahorses went Round the Universe, Detroit Social Club became the Universe, 30 Seconds to Mars were happy to Welcome to the Universe and Non Phixion concluded it was a Strange Universe.

Bernard Butler was Not Alone, Simian advised Never Be Alone, Lowgold were Never Alone, No Mercy with I’m Not Alone, Embrace believed You’re Not Alone, Anathema are Alone, Alabamba Shakes stated You Ain't Alone, The Blackout claim You're Not Alone and Seapony must Be Alone.

Radiohead wrote the lyrics to a Motion Picture Soundtrack.

30 Seconds to Mars liked to Search and Destroy.  Metallica and Kasabian preferred to Seek and Destroy their prey.

In horse-racing, a Dead Cert is apparently a nag that simply can’t lose.  You can also say it’s fairly awful vampire film with Billy Murray.

Apart from using a number instead of a word, One Day and 1 Day are totally different films.

The National seem to think I’m quite Brainy.

To me, the film industry is absolutely Vital.

Berlin is a band probably most known for their chart-topping single Take My Breath Away featured in Top Gun.

That’s the obvious bit but what might not be quite as obvious is that years earlier, this band is also a song by The Velvet Underground – wow.

The Beatles were in love so I Feel Fine, James are just Fine and after recovering from an illness, Frightened Rabbit and Gotye announced I Feel Better.

Frankie Goes to Hollywood is a 80s band responsible for hits such as Relax and Two Tribes.  The band's name is also a strange C64 game.

When I Kick the Bucket, I want to make sure that Mindless Self Indulgence are present.

Toploader found Dancing in the Moonlight rather uplifting and The Strokes found Life is Simple in the Moonlight.

Apparently, Romeo and John Tucker Must Die.

Dead Fish and Rumble Fish are both films.

If you’re a Capricorn, you have something in common with 30 Seconds to Mars.

Rain can ruin a trip to the seaside and annoy those who are keen to hang the washing out.

As we are hoping it stops, lets talk about it.

Heavy Rain on PS3 is the spiritual sequel to PS2 cult classic Fahrenheit and Vampire Rain is a  2007 survival horror 360 game.

Black Rain is a Michael Douglas action vehicle and Hard Rain is a thriller starring Morgan Freeman and Christian Slater.

Other types of wet conditions in films are Rain Man and Rain Fall.

Even the Rain and I Come with the Rain are films and The Fiery Furnaces enjoyed themselves, Even in the Rain.  The Horrors were bold as they were Changing the Rain, The Maccabees are Just Like the Rain and Smoke Fairies celebrated After the Rain.

In a previous life, Coldplay would have no problems being a milkman or a paper boy as they were Up with the Birds.

Cherry Ghost advertise they are decent at Mathematics.

Like a great video game boss, Everything Everything saved their Final Form until last.

4 Ever Delayed is an old Manic Street Preachers song from album Lipstick Traces.  Fast
Forward a few years and Forever Delayed is a Manics best of album.  Forever Lost is a song by The Magic Numbers.

Ichi and Ichi the Killer are both films.

Paramore and The Wanted will Turn it Off but Franz Ferdinand and The Flaming Lips wanted to Turn it On.

Kings and Queens are arguably the most important pieces in the tactical and mental monster that is chess.  30 Seconds to Mars use these pieces regularly.

The songs Knights of Cydonia and Suburban Knights are by Muse and Hard-Fi respectively.

Days, Weeks, and Months can feature in film headings….

Six Days, Seven Nights, 9 ½ Weeks, 28 Weeks Later, 30 Days of Night, (500) Days of Summer, 28 Days Later, The Next Three Days, Two Weeks Notice, 48 Weeks Later and finally, this one uses the lot - 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days.

The Libertines were caught Begging and The Stone Roses are Begging You.

Barenaked Ladies are a very Ordinary band.

Shooting My Mouth Off is what people do when they boast about something or talk too much.  James are also responsible for doing this.

My Chemical Romance and Blur were asked to Sing and Tindersticks were caught Singing.

Bernard Butler decided People Move On and The Used were Moving On.

Foster the People is a band and Cherry Ghost urged People Help the People.

Razorlight and Howler found America and The Libertines tuned in Radio America.

Taking a breather, The Hundred in the Hands and Chapel Club were seen by The Beach and The Shore respectively.

The View and Supergrass danced with Grace and Elbow found Grace under Pressure.

TV shows that are also unrelated films.

Public Enemies
Coach
Missing
White Heat
Drop Dead Gorgeous
Hidden
Demons
Sunshine


Games can also be TV shows.


Spooks

Hex

Finders Keepers

Exile

The Importance of Being Idle and The Importance of Being Earnest is an Oasis song and a film respectively.

Noah and the Whale drew a straight Line, Tapes ‘n Tapes were given Lines and Blood Red Shoes are told to Follow the Lines.

The Walkmen took things Line by Line and Blur study science Gene by Gene.

Nazis at the Centre of the Earth is a lazy straight to DVD effort that shares obvious familiarities with earlier and better known Iron Sky.

When instructed to perform Radio Silence, it’s essential to cease all transmissions for security and safety reasons.  Turin Brakes partook in such a situation.  Kasabian performed a Test Transmission.

John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson made a very Basic film.

Other than Steel, the films Blue Steel and Real Steel share nothing else in common.

7 Lives and 9 Lives are both films.

We’re going to play a little game of Q & A.  Not really, but it’s a really good film where Nick Nolte is seen portraying a nasty corrupt police officer.

Dodgy stated it was Good Enough and Babybird marked homework with a comment of it simply been Not Good Enough.

Syberia is among the most stupidly titled game ever.  Why?  Well because a good few years earlier, there was a totally different game released called Cyberia.

I needn’t say much more apart from if it was called Zyberia, there would be less, little or no confusion.

Sparks are songs by The Who and Travis.  Editors are All Sparks.

Muse is a famous band and song by Panic Room.  Panic Room is also a film.

Bigmouth Strikes Again and Big Mouth Strikes Again are by The Smiths and Chumbwamba.

Whoah, I can hardly catch my breath as that signals the end of Second Half and with it, Normal Time.

Due to each team being shyer with goals than a nervous rabbit approaching headlights, both teams will slug it out in Extra Time.

After the refreshments and tactics are revised, the excitement follows - right after the break.
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