We all had dreams as kids. How often have you heard that before? Enough, I'd say, but hear me out. We all had dreams as kids. I've known people that wanted to be astronauts, dancers, and more. I also know that none of these people are going on to become this. Instead, they're off to college to learn more marketable professions. They've been told that they have to think realistically, and that their chances of achieving something like being a famous dancer ala Fred Astaire is nilch. They've given up, in fear of not being able to support themselves financially. Eventually, after Spaceman earns his Bachelor in engineering and ballerina becomes a data analyst, they seem to forget they ever had desires in life beyond what they are living.

It's a deformed world we live in. Do you realize that the United States imprisons people for graffiti, gang-related or not? Vandalism, they call it . . . even though some graffiti is worthy of being framed and sold for thousands of dollars due to its beauty. "We'd like to give the artist credit, but he's currently getting raped in prison for vandalizing a wall." Oh, what a world. It's a world where dreams die.

I've been thinking about this a lot recently. On March 20th, the first day of Spring, I was accepted into Columbia College of Chicago, which is a world-recognized school of the arts, and is also the largest in the US. I will be going there for music. Yeah, I'm naive. At least, that's what I've been told by people my age. I've been told I should treat music as a hobby, and that it wouldn't be able to sustain me financially. It's always puzzled me, why people have bugged me about it. I doubt it's out of sincere concern for my well-being. Then I start to wonder if it's because they didn't have to balls to go for what they really wanted to go for. 

There are plenty of people that end up going to school for what they want to. But for all those people, there's so many that end up hating what they do. That hate becomes their environment. Their hate transforms the world into a lifeless place where people stare ahead and loathe change. It's these people that force street performers to have permits. It's these people that lock up great artists because their canvas was the city itself. It's depressing to me, that this happens, but it does, and it wouldn't happen if people went for it more often.

Anyways . . . I'll be going to college next year, and I plan on making myself a professional musician in four years time. Will it be difficult? You fuckin believe it. Would I have it any other way? Absolutely not.

That's all I have to say. Thanks for reading.

- Excitebots: Trick Racing is divulged upon as a new Excite! game where you play as what are esentially Beast Wars characters, but using smaller animals than found in that. Grasshoppers, frogs, etc. It looks to be pretty awesome.

- A Boy and His Blob is getting a remake on Wii a la Klonoa, but to much greater extent. All the visuals are 2D, almost like a simpler, more cartoony Muramasa. The game is, needless to say, very pretty. It's being developed by WayForward, who just put out LIT on WiiWare.

- jakob, are you there? Dead Space: Extraction is touched upon briefly, basically talking about how awesome they are for thinking up Dead Space and all its mythos, and how there will be many Dead Space games. The one thing of interest I read was in concerns to the strategic dismemberment. Apparently, while using the rivet gun, you need to hold the Wiimote to make the rivet blade that is fired perpendicular to the limb you are looking to dismember. That's actually really cool, and could add some depth. Congratulations, EA . . . you won me over.

- Grand Slam Tennis! has a big article, but I don't want to read it.

- MadWorld got a 9.

That's pretty much the extent of the Wii. Discuss.

*Just looked in the back, and there's a teaser for an upcoming Wii game to be discussed in the next issue. Direct quote: "Don't be left out in the cold. WeA chilling tale is coming exclusively to Wii, and Nintendo Power will bring you the scoop."

Winter? Did it get a publisher? HELLO?

So check this out. I am officially going to be performing at Disney World the week of Spring Break with my school. It cost a lot of money (865 bucks, hefty fee), but I'm excited to be able to go. I'm actually in a group that won national champions a while back. Gonna be fun. Also, another group at my school may be performing there with music I wrote. Well, it's actually "Get Ready" by the Temptations/Rare Earth, but I wrote all the backup stuff for it. I feel accomplished. Also, funny story . . . my choir teacher wrote the story for an issue of Iron Man at some point in his life. He's done everything, including being shot and stabbed with screwdrivers. Also, my AP theory teacher's favorite band is Tool. Bizarre stuff.

I just finished Tenchu: Shadow Assassins for Wii, and I mean just finished it. Literally half an hour ago. I absolutely loved it. Anyone who loves good stealth gameplay or a good story shoulod give this a look. The game ends with a spectacular bang. Just don't watch after the credits. Damn cliffhangers. I hope they make a sequel, though, because the game was awesome.

Well, that's all for now. Tired. See ya.

    

    To start, I have never played either Tenchu for the PSX, but I played Wrath of Heaven, and enjoyed it despite its flaws. I never played Tenchu Z because I heard it was horrible, so this is my first Tenchu game . . . actually, my first stealth game . . . in a while. Having said that, I'll just jump right in.

    

    Put simply, it's probably among the best Wii games available, and is easily a contender for best 3rd party title on the system, along with the likes of Boom Blox, No More Heroes, and only a few others.

    

    The main focus of the game is stealth, and the gameplay here is fairly methodical. Between blowing out candles, putting out larger fires with water to conceal yourself, grabbing items with fishing line from afar, and rolling between bushes, there are many ways to progress through the level. It's enjoyable, and while it's pretty methodical, it also doesn't seem completely played out. Some of the bushes are placed in oh-too-convenient spots from time to time, but overall, these environments are believable.

    

    Dispatching enemies is also great fun. Stealth kills are similar to the other games, though they're executed with gestures. Simple gestures. Don't think you have to actually go through the exact motions or anything. These work pretty well, though some are slightly unresponsive. You can also use rocks and shuriken to take people out with the help of the environment. You can knock them into wells and pits, off of buildings and towers, and knock them into torches to set them on fire. This is huge, because it actually makes the shuriken useful. In Wrath of Heaven, they were terrible.

    

    If you're seen, though, you are introduced to the final nail in Red Steel's coffin: functional swordplay. Alright, sure, it isn't perfectly responsive, but it has a great design and the overall execution is awesome. Basically, you go into a defense mode where you have to parallel your blade to theirs, while your "Tenchu" meter fills up. Once full, you go on the offensive, and slice him up. This combat is really hard, especially against the tougher enemies, but it's also really rewarding and incredibly fun. I've actually found this to be among the best things in the game, which is funny, because it's basically a last resort. Oh well, it's fun. In fact, it proves that swordfighting, when done right, is best on Wii. If only a game could be made to focus on it . . .

    

    Other than that, the general presentation is absolutely phenomenal. The graphics are detailed, and while they only run at 480i, which is very noticeable on my TV, they outclass many other Wii game graphics. The voice acting, despite some, uh, odd parts, is really good, and all the major characters have great fits. Rikimaru's voice is perfect for him. The story is also greatly improved, and it does so by keeping itself grounded in reality. The ninja may be somewhat mystical in abilities, but the story is one of feuds between kingdoms and betrayal. It elevates the quality of the ninja rather than simplifying it to just some dude who can hide. 

    

    Other than that . . . they have done a remarkable job with recreating Rikimaru, the protagonist. While in Wrath of Heaven, he had a magic sword, he now has to salvage weaponry from the field. Whereas before he refused to kill innocents, he now can for the sake of the mission. While he used to hide his face throughout the entire game, he now has no ninja mask in his portrait. After every kill, he does a short exhale of breath. All of this builds him into a fairly human character rather than some badass with a magic sword.

    

    One last thing . . . there's multiple difficulty modes in this game. The most difficult, called "Shadow Mode", features an incredible amount of enemies to deal with within the normal game. This mode, while defeating me now, is a wonderful addition, as it pits you in situations of intense challenge. Finally, a game that isn't insanely easy.

    

    Tenchu: Shadow Assassins should be in your library if you have a Wii. End of story. If you don't buy it, at least give it a rent. It features some great design that should be respected. 've heard that Acquire is interested in doing multiple Tenchu games for Wii, and, needless to say, they have room to improve. Co-op, stage creators . . . all this would make the package unstoppable. Also, with future titles comes Motion+, which would throw any "unresponsive" claims out the window, and would make the swordplay all the better. The developers are really onto something. If they do well, maybe they could bring their other series to Wii. The one I was hoping for when I bought the system.

    

    Well, thanks for reading, and remember . . .

    After two days of trying out, I'm officially in my high school's production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Yeah. Told you to watch your asses. I've been cast as Joseph's dad, Jacob, which I was legitimately surprised by, since . . . I've never done a play or a musical before. Whaddaya know? Also, if you're not familiar with the play, Joseph has 11 brothers. I am easily the biggest gigolo in the history of musical theater. Score.

    I'm a little disappointed in the pick of show, though, but I was bound to be no matter what it was. Last year we did the Steven Sondheim epic Sweeney Todd, and the year before we did the other Steven Sondheim epic Into the Woods. I love Sondheim, and wasn't involved in either of those. Still, I'm really looking forward for it to start, especially since all the clean-cut white kids in the play are prohibited from getting their hair cut until the end of May. As you can see, I'm way ahead of them.