War of the Roses

The mounted combat in "War" has been called groundbreaking

History has always been one of my loves. It's just so awesome to be able to see what life was like before you were born, to see the lives of the thousands - maybe even millions - of people who changed the world. There's just something so amazing about that.

The unfortunate thing about history is that there are always some people out there who are trying to change it so their organization, ancestors, or beliefs don't look so bad. There's even a big push to remove the Holocaust from the World War II curriculum at schools because it might "offend" some people.

But the Holocaust should offend you! It should be horrfifying and abhorrent to you because that's what it really was! And that's why it should be kept in history textbooks and curriculums completely untouched, to remind us and the next generations of what is evil and what should be fought against. Anyone who says that the Holocaust never happened or was not as bad as people make it out to be is either in denial or will not have his worldview shaken by the revelation that man is not mostly good.

But I digress....

As far as history goes, I know the most about Ancient Greece (especially Sparta) and Rome, the early Medieval era, the American Revolution, and both World Wars more than I know of any other time period. But one part of history that I've always wanted to study but have never gotten around to has been the War of the Roses, a civil war between two English royal houses back in the 15th century.

But whether or not you like studying history like I do, I'm sure you'll be able to learn a thing or two about the War of the Roses from a new action video game releasing soon. True, I don't advocate playing video games to learn the truth about history, but even the most entertaining of games has something for everyone to learn. Maybe that's part of why I love them so much. =)


Published by Paradox Interactive and developed by Fatshark, War of the Roses is an action game, as expected, as well as a third-person shooter.

The synopsis, courtesy of IGN: "War of the Roses takes players back to the battle-ravaged medieval era of 15th century England. The game pulls you into a team-based multiplayer melee combat experience, putting their band of knights right in the thick of chaotic battles against opposing hordes armed with swords, battleaxes, longbows and other iconic medival classics."

This is an online game with both multiplayer and single player campaigns, both of which have been described as "deep." The game also has a nice range of features, including: over 30 authenitc weapons across 10 categories, customized gear (including choosing your own fighting style and weapon metal type), the ability to completely customize your armor, over 30 play-style changing perks, mounted gameplay, the ability to completely customize your own crest and coat of arms, a deep leveling system, 7 historically inspired war zones, an Extensive Persistence System, and "vicious 64 player competition in both Team Death Match and Conquest modes" (official website).

A 64 player Team Death Match?! That's awesome!

Overall, the game looks to be pretty solid. The graphics look pretty good from what I've seen of various screenshots and videos. If you would like to see the official trailers, they're up on YouTube if you search for it. I would have posted one of the trailers here, but honestly they left something to be desired and had quite a bit of spurting blood.

You can also check out the official website at this link: http://www.waroftherosesthegame.com/ Note that you will have to enter a date of birth to get in, but I just made one up and it went through without a glitch.

DISCLAIMER!: War of the Roses has not yet been rated by the ESRB, but the target rating is T for Teen or higher. Considering the fact that I had to give a date of birth when enterting the website (as I had to do for The Secret World), I think it will likely be rated M for Mature, but I can't confirm that at the moment.

War of the Roses doesn't have an official release date yet, but from looking over the website it looks as though it will be available sometime in early October. You can still pre-order the game through sites like Gamefly, and the game is only available on the PC (sorry, everybody else).




 - Edessa, signing off

Les Miserables

Les Miserables is a novel I have always wanted to read but haven't gotten around to because of a not-so-great experience with another one of Victor Hugo's novels, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I got maybe to chapter three in The Hunchback, but it was so boring and rambling - if I want to learn every tiny detail about the history and architecture of the Notre Dame I'll find a book about it at the library, thank you very much - that I just quit and never picked it, nor any other Hugo book, up again.

But all of my friends who have read the novel or see the musical have said that Les Miserables is very good, and if the upcoming film turns out to be well done, then I may give Mr. Hugo another try.

Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean

Les Miserables, an adaption of the popular theater musical which was adapted from the original novel by Hugo, tells the story of Jean Valjean, a man who stole bread to feed his family and was subsequently imprisioned. When he is finally released he becomes involved in the French Revolution while trying to escape his pursuer, Inspector Javert (Movie Insider).

Tom Hooper (The King's Speech) directs this historical fiction musical. Hugh Jackman (of Wolverine fame) plays the role of Jean Valjean, while Russell Crowe (Robin Hood, The Next Three Days) plays Inspector Javert. In the supporting roles are Anne Hathaway as Fantine, Eddie Redmayne as Marius, Samantha Barks as Eponine, Aason Tveit as Enjoiras, and Amanda Seyfried as Cosette.

Bill Nicholson wrote the screenplay for this Universal Pictures film. The film is currently in the Production stage, and filming began on March 14, 2012.

Les Miserables will be in theaters on December 14, 2012, and the film will not be available in 3D.


Do you think that Les Miserables will be Good, Bad, or Ugly? Have you ever seen the musical the film was adapted from, and did you like it?

And, just for the sake of asking, do you think I should try the Les Miserables book? :)




 - Edessa, signing off