Army of Light RPG Forum and 8000 Hits

We just surpassed 8000 hits earlier this afternoon. And that’s not all, because today the Army of Light RPG forum is finally open for registration. For those of you asking yourselves what is it, here’s a summary:

“The Army of Light RPG is a series of tactical role playing games developed to play on the computer by Mercenary of Light with the help of his friends and other forum members. The gameplay is based on strategy RPGs like Fire Emblem and Advance Wars, but with new characters and an original story that members of the forum create, develop and will later experience.”

The forum is basically a role-playing forum where some role-playings (Army of Light Campaign) follow the main story where I set the background, and others follow and role-play along. There members develop the backstory and personality of the main character they created and his/her assistant (on Elite Forces campaign), so that he/she/they could be included as playable character(s) in the RPG series I’m curently developing. The RPGs are a series of games I’m making from scratch on a legal free-distribution software (I’ll post the link when I finish a test version and you will be able to play the series on your computer).

Members also get to suggest ideas or submit classes, sprites and other things for the RPGs and site. The site also has other role-playing forums, sections and features. All members can also make guilds or clubs and create/keep a blog (at the moment, no widgets on the sidebar). Even if you have never played a strategy RPG, you should try it out. Check it out by clicking on the picture in the sidebar.

Any doubts or comments, reply below.

►What’s in the Playlist: So Cold by Breaking Benjamin

To end Breaking Benjamin week, I’m adding So Cold, one of the band’s best singles, to the playlist. The sound is good. The meaning of the lyrics is about a catastrophe occuring and 2 lovers spending their last minutes together. Ben Burley (the band’s singer) stated that they were inspired by the movie 28 Days Later (about a rage virus that causes an outbreak in England). The video instead shows a man carrying a big, heavy stone (chained to his hands) in a forest, while a group of people (wearing 19th century clothing) follow. They end up in a swamp with a preacher where the man falls one last time (from the weight) and drowns.

Rating: 8/10 - A good alternative rock song. The song is available In the Corner.

Lyrics and Video:

►What’s in the Playlist: The Diary of Jane by Breaking Benjamin

Sorry for not making a playlist article last week, but I’m lazy and procrastinated. I should have done it before the weekend, but I didn’t so I’ll publish it today. The RPG is still in process, but the forum will be open soon for character development. If anyone wishes to participate or submit ideas, post in the correct topic on the Hybrid Mix Forum or contact me. Now on the week’s song, The Diary of Jane, one of Breaking Benjamin’s best songs, and their second best-selling single (Their best-selling (or another great) single will be added later this week, making this BB week*). The song has some heavy drums, guitar riffs and screaming vocals. The lyrics are good but suggestive, they go well with the rhythm. My interpretation of their meaning is the guy likes a depressesd girl (Jane) who won’t tell him what she feels about him. It is then suggested (in the video at least) that she dies by drowning in the bathtub (note she can’t see her reflection on the mirrors). The guy then finds her diary and continues looking for the answer to what Jane felt for him (while contemplating her grave, in the video). I also think the Diary of Jane could be symbolic, representing her heart (feelings).

Rating: 8/10 - A great Breaking Benjamin song. You hear it and you know why it’s a hit. The song is available In the Corner.

Lyrics and Video[Warning: The song contains lyrics referring to death that might be interpreted as suicide by some.]:

►What’s in the Playlist: Pages by 3 Doors Down

I’m sorry to my visitors for not making last week’s What’s in the Playlist article, but some circumstances postponed it (those included college entrance tests).  For that, this week I’ll make the Video of the Month article and the game review (this one might be published for next week). After considering another song for this week (a sadder sad one),  I chose this one instead because it’s a really great song by 3 Doors Down’s self-titled album released last month. Less rocking in sound than When I’m Gone, but still rockin’ in its own way. The song is about a man who expresses his emotional pain through writings about his life, which someone (you) going through a similar situation then reads and might use to avoid the same fate as the man. That’s my interpretation of the message and I think that makes this one of their best songs.

Rating: 9/10 - Yeah, it’s really a great song. 3DD’s self-titled album might have good singles (It’s Not My Time and Train), great rock songs like Give It To Me, and other good b-sides (like all of their albums), but this song stands out, maybe because of the impact of the lyrics and the music. You should all consider buying this album if you like 3 Doors Down’s music, post-grunge or some of the songs on the album like this one.  Pages is available In the Corner.

Lyrics to the Song:

Video of the Month: Frgt10 by Linkin Park

This month’s video of the month is one of LP’s video masterpieces and one of their best remixes. Frgt10 is the [Reanimation] remix of Forgotten (from [Hybrid Theory]).

Lyrics to the song:

►What’s in the Playlist: Heart Like A Lion by Rebelution

The cool thing about music services with stations based on similar artists, is that there’s always a great song or artist you’ve never heard of that comes up, and sometimes surprises you because it’s from a genre you thought you never liked. I discovered Rebelution’s music last week after playing a Flobots Similar Artists Station. Reggae was always a genre I ignored, mostly because of the movements it was involved to. Although the band’s songs changed my opinion on reggae, it’s still not a genre I’ll listen to often. Rebelution fuses reggae with some hip-hop, rock and alternative music in what they call California Reggae. The rhythm and sound of most of their songs might make you another fan of California Reggae. The song I got for this week’s article is called Heart Like A Lion from their album Courage to Grow. The lyrics are good, the rhythm is better and no pop sound included.

Rating: 7/10 - Good song, even if it’s not my musical taste. The song is available In the Corner.

Lyrics to the Song:

►What’s in the Playlist: Handlebars by Flobots

I found this week’s featured song while surfing the web earlier this week. At first I thought the song was a childish song, because of how the animated video started, with two guys riding their bikes without holding on to the handlebars, giving them a sense of accomplishment. The song continues with mentions of other accomplishments by the singer. He also mentions how with the new technological accomplishes of mankind, it is easier to do anything and take control of even the lives of others. It’s in this part of the song, that the video depicts the rebellion formed by the citzens against the tyrant in command. One of the good things of the group is their creativity, not just the way they tell the messages, but the rhythm and sound of their songs. They combine rock with rap, and use violins and trumpets in most songs. The group consists of rappers Jonny 5 (Jamie Laurie) and Brer Rabbit, bassist Jesse Walker, guitarist Andy Rok (Andy Guerrero), violist Mackenzie Roberts, trumpet player Joe Ferrone and drummer Kenny Ortiz. When asked about the meaning of the song, the lead singer of Flobots, emcee “Jonny 5″ said: “The song is about the idea that we have so much incredible potential as human beings to be destructive or to be creative. And it’s tragic to me that the appetite for military innovation is endless, but when it comes to taking on a project like ending world hunger, it’s seen as outlandish. It’s not treated with the same seriousness.”

Rating: 9/10 - It’s one of the best rap rock songs I have heard. The lyrics that start out with innocence turn into a song with a strong political and social message. The song is available In the Corner.

(Warning: The song contains political themes and mentions two crimes and a historical event. The video contains some gore (white paint). Lyrics to the song and video:

3,000 Hits and New Features

A few hours ago, Mercenarylight’s Blog passed 3,000 hits. After a rough start and 130 days, we achieved something I thought wasn’t possible for me. I found out in the last few weeks that what makes a blog triumph is what makes it stand out from the billions of other sites out there in the web and what it offers to its visitors. But hits aren’t everything (if I satisfy myself with just that I should not call myself a true blogger), and for that reason is why I try to give my visitors anything they want that I can afford to give.

►What’s in the Playlist: When I’m Gone by 3 Doors Down

Today is Memorial Day, so I decided to make this week’s featured song in the playlist, a song by one of my favorite bands that has some great lyrics (like most of their work). The video below is the version the band made “dedicated to all the men and women serving in the United States military.” The song is about a guy that tries to get a girl to love him and wants to fulfill her expectations and convince her by saying he would never treat her badly. The song is titled When I’m Gone, because part of him gave up trying, and he might give up completely. The sound’s ok, not any big riffs or slow pace, it’s just right. Brad Arnold, frontsman and vocals of 3 Doors Down, commented in the intro of When I’m Gone for their live ep, Another 700 Miles, about the video. “So um pertaining to this next song, a lot of people because of what we’ve done with this song have asked you know what we stand for, what we believe. You know, are we pro-war or pro-this or pro-that? Of course we’re not pro-war, nobody likes war, everybody know what war brings. But, we do support our men and women in the military. This nation owes everything we have to those young men and women our age. That’s what it’s all about. We pray that those young men and women’s actions bring us to a better world, and we pray to God that He will bring those young men and women home safely.” I agree with him on that we need to support the troops of our countries for risking their lives so that the rest of us can continue with our own lives. And this day should serve as a remainder of the sacrifices, our soldiers have made to create a better world.

Rating: 8/10 - A good song, like a rock version of Here Without You. The song is available In the Corner.

Lyrics to the song and video:

[Hybrid Zone], Home of the Cool Blue smilies

My other site, [Hybrid Zone] is now the Home of the cool blue smilies, smilies I made using different shades of blue. At the moment none of them are animated, because I don’t have the right programs, and if I have, I don’t know where in my pc they are. I’ll start adding smilies every few weeks, but at the moment you have a lot to use. You may use them anywhere, on your site, forum or just for your personal use. You don’t have to give me credit, but you can’t say that you made them or redistribute them. I suggest you save them on your computer, because hotlinking might end up in the smilies looking like this and I may remove any or all smiliees at any given moment. Visit the site to get the smilies and try to come back often, because I’ll be adding more soon.

►What’s in the Playlist: Afterlife by Avenged Sevenfold

May’s ending and it’s time to change focus. Since my album reviews and the videos aren’t commented (even if they are the most-viewed), and the Artist and Song of the Week page was ignored (nobody nominated ther songs in the right place), I’ll begin a weekly, What’s in the Playlist section where I’ll give you reccomendations on what to put in your playlist, as well as give you the chance to preview the song right here in my blog (in the trusty In the Corner box). If you want a song to be feaured on What’s in the Playlist, post the name of the song and artist in the Artist and Song of the Week page.

This week, I’ll start off with a reccomendation from mario64mario (nominated for Song of the Week, but nobody voted). The song is one of the best, if not the best, from Avenged Sevenfold. Afterlife starts off with strings (yes, strings), which go really well in the song. The song has some tight riffs, especially before the chorus and at the end. Almost the entire song is surprisingly melodic and catchy for a hard rock song. The lyrics are about a guy who went into heaven still young, and although he’s there to see his girlfriend, he wants to go back because he feels it’s not the right place for him. The message is open for interpretation, and in my opinion, it’s a message that perfection=monotony=boredom.

Rating: 8/10 - A great hard-rock song, but not that great to grant a 9.

Below are the lyrics and the video. ↓↓↓

Warning: The song contains one drug reference and the video contains a spider (just in case, I don’t want to cause you stroke).

School’s Out!!

Yes, finally after all this time and all those special projects and homework, and tests, my vacation has finally officially began. With my new free time, I finally made another game review since this blog started. I didn’t release it earlier not entirely because of my laziness, but also because of school. So finally, I published the article I promised, the game review for Summon Night: Twin Age (for the Nintendo DS).