2B - Thursday, March 12, 2009
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
2B - Thursday, March 12, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom 4
Today 3.12.09
500 Years of American
Grapes and Wines: A
Remarkable Journey
1p.m.
At the Wiam Clements Library
Free
Penny W. Stamps Lecture:
Richard Saul Wurman
5 p.m.
At the Michigan Theater
Free
Lecture: Reginald Gibbons
5 P.M.
At RackhamAuditorium
Free
Frank's Picks Film Series: The
Garden of the Finzi Contini
7 p.m.
At Graduate Library Gallery
Freee
Tomorrow 3.13.09
MUSKET Presents "Kiss of
the Spider Woman"
8 p.m.
At the Power Center
Free
The Silk Road Ensemble with
Yo-Yo Ma
a p.m
At Hill Auditorium
Saturday 3.14.09
Asia Library Exhibit of
Treasures
2 p.m.
At the Graduate Library Galery
Free
Stearns Lecture: Kunqu; A
Biographical Introduction to
Classical Chinese Opera
2 p.m.
At Angell Hall, Aud. A
Free
The Ragbirds
8 p.m.
At the Ark
Women's Glee Club with
Special Guest the Cornell
University Choir
8 p.m.
At the Walgreen Drama Center
Free
Sunday 3.15.09
Gemini
1 p.m.
At the Ark
$10
Playfest 09: "Why Boys and
Girls Can Never Be Friends"
and "Real Perfect"
2 p.r.y
At the Walgreen Drama Center
Free
Please send all press releases
and event information to
arts a michigandaly.com.
ONLINE GAMES OF THE WEEK
KNUCKLEHEADS
Two noticeably angry metal heads, one
purple and one green, swing each other
around on a chain through a dark, demon-
ic world. Color-coded platforms, villains
and giant fireballs force you to put your
heads together properly to pass obstacles
and eventually reach the end of the level.
The controls can get weird when you're
hanging upside down, but the game is still
well worth it.
Find it at:
http:// tinyurl.com/5857m9
PLANET RUNNER
In an homage to the best of the worst
old arcade games, this is a simple jaunt
through a green grid plagued by spiked
poles, bouncing circles and large chasms
of death. As the planet runner, you will
jump, dodge, shoot and maneuver your
way through the obstacles, collecting
power-ups along the way to help you
fend off the evil minions and fight the
boss at each world's end.
Find it at:
http://tinyurl.com/bkngdv
H s "y
High ive.
A notable Ann Arborite gives five
answers to a curious question.
Forest Juziuk
Manager, Wazoo Records
What are the five bands that
will break out in 2009?
Thank You: Difficult to describe, Thank You's songs are a kind of controlled
chaos of Farfisa organ, guitar and drums - trulyunlike anything else.
Mi Ami: A dance band that's more dub than disco, Mi Ami toured and self-
released several limited edition 12" EPs way before putting out a full-length on
Touch & Go/Quarterstick.
Abe Vigoda: Born of the same all-ages L.A. scene as 2008 breakout No Age, Abe
Vigoda's shoegazey punk is subtle but tasty.
Emeralds: This Midwest three-piece transcended from a lo-fi noise band into
purveyors of beautiful and strangely accessible synthed-out drone.
Tyvek: It doesn't matter how many times they practice or how many shows
they play, Tyvek will always be beautifully loose basement damage.
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TRAILER REVIEW
PUBLIC ENEMIES
UNIVERSAL
Recessions always bring out thebest in gangsters. Michael Mann's Depression-era "Public
Enemies" looks to evoke a "Bonny and Clyde"-like vibe. It asks the audience to root for the
bad guy (Johnny Depp as John Dillinger) robbing all the stuck-upbanks and ogle his hotgirl-
friend (Oscar-winning Marion Coutillard). Then again, with Christian Bale - the Batman
himself - hot on Depp's trail, maybe pickinga side won't be as easy as it seems. Here's hoping
Mann can dig a little deeper than summer movie tommy-gun-firing mania.
ANDREW LAPIN
g'RISTAR' (1995
A clas.
By JACK PORTER
Daily Arts Writer
Like stars, video game consoles have pre-
dictable lifespans. And they usually burn
out slowly, hanging on to life years after
they've been outshone by their peers. Sega
Genesis faded faster than most. Its legacy
is embodied in Sonic the Hedgehog, a video
gamze hero who saved his furry friends from
the grips of cyborg slavery. Though the sys-
tem and its mascot enjoyed rock-star levels
of success from 1990 to 1993, rival platform
Super Nintendo boasted better hardware
and amassed a superior game library. Even
in the face of certain defeat in the "console
wars," Sega continued to produce more
games. "Ristar" - the system's last hurrah
- arrived in 1995.
While "Ristar" wasn't the last game
released for the Genesis, it was the last great
one. Its title is ironic in a way, suggesting that
the console's "rising star" (the main charac-
) SEGA GENESIS
sic from the last days of Genesis
ter is also star-shaped) was rapidly falling.
Such great games are testament to the condi-
tions of a system's twilight days. At the time,
there were technical limitations and the sys-
tem's profit potential had been exhausted. In
this dire situation, some developers might
have reckoned that they had nothing to lose,
and went on to create the masterpiece they
had always dreamed about.
If anything about "Ristar" is forgettable,
it's the vanilla storyline. The evil space pirate
Greedy (seriously) has enslaved all the lead-
ers of the planets in Ristar's solar system, and
it's up to the titular hero to save the day.
Our hero's superpower is simply a pair
of stretchy arms, but they're surprisingly
versatile. He can grab items, climb walls,
head-butt baddies and swing his body to and
fro. Much of the game's pleasure is found in
acrobatics, and the levels are chock full of
objects to ride, climb, swing and vault on. So
if Sonic's adventures provide pinball thrills,
then "Ristar" captures the childlike joy of
playground romps.
Superficially, the game's levels are just
riffs on tired video game aesthetics: spooky
forests, water-logged temples, frozen moun-
tains and volcanic wastelands. Planet Under-
Colorful graphics
and fun gameplay
make 'Ristar' a gem.
tow's flooded dungeons are filled with
devious traps and mini-boss battles. Frigid
planet Freon features slippery jumping seg-
ments and a snowball fight. Yet Planet Sonata
is the most intriguing, with rhythm-based
obstacles and puzzles based around deliver-
ing metronomes to songbirds. Each world's
bosses are equally
impressive, with their
complex attack patterns
and whimsical designs.
Planet Scorch's guard-
ian is a mechanical mole
that fires his claws, bur-
rows underground and
even engages Ristar
while the two plummet
down a rocky abyss. And
that's just one of eight planets.
While the game's ideas are fresh enough
on their own, the graphics and music bring
the title to life. Genesis was often criticized
for its limited range of colors, but the psy-
chedelic palette of "Ristar" is still stunning
today. From soft lavenders to neon greens
and earthen oranges, the game's environ-
ments pulse with life. Enemy designs are dis-
tinctive, drawing inspiration from real-life
armored animals like lobsters, hermit crabs
and armadillos. The soundtrack is even more
creative, blending funk, electronica and hip
hop. Song "Crying World" joins eerie pitch-
bending wails to watery synth chords and
bare break-beats. Fittingly, Ristar can swim
through the air in the level. Throughout the
game, musical and visual themes are woven
together.
The story of Sega Genesis is written into
"Ristar" through its ornate pixel art. Ristar
himself was based on the same prototype
character as Sonic the Hedgehog, and thus
could be thought of as a distorted image of
the Genesis's mascot - a new symbol for
changing times in the industry. Sonic sym-
bolized an environmental activist, echoing
progressive ideas of the time. Ristar repre-
sented something more localized: Sega's own
anxiety about its impending doom. Bursting
with creativity, color and ambition, "Ristar"
is a glibly optimistic work of game art. Gen-
esis didn't fade out with a whimper; it went
out with a bang.
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- UARTS 250 -
"CREATIVE PROCESS"
AN INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIO-LECTURE COURSE
In residency at the Abbey of Pontlevoy,
F S
May 18 - June 12, 2009
Four Weeks/Four Credits
Satisfies the LSA Creative Expression Requirement
you are interested, please contact Mary Schmidt, maryanna@umich.edu, for more information
Making creativity an integral part of students' lives and work.
.j- EARTH
Learn more now; www.artsonearth.orgstudents
This course is supported by the University of Michigan's
Multidisciplinary Learning and TmTeachingtInitiative
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