Experience

Experience
$17.98
This album should be glorious. Prodigy are herald for many reasons: The awesome Liam, Keith Flint, and Maxim, their never ending diverse ways of sound that would put hardcore techno, and the way they can make us dance. And they make us dance with breaks and drum and bass style.

There are so many spots of greatness on this album, but a lot of songs really aren't that compelling. This really has to do with the sample choices, and the beats sometimes just annoy. That's even worse for the beats, because a lot of the beats pretty much imply the same style. The main problem with that is some of the songs fail to captivate and bore you. That's because the samples sometimes used are rather forgettable. Jericho, for example. It does break away in songs, but that's why some of the songs are a hit or miss, depending on how I feel. I really only have to be in the mood for those kinds of beats, too much in the mood to care about the melodies on top. Hey, music should heigten your moods (depending on what moods you want elevated to a higher way).And to add insult to that, they are often really long and make me want to skip it.

But there is good, even awesome stuff. Out Of Space is sick. The beat kicks a load, especially with the melodies, really feels like space. And after that, they sample "I Chase the Devil". _____. Fire, this song is nuts. At 1:25, _____. And "I am the god of hellfire!". Your Love, with a cool piano sandwiched in the song, is great too. Wind It Up is another classic. This one stood out to me the first time I heard this, and it still does. Weather Experience has some good parts, the slower, laid back beat really does conjure up satellites at a weather station. Charly is great too. And everybody in The Place is a _______ classic for this group. Great sounds that sound like a pipe, these cool industrial like noise.

When I'm in the mood, it can flow quite well, though it's not one of my most common move. Kind of like a Ying-Yang thing going on. Maybe. Still, you should listen to it.

7/10

American Experience: The 1930s
$39.99

Experience Life
$24.00
I subscribe to a few fitness, running, and health magazines but this is my favorite. It covers a broad spectrum of topics. Articles covering all aspects of wellness including physical, emotional, and spiritual wellness. My only gripe is that there are only ten issues a year instead of twelve!!

Watchmen: The End is Nigh The Complete Experience
$19.99
First off I will admit I am completely ignorant as far as the history of the watchmen or most comics/graphic novels in general. Seeing the Watchmen movie in theaters was my first exposure to this franchise, and I was pleasantly surprised. The movie alone I would rate as 4 stars and to me ranks right with Batman Begins/Dark Knight as far as best film interpretation of comic book I have seen.

However the game deserves no stars. It truly is a miserable effort by the video game developer.

At first blush this game appears like it could be decent. It is basically a beat 'em up like you might have found in an arcade 15 years ago (only with more modern 3D environment, albeit very average for PS3). That concept MIGHT have been fun, and it is for about 15-30 minutes of gameplay depending on your threshold for repitition. However it quickly becomes apparent there was MINIMAL effort put into the actual gameplay or level designs by the developers. It is just too repetitive, the animations repeat themselves, the environments repeat themselves, you get frustrated with your lack of mobility (ability to jump, roll, dodge, pick up items, etc). Some combos and blocking tactics are all that keep you from button mashing. The enemy AI is SO terrible that it quickly becomes a monotous task to dispatch the waves of largely identical enemies throughout each chapter. In fact by performing the "block+counterattack" move you are largely invincible against most enemies, even if an opponent is attacking from behind your blocks still miraculously work against their attack.

Beyond the simplicity of the game there are other issues. The most damning thing about the game I found that shows the lack of effort was that in my 1 playthrough, I experienced several glitches that forced me to restart from the last checkpoint. In several instances, I believe in chapters 2,3,4 the AI *partner* did not open the door or gate he was supposed to open. In another instance the AI character simply DISAPPEARED from the action (presumably when he was supposed to open the next gate again). After wasting 5+ minutes each time wandering the immediate area wondering what the heck I was supposed to do next, I ultimately restarted the checkpoint and the AI of course promptly opened the gate the next time around. While these seem like a minor glitch, in a game as short and simplistic as this it is UNFORGIVABLE for this game to have been released with gameplay glitches that forces the player to exit and restart the game. It is understandable on a game the scope of Fallout 3, but not on a button masher that can be beaten in under 2 hours.

In summary I would only buy this package if it was at a DISCOUNT from the standalone blu ray. The game quite simply is a failure. As a cheap download game it might have been OK, as a retail game it is a disgrace and I pity anyone that bought this as a standalone without the movie. With the Ultimate Cut blu ray out it is probably better to just ignore this package altogether.