Friday, September 7, 2007

New Blog Struggles

Yes, this is only my second "real" update, though I did promise a set schedule. Time has not been friendly to me lately and I have been working like a dog (though not on the blog). For the time being at least, until I get a handle on it, you can assume this blog will be updated once weekly. I am also still debating whether I will start doing individual posts on specific “larger ticket” items. I suppose I should not worry about my lack of updating at the moment though for I do not think I have many readers. Well on with the news.

In news that will break little hearts, but may break those of the hardcore, DevelopMag, has reported that there will be no Crackdown sequel despite the games success. The developer said that Microsoft took too long to say anything about a sequel, if they said anything at all. The developer is now working on a new project. Personally I would have been happy with a sequel to Crackdown because I enjoyed the game a great deal. Unfortunately I have not been able to play the game since the new content and achievements have come out but on a free day that I am not playing one of the many games that I need to catch up on, I may just play.

On Labor Day, here in the US, the Hidden Fronts Map Pack finally went free (everywhere of course). It really was a good marketing strategy for them to wait this long because basically all Gears of War gets now is one last punch before Halo 3 ships and KO’s the aforementioned GOW.

In Rapture there may be new Plasmids coming though, if I do not get teleportation, I doubt if I will really care or if it will make much of an impact (not that any BioShock news does not create waves). In other BioShock news the title update that got me exited when I booted up the game the other day does not much other than improve the stability of saved games. I am on my second run through of the game where I toned it down from hard (just to have fun and feel powerful) and have taken to harvesting Little Sisters this time through. I have died few times and I am greatly enjoying myself once again. I am enjoying looking at the plot from a new angle the most though.

The imminence of the perfect storm that is Halo 3 is beginning to reach its climax. Halo 3 is going to be available to play this Thursday night on IMAX as reported by the Microsoft GamerScoreBlog. Check Pontiac (as they are the sponsor) for more details). As soon as I found this out I signed myself up. I plan on showing up at least two hours early for that. In previously rumored news that was confirmed to be true, Master Chief a.k.a. Spartan 117 a.k.a. John was "unveiled," in a large event that took place on Monday, at Madame Tussauds in Las Vegas. It was said that it would probably tour the various locations so if, and when, it comes to New York, and you can count on the picture.

Another event I should be attended is the Rock Band tour. It comes to New York at the beginning of November and I will be there rocking out on guitar (the only thing I feel confident enough to try). I am stoked to start my own online band (no real band for me) or be a part of one. I need to at least master Guitar Hero II on Hard Mode first.

Speaking of the impossible (I’m not that good at GH2) a Shivering Isles standalone disc is being released alongside the GOTY edition. I still have not played Shivering Isles. Oblivion is quickly one of those many games that I have been struggling to finish.

It is not always sunny on the Xbox 360 however. It has recently been reported by Bloomberg.com that there is STILL no good news for the 360 in Japan. Dismal sales continue to plague the console in the Far East. The boys over at the X3F podcast wonder if the 360 will take a page out of the original Xbox’s playbook and just stop making games for the Japanese market. I find myself worried and wondering about the same thing.

Lastly, many people I know who own the Wii console are finding that their “gimmick” is wearing out and Nintendo is worried about “gamers” becoming complacent (via Joystiq). LAIR continues to be plagued by bad press while Sony fights the good, though failing, fight for its lost triple-A title. They went so far as to send a reviewers guide out many major sites (via IGN). I think now what Sony needs to worry about is their delay to Stranglehold and The Orange Box. A collector’s edition of Stranglehold does not do you much good if you cannot play it when your proverbial rivals can.

It was an interesting few days since my last update and as the holiday season approaches it will only get more weird and a lot more crazy.

Friday, August 31, 2007

Midnight Update Meets "Deadline"

My wallet suffers from this addiction I have. I have no money and all of it that I do have is invested in GameStop's stock. I am a Gamer. I just "recovered" some of my money from actually receiving BioShock but now all of my loose change is being pooled into my Legendary edition of Halo 3. I'd also like to pick up a new 360 with that pretty "useless" HDMI port. Can I have it painted green and gold like Halo 3? Not to mention that I need that chat pad and the HDMI audio adapter that does not come with the "poor-man's" 360. Over five-hundred hundred dollars in a few short weeks. I work for Starbucks not Microsoft. I'll be selling my old 360 so that will pay for half of it hopefully.

This holiday season is a bank breaker, more than just Halo 2, and I have an already broken bank account. Mass Effect, one of the games to own this holiday, now has a release date of November 20th and Bioware has always impressed me. When Jade Empire came out I was all about it though I never properly finished the game. Mass Effect might have to wait for me but I should be playing it sometime in the top half of next year. Another game I might eventually pick up again will be Small Arms but it might have to take a trip to my phone (one of the two I own). Team Xbox reported that it will be hitting various cell phone carriers this fall. Also on Team Xbox the new Simpsons game parodying Medal of Honor was posted. I fully enjoyed the trailer and I feel like the game will be everything that a good Simpsons game should be. When my bank account recovers I'll be pre-ordering next years blockbusters.

A sure fire blockbuster of next year will be Halo Wars whose high definition, ten minute, game trailer is on XBLM. I recall that when this was announced at last years E3 I was stoked but, though it could be the pre-Halo 3 lull (could it hardly be called a lull), I do not feel as excited as I feel I should be. Let this be known now, in Halo's heyday, I was the biggest fanboy I knew. Now, after Gears of War, I was not sure where I stood with the whole series (Halo). Then I played the beta. 'Nuff said. Still, I am not sure I want to play the proverbial "God" in the Halo Universe. Blockbuster? It is possible but it will be a tough call for me.

As the present is concerned I feel that Blue Dragon will erased from blockbuster status by Bioshock. Will I be right, only time will tell. Will TimeShift be erased by Halo 3? Maybe the news of a demo will alleviate that, though not for myself. I find myself playing less demos and instead following the hype machine and discovering sleeper hits that have since past their heyday. Speaking of "heyday", I am exited for Viva Pinata to come to DS. The only other game I am exited about, for DS, is Zelda: Phantom Hourglass.

In gaming politics Jack Thompson is causing quite the ruckus about Manhunt 2 having its rating changed from AO to M. He proceeded to send several immature emails back and forth with the community manager of Manhunt. I got a laugh out of it.

That is all I have for you today. Until next time, keep gaming.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

My BioShock Experience

I began my trek through the world of Rapture last Tuesday morning. After picking up my limited edition the first thing GameStop opened, I rode the subway home taking pictures of the best limited edition I have laid eyes on (see previous post). When I finally crossed the threshold of my apartment I played for about 5-6 hours. I was decimated by Big Daddies galore and still kept coming back for more. I was part of Rapture and I needed to know all of its secrets. And Oh... what secrets were in store for me...

I continued to play during the week on and off, but still getting as much as I could in.

It came down to yesterday when I sat myself down determined to beat the game (day off). I made it to a point where I was sure I was at the end, but alas, I was not even close... I was at least 5 hours from the games climactic finish. I played for seven hours and had to stop. I later played for another half hour (much to my girlfriend's dismay).

But today was the day that the ending was in my grasp. It was cheesy but awesome and all in all this was one of the best games I have ever played. I really mean that when I say it, because although I consider myself a hardcore gamer, I can say, with all honesty, I do not know what I'll feel like playing tomorrow. I will definitely be giving it another run through but I need to give my brain a rest.

Lastly, if I had to give the game a review I would give it a 9.6. The loss of .4 comes from the ease of the respawn and the slightly cheesy ending.

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

big daddy comes home.


big daddy wants out of his packaging.








riding shotgun next to the subway window.



up close and personal.



even big daddies are made in china.


would you like some drill with that ouch?


lastly mr. bubbles says goodnight, because i promise you, it hurts.

check out bioshock, in stores now.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

my raging obsession.

i have an obsession with commercialism. this something that few know about me or at least i only perceive it as the few. my latest obsession is with the ongoing simpsons movie campaign that is everywhere. today i had burger king and felt even better about it than i normally do because the simpsons were plastered everywhere. this was much like my visit to a 7-eleven that was modeled like a quik-e-mart.

the current, or future, campaign that i am going to be obsessed with is the mass halo 3 coverage that will be everywhere. it will be in my 7-eleven, my burger king, mountain dew, etc. i have even considered purchasing a halo 3 xbox 360. i am exited and tantalized at every prospect. i want to pick up the halo 3 zune.

now the big thing here i am pointing out is i am a media whore and those ads that everyone ignores. those apply to me. i love em, well most of the time. most people get sick of it and say what is the point. people know about the simpsons and halo, why do i need it shoved in my face. i say because it is directed at people like me who will gobble it all up and buy it all. i love it through and through and i welcome more of it. bring it on baby.

Friday, August 10, 2007

i am in for an enjoyable weekend of closing both days at work. i do not think i will be gaming much this weekend but that is alright i suppose... only time can tell i guess. i have been working hardcore on gears of war and not much else. i have been neglecting most of my other games though i really do want to play some others but i am determined to have most gears achievements before bioshock and halo 3 come out. the others i really want to play are prey (easy achievements and i never finished the story line). crackdown (new achievements). the darkness (i got discouraged when i went to the hard difficulty level and couldn't make it past the first level, and i am also waiting for the multiplayer fix). i am about as behind in gaming as i am in reading. i am reading currently, 'ladies and gentleman the bronx is burning.' and on my list to read is daywatch, harry potter, jonen vasquez graphic novels, the lovely bones, twilight watch, etc.

this has been an eventful year for me other than for music. music has come out this year but i don't feel overwhelmed by it as i did last year.

Thursday, August 9, 2007

Halo 3 Media Onslaught

Halo 3 in your car, on your music device, in your soda, your Slurpee, and at your local Burger King. Master Chief burger anyone? Seriously is this getting ridiculous or what? Still though, it won't stop me from getting my mitts all over everything.

read more | digg story

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

superbad review?

when the minds of judd apatow and seth rogen come together you can only ever expect to leave the theater with cramps in your sides. while the laughs were not as numerous as in knocked up they were louder. it was comparable to when i saw the simpsons movie... the laughs were so loud, at times you could not even hear the dialogue. the movie was clever, witty, cute, but most of the time it was downright raunchy. it was a good time and i would recommend that when it hits theaters that everyone see it. i'll probably see it a second time.

maybe i'll review the everytime i die album next... who knows i don't know if i will pass judgement on it just yet. but i do like it... alot.

Monday, July 30, 2007

alien hominid hd

this is a great little game on xbox live arcade and it can be very hard. those things aside, most will still want to play the game because of it's stylishness and beautiful hand drawn everything.

so i bring this game up even though i have had it forever because they recently patched it to fix the last 'glitched achievement'. the achievement that was messed up was the one where you had to collect all the hats in the game. i am down to the last three. two i know how to get and the last one i am not even sure because i do not know which one it is that i am missing. i have attempted to browse the forums and old walkthroughs for the game but i have had no luck. i'll update everyone when i have it which should be no later than tomorrow. hopefully.

Sunday, July 29, 2007

this past weekend...

this weekend was something i was looking forward to for the past few weeks. it lived up to my expectations and exceeded them.

friday cindy and i woke up to catch the chinatown bus to maryland. it sucked at first because when we got on the bus it wasn't running so there was no ac. it soon cooled down after we got going but i was parched the entire trip because of a lack of water or anything else to drink. when we arrived it was incredibly hott. yes, that hot. we found whit and rick and headed to 7-eleven to get something to drink and then headed to whit's. kara got home and we all hung out going to the supermarket and best buy. that night we saw the simpson's movie and it was really amazing.

yesterday was great... i ate far too much and then drank far too much. i ate chipotle and some intense nachos. then it took me three beers to actually get buzzed (food soaks up alcohol). i got the new every time i die leak which is amazing... i am listening to it now. i made really good drunk friends with kara's girlfriend last night... drunk dancing doesn't really work. i also talked to matt and i do not really know what he even thought of that.

alright i am going to enjoy my last few hours in maryland... peace.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

sh*t happens.

i've started my training to become a shift supervisor and so far it has just been a bunch of reading of general things that i mostly knew. i was really bored today because of it even though i was only there for four hours. but that is really all there is to say about that.

so for the past week or so i have been on a real gears of war kick and it has been really insane. i have picked up some achievements in the game, some new and some old which is always fun. i am only expecting the new ones and i have also picked up two old which was a nice present. and that is it for that.

now for the icing on the cake. even though i do not live with family anymore i still get to hear about all the loveliness that goes on there. the newest, amazing, bit of information is that my brother has been arrested. arrested no less for beating the living shit out of someone. This reflects so well on me. Honestly, I just do not understand what I did right because for all intents and purposes my siblings and I are the ones who reflect to most poorly on my grandparents. I am so thrilled about this, but I am still happy that I am enjoying my life.

I have a beautiful girl who I plan on spending my life with. I have an amazing best friend. I have a new gay lover (lol, you know who you are). I have an arguably healthy hobby and I have a job that I love (it will let me go places, and it will make me the money I need to do what I need right now).

I love you all and I will speak with y'all later.

Sunday, July 8, 2007

barcade.

last night was a good time, cindy and i actually drank and we were both very tipsy.

harry, cindy, valerie, and i went to the barcade and proceeded to drink a lot and at least harry and i played some games. it was tons o' fun and there is not much more to say about it other than hilarity ensuing.

there was drunk dialing, touching and lots of laughs. thank you everyone.

Saturday, June 30, 2007

buy teh haloz.

i always manage to create my blog entries at the most random times and they usually fall into the late hours of a day. tonight, for instance, i was working the closing shift until 11.30p which means that i do not get home for another hour. so being that i am home now: cindy is asleep and i need my wind-down time. i have to close again tomorrow night so... yeah.

other than that i have not really been up to all that much. i have been playing the normal amount of games if not a little bit more. i picked up lego star wars 2 for twenty bucks so the game and its achievements should keep me amused at least for a bit. i really have my heart set out on picking up the darkness but i do not think i will get to do that for at least another week. yesterday and today i was also playing a bit of gears and i enjoyed that quite a bit. i need to catch up with the rest of the community with that one. i should get to that before halo 3 drops. that will come a lot sooner than later.

but back to the world of the real...
i am on a program to promoted starting the week of the ninth so i am exited and nervous about that at the same time.

i think i am going to play a couple of games of uno on live and then collapse into sleep for a while.

Friday, June 15, 2007

hostel part II

after seeing hostel part II, as it is so cunningly titled, i am left
with the feeling of wanting to perpetually vomit. no, not the gore but
the deathly real way in which this part was presented just leaves the
stomach boiling in a very unpleasant way.

it was funny when the two girls "just couldn't take it anymore" and had
to leave the theater. eli roth is a genius of this variety and while
part I made me wonder, part II made me shiver with unpleasantries. bravo
sir your movie is a hit.

my obsession.

i have really just stood back and realized how much of my internet surfing is based around video games. from internet comics to all the latest game information, it is just nuts and that isn't to even mention my podcasts that i listen to. this isn't really a coordinated entry, just something is was observing.

Saturday, June 9, 2007

The Trials and Tribulations of My Job

i am beginning to find out where my alliances lie at my job. i am on the wrong side of the tracks heading for a big collision and i do not really want to be there to find out the outcome. my manager (whom i originally got along amazingly with) is now making me feel alienated (and i am not sure if it is her intention). i have always had complaints about the politics of working for starbucks but this is reaching a new plateau. i feel as though i am on the verge of panic attacks and it used to be that i just got upset and was able to push it aside. i am feeling pretty helpless because my aforementioned manager basically brushed aside my worries and attributed them to occasions that always take place. she told me there was nothing i could do and left my head swimming. i cannot honestly say how much of an issue it was though because the person i was complaining about was her...umm..."pet". well, if what i heard was true, there will be a good many people leaving my job and she will be one of those.

now i am to be promoted when my manager returns from her vacation and i am eager to see the outcome of what are likely to be another set of politics, rules and regulations (according to her).

Tuesday, June 5, 2007

i am stuck contemplating how much of a disappointment i may or may not be to my parents. my parents and i obviously fall on different belief systems and have different definitions of what merits a meaningful existence. for all intents and purposes i think that they believe that i could do better with my life and they would rather i did that sooner rather than later. i believe and always have believed, even if it was in a roundabout way, that if you are not enjoying what you are doing then there is no good reason to continue doing it. as i mentioned before, though they have accepted it to the best of their ability, they are not ecstatic with all of my personal choices (or any of them). but coming around to why i found myself contemplating this is that my brother andy has been cutting school every single day. he is going to repeat the ninth grade and if history repeats itself then he will drop out, as ben did. but i found myself wondering if i was just the cause of it all because i decided that college was not for me at the moment anymore. should i be more distraught with myself? have i really done something so wrong? does everyone look down at me with judgment and disdain? i know a few who might but i think those who want me to be who i am do not.

Friday, June 1, 2007

there's a huge sense of entitlement that permeates our entire culture. the issue of our economic and sociological narcissistic indulgence begs a much larger question: How happy are we as a society? We should be happier now than we were during, say, the '50's (when the hell did they invent toilet paper? How bummed would you be if you had to wipe your ass with your hands? Super-Bummed). But we are one the of unhappiest civilizations in history. we may have more neuroses, depression and anxiety. we're bombarded with so many images, ideas and noise that we becomes desensitized to anything and everything. everything we want is immediately available to us, but nothing that we want is what we need.

~gabe saporta.


i think this is the best pessimism i have read in a while, but hey everyone hates this guy and i love him.

Monday, May 7, 2007

this past weekend was full of good times. i saw plenty of bands at the bamboozle festival and got to "work" for the absolutepunk.net booth. it was quite fun and i would greatly enjoy doing it again if the opportunity arose again. it is possible for it to happen for warped tour so we will have to see. i always say, "we will see" and then look back on it only to discover that those things never happened. well this one is possible so yeah...
i saw many bands that i enjoyed greatly, saturday was packed full of them, and sunday was more of a day of discovering. i discovered three bands that i am very happy to have discovered. the matches, who i also met and love; four stories, who i do not know a lot about yet; and dear hunter, which i am currently listening to.
since the weekend not much has been going on, though i have had a few days off because of renovations at my job. it am looking forward to them although i did loose some hours this week. i'll live.
so this is a short entry of sorts just to ehh, update.
other notes:
spider-man 3 was amazing and i don't care what others think.
my cousin rebecca is awesome.
the matches are again, amazing.