Ever since I saw the preview (prototype) version of Prince of Persia 3 in E3 2005, I fell in love with it. I have been a fan of Sands of Time and the sequel, Warrior Within. Now, after a long wait, POP3 is finally HERE!
Whoo!
For RM99, I got this wireless controller that can be used for the PC and the Playstation (PS and PS2). For the price, I think it is a very good buy compared to the Fountech Airstyle Wireless PS2 controllers I purchased sometime in April, which cost RM120 and malfunctions quite often (pissed off).
PROS
- Works up to 20 feet (approximate)
- Strong vibration
- Turbo and Macro function
- Same shape & layout as a PS2 controller
CONS
- Analog stick responds like the D-pad i.e. when you tilt it to the right, it responds gradually from the centre to the right instead of an immediate right. (I hope I make sense).
- Prolonged use made me feel like my hands were still vibrating even after I stopped playing.
Conclusion: If you want a wireless controller but you have a tight budget, this one is good enough. Everything works perfectly well, except for the analog stick response.
From left: Anakin Skywalker, Darth Maul, Emperor's Red Guard, Darth Vader, Pregnant Padme, Random Jedi (Luke??), and Master Plo-Koon.
Needless to say, I was there and even purchased the ORIGINAL DVD. 2-DVDs for RM70 wasn't so bad, PLUS the fact that I had a free (big) poster and many other goodies too from the quiz that was held. Staff from Canon were there to take photographs and print it there and then.
Before I left, the roadshow staff mistook me for the press (possibly because I was holding those bulky-type cameras) and told me "Please come in and join us for refreshments." I thought "Wow! This is so cool." and made my way in. Then I saw the room where the refreshments was served and saw all the people in their costumes and other staff, so I knew it was a mistake.
To end it all - Darth Vader RULES!
Here is what is Steve (from Masterreplicas) has to say about the Obi Wan FX:
"Again, you are looking at a prototype. Of course, the finish will be much better on the production units. It is almost exactly 1:1 scale with the LE (maybe a TEENY bit bigger in some of the diameters) and all of the details are pretty-much identical to the LE, so it is not "off".The Maul and the Obi have "Next Generation" electronics. Better impact resistance on the blades, Obnoxiously loud, improved sound range with new speakers and pre-amps, better power management, etc.I have swung the Maul around and if you use it indoors, you can't play with it without hitting a [insert noun here] eg; wall, priceless antique, cat, wife, child, etc...It is 7 1/2 feet of Sith goodness. There is not much we can do about the knob alignment as the threads can't be "indexed" for the entire production run. We are currently looking at possible solutions for that. The coupling is steel for durability and we have beat the CRAP out of the test samples, with no breakage. That is a good thing.Since each half will be identical, once you connect them, you will have a spare adapter and two end caps, and one covertech clip to set aside. We may provide a plug for the one resulting covertech screw hole. Not sure yet."
lot and I already have two. I was advised against it and was told that "there is nothing better than money in the bank", which is very true and wise. The neck is fatter than the actual prop and the sounds used are the same as the blue Anakin (Revenge of the Sith) FX. Nevertheless, it glows a beautiful GREEN.
Since I will not be laying my hands on this, I have indulged myself with many pictures of it taken by proud owners. Here is a few for you too enjoy. There are many more you can find in the FX-Sabers website. I will post you some links:
Ultimatetoys owner, Kavin, mentioned that it is a slimmer version of the original (produced in 2002) and it takes 3AA batteries instead of 6. The blade is comprised of 64 leds compared to the previous EL. I am quite skeptical about the design because it isn't easy to slim down a lightsaber like Luke Skywalker's. Anyway, my fingers are crossed and I hope the new design comes true.
Since there are already many great reviews on these lightsabers, I won't be writing one of the Anakin ROTS and the Vader ESB. Instead, I will write about how each model differs from each other. HILT
Both the Anakin ROTS and Vader ESB have very sturdy designs. They look very good and they feel solid as well. The Anakin ROTS does feel very much lighter compared to the Vader ESB. It's just too bad that the gold and chrome platings on the Anakin may come off in time. One won't have to worry about anything fading off from the Vader ESB. Both are almost the same size.
BLADE
Did you know that our eyes respond to blue better even though a lightmeter measures the same reading for both blue and red? Anakin's blue blade was able to light a dark room no problem! The start-up is a little blinding. And when I turn it off, I can still see some kinda 'light-shadow imprint-thing' (damn, what is it you call it)? Vader's red glow is surprisingly bright as well, but if you compare it to the blue blade, it will not seem so.
SOUND
Anakin: The sound is perfect. It is very loud and just a little scratchy. I'd like it to be louder still, especially the idle hum, and movement sounds. Clash effects are easy to set off without hitting it too hard. Startup, powerdown and motion synchronisation is good.
Vader: The idle rumbling hum is really menacing and suits the saber very well. Even though there is only one, the clash sound is a hissing-sizzling effect and is loud, I love it! However, it is difficult to set off the clash sound for my Vader ESb. I suppose it depends on the batch, there are others who don't have this problem. Powerup/down sounds are timed perfectly for both the lightsabers. The shutdown takes a little longer than Anakin's as it has this pre-shutdown sound effect.
The motion sounds of the Vader ESB are VERY SENSITIVE. There are situations that even if I hold the saber still and move it a little, i hear the swoosh (or some other effect) a few times without stopping. This is the ONLY thing that I'm not very happy about. But apparently, almost every Vader ESB owner has this issue. So I can accept that.
CONCLUSION
I'm happy I have both of these lightsabers. Ultimatetoys shopowner, Kavin, told me that production for Anakin ROTS, Vader ESB and Mace Windu AOTC will be stopping in 2005. These lightsabers are fun when you play with someone else (Masterreplicas do not recommend duelling with these collectibles).
I really hope that these lightsabers will last a long time. I'd like to display them once I have a place of my own (which will probably take 5-6 years from now). Even though they are expensive, I love them and I do not regret purchasing these two awesome lightsabers of Anakin Skywalker who turned to the dark side and became Darth Vader!
A friend of mine, Eric (http://www.friendster.com/user.php?uid=2625865), ordered a Mace Windu lightsaber sometime in June 2005. It's August 2005 now and it arrived. I just had to go over to his place to check it out. It's a BEAUTY. The hilt looks really good with the gold and is very comfortable to hold because of the soft rubber grips.
Mace Windu's lightsaber has a very unique design and it is the ONLY purple blade in the movies (how cool is that?!). The sounds are a little soft though but the clash effect is awesome. It takes 6AA batteries and is slightly larger compared to the actual prop. Do check out the photographs of this deep-dark-sexy-purple lightsaber!
Sidenote: Eric is planning to get the Darth Maul FX Saber in 2006.
I received the voice changer helmet today at the airport. It cost USD30 and the shipping cost another USD30 to be sent to Malaysia (I never expected it to be this much). I'm glad to finally get my hands on one because the helmet was completely sold out during the EP3 fever in May 2005. I’m going to write about it. If you call this a review, then I think you’re very kind. Hopefully it will help in your decision to buy it. The plastic helmet is light (for me anyway) and flexible. It actually feels comfortable, but after some time, it’ll get a little stuffy; however, there are plenty of small ventilation holes to encourage air flow. There are plastic straps, these can be adjusted to give the best fit. Looking in, one of the things that stood out was the part that rested on your nose. It was rubberized. For me, this contributed the most to the comfort. The second interesting thing was the microphone. It was attached to the helmet via flexible and thick rubber ‘thing’. What surprised me was it did not feel flimsy at all and also there was no trace of external wiring connected to the console.
The front half of the helmet is connected to what I call the 'console' via two straps (they’re durable IMHO). The wire connecting the microphone to the console is imbedded in one of the straps. The vertical red button enables the voice changing mode (more on that later). The grey button on the far left is only for show and has no function. The middle two buttons starts Vader's breathing sound and also some popular phrases i.e. "You don't know the power of the dark side" and “Don’t make me destroy you.”
The one and only purpose I bought this is because of the voice changing. I had the mask on with the voice mode activated, but I didn’t know where to start! So I just blundered and said “Well? How is it?” (lame!) The first time I tried it, Vader’s voice was very soft. But after adjusting the microphone closer to the mouth, it was better. There is a noticeable half-second delay before your voice is being ‘Vader-ized’.
I wasn’t able to speak normally without my voice being distorted by the changer, so I had to adjust a little until it produced better results. This ‘adjustment’ is also necessary so that your voice won’t be louder than Vader’s. I made a video of myself using the mask and found that I could still hear my voice. Which means the speaker isn't very loud when it comes to the voice-changing function.
The console also functions as the speaker. It’s quite loud when playing the pre-loaded phrases and the breathing sound, I think it is loud enough to be heard from (approximately) 20ft in the house. Below the console is a switch that you can slide to numbers 0-3. “0” will disable voice mode, numbers 1 to 3 adjusts the pitch of the voice with 1 as the lowest and 3 as the highest. So adults would probably go for 3 and children with number 1.
With a little bit of practice, your voice will become Vader’s rather convincingly (repeat 10 times). It is big enough to fit adults without any problem and is also very comfortable. The console plays the preprogrammed phrases and breathing sounds clearly and loudly. This is an extremely fun toy to have. Don’t hesitate to get this one – give in to the DARK SIDE!
For Star Wars and Jedi fans out there, FX Sabers are a dream come true. Ever since we saw the Jedi ignite their lightsabers, we all have wanted one for ourselves. Now, there is no need to use your broom sticks and make imaginary sounds. Produced by Masterreplicas (http://www.masterreplicas.com), FX Sabers are the closest things you can get to a real lightsaber. We're talking about licensed collectibles people!
There is a website which is dedicated to these cool gadgets - http://fx-sabers.com. You can find all types of information there i.e. the history of the sabers, photograph galleries, duelling articles, reviews and message boards. The moderators are in close contact with agents from Masterreplicas. So the information there is accurate. There is also a new online shop which sells T-shirts and accessories. Do drop by.
In the year 2005, three models of FX sabers are produced- Darth Vader's (The Empire Strikes Back) , Anakin Skywalker's (Revenge of the Sith) and Mace Windu's (Attack of the Clones). The Vader ESB and Anakin ROTS sabers are the 3rd Generation sabers (2005). They only use 3 AA batteries, therefore the hilt size is more accurate. The Mace Windu AOTC saber is a 2nd Generation (2004) saber, it uses 6 batteries and the hilt is slightly larger than the actual prop.
I have purchased both the Anakin ROTS and Vader ESB FX sabers from Ultimate Toys (http://www.ultimatetoys.com.my). I will post up my photographs of them for your viewing pleasure and also to help those who are interested to make up their mind. I will also be posting links to some excellent reviews that I've read from fx-sabers.com. Here they are ...
Anakin ROTS review by Weylander
http://fx-sabers.com/forum/index.php?topic=268.0
Darth Vader ESV review by Weylander
http://fx-sabers.com/forum/index.php?topic=132.0
Mace Windu AOTC review by Temet Nosce
http://fx-sabers.com/forum/index.php?topic=414.0
