TEKKEN: Blood Vengeance premiered tonight at Event Cinemas on George Street, Sydney. Naturally, a collective of the Sydney Tekken Community did what they could to attend the event in order to support the movie that we were all extremely excited to see since it was announced.

First of all, a huge thank you to Namco Bandai Partners Australia for the opportunity to attend the screening. It was actually a closed press event, as Blood Vengeance is heading straight to Blu-Ray upon commercial release in Australia as Tekken Hybrid, so being able to sit in was very much a privilege. Along with the tickets was free popcorn, drinks, and ice cream which were sensational.

The movie itself was fantastic. The only real negative thing I would point out is the English voice acting, but this seems to be something consistent across any Japanese to English adaption. For some reason, English voice actors just can’t seem to express the appropriate level of passion at particular moments, which felt awkward at times during the movie. I really look forward to the Blu-Ray release as I’m hoping it will have the Japanese-voiced sound track included.

Other than the voice acting, Blood Vengeance was extremely pleasant to watch as such a huge fan of the series. Initially I expected the movie to be a little more serious than it was, but it was actually very lighthearted with moments that were so hilarious I am still snickering as my fingers work this semi-review. As long as you watch the movie with the mindset that it was written by an anime writer (Dai Sato), you get exactly what you should expect. Great level of fan service, copious amounts of innuendo for both the fan-boys and fan-girls, and some really cool fighting scenes. As a Tekken player it was fantastic to see a good amount of fighting moves and stances from the game used in the movie, but it would have been nicer if there were a few more.

In sum, watch the movie. Try not to take it too seriously – just sit back, relax and enjoy each moment as it comes. If you are someone who has played through the Tekken story up until now, there will be a few pleasant surprises that will at least evoke moments of nostalgia, if not a huge burst of laughter. Lee is awesome.

Once again a huge shout out to Namco Bandai Partners Australia for providing the Sydney Tekken Community with the opportunity to see this movie on the big screen. Every single one of us who attended the movie had an absolutely fantastic time, with the following few hours at dinner involving us reciting lines and just generally having a huge geek out over particular scenes. We really appreciate it, and look forward to exciting Tekken-related events in Sydney in the future!

Oh and a huge thanks for the gift too!

Of course there’s no train, this is Sydney. Trains don’t work here.

I had my first exam today, it went relatively well despite having the exam supervisor call out of a correction every fifteen minutes. My next is on Wednesday… which is now tomorrow, followed by my final exam on Saturday. The fact that my final exam is on Saturday also means that it clashes with Shadowloo Showdown 2011, one of Australia’s largest fighting game events and definitely the largest this year considering the plethora of international guests.

While Tekken 6: BR isn’t one of the flagship games at Shadowloo, there will be a tournament run this year albeit on console. That aside, the main reason I would have liked to go was for the exposure to an event that can truly be considered as international with Team Hori, Team MadCatz and The Traveling Circus present. Something has inspired me lately to become extremely involved with the fighting game community, more so than I have been in the past few years, and I hope to work with whom ever I can next year to really attempt to take things to the next level (no pun intended). Considering that, the more exposure the better.

I had cheap flights and accommodation ready and organised (less than $100 for the entire weekend combined) which is a shame, but I’m sure next year there will be more opportunity than not to travel to play anyway – especially considering how big I anticipate Tekken Tag Tournament 2 to be.

Anyway, let’s see if I can finally catch some shut eye and focus more on my remaining exams rather than fighting games!

Doesn’t need much more of a description.

To clarify, it’s not that I would completely ditch one of the two languages I am currently studying, but I would need to put one on “hold”. The issue is, which one? There are many factors weighing in on what I feel like studying at any given time, but the main influence right now would be my career. If I look at it from a professional perspective, the choice is obvious… but that could also be because I’m dreaming. I know where I want to end up, but I’m starting to seriously doubt whether or not I can get there. Perhaps I’m just rather pessimistic after getting knocked back at the final round for two companies I really wanted a graduate position at. Perhaps I’m just being realistic.

Once exams are over I need to work this out, sooner rather than later. With only one semester left, the “real world” is closer than ever – fluency in a second language is an asset I really can’t forgo.

Often it is claimed that an arcade is the most social gaming-related environment. True, you sit within metres of your competition. Sure, you share the words “good game” with your opponent after a productive session. Yes, you can put a face to “that Mishima player” or “the top player in Sydney”.

Check out the rest of it here: The face behind the player. The establishment behind the community.