A new challenger emerges!!

So, with permission from Mrs. GameritisGal, I can make this announcement on my blog.  We're expecting a GameritisBaby on the way!  (I think I need to find a better moniker for it...)  I can already imaging my child ready to "press start" on its new life soon, which is almost 2 months from now!  With this announcement, I can finally share my first thoughts of the early ultrasound, in particular to the 3D-modeled embryo of our child.

The Simpsons Arcade Game downloaded....and finished!!

Back when Konami was making its mark in arcades with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Simpsons was getting a lot of attention into its second season, the two combined forces and spawned a cult phenomina simply called The Simpsons Arcade Game.  Based off the same engine and art style as the TMNT arcade game, The Simpsons Arcade Game was an instant fan favorite, eating quarters from kids everywhere.  And now, it finally makes a home in the console market.

Look what's arrived...PSVita, anyone?

Following suit with early adopters, a PSVita has landed in my possession, along with a starter kit that comes with case, memory card, screen protector, headphones, and game case.  And what's this?  Uncharted: Golden Abyss?  Don't mind if I do!

Final Fantasy XIII-2 and Strategy Guide arrives, cat is curious

Just in time to play, Final Fantasy XIII-2 and the "collector's edition" strategy guide by Piggyback have arrived!  And what's this?  A curious cat that would not get out of the shot no matter how many times I shoo him away?  Go away, Lenny!  I'll pet you after I start playing!

Final Fantasy XIII...finished!!

Much like Disgaea 3, I never thought I'd ever see this day.  But now I can finally say I've completed a Final Fantasy game - Final Fantasy XIII.

Pushmo: A deceptively-complex puzzler

Very rarely will I purchase digital content for my portable gaming devices (not including my iPhone).  There's always the price to consider, the content delivered, and whether I will dedicate the time to play it enough.  Then again, there's always the outcry of players enjoying the game everywhere that will get my attention as well.  Such is the case for Pushmo on the Nintendo 3DS.

Overcoming gamer's block: Earning a second wind

We've all been there before; you've played that one particular game for a while, but just can't progress further.  In a time when games are constantly begging for your attention, it's hard to maintain focus and, eventually, you move on to another game.  But how often do you return back to that game and try again? This, my friends, is my tale of conquering a gamer's block of my own - Final Fantasy XIII.

Re-Play: Final Fantasy XIII

This week's Re-Play is on an RPG of a series I've yet to complete a game in, Final Fantasy XIII.  In the past when I first received the game, the linear direction of the game was a definite plus for me, keeping me focused on my goals.  I really had a high hope that this would be the first game where I don't get bored and break off.  I was wrong, and I even lost my game save because of my laziness.  Will the second time be the Phoenix Down I need?

Re-Play: Little Big Planet 2

I've praised Little Big Planet 2 for so long being the type of game that only gets boring if you lack imagination. Never has that been more true than when I tried to replay the game once again in a speed-run attempt to recover all my building materials and supplies.

Adobo's Big Adventure

If you want to know where your NES childhood went, look no further than Adobo's Big Adventure.  Touted as the "ultimate tribute to the Nintendo Entertainment System," Adobo's Big Adventure pits this Double-Dragon character across many different NES game settings, beating up a multitude of popular NES characters, and even adapting to different styles of gameplay in search of his son, Adoboy.

Re-play: Rock Band 3

In a series of blog posts aptly titled "re-play," I'll be going over games that I've completed or not in the past that have seen little to no action since.  Of course, most of these will be titles for which I'm gradually recovering the broken shambles of my lost PS3 game saves, but they'll broaden to other older titles.

Unless you live with a family that loves to rock out each night, having a full Rock Band 3 set will attract dust faster than a Swiffer.  While I still enjoy a good jam session with plastic instruments (sometimes on my Fender Stratocaster as well), the game becomes a solo affair almost 95% of the time.  It's no surprise, then, that this game only gets some love on occasion.  But is the replay worth the effort?

Batman: Arkham City...finished!!

With Batman: Arkham Asylum, the game offered so much more gameplay after the core game was over that it really felt like you're in the billionaire's cape and cowl.  All the extra Riddler trophies and side missions made the game more meatier, allowing me to use Batman's arsenal of toys to the fullest.  Batman: Arkham City does at least ten times as much of side missions and content, enough to make me think twice whether or not I would be able to complete them all.

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception...finished!!

I'm going to just say it - I was a little disappointed in Uncharted 3.  But not majorly so that I hated the game.  The game was still jaw-droppingly awesome and had its moments, both in action and script, and the gun battles, while at times frustrating, were balanced out with the sense of learning from one's mistakes.

And while I enjoy a good story any day over the length of the game, I still found the playtime to be a little shorter than expected.  It won't stop me from playing the game once more in Crushing Mode (I started in Hard, for a greater challenge), but it's a little disappointing all the same.

Another thing that was quite apparent was the number of glitches the game had.  Uncharted 2 was quite polished, and there was nothing to note of when recalling any odd bugs.  But this one had more than its share of clipping issues, texture drops, and the occasional falling-right-off-the-map moments.

Despite these flaws, the game still stands to be a very enjoyable experience, one that I will still enjoy again and again.  At the moment I've been building my online stats thanks to a few co-op missions with a buddy of mine, so the replay value is still quite high.  And I've started the game over again on "crushing" mode, like I did with Uncharted 2.  To be honest, though, "hard" mode in Uncharted 3 was about as hard as the "crushing" mode on Uncharted 2, so I'm looking into a real challenge this time around.

Games Get! December in new games!

In an effort to quell my post counts before the year's end, here's a lump of new games acquired in the month of December.

ICO/Shadow of the Colossus Collection

These games are just pure living, interactive art.  For them to get the high-def treatment done right gives these aesthetic PS2 classics a prominent place amongst the triple-A titles currently on the PS3.  This is an absolute must-have on the Sony console.

December 2011: Month in Review

This month of December has been quite a busy one, one where I haven't even had time to post anything on my blog for nearly the entire month.  But I guess the only thing I can blame is my PS3.

Extra-Life - Hour 13-24: Professor Layton and the Last Specter

Since I've already posted that I finished the game, I figured I'd use the last 12 hours to wrap up the remaining 12 hours of my Extra-Life gaming accumulation to Professor Layton and the Last Specter.  As difficult it is to believe, I've spent way more than 12 hours when trying to complete this game.

Uncharted 3: Collector's Edition arrives

A little late in posting this, but doing so before Thanksgiving wouldn't have mattered since my PS3 was still in the shop during that time.  But yes, I went for the Uncharted 3: Collector's Edition, with small statue figure, ring replica, and belt buckle.  I can't help it if I enjoy shiny things!

The figure itself is done well, with a loosely-draped attachments and gun.  It will go nicely with the mini statuette from Infamous 2.  Both the ring and belt buckle replicas are nicely made, and would've been perfect with any halloween or cosplay outing.

The game comes nicely adorned in a unique steelbook case, despite the minor flaw with its poorly-glued spine.  I'm gonna have to fix it one of these days, but not today.

All of this is in a nice displayable ornate case that is quite sturdily built.  It sits atop proudly on my fireplace mantle until GameritisGal (aka the wifey) wants it down.

Thanksgiving and PS3 Game Saves

Thanksgiving is a time of thanks and forgiveness, and is something I want to emphasize before I segway into the next topic: backing up your game saves.

The good news is that my PS3 system has been replaced.  The bad news?  My old PS3 hard drive can't be read with all my saves on it.  This is because Sony enables an encryption key that is unique between the hard drive and system such that, should the drive enter another system, it would be completely unreadable.

So now, I have a useless drive that can't be read by any device other than the original PS3, which was replaced.

I've certainly went through my "denial" stage, trying attempt after attempt to recover my old hard drive to no avail.  I've tried swapping the drive from the maintenance menu, I've tried to connect it to a windows or mac to access the files, and nothing.  I get nothing.

So that's it.  Gone are the hours spent in Disgaea leveling up weapons and items.  Lost are the unique levels I've spent days creating in Little Big Planet 2.  All the games I've only partially played through only to hope to finish at a later date...vanished.  I'm definitely wounded from the experience, but at this point there's nothing left to do but to get back up and start walking again.

Thankfully, I have a working PS3 system once more.  Thankfully, my progress still lives on in trophy achievements.  Thankfully, all my DLC is tied to my PSN account so that I can download them once more to my system.  Thankfully, I can return to playing the games I still yearn to play.  I don't have time to be stubborn, to waste time wishing I backed up files.  I've got games to play AND backup.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.

Super Mario Galaxy 2...completed!!

While my PS3 is in the shop, I'm left with my other consoles.  It's not like I have a shortage of games to play.  In fact, I went ahead and searched for the remaining stars left in Super Mario Galaxy 2.  I've forgotten how much harder it is to find these out-of-reach stars, made even harder by not having any clue where they are located.

PS3 + Yellow Light = no Uncharted 3

As everyone is well aware, Uncharted 3 has finally released this day.  And, like everyone else, I've been eagerly awaiting this moment since the end of Uncharted 2.  Unfortunately for me, however, my PS3 decided to breathe its last breath this past weekend and go YLOD (or "yellow light of death") on me, effectively halting all Arkham City playing and future Uncharted 3 gameplay.