It sure is nice that some minor advances have been made in computer
technology and on the internet in the last few decades. Magazines,
guides, and books can now be purchased or downloaded in PDF format or in
some other format on the internet. After doing some
searching and looking around, I downloaded some of the issues of the
magazines Retro Gamer, GameFan, PlayStation Magazine, Animerica,
Official Nintendo Magazine, Nintendo Power, Edge, Play, Game Informer,
NGC Magazine, Official Dreamcast Magazine, PC Zone, and Gamers'
Republic. I've never really been a magazine reader until recently. A few
years ago, I wandered into the magazines section of a large book store
that's located not far from the city center. There was a large selection
of car magazines, fashion magazines, science magazines, health
magazines, film magazines, video game magazines, and other magazines
there. Some of the magazines caught my eye, and I took some photos of
the covers for reference later on. When I began looking at whether or
not some of these magazines can be bought or ordered online, I
discovered that many older issues of magazines can be easily downloaded
on certain websites. So, I downloaded some of the issues that looked
interesting to me. If the file is 100 megabytes or less, it can be
uploaded to Google Books in your Google account. One thousand files can
be stored in Google Books for free. When it comes to larger files, I
read them by using the app Adobe Acrobat, which is installed on my
Samsung notebook and Samsung Galaxy Note 8 smartphone. The first issue
of Retro Gamer that I recently began reading is issue #161 from 2016. It
includes an article about the Pokemon Red and Blue video game, which
was released in 1996. I can't say that I ever really got into the
Pokemon craze. I was too young when the video games were released.
Moreover, I didn't have a Game Boy, and I couldn't play the games. It
was only thanks to my sister that I got to play the video game at all
for a few weeks while I was still in school. She brought me a Game Boy
that her friend had, and the only game that was on it was Pokemon Red
and Blue (the Blue version). Many adults, who were children or teenagers
back then, now have fond memories of playing on a Game Boy. Well, I
didn't have such an experience, but I did play on a Game Boy for a
little while, and I can say that I definitely wanted to have one. It's a
bulky console. Nowadays, however, this handheld is considered to be a
classic. Sure, I wouldn't mind having this cultural icon in my
possession too, if only as a decoration. I like the way it looks. When
it comes to the Pokemon trading card game, I didn't get to participate
in this activity either. My parents didn't buy cards, games, or even
toys for me. And I had no money of my own back then. Moreover, from what
I've heard, the cards sold out very fast in stores back then.
Therefore, even if you had money back then, there was no guarantee that
you'd get your hands on the cards that you wanted. So, the only exposure
that I had to the Pokemon phenomenon was through the anime television
series. I got to watch some of the episodes at one time. This was
exciting because the Pokemon anime was actually quite good at that time,
and I looked forward to watching every episode of the Indigo League and
Orange Islands seasons. Doing this was also dangerous for me because if
my mother noticed that I was watching cartoons, there was a good chance
that she'd take away the television remote control and ban me from
watching television. The time that I had to even watch the anime was
very limited. So, my participation in the Pokemon phenomenon was partial
at best. But I still remember that time with fondness. In the 1990s,
and maybe even in the early-2000s, people could still get excited about
some things, and the Pokemon multimedia franchise was an exciting
distraction for children and teenagers. Since then, I've been able to
play every version in the Pokemon video game series. I got to watch
every episode of the Indigo League as well, but I stopped watching the
anime after the Johto League Championships because the anime became
unbearably dull after the Orange Islands season. Anyway, reading the
article about Pokemon Red and Blue in Retro Gamer was a pleasant
experience that brought back some good memories. It's interesting how
the best memories or the most fond memories that a person can have can
be of difficult or challenging times. When it comes to the video game
series, I think that Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen, which are remakes of
the original versions, are my favorite versions. It's impressive how
many good video games were released for the Game Boy Advance. I'm
currently playing Mega Man Zero, which is the first Mega Man Zero game
that I've ever played, and I'm struck by how good the graphics and the
art in this game are. The art reminds me of the Battle Angel Alita manga
by Yukito Kishiro. Thanks to the Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen
versions, you get to experience the original great video game but with
updated graphics, though I've enjoyed all of the versions in the series
(except for the bad-looking Pokemon Sword and Shield).
As much as
I enjoy reading vintage magazines or certain books that I get online, I
can still mention something else that can now be obtained thanks to the
internet. I enjoy many things that got made in Japan in the 1980s and
in the 1990s, when the economy of Japan was still booming. One of my
favorite things to watch are Japanese tokusatsu series like Kamen Rider,
Super Sentai, and Metal Hero. Unfortunately, in North America, if
people are aware that these series exist, they're aware of them only
because some of them have been remade in the USA as the Power Rangers
series. This isn't to say that Power Rangers is a bad franchise, but it
lacks the characters, optimism, and cultural quirks of the Japanese
Super Sentai series. If something is available in Japanese, I'd rather
watch it in Japanese because it's usually better. When it comes to the
tokusatsu series, however, most of them are not available for purchase
or streaming in English. What is up with that? At this point, anything
that's Japanese should be available, but, for some reason, one can only
rely on the good work of some people that create fansubs for these
shows. Many of the tokusatsu shows have been fansubbed, but some are
still not available. At this time, I'm watching Special Rescue Police
Winspector, which is part of the Metal Hero franchise. In order to
convert the video files to AVI format and make them smaller, I use the
programs Wondershare UniConverter and Any Video Converter. When it comes
to the films that I've seen recently, I think that it's worth
mentioning the ones that I saw in cinemas. A few of the cinemas in the
city sometimes screen popular old films, and the price to see them is
about $5. In this way, I was fortunate enough to see RoboCop (1987), The
Terminator (1984), Leon: The Professional (1994), Terminator 2:
Judgment Day (1991), and Ghost in the Shell (1995) on the big screen. I
would have liked to see more classic films like this, but they aren't
screened for long and sometimes I don't have the time to see them.
Recently, I got to see Akira (1988), Halloween (1978), and The Empire
Strikes Back (1980). I decided not to see recently released films like
Tenet because they don't interest me. I think that The Empire Strikes
Back was the most enjoyable film to see for me. There are just so many
good scenes in it. When you're watching this film, it really does feel
like you get transported to another world because the filmmaking is so
good. How about the battle on the planet Hoth? How about when Yoda
explains to Luke what the Force is? How about when Luke engages Vader in
a lightsaber duel? If you've seen the film, you know what I'm talking
about. The film is so good that when the screening came to an end, some
of the people in the audience clapped. The only downside to the
screening was that the version that was shown is the special edition
version. I would have preferred to see the original theatrical version.
The version of Terminator 2 that I got to see on the big screen was also
not my favorite version. Instead of the 3D version, I would have
preferred to see the special edition version, with 15 minutes of
previously unseen footage.
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