It's come to our understanding that some of you are wondering why we've called our bi-weekly column - "The Weekly Haul". By definition certainly doesn't mean that we're running out periodically investing or tugging for new products. In all honesty...our forum community inspired us, and then we thought - why should they have all the fun discussing their gaming An odd name? Sure...but we love it.

Without further ado...here's this week's weekly run of the recent games we're spending precious time with (and then some.)

Piku - Frequency (PS2)

My addiction this week had been Frequency all the way. Since seeing it's commercials I knew it would be a cool game to own, but it took a pricetag of $25 new to plunk down the cash, and it has been well worth it. Right off the bat, the graphics style is very clean and stylish, and goes well with the music. But it's the gameplay that makes the title stand out - it's fast, chaotic and sometimes downright evil, but I love it all the same. I first assumed having only three buttons would make the game simple, but my mind quickly changed after playing a few tracks on normal. Frequency is one of those games that will make you actually yell out in approval after banging out a killer drum loop, which is a rarity these days.

My only complaint is that they could have had a cooler selection of music. While the majority of the songs are above average, I would have loved to hear some Chemical Brothers or Prodigy in Frequency; the former of which would be a natural fit (some of their songs are just structured perfectly to work with it's gameplay). And no, The Chemical Brother's sample in BT's track doesn't count :)

Reno - Multiple titles

Virtua Fighter 4 (Arcade/PS2)

Ah yes, good ol' Vee Eff Four. I've been rocking the house with Lion for a bit, so I thought I'd create a couple of new Kumite characters to use. First up is Lau, whom I named KingKimchi. Currently at 4th Dan with a 110 - 3 record, his entire arsenal consists of f+P, P and d/f+P+K. Yup, that's it. Beware the might that the elbow of doom possesses! My second Kumite character is Wolf, whom I named SQUISHY. While he's only at 2nd Kyu, he'll be a force to reckon with once I come to grips with him. As for my Lion Kumite character, he's closing in on 900 wins… and 100 losses. It'll be interesting to see which one he hits first, but I'll make damn sure he gets to 900 wins first.

Soul Calibur (Arcade/DC)

I've been finetuning my Soul Calibur game, shaking the rust off in preparation for yet another night of Soul Calibur fun at Cal State University with my pal Jeff and his dorm buddies. Oh yeah, and to play Bahn a couple of games too. For the time I was playing Soul Calibur, I was mainly focusing on my tandem of Taki and Astaroth. With Taki I was mainly polishing up my PORC techniques and the BAKff+B string of DOOM, while with Astaroth I spent most of the time just fooling around with his nice throw setups and charged unblockables. So here's the deal, anyone who's going to E3, I'll bring my DC, Agetec arcade stick and Soul Calibur. We'll play for money! $20 a game, 10 game minimum! Anyone up for the challenge? Oh yeah, people named Jason Arney are NOT allowed to take up this bet with me!

Spider-Man: The Movie: The Game (GameCube)

In anticipation for the movie's premiere this past weekend, I rented Spider-Man: The Movie: The Game (god I love typing that out) for some good ol' web-slinging action. The game is very fun, but damn Activision and Treyarch for not putting in a "Free Web" mode where I could just spend a good hour just swinging from building to building! The game follows the movie to a point, but also throws a bunch of other stuff in it too, which I like. The mission objectives are also varied and are pretty unique compared to past Spider-Man games. It was actually very amusing to pick up Mary Jane in one mission, and then set her on the ledge of the building, and then watching her fall off as she got hit by the Green Goblin. Yeah, I'm sadistic like that.

Nick - Spider-Man: The Movie (Gamecube)

I haven't had all that much play time with this title, but what I have seen of it is impressive. Like the motion picture, Spidey the game surprised me with its authentic feel.

Web-slinging is effortless, with the option to swing at a deliberate, easily controllable pace or at breakneck top speed. There are no wall-crawling headaches, like there were in some of the earlier titles - Spidey moves like he should, and turns corners with the greatest of ease (well, pretty much). Speaking of sticking and moving, the Webhead gets to show off some fancy fisticuffs with combos unlocked as the game progresses. Along with the usual web effects, he utilizes his hanging-upside-down-from-a-thread pose to scope out new areas. All in all, this is the first Spider-Man game that gets it right control-wise.

Adding to the realistic feel are the amazing graphics and the voice acting. Some of the jokes in the training stages are stupid, and you feel Spidey is just talking for the sake of talking, but you'll be too busy learning to fling thugs off rooftops to care much.

Nercm - Fatal Frame (PS2)

You know, it’s amazing what game developers and programmers can do these days when it comes to creating a virtual environment for games. What’s the ultimate goal? Making you feel like you are a part of their world of course. When it comes to the survival horror genre, Fatal Frame definitely has it down pat.

What I like best about this game is that it attempts to mix the “shock” tactics of Resident Evil with the suspense-filled environment of Silent Hill. I also like the fact that it deals with ghouls and ghosts rather than just flesh eating zombies. It’s less gory, but still just as scary. It’s a welcomed change.

Give it a rent…you may be surprised…

BebopLover - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64)

April is an extremely enjoyable month for me. It's a time of the year when, to the casual gamer, the industry comes to a grinding halt, and very few quality titles are released. Regardless of what titles line the shelves during this time of year, the opportunity to dig in to some classic games usually presents itself, and I never have the heart to give a cold shoulder.

This time the honorary title of choice would be the timeless classic: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Truly, if ever there was a perfect game created for Nintendo's cartridge based system, Zelda would undoubtedly be that game. It plays host to an infinite number of memorable moments, each grander then the last.

I've compiled a list of my three favorite moments in Zelda: OoT, and I'd appreciate if some of you did the same. Now if I could just get some concrete information regarding this rumored "special edition" I've heard rumblings about, everything would be lovely.

3. Exiting Kokiri Forest for the first time, I realized the powerful presence a 3-dimensional world could bring to the world of video games. Super Mario 64 was groundbreaking; but running over that first hill of Hyrule Field, with the crest of the Castle peaking over, and Death Mountain looming over the horizon, I was suddenly aware of the immense adventure awaiting me. Playing Zelda five years later, I was reminded of how special this scene is.

2. Each and every boss confrontation that Link had in Zelda :OoT is carved deep into the lump that is my brain. The designers took great care in introducing their evil creations, and I love them for it. I've chosen to single out Dodongo, the huge reptile that lurked at the foot of Death Mountain, due to his dramatic entrance. Rolling out into the circular arena made up mostly of lava, and unraveling himself a few feet from young Link, Dodongo bellows out a roar that made me grin with anticipation. His large mouth left gapping before me, I distinctly remember looking over at my than girlfriend and saying, "What the hell do we do with this thing?" I swear, her retort was "I don't know, throw a bomb down his throat". And, of course, that's exactly what I did.

1. On a personal level, the Water Temple was the most difficult dungeon I traversed throughout my adventure. So arduous was my task that, at one point, I calmly got up off my couch, walked outside to my backyard, and proceeded to drive my yellow N64 joystick into the cold, hard ground. Nevertheless, the Water Temple had a magnificent scene that stands as one of my favorite from any game. I stepped outside the third floor dungeon, greeted by, what appears to be a huge lake, with a tree in the center, and a temple at the far end. Moving forward, I expected to drop into the water, and swim to the far end. Magically, Link begins walking across the water. As I reached the tiny building, I spun around, and there was Dark Link. A grand battle ensues, which involves locating Dark Link's weak point. That was trivial though; the overall sense of wonder, and imagination that was used to create this battle is what stands out in my mind

I know there are a few of you out there willing to re-live some of the wondrous moments that captivated hearts and minds in November of 1998. Please, share with the rest of us.

Red Terrier - Halo (Xbox)

Halo saved my marriage

Ok, so maybe it didn't save my marriage, since I'm not actually married and therefore have no marital problems, but this game is so great that I have no doubt it could perform such a feat. Everyone knows that Halo is a magnificent multi-player game, balancing precise tactics and chest-thumping machismo, but when it really shines is when players know each other play on teams. Let me set up the back-story:

A female friend of mine was very close to me; for whatever reason, we grew apart, and some harsh things were said, and feelings were hurt. We didn't talk for a while, and after several months of her ignoring me, I figured I had lost a special person in my life. One day, we were at a mutual friend's place, and we started playing Halo. She wasn't really into it at first, but eventually she started warming up to it (who can resist the cries of the battle?). We started playing team slayer, and I took her on my team. The other guys didn't want her to play with them, having the dubious combination of being a newbie and a girl, so I took her on and watched her six.

We started playing, and although she died a heck of a lot, she was actually a pretty decent shot. After racking up the deaths on our side, we worked out a brilliant strategy of having her be the team sniper, which meant she would run to high ground and the rest of us would lay down suppressive fire. Things heated up after that; we started talking strategy and eventually even started encouraging each other. After a good 5 or 6 hours, we found we had a special bond forged in the battlefield, and although things were still a bit awkward, we did manage to kill lots and lots of opposing players. <>Afterwards, we actually started talking for the first time in months, and since then have even hung out a few times. We may not be close, but we are partners, teammates, and to an extent, friends. And yes, we still play lots of Halo…

So the moral of the story is, a good multi-player death match can beat a personal grudge any time, and thanks to Halo, I salvaged a friendship and for that, I am forever grateful.