JONATHAN OYAMA
COMMUNITY WRITER
Pict0079-web
Followers (32)
Following (90)
LOCATION
Torrance, CA
I'm a Japanese-American freelance writer for patch.com who loves playing Japanese RPGs. I'm also in love with anime, J-Pop and anything else with that snappy Japanese pop flavor. I also write poetry in my spare time.
TWITTER  -NONE-
FACEBOOK  jjoyama
LINKEDIN  -NONE-
WII   -NONE-
STEAM  -NONE-
JONATHAN OYAMA'S SPONSOR
Adsense-placeholder
FEATURED POST
Alien-soldier1
Treasure is known for developing some of the toughest 2D shooters. See why Alien Soldier is the toughest in their entire library of games.
Thursday, May 24, 2012 | Comments (0)
POST BY THIS AUTHOR (73)
Xenogears1
A writer tackles the strange, convoluted adventure of Xenogears. What could possibly make this one of the most twisted, video-game storylines ever created?
Xenoblade1
Discover how Xenoblade Chronicles brightened up a depressed writer.
Ys-seven1
PSP owners deserve to know about Ys Seven. It crams in more emotional excitement than almost every other portable RPG.
Ghost-trick1
A writer reviews a cult hit that Capcom recently ported to the iPad. Will Ghost Trick receive the attention it deserves?
Bioshock
A Bitmob writer has learned to accept imperfection after finishing three classic shooters. Is there really such a thing as a perfect shooter?
Ys-boss
A Bitmob writer paid little attention to Ys until a friend mentioned bumper car battles. What else could have sparked his interest in this ancient series?
Fallout3-love-machine
Need an example of how to live the high life in a post-apocalyptic world? Check out how any gamer can own their own home in Fallout 3.
Ff8-rinoa-ending
The last leg of Final Fantasy 8 takes a writer through trippy time travel sequences. Could the ending actually clear up the nonsense in this convoluted story?
Lunar-2-box
I present the best $60 value of all time. Why can't developers give me this much stuff anymore?
Dsi-black
An old Nintendo fan decides breaks up his DSi to purchase a PSP. Find out what makes the PSP such an extraordinary system for everyone.
Final-fantasy-8-rinoa-rescued3
Just as a writer was about to quit Final Fantasy 8, the cutscenes became even more amazing. Discover why disc three is such a breathtaking experience.
B00fe1ea
Persona 3: FES takes a dramatic turn by introducing a vague religious metaphor in the final battle. Was it too taboo to introduce such an abstract concept into a video game, or was the adventure trying to change our visual perception of the gaming medium?
COMMENTS BY THIS AUTHOR (1263)
"I liked the Moonraker level in Goldeneye for the N64. Of course, I think I just liked it because I was able to shoot lasers at Jaws. Freaking Jaws. I can literally kill him at close range, because his arms are so damned long. Lol."
About 17 hours ago
"I actually thought about a similar idea when I was playing Robot Unicorn Attack. Of course, the whole RFID craze might not translate as well into an exploding unicorn who loses his(?) head repeatedly. I wouldn't mind one bit, though.

The thought of a Pokemon fad thingy is creepy though. It's as if my real-world Pikachu would have his own social identity in the virtual world. But I wouldn't mind trying something with an Animal Crossing RFID thing. Lol."

Wednesday, May 23, 2012
"Your article reminded me of how I almost finished the first Diablo. I lost patience with it in the same fashion. My experience involved more scowling and frustrated agony.

Sigh. Sadly, I might just buy it someday, for old time's sake. I won't truly enjoy it, but I might still appreciate all the mouse clicking. It's a lot softer on my fingers than, say, a first-person shooter.

EDIT: Screw it. I'm not shelling out $60. Lo"

Saturday, May 19, 2012
"You're scaring me, but you did the one thing that I chickened out on. I guess I should pay more attention.

(Mind blow"

Thursday, May 17, 2012
"The battle system is a lot more streamlined than other JRPGs. I wish Final Fantasy tried to cater more to the open-ended, casual style of Xenoblade. I mean, Final Fantasy 12 tried to do that, but it also had more of the terribly obnoxious elements of MMORPGs. For instance, there's no way that I'll ever finish some of those big monster hunting quests. They take too long.

Everything in Xenoblade is so much easier to work with. I don't feel like I have to struggle with clunky menus or automatic battle movement. Best of all, it has all those lovely sound effects that play whenever I level up or I find a new location.

I love the gems the most. I could spend all day, making gems. They're so bright and colorful. And they add cool, materia-like attributes to my equipmen"

Wednesday, May 16, 2012
"G fans hang out at Hot Topic? Cool! I went to Hot Topic the other day to shop for part of a cosplay outfit. I guess I should watch out for nerdy Final Fantasy fanboys/"
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
"I really wish I could feel smart while I'm playing BioShock. I just think that the format of the FPS genre doesn't lend itself to much intellectual pondering. I guess that's why the game stopped appealing to me after I finished it.

Fez and Journey, on the other hand, are rare anomalies in today's world. I really appreciate how the indie scene is shaping modern-day games into something more unusual. In today's world of action-heavy titles, these low-budget productions provide many of the beautiful innovations and emotions that were lost in the transition to blockbuster shooters."

Monday, May 14, 2012
"I actually thought camping was a cheap tactic for a while. However, there's no real way to truly figure out who is camping. I guess I could exploit that one spot in Battlefield 3 in the Operation Firestorm map. They don't always appear in the same spot, though. And I'm just as likely to get knifed from behind.

Even in some of the conquest maps in Battlefield 3, people end up camping around the enemy base. There's no real way around it, because that's how the game was designed. The Tehran Highway stage only runs in two directions. Once a team has taken all the flags, they can literally camp away.

I mean, unless people are cheating by riding the UAV to the impossible-to-shoot spot, someone will eventually camp. It's not a bad way to improve a person's kill-death ratio."

Monday, May 14, 2012
"Haha, I can see where Nethaniel is coming from. My first exposure to the Minecraft system actually started with a side-scroller spinoff called Terraria. I got punished brutally on the first night.

So just to make my first day of Xbox 360 Minecraft complete, I decided to first jump onto a friend's world to suffer a horrible death at night. I mean, no one can play Minecraft without that horrifying learning experience. Lol. Then I took the tutorial. I did things out of orde"

Monday, May 14, 2012
"Oh, I know all about how Metal Gear Solid 2 deconstructs a whole bunch of stuff. I really thought hard about the game years after I finished it. The game is a quirky piece of work that does a lot of unexpected things. And it really makes people question the entire intention of a big budget production.

I dunno. I sort of want to play it again to reflect on every part of it. I just can't play it without feeling a bit embarassed at some of the goofier sections. That, and there's something creepy about the quote "I need scissors 61!"

Sigh, maybe I'll save it for the Metal Gear Solid HD collectio"

Saturday, May 12, 2012
"oey on the BioShock Infinite delay. Well, hopefully it doesn't end up like Daik"
Wednesday, May 09, 2012