Hey, not a lot has been posted here lately, has it!? Well, not a lot has been happening. Midterms are upon me, work returned in full force, and it’s been stressful as it can be. This is how I’ve dealt with it:

Someone at IC mentioned that Sonic Rush is kind of a 2-D Nights, so I went back to play it. I dunno about the Nights comment now (there are no objectives, you just have to run to the end of the level o.O), but this game is even more fun than it was the first time I played through it. So I erased the data and started over today. It actually is a quite different game from classic Sonic, in fact, it’s almost a side-scrolling racing game against no one. (the multiplayer actually is a side-scrolling racing game against a friend.)

I suck at Metroid Prime: Hunters online. It’s a sad fact, but I do, I’m useless. It only adds to the stress level. However, I’ve been through 3 missions on single-player, and I love it. The darkness makes me want a Lite now, though.

As the ultimate in unwinding, I hit the arcade today. I beat some dude 4 times in Samurai Shodown V. I, Shizumaru Hisame; he, Ukyo Tachibana. I was all cheap umbrella moves and he was all elegant sword slashes and apples. Samurai Shodown is about the only fighting series that I’m slightly proficient at, and it has been that way since I first defeated competitors at a local theater with Hanzo Hattori. The other guy took the 5th fight though, and my last quarter, and I was off. It was probably the biggest game-based rush I’ve felt this year. Arcades are awesome, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

I love fighting games. I suck at them. You could probably tell that from the post title. I’m never going to win any tournaments or even a single arcade matchup. Still though, I have a crazy love for them. I beat my inept friends at them (only for a round or two, when they wise up and start beating the crap out of me.), I crank the difficulty all the way down on console versions and struggle through their last few stages to enjoy a engrish-o-licious ending. It’s an abusive relationship, but I’m still in love.

So, last night, on my way to see V for Vendetta (afterwards, drunk by the movie’s power, i called it the coolest movie i’d ever seen. today, i still think it is. it has excellent everything, and only goes over the top when it needs to.), I stopped at a Gamestop to reserve Metroid Prime Hunters. As I approached the register, I noticed, in the glass case, were Street Fighter anniversary edition controllers. I often ogle at them but never pay the $30-$50 price tag. This time, they were marked down to $10.

I reasoned that they must be the PS2 ones, since I couldn’t see what they were for from the counter. I asked for the Bison one (the other choice was Guile — i’m not a big Guile fan). My interest in the controller was purely for computer reasons: I have a Playstation to USB controller adaptor that I have been using since 1999. I plug in whatever manner of Dual Shock is available and run from there. PS controllers have always bugged me though. They suck for special fighting moves, and the 2x2 button layout isn’t versatile enough. It has served me well, but I always wanted something more. These special Street Fighter controllers have a 2x3 layout, mimicing the arcade’s “3 punches, 3 kicks” configuration. The D-pad is round and geared toward hadokening and shoryukening. That’s why I ogle them.

Well, I grab it, and it turns out that it’s an Xbox controller. It could have been a slight bummer, but I remembered that there is a very simple procedure for turning an Xbox controller into a USB one! (very overcomplicated instructions are here, but all you really need to do it strip the wires at the connector and strip a male USB plug, then splice the same-colored wires together)

I performed the procedure this morning. With the driver from here, it works beautifully. The D-pad feels a little tight, but it’s all right. *tanuki commits rhyme seppuku*

The package is a keeper. It’s all shiny and hologrammy, comes with a Street Fighter comic, and has the katakana for SUTORIITO FAITAA all over it. Which is interesting, because those kana are the ones I recognize best. A nice coincidence.

Adios. I’m going to return to the game of Vampire Savior I was playing. Oryaryaryarya~!

I’d play this. And just for the record, if any or all of these games are real, I’d play them too. Oh Schadenfreude Interactive, GmbH, why must you tease me so?

As a sidenote, I live near Denton, home to one of the best polka bands ever. Brave Combo (http://www.brave.com/bo/) has polka’d my socks off many times.

Next Generation has a tiny article up that speculates about Yuji Naka, the man behind Sonic Team, possibly splitting with Sega to form his own studio. I think this would be great.

And I’m a former Sega fanboy. Even though when I was one, we didn’t have that word to describe ourselves with. I still love Sonic games though. I even suffered through Shadow the Hedgehog and didn’t outright hate it. I haven’t tried out Sonic Riders yet*, but I expect more of the same mediocrity. New Sonic games have been outright crap since Adventure 2. This dosen’t count the decent Sonic Advance games and Sonic Rush, which were developed by Dimps.

*(i am definitely going to play it. if it can be 1/3 as good as Sonic R, i’ll love it.)

Yuji Naka has been trying out new things all over, but it hasn’t helped old Sonic out. However, Yuji Naka is also responsible for many triumphs, all of which are non-Sonic related. Nights always comes to mind, but more recently, Feel the Magic and its sequel and Puyo Pop Fever** have been examples of great design and execution. Not perfect, but still incredibly fun and very charming. Unlike recent console Sonic games, which have been neither.

**I recently obtained DS Puyo Pop for $10 at Best Buy. Definitely a good deal, whether you’re into Puyo or just curious!

In conclusion, this equation: Yuji Naka minus Sonic equals good. Sonic needs a fresh designer and Naka needs to work on other things. It’s just a rumor so far though. Here’s hoping.

I’m sitting here with two friends watching them fight the last boss of Shadow of the Colossus. I’ve been watching/playing it since maybe 3 o’ clock today. It is incredible.

The game is more Greek than anything ever in a video game. It’s not in the architecture or the language or the setting or the deities involved, but the theme. One man taking on a series of superhuman feats for what we can only assume is romance. Or duty. The overarching story is only implied.

But the camera can be really annoying, reminding you that it’s still a video game.

Incredibly, I think I can consider it a major step in the development of video games toward something. Who knows what that is.

-laptop battery’s running low-

Hey, I just found an arcade here in Arlington that has about 8 Neo-Geo machines, many many import arcade games (some still with slots that say “100y”!) and other cool stuff. Like Guitar Freaks, Drumania, Beatmania, Tsurugi (the game with the motion-capture sword control). It’s in the back of an anime-themed store, and it’s probably highly illegal, what with all the machines that say “Not for play outside Japan!”

It’s awesome.

I started on Radiata Stories two nights ago.

I started to like it last night.

I started to love it tonight.
(more…)

NOW WITH EXPLANATION!

Explanation: They have these placemats at Whataburger. While eating there recently, I noticed that my GBM fit right in between those two hands. So, I asked for one (an awkward request!) and brought it home and took a picture of it.

However, it’s not a very good picture. I couldn’t locate my tripod for a good, steady shot.

Check the flickr for more! =D

It’s spring break for me, officially, since 11:30 last night when I left work. Of course, it had been spring break in my head since Tuesday when I slept through my classes and gave it little more than two thoughts.

I stopped by a Sam Goody’s yesterday that’s going out of business (or, maybe, they’re all going out of business) to browse their games. It was pretty much a scavenger’s buffet, with barren bins all around. I found the scrap of meat I was looking for, a cheap Radiata Stories. I would have preferred Shining Force Neo or Atelier Iris, but vultures can’t be choosers.

I haven’t played it yet.

I realize that I buy too many games. That comes from having a good, enjoyable, steady job that pays decently and having few bills, but also little free time.

The bottom line is that they still inspire me and I seek out new experiences when I can, but they pile up. I’m as interested in games as I was when I was younger, but now I have the ability to do something about it. I don’t have as much time to spend playing, so I have a shelf full of underapprecaited things.

This is what I tell people: I’m saving up for when there’s nothing good to play. It could happen. The DS is in a golden age of sorts, but things were not always so rosy. I’m saving up for the day when there’s nothing but Madden 2016 for Xbox 1440 so I can sit back with a low-definition TV and maybe finish Disgaea once and for all.

THINGS TO DO!
- Watch Spirited Away for the 203rd through 209th time with girlfriend.
- Nihongo ga benkyo and stop sucking at it so much!
- There’s a new-ish all-encompassing Dallas nerdly convention to check out in a week.
- Pictures. Sepia ones.
- Secret collect!
- Clean the back of my DS. White paint + newsprint on fingers = big sad face. Also: new sticker time.

Firedancer: <Help me out!>

Mugido: <I’m sorry. I’m busy now.>

(a little sig/avatar combo made for my girlfriend’s FFXI linkshell forums)