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By Eri Waters
Painkiller: Hell Wars
Microsoft X-Box
Amid the torrent and
hype of next-gen consoles
and games being released,
it’s quite easy to overlook
some of the older, no less
entertaining, games that fall
into the cracks of obscurity.
Painkiller: Hell Wars for the
original X-Box is a perfect
example of said games.
Despite that the original
Painkiller and Painkiller:
Battle out of Hell expansion
was released for the PC'
in 2(X)4. this X-Box port
manages to keep the game
fresh for Painkiller veterans
by mixing the best parts from
both original games to create
a solid gaming experience.
While most games focus
on characters that spend
the majority of the time
attempting to avoid death,
Daniel Gamer of Hell Wars
doesn't really need to fret
about that little setback, as
he’s dead from the beginning.
Mayes' Elvis art hits Rome Street Gallery The O.C. says 'goodbye'
By Alaine Murphy
Staff Writer
amurphy4@my.westga.edu
The King still reigns
on high - Elvis, that is.
Rome Street Gallery and
Art Supply, an area business
centrally located in the
Carrollton town square,
hosted the “Italian Elvis
Series and Other Works”
exhibit. The show displayed
the unique artwork of Frank
"Chip” D. Mayes 111. The
collection was a delightful
combination of Elvis
inspired works, Italian vistas,
seascapes, still life paintings,
and self-portraits. Mayes,
undoubtedly a talented artist,
used a multitude of mediums
ranging from oil paint to
paper mache to acrylics. He
also included electronics in a
few of the pieces.
Mayes’ “Birth, Life,
and Crucifixion” (see
photo) is reminiscent of
a traditional triptych alter
piece -with some essential
differences. At 7 feet by 7
feet, this massive wood panel
celebrates the birth, life, and
crucifixion of Elvis Presley,
King of the Rock Stars. In
a posture echoing that of
Jesus Christ, Elvis extends
his arms in loving gesture (at
the top of the triptych). With
subtle foreshortening, Elvis’
fingers appear to reach out
in welcome from the panel.
Below the Elvis figure, three
individuals in spaceman
costumes are being crucified.
Because of an amber, ringed
planet within sight, it is my
Killed along with his wife in
a tragic car accident. Daniel
has been sent to purgatory for
purification while his wife
now resides in Heaven. Only
by helping the angels fight in
their war against Lucifer’s
demons and generals can
Daniel reunite with his lost
love in paradise. However,
it’s getting there that can be
tricky part.
Following along the
lines of the more action
oriented first-person
shooters such as Serious
Sam and Doom, success in
Hell Wars really relies on
being aggressively visceral
instead of strategic. There
are no buttons to press, no
keys to collect, and certainly
no puzzles to solve as this
game is pure run and gun
excitement. Only by killing
all the demons in each sealed
area will gamers be allowed
to advance to the next
checkpoint and new section
of the level.
It may sound tedious,
and can be when searching
for the last demon to slay in
an area, but the level design,
evil creatures, and smart
weapons really keep the
game flowing.
Hell Wars is broken
into five chapters, with each
chapter further broken down
into distinct levels. For the
most part, the levels are very
guess that the location is
one of Saturn’s moons. In
the left panel there is a view
of Las Vegas on a red and
white checkered tablecloth.
This represents the “life”
Photo by Alaine Murphy
Rome Street Gallery and Art Supply recently hosted “Italian Elvis Series and Other
Works”, featuring the art of Frank D. Mayes 111. Among the bizarre pieces included “Birth,
Life, and Crucifixion”, pictured above.
of Elvis Presley, who still
lives vicariously through
Las Vegas impersonators.
In the right panel, Mayes
depicts the two-room house
in Tupelo, Mississippi, where
Elvis Presley was bom and
spent his early childhood.
This surrealist portrayal
of Elvis’ significance and
contribution to rock and roll
may be taken by some to
be sacrilegious. This piece
and a few notable others
are blatantly reminiscent
well done artistically and
help depict the creepiness of
everyday places 1 ike asylums,
graveyards, and churches,
with a lot less humans and
a lot more demons running
around. However, once in
a while the more lackluster
levels with enormous empty
spaces and bland textures
will pop up and bore gamers
to tears.
In these generally
brilliant levels, demons and
creatures of the night run
amok in search of Daniel.
Flesh-chunking zombies,
witches on broomsticks,
and grim reapers wielding
massive scythes all inhabit
the purgatory between
Heaven and Hell, and want
nothing more to send him
to a exceptionally warm
place that his wife is most
certainly not in. Chances
are if gamers have ever had
nightmares about it, it’s
going to come running after
them in this game. But the
important thing to remember
is that Daniel isn’t without
some monster annihilating
equalizers.
With six distinct
weapons at his disposal, the
demons really don't stand
much of a chance. Each
weapon has a primary and
secondary fire, but skilled
players will learn how to
combine the two into an
even deadlier combination
attack. Weapons like a
rocket launcher that doubles
as a chaingun for explosive
crowd control and a stake
gun that can impale a single
enemy onto any surface with
of Baroque interpretations
of religious representation.
However, Mayes illuminates
the prototypal, archaic, and
antediluvian ways in which
religious figures have been
portrayed. He has taken the
mold traditionally used for
Christian worshipand instilled
new themes. His artwork is
both thought-provoking and
unique, exposing the narrow
mindedness of society
throughout history and
celebrating a period of then
controversial music - that of
rock and roll. So cheers to
you, Mr. Frank D. Mayes 111,
your work is extraordinary.
The Rome Street
Gallery and Art Supply
r—xm i 1 im—^————
Photo courtesy Kamespy.com
This guy puts a whole new perspective on bringing knives to a gun fight.
a hunk of sharpened wood
makes slaying the onslaught
of baddies entertaining.
While there are a lot
of positive things to be
said about Hell Wars, it is
absolutely not without some
rough spots.
For starters, the heavy
action and numerous
enemies on screen at once
can create some unmerciful
lag at times. This is typical
of PC games that become
ported to home consoles,
but it doesn't occur as often
as one might think. Another
problem with the PC to
home console transfer is the
lack of pinpoint accuracy
with the PC mouse. This
can become exceptionally
t rustrating when trying to use
a weapon like the stakegun
that requires a direct hit . The
will be displaying Chinese
brush art beginning Monday,
February 5. 2007. The
exhibit should be up for
about three weeks. Starting
the first week of March, the
Rome Street Gallery and Art
Supply will be showing the
senior art exhibits of UWG
students. Pam Reynolds, the
owner, explained that the
gallery also supports studio
space (available for UWG
students) and as well as sells
praiseworthy pieces for local
artists. So make note of the
upcoming events at the Rome
Street Gallery and Art Supply.
If they are anything like the
“Italian Elvis Series”, you
won’t want to miss them.
game tries to rectify this by
adding a scope to the gun,
but it really doesn’t help
matters much in the middle
of battle.
Other complaints
could be seen as somewhat
brain-dead enemies, a g<xxl
bit of load screens to wait
through, and for players
who aren’t familiar with this
type of mindless shooter,
the possibility of becoming
battle fatigued with pure
action instead of sporadic
puzzle elements to separate
the firelights.
All in all, Hell Wars
corrects every wrong thing
it does by doing two things
right in return. The single
player campaign is long
enough to keep gamers
occupied for a bit, and the
inclusion of offline and
By Grant Wallace
Staff Writer
grannntS 7 @yahoo .com
The once hit TV show
“The 0.C.” has finally
come to its final episodes.
Now some may say this
time was well over due,
many will agree, but just
as many will find it hard
to get over. Fans will say
the reason for its departure
is the day Mischa Barton
(plays character of
Marissa Cooper) was
killed off in Season 3’s
last episode. News worthy
sources puts the weight
on its continual viewer
ship decline starting after
Season 1, as well as its
competition with Grey’s
Anatomy on the same
time slot. Whatever the
case may be, there are
only 5 episodes left, and
on February 22nd the The
O.C. will air for one last
time.
For those unfamiliar
with the O.C. (particularly
males) a brief storyline
can be given to cover the
four seasons it’s dealt out.
A deprived white boy
moves into the richest part
of Orange County where
he has trouble fitting in.
So how does he express
all this built up angst from
going from nothing to
everything? He punches
anything that moves. Bad
storyline so far but it does
get better. The O.C. is
known for blending indie
music, teenage romance.
online multiplayer really
strengthens the game, but
good luck trying to find
someone on X-Box Live
actually playing it.
So while the next-gen
console war rages on, just
remember that there are tons
of current-gen games out
there like Painkiller: Hell
Wars just waiting at local
game and rental stores, all
desperate to steer clear of
their inevitable home in the
bargain bin. Go ahead, make
a difference.
Wators Hatin'*
UM
(out ol 10)
and Seth's (Adam Brody)
love to make everything
he says a mixture of subtle
sarcasm and witty humor.
Still not hooked? Well it’s
no surprise, the show has
only managed to bring
in 4 million viewers this
season. And compared
with Fox’s “24” 14 million
viewers, that's bad news
for the fans.
But Fox can't be
blamed entirely. This last
season has certainly had
its share of criticism.
Outlandish storylines
aren't helped by Adam
Brody and Rachel Bilson’s
real life breakup, causing
their onscreen chemistry
to feel somewhat lacking.
But there is good news in
all of this sorrow . Director
Josh Schwartz is now
involved in anew series
called “Gossip Girls”
based on the hit book
series about... what else?
Rich kids with problems.
Fans of the O.C. might
give it a shot, but guys
have their limits and this
one might be pushing
their feminine sides a bit
too far.
Still, the O.C. isn’t
finished yet. I leave you
with Josh Schwartz’s
take on what you can
expect from this seasons
finale. “The finale will
deliver real closure to
the series.. It will be fun
and emotional and I think
really satisfying. It is the
finale we always planned
to do.”