Chrono Trigger has arrived!!

So I picked up my DS copy of Chrono Trigger. Notice the lack of the letters "DS" appended to the end of the title. A small part of me would have died if such a mindless edit was made on such a great game.

And yes, right behind it is the extra music soundtrack CD pre-order bonus.

This has certainly sweetened my Thanksgiving weekend.

Fighting game completion with Backloggery

Not long after my short gripe on games I've yet to complete, a friend sends me this site called Backloggery that keeps track of all the games you own, as well as the status of their completion. Although interesting, I was hesitant at first creating my list of long-forgotten titles once great in their time.

But when I found out I could add games that I've already completed, my morale boosted a little as I added any games I've beaten in recent memory.

However, I stopped after a couple of completed entries. The purpose of this site is to motivate you to complete games, not to boast what you have, or what you've done. Sure, there are people out there that exploit that to a degree of defiance, lording over others as if it meant something. But that's not you. At least, not yet.

Personally, I think my list is moderately adequate, all things considered. And it's nice to have an online list to keep tabs on everything you play. Plus, there's no massive game database list to look things up - all you need to add yourself is the game's title, and the rest is just selection descriptions.

Which makes this option technically valid:

Game: Your Mom
Status: Mastered

A watched pot never boils...

Creating and publishing a level for the first time in Little Big Planet is a big thing for any player. The wait, the wonder, the anticipation of players checking out your hard work. And in the end, you hope that they will "heart" your level (similar to assigning a bookmark to a favorite page).

Currently, I'm in the "waiting" stage, seeing what people think of my 2-week-long project dedicated into recreating the endgame music for the classic RPG Chrono Trigger, which will be making its DS debut this week! But, after only 2 weeks since it was published, my level only has 14 hearts. Compared to other, more simplistic levels that have reached upwards to the hundreds and even ten thousands, my level still has a ways to go.

If anything, my level is steadily getting popular, and only recently did I receive those blue "tags" describing my level. Maybe while I create my next level will I stop checking my published one every day for more hits.

Oh, and if you have Little Big Planet, check out my level and let me know what you think! My username is as it is in the screenshot, GameritisGuy.

And that's only part of it...

This is probably the reason my "I'm finished" posts have been dwindling lately - too many good games to play, and not enough time on my hands.

Aside from Little Big Planet (which I DID finish, but technically doesn't count as a game in my book), all those other titles you see there are incomplete for one reason or another.

Believe me when I say I'll finish these games.

I want to believe.

Zero Punctuation review: Fallout 3

"Lazy Wednesday" completely missed my radar, so this "Lazy Thursday" will start off with Yahtzee's impressions on Fallout 3. Which apparently is easily summed up in the first 10 seconds. But he gives a good review nonetheless.

I'll save you the lame-ass "even though I've never played the game" speech, and let you view the NSFW review, k? Enjoy!

Goodbye, my HDTV...I knew you well...

So Animal Crossing: City Folk has finally arrived at my doorstop, and it doesn't take long for my wife to crack it open and have at the cute goods within. Although I do not share the same "animosity" as her towards gameplay, I still play along.

The game goes back to its "one town" theme, so the race is back on as to who can find what first before the other. Plus, there's the new city to wander around in, so at least the game won't be ENTIRELY the same.

But yeah...now I'll have to wrestle TV gaming usage with the misses every night. Not looking forward to that.

Crab fishing and gaming

Only recently did my friend got me into crab fishing in the wee early hours of the morning, but it wasn't until recently when the weather permitted good conditions to whip out my DS and get in a few minutes of gaming in between fishing.

Never thought I'd say "fishing" and "DS" in the same post.

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia...finished!

And so ends another chapter in the popular Konami franchise as I bring Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia to its end yesterday. There are no Belmonts this time to fight Dracula, but you get this hot chick that absorbs glyths that can be used in battle.

Even though I finished the game (rather anti-climatically, since my character was terribly over-buffed), I'm still playing through to increase my completion rate. I don't think I've ever been this absorbed into full completion in the past two Castlevania DS games, but I'm so close that I might as well keep going. There are still a few games that I don't mind grinding through to collect every single item, and now I can add Ecclesia to the list.

Overall, this is still an excellent Castlevania game, and one that you'll regret if you don't play.

Man, it's been a while since I finished a game. Time to play catch-up!

Zero Punctuation review: Fable 2

I think this week's game review has become one of my favorites. Yahtzee's back this week, this time reviewing the sequel...er, upgrade of Fable, Fable 2. Now with more dog!!

I think the non-linear aspect of Fable just turned me off in general. To know that you can just do more random shit than just play the game is fine and dandy when you find that out on your own...but when the back of the box tells you you can, it suddenly doesn't seem so appealing before. I'll give an example - playing Little Big Planet is great fun when you can create anything, but becomes less fun if the box specifically says "you can create penis-filled levels!"

Besides, who would want to get married in a video game? It's not even close to being real, unless you have a weird fetish for polygon characters.

Burnout Paradise just got a whole lotta AWESOME!!

GREAT SCOTT!!

This is heavy...

What our imaginations would be if it were made into a game

Little Big Planet is one of those games where it's up to the player how awesome the game can be. There will be people who don't like to create objects, don't like designing their own levels, and hate customizing anything in general...and those people would probably hate playing a game that requires you to become very imaginative throughout.

For the rest of you guys, this game is simply incredible.

At first, I never grasp the possibilities with such an ambitious game as Little Big Planet, but all it took was one video of some art group recreating a humongous Shadow of the Colossus level to show me how much can be done with this game. Now, I find myself wasting most of my free time trying to create imaginative levels that I will potentially share to the online community.

And what an online community it is! So many creative minds making so many levels! Some are less spectacular than others, but all are pure player-made levels that show that everyone has a creative bone in their body. I've even experienced my first online co-op play during the brief time I had on the LBP Beta with a friendly person that was patient enough to help me secure some of the more elusive items in the 2-player-only parts of the levels, all while their servers kept screwing up with our connection. We must've tried the same level at least 10 times...but we were still having fun throughout.

The single-player mode is no slouch, either, with highly-imaginative levels and tons upon tons of stuff to collect to amass your own collection with.

All in all, you only really stop playing this game when you run out of good ideas, or, as I see it, when you cease to function as a human being.

Zero Punctuation review: Dead Space

After so many weeks of reviewed games that I have never played, Yahtzee finally talks about one that's currently in my possession - Dead Space. While he doesn't get much more than a startled jump from the whole ordeal, I'm cowering in the corner of the room pissing in my pants.

Feel free to NSFW, right below!

Presidential Election going on...NOW!!

Go. Vote. Now.

Today's the day to make an impact, and nothing will happen if you don't go and vote. So put down that game controller, that PSP, that DS, that Wii-mote...and go and make a difference out there.

I mean it. Stop playing Little Big Planet, Fable 2, Fallout 3, Dead Space, and WoW, and get out there and vote!

Us gamers must unite! If we can make an impact on a terrible lawyer, we can make an impact on the world!

Zero Punctuation review: Saints Row 2

Yahtzee's back this week to review Saints Row 2 on this "Lazy Thursday" today. Even though I've never played the first game before, his comparison of it to GTA4 gives me some small interest towards it. You'll see what I mean when you check it out.

NSFW below, enjoy!

Leaving some space for Dead Space

After summoning up all my courage to start the game, I finally played a little bit of Dead Space over the weekend. To be honest, the game wasn't as scary as I had initially pictured it in my head, partly because I was playing it in the afternoon while there was still daylight. Of course, I've only completed past the first chapter and halfway through the second before my head got popped off like a lego head...but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Basically, my mindset when I started the game was that I'm stuck in a haunted house, and I need to get the fuck out. Incidentally, this is exactly how I behave in a real-life haunted house at those amusement parks and such - once I'm inside, I'm already looking for a way out. Like a haunted house, there are certain scenes and rooms that you'll encounter where often times you can do nothing but witness the demise of survivors right before your very eyes.

Then there's the common flickering lights scare, the "was that a shadow that just passed by in front of my eyes" moment, and the obligatory lead-pipe-dropping-in-the-distance. And this is all within the small amount of time I spent playing it at my friend's place.

While I've categorized this game high on the "fear" factor, so far it's not as mind-jarring as I anticipated. Having said that, I'm willing to cough up the money to see it through to the end, even perhaps through the Halloween holiday to beef up the scare factor. And that's something that will be a first in my book.

Officially disacknowledging "TGIF," starting "WTF"

I'm sick and tired of the ol' "TGIF" saying. It brings about ancient memories of a string of 1980s sitcoms and an unsavory restaurant chain, and frankly, it's pretty worn out.

So from this point onward, I'm personally declaring Fridays as "WTF," or "Wait 'Til Friday."

What? What did you think I meant?

Anyways, I'll reserve these days to posting something game-related that makes me scream "WTF," which will remind me to post it on Friday.

Clever, huh?

To commemorate this event, let's discuss about the virtual murder of a Maple Story character that resulted in a real life arrest.

WTF!!

Basically, after a woman in Tokyo realized she was suddenly divorced by her husband, she proceeds to hack into his Maple Story account and kill (essentially, delete) his character. While no actual blood was shed, the woman still faces charges for hacking into a computer and manipulating data, up to 5 years in prison or a fine up to $5000.

Okay, I understand the hatred. I understand the urge to hurt, even toward a virtual character. But couldn't she have done so without illegally hacking into an account? She could have done something more egotistically hurtful like putting something humiliating on eBay, or something to that caliber.

At least, if you hack into someone's account, don't leave virtual fingerprints behind. She could've played dumb and pretended to not know anything about technology. As a woman, she could've at least gotten away with that.

Seriously, WTF?? (the other "WTF")

Game Over: Art of the Gamer Generation

If you're an avid gamer and live around the San Francisco area, I urge you to check out the "Game Over: Art of the Gamer Generation" exhibit at the Giant Robot store on Haight street. Free to the public, the gallery showcases videogame-themed art pieces from local artists ranging from the games of our youth to video game violence.

If you want to check out the exhibit in person, it's open until October 29th. Also, most of the pieces there can be purchased, as it is art after all, so if you don't see a piece there, you can check out all the pieces of art at their site.

Since I last was there, more pieces have been sold, so check out the rest while you still can!

Zero Punctuation review: Silent Hill Homecoming

It's "Lazy Wednesday" again, and Yahtzee's in the Halloween mood with his review on Silent Hill Homecoming. I, on the other hand, haven't really played any Silent Hill game. Just the fact you're in the dark with just a handy pocket flashlight to guide you is scary enough for me.

NSFW, and an extra funny bit after the review!

Dead Space and scary games

I don't do horror movies. Period.

Can't stand the visualization of blood and gore right before my eyes as I watch helplessly while victim after victim the killer hacks his way through the flick.

And yet, I don't mind it quite so much when it's on another medium like, say, a video game. Does that make me somewhat a hypocrite? Meh, I don't know.

I bring this up since it's nearing Halloween, and that Dead Space (which recently came out) is actually getting pretty decent reviews, as well as getting some thumbs up from my bro and bro-in-law. But it's here where the problem lies - can I endure playing a decent game and overcome the genre of fear that envelopes it?

That's not to say I've never played any game that scared the shit outta me. I've played a couple Resident Evil games, shot my way through House of the Dead, and have actively and thoroughly completed through Eternal Darkness 3 times to get the absolute true ending. Even when I started playing Eternal Darkness for the first time, I intentionally played it at night with all the lights turned off. So why do I hesitate this time?

Essentially, survival horror has evolved to a level of fear that taps on paranoia's door. It's not enough to scare you with horrible monsters and stuff, but to scare you more by what is not seen. Sorta like how you can detect monsters via static radio in Silent Hill (yet another game I haven't played for this reason).

And reviews from other sites have not been very helpful in easing the fear factor. The game's meant to be scary, I understand, and Dead Space does just that. I just want to make sure I don't die from a heart attack before I finish the game.

While I'm at it, I haven't even played through Resident Evil 4 and Bioshock as well, both of which have had very good reviews. In fact, I own RE4, but haven't had the time to pop it in. Well, if there was ever a time to really get into these games, what better time than the scaring season to do it, eh?

Zero Punctuation review: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky

Yes, I'm a full week behind on posts.

Yes, I know viewing this blog every day since last week has killed you a little inside.

Can you stop sobbing for one second?

Thanks.

Anyways, to make it up to you, I'm gonna get back on the ball with the whole posts thing and all. Some personal events have occurred during that week, and I think most of that has subsided now, which is good for both of us.

Now, to finally kick of another "Lazy Wednesday," here's Yahtzee's review of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Clear Sky. I haven't even heard of the game and already I find typing its title to be a pain in the ass. Fortunately, Yahtzee here seems to agree the same way with the gameplay.

Clearly and cleverly NSFW below!