So thats what the "i" in "iMac" means. The iMac was the marriage of the Mac with the emerging Internet.They carried the "i" on to the iPod. Now, after looking it over, the last four worked for the iPod, but the Internet did not come to the iPod line until the iPod touch and the iPhone. Now it is complete, the "i" in iPod means something now. Congrats!

Now, everyone has said that Nintendo's Wii has gotten design cues from Apple, and after watching this video I get it. Not just for the Wii, but look at this, the first iMac had a handle and the GameCube had a handle. The successor to the iMac was WHITE and the successor to the GC was WHITE. Maybe it's all coincidence, but if the next Nintendo home console comes out in Aluminum, I'll eat my foot that it was luck!

Speaking of Apple, new MacBooks and MacBook Pros are supposedly in the works and will be announced in September. Aluminum MBs? It's almost 99% certain, since it's the only Apple computer that hasn't made the jump. This will be exciting news. I can't wait. New iPods are also apparently coming down the tubes. Apple has also been rated as worth more than Google now. More than the GOOGLE? Shit.

Finally, to end this post. How do you all get your news from the Internet. Do you read them on websites or get RSS feeds? I personally have gone from loading a million tabs a day and refreshing each one to using Google Reader. It's a great tool and has saved me precious RAM usage and time spent browsing news. Hit it on the Tag-Unit, I want to know!

DATE: [08] [17] [2008]

Shit, I haven't written a post in nearly a month. Apologies to all my adoring fans. For those who don't know, Joey started up the Sennen Rage fanfic again, and I have to admit, its actually very well written, much like the old SR fanfic that he wrote. How many SR fanfics on/offs have there been already? I've lost count. Nevertheless, it is well worth a read, and so please check it out here.

I'll bet my pinky finger that everyone is wondering what I have been playing lately. Here we go! I beat SSBB (the Subspace single player mission) a few weeks back, but unlocking everything will be insane. That might take a while.

If you've been reading my blog and keeping up, you'll know that I have beat two LEGO games so far. I started originally in December 2007 with LEGO Star Wars II: The Complete Trilogy for the DS and now I've beat the game as well. So I've beaten both the DS and PSP LEGO Star Wars II game and one Indiana Jones for the DS (I don't think I will be try to even play Indiana Jones on the PSP...) Enough LEGO games for now...until LEGO Batman. Then it's on!

I purchased LoZ: Twilight Princess when Toys R Us had the sale a few weeks back. With the sale it was $50 (regular MSRP) and then I also picked up Wii Play for $30 ($20 off the original price). Now I have two Wii Remotes and I'm very happy.

While we are on the topic of Wii, I am officially part of the Guitar Hero club as well. Picked up GH III for Wii for $65 and I have already played through Easy mode until the end - just can't seem to beat Lou (final guitar boss battle). Three buttons is not so bad. I tried to step it up to medium and yowzers, I am horrible. Adding the blue and yellow button to the first three buttons is not easy. My pinky finger doesn't have much strength...must manage soon. Excellent game by the way. I won't be a god anytime soon, but at least I can practice in the dark and hope to be okay on "medium" aka "normal" level when I play in public or at a party or whatever.

Closing out the Wii talk, the Wii has unofficially gotten support to play DVDs (video) using the homebrew channel. I installed it the day after it came out and popped Batman Begins right in and FUCK, very nice. Except for a few frame skips here and there to keep the audio in sync, the app is turns the Wii into a DVD player WITHOUT a modchip. Go homebrew!

Since I just threaded off there on Batman, I saw the Dark Knight and it was every bit as awesome as I expected it to be. I saw it 2x to be exact. The movie is amazing. If you haven't seen it yet, it is well worth a movie ticket. I will definitely buy this on DVD once it hits.

Currently, I am playing Need for Speed (I love the NFS series - most of the them at least) Underground 2 for the DS. Yes, it is an ancient game, and yes I still think its worth playing IMO. The car handling is just atrocious, but once you get the Lexus or Mazda RX-7, the handling gets better than being stuck on a shitty Nissan. The regular Circuit is slowly falling to my skills and so is the Own the Zone. The only part I hate is the Drag races (just as shitty as NFS: Pro Street).

I also dusted off my PSP today. My special black PSP strap/lanyard (free from Sony, after a little mail-hack)

All is quiet on the Final Fantasy front - I am still taking a sabatical from the series. I am however very excited for some more info/video/gameplay of FF Versus XIII for the PS3. My stance will remain unchanged. I will buy a PS3 when that behemoth is slimmed down significantly. FFvXIII is only exciting because it reminds me very much of FFVII.

That's it for now, enjoy your day everyone!

DATE: [07] [23] [2008]

Ohohohohoho. The first video is hilarious. The second video, well just turn the sound off for that one, it's a bit annoying.

DATE: [07] [19] [2008]

Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword is a unique game. Entirely a slasher game, it was nothing shy of generic. There isn't really much that can be done in the game, and many of the more difficult moves are not entirely necessary to kill the monsters or bosses. The game did become repetitive, afterall, slashing can only get you so far. I found that the basic slashes diagonally and sideways were effective 99% of the time. The monsters are nothing creative, although the monster designs do look impressive, but again, nothing completely new - the usual dragons and ugly one-eye cretins. The game reminded me a lot of God of War: Chains of Olympus for the PSP, in that certain areas are quarantined off by purple swirly vortexes and the player cannot progress until all the monsters are taken care of.

Despite all the repetitiveness of the game, there was a sense of exhilaration to complete the game and save Momijii who was taken prisoner at the start of the game. The stylus' slashing action really does make you feel as if you are slashing a sword.

Normal difficultly is very accessible. I did notice that when using earbuds that the sword slashing sound is filtered to the left earbud and music is filtered to the right. So if you do use earbuds, make sure both are on, or you're going to miss out on the slashing or the music. While the music is nothing special, I'm of the group that no matter how repetitive the music is, it helps immerse yourself into the game.

All in all, NGDS is a very fun game, but is on the short side, and perhaps the higher difficulty level might interest you.

8/10

DATE: [07] [15] [2008]

One word: APESHIT. Apeshit in a good way. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for Wii is a massive chunk of motherfucking bananas. It's that good. This game is incredibly epic and the art direction is beautiful, if not the best graphics on the Wii I have ever seen. I definitely need to buy this game, Gameflying it just won't do me any justice.

Medal of Honor 2: Heroes - I had to lower the difficulty and even then I only made it to level 2. My eyes started to burn and hurt and I got tired after about 2 hours of gaming and the camera always getting "stuck". I've given up, this isn't fun, its more like work now.

I sent both games back to Gamefly today. I want a new copy of TP, but $50 is expensive. I really wish I had made it in time for that Amazon's Gold deal thing. They had TP for about $35. Let the hunt begin!

E3 has been jawdropping. All three big videogame companies dropped some good stuff. I suggest checking out Kotaku for the goods, I'm not going to repeat it here. I'm too lazy to type it all out.

Nintendo: New motion controller add-on to Wii-mote for 1:1 accuracy, new Wii Sports Resort game, GTA game for DS.

Oh yea, a GTA game for DS. Why no Wii love?

Microsoft: New Dashboard for 360 looks very easy to navigate, FF XIII gets release on 360 too.

Sony: Nothing really exciting...except for Resistance game for PSP by the Syphon Filter PSP devs (you all know how much I loved the SF PSP games...)

DATE: [07] [12] [2008]

Lately I've been thinking. If America really is going through a recession phase (which it does feel like, I mean have you seen the price of some veggies? It's off the roof), then thing that is sure to save it is the iPhone 3G. My reasoning is simple, everyone from the rich guy to the poor factory worker has waited on line for the 3G. How would these people save the economy? Their huge fat 3G monthly data bills should help bounce things up. I wish some other sectors would take cues from Apple.

Anyway, I found this video from Cult of Mac and thought it was hilarious. As you can see, the reporter is clearly a douche bag.

Finally, I'm of the belief that while the 3G iPhone does look extremely nice, and although it is still lacking (no MMS, video recording, a decent AIM client), the data plan and cost is what ultimately throws me off. Most people pay $20 for a monthly mobile internet plan, and the slow EDGE connections and crappy loading of the mobile internet turns me off. I personally feel that $20 is asking too much for too little when it comes to having the Internet on a mobile phone. My DSL costs about $35 and it gives me the FULL internet. So, what does this mean? I will ultimately only ever jump aboard a personal internet data plan, IF it is $15 or under. Work-wise, if the company pays for the mobile internet because its necessary for productivity, then I could care less. The iPhone 3G hike up to $35 fro $20 is BS to me.

Oh, and AT&T cell reception still crackles and pops. Get with the times AT&T. Even, T-Mobile has better call quality than you.

Now I'm just waiting for all this iPhone nonsense to blow over until Apple releases a new iPhone with minimal features they can dub "revolutionary". A few features here and there, and Apple will have their cult waiting in line every year for a new iPhone. Now, that is what excites me, the fact that a lot of the same fanboys who waited outside for the first iPhone did it again, and would do it again when the next model comes out and so forth. NEVER in history anyone lined up for a mobile phone the way the iPhone has. The buzz is what has me high. Good day!

DATE: [07] [11] [2008]

So, Gamefly mailed the two Wii games to me. First thing was popping Medal of Honor Heroes 2 in and it's pretty much exact same game as the PSP version, only with Wii motion controls. Played for 57 minutes according to the Wii timer and here are my initial impressions.

The motion controls work just okay. The PSP's control scheme was actually more "tighter" than the Wii's. On the Wii, occasionally, the Thompson or any other long barreled gun would just start aiming down and "glitching". I'd get right in the middle of open-fire and wham, the controls would wack out and the gun would get stuck and start aiming at the floor and whatnot. The game would stop you and give you tutorials for Wii motion controls, but I really didn't need any other ones. MoH2 is a gun down game. Run and shoot, throw grenades and pick up clues/evidence/information. I definitely breezed through the PSP version in a much quicker time. In 57 minutes, I made it through just ONE level, and level 2 was where the onslaught hit and the janky controls showed their weakness. I'll be playing through it over the weekend and then will report back. Also, my right hand was getting a little fatigued. Not much, maybe I was just tired, but it was a bit.

I didn't get a chance to play LoZ: Twilight Princess yesterday, as I was too busy figuring out how to install the Homebrew Channel on it. Mission Accomplished! I am very impressed. More on that later.

DATE: [07] [11] [2008]

If you've been living under a rock then you wouldn't know that today was the launch of the iPhone 3G. I was going to go and head over to the Apple store and actually check out the buzz, but slept well past the afternoon, and missed the whole ordeal. Though, I bet if I went now, there would still be a lot of buzz going on.

I read a lot of the coverage for the iPhone 3G on many tech blogs, and most of the information being written is rather redundant. I'm sad that Apple is making iPod touch owners cough over $10 for a firmware update when PSP owners have been getting free FW updates from Sony for years. There are however other means to get the firmware, as it was leaked on the internets - like everything.

Jumped on board a Wii, and it is rather nice. So far, my arsenal includes Wii Sports (packaged in), Mario Kart Wii and Super Smash Bros. Brawl. SSBB has been taking up my time as of late, and I have to say that it is really good. Like REALLY REALLY good. Unlocked Sonic and Snake and am really satisfied with it. I'm about 48% through the Adventure mode, and despite some reviews floating around saying it sucks, I think it rocks.

Gamefly should leave two nice packages in my mailbox today, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (which I'm going to use to install the homebrew channel) and Medal of Honor Heroes 2. The reason for MoH2 is because I really enjoyed the PSP version, and while I have still yet to finish the last stage for the PSP version, I've heard really nice things about the Wii version.

The Xbox 360 price drop will be most likely be hitting retail this Sunday, I believe that is the 20GB model...but that's a really good price and will most likely boost some 360 hardware sales. While I do not own an HDTV, getting a 360 would almost be wasted. The sheer detail really does look pretty. Good things come to those who wait. I'll wait.

There is also some more rumors of a FF VII related news that may or may not result in a PS3 game/remake/spinoff. Whatever the case, I am officially a diehard FF 7 fan, and anything related to it would make me skip a beat. I would totally purchase a PS3 if a FF 7 remake was announced in the works. That would just be the pushover. But as much as I would like that to happen, there is very little chance that it would make sense. Why? The scope of the PS1 game was absolutely HUGE. There were a ton of things I never did - side quests/missions/mini-games. Long live FF7!

DATE: [07] [08] [2008]

Too much Final Fantasy. So much for my FF plan. My brain is getting an overload. FF III's job system is totally a bit annoying. I'm getting my ass kicked around by the monsters. FF III is on a hiatus for now.

FF 8 also so some minor plays. Compared to FF 7, FF 8 is leaps more "stunning" graphics-wise. I am impressed. The game looks really deep and I don't know how I'll have the time for it now...

Just beat LEGO Star Wars The Original Trilogy for PSP. If you remember, I gave it a test run on the NDS a while back, but the puzzles were ridiculous. The PSP version was surprisingly okay. Despite a choppy framerate from time to time (it was like Need for Speed Carbon on PSP skippy), the gameplay was okay. I didn't like the lightsaber wielders only because the slashing was very ineffective against enemies. I had to do a jump and downward slash just to kill enemies. Although, slashing chairs in the Cantina was no problem. I thoroughly enjoyed the LEGO-fied version of the game, and now I have two LEGO games on two portables on my belly. 8/10 or B+. Worth a play, if you love Star Wars or Legos, but otherwise, I think you could skip it.

Oh, and those who don't know, you should really get Gamefly, it's amazing. It's like Netflix for games!

DATE: [06] [30] [2008]

Tomorrow is July. You know what that means, summer is in full-force!

LEGO Indiana Jones The Original Adventures [DS] is beaten. Watched The Last Crusade today and then finished off the LEGO game. It was a great ride. Loved every bit of it. Definitely not the "just for kids" game it seems to be. The puzzles and stuff might get repetitive but I loved it. Stud collecting was fun. I just adored how the developers reinterpreted the movies into LEGO form. Such funny parodies at times.

YGO 5D's Ep. 9-12 were watched over the weekend and it actually is becoming quite interesting. Still waiting for someone to release 13 subbed.

I started Final Fantasy III [DS] again last night. I think I understand it better than I did in October when I first tried it. I think I might go through on this one. Question is though, should I play Final Fantasy II for PSP first before I continue anymore on III on DS? Technically, I can go in order from I & II on PSP and then III & IV (when it comes out, yes I plan to play it!) on DS. V and VI, I'm not sure, but maybe Square Enix will remake it on PSP or DS? Played VII and once 4.01 M33-2 fixes the Popstation thingy, then I can go on to VIII and IX. X and up will have to be played on a PS2, there's no other method. Maybe I'll have a PS2 by then.

Is it a lot of FF? Yes, yes it is. But, I am too absorbed into it now. No turning back.

Oh and Dark Alex released 4.01 M33 and the M33-2 update + 1.5 kernel add-on over the weekend. Get your CFW fix!

DATE: [06] [28] [2008]

Final Fantasy I on PSP was AWESOME. Another magnificent adventure. FF2 will have to wait a bit, my eyes burn!

P.S. I caved. I watched episodes 2-8 of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's. It's actually not that bad now. The character designs give me that oh so-Battle City/Orichalcos chill up my spine feeling. I like it. I am like one of the few who liked the Orichalcos saga. The dark themes worked well. I mean, in 5Ds, Yusei goes to JAIL and gets branded. Now if that isn't bad ass I don't know what is.

DATE: [06] [26] [2008]

Put it simply: AWESOME.

DATE: [06] [20] [2008]

Didn't update yesterday. I was really lazy.

Played and BEAT Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow (PSP) a few days ago. It was the great. IMO, I liked Dark Mirror a lot more. Logan's Shadow as a sequel was way easier and didn't really up the difficulty level. It felt a little short too. Still an "A" game for the little PSP.

That Indiana Jones LEGO DS game is still being played. I'm going to let you all in on a little secret. I have only just started watching the Indian a Jones series...it started with Indiana IV and then I went and checked out Indiana I: Raiders of the Lost Ark. I have TWO to go. I plan to watch 2 and 3 by the end of the month. That's what's holding the Indiana Jones LEGO game up. I want to watch the original movies before having a swing at the LEGO renditions which are VERY funny with their poking cutesy-ness. Although I am half-way through the Temple of Doom (Indy 2) episodes, I'm going to put it on hold until I can watch the movies. Looks like I'm going to have to sign up for a trial of Netflix to get my Indy game on.

I'm also taking a bang on Final Fantasy I on PSP. I despised the NES version, but since Joey said it was good, I figured, hell why not. Earning Gil in this game is a bitch.

Sad to say, I was never big on Final Fantasy. The awe of it was always caping around my life/friends/etc. I recently played through FFVII for the first time, and finally it all makes sense. My FFVII trilogy is complete. Crisis Core, Advent Children and then FFVII.

FFVIII & FF IX are next. Joey mentioned the possibility of buying a PS2 the other day. At $99, its worth a buy. I'm thinking about it too. The blockbuster hits are still here and for $20 and under a pop, the AAA games are sure to be a win. Here's our chance to get our PlayStation 2 on.

DATE: [06] [18] [2008]

Continuing from yesterday's discussion. Today's discussion are netbook, UMPCs, sub-notebooks or whatever you want to call them.

These "bridges" between smart phones and full-fledged notebook/laptops usually lack optical drives, are lightweight and Internet-oriented. More and more hardware makers are gearing towards these types of products. Asus, was first with their eeePC which was low in cost, and is good for basic tasks such as web browsing, and word processing. You won't get any gaming done, unless it's Sudoku done on the eeePC. Brands like Dell and HP are now jumping on the bandwagon with bigger badder versions of the eeePC. Most of these netbooks top out at 10", any bigger and it would be a regular notebook.

Light weight is key. But, do you compromise thinness for lack of features/functions? ala MacBook Air? Or do you manage it like Lenovo and their X300? I would be interested in one of these babies. What I'm waiting for is better functions/higher processor speeds and overall better performance. The MBA is attractive, but at the current speeds, I'll wait.

What's your take?

DATE: [06] [17] [2008]

Web applications or web-apps are gaining popularity by the day. Web apps are web-based versions of applications (usually open source) that allow you to maintain productivity without purchasing and installing commercial software that would do the same. For example, Microsoft Office is the most popular work-based suite on the market. Apple has their own version of it called iWorks. Essentially, they both contain word processors, some kind of spreadsheets, and presentation/slideshow maker. The web version of it would be Google Docs.

Another example is Adobe's Photoshop Express, it's an online photo editor and while it is limited it features, for the average user, is just enough to adjust red-eye, and remove blemishes, etc. So the question is of course, do web-apps appeal to you? Do you ever use them? If so, which ones and why.

Most of you can probably guess what tomorrow's topic will be just from it being related to today's topic. Good guessing and check back tomorrow!

DATE: [06] [16] [2008]

Today's topic is retro-gaming. I know Joey's favorite games are from "retro -90s mostly." When we dub games "retro" what does it mean to you? Games from the 70s, 80s, 90s? For me, I would think games from the 80s-mid-90s would be considered retro for me. Mostly, when I think about the term retro in relation to gaming, I think of NES, SNES, Genesis, and anything from the 8-16 bit era. Gameboy also counts because it was 8 bit.

So after that, what are your favorite "retro games"? Which is your favorite retro game? retro system (I know people who consider PS1 and N64 retro)? With Nintendo's Virtual Console on the Wii so radical (did I just say that?) the subject really has gotten to me. I long for old-school games. I loved Gameboy to death in the hayday.

The second part of retro gaming I really want to discuss is the prospect of remaking/HD-ing/reviving old games. On Xbox Live Arcade, games are being HD-ed like Super Street Fighter 2. That game isn't merely just a port, it's a re-make with HD sprites/visuals and all. On the PlayStation front, Sony is just releasing classic PS games in their PS Store, no visual overhaul, same as Nintendo. It's easier for Sony to pull off because the controller hasn't changed since the PS1's Dual Shock controller came out. Which do you prefer? Virtual Console? XBLA? PS Store? Don't be shy, even if you don't own any next-gen systems, discussing about it is still worthwhile. Why? The Big 3 are using digital distribution for all of these titles and digital distribution is where everything is starting to move towards. I still dig the physical storage medium (Blu-Ray is still too expensive IMO), but it's undeniable that digital distribution is where the money is at (it cuts out the middle man a.k.a retail) and its where things are moving to (ease, convenience, etc.).

Naturally, the last question for today would be, what are your thoughts on the future of physical vs. DD? Your thoughts, comments, insight are very welcome.

Til next time!

DATE: [06] [15] [2008]

More time travel

Marketing. If done write, even if the product is not as feature-packed as the rest of the competition, can destroy the competition.

Take the video consoles. I'm going to tackle each of the four consoles (PS2 is still in the ring apparently) with one sentence.

Wii - Laughing and playing with friends and family is better than playing alone.

PS3 - I want to be everything, but who am I?

360 - Playing online is the best.

PS2 - AAA games at $20 a pop is what keeps us at the top.

The latest announcements of the 40GB PS3s sans PS2 BC makes it even worse. So what Sony is selling is a machine that strips 2 USB ports (which they made such a big deal over because they had more than the 360), takes away the PS2 BC (so a system with PS1 & PS3 games only - makes no sense considering the best games of the PS history are from the PS2 collection - and we can already get PS1 games off of PS Network), and losing the memory card slots (Sony also made it oh so important way back when the PS3 was announced). So what is the 40GB PS3?

Essentially it will be "Bigger, bulkier 360 with crappier online gaming and really bad advertising, oh and rumble-less controllers that are bundled in that can't do 60fps right).

Anyone seen the DualShock3? Real original name there right? And the controller? Same one we've had for how long? DS3 has the DualShock3 name right ontop of the Sixaxis logo on the controller. Seems like it's getting a little cramped up there... So what is the official name of the new controller? DualShock3 SIXAXIS? or SIXAXIS DualShock3? Oh and word of advice Sony, stop using CAPS for eveything, it's annoying!

Nintendo's consoles are all underpowered. If you've ever noticed the underpowered machine always wins. I've said this over and over again, and I'll repeat it once more. Just have a look.

SNES > Genesis

PS1 > N64

PS2 > Gamecube & Xbox (not both totaled)

Wii (sales wise so far) > Xbox 360 & PS3 (not both totaled)

Handhelds too:

GB/GBC > Wonderswan, Neo-Geo Pocket, etc.

GBAGBA SP > Gamepark 32, Tapwave, etc.

DS > PSP

The underpowered consoles don't win because of their specs. They win because the marketing behind it is solid. Advertisements that target and engage viewers. Wii is going for the whole "playing in a group" thing, having ads depict gamers "playing" rather than the game itself. 360: Building on Live and making it integrated with Games for Windows. PS3: LOST.

I'm not intentionally hating on Sony. I love the company. Their cameras, mobile phones, TVs, computers, laptop are all top knotch machines with beautiful designs. But the PS3? It as a disaster and mess from day 1.

DATE: [06] [14] [2008]

I realized I am apparently one day ahead for my posts...weird. My sense of time got screwed up about a few days ago. I will catch-up (back?) tomorrow.

Cleaning the old harddrive again. Found a ton of posts I never put up way back when. Better late than never. Well, these posts were a reflection of the time back then, not now. Read at your own risk.

10/16/07

Britney Spears > USA - I'm heading out into the city and whammo, newspaper headlines are filled with nothing but the latest news on Britney Spears and her deranged life. Do we really have to hear about Britney Spears every goddamn day especially when the country has more important things like the Democratic Presidential Candidate Nominee - featuring the first black man to run and especially the first woman to run? Strangely enough, Hillary could actually pull it off too. Or how about the more craziness that Bush is for vetoing things and the Iraq War and the troops and Osama Bin Laden. Interestingly enough, all everyone wants to yap about is Britney Spears and her bad mothering ways and her look-at-me-i-shaved-my-head and flashed my crotch and lost my kids to a bum and yadayadayada. America. SHUT UP about BS already. It's gotten out of hand. What's worse is that it's not just national news. It's become international news. I know people in Asia who get news on BS in their newspapers. Sad, but true.

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10/15/07

Super Smash Bros. Brawl - They say Wii games look like garbage. The screens that the SSBB Dojo has been dishing definitely show that the graphics in this game are top knotch. Anyone see the denim that Mario and Wario are sporting? Those are some detailed thick jeans. I personally think that Mario should sport that kind of detail for his jeans in all future Mario games. Anything less would be unbecoming. The major news for SSBB has got to be Sonic. Come on, we all knew this was coming. We knew it. The Mario/Sonic Olympic game sealed the deal. If those two great videogame icons could be in one game, then Mario and Sonic giving each other a good whoop ass could surely be done. You can't see that happen on PS3 or 360. Only Wii.

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games - Everyone is ripping this game or talking about it on the internet. Mario beat Sonic in a relay race? PSHH. Sonic wins hands down. That isn't even a question. The only way Mario could win against sonic in a foot race was if he cheated by a) Throwing a Koopa shell at Sonic b) Ate a mega shroom and squashed Sonic c) attacked sonic in anyway or d) all the above.

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10/14/07

Apple vs. the people - Seeing this whole Apple vs people with unlocked iPhones or 3rd party apps running on their iphones and such is giving me one big headache. It's like watching the PSP hack scene fight against Sony and their firmwares. The hackers always win. Why? Because they're ambitious. Who else is sick of seeing iPhone everywhere in every tech website?

Windows Vista - I like the look of Windows Vista. The glossy black interface hands-down is just super sexy. The only problem I have? I don't have a powerful enough computer to install it. And the kajillion SKUs also doesn't help. What is with MS and a bajillion SKUs for their products anyway? 360 anyone? I love the glossy look so much I got a skin for it for XP. The bad news? The skin slows the computer down - hah - even trying to pretend to look like Vista slows things down...From what I've seen and heard and had hands on with, it's not stable. Even MS is acknowledging this and is extending SPs and product sales for XP.

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10/13/07

EGM - Electronic Gaming Magazine. Is it just me or do they treat their readers like idiotic baboons? I used to be be an avid reader of EGM. I loved the way they presented videogames in a way no other mag could. They were interesting, but now they are starting to sound like a bunch of babies. Whining and bitching about everything. Everyone still reads EGM, because they await their reviews, which tend to be "hardcore" and lower than the rest of the community. No they are not hardcore. They are more like little children who have crapped in their pants once too many and haven't had their mommies attend to their diaper mess.

Then ever since they made the sync with 1up.com their magazine has gone down the drain. It's become the epitome of stupidity. Honestly, their reviews sound like horrible templates that are just recycled every issue. There is no originality besides the obvious dumb behavior which is to make fun of you. Cheap laughs is what EGM is all about these days. I've had enough. I'm never reading EGM ever again.

Their insults to the people who send in letters is nothing short of childish. What magazine acts like that? Even MAD doesn't go that far if you ask me.

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10/12/07

Ratings for this holiday's hottest items:

iPhone - Got to admit, the iPhone is worth all it's hype. This thing is a stunning beauty. Lick it, finger it, it's incredibly sexy. Safari is very nice. In terms of delivering the essentials for a mobile phone - it is lacking. No MMS. No formal instant messaging. No video recording. Firmware updates should be able to fix these things. No 3G. My take: iPhone is very desirable, but wait for iPhone 2 or whatever they call it, it will be worth the wait.

PSP Slim & Lite - I still like the original despite it not having the much wanted TV-out feature. But at $170, it seems very attractive. I still say that the PSP is on it's death bed. Or I want it to be, even though I own one. Okay, I love the little bugger, but it just isn't delivering in the games department. Yes, Lumines and GTA are nice, but what else? Okay, you say Syphon Filter and Ratchet and Clank, okay, what else? God of War, FFVII Crisis Core. It needs more. My take: If you absolutely hate the DS, buy it. Otherwise, $170 can go elsewhere.

Nintendo DS - Yes, someone on Kotaku mentioned that Nintendo has stopped calling it the DS Lite...meh. It's always the DS to me. There's a little something called DS + M3/R4/Cyclowiz/Supercard = PSP PWNAGE. Google it. Not going to say anymore. Oh and the games are awesome! My take: Buy one if you haven't, Phantom Hourglass, New Super Mario Bros. and more are totally worth it. This is Nintendo at their best.

Wii - I will be honest with you. I want one. I want one badly, but after getting burnt by the Gamecube, I temporarily lost faith in Nintendo's home consoles. An incredible lineup including the likes of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario Kart and more make this they system to own. And I like white hardware! My take: Get it. Mr. Reggie Fils-Aime says it will be hard to get one this holiday. Oh and damn I want one. Someone send me one?

PS3 - Sorry. But with rumblings of the 40GB PS3 sans backwards compatibility coming to the States, I don't know what the F Sony is doing with their precious super computer. So far we've had 20gb, 60gb, 80gb and 40gb. What is it Sony? Which one is it? Here I thought the Xbox 360's SKU's were a headache, the PS3 is even worse. My take: When MGS4 actually ships, then maybe buy one. Oh and no rumble their controller? Still pissed about that. And Dual Shock 2 tech inside of the PS3's Dual Shock 3? Then how the fuck is that Dual Shock 3 if it's using yesteryears tech? And why the hell isn't it being packaged in with the system? If you ask me, the PS3 is one big train wreck from the start.

Xbox 360 - Halo 3. Btw, I've never played Halo before. OMIGOSH. I bet a million fanbous just exploded in laughter at me. Yes, I've never touched Halo. EVER. I've seen it and heard about it. Read about it. Never played it. Didn't seem to interest me. And still doesn't, although I may venture into it sometime possibly to give it a try to see what the F the hype is about. Venture off a bit about this one game and didn't talk about the system. Oh, um...well the red ring of death still plagues the 360 systems and MS is slowly rolling out the HDMI and crap onto the newest 360 units. My take: Wii60. Not an Xbox fan, but Wii60 > WiiPS3. Really though, I wouldn't even buy a 360 until MS gets their shit together and stops selling units that motherf**ing break after playing a few games on it.

iPod Touch - iPhone sans the phone. Good purchase if you want some mobile full internet Safari badly like I do. Sadly, the price is unforgiving, and I'm waiting for a price drop. Apple, come on two months, make it happen. My take: Wait for price drop.

Zune 2 - How the hell did Zune 2 make it here? Oh it didn't. This is all just a mistake. Zune = turd. Zune 2 = double turd on a burger. Only that crazy maniac with the Zune tattoos would buy this. That tattoo guy is WACK.

------------------------------

10/11/07

Wicked. Two updates in two days. Is this the smell of an update comeback? Only more viewers will dictate that. So I woke up the other day and was thinking SHIT, where am I? So I decided to drop my lifeless body down over to YGO Express and do the thing we do best - chill at the tag-board. So after a little while of "chilling" I just decided maybe I want to get back into this game. Now there isn't a new layout planned yet or anything, but I'm hoping something good comes out of it.

I was reminded how old YE was when Joey said it's been 4 years. A great tear droplet fell out of my brown eyes and dripped across my cheek Korean/Japanese drama tv-style. So what can I muster up? I haven't got a clue. I want to have a unified site again, but it seems so hard now, especially because there isn't anything that I have been passionate about the way YGO made me feel once upon a lightyear ago.

I do like the idea of gadgets and cool tech and technology and the likes, but I am not sure SR would be able to survive in these "red oceans." We need to innovate, to destroy the competition by not becoming them. We need to create "blue oceans" and give something that isn't offered yet. Whoa that was a load of wisdom and knowledge, but will anything result from it? That is hard to tell.

Oh and another thing...gonintendo.com sucks. The site delivers some good news, but in a horrible format/package. Please someone fix it.

How about a just a regular blog then for now? Ok, not a regular blog, one with the mix of updates for some stuff like gadgets/videogames/tech/etc.

DATE: [06] [13] [2008]

So only after a few hours of Metal Slug Anthology on PSP, I can say with confidence that I love it. It's Metal Slug 1-6. The frame-rate is smooth all throughout my play and handles a shitfuck of action all on the same screen. I don't even need to say more. If you never experienced Metal Slug, go get it for PSP or Wii (I'm assuming it's the same thing feel).

Trying to get through LEGO Indiana Jones The Original Adventures. I'm playing through the first epic and this game is very nice as well. It's even better than LEGO Star Wars: The Original Trilogy. The team behind these DS LEGO games really know their stuff.

Weather has cooled down a bit. This is much better than the heat. Subtle warm sunshine mixed with breezy wind. Excellent!

DATE: [06] [12] [2008]

I can't get it. Monster Hunter Freedom is stupid. I quit just like that. The game increasingly became lame with the loading times every few minutes or so. It's just not a game I can play. I can't deal with the horrible loading. MHF just sucks.

Moving on, I've moved on to Metal Slug Anthology. I've never played a Metal Slug game in my life. I've heard about it, known that it was a sidescrolling shooter, but never played. Now this game is phenomenal. There appears to be some minor bugs that plague the interface of the game, but not really the game itself. Action is smooth and fluid. Boy is this game fun. 2D is where its at.

NBA, Lakers are really having a hard time fending those Celtics off aren't they? They won last night, but marginally. I'm rooting for the Lakers, sorry Celtic fans, I think Phil Jackson should get his 10th ring already. He deserves it.

DATE: [06] [11] [2008]

It's going to be another hot hot day here. I haven't felt scorching heat like this in years. No warm welcome backs.

Voodoo announced a new laptop that outspecs Apple's Macbook Air. Them's fighting hands. And it's thinner than the MBA. I can't wait to see those suckers hit the retail so I can check them out.

A bit more today or tomorrow.

DATE: [06] [10] [2008]

I read my first live-blogging of WWDC via Gizmodo and Engadget a few moments ago, and I must say, the speed at which both blogs write and upload is about the same, which is incredible, when they are both direct competitors. I prefered Gizmodo's liveblog because it auto-refreshed when a new post was put up.

Waiting for Jobs to announce and show the 3G iPhone was starting to make my heart fail. Like I said, it's the intensity of the hype that surrounds Apple announcements that make it all the more exhilarating. I myself, don't many Apple products because they are so expensive.

So did Apple impress? Thinner body (curvier back). Same 3.5" screen. Same shitty 2 mega pix camera on the back. All black back body made of plastic now. Buttons are all metal instead of black plastic. WHITE version of iPhone too! (Wow, Apples bringing White back!) 3G speeds PWN EDGE, and GPS. Jobs compared the 3G iPhone to Nokia's amazing N95 and a Treo phone. 3G iPhone kicks both their asses.

The important part: PRICE. $199 for 8GB. $299 for 16GB. AMAZING. Simply AMAZING.

RELEASE DATE: July 11th WORLDWIDE release. Set your calendars if you're an iPhone fan or have been waiting, this one is going to be BIG.

Looks like no front camera for video conferencing...it isn't very big in the U.S. and it's still far from perfect/clear in Europe and Asia. Next time guys, next time.

I think we all know what's coming from Apple next time. iPod Touch price drops. I guarantee it. If the 16GB iPhone is only $299, then Apple's got to lower the price on the Touch. $249 I'm predicting, otherwise there would be a drop in Touch sales.

Is it just me, or did Jobs lose some weight? Looks thinner...maybe that 3G radiation is getting to him.

NOTE: This was posted just a few minutes after the actual end of the announcement. Am I getting my groove back?

DATE: [06] [09] [2008]

I'm writing this before hand. But Apple is set to announce the 3G iPhone today. By the time I get home, the news will be plastered all over headlines. We'll also see if OS X 10.6 actually is in the works. 13" Macbook Pro? There's no way that is happening, but it's wishful thinking.

WWDC can't come sooner. Weeks of anticipation and web speculation have festered inside of me. Even if the 3G iPhone comes out, I won't be rushing out to get it, I don't need a data plan outside of SMS at the moment. Perhaps in a year or two. The iPhone has however really revolutionized the world. I am doubly impressed.

Also, it is a huge heat-wave here. 95+ degrees this week. This weekend has absolutely scored me. Hope it's nicer for everyone else...

You may also notice that for 6 consecutive days, there have been posts. I have no idea where I got the energy to post updates to SR back in the day. I most surely must have been on drugs...or something...

DATE: [06] [08] [2008]

Today, I'm going to address something that has been bugging me for a long time, and that is the high cost of USED Gamecube games. Like a company like Apple, Nintendo software (not hardware) can maintain a nice price even after its used. So why the hell is it now, a year and a half after the Gamecube fizzled that some of the best games are STILL no where near USED prices. I don't know about you, but for me, a used game is $20 and under. Nothing more. It's used for jesus sake. Anything asking for more than $19.99 is ludicrous. Take the information I have dug up below, taken from Gamestop.com, the nations largest USED games re-seller/buy-back. Mario Party games for $30? No way. Twilight Princess for $40? Alright it's rare, but I see it at the Nintendo store still for $50. $10 is not much of a discount for a game that's already for a dead system - I'd spring for the Wii version if I was a Wii owner. Other games like Pikmin, and Pokemon are still overcharged.

The big one comes with Super Smash Bros. Melee. This game came out just shortly after the Cube launched in 2003. It's been 5 years!!! I know the game is still a masterpiece, but $35 for a used title is just a plain ripoff.

I also added a list 3rd party software that was listed (I didn't list all of the from Gamestop).

While Nintendo has made plans in the past with their "Player's Choice" aka Sony's "Greatest Hits" aka Xbox's "Platinum Hits", they need to do more. If Nintendo wants the Wii to become the PS2 of this generation, they need to do more. Old games need to be reduced in price to $20 and placed on the Players Choice. I know, that Gamestop's prices is their own business and not Nintendos as well. It's a shame that a game like DDR: Mario Mix is $50 without the dance pad. It's madness.

Nintendo Published Gamecube games (USED)

NON-Nintendo Published Gamecube games (USED)

All prices are from Gamestop.com and in-store retailers.

DATE: [06] [07] [2008]

So, the monster is Guitar Hero (any iteration). Anyone a real Guitar "Hero"? Do you have mad shredding skills but still can't play a real guitar worth jack? Join the club.

I'm no stranger to Guitar Hero, okay maybe I am. I don't own it for any system, but lately I have been wanting to. Now first, I must say I never took on to the whole Dance Dance Revolution craze back a couple years, and then along came GH, and I still never hopped on. What's the reason? The truth is, my hand-eye coordination is quite shitty. That's right, I said it. When the goings get tough on DDR, I flair out. Now, I'm not awful; Tetris has my hand/eye coordination at massive levels of massive, but DDR and GH, I just suck at.

Below is a youtube video of the master of GH. Dude is awesome, just watch the video and you'll know what I mean.

After watching that, I am so convinced now that I need to learn how to play GH better, and the first step is to get it for some system and practice. Then practice some more. I might even have to spend sleepless nights practicing. It's no secret that chicks dig guys who have GH skills. They just dig it. It turns them on. It makes them all hot and horny. In fact, chicks dig guys who have some secret nerdy skill. PERIOD. What's my secret nerdy skill? I haven't really discovered it. I think being a gadget nerd is already geeky enough, and let alone reading gadget blogs around the clock like it's the only news in the world. Yes, I am a gadget geek. What I need to start being is a Guitar-Heroing-Dance-Dance-Revolutioning-Wii-Sport-Ass-Kicking-Rock-Band-Mega-Pwning-God. Then sit back and watch the world suck on my toes and bring me fried plantain chips. On second thought, I actually don't want those last two wishes, but you get the idea.

Anyone great at Guitar Hero? Have awesome skills? Let us know! We want to see just how awesome/nerdy/geeky/cool you are!

DATE: [06] [06] [2008]

Deviating from the normal yak about video games, how about something else?

Today, I'm going to ask, what kind of music do you listen to? I need some new music. They say music vastly marks a person's identity. Do you listen to the radio? Is the radio just about dead? What about your friends and family? Anything good? Do you ever feel that listening to music from years ago is old and annoying and that it doesn't work for you anymore? I remember when I listened to a lot of Eminem and 50 Cent when the hip-hop/rap boom was spreading across the world. It was a short-lived era of durags, gold chains and "ice", "bling", and baggy clothing. I never got into it, even though I enjoyed the music. Recently, I was browsing through my iTunes and happened about a song by Eminem called "Smosh". Thinking back, it was an interesting song that I enjoyed back in the day. Now I can't even stand it.

I don't know what people are listening to these days. I know all that pop on the radio is awful. I for one am not a fan of "Crank Dat" with its annoying "supaman" lyrics. The dance also is a huge cry for "punch my face" in my opinion.

Remember that everything I write on Sennen Rage is highly opinionated and that I will not hate you if your opinion differs a little or a lot from mines. Sennen Rage is a "forum" so to speak for speaking your mind on any matter. There is no censorship. I just tell it like it is, from my perspective.

Shoot all answers/comments in the Tag-Unit. Thanks!

DATE: [06] [05] [2008]

Oh my damn. After being all up in a frenzy, I beat Elite Beat Agents (DS). my comments? Very very addictive. No matter how much you want to quit and or lose, you just end up going back to tap to the beats. I don't know why Nintendo hasn't released a sequel with more tracks and stuff, but if this thing supported DLC content via something like the DSvision (Nintendo's own version of a flashcart/R4/M3, this game would be even more awesome. So far this game on a scale of pure awesomeness, I give it a MAXIMUM SUPA Awesome. A must have for the DS.

While I haven't gotten much in to Monster Hunter (PSP), beyond the intro, I'm still working on it.

Lately, I've been trying to go back to some old-fashioned Gameboy games. The GB catalog of games was massive. It had a huge range of games in every genre, and a lot of AAA titles that got overlooked. The same goes for the games that were released near the end of the GBA era. Zelda Minish Cap anyone?

Something that has been bugging me for systems like the DS and Wii have been the onslaught of shovelware. For those who don't know what shovelware is - it's essentially half-baked games that are complete garbage - everything from the packaging to the game title (Hamsterz?) to the game itself. So far, very few publishers have seriously tapped the Wii and DS for some truly innovative and creative games. I say NOT ENOUGH. In fact, I believe Nintendo really needs to start curbing what makes it on the system and what is just a flatout virus-infested-buggy game in disguise with bitmaps of fuzzy hamsters laid ontop of some really badly modeled geometric polygons.

Another thing that seems to bother me lately has been the requirement of many games on the PS3 to have 5 GB mandatory installs. MGS4, Haze, Bourne game and others already require it. This is not a sign of good things. With 40 GB being the standard unit for the PS3, If you have 4 games that require mandatory installs, that's only 4 GAMES. I am aware that the PS3 allows you to swap out the HDD with your own, but if I were to purchase a PS3, I don't want to go out and buy another HDD...I'm not made of money here. Not only that, but due to the formatting of the HDD, perhaps you would fill the HDD up already after 3 games that require the install. Many journalists have harped on the Wii and it's need for more storage outside of the internal memory and SD card, but the PS3 is doing the same. I don't see this nonsense happening on the Xbox 360 (although it still has it's own BS - RRoD). So far, it seems that all the new generation systems have some sort of flaw to it. As for my PS3 purchase consideration:

1. Smaller chassis - the thing is still a behemoth. I don't like it. I'll wait.

2. Price down to the $299 mark. $300 seems like the golden number for a multimedia center.

3. PS2 BC - rumor is that Sony is hard at work on pure software emulation for PS2 BC in 40GB SKU. I would be down with that.

4. DualShock 3 included - I like my rumble. Sony, give me my rumble.

5. Less mandatory installs - this is more of a developers issue. With Blu-Ray discs being touted by Kaz Hirai as having huge amounts of storage over the competition, I can't accept these ridiculous 5 GB installs. If 360 doesn't need them, neither does PS3.

DATE: [06] [04] [2008]

Lo and behold, one day after I last wrote, I finished God of War: Chains of Olympus. The ending was...get ready...unsatisfying. SPOILERS: Using the sun-shield to deflect a beam of light onto the boss and then it was all over was unforgivable. The gain prides itself on being spectacular all the way in, and then drops an easy boss. If it weren't for that last boss, I would give GoW PSP a perfect score. It engaged me like no other PSP game has before. I was tempted many times to lower the difficulty for combat from Normal to Easy, but I never let it get to me. I stayed on normal. There are still many challenges and other stuff to play, but I usually tend not to play those, unless I'm really bored. The main game is where my time was spent. It was time well spent. It gets a nice solid 9/10 or A- from me.

If you've been following the Media Create video game sales stats, you'll know that the PSP has taken the lead as raking in the most units sold per week, and it was thanks to Capcom's Monster Hunter 2nd Gen. Now I never played Monster Hunter, but clearly something all of Japan is addicted to has to be somewhat intriguing, right? I'm stepping up to the bat, and will attempt to tackle Monster Hunter. Stay tuned for that.

I've also been playing the PSN PSP game, Echochrome. I caved. I had to see what the optical illusional fuss was all about, just like with flOw and Beats. I won't go into details on what the game is, just google it. The game is most minimal, with low, smooth, classical music. Echochrome's simplicity is also it's complexity. By turning the puzzle around, you defy the law of physics all to guide a mannequin to it's "shadow-counterpart". I solved a few puzzles, and while it will get frustrating fast, I found myself just turning the puzzle around and around and hoping something would happen. Some of the times, it lead to some solving of the puzzle, at others it was pointless. Obviously this is a thinking game, and challenge you to use the 5 game rules to access and solve the puzzle. I don't have the patience for these types of games, but it doesn't mean that I don't appreciate something refreshing once in a while. While the visual is just black and white with black outlines drawing each puzzle, it gets the job done for this game. In fact, I don't think it would work with more detailed visuals - it could, but it just would lead to more frustration. This leads me to talk about another game...

Line Rider. Line Rider is heading to the Wii and DS, and in my opinion, it sold out big time. The genius of Line Rider is its simplicity in detail. It's "weak" visuals is also what challenges the gamer to make levels that are "impressive". I can't judge Line Rider for DS or Wii from some screenshots and videos just yet, but I will definitely testdrive it to see the comparisons.

DATE: [05] [31] [2008]

Hey everybody! How's everyone doing? Are you all hanging in there? There really isn't anything to hang on to anymore, but keep up the good fight! I never realized this, but Joey got me thinking. For anyone not in the know, Joey really wants to officially kill off YGO Express. He said that he needed to put it behind him so that he could move on with his life. If anyone has noticed remotely, SR has become a whenever/whatever site. I'm not even sure if you could consider SR much of a site because it doesn't really have much content. Everyone's interests have matured. I'm all about the gadgets and videogames now.

Regarding Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's; I saw the first episode subbed on Youtube (remember when Youtube wasn't even a blip on the internet, and whichever site had the video goods, was the website that consequently would get flooded with hits because people wanted the multimedia? Oh the good days. This was a time before Web 2.0, mind you.) and I have to say, it sucked. It didn't just suck. It sucked hard, and in the worlds of the Angry Video Game Nerd, it's worse than buffalo balls coming out of your anus. I dare not watch episode 2. As if the final nail in the coffin wasn't already there, this is the nuclear bomb that was set ontop of the coffin to nuke the shit out of it. Takahashi-san, you keep raking in the good dough. You deserve it, but while you're living the rich life, you've killed a sub-culture that was once a deep part of me. Thanks for the good times while it lasted.

And the GX finale was awful - like I predicted it to be.

Without getting too mushy, let's have some short reviews of some games shall we?

On a side note, anyone ever try overclocking their CPU? How did it go? Did your house burn down or anything remotely similar? Do tell in the shoutbox (Tag-Unit..giggle...), I am curious to know.

[PSP] Crisis Core: FFVII was amazing. It was brilliant. I highly recommend this game to all PSP owners, whether you've played FFVII or not. Excellent. 9.5/10. I am thoroughly impressed by the the entire presentation of the game, the game mechanics, visuals. Stunning is a the only way to describe it.

[PSP] Beats (PSN download), an interesting twist on the a music/button rhythm game. If you have great hand/eye coordination (or play Guitar Hero a lot) then this is something you will want to check out. I thought the game was ok. The music is limited. Of course I didn't get much into the core gameplay yet, and not sure if I ever will, but hey, that is just my opinion.

[PSP] God of War: Chains of Olympus - Ho ho ho, I am still playing this. I just shoved this game back into my PSP this morning, and holy fuck, I finally got past the level I've been stuck on. This game is still very high on my list of MUST-HAVEs for PSP. Hopefully I will finish it soon.

That's pretty much it. I've been extremely busy as of late, working on a bunch of projects for reality.

Got something you want to talk about? Hit up Joey's shoutbox or the Tag-Unit, or shoot me an e-mail with "SR Comment" in your subject line or else it's hitting the spam box.

Summer's starting soon, have fun!

DATE: [04] [17] [2008]

Here's my review of the PSN downloadable game flOw for PSP. I'll add it to the PSP review section later. I'm going to start up the reviews again!

My experience with flOw was unflattering at best. The game on PSP uses the analog nub, and after repeated navigation of the aquatic worm through the ocean, I found it strenuous on my thumb. It started to become fatigued. The controls are somewhat stiff.

What is the point of flOw? I've read that many find it a very relaxing game. The tune in the game is a nice mix of echo/ripple of water. So after hearing flOw everywhere, I decided to check it out.

I first played with the PC version, but I found it rather boring, with no main objectives, but to eat everything in sight. That was in February. It's now mid-April and I decided to check out the PSP version.

flOw isn't really a game. It's like a casual "non-game." The graphics are simple and because this was a port of the PC and PS3 versions, it was originally coded in Flash and the visual show. While it's not ugly, it fits the game.

Did I get any insight or better understanding as to why flOw is such an entrancing game? No. I am just as stupefied as I was before I checked it out. It bored me instantly, and didn't really immerse me. If you're looking for a game to waste precious time, then by all means, flOw might just be the game. If you play it for a long enough period, I'm sure you'd lose all track of time, and realize you spent a nice few hours in an ocean eating micro-organisms.

What did intrigue me behind the entire flOw project was that this was based on the developer's college thesis research. That speaks loads for the way games are moving into the homes of people. flOw gained a lot of popularity because it was so simple and relaxing. The game was made by two college students and then made it big on the PS3 and then eventually onto the PSP.

I would suggest playing the PC version to get a feel of flOw. It's an accurate feeling of the game and the PSP version really doesn't add much more. The PC version is free and can be found here.

DATE: [04] [06] [2008]

Welcome to 2008 folks! Wait, am 4 months late? Oops!

I heard GX is over and 5D's is on or going to be on. I will check the first couple episodes out. Hope it's not as dumb as GX was. I'm also going to see the GX finale (subbed FTW), only because Yugi is in it. Did his voice get deeper? Or have I just completely forgotten it?

On the videogame front, a lot is going on. The Wii is still going for world domination and the DS is it's little right hand man. The PSP is surprisingly very strong too. Lots of good titles for the PSP. The PS3 is getting major software support.

Currently playing:

[PSP] Crisis Core - Final Fantasy VII

[PSP] Patapon

[PSP] God of War: Chains of Olympus

[PSP] Yu-Gi-Oh! GX Tag Force - I play it sparingly, but I am surprised at how this is a pretty decent YGO game. I haven't played a YGO game in ages - and that includes dueling physically! Good to know not all is lost.

[NDS] Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword

GARBAGE OF THE MONTH:

[NDS] Naruto Ninja Destiny - Absolutely unplayable. The attempt at a 3D Naruto fighting game was very nice. Too bad the controls are damned shitty. Squinting real hard, it was like watching Naruto being streamed from a Gamecube or something.

[PSP] Tony Hawks Project 8 - I still think the best portable/handheld THPS game was/is THPS2 for fucking GAMEBOY ADVANCE. It still amazes me how fluid and fun that game is.

Just a notation - Yea, I like to play a lot of games at once and never finish. I get distracted easily nowadays.

PLAYING

ON HOLD

FINISHED

GARBAGE = F across the board

DATE: [12] [29] [2007]

Happy Holidays schmuckos. Happy new years as well!

DATE: [12] [14] [2007]

Question: How many games do you guys actually complete? I mean play entirely and finish every nook and cranny? I thought about mines and well they're not the much. A few Pokemon (GB/GBC) games here and there, Super Mario Land (GB), Super Mario World 2 (GBA). In order to complete a game you must find every last itmem that is required. I'll admit, I come bloody close for my games. Some of those "unlockables" and those extra items are near impossible for me. But for me, enjoyment of the game and seeing the credits roll by is enough for me. Re-play value is nice, but I'd prefer to move on to new games.

(NDS) Mario Party DS: So far the single-player game is just a "board-game" which doesn't even make a whole lot of sense. The game seems to be based so much on luck of the dice (literally, luck of the roll), that I'm not even sure what it's all about besides the fact that Mario and pals decide to go to Bowsers "party" because of some food! I'll look at the mini-games soon.

(NDS) FFXII: Revenant Wings: This game is massive! I mean it. It's so friggin big and long that I'm only 20% in. I'm stuck at a certain point, can't remember which, but when I figure out the right combo of which Espers to use, I might finally beat that level!

(NDS) The Rub Rabbits. How Feel the Magic, I loved you so much, and I finally figured out how to move that dude up the escalators. Thank god I have a screen guard or else my screen would be scratched to a bitch for all that rubbing I had to do! But seriously, this sequel is very cool. The "break-time" voice is not as seductive, but who the hell cares, when you can dress your black faceless iPod girl in cute bikinis and shit. This game makes me laugh as hard as the first one - in a good way.

I never did continue playing (NDS) Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker, other games are occupying my time for now. Winter holidays perhaps.

(PSP) Medal of Honors Heroes 2: The last stage is too mother-fucking hard. There's too many Nazi's shooting at you. I've played the level at least 50+ times and I can't dodge the crazy hellfire they keep throwing at me. What am I doing wrong?

(PSP) Exit: Getting there. Haven't had much time for this one, but it's beauty is it's pick-up and play form. So maybe on the subway sometime later.

(PSP) Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror. I know. I'm still playing this. Since the Thanksgiving holidays, I've been swamped. Nearing the end. Will most likely finish tonight or over the weekend. Hopefully tonight.

(NDS) LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga: This game is confusing me. I haven't touched it in a month.

GARBAGE OF THE MONTH (meaning stay away from these games):

(NDS) Ultimate Mortal Kombat: In one world, I can describe this game as "SHIT." It's shit in the sense that graphically it looks like shit. The gameplay plays like shit. The controls are awful and did I mention how ugly the character fighters look? Save your eyes and don't waste in on this shit. *Goes to barf* I really must find out just how bad the GBA game Mortal Kombat Advance really is that EGM gave it a 1/10. On second thought, no thanks.

(NDS) Need for Speed: Prostreet doesn't fare any better. This whole "drag-racing" sucks and it sucks hard. My engine is always burning out. If I player can't progress forward in a game because of some stupid complicated controls that mess up the entire game then off to the trash heap it goes.

(PSP) Need for Speed Carbon: Own the City suffers from frame-rate problems. In it's form, it is unplayable. I will not play anymore of this. The frame-rate literally slows and "jitters" and chugs as you are racing. This is not a smooth racing game. I give up.

(NDS) The Simpsons Game: (read my comments in the previous post). Nothing has changed. I'm done with this game. It's sickening.

And still have not played, (NDS) Contra 4, or (PSP) Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow.

It seems (PSP) WipeOut Pulse got a 9/10. Never was a WipeOut fan. Seemed like a rip of F-Zero. But I will go and try WipeOut Pure and then Pulse. Man, I have my hands tied.

(PSP) Beats also seems nice. Will have to try that out as well.

DATE: [11] [24] [2007]

Happy late-Thanksgiving to everyone. I hope everyone hasn't given up on SR yet. I feel as if I'm leading everyone on. But I am still working on making good on my ideas that never seem to materialize. But as I always say now, if you need your YGO fix, YGO EXPRESS is still alive and kicking.

There's been some rumbling on the Tag-Unit about the becomings of this site. I am here to debunk it. SR is open until I say I want it to take a shit on itself.

Currently playing:

Finished:

Game that sucked and failed to meet my expectations:

Games I will be playing and hope to finish on top of the games I've played so far.

Someone buy me a Wii!!

DATE: [11] [01] [2007]

Hope everyone had a happy halloween yesterday. Finished Zelda: Phantom Hourglass on the DS. It's incredible. Amazing. Yeah, I stopped playing continuously for the last two weeks...but it's done.

And why is Elite Beat Agents so damned hard?

Dragon Quest Heros: Rocket Slime was also finished earlier this week. Also excellent.

DQH and Zelda both offer great amounts of replay value afterwards - theres a ton of stuff I haven't yet done in Zelda, like deliver Jolene's letter and find all the ship parts and that stuff...

DATE: [10] [18] [2007]

Wait for it...

DATE: [10] [16] [2007]

Let me just say first and all that up until possibly around last year, I was anti-Apple. Yes, I was aware that Apple made slick looking products, but I was a Windows user. But after famliarizing myself with Mac OS X, it's become a full-blasted joyride. For those who are clueless about OS X. It's incredible. Imagine nice "effects and animations" that you would see in movies and then think "that could never happen on a computer" or "that's not a computer OS and isn't possible in real life," well it can be. Currently I am losing sleep over the old discontinued iMac G4 "dome" all in one computer. It's a little old but the aesthetic designs of it are making me drool. I am deciding if it's worth purchasing off of eBay. If I do spring for one, it'd have to be the 20" one... It's about 500-600 bucks including shipping/handling. What are your thoughts?

Also it appears that traffic is picking up again here, so that has made me very happy lately. Keep it out and spread the word about SR being back up. Remember, more traffic = more postings and more updates and will motivate me to work more on the site.

I have a bunch of stuff I really want to talk about and it's all on my flash drive, which I conveniently left at home today, but I will post it all up later tonight. So don't go anywhere. Also, this coffee is really dosing me. Here's advice for all NYC folk, coffee is stronger at breakfast carts than at Starbucks, not to mention a ton cheaper. A 75cent cup of joe can go a long way compared to the $5 Starbucks.

DATE: [10] [13] [2007]

Step # 2: DS Reviews and NES Reviews pages up. Check out reviews for Feel the Magic: XY/XX [DS], Super Mario Bros. [NES], and The Legend of Zelda [NES]. Have a good weekend.

Anybody in the know will have read about the Vii - China's bootleg Wii. Only thing is I laughed at it the first time. An now that full 360 degree pics of it standing next to the real Wii show that it is even more of a joke. Check those pics out, courtesy of Engadget (China).

Click here for the rest of the gallery.

DATE: [10] [11] [2007]

Commencing unbelievable action number X: Second update in a row for the first time possibly this year.

Welcome back to another season of who-the-hell-knows-what-is-next-or-could-happen on SR. I've taken the first step in "moving towards a site goal" again. Added....wait for it...a Contacts page! Bravo. Brilliant. Give me some feedback.

DATE: [10] [10] [2007]

HOLY FUCK. SONIC IN SMASH BROS. BRAWL and MARIO KART with MOTORCYCLES.

And Phantom Hourglass is proving to be a pain in the rear on some of these puzzles. 3/4 finished. Got me hooked on the tube rides playing this. GO. BUY. NOW.

Oh and we want a Golden Sun game for the DS. Nintendo, you've got a great relationship with Camelot, so stop having them make Mario golf and tennis games and bring on the Golden Sun DS. We want it. You want it. Make it happen.

DATE: [10] [05] [2007]

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass is in my opinion the best DS game to date. Everything from the humor to the gameplay to the presentation is nothing short of astounding on the DS. I'm about half way through and I am definitely going to enjoy it to a great deal. PH is really a good reason to pick up a DS lite if you haven't already.

Other games I recommend on DS are:

And amidst the games, here are DS games I would not recommend...IMO they're just plain bad. Some of these may have garnished good reviews, but IMO they bombed and didn't deliver or meet their hype.

That concludes the DS part I wanted to write about.

I don't believe it, but the PSP Slim & Lite (still sounds annoying and long) is at the top of the charts in Japan in terms of hardware sales. But how much longer? Will the DS get back it's spot? I'm rooting for DS...

Dark Alex revealed himself a few weeks back as being Team M33 - Go get your custom firmware now! Now that is news! Legendary PSP hacker is Team M33. That would make a great story, no?

Sadly, in PS3 land, Sony decided to release a 40gb PS3 in Europe sans memory card slots and with no backward compatibility with PS2 games. Sony is all bonkers again. They seem to be doing right with the PSP S&L, but then again that could be the FFVII: Crisis Core fever Japan has that is driving PSP sales. Sony is cannibalizing their own PS3 sales constantly by releasing new SKUs all the time. Bad move Sony.

UPDATED:According to Gamedaily. The 40GB PS3 plays PS1 games but NOT PS2 games. So that means PS3 & PS1 games. That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard of in a console. It's half-assed.

The new Zunes are going to be released in November. Does anyone care? I sure as hell don't. They are as ugly as ever.

Who here is upset that Apple is forcing Boot Camp Beta users to upgrade to Leopard to get their Windows fix?

Sidekick LX and Sidekick Slide are set to launch later this month. Anyone excited? I hate Sidekicks. I hate corporate suits who use them and iPhones even more. They look ridiculous.

That's all for now. Need your YGO fix because SR is not dishing it out anymore? Joey from Ygoexpress.vze.com revived his old YGO love. Check it out for new content.

DATE: [09] [21] [2007]

This is going to sound really ridiculous...but.

After becoming rather annoyed with the new PSP being called "PSP Slim & Lite" everywhere. I finally decided to do some digging (google!) and have located that it is indeed called the "PSP Slim & Lite." What a load of bullshit I tell you. PSP is PSP. No slim and lite tacked on please. Whatever, I don't even care about the PSP that much.

From what I hear, TGS was the bad ass for Sony this year. GASP. They brought back RUMBLE! Oh what is that? It should have f**king been in there in the first place? F**K you Sony. F**K you. No PS3 for me. That thing is what needs to be "slimmed and lightened." Has anyone still seen that thing it's a megaton. It's bigger than the original XBOX. Remember how every single video game writer from EGM to everybody bitched about it's big ass controller and its big ass box. Well. Why the f**k is no one bitching about how motherf**king huge the PS3 is? Oh? Because it's SONY and they made the precious PS2 that they just won't hurry up and kill already. Instead developers pouring more resources into making great PS3 games, they keep churning out PS2 games that will eventually or simultaneously on PSP and Wii. You know how much I hate it when I see games say "Coming to PS2, PSP and Wii?" Shit.

The 360 and it's mothercocksucking red rings of death. Halo 3 is coming out and everyone is going to playing the mothershit out of their 360s and then suddenly it decides to shit on them. Microsoft, fix these mothersucking 360s. It's not even funny anymore.

The Wii? Well it seems it can do no wrong. It and the DS are printing money out the wazoo for Nintendo. But how about adding that f**king promised DVD player in. Nintendo got billions of cash dollars and they can't even pay some licensing fees. Shit. I'm not buying one until it can play DVDs. I don't care about Blu-ray or HD-DVD. I like my DVDs and I want to throw this crapass cheap Coby DVD player out already.

Apple. After groping the iPod Touch, iPod Classic, new iPod Nano, and iPhone. I must say the that I hate the iPod Nano. Gizmodo first started calling it the "iPod Fatty" when it was leaked via "spy-shots" on the net. It's still one ugly ass iPod to me. It's fat goddamn. And the colors suck. Is it just me or does the iPod Classic feel a shitton heavier? I liked my white and black videos. Shit those were nice. iPhone. Some call it the mother phone. I call it a nice but still a piece of crap. A real phone has a real number pad. There's tons of iPhones out there, but the problem is...people are too scared to let people know they have one in public. It's an instant mark to get shot and robbed. Okay, not shot, but robbed/mugged/etc. iPod Touch? Now that is where it is at. It is a sexy thin device with Safari, and all I can say is, Apple should have done what was right and dropped the Classic and pushed more towards the Touch. But $299 for 8gb? $399 for 16gb? Not enough Apple. Not enough. And has anyone else noticed that Apple is gearing away from the "white" and more to the "aluminum/metal" look? Macbooks are next. No doubt about it. They are eliminating everything that they have that is white and going for silver and brushed black silver.

Nothing new fellas. Read'em and weep.

Oh and here is the list with strikes through them on predictions

DATE: [05] [11] [2007]

Howdy everyone? How is everything? Good? Good? Great! Me too! Time for business. I am also getting sick of this baby business that has been going about. It is like a denial effect. I have gone into a withdrawal state - turning to stupidity for some cheap laughs and quick thrills. I do miss the good old days of Sennen Rage. It was my alternate life. It was my escape.

Do not worry, I am trying to think of something that will restore the site to its former glory. But what? I do not want to do something that everyone else has already done. I want something fresh - innovative. I need to think with the "Blue Ocean" strategy that helped rocket Nintendo's Wii to the top. Any bright ideas would help.

If you are a movie fan, then this summer should be a great one for movie going. Bring your girlfriend or boyfriend and it will be even more fun.

Here are the big ones to watch out for. There are a lot of "3" sequels, but they look like they are not terrible.

I will most likely watch the first three, and skip out on Shrek 3, and wait for the DVD.

Transformers seems interesting, but I'll wait for the reviews. Sadly, I have yet to see Spider-Man 3. Sony Pictures is advertising it just as "3" so is that its official title name or is it "Spider-Man 3"? Way to confuse us all Sony.

If you have any better picks that you think are worth a quick mention in the next update, hit it up on the Tag-Unit.

Getting to another subject here a little. If anyone has been paying attention, you will know that I own a PSP, and Joey just bought a PSP recently. Almost breaks my heart to say this, but Sony is no doubt at work on a PSP "lite" - a redesigned PSP that is supposed to be smaller, lighter, and possibly brighter screen. Here are my thoughts on it.

That is just some food for thought. My fingers really hurt from typing. Maybe I will become an orator and hire someone to type for me. Who wants a job?

DATE: [05] [06] [2007]

What up Sennen Rage readers?! This be sling blade your webmaster who kicks ass and takes names just like Reggie Fils-Aimes from Nintendo. Are you all looking for an update? Looking for news? I don't have any. I'm sorry but I have just been too busy kicking too much ass and taking too many names. If I haven't kicked your ass and taken your name you're on the waiting list. If you're looking for YGO news and updates please try google. They have everything and it's all compiled in a nice bajillion websites. I'm sure you'll find what you need on the vast internet.

So what the hell is this update even going to be about? Considering how tired I am of writing this, if you ask me what this update is about my answer would be I don't have a clue. I guess I have just been wasting your time. Is this some kind of prank, sling blade? No, it's a frickin joke. That's right. I'm just a jerk. A jerk who refuses to keep serving you YGO garbage. Oops. Did I say garbage? I meant flying dung balls.

Don't worry about a thing kiddies. Sling blade still loves you. He hasn't forgotten about his fans. He just wants someone to be oh so kind to bring him a big bag of chips, a comfortable sofa, and one big ass telly so that he can be like the rest of the American population. Oh, and someone get him a pretzel. QUickly now, if Mr. Bush can do it I can too. By the way I eat babies. Umm... does anyone know of a good Mr. Number 2 impersonator because we have free cheese doodles to shove up his ass.

Oh and because, Joey is a a god here...check out his latest video. Oh and if you're not completely hypnotized afterwards - WATCH IT AGAIN til you are. ^_^

Were you really that lazy? Here is a "lazy" version for you. And a cookie to whoever knows what anime I was imitating for the lazy method. Post answers in the Tag-Unit!

DATE: [04] [21] [2007]

Welcome to the NEW Sennen Rage!

First, I suppose it is necessary to explain what happened to the old Sennen Rage. For all our loyal visitors - you people must be extremely frustrated right? I want to make this sharp and painless. Yugi did it, I swear! Ok, but then how do you explain that little doodle that has been up as a site place-holder for some time now?

Okay, let's just get to the dirty parts. Our host, hostultra totally crushed SR because their servers "accidentally" crashed and deleted 2/3 of all accounts. Long story short - SR was part of the 2/3 that got nuked and I have been living life like a hermit unhappily ever after, capische? Oh and I aso didn't back anything up. w00t!

Many should already know, Yu-Gi-Oh! had a nice run, but I just don't giving a flying F-bomb about it anymore. As Joey can tell you, GX killed it for me. It was a nice long run for SR as a Yu-Gi-Oh! website and we carved our niche in history. Unfortunately the Internet never goes to sleep so it weeped for SR for maybe a total of .0000000000001 kazilloogle seconds and then moved on to better things.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Express decided to commit suicide too. This is the end of Yu-Gi-Oh! folks, we need to move on to new things. The name Sennen Rage is my baby, the site was my evil spawn...[sarcasm] May it rest in peace. I introduce now Sennen Rage - reborn to start a new legacy!

Stay tuned as more interesting things start to see the light.

-sling blade, webmaster