Semantic Nonsense: Hyrule in Jeopardy

Hyrule Warriors 2 impressions

The second Zelda-themed Dynasty Warriors game oddly (or perhaps inevitably) follows the same path as those patterned after Dragon Quest: Less mindless slashy slashy, more gameplay elements from the theme’s source material and a strong emphasis on an epic story.

Consequently, that identifies the the second Zelda game, like Dragon Quest before it, as “the one worth playing.”

As a mild-to-moderate Gundam fan, I had long had my fill of rote themed Dynasty Warriors games. Though for Zelda fans new to game-turned-genre, the first one may have been a solid novelty.

I, for one, am glad that Kori finally realized they need to up their game, so to speak, and I’m happy that the much-improved Dragon Quest Heroes 2 was no fluke. So rejoice, Zelda fans for the injection of gameplay and meaningful lore.

The titular Age of Calamity is the backstory for Breath of the Wild so things might get a little spoilery if you haven’t played the latter. It does seem like a greenhorn will be able to follow everything OK, but part of the experience of BotW is that the player has to discover for themselves the state of Hyrule and how it came to be. If you plan to do both, hit up BotW first. It’s also the most amazing game on Switch, so that’s a reason, too.

Reading Jeopardy!

Back in 2018, when Alex Trebek was talking about retiring, renowned actor and tireless advocate of reading LeVar Burton declared he’d be gunning hard to take over. It was a sentiment that came up repeatedly since then, most recently (as far as I can tell) in September:

Not gonna lie, I feel like I’ve been preparing my whole life to occupy the @Jeopardy host podium when Alex retires. #Jeopardy https://t.co/N1HrMTCaYI

— LeVar Burton (@levarburton) September 22, 2020

It’s of no surprise that when the time came to start officially deciding on a new host, that the fans remembered. They created buzz as fans often do by starting a change.org petition, which has had some legs.

But this isn’t just fanwank. Burton is a legitimate contender for the spot, if the oddsmakers have anything to say about it. While legendary champion Ken Jennings is the odds-on favorite, Burton has been getting a Top-3 look by bookies.

And I think that’s not just because of his established TV show-hosting chops, but also because he can bring the same kind of honest and unpretentious love for information of any kind that Alex Trebek demonstrated day after day for more than 8,000 episodes.

Burton is no slouch on the knowledge front, either. But you don’t have to take my word for it. Check out this video of him and Robert Picardo going the distance in a Star-Trek themed charity episode of the The Weakest Link’s U.S. run, with the strongest link being… well, should I even make you guess?

I believe the hype, and I am here for it.

PS5 and Xbox SeX launched last week, and you (probably) missed out

Good.

Kit Kat of the week: Genmaicha Tea

At first bite, this has an unmistakably similar flavor to the Matcha and Green Tea Kit Kats. But as the tasting goes on, what I assume to be the flavor of the brown rice in the tea comes to the surface. I’m assuming that’s the usual one-two punch of coating, then wafer.

All and all a pleasant experience. And perhaps I should try the actual tea sometime.