The story goes that the city of New Marais celebrates Pyre Night every year come Halloween. And of course with city wide carousing comes unsavory prowlers in the night. Our hero Cole goes to investigate some disappearances underneath the Church, but is soon captured himself and brought forth to the corpse of… wait for it… Bloody Mary. Yeah that’s right, she actually exists in this universe. Turns out, Mary needed to inject the blood of a very powerful Conduit (term in the game for people with the gene to develop super powers) in order to restore her body to it’s youthful form. She sucks Cole, restoring her body, and turning him into a Vampire, who now has only one night of free will to kill Mary before the sun rises and his mind is completely subdued under her influence, becoming just another one of her minions.

It is a bit unclear when this is suppose to take place during in the canon of the series, but what’s interesting about it is that the whole story is narrated by Cole’s buddy Zeke, who is in real time telling the story to some chick in a bar, trying to prove to her that he’s a friend of the “Electric Man.” I find it hilarious, because the whole time, we don’t really know how credible the story really is, or if Zeke really does all the awesome stuff he says he does in this story. In essence, the continuity in the story really doesn’t matter. Just sit back and enjoy the game.

The gameplay is a lot of the same. Cole gets all his usual lightning powers and rather quickly. But there are a few additional vampire techniques, including a vampire sense, which allows you to scope out other vampires in disguise among civilians, and stake them unawares. Probably the biggest selling point is the Vampire flight technique. Yeah, Cole can totally turn his body into a swarm of bats and fly at light speed above the city. It makes the already quick method of moving across the city through wire sliding feel sluggish by comparison. If in Infamous 2, you ever felt jealous of Kuo and Nix’s abilities to zip across the city with ease, now you can experience it yourself. Of course, this new technique requires blood to fuel instead of electricity, so you may have to occasionally feed on local Pyre Night celebrators.

One of the main complaints that many people had with Infamous 2 was that Cole was too super powered and that all the enemies became too easy to take down. Well, in answer to that, I can say that Mary’s minions in Festival of Blood, the vampires and especially these bat creatures, were some of the most formidable enemies I’ve fought in the series thus far. They move really quickly, their weapons have a lot of range, and because each of them has that same zippy flying technique that you do, they were really difficult to run or hide from when things get rough.

Truth be told, the game doesn’t last that long at all. You could probably finish all the story missions in 2-3 hours tops. Given time exploring the city with your new powers, searching for collectables, and the few side missions, the game may last 4-5 hours. In addition, for those who are into the user-made-content, Festival of Blood adds some new tools and mission types to work with. It is also nice to know that you do not have to own or have played any of the previous InFamous games in order to purchase this, so if you haven’t played the series yet, this may be a quick, easy, and above all cheap way to have a taste of what it’s like.

InFamous Festival of Blood is available for $10 on the Play Station Network. Happy Pyre Night everybody, and take care not to go creeping about any haunted churches this evening!

A little change of pace

I know you’ll all be playing Battlefield 3 this weekend, but in the spirit of Halloween, I ask that you don’t overlook some of the most terrifying and intense games you’ll ever play. Believe me, I’m a tried-and-true action gamer. Games need not be deep or well thought out for me to have a lot of fun. In fact, if a game doesn’t get into some action within the first 5 minutes, I usually give up on it…but every now and then it’s good to have a change of pace, to find a game that really messes with you.

Okay, I’ll admit up front that not all of the games in the list below fall under the “deep and scary” category, but all of these games will take a toll on you, especially when you drop all the lights and jack up the sound like you’re supposed to. You also have to put some of these games in context, both within their time and technology, but believe me when I tell you that all of these games made me jump and, in some cases, even gave me nightmares.

In no particular order…

Doom

Doom - An oldie but a goldie.

Doom is one of the first games I played that genuinely made my heart skip a beat. Sure, Doom doesn’t hold up very well against today’s game, and its reputation as nothing more than a deathmatch game doesn’t help, but playing the campaign alone could keep you up late. I forget exactly what level it was but at the end there was a room of columns that was pitch black except for a strobe light. It looked plenty easy until you hit the door and then BLAM…lights out…followed by hordes of demon imps coming at you from all sides. Between the lights, the monsters and spinning 360 degrees while unloading your shotgun, it was quite a ride. I recommend playing Doom with some Nine Inch Nails…there’s nothing better.

Resident Evil 4

This is one of the few games I really enjoyed playing on the Nintendo Wii, and also one of few games that actually held up great when ported to the Wii. Resident Evil is a well established franchise in the horror department (and even the movie department), but this fourth installment kept me coming back for more punishment. Resident Evil 4 strikes a good balance between action and game pace. There’s enough action to keep you running and guessing, but there are enough story elements to keep you interested in what’s really going on. Especially at the beginning when you’re wandering through the village of zombies; you can really appreciate the mood it creates…even more so with your sub woofer turned up to 11.

House of the Dead

Okay, okay…I admit that House of the Dead isn’t really frightening, but it can get pretty intense when you’re trying to blast all the undead that just won’t stop jumping in front of you. Like any arcade shooter, House of the Dead is about reaction time, accuracy, and your ability to reload at the right time. Out of all the games I’ve listed, this is the only one that can challenge you physically…at least if you play the game properly. This is another game that works well- nay, works best- on the Wii and provides the most accurate arcade experience. So call your best bud, grab your Wiimotes, turn up the sound, and turn down the lights.

Dead Space 2

I have to admit that I haven’t played Dead Space 2 as a complete game; I only played the demo on the Xbox 360…but that was enough…it was enough to tell me this is not a game I could handle. Even in the 10 minute demo, the mood created is one of the most intense I’ve ever experienced and the “jump out and scare you” factor was off the charts. The pace of the game was slow and creepy, and the lack of music didn’t help matters any. In many games the soundtrack gives you clues as to what is going to happen. That’s not the case here,. You’re all alone and you absolutely feel like it. If there’s one thing I have a hard time dealing with in video games, it’s down time…dead air…silence…it’s just unsettling and that freaks me out. If the demo of Dead Space 2 managed to give me the heebie jeebies, I can only imagine how much sleep I’d lose suffering through the entire game.

Bioshock

If Dead Space 2 is sci-fi creepy, then Bioshock is old timey creepy…only Bioshock is a game I actually played through beginning to end. Bioshock is not without its “jump out” moments, but in many ways Bioshock is just out right scary. With Dead Space 2, it’s set inside a futuristic, sci-fi world and you just kind of have to accept what’s going on because you have no basis for reality. Bioshock, on the other hand, takes place in a world that you can understand and believe, even if the story itself is just as ridiculous as Dead Space 2.

The visuals and sound in Bioshock create one of the moodiest games you’ll ever experience, but the other half of the uneasiness is the lack of resources you’re given. This isn’t a game that gives you unlimited ammo and easy access to weapons, so when you chase a shadow around a corner (or more so, when it chases you), you’re not only worried about it attacking you, you’re worried about not being able to defend yourself. Very few games manage to creep you out while also providing the stress that is resource management, but Bioshock does all of this extremely well. This is a game I played in the dark and I’m not ashamed to admit that Big Daddy and his cronies ended up in my dreams. Scary.

A different kind of challenge

Most video games challenge us by simply making the goals difficult to achieve. The bosses might be incredibly hard or the level itself might just be a challenge as you jump from platform to platform. Some games ask you to solve puzzles while others put your reaction time to the test. This is all well and good, and frankly, this is usually challenging enough, but now try to do all those things while fighting your emotions. Making a game hard is easy. Making a game that completely messes with your head is a real achievement. So do yourself a favor this Halloween weekend and play your games in the dark.

Costumes, candy and fun

Halloween has always been a little different for me because not only is it the best holiday of them all, it’s also my birthday. Growing up Halloween meant two things to me: presents and candy…not a bad combination. Of course, to get the latter you have to dress up and pander to your neighbors, and unfortunately finding a good costume gets harder the older you get.

Halloween isn’t much trouble when you’re young. You go to the store and you pick out the costume you want, and when you’re that age, sky’s the limit…unless of course you were me and had a very crafty mother. Shy of the one store-bought costume of which I have photographic proof (I was Bugs Bunny), every other costume I had growing up was made at home, for better or worse. A homemade Halloween costume was a double edge sword, really. On one had you knew that your costume was one-of-a-kind, but because it was, you usually didn’t have all the accessories you wanted that you would have otherwise got with a retail purchase. And just like GI Joe or Barbie, it’s all about the accessories.

If only you could see the happiness on my little face.

When you don’t pay retail

Rather than have a cool plastic sword or laser gun, I had accessories made out of cardboard. One year I was a train conductor (I was big into trains) and if you exclude the kick ass hat, the only accessory I had was a flashlight. Other costume highlights from Halloweens past include a hobo in which I wore a mop on my head and a dress, a vampire that wore sweats, and a Rambo outfit that was little more that a ripped t-shirt and a cardboard bazooka. However, just for the record, I thought my Rambo costume was pretty sweet and it coordinated with the Rambo lunchbox I had at the time.

What you get when you don't buy a costume...train conductor.

So watching many of my friends prance around town in their “high end” was sometimes hard to accept, a little piece of me always wondering why I didn’t get “cool” costumes like everyone else, but little did I know my mother was just preparing me for adulthood. I’m not ashamed to say that I’ve dressed up every Halloween since I was probably four years old, and I didn’t stop trick-or-treating until I was probably 18…and before you start blasting me about that, let me grab my soapbox real quick.

Why is trick-or-treating a crime?

I don’t know where, why, or when trick-or-treating became a kid-only activity. Trick-or-treating is about dressing up and embarrassing yourself by going door-to-door asking for free candy. If you ask me, anyone that takes the time to dress up and has the stones to ask me for candy deserves some. I don’t care if you’re eight, 18 or 88. If you put in the effort, you’ll get a reward. One year, however, I found out that feeling is not shared by everyone when I was denied candy and told I was too old. I don’t know how they knew I was too old as I was wearing a mask, but nonetheless, it kind of upset me. I don’t go begging anymore, mostly because my wife forbids it, but if I could, absolutely I would and I’ll tell you that the costumes I make now are far better than some of the costumes these lazy kids wear today. They don’t appreciate the fine art that is the Halloween costume, a skill that requires creativity, cleverness, humor, and humility.

Do-it-yourself and have more fun

As I grew up, it didn’t take me long to realize why my mother never bought me Halloween costumes. They’re expensive and they’re cheap. Like any other holiday, Halloween comes but once a year and retailers know it, so they charge you an arm and a leg for everything from fake blood to complete costumes. Purchasing a costume every year, while easy, is just too expensive and honestly, I don’t think you enjoy it as much. The adult costumes you find in stores are somewhat limited, typically ranging between sexy witch and giant keg of beer, and they’re all boring. These costumes have no personality and don’t really show off who you are or what you can be. Halloween costumes should be an extension of yourself. It’s the one day out of the year that it is acceptable to dress up and be whatever you want to me, so take advantage of that…don’t wuss out. Don’t be a keg.

I, Macho Man - One of the most fun costumes ever.

However, I have to admit that coming up with creative costumes year after year is exhausting. If you put your heart into your costume, you have to start planning early and gathering together all your pieces and parts. I’ve been a pro wrestling fan since I was five and to pay homage to my favorite heroes of the squared circle, I crafted some homemade costumes for a couple of years. It was a lot of fun being my wrestling heroes, first Macho Man Randy Savage and then the year after Roddy Piper. And the one cool thing about making your own costumes now is that you can buy all the accessories you wanted as a kid. To go along with my custom-made muscle suit and kilt (thanks, mom) I bought my very own championship belt. You see, I’m not anti-retail, you just have to find the balance between what you can/should make on your own and what things you really need to buy to enhance it.

Going hardcore on Halloween

I consider myself a true middle-of-the-road costumer. I don’t half-ass it but I don’t go all out either. It keeps things affordable and doesn’t make the whole process a hassle. Of course, you always have the friend that does go all out and just makes your efforts look lazy. I have one friend that dresses up full tilt every year. One year he had a Freddy Kruger outfit, complete with burn makeup and glove, and then the next year he was ultra-scary killer clown, again, complete with makeup. His costumes are always impressive and there’s never any question as to what he’s trying to be. I admire his hard work but know at the same time I’d never be motivated enough to go through the whole process. It looks cool but I’ll stick with my relatively simple creations.

Are you afraid of clowns? You are now.

And speaking of simple, some of the better and most clever costumes are those that don’t require any makeup or require extra purchases. If you just put some heart into it, you can cobble together the right combination of clothes and accessories right in your own home. You can be Bob Vila and just wear your tool belt and a hammer. Wear your pajamas, rip your shirt, and use some red food coloring and you can be Teen Victim #3 from any horror movie. Or dig out your old varsity jacket, put on some eye shadow, and be a zombie football jock. Or just find some suspenders, a hat and shave, and you can be Amish.

Point being, you don’t have to go all out to have some fun, it just requires some creativity. It doesn’t matter what your costume is or what you did to create it, it matters that you do it at all!

The future of Halloween

For Halloween this year I plan on being a character from one of my new favorite video games. I’m not telling what it is right now, you’ll have to wait and see photos, but it’s safe to say the costume will require some craftiness yet won’t break the bank or need me to invest hours upon hours to dress up. It’s just fun and that’s all Halloween is supposed to be. Fun (and  birthday presents).

What are some of your favorite Halloween costumes of years past?

Chris’ Top Ten Favorite Video Game Soundtracks:

The very first of October began with a continuation of my previous lists regarding video game music. This time I went even broader and ranked my favorite soundtracks in video games. and oddly enough, it somehow coincided with an interview Kyle and I did with Daniel Floyd and James Portnow.

Gus’ Top 10 DBZ Relationships:

Because who can ever get enough Dragonball Z?

We were treated to a Week of Gus with a three-part Top 10 List involving Dragonball Z, one of my favorite subjects. In classic Gus fashion, his article was too long to post in a single day, so it was broken into three parts. It’s really a creative read, so go look into it if you want more DBZ-related goodness.

Just Stay Dead: A Review of Dead Rising 2:

Jumping into the busy game-release month, I took on the task of reviewing Dead Rising 2. In a nutshell, it’s better than the first game, but if you hated the first game, you’ll hate this one, too.

A Miserable Pile of Secrets: A Review of Castlevania: Lords of Shadow:

Next up, the new 3D Castlevania game. I really wanted to play it, but a lot of reviewers have complained about poor cameras and downright bad level design. Still, Patrick Stewart as a voice actor hasn’t steered me wrong yet.

Call of D-Oops, I Mean A Review of Medal of Honor:

I guess The Dude is into modern warfare now. Cool.

One of the largest titles to release in October, Medal of Honor, turns out to be exactly what we thought it’d be: A totally decent game that you won’t remember by this time next year. We also learn that for some reason, because I’m unprofessional, I eat crap sandwiches. Learn something new every day I suppose.

Monkey’s Life-Changing Trip: A Review of Enslaved: Odyssey To The West:

Gus comes back and reviews a game I honestly wasn’t paying attention to, but now really want to own: Enslaved: Odyssey To The West. Turns out it’s an awesome game that everyone should play and I want it for Christmas.

Chris’ Ten Favorite Video Game Trilogies:

Because I can never get enough lists, I give a rundown of ten video game series that stand out as examples of trilogies that don’t fail at any step. And then Gus harangues me for not picking some other choices. Thus is life.

Bad Games That Should Have Been Great: Fable II:

I hated Fable II. I thought it was a terrible game. So much so in fact that I decided to write a lengthy rant to just that effect. Even so, I held myself back from mentioning the shimmering trail of failure, the annoying gargoyles, or utter uselessness of doing anything in the game. It’s one of my favorite articles though, so please do read it.

Yet Another Pokemon Black & White Preview:

New Pokemon, but plot? Not so much.

Because just one preview isn’t enough, I do a second one. Pokemon Black & White Versions have now been out in Japan long enough to know everything about them, so I was capable of judging the game in a more in-depth manner. Read on to see what you can expect from the new adventure like the old adventures.

10 Awesome Ninja Turtle Action Figure Outfits:

Finally following up my first TMNT action figure list for over a year ago, I dive into a listing of ten really awesome Ninja Turtle action figures. I’m always into writing about Ninja Turtles, so read it if you are, too.

Forget-Me-Nots: Halloween-Turned-Toys!

Kyle returns at last with a new article, this month covering some of the perks of Halloween costumes: The accessories. He highlights a few choices of Halloween props that become excellent toys year-round, so give it a read.

And that’s all we saw in October. What’s up for November? Well, a review of Fable III is up early, as well as a list from Gus. Later we’ll have another edition of Bad Games That Should Have Been Great regarding Star Fox Adventures, a list of bad things comics do, Tips From a Grandmaster on Super Mario Bros 3, and who knows what else! Tune in every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for new articles because you never really know what gold we’ll farm next.

I had a great alien costume when I was 10. Big rubber mask, cult-like emerald robes, and a little device with flashing lights and whirring noises. Well, the mask was always good for scaring my brother around corners, and it also made for a great target once I got into Nerf guns and filmmaking. The robes worked for several other costumes later down the road, as well as the inevitable Jedi fantasy.

Favorite Halloween costume/toy of Chris Pranger.

The important memories come from Halloween weapons, though. You see them every year down that seasonal aisle, and they are always the same. There are machetes, scythes, tridents, ninja weapons, and swords. Oh, the swords. The best ones have scabbards that go on your belts. Kids love katanas, rapiers, and especially broadswords (they favor the imprecise, full-body swings of children). Swords are great around Halloween because they aren’t standard in the toy aisle year-round. Of course, Nerf has changed that recently with their N-Force line of foam-padded melee weapons. They have one-handed swords, double-handed broadswords, and even battle axes and maces.

Guns are great, too. Chances are that the Halloween guns are better than the garden variety gun toys. They make noise or light up, sure. But they also have movement, and realistic looks. Plus the costume provides a neat place to put them. I’m a personal fan of the garter belt gun and holster that can be found in lots of costume shops and party stores around this month. Ever go as a cowboy/girl or a cop for Halloween? The best part is that you get a gun, and a holster. Guns are pretty easy to find, but kids want to play the role properly. A gunslinger cannot shout “Draw!” without a holster. Cops can’t hold their gun and handcuff a perp at the same time.

Bonus points if you grab two of these and rock John Dillinger as a costume.

That reminds me…handcuffs! While they look good hanging from a belt, they live on after the holiday as something neat to mess with. I distinctly remember handcuffing myself to the handle of a sliding-glass door, and trying to retrieve the keys in some creative manner. My mom taught me at a young age to dress as a cop and handcuff my stuffed animals. Here’s a big hint for parents: My brother and I once went as a cop and a crook, and my parents made sure we stayed together by handcuffing us! Brilliant parenting? Perhaps. Slightly cruel? Maybe so. Effective? Absolutely.

I realize that kids have too many devices and high-tech stuff nowadays. Do little girls still play dress-up? If so, Halloween is kind of a no-brainer. Tiaras, faerie wings, Hanna Montana wigs (I do not endorse that last one), or doctor kits and pirate hats. It’s all reusable.

Halloween is a kid day. Remember that, because my girlfriend (psychology major) tells me that role playing is good for child development. Unfortunately, the candy is bad for teeth. You take the good, you take the bad. You take ‘em both and there you have…Halloween.

p.s.- True stuff, I saw a group of girls dressed as the cast of “Facts of Life” one Halloween.

Want more articles laced with chuildhood memories? Check these out:

-Guys and Dolls: A Male’s Retrospective on Barbie

-Sweet Memories of Childhood Cars: A Matchbox Retrospective

-5 Arcade Cabinets I’d Like To Own

And a huge thank you to The Virtual Ninja Turtle Museum for their help with images and a clear archive. I wouldn’t have been able to pull off this article without them!

10. Slap Shot Leo:

Turtles participating in sports? How absurd!

The Turtles had a bunch of figure lines featuring them in sports uniforms along with the appropriate equipment to go along. Slap Shot Leo was a figure I was totally into as a kid because hockey seemed really cool to me, even more so that Leo had ice skates on. Haven’t I made it pretty apparent before that action figures with some mode of built-in transportation are cool? Ice skates were cool to me. And even better, this is hockey we’re talking about, so it would make perfect sense for Leo to go straight from the game to busting heads, assuming it’s not within the same game. Go hockey!

9. Raph, The Magnificent:

Abra kadabra, and now your nose is BROKEN!

If we remember my Ridiculous Turtle Action Figures list, I placed Mike dressed as a clown pretty high. He was terrifying on some strange level, but Raph The Magnificent is the opposite: He’s awesome on some strange level. Perhaps it is the rabbit concealed in his hat. Perhaps it is his rockin’ mustache. Perhaps it’s just seeing a Ninja Turtle with coat tails. But on the most basic level, these are ninjas we’re talking about, and adding magic only functions to make them better at being ninjas. Raph with the power of illusion only makes sense in some glorious universe.

8. TD Tossin’ Leo:

The NFL would be so much cooler if there were more ninjas actively playing.

Coming from the same figure line as Slap Shot Leo, TD Tossin’ Leo is even more aggressive, even missing a bunch of teeth and wearing a ripped-up jersey. It’s clear that he plays full-contact football, none of this two-hand-touch crap. Suckers got smeared when Leo picked the long bomb, and though we never got Runningback Mike or Defensive Line Don, Leo was enough to suffice the violent sports urge all young boys had and most never grew out of. Even cooler: he came with a full helmet. The more accessories the better, and an easy-on, easy-off helmet was more than welcome for a TMNT action figure. I don’t know who’d win in a fight between TD Tossin’ Leo and Slap Shot Leo, but it’d be a good fight.

7. Power-Punchin’ Rocksteady:

Moma said knock you out. Also, mama was a rhino, so she knew these things.

Immediately upon seeing Rocksteady decked out in boxing gear my brain jumped to Punch-Out!! Boxing, yet another sport, is also a sport based ENTIRELY around beating the ever-loving crap out of your opponent. Sure, matches can be decided on a point system, but no one remembers those as fondly as matches won with a TKO or a referee running in and saying, “No more or he’ll bleed out of his ears!” Strapping boxing gloves to Rocksteady’s mitts only allows him to punch harder, sending Turtles sprawling. He’s like King Hippo, Balrog, and TJ Combo mixed into one excellent rhino-shaped package!

6. Safari Michelangelo:

Gold star if I get through this caption without making a lame Australian joke. And success!

Truth be told I probably wish I’d grown up in Australia. I have no clue why, but I love the accents and the outback outfits. What the image up there doesn’t show are the various accessories Mike had to go with his outback safari, the best of which was probably a huge gun connected to a water-filled backpack (shaped like an angry monkey of course), which when squeezed sprayed water at whichever enemies seemed to really hate water. Hey, Shredder wears a bunch of metal, and that stuff rusts, so sure, water works. He also came with a hunting knife, a bit of a shock to me. It was shocking because most times any Ninja Turtle came with a knife or a gun, it’d be shaped like something wacky. In this instance it just looked like a real knife. Sweet!

5. Creature From The Black Lagoon Leo:

Who knew that the creature from the Black Lagoon was actually just a turtle?

Not one but two action figure lines came out with Turtles as Universal Studios Monsters, and of the eight produced, Creature From The Black Lagoon Leo is the best. Really, all he looked like was a further-mutated Ninja Turtle, but I was all for it. Bigger hands for smacking and red eyes for glaring made this a must-have for me. And I never owned it! What a disappointment my childhood was! Oh well, at least I owned the four remaining figures on this list.

4. Pro Pilot Don:

Fighter pilots are awesome and nearly extinct. Enjoy them while you can!

Of the two Mutant Military series released, the first was immensely better seeing as how it had Raph dressed as a green beret, Leo decked out in Desert Storm attire, and Mike sporting the naval look, machinegun-toting bird in tow. But those three paled in comparison to Pro Pilot Don, a figure that came with a pretend parachute that strapped to his backpack. It looked pretty simple, but using my superior childhood imagination, I imagined that the parachute allowed him to fly. And as the rule goes: Flying toys are always better than non-flying toys. Also included was a helmet with a breathing mask, just like he’d wear in a fighter jet. Oh, and each Mutant Military figure came with a miniature American flag. Kind of brings a tear to your eye, doesn’t it?

3. Pterano Don:

He comes from a prehistoric land down under. ...Oh wait, dang it!

What’s the rule? “Flying toys are always cooler than non-flying toys.” Pterano Don is what you get when you mix Donatello with a pterodactyl, meaning that Donny gets huge wings and a head that looks like he can rend metal like a can-opener. Pterano Don is a beast, pure and simple. I played with him so much that one of the wings fell off and I had to reattach it/play less roughly with my super awesome Ninja Turtles. He was even quite a bit larger in stature and height than all the other Turtles figures I owned, making him a more commanding presence in the ongoing plotlines my homemade series would endure. Just looking at the other figures in the line, all of which were crossed with dinosaurs, only Don stands out as a really cool action figure. The others feel lacking. Except maybe mixing Shredder with a tyrannosaurus, though that only really succeeded in making him look like a Street Shark reject.

2. Cave Turtle Raph With Tubular Pterodactyl:

Please take note of the mask on the pterodactyl, because the pterodactyl is also a ninja.

Yes, more flying toys and yes, more pterodactyls. The Turtles had a series where they were prehistoric in nature and rode around on happy-go-lucky dinosaurs Flintstones style. Once I got Raph I was all set as he came with the pterodactyl, making every adventure he starred in comprised of 95% flying and 5% getting to his pterodactyl so he could continue flying. Eventually the harness strap broke off the pterodactyl, meaning no turtle could really ride him anymore. I was more or less fine with this and allowed him to stand alone as his own character, talking and wisecracking just as you’d expect. So what could possibly outdo two pterodactyls in a row?

1. Super Don:

The greatest thing ever! Too Much Awesome!

Try adding Batman to the equation. Yeah, that sure does spike things in the awesome department by a wide margin, doesn’t it? Of this series, Don was garbed in Batman-like attire whereas Mike looked vaguely Superman-esque. Both were great, but Don came with a wrist-attached baterang-launcher (it was fake but it looked cool). I played like it was a grappling hook, a laser, and a stun gun, and each time I loved it more. But could he fly? Yes, whenever I felt like allowing him to fly. This is just one cool toy, the likes of which we may never see again.

These are just ten of dozens of awesome outfits the Turtles have worn over the years. Do you have a favorite that I didn’t mention? Leave a comment and let me know. In the meantime, I need to figure out a way to craft a Super Don outfit in time for Halloween. Excelsior!

Want more Ninja Turtle articles? Check these out:

-Forget-Me-Nots: The TMNT Pizza Power Board Game

-Go Green Machine! A Ninja Turtle Video Game Retrospective

-Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Best Action Figures Ever

They are shooting pure joy from my heart.

Halloween is pretty much here, but for some of us that doesn’t mean much. Why is that? Well we’re too busy playing video games to care what’s happening around us. As a result, we may accidentally pass up the day in lieu of just playing something bright and cheery, but there are other options for us shut-ins that still want to celebrate Halloween with some good atmospheric games. So here are 10 Games You Should Play On Halloween.

Resident Evil 4:

Sure, the first game is great and the most recent installment is pretty good, but Resident Evil 4 knocked my socks off when I first played it on the GameCube all those years ago. It was the perfect mix of fluid gameplay with situations that terrified me to no end due to stuff like, oh, I don’t know, chainsaw wielding zombies or Wolverine-style monsters with their eyes sown shut. I freaked, but I never stopped playing.

The thing about RE4 is that it pushed games to be at least as good as it was by deciding what 3rd-person gameplay should be for shooters and what to expect with quick-time events (one of two games I was actually okay with the silly feature). You can pick up a copy for the GameCube, PS2, or PC, and the Wii has a version with motion controls that work extremely well (Amazon’s got it for under $15). Just do yourself a favor and play through if you haven’t already. Just tell me when you get to Del Lago.

Silent Hill 2:

This is Pyramid Head. This thing should not be.

I was forced to play both Silent Hill 1 and 2 by my friends and I made fun of them the whole way through, especially number 2. And why? Because I didn’t want to let on that I’d probably be crying unless I found a means of coping with fear since Silent Hill 2 throws you into a bad situation and just makes it worse. If you haven’t heard of a Silent Hill game, you probably live a happier life than I, otherwise Amazon has the PS2 version for around $10.

See, Silent Hill is a town that’s cursed since a little girl was pushed to become pure evil and fill the town with demons (yes, I hate it when this happens, too). The combat is awful on purpose as the main character isn’t a great fighter or solider. He just wants to find his dead wife because she told him to meet him in Silent Hill (if your dead anything ever says this, don’t go). You will see horrible things and you will hear horrible things and by the end of the game you will have had to do horrible things and you won’t sleep with the lights off for a while. Seriously, if you ever want to terrify someone who’s played a Silent Hill game, flick off the lights and blare a disaster siren. They will go hide in a corner; I guarantee it.

Super Ghouls & Ghosts:

And that's about as far as I get.

No, not every game has to be extremely terrifying to make for good Halloween playing. Super Ghouls & Ghosts (and really any entry in the Ghosts & Goblins series), will give you nightmares just realizing you can’t make it past the first level. I’ve put the game on easy, cranked up my lives, and still I couldn’t make it anywhere near the end of the first level. The first level! And I’m not a bad game player. I’ve even beat I Wanna Be The Guy (go search this on Google to see what it is), so you know I’m hardcore.

Super Ghouls & Ghosts has you jump in the shoes of Arthur on a quest to save a princess from a demon. Along the way, Arthur will die and die and die because he will be attacked by every manner of zombie and skeleton and unholy death with only two hits before he dies. If that sounds merciful, it isn’t. Ten hits before death is even being stingy. But the game is still worth playing even if you can’t make it past the first few zombies, so go find this on the SNES or the Virtual Console. In fact, this is so dificult that it looks like people are practically giving away used copies on Amazon for under $4.

Super Castlevania IV:

The box art sort of says it all.

Yes yes and more yes. I’m not going for scary here, I’m just telling you to go play games that put you in a Halloween mood and Super Castlevania IV (so super it needed it in the title), is such a good game that you’d be a fool to just let it pass you buy. It’s on the SNES but also on the Virtual Console, making it an extremely easy and affordable purchase.

Simon Belmont goes toe-to-toe with Dracula yet again, but at this point the structure of the Castlevania games is nearly perfected. The game is tough but fair and beating it yields a sweet sense of accomplishment that games don’t typically give anymore. Just whipping zombies and horrors and Death itself makes this one a game you should be playing anyway.

Luigi’s Mansion:

Don't care; Great game.

There I said it. Go play Luigi’s Mansion, one of the first titles released on the GameCube. It gets a bad rap but the game was great, albeit extremely short. So what better game to play through in a single day? This was Luigi’s big chance to shine (the only other game he’s starred in since Mario Is Missing and that doesn’t count), and while he doesn’t get a chance to stomp Goombas, he does get a chance to rid a haunted mansion of ghosts and spirits and such.

Surprisingly, this was one of the best looking games on the system, and it was a launch title. I always found that strange. You’re going around a mansion filled with ghosts and everything makes spooky noises. It’s cartoony but it works. It’s a small diversion but it pays off, especially since you can probably find this title for $5 at a video game store, Amazon inclued. Just think of it like Ghostbusters but with Luigi instead of Bill Murray.

Ghostbusters The Video Game:

Or heck, why not just play Ghostbusters The Video Game? It’s new this year on the PS3 and Xbox 360 (there is also a pretty good Wii version, too), and if you are wondering, yes, it is just what you’d expect from a Ghostbusters game. And by that I mean it’s awesome.

Those games on the NES from back in the day? Yeah, those sucked. This game is like seeing the 3rd movie that never was (but will be due to the high sales of the game). Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, and Harold Ramis all reprise their roles for the game, and for a video game that’s simply amazing. You play as the rookie, a nameless new guy that the other Ghostbusters don’t want to get attached to since they think you’ll probably get killed testing out the new equipment. The best part of the game is the humor, but they still don’t skimp on the actual gameplay, which is also great. It’s just the perfect lighthearted Halloween game to play, plus it’s under $20. Good deal.

Eternal Darkness:

No don't try to figure out what they're talking about. You'll just go insane.

But maybe you don’t want lighthearted. Maybe you want to go over the edge with insanity. So go ahead and pop in Eternal Darkness for the GameCube and watch your mind slowly retreat into itself to hide from whatever you’re about to see on the screen. This game was the answer to anyone that ever called the GameCube a kiddie system. You dare challenge me? Snag it on Amazon for $15 and prove me incorrect.

What sets Eternal Darkness above other horror games is the way you play through multiple characters’ doomed stories. You know that each of these characters will die by the end of their chapter, but you want to see where their section of the plot takes them. Naturally, it takes them to the brink of madness as you have both a health meter and a sanity meter to deal with. If your sanity gets too low then weird things start to happen like the TV volume fluctuating, the screen turning on and off, and even a message telling you that your memory card is being erased. I freaked out around the point that my character thought her head fell off and she had to go pick it up. Read that sentence one more time if you didn’t catch that. Oh yeah is this game messed up.

Dead Space:

That hand there isn't going back on any time soon.

Yup, another game for the 360, PS3, and PC with play control similar to Resident Evil 4. You are one of very few survivors left alive on a space mining facility where a plague of alien something or other…yeah, it doesn’t matter. All that’s important is the fact that crazy stuff happens all around you and you have to fight off hellish monsters with futuristic mining equipment. Also, that the game is a Bestseller, meaning it’s only $20 these days.

The main draw here is the ability to sever various limbs from the enemies in order to rendering them unable to walk or attack. Instead of headshots being the best way to go, some enemies had more of a weakness in their legs or midsection or something similar to that, making you have to rethink the genre slightly. Not by much, but just enough to be extremely creepy and keep you playing past every insane challenge that comes up.

Left 4 Dead:

At least the Dead Space guy's hand still had a thumb.

Okay, so you could play this on your 360, or you could play it right on the PC. I suggest the PC version. Left 4 Dead is a Valve title and currently it is one of their best (which says a lot). You are one of four characters alive after a zombie apocalypse and you must work with the others to stay alive through swarms of the typical zombie fare. You can play this as a single player, but the best reason to play Left 4 Dead is to blow zombies away with three friends in cooperative play.

This is simply one of the best multiplayer games on the market right now, and Valve has been hard at work delivering patches and new content and a sequel hitting not too long from now (which promises to be just as great, if not better). If you saw Zombie Land this past month, this is pretty much the game that the movie is based off of, even if it wasn’t aware of it.

Bioshock:

Why won't you love me?!

I will never stop telling everyone to go play Bioshock. Maybe it’s my own guilt for not playing it until just recently, but Bioshock stands out as a game that understands what it means to create atmosphere in order for things to be scary. Out on the 360, PS3, and now on Steam for the PC, everyone can play Bioshock and figure out what I’m going on about.

You play as a character that survives a plane crash and swims to a lighthouse in the middle of the ocean, only to find the entrance to the city of Rapture, a dystopian society that’s been utterly destroyed after people spliced their genes way too much for God to allow. You’ll get to encounter Big Daddies, Little Sisters, Splicers, and Andrew Ryan, my new favorite villain. I can’t wait until Bioshock is made into a movie since the plot alone has me sold.

And that’s my list off the top of my head. I promise that there is something here for everyone, from the hardcore gamers out there to the casual players. But I know this isn’t a complete list, so tell me what I left out. Are there some games I should be ashamed to omit? Let me know with a comment or two in the comments section and let your voice be heard.