B+Q = Keanu!

That title will only make sense to you if you a) reside in the UK and b) are familiar with D.I.Y.

But your loss if your don't / aren't. Moving on:

Ever since it's epoch making release, it seems EVERYONE has been ripping off Jet Set Radio. But that's only natural considering it's a classic mix of funky music, great gameplay...and fucking astounding visuals. Yep - I'd go as far as saying JSR is possibly one of the best looking videogames I've ever played - even to this day. To illustrate this further, one of my housemates remarked at the brilliance of the Xbox whilst I was playing it...until the fucking cretin realised that the Xbox was lying dormant and it was a goddammed DREAMCAST I was playing on!!! DIE MOTHERFUCKER!!!!!!!!!

But why do I wax lyrical about Jet Set Radio you ponder...

It will all become clear very soon, but first, let's have a little gander at some games that have blatantly plagerised our old pal Jet Set for his/her (delete as applicable) unique cel shaded graphical style to earn kudos (K):

Wacky Races
(which is, in it's own right a simply brilliant Mario Kart style game, and one of the Dreamcast's better racing offerings by the way)

XIII
(that's Thirteen for the Roman Numerally-challenged reader. A really great game, and even better now it retails for 2.99!!)

Cel Damage
(Never played it, but apparently it sucks more ass than Jonathan (W)Ross interviewing a Lord of the Rings cast member. The tosser.)

(OK, not a rip off as such - but originally intended as a Dreamcast sequel. If only twats had bought more Dreamcasts. Tut. But still, a great game nonetheless)

You may be wondering why I am bringing this bullshite to your attention when it could so easily be preoccupied by a) making another round of cheese on toast; b) cracking open another can of Carlsberg (which is what I'm about to do...please excuse me); c) cracking one off to that new Christina Aguilera video (which is what I'm also about to do...thank GOD I got that tissue box holder); or d) cracking one off to a David Hasslehoff video...which is your own business. Cough.

Whatever your taste in (wo)men, the reason I bring JSR (or JGR for the NTSC crew) to the table after so many years of entertainment is that a new film that uses a familiar cel shading effect has just come to my attention.

Ladies and Germs - A SCANNER DARKLY:



OK - it doesn't feature a band of futuristic 'sk8ers' graffiti-ing up some lovely neighbourhood and being chased by a fat cunt with a dog (which is what generally happens to me when I don my turbo-skates and spray my 'tag' on next door's living-room window), but it looks remarkably familiar and also (whisper it) very good. Well done Keanu - although, sadly, it still takes a bit of fancy animation to stop you looking like a plank of 2 by 4.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

yes it does look (whisper) pretty good, thanks for the heads up. Cel shaded Winona too!

Animated AF said...

The problem I heard about this film is that for all the time they spent rotoscoping it all, most of the movie involves them just sitting around talking. What's the point of spending all that time on animating over the top of the film if next to nothing happens?

Animated AF said...

And yes, Cel Damage sucked hard.
The cel-shaded games that came after JSR cant really be considered rip-offs though. It was an inevitable step in cartoon style graphics, and the technique had been used here and there in 3D rendering long before JSR did it. JSR was simpliy the first 3D real-time cel shading.

gnome said...

Having just played JSR for the first time a few weeks ago, I have to say it's brilliant in the most ..er... brilliant of ways. And not only in the looks department.

Oh, and Mr. Elderly, a cel-shaded Winona doesn't sound too bad either.

fatherkrishna said...

As the kids round our way say that post was 'weighty' e.g sick, dark etc. add teen talk that's current. Man you know your shit! am taking my good lady for a well deserved night out to see this particular film tomorrow! searched on youtube and google vid but only successfully accessed the trailer on the DCJY! as for Jetset inspired graphics what about the average 'viewtiful joe' on PS2. jetset radio truly rocks. the ability to design and then spray your own tags within the game is a revoloution in its own right. again I will champion the innovation of the DC as contemporary in 2006 and both damn all those who lamely accepted PS2 marketing to fool them in 2001 (including me) and revel in the still releventness (i'm making up words here) in the face of the PS3, Wii and Xbox 360. DC still has so much to offer... Invest pennies in re-buying one rather than throw money away on a next gen 'thang' at top dollar.
God I've so much to catch up on....