Two Day Hangover

Back when I was 18 through 21'ish, the idea of a hangover was somewhat absurd. Day after day I would go out to the clubs/pubs, get bombed out of my tree and be up and ready for work again the very next morning. Fast forward to this weekend. 25 years old with a case and a half of beer with as many jello shots as I could consume and here I am on Monday with the tail end of a two day hangover. That's right, two days of recovering and I am still slightly hurting.

Don't get me wrong, I had a great time. There was only one "almost" fight and only one chair got broken. All in all an extremely good time with costumes ranging from a "Fruity" biker to Wonder Woman. We took lots of pictures so hopefully I will get some emailed to me today and I will create a post for them.

On a videogame note, while we were pre-drinking and the girls were finishing up their costumes Saturday night, I had an opportunity to play me some Mortal Kombat: Deception.

Now, I hail from the old school with respect to the Mortal Kombat series. I have not played a MK game since MK 2, which I think was the series high point. My buddy had brought over Deception however so that we could play a bit while we got ready for the party. While I did enjoy it, and it is filled with some interesting new features, I can see why I have kind of let the series go.

First off, MK:D tries some rather new and intruiging things. During battle you have the option to switch between "fighting styles", with each character having 3 styles (including one weapon style) that all have their own moves and ways to play. In actuality this makes it very challenging to learn a character in full, but also makes for an incredible boon of variety when actually playing. My personal favorite quickly became Ermac with his great battle axe style.

After fooling around with the two player versus for a while, we decided to try out the new pseudo-rpg that comes attached. Now this is an interesting idea. Basically, you start off as a rookie Kombatant in training who must learn from the pros while kollecting (har har) treasure chests and koins (ok, I'll stop).

While we never actually made it past the tons of tutorials you have to go through to actually progress in the storyline, I still think this is a great option. Even if it is just a glorified "tutorial" (which I doubt), I still think this is a great feature that more games should try and adopt.

All in all, my new experience with an MK game made within the last 5 years was a good one. We had some good laughs beating each other down with weapons and throwing each other into the different gruesome deaths that can occur on different stages. I would definitely say that while the game may not be as technically polished as something like Soul Calibur, it is a great game to rent and play while drinking beers.

In other news, I got a few pics back from Dianne's wedding shower, here's a couple (click on them for the full size pics) and perhaps I will post a couple more when I post all of the Halloween pics.

Comments (6) | Permalink | Lee Babin | 11.1.2004

Must Have List

So, I have been meaning to create a list of all the games that I would, at any other time in my life, buy almost for sure. Right now I cannot afford them due to the incredible swell of them all coming out at once, the wedding, bills, etc. I wanted to compile the list anyway though so that gradually, through bargain bin hunting or whatever, I will catch up on these beauties. And if I am going to make a list, why not share it?

Final Fantasy XI

Ah, online games. At one point I was so addicted to PSO that I was forgetting to eat. Now, I hardly have time to play my GBA, let alone invest 100+ hours in an online RPG experience. Despite all I know to be true, that I will never have the time to play FFXI, I still hold out hope that I will win the lottery some day and be able to sit down and play it for 2 months straight.

Shin Megami Tensei: Nocturne

Despite my recent distaste for poke style games that revolve around recruiting or collecting team members, Nocturne simply looks so darn sweet that I can't pass it down. It looks honestly mature and adds in a degree of orginality unseen in recent gaming efforts. I am not always up for a challenge in my RPGs (mainly due to time constraints), but in this case I am willing to make an exception.

Paper Mario 2

I remember the day very clearly. I had just been diagnosed with Crones disease and needed some way to pass the time at home. What game came into my hands? Paper Mario for the N64. I ended up loving it a lot and was glad to have it to help me pass the time. Now that the sequel is out and it is getting amazing reviews, I have got to find the time to play what is no doubt another excellent adventure starring the world's most famous plumber.

Mega Man X - Command Mission

I must admit that I find the concept of a Mega Man RPG to be somewhat fascinating. I grew up with the blue bomber and I still remember HAVING to own Mega Man 2. I have heard mixed things about the game but that hasn't deterred my interest in the game. Let's face it, were the market not so incredibly flooded right now, I would definitely have given this a try by now.

Drakengard

Since I first saw this game in a preview, I was intrigued. Ability to fly on a dragon while kicking ass? Check! Ability to wade through huge armies of evil soldiers, skewering as you go? Check! Developed by one of the most respected names in the RPG genre? Check! What's not to like about this game then?

Halo 2

While I would not really consider myself a first person shooter fan in the slightest, I can certainly appreciate the quality behind the Halo series. When I have a chance to sit down with 4 buddies, a case of beer and Halo, I know I am in for a good time. I expect the sequel to be new and improved. More arenas, more options, online capability, etc. etc. This one here is a no brainer.

Katamari Damacy

Ah, the mighty, unpronouncable, insanely wierd japanese wonder that is Katamari Damacy. Sporting some extremely fun gameplay (or so I am told), a wicked soundtrack (of which I can vouch for) and more niche appeal than I ever thought possible, KD is the game for me.

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

Yes, I know, everyone, their dogs, their grandma's dogs, and their 10th grade teacher is going to buy this game, but it is for good reason. Let's face it, GTA is stacked full of more gameplay than almost any game out there. Feel like just cruising around checking out the scenery? Go for it, you can spend hours on end doing it and you will not get bored, it is surprisingly relaxing. Feel like doing a few missions, good on ya. All in all a highly hyped game, but for decent reason.

Baten Kaitos

Everything I hear about this game promises me that I will love it. It is made by the people who made Chrono Cross. It uses an original, card based battle system. The graphics are amazing. I cannot get enough of previews for this game, I must get it at some point in time.

Metroid Prime 2

The first Metroid Prime changed the way I look at Metroid. I no longer long for the Super NES days of Super Metroid after playing through Prime, the glory days of Metroid are now. Nothing can top the claustrophobic feeling I get as I carefully maneuver down a darkened hall, waiting for some evil being to jump out of the lush environment, exacting a primal response out of me as I dive for cover. I have yet to see anything that feels this interactive on a 57" widescreen to date. The sequel looks even better.

Growlanser Generations

Despite my hatred for Working Designs' trademarked delays, I have to respect the quality of game they put on the market. The lunar games were amazing. The Arc games (despite having the most painfully difficult end bosses of all time) were a great series to play through. I expect that the Growlanser series will be well worth my money as well, though I don't know that I will ever be able to afford the "deluxe" pack.

Fable

Despite hearing very mixed reviews about this one, it just sounds so ground breaking that I have to at least give it a try. Granted, I will probably end up making all the "good" choices as I tend to do in these games, I still think it sounds cool enough to play through at least once. It may not be the definitive RPG it was supposed to be, but it may very well contain a highly polished execution.

Sudeki

Yes, I realize that this game got poor reviews wherever it went. And yes, I know that it was put together by a team of Western developers who hoped to dupe the Japanese school of design. But there is just something to be said about a brief, action packed adventure that is simply stunning to look at. Perhaps it looks poorer in motion but it looks like pure radiance in screen shots.

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Metal Gear Solid for the PSX I still consider one of the finest moments of gaming, ever. The sequel, while incredibly well put together and sporting some terrific gameplay, failed to grab me in the same way due to its rather messed up story. Hopefully MGS 3 will be a blessed union of the two, creating an experience that absolutely begs to be played.

Monster Hunter

Here is yet another online game that harkens me back to the good old PSO days. Monster Hunter looks to be just the sort of game that appeals to the online gamer in me. It contains collectible goodies, has a brand new storyline, is set in a really cool environment and looks graphically amazing. Combine all that with a combat system that links the sword to the right analog stick and you have a recipe for success.

Comments (0) | Permalink | Lee Babin | 10.29.2004

Rumblings

So, today seems like kind of a random day. Tons going on in my life as always, particularily with the wedding. We finally have the finished invitations and have begun sending some of them out, but there are still lots to go. We still don't have a wedding cake and we have no idea where to get one. Lots to do.

On top of all this wedding stress, Halloween is coming up. Now, don't get me wrong, I love Halloween. Quite frankly, it may very well be my favorite "holiday" to party on in the entire year. This year my brother is having a party at his new place and they are giving out prizes to the best dressed guest. It will no doubt be a great time although me and a few friends will probably have to pull some bouncing duties as the maximum capacity of the place isn't exactly huge.

In any case, in order to attend a Halloween party, one must have a costume, right? Well, Dianne found one on EBay that is damn sexy, and so she ordered it. Being that it is her first time ordering anything on EBay, she had a friend help her through it and she managed to win the auction.

All was well and good until the day it was supposed to arrive passed by. And the next. And the next. And here we are nearly a week after it was supposed to arrive and with only 2 days to go before the weekend (and Halloween!). So, what does a distraught purchaser do? Well, we emailed the seller. No response. We emailed again. No response. And a third and fourth time, again no response. This particular seller had a very good rating on EBay so we started rooting through the comments. Mostly great comments but all the negative ones were almost exactly like our situation.

Bottom line? I think we got screwed. Generally when someone explicitely ignores your emails, it means they screwed up and you are screwed. Does anyone out there know of any way to deal with things if you get jacked from EBay? I must admit that I am not much of an EBay guru either so this is somewhat new to me as well. Oh well, perhaps I am just over-reacting and the costume will still come in time...

In other news, one of the blogs I check out frequently belongs to none other than Albert Art. He frequently has inciteful and interesting things to read about and I generally find it a well done read. Well, he has done something that I find to be a savior for my experience on 1up.com. He has created the elite bloggers club for 1up.com.

Now this is a club that I am honored to be a part of, not because I consider myself "elite" in any way, shape or form, but because I sometimes have a hard time finding interesting blogs on 1up to peruse. My friends list has been strikingly low because, quite frankly, I haven't ran into very many people who I enjoy reading about on a day to day basis. And lots of times when I do find someone (plenty of the staffers), they do not add me to their friends list anyway.

Long story short, this club seems like a great way to meet some interesting people and to find some well written, insightful blogs.

One last point, I seem to have developed a wierd nostalgic feeling for Okage. I don't remember it being the greatest game in the world but for some reason the art style, humor and music of this ancient PS2 game are striking a chord with me of late. Check it out!

Comments (0) | Permalink | Lee Babin | 10.28.2004

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