GO DS!

In Japan, the top 10 selling games last week were all DS games. The #1 game was Final Fantasy 3 with half a million sold followed by New Super Mario Bros.

I just picked up Star Fox for DS and so far I am pleased. The controls are interesting to say the least and the graphics are impressive. More later.

Last Post for the Month

Been real busy lately. I grinded as hard as I could on World of Warcraft and I finally made it to level 60. Now the raiding can begin. I await and dread it at the same time. When I was raiding in EQ2, I had such bad experiences with waiting to raid, but the feeling of 24 of us working together to take down a boss was great. Too bad the raid wipes outnumbered the victories.

Well the XBOX 360 hasn't been seeing its share of love from me, but I did download Time Pilot yesterday. This game dominated much of my time at the arcade in my youth. I loved it. It was simple and fair with good controls. The 360 version comes with enhanced graphics which are all good. The achievements are ridiculously easy. I got 180/200 in my first 40 minutes. The last achievement will probably take me another 30 min to get. Maybe I just jinxed myself.

Still no word on the Supernova upgrade. I can't wait for it though. When that is released, I will cut back on WoW for awhile. I also hope to drop about 15 pounds that I gained from playing WoW.

I spent about 3 hours working on my DDR pads cleaing out all the dirt. They seem a bit more responsive now and I notice my scores are a touch better, but that can just be coincidence. My favorite songs lately have been "blue" challenge songs. I love playing Celebrate Nite, Wild Rush, and Superstar. Still trying to master the Oni courses.

Reserves So Far

Here is my reserves with Gamestop thus far. With my current addiction to WoW, I don't see myself playing half these games. But they are the must haves. Click the link for a bigger pic.

I am upset. The DragonQuest 8 slime controller is now down to $20 and its still sitting on the shelf at my Gamestop. When people ignore unique controllers, companies stop putting them out. Thats my rant for now.

I gotta take a sec to give props to Double Jump Books. http://www.doublejumpbooks.com/books.html
They only have a few books, but they are sexy including the Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow guide. They just released the new Disgaea 2 guide and its Hawt!!1. They can almost be the new VS Books. Almost.

That's about it for now. Last thing, who didn't see this coming? Raise your hand. http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3689&Itemid=2

Gencon

Man I really would love to go to Gencon some time. Can't go this year because I have to house-sit. http://www.gencon.com/

Back at Gamestop

I worked the Madden Midnight opening on Tuesday and it was good times. Good to be back. They upgraded to EB Games' register system which is much easier to deal with. I will only work there about 8 hours a week but I dont expect my next shift to be until the Wii Launch.

The Wizard is out on DVD this week. As dorky as it is, it was a good movie at the time for any Nintendo fan. I enjoyed it. If you didn't, then you are cooler than I.

More delays in the Supernova upgrade. Makes me sad. John at Betson blames it on a part shortage. I think they are stalling so Konami can make the software fixes that will sync the music properly and add the extra song. I do expect some extra stuff to be tweaked as well. Such as the interface. The thing that sux is that the Supernova Internet Rankings started today and Round 1 goes until September 20th. John said they expect to ship kits the first week of October. By then, the home version will be out. Nice timing, fairies. I'll still buy the home version. I think. No date on DDR Universe for the 360 yet. Oh yeah, Ultramix 4 for $29.99? Maybe so.

Don't forget to download Tex Hold 'em for the 360 today for free. Otherwise it is $10 on friday.

http://www.upperdeckstore.com/UDCatMainSectionView.process?Catalog_Id=5&Catagory_Id=52&Parent_Id=1039&Section_Id=2432&DCMP=ILC-UDEWorldOfWarcraft&wsta=Buy+Button Makes me drool. the artwork is great, but I never learned how to play Trading Card games like this. Is there a Dummies book available please?

Marvel Vs Capcom 2 XBOX

Wow. I had no idea that this game was this rare. http://cgi.ebay.com/Marvel-vs-Capcom-2-Xbox-NEW-SEALED_W0QQitemZ330018698475QQihZ014QQcategoryZ62053QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I have seen people play it in the arcade and it is chaotic. Looks great but gets crazy at times. also has over 50 characters. Geez. I don't think it has Live support otherwise it would be a must have.

Supernova Kit

The latest word from Betson is that they are releasing the kits in mid September. I was originally told end of this month so I am kinda bummed out. The good news is that the fixes will be released at the same time. I guess I have more time to get off my lazy tuchas and play some more Extreme. I really need to up my scores to be really happy or happier...whateva.

Seems like Metroid is the flavor of the month. I have been playing Fusion for the past 2 weeks and I am really enjoying it. Trying to get 100% items collected but some of the

Pocket Dream

A portable system I never heard of? Gasp! Just kidding. This little unit looks interesting, but I am not getting it. For a little over $50 you can get this from Japan, but the question is does anyone want to? Its got alot of games, (30 built in) but it looks as good as an Atari Lynx. http://www.ncsx.com/2006/081406/pdc.htm

I had some guys over for some hawt DDR action today. Cartoon Hero thought my pads were not sensitive enough so we did a little DDR Surgery to some of the arrows. Turns out some of the screws are quite stuck and it took alot of effort to remove them. I still got a bit more work ahead of me. It was good times though.

Turns out that the Hold 'em Poker game for XBOX Live Arcade will be released next week and will be free for the first 48 hours! After that, it will be 800 points. Also announced for the next month are Time Pilot and Scramble.

Hot on the heels of Sega's announcement of the Genesis collection, EA announces a similar game for PSP called EA Replay. Includes 14 classics such as the Road Rash series, Desert Strike, Jungle Strike, and more for October 3rd. I hope they keep it cheap, but knowing EA, It will probably be $30 - $40.

The Dark One sent me this link that compares the PS3 and Wii side by side. You decide which one is better. http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/11544/Im-a-Wii-and-Im-a-PS3-Movie/

Wii is Next Gen

Interesting article here. Proves what I have been saying all along. The PS3 and 360 really are upgrades and not really next gen. Calling the Wii "Next Gen" is a bit of a stretch though. If it had an achievement system and online play similar to Live, its looking good.
http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3635&Itemid=2

Game Violence

Good link.

http://www.g4tv.com/attackoftheshow/blog/AOTB/cat/84/The_Loop.html

Ricky bobby

Teri and I took her niece to see Talladega Nights today. It was decent. I couldn't recommend anybody to not see it. Much more suited to the Nascar crowd.

Well, I am officially working for Gamestop again. My first day will be Tuesday the 22nd for the Madden Launch. I am only gonna do it for about 6 hours a week and the new system launches of course.

Tasty Goodies

A few tasty morsels this week. Square Enix announed 2 new classes for Final Fantasy 5 for the GBA. The cannoner and the gladiator. Does this mean we can wear gladiator helmets? Click the link for more. http://www.the-magicbox.com/0608/game060811c.shtml I can't wait.

Rumors are everywhere about a PSP price drop this holiday. We may be looking at a $149 price which would make it very attractive. Its a great deal already, but nothing can top the juggernaut that is the DS Lite. Nothing. Even EA had something to say about Sony's lack of promoting PSP. http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3617&Itemid=2 Ouch

Speaking of PSP, Sega announced the Genesis Collection for PS2 and PSP. The list of games reads like my collection from years ago.

Alex Kidd: The Enchanted Castle
Altered Beast
Bonaza Bros.
Columns
Comix Zone
Decap Attack
Ecco the Dolphin
Ecco: The Tides oF Time
Ecco Jr.
Eternal Champion
Flicky
Gain Ground
Golden Axe, Golden Axe II, Golden Axe III
Phantasy Star II, Phantasy Star III, Phantasy Star IV: The End of Millennium
Ristar
Shadow Dancer
Shinobi III
Sonic The Hedgehog, Sonic The Hedgehog 2
Super Thunderblade
Sword Of Vermilion
Vectorman, Vectorman 2
Virtua Fighter 2

The only thing that would make this collection complete for me would be Shining in the Darkness. These games are perfect on the go. Lets just hope that the put time and effort into each title to make sure they are emulated properly. The Phantasy Star games alone sell the compilation. -thank you to Magicbox for the story.

World of Warcraft expansion launches this year...maybe. The good news is that the new raids only require 25 players. Thats way better than the previous 40 and much much better than Everquest's 72! I am at 54 and am looking forward to some hot raiding action.

In DDR news....well nothing. No new locations for Supernova and no new stories. CartoonHero(Tim) from Burnsville mall claims to have passed Legend Road on Extreme. That course is 5 of the hardest songs at the highest level back to back. I can only pass 2 on that course and not back to back. I hate being old. I hate that kid =)

Prey and Pac

I finally beat Prey. I must say even though it is the easiest shooter I ever played, (you cannot die.) It is a sense of accomplishment. I can finally send the game back to Gamefly. I enjoyed the game so much that I will buy it once it hits $20 so I can try more of the XBOX Live action.

Pac Man is out and it is all good for a mere 400 points. The reviews are right though. You really need an arcade stick to enjoy. The D-pad is not so good for it and the analog stick takes getting used to. I'm gonna have to try the DOA stick if I can find it. Also, the achievements seem pretty easy so far. I got about 60 in the first 10 minutes of playing. To make things easier, you can start the game from any level you got to just like Galaga. On the leaderboards, I am ranked 900 with a paltry score of 30,000.

Discounts at Target

Every now and then Target marks some good stuff down to clearance level. We are talking up to 70% on some quality games. For example, last week, I bought Drilldozer for GBA for under $8 brand new. This week they have Geist for the Cube for only $12. I saw a lady buy 2 PSOne systems for only $38 each. Not only were they brand spanking new in the box, they included 3 games! Crash Bandicoot 2, Stuart Little, and Cool boarders 2(i think). Anywho, I noticed that those were the last 2 systems. She paid with a Paypal card which leaves me to believe that she will Ebay them. The moral of the story is to check Target weekly for clearance games. They usually keep an end cap near the other games and it usually has a good selection. Heck they even had Gran Turismo 3 for under $5. Of course everybody has that game, but still.

Not too much else going on in the world of Cow. I tried to cancel my Gamefly subscription because I haven't really been taking advantage of it. For example, I got Prey 3 weeks ago and I still have not finished it. I am near the end, but I want to beat it before I return it. So I go cancel it and they offer me $7 off my next month so I guess I'll stick it out a bit longer. I just have so many games here now. I still have yet to play level 2 of Cloning Clyde and I want to beat up some more n00bs on Street Fighter 2. So little time for all thats meant to play.

Made it to 53 in WoW. Been spending a good 2-3 hours a day on it. I'll never be able to beat the game by myself though. No matter what kind of 1337 gear I get. Bummer.

Kotaku had a cool little story on the new DragonQuest game for Wii. When Square Enix announced a DQ game at launch, I knew right away it was gonna be based on this puppy. http://www.kotaku.com/gaming/retro/plug-play-slash-192410.php. I was so tempted to buy it, but I always thought it was gimmicky and an exploit of the priceless DQ license. It turned out to be a good game though and it is right up Wii's alley. Exciting stuff.

Dead Rising is coming out this week for the 360. Not gonna get it, but it is supposed to be quality. The demo is out now. Also did I hear that Castlevania Symphony of Night is coming to Live? Goody.

I'm a DDR Dork

In this pic, I imagine my wife coming with me to the local arcade and my surprise of seeing SuperNova there. I drew the pic first and added the text later. I was trying to think of something funnier but I guess that was the best I can do.

And this my friends, is the end of pics.. for the day. I'll try and make them funnier next time.

MK Armageddon 2 pic

I find the selection of 60+ characters amazing for MKA. This pic is a parody of what MKA2 would be like. Concept art of course. The thing about MK2 and MK3 was that they just pallette swapped the ninjas to make new characters. Lazy, but I loved it. Scorpion just looked so cool, but wait, make his yellow suit into a blue suit then you get Sub-Zero. They made Smoke, Noob Saibot (?!), Reptile, and Ermac that way too. One of the coolest versions was MK Trilogy for PS1. It had every character playable. Even Johnny Cage! The only thing that plagued that game was the loading. Otherwise, awesome. MKA2 looks at the possibilities of 70 ninjas (and their moms) ! Heh. This pic took more time than it was worth. Still makes me giggle though. You can name the Ninjas anything. Like Poop or Pop-Tart. Or even Skittles!

For the gullible out there, this game has not been announced. MKA is coming out for Wii though. That should be cool. Hopefully better than MK Trilogy for the 64...which was not that bad, just not worth the $70+ price tag.

I Like to Doodle

I had some free time today at work so I started doodling things. I thought for a moment that I can make comics that can be enjoyed by others since my own stuff tends to amuse me. This little 3 minute drawing symbolizes what I feel about Street Fighter for XBOX. Please note that I am not posting this to try to get a job with Disney or Penny Arcade. I like to draw and though its worse art than anything out there, there is humor in some of my stuff. I made 3 "comics" today. I'll show the other 2 later...but don't keep hitting refresh. They are not that good, but humorous.
I also apologize for my craptacular hand writing. I know it stinks like yesterday's trash, but I have been putting very little effort into improving it...so there. Also in another humorous touch, I signed the pic so that it may be worth something someday. Ha!

Final Fantasy V Box Art

Yeah! I'm looking forward to this one. FFIV was a great game on the GBA. There was some elements of slow down but nothing bad. This should improve a bit and have a redone translation since the PS1 remake was a bit goofy in the Englsh department. Just plain bland. This comes out Nov 6th and a few weeks earlier in Japan.
Thanks to IGN for the Pic.

Street Fighter 2 is out for Live and its great so far. No lag that I saw and a $10 price tag. Yummy in my tummy. Great game, but is there any way to turn off the elephant noise in Dhalsim's stage? Other than that, the D-pad hurts my thumb a bit and I find myself jumping more often than I want to.

Was playing some DDR today and I am pleased to report that I got 1 great in Heavy Cowgirl. This is awesome news because I never AAA'd a heavy song. ever! I can triple A half the light mode and 5% of the standard, but never heavy. Almost cried tears of joy. My stamina still is not where I want it to be. I did AA Exotic Ethnic on heavy for the first time, but that really knocked the wind out of me. I might make it down to Gameworks today.

The New MKA Character Select Screen

Yummy!

August Has Come and So Will I!

August is finally here and though it may not mean much, we are a bit close to the holidays. A fantastic season full of PS3s and Wiis. Weee!

We start off this month with the release of Street Fighter tomorrow for Live. I think this may be hotter than Geonetry Wars. If that's true, I am gonna have to wonder how a 14 year old game is more popular than other Live Arcade games. If executed well with a lag free and good match making system, this could be more reolutionary than X-Band.

I have not played them yet, but Saint's Row and Ninety Nine Nights demos are out now. Been too busy trying to beat Prey. Not that its hard, I just haven't been able to play for more than 1 hour at a time. Great game though. Great game.

Other hot releases this month include Madden 07, Dead Rising, Star Fox DS, and Final Fantasy VII Dirge of something.

I was listening to 101.3 and I heard a commercial for Gamestop in Woodbury. Never thought I would see that. Even though it was a 10 second spot, must have been expensive. Anyway, grand opening in Woodbury.

EB Games in Ridgedale mall is closing down. There is a Gamestop across the street . This saddens me because I helped open that store. It was a new model EB and looked pretty cool.

I hit 51 in WoW. Just having a blast with it recently.