The Incredible Hulk

I was a bit hesitant about watching this movie after 2003's Hulk, which I did not like and was bored before halfway and couldn't even finish the movie without fast forwarding it.  Luckily, The Incredible Hulk feels easier to digest and sit through.  It's lighter and much easier to enjoy.  In my mind, these superhero movies tend to be best if they don't dwell too deeply on philosophical aspects.  There are three major encounters of the Hulk, separated by bits of running around and talking in between.  This made the beginning more exciting and fun to watch, but then the waiting until the encounter tend to be a tad boring.  The rise of the villain of this film, Abomination, was very typical.  You could see it coming a mile away, but sadly, his screen time is limited to only the climax, which feels like a missed opportunity and arrived too late.  The scientist in which Bruce decided to trust for an antidote was an annoying character, and they never really explained about that antidote.  The movie ended before any explanations could be done, all we know is that it didn't work.  Anyway, an entertaining movie but there are better superhero movies out there.

Book Review: The Key to Rondo

Review:  #303
Title:  The Key to Rondo
Series:  The Rondo Trilogy - 1st book
Author:  Emily Rodda
Read Before:  yes
My Comments:  This is an interesting book for sure, but it doesn't have the same gripping story and world as the author’s previous attempts.  The world of Rondo seems too normal and bland; there aren’t many fantastical monsters or captivating aspects.  Sure, there is magic and many fantasy elements, but they don’t feel too unique or fantastical to make you wonder what else the world has in store.  I think what I’m trying to say is that the world is special, but not that special.  It was interesting to see the fairy tales inspired elements though.  The plot is okay, with a good twist at the end.  It follows the story of Mimi and Leo as they try to save Mutt, Mimi’s dog, from the Blue Queen.  The events that happen aren’t too spectacular and suspicion is prevalent throughout the whole process (with good reason).  Overall, it’s not that it’s bad; it just feels bland and uneventful.

Rating:  6/10

Toy Review: Transformers Bot Shots Barricade

Review:  #122
Name:  Barricade
Brand:  Transformers
Allegiance:  Decepticon
Line:  Bot Shots
Year of Release:  2012
Size Class:  N/A (Series 1 - Wave 1)
Variations:  later repainted as Prowl, while arms and legs used to make Bumblebee, Mirage, Lockdown and Topspin

VEHICLE MODE:

Barricade transforms into a super-deformed police car with an exaggerated spoiler (needed so he doesn't tip over for transformation).

All four wheels roll which is cool.  The only paint he has is the strobe lights (red and blue) and the white on the sides (would have been awesome if he had the words "POLICE" painted on but that would have been a bit difficult).

Obviously, this mold is based on the Movie version of Barricade.

Barricade's tiny in size, while shorter than Legion class toys, the vehicle mode's taller.

TRANSFORMATION:

Very simple and exactly the same as all Bot Shots.  You press the bumper (or smash Barricade into something) and Barricade automatically transforms.  He pops up into robot mode and if you're lucky, he'll be standing upright (sometimes the springs are too powerful and he flips over onto his back).

ROBOT MODE:

A very basic representation of Barricade with some silver on his thighs and face, and red for his eyes.  He's predominantly black as you'd expect.

He carries some kibble on his back, notably the hood of the car.  The whole upper part of the car is his back.

While the head sculpt is good and the Barricade elements are there, it's not 'evil' enough.  It looks too heroic to be the alien Decepticon depicted in the movies.

For obviously reasons, Barricade's unposeable.  Like all Bot Shots, his legs jut out from the body more than it naturally should.

He has the triangular pyramid piece in his chest for the three symbols needed for the Bot Shots game (look at this page if you don't know how it works).  His stats are:  Fist - 390; Sword - 840; Gun - 400.

As you'd expect, Barricade's really short.

OVERALL:

Just like other Bot Shots, Barricade is a lot of fun if you just have him on the desk for mindless fiddling around while surfing the net or something.  I recommend at least one of these Bot Shots to have an idea of what they're like.

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Book Review: House of Horrors

Review:  #302
Title:  House of Horrors
Series:  Horrible Science
Author:  Nick Arnold
Read Before:  no
My Comments:  Surprisingly really good.  As the title suggests, it covers different types of species that could be present in your house.  Most of them are supposed to be worrisome, and the author succeeded in presenting that view.  Some gave me the shivers, and I found out stuff that I never knew before.  The jokes were good, it still relies a lot on puns, but they were clever.  I liked the variety of ways in which the information was given, it breaks up any blandness and makes it much more interesting to read.

Rating:  6/10

Angels & Demons

I enjoyed the book, and I enjoyed this movie.  Sure, it might be implausible and they might have gotten some of the locations wrong, but at least it feels realistic and isn't there just because it makes for an exciting scene. Anyway, the film started off slow, but once Langdon was on the trail for the four churches, the movie progressively got better.  The events that happened at the third location was shocking and unexpected, with the movie taking on a more violent tone from there onwards.  This is not a movie for everyone, and it can be seen as boring for a lot of people, but I thought it was quite exciting and intense once the ball got rolling.  The adaptation was done well, but I would have preferred if they didn't change the ending around from the book.  I liked how the book had done it in which Langdon was on the helicopter as well.  The twist ending where the culprit was revealed could have been more shocking in this respect.  Sometimes, things aren't explained thoroughly enough, such that it can become confusing in what would happen next or the clue that Langdon was pursuing.  The score used was appropriate and created urgency in the characters' actions.  At over two hours long, I do think that it's a longer movie than necessary.  While not as good as the book, this was still an enjoyable movie.

MotorStorm: Apocalypse

An arcade style racer should be fun right?  There's no need to focus too much on the physics or be too careful about following the best track to go around corners.  The whole aim is to drive recklessly and have fun.  MotorStorm:  Apocalypse succeeds in the fun area, but in the process of having that fun, you'll also get annoyed and frustrated.  The main selling point of this game is that the race environments are dynamic.  In addition to multiple routes, these routes also change.  New ones appear or old ones gets blocked off.  This means that one lap may differ to another.  This changing environment makes for an interesting race every time and creates the illusion that there is more variety than just the nine locations.  Some of the tracks were very cool to race in, like the one on the docks with a heavy storm.  It was exciting and the visual effects were impressive.  However, this dynamic environment also makes it chaotic.  Too chaotic.  Oftentimes it was difficult to determine what is part of the track and what is not.  Sure, there might be arrow signs that gives a general idea of which direction to go in, but in some of the other levels like with the buildings falling down, I couldn't see that you were supposed to go through a tunnel beneath it and not just turning the corner.

There's just so much going on at the screen at all times that it can be information overload at times.  You might not see any hazards on the tracks unless it's too late and you've wrecked.  What's annoying is that some of the hazards are impossible to see or you think that it'll be alright driving over it.  Conversely, you might see hazards in the distance, but the handling of the vehicles are crap.  It would be impossible to turn and get around the hazard, resulting in a crash.  Why does this happen?  Maybe you're going too fast or whatnot, but the vehicle just does not want to turn when you want it to, it seems the game wants you to crash.  That's one of the complaints that I have, it's too easy to wreck your car in this game.  There are various disadvantages to wrecking your car.  The first and foremost is that it takes a few seconds before you're on the track again ready to race, and in that seconds, you're more than likely to have lost a few places.  It might be fun to view the spectacle of crashing when you've just started playing the game, but it gets annoying, real fast, especially when you don't know what happened to cause you to crash.

The game has a story mode of sorts... but I got the digital version which doesn't include all the scenes that tell the story.  You're just thrown race after race.  Whoever was in charge of this decided it wasn't a good idea to include it for whatever reasons (file size?  Incompatibility?), well, let's just say that I'm not impressed that the digital version is a shafted version of the game.  Thus, I can't really comment on the quality of the story, but I've read that it's not that great anyway, it's just an excuse for the races.  This single player mode gets frustrating at times when you keep losing and can't "qualify" to advance to the next race.  The first few races were super easy but then the competition ups itself, and by the time you get to the second story mode (there are three stories here), you can be stuck in some races, restarting again and again and again.  It'll drag a 5 minute race into something you'll spend 30 minutes in.  Now, if it was just the game being hard and your skill isn't that great, then it's fine by me.  I'll be the first to admit I'm not a pro at racing games.  But when it's not your fault, that you were going to win, and the game suddenly decides to wreck your car, causing you to lose at the last moment... multiple times, that's when it'll feel like the game is cheating just to artificially extend the game time.

I think they should have implemented various levels of difficulty that you can choose (as in:  easy, normal, hard, very hard etc) and change, depending if you were having some trouble at some races or not.  Some of the races were extremely annoying to qualify to the next section of the story.  Plus, you don't get a choice as to which car you want to use.  There are so many opponents in the race, that if you get chosen a weak car that's easy to be wrecked, prepare to be constantly smashed and wrecked.  In the latter races, cars would come out of nowhere (behind you) and ram you.  It feels like the AI is cheating.  No matter what sort of car you have, it would just seem like it's easily wrecked by opponents.  However, when you choose the opponent's model, you can't ram anyone like they did to you before and you end up crashing instead.  Needless to say, I had some pretty frustrating times playing the story modes.  What rewards do I get?  Well, none of the satisfaction of a proper story, at least you get a couple of silver and gold trophies out of it.  A byproduct of no story screens means that the loading times stand out a lot more.  Even though it's around fifteen to thirty seconds long, since there's nothing to do but wait, it feels long after every single race.

This is continued in selecting anything, I wish it could be sped up faster.  The game boasts thirteen different classes of vehicles, but some of them feel similar in terms of handling.  I'm sure there are subtle differences.  One of the best things about this game is that it supports local split screen multiplayer.  I was very surprised, since most games just have online nowadays.  During split screen, everything is still as smooth as ever, and the online portion of it is fun.  The leveling up system works well and the perks are nice.  The music is appropriate too, and gives that extra boost in the immersion of the game.  The rushes you get when racing at high speed down a track (and managing not to crash) is unparalleled.  The graphics are good and there is quite a lot to do in the game.  I like all the single player options that you get.  It's a solid game if you can overlook the occasional bouts of frustration and the chaotic nature of the game.

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Toy Review: Transformers Bot Shots Super Bot Optimus Prime

Review:  #121
Name:  Optimus Prime
Brand:  Transformers
Allegiance:  Autobot
Line:  Bot Shots
Year of Release:  2012
Size Class:  N/A - Super Bot 004 (Series 1 - Wave 4)
Variations:  repaint of Optimus Prime from Wave 1, there are also variations in the form of the launcher and Battle for the Matrix multipack.

VEHICLE MODE:

Optimus transforms into a super deformed long-nosed truck with a container on his back.  This is the "Super Bot" or chase version, in which he is packed one per case, and hence the reason why he's in translucent blue.

The molding is all there, and there are some intricate details here, which is a nice surprise.  Despite having six wheels, one pair is faux, he only has four rolling wheels.

Due to the springs for his automatic transformation, the mold can be unstable if you don't lock everything properly.  Even accidentally touching his grill (the button to release the clamps) can cause him to transform.

These Bot Shots are small figures, shorter and stumpier than Legion toys, but they make it up in mass.  A neat little truck mode.

TRANSFORMATION:

Very simple.  ALL Bot Shots have the exact same transformation.  Press the grill (or whatever the front of the vehicle is) and he automatically springs into robot mode (even bouncing onto his feet).  The game involves you smashing two against each other and then comparing symbols or stats to see who wins.  Anyway, the transformation is really fun and getting him back is simple, just squeeze everything back together.

ROBOT MODE:

Still primarily transparent blue, Optimus gains some paint in the form of silver for his face (and face plate) and yellow for his eyes.  The sides form his arms.

Once again, there's some nice molded details here, but it's a bit hard to see without paint to highlight it.  Optimus has the front of the truck as kibble.

A super deformed robot mode, he has a disproportionately big head.  The head is fixed and molded.

You can't pose at all here, everything's fixed (well, you can fold the arms back in but they are spring loaded).  The feet jut out quite far in front of the robot.

Optimus is generally shorter than most Legion classed toys.

His chest has the rotating symbol for the Bot Shots game (if you want to know how it works, check it out at this page), his stats are supposedly marginally higher than normal figures.  The actual numbers are:  Sword - 995; Gun - 315; Fist 330.

OVERALL:

You're either going to love or hate Bot Shots.  I was initially skeptical, but Optimus won me over... just.  While it hasn't compelled me to rush out and buy as many as I can, I appreciate the simplicity and fun factor of these little figures.  To be honest, if you've got one, you've got them all, since all Bot Shots share the exact same transformation.  Having one on your desk to fiddle around is quite fun, so I heartily recommend at least one of these cheap figures.

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Book Review: Wild Warriors

Review:  #301
Title:  Wild Warriors
Series:  Horrible Histories
Author:  Terry Deary
Read Before:  no
My Comments:  While the book had a slightly boring start, it got more interesting as it went on.  Bad news is that it covers warriors from a variety of countries, and things that are associated with them (such as weapons).  This means that each section is only around two to three pages long… so it lacks depth.  I guess this is just to give you a brief overview and if you liked any particular area, you can go and search for it specifically.  The jokes were well done, although it relies heavily on puns (and some so terrible that it’s funny).

Rating:  5.5/10

Tron: Legacy

Although I have not seen the first movie Tron, I was still interested in it's sequel, Legacy.  While sitting through the two hour movie, I found the plot to be hard to follow at times.  The beginning was set up well, and it was easy to follow, but by the time Sam entered the Grid (the virtual reality world) and met his father, things got confusing fast.  Sure, the general motive of them escaping was evident, but the other things invovling Clu and Rinzler were not explained as well.  I liked the light up effect the world of Tron has, from the buildings to the suits, for some reason, it gives off a really futuristic and sci-fi feel that's unlike the real world.  Sadly, the style of fighting that was preferred was very lame.  The characters fight using light up discs and throwing it around like it's some kind of discus.  Now, that in itself isn't too bad, but when you combine it with some fancy body flips it just looks lame and impractical.  The light cycle match wasn't too bad, and it evokes the game that it was based off.  I was impressed with the special effects, as practically the whole world (i.e. everything apart from the actors) was computer generated.  The aesthetics were pleasing.  The music used suited the tone of what was happening onscreen.  There were many parts where the movie was boring or not very good, but there were other parts where I thought that they contained an excellent concept... just that it wasn't executed to it's full potential.

To Love-Ru Darkness Vol. 6

VOL. 6

21 – Rain

A follow up to the ending of the last chapter, where Nana finally learns of Mea’s true form (a bit early if you ask me, if Nana found out later, then it would have been more interesting).  The whole chapter centres on her feelings and it’s actually quite typical what happens.  You can guess what happens, Rito notices there’s something wrong with Nana, he goes and cheers her up, and there’s a lot of fan service in the process (speaking of fan service, there’s a lot of suggesting positions in this chapter).

I was thinking while Rito was talking to Nana, he’s going to give her a hug and she’s going to like it, and that’s exactly what happened.  Rito’s cheering words were interesting, and Nana’s reactions weren’t cheesy either.  A few good jokes scattered around the place, and as per usual, the art is very nice.  I wouldn't say I had a blast reading it, but I wasn't bored by it either.

22 – After a Storm Comes a Calm

Still continuing on with Nana’s problem with Mea, it’s finally resolved now (thank goodness, it was starting to get boring).  A lot of dialogue and actions in the chapter were kinda cheesy.  I hate to say it, but the quality is going on the decline, jokes are overdone, and fan service becomes forced, the series really needs a breath of fresh air.  The art and drawing stays as sharp as ever, and for once, Rito didn't have a blunder or accident that caused the whole incident.

The thing that feels weird is that the series seems to try for a serious tone, yet what actually happens breaks that illusion and you end up with this thing that’s stuck between a serious manga and a lighthearted one.  Surprisingly, the Master makes an appearance, after being reduced to only being mentioned in the last few chapters, do wish the author would hurry up and reveal who she is.  All in all, it’s getting thoroughly boring.

23 – Summer Festival

OMG, Zastin makes his first ever appearance here in Darkness, wow, I was actually very surprised at that.  Although there was no reason for him being there, it was just more a cameo than anything (just like everyone else except for Rito and Momo…).  So this is another obligatory chapter with an excuse for the female characters to wear yukatas.  I thought it would just be another pointless chapter, but no, it was actually quite good.

I liked the atmosphere at the beginning, until the middle where the innuendoes started to appear (using the same trick as the ice block from a few chapters before), some bits were actually funny.  A lot of the cast appears here (whether in only one frame or more), from Tearju to the Principal, a whole get together I guess.  However, it was the ending where it was most shocking, actually, that’s not the word, surprising is more like it.  Why?  Mea’s master, whom had only been seen in half shadow or from behind until now (all we can glean from that is that she has long hair), finally appears.

After that plot behind halted for a while, the author has brought it back.  Of course, that just happens to be on the last frame, setting a cliffhanger for the next.  The characters were all drawn extremely cute, but in doing so, their faces appear more similar to each other than ever before.  I believe this chapter is well worth reading, there were some cleverer humour and the ending is actually important.

24 – The Door of Fate

Well, the appearance of Master makes for an anticlimax.  It didn't start of that well either, what with the obligatory trademarked Rito clumsiness.  He falls down right on top of her beginning another series of fan service; it wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't so overdone.  I’m surprised at what Master wants, being friends…?  If this is going along the path of Yami and Mea, then she will probably be converted too and part of the ever increasing companions for Rito.

If that happens, it’ll be one of the most unoriginal ideas ever (but I’m getting waaaay ahead of myself, it’s hardly likely that it’s going to happen this way).  The term “darkness” gets thrown out about once again, with Tearju hinting at some hidden transformation ability in Yami?  I felt a big portion of the chapter was a time waster.

Extra – Anxious (1)

This chapter wasn't too bad actually.  So Mikan’s been tuning out and acting really weird lately, to the point where Rito’s even notices.  The fall onto Rito was kinda to be expected, although I laughed out loud when Momo turned up with her invention the next day.  I knew there was something fishy going on but I didn't expect that, although it’s a bit too incest for my liking.  Surprise that it’s split into at least two parts, shall be interesting to see what happens.

  

Extra – Anxious (2)

Continuing on from the previous extra, you’d know that there’s only one way for this to end…  Although I did have my doubts by halfway since all was working fairly well (relatively speaking).  It is a bit weak as to how Rito would agree to do something like this in the first place (considering how indecent and immoral it is, not to mention all the other possibilities).  Anyway, the chapter plods along until Rito gets found out and once Mikan gets angry in the last few pages, it was quite funny.  It made the whole chapter and arc worth it (and turns out the cause of all her worrying was just Momo and co. in the first place… lol).

Overall

More of the same, and at this point, it’s starting to get stale.  Lala and Haruna are supposed to be Rito’s main love interests but they’re hardly ever seen here, regulated to even worse than minor characters.  Rito somehow manages to score girls through sheer kindness and that anything he does wrong… is never his fault.  Summer Festival feels like filler and the appearance of Master wasn't really what you were expecting.  The two extras were surprising in that their plots were linked together and were quite funny at the end.

Batman: Arkham City

A game that's hailed as one of the best games in 2011 (and probably ever), averaging a very impressive rating of 9.5/10 from GameRankings, and with people claiming it's a must-play, I played it.  I ended up getting the digital version.  In the end, I was left with... some sort of disappointment, as my expectations were set sky high.  I hadn't played Arkham Asylum before, so I was thrown straight into the deep end in Arkham City.  While there are tutorial missions, by and large, I was confused more often than I would have liked.  The learning curve for the battle system can be large for newcomers, and I'll be frank, I sucked at the battle system.  Since fighting is such a large part of the game, if you suck at it (don't button mash!!), it'll ruin much of the fun.  I'm not going to hold it against the game, since when I got those rare moments that my combos executed wonderfully, it was immense fun and satisfying.  Batman's arsenal is huge, and I loved experimenting with the gadgets that I had.  However, there's no shortcut for Batman to execute effective crowd control, and this, coupled with multiple types of enemies that needs to be defeated in different specific ways, and it makes it annoying if you haven't thoroughly grasped the battle system.  The game is a deep and dark affair, taking place only at night.  The environments are gorgeous and this game has some of the best graphics.

Batman moves quite fluidly, especially his cape, you could just watch him fight and not be bored, it's that entertaining.  I felt the story mode was a bit short, if you only just did the story missions, by the end of it, you're thinking, "is that it?"  This just means the game is so good you want more.  I loved how the Catwomen DLC was implemented, it felt much more consistent, like it belongs there.  All too often, DLC feels like an extra, away from the main game.  The story is interesting, and there is a large number of villains that are involved, yet I still felt it could be better.  It never truly lifts off and the urgency is only felt until later into the game, right in the end.  The revelation of what Protocol Ten was disappointing, I expected something much grander and cooler.  While just playing through the story will set you back around eight hours, there are so many side missions that'll take up much much longer.  Even as unskilled as I was, the boss fights were very easy.  I died way more just fighting through regular mobs than by the bosses.  The only one that gave me a challenge was Mr Freeze, and I agree, that was quite innovative and it really tests your skills as Batman.  Apart from Mr Freeze, the only other boss fight that felt like a true boss fight was the final boss.  All other ones are quite... surprising (and not in a good way).

Many people would see the immense amount of gadgets as a good thing, that can backfire though if there are too many gadgets.  Sometimes it got confusing as to where I had to go next, a mini-map would be great.  They opted for a bar across the top of the screen, and in my opinion, that was a bit unwieldy.  Also, as various places in the game, I didn't know where to go or how to progress further, some sort of hint function (that you can toggle on and off) would be nice, since I wasted more than a fair few minutes just scratching my head, figuring where to go.  The music used was very good and set the atmosphere quite well.  The music was more grand and solid than I would have expected in a game.  The amount of extra information that is the game for you to peruse at your leisure is a nice inclusion.  There's bios and concept art, and I like the fact that you have to work to unlock them, makes you appreciate it more rather than if they just gave the whole thing to you from the get-go or at once.  I recommend playing the game on something like Hard, since it's a bit too easy on Normal.  It's quite an experience once you've completed the story, seeing the game's take on all those villains was amazing.  It's a good solid game, and I can see where people who applaud the game come from.

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Tales of Graces f - Day One Edition

Tales of Graces f is one of my favorite games, and I thought, since it came in such a nice package for the European release, I'll post about in detail what the Day One Edition came with.

Above is the promotional advert of the contents.  For ease, I'll list it as well:
- Special folded box
- Making Of video
- Soundtrack
- Hardback artbook
- DLC card
- The game

And here, is what you actually get:

Basically, it's everything as described except for one thing, the artbook is not hardback.  At least, it's not hardback in the traditional sense, it  just has a 'harder' cover than average, but I'll still classify it as softcover. That orange card is just a loyalty program by Namco Bandai (that's in all their games).

The making-of videos and soundtrack come in their own individual discs (which is a nice touch), and they're all stored inside the one game case.  Anyway, I'll cover each of the items under a separate heading now.

"Special" Folded Box

Errr... yeah.  It's just a cardboard cover that contains the contents.  It's flimsy and prone to creases.  It seemed disappointing as I was hoping more along the lines of something similar to steel tins.  Anyway, the main draw of this is the new artwork of the game cover.

The rear of the box is the same as the rear of the game case.

The Game

Obviously, the thing you're going to look forward to most is the game itself.  This is the cover of the 'standard' edition of the game.

My thoughts on the game can be found here.

Making Of Video

It's less of a "Behind the Scenes" (or "Making Of") video than a "Answering Your Questions" type.  Here, we get the producer, Hideo Baba, answering questions that were sent in by fans.  It is split into four parts (individually accessible through the menu), each around six to seven minutes long, making a total length of roughly 28 minutes.  It's subtitled since Hideo Baba speaks in Japanese.  It's quite entertaining since often after answering a question, he sidetracks and shows off some of the "Tales of" merchandise and other related things.  It makes it more interesting.

Soundtrack

This is not the full four-disc soundtrack, and at the price this Edition was selling for, I doubted it would have been the full thing.  It's more of a "best of" selection, containing twelve tracks.  The included tracks are:
- Tales of Graces
- Sophie
- The Pact
- Timely Return
- Whet the Sheath
- Past the Droplets
- Perplexing Blade
- Rise to the Challenge
- Dance of Fountains
- Answering the Ocean's Call
- Blast of the Frigid Wind
- Shatter the Steel

While some of the tracks won't be my first choice, at least none of them are tracks that annoy you.  They've included a couple of battle themes, and most of the tracks are ones that you would have heard a lot of times during the course of the game.  Personally, the best ones on this disc are "Sophie", "Whet the Sheath", "Perplexing Blade" and "Shatter the Steel".  The other ones only truly grow on you as you play the game and hear it again and again and again.  The duration of the soundtrack is only 27 minutes (and six seconds).

DLC:

You also get some downloadable content, it's not much but it's better than nothing I guess.  You get costumes based off Tales of Destiny 2 for Asbel, Richard and Sophie, and a couple of PS3 themes (I think four?).  To be honest, I don't really care about costumes (since it doesn't add any extra gameplay, it just changes the aesthetics) or PS3 themes (I'm happy with the simple default one color theme).  However, these costumes are cool in that they are "Titles" for the characters, a sort of leveling up equipment, so it does affect gameplay (if only marginally).

Artbook

As mentioned, it's not really the hardback that was advertised.  Other than that, it's a 100 page book containing various pieces of art from sketches to all the alternate game covers to character models.  It's enjoyable to flip through the pages once you finished the game in order to see how things were developed (and to avoid minor spoilers).  I've included a low quality sample consisting of 19 pages for your viewing pleasure.

Overall

The entry price is worth it for the game alone, yet you're getting much more than that.  This Day One Edition provides enough content to be even classified as a "Special" or "Collector's"  Edition.  Apart from the game, the artbook is the most worthwhile here.

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