Games to Revisit: A 10K Library Reflection

I have 10,000+ titles in my Game Library. That's a lot of games. Now, I have always been honest about them: I get distracted a lot thus, there are many titles that I have not played enough of to see all that they have to offer. I have always made sure that for the consoles, especially, every time I get a new game, it is routine for me to play them at least once. Things are a little harder with Personal Computer games these days because when I get them in bulk, sometimes I would miss installing and booting up a number of them. I want to be better about this of course because my games deserve better - and I do too.

The console era is pretty much over and gone but there is much to celebrate from its illustrious past.

Prettiest amiibo: Zelda & Loftwing

Out of all the Zelda games out there, the best representation of our titular character for me is found in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. You can read my glowing impression of that version of her by clicking here. It shouldn't be a surprise then that the best and most beautiful amiibo that Nintendo has ever produced to this point is the Zelda & Loftwing amiibo that was recently released alongside the game's HD version for the Nintendo Switch:

amiibo perfected.

6K

I am one game away from reaching 6,000 titles in my Game Library. The last two inductions are games that got left behind - Batman: The Brave and the Bold for the Nintendo Wii (I couldn't believe that I have never heard about this WayForward Technologies game until now) and Lego Legends of Chima: Laval's Journey for the PlayStation Vita. Every so often, I would stumble into older games that for some reason I completely missed when they were first released. With so many games already in my possession, I do prioritize newer titles for me to enjoy but it's nice to be able to still find these older games in mint condition - these 2 were listed as new but you just never know.

Games from 5 years ago and beyond.

Since I am getting older - can you believe that it has been close to 10 years since I started this blog? - I am becoming more and more aware of the fact that I have... a lot of video games. Do I even have the time to play all of these video game titles before I die? I have written about the estimated time it would take me to tackle about 2,000 games back in 2011... Now that I'm reaching 6,000 games, well it's quite a disturbing thought. One thing is for sure, for the longest time, I have access to a collection of games that would last me for the rest of my life here in this universe. I should be very happy about that.


Update Note: 3:40pm - Whoops! We're officially at 6,000 games thanks to an ACA NEOGEO title on the Windows store! Why Hamster Corporation doesn't release these games fast and hard on the Personal Computer is just baffling to me. I have been waiting for Waku Waku 7 to arrive on the PC and it's finally here! 7K here we go? Nah... It's too soon to be thinking about that.

Silent Hill: Shattered Memories is an Evil Game

I was impressed by Silent Hill: Shattered Memories for the Nintendo Wii when I first attempted to play the game last year. The therapy session framing device was quite intriguing but I just couldn't force myself to play it because I knew I that the game was going to scare the heck out of me. Well, earlier tonight, I decided to play the game again and yes, I did stream the gameplay on twitch.tv, with the camera feed on nonetheless. Suffice to say that it was a session filled with thrills, chills, crazy expressions on my face, and of course, very manly screams.

The painful, traumatic act of... rolling down the window.

Then, something unexpected happened. I was stuck in a room with no way out and judging from the graphical glitches, it was somewhat obvious that the game just simply broke. I had no choice but to reset it because I couldn't even open the in-game menu and when I started the game again, it went back to the very beginning and it didn't allow me to resume from wherever it was I left off! For a brief moment, I thought that the game was playing tricks on me intentionally because there is this nasty warning when you boot up the game:

Surely, this problem is just the game playing tricks on me, right?

Wrong! After both continuing to play the game for a little bit and resetting it twice, I concluded that perhaps my save file got corrupted. After I quit the game, I checked the instruction manual and found that the answer was a very simple one: the game has no auto-save. One must manually save the game and that ability is not granted to the player from the very beginning but shortly after playing the game. I most certainly had passed that point of the game but I don't remember seeing a tutorial pop-up informing me about saving the game. In hindsight, this is certainly my fault. I used to read a game's instruction manual completely before I play it but with the recent trend of in-game tutorials, I have stopped doing that. Now, I have lost about an hour and a half worth of progress but one thing is for certain - the game has certainly played me more than I could ever attempt to play it. It has won. I can feel it deep in my heart: the game is evil.

Keep Dreaming Luigi, Keep Dreaming

Yes, there is such a thing as the best looking controller skin ever and that honor belongs to the Wii Remote Plus Luigi for Nintendo's Wii systems. Too bad that my plan for housing such a beautiful object will forever be just a dream because today, I received Nintendo's Wii Party U for the Wii U and this game comes with a Wiimote+! I really don't see any justification in getting another Wiimote+ since that would be just a bit excessive, especially since I already have a couple of those Wii MotionPlus attachments to my regular Wiimotes. In case you are curious, yes, the Wiimote "condom" is included with Wii Party U.

Black is my favorite color so this may not be a total loss after all.

Wii Remote Plus Luigi Is Full of Win

I was looking online for some replacement heads for the spouse's ancient electric toothbrush when I stumbled into something so very beautiful... and strange. It's Nintendo's new Wii Remote Plus Luigi!

Utter perfection.

Nintendo had also released a Mario-themed Wiimote+ to accompany this one but you know, it's just so red and all that. This Luigi green is just so pleasing to the eyes and those multi-colored buttons and that blue bottom-half? Delicious. Now as you may already know, even though I don't have anyone locally to play my games with, I always keep a second controller handy in case an intergalactic miracle happens but I don't believe in having more than two controllers because it's just wasteful. A history is made with this Luigi Wiimote+ however because I am willing to welcome it into my Game Room to replace one of my Wiimotes with it. It's easier to justify this action too because I don't have a Wiimote+ yet and with this Luigi controller, I don't have to deal with that MotionPlus attachment anymore. Great controller skin Nintendo! I cannot wait to hold this in my hand!

Extramarital Affairs Require Time Concentration

About two years ago, I found myself being involved in an affair. It didn't last very long though and I thoroughly enjoyed myself during that time but for some reason, I stopped it from continuing. Why did I do that? What was wrong with me to deny such beauty and perfection? It was an almost otherworldly opportunity and I was very happy with how it was going. I didn't get caught and there was no risk. So it's time... Time to renew it and see where it would take me.

I am sorry I left you behind without explanation. Let's do this again!

Wasteful Gaming Product: Zelda Guides What?

Just when I thought that it was safe to be browsing the video gaming section of Amazon.com, I stumbled into this really ridiculous guide book collection for Nintendo's past The Legend of Zelda games that is scheduled to be released later this year. Seriously. Look at the price of this thing. The recommended retail price of it is $179.99. It's not a joke, even though that price is. No wonder Amazon already slashed the price down by 40% because only crazy people would pay that much for it. So it includes the "signature and message from Mr. Eiji Aonuma". Surely that is worth nothing right now because shouldn't he be making a lot of new games for the dying Wii U instead of wasting his time endorsing this collection? You know how I feel about gaming guides in the first place. They are utterly useless. Why ruin the sense of exploration and discovery that you get by playing the games on your own? And the games covered by this collection are kind of old. Surely those who are fanatical about Zelda games already played those games to death so there is really no need for anyone to buy this. Similar guides are already available all over GameFAQs. If Nintendo games were on Steam, those who are handicapped by their need to read gaming guides to play their games should be happy to know that free user guides would be available in the community hub without the need to ever buy physical gaming guides. If you just happen to be one of the people who actually see some value in buying this The Legend of Zelda Box Set: Prima Official Game Guide, you utterly and desperately need some serious help.

Prima Games wants to make as much money from the Zelda license before Nintendo goes bankrupt.

Silent Hill: Shattered Manhood

I thought I wanted to spice up my daily gaming routine by playing a horror game. Yeah, what a brilliant idea, right? Especially the fact that I don't do very well with horror games these days after being traumatized by Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterflies on the PlayStation 2 many years ago. After going through several candidates, I finally decided on Silent Hill: Shattered Memories for the Nintendo Wii that I picked up in September of last year. I thought that streaming a horror game on twitch.tv would numb the fear somewhat but I couldn't be more wrong. As you can witness from my session with the game, I didn't last very long. One thing I can say however is that I was very surprised and infinitely intrigued by the presentation of this game. The VHS tape menu screen is just creepy and the whole therapy session framing device is quite fascinating. I really wanted to play the game until I arrived at that abandoned garage merely minutes into the game. I froze. It was so dark except for the areas illuminated by my character's flashlight. Then, as I was scrambling silently in terror for a pause button, I managed to turn off the flashlight. Oh I thought I was going to have a heart attack. Further button pushing experimentation yielded a very interesting command where the character pathetically yells out the name of his daughter. I was done. I really need to build up the courage to continue playing this game however because there's a lot of promise here. When that happens, there will be a lot of screaming. What is the secret formula to help one man up while playing a horror game?

I really don't like where this is going...

Club Nintendo's Ever Diminishing Elite Rewards

It's time again for those who reached the Gold and Platinum Club Nintendo status to pick their... measly reward! The choice of rewards has gotten worse since last year. You see Nintendo, this is what happens when you spend unnecessary money on releasing a console that shouldn't have been released. You should have kept working on the Nintendo Wii and never bothered with the Wii U. You could have released a crazy system update on the original Wii that allows 1080p signal out of the console - you know it's possible - but no, you just have to release a new system. If you would have been loyal to the Wii yourself and focus on releasing your exclusive Nintendo brand games on it, you would be rolling in the dough right now. If the spouse didn't pick up the Wii U for me, I would have not gotten the unit and its would have been abandoned like the PlayStation 4 and the X-Box One and I would have just enjoy my gaming exclusively on the Personal Computer as well as the previous consoles I already own. Here are the list of rewards that can be chosen this year:

 

"You're the best"? Then why didn't you offer us something we truly deserve?

 

Perhaps it's time for Nintendo to change "Gold" into "Dirt" and "Platinum" into "Cheap". With the way things are going, the club may be abolished next year. Which of these disappointing gifts did I pick? Stay tuned and find out once it arrives supposedly by the end of the year. For all we know, that may never even happen since it seems like they are trying to lure people to just opt for one of those immediately available downloadable games that I didn't choose of course. Nintendo, rethink your strategy and turn into Sega.

The Almost Perfect Reversible Cover Art

I secured a copy of Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon for the Nintendo Wii today and apparently it has one of those game cases that have a reversible cover art: they all should though right? The alternate cover definitely looks rather amazing as you can see below image:

Simply stunning. Why can't this be the official cover art in the first place?

If you haven't noticed from the above picture however, it is definitely impossible to justify using the alternate cover art for someone like me who has a serious case of obsessive compulsive disorder because of one very major flaw: Yes, the Wii logo is missing on the top portion of the spine so if I place this case in between the other Wii game cases, it will look sorely out of place. Why, XSEED Games? Why? How could you not notice that the Wii logo is missing? Oh well.

Your 2 Minutes Starts... Now!

Oh honey, what cruel game you play. On our way back from Tiburon today, we stopped by Fry's Electronics per the spouse's instruction so that I could pick up a couple of games as gifts. There was a catch though: because the spouse hates being in that store, I was given two minutes to pick up the games that I wanted or the deal is off. I was frantic of course because I find it quite hard to just pick up games quickly. I normally would have to consult my Purchase List and even then, I would have to think about things thoroughly. Well, I didn't want to lose out so I did grab two games quickly and lined up at the cash register just in time. Perhaps I should do this to myself whenever I have troubles making a decision whether or not to get a game. I should give myself two minutes and if I couldn't decide during that time, then I would not allow myself to consider getting that game again for an entire month. It could be dangerous to do that however because I would mostly be leaning towards the acquisition of the games in question... Yes, that would be rather irresponsible, don't you agree?

A great end to an already wonderful day.

Wii Fit Plus: Minus Health

You may have noticed in the previous Daily Game Log that I have stopped using the Wii Fit Plus for the Nintendo Wii suddenly in the middle of the week. No, this is not an indication that I have abandoned my goal of staying fit nor is it a revelation that the Wii Fit Plus is not working - in regards to the latter, the program was able to actually shed around 4 pounds off me already. I actually had to stop due to injury from using Wii Fit Plus. You see, I had pull my left shoulder muscle and when I noticed the pain the first time, I didn't stop and I still worked out the next day. After that session, whenever I move any of my arms, I would be in a lot of pain. That lasted several days. Then, the stomach flu that I had from a couple of weeks ago came back with a vengeance and I was left rather helpless. I am still recovering at the moment but hopefully I am close to a full recovery. When that happens, back to Wii Fit Plus I go!

It is more likely that I would give up on the yawn-fest Ni no Kuni than the Wii Fit Plus...

Not Really a Plus but It Kicked Butt

Yesterday, I started exercising again with my unconventional choice of using Nintendo's Wii Fit Plus software. I hated the original Wii Fit software because compared to something like Yourself!Fitness on the X-Box, it lacked both focus and the much needed personalized approach. With Plus, I was again reminded of that fact. There are more things to do now with Plus but the feature that I was really looking forward to, the custom routines, was quite lackluster. Perhaps I needed to spend some time on time to see if more options will be unlocked but at this time, selecting and combining different categories of exercises together only provided me with the most basic, introductory level activities included within without the ability to increase the intensity of those activities. I exited the whole custom routine option after realizing this and went back to selecting activities that I found to be challenging and interesting instead.

Oh come on, I don't look that round in real life!

With that being said however, I was also reminded of the magic of the idea behind the Wii Fit discs where they trick you into thinking that you are playing a game and having fun when you are really working out your body indeed. Yesterday, I focused on only cardio workouts with a couple of those silly balance games thrown into the mix. This is probably how I would operate from now on with perhaps one or two days during the week focused on balance games and yoga poses. I felt the burn on my body during the session and afterwards, I was aching all over. By the time I went to bed last night, I was hurting real bad and it was hard to even go to sleep. But you know what, I felt good. I haven't felt that good in quite a while. How I miss that feeling of thinking that you nearly died (didn't happen with Wii Fit Plus YET but certainly had happened with almost every single session of Yourself!Fitness) to feeling that you can take over the world soon after. That's what exercising does for me at least. I know if I keep this up, I will be seeing great results but will using Plus exclusively be enough?

The new "Island Cycling" is intense and fun but boy, I paid a heavy price for that one.

Update Note: 03/15/2013 - I decided to give the custom routine another chance and I combined 3 separate focus areas for a total workout time of 30 minutes. You know what, I was hurting by the end of the whole thing so it is actually quite effective. I am going to use this feature more from now on and hopefully, it will remain challenging for the foreseeable future.

Fit vs. Fat: Real Man Combat

I almost broke my arm as I was reaching out to extract the large and surprisingly heavy Wii Fit box from the high shelf of my walk-in closet turned Game Treasury. "Oh my galaxy, I am in desperate need of a good workout," I said myself as I placed the box down on the carpet. I had been delaying this reunion long enough and I was glad that it finally happened. The box was still in perfect condition, as if brand new and I opened it very carefully and pulled out the Balance Board stored within. The board still had my footprints all over it. I went to the bathroom quickly to grab some paper towels and with much futility, the stain stayed despite my meticulous scrubbing. Then, a thought crossed me mind: "Oh well, it's going to get dirty again anyway by the time I am done this thing." I picked the Balance Board up and placed it at the center of my Game Room. Things are about to get ugly in here as the battle will begin... this very evening!

Will it squeeze all the blood, sweat, and tears out of me? I'm scared to go back to Maya!

Wii Fit: The Revenge... PLUS!

Since I am planning to use the Wii Fit again, I am actually going to pick up Wii Fit Plus tomorrow. I suppose I may as well get additional activities and features while I am at it. Since it's really cheap anyway, I don't think it's going to be a big loss. The main complaint that I have about the original Wii Fit is that there was no sense of cohesion and it is my understanding that I can actually create and customize routines in Plus instead of just haphazardly picking what to do every time I use it. Wow, this is starting to get a bit disturbing. I told the spouse about my plan to get back into shape and the spouse wanted to reward me with games when I meet my goals... Woah! Don't disappoint me Wii Fit Plus!

I am so going to be rocking that move on the Balance Board...

Wii Fit: The Revenge?

I have been bad when it comes to exercising these days and I am afraid that I am gaining some weight again. You know what that means... It's time to start playing Yourself!Fitness on the X-Box again! Not! No, not this time. After a long period of being away from a healthy physical routine, it is usually very hard for me to get into the routine so I am going to take a bit of a different approach this time. Sure, Yourself!Fitness really works but it is also quite challenging. So I am going to ease myself into things by playing Wii Fit first. Yes... Wii Fit. That really horrible exercise program can be beneficial in this situation I think. We shall see when I start my Wii Fit routine soon...

Hidden in shame... Will it repent for its sins?

Body Magic: An "I'm Getting Old" Story

I have not been gaming comfortably ever since the arrival of my Wii U. This is because I have not completely set up my Nintendo GameCube to my entertainment system. The condition in my Game Room has to be utterly perfect to foster the best gaming experience possible for me and that includes physical games being put away into their respective cases or the controllers placed next to my gaming chair in proper alignment  With the Nintendo Wii being retired into the Game Treasury, the GameCube needs to be readily available in case I am in the mood for some Cube action. I had taken out the GameCube from its retail box and even connected the Game Boy Player to it but none of its cables are properly connected. I had enough of feeling weird about this whole thing and decided to muster up the courage to venture into that world of wire hell - yes, things don't look too nice behind the scene since I have so many gaming devices hooked up to my receiver. After I managed to get the GameCube's component cable to the back of my display - I ran out of component inputs on the receiver - I noticed that I actually needed a component video cable splitter to get the job done.

A nasty uh-oh moment.

This thing was supposed to be included with my display but then I realized at that point that I did not recall where I have stored it. To be honest, I was scared because I did not even recall ever seeing it before and I thought that I had accidentally thrown it away when I dumped out the packaging materials for the display. I spent a couple of hours looking at the regular spots where I would normally place such a cable but I still couldn't find it. The spouse hadn't seen a cable that matched my description and at that point, I almost surrendered to the notion that I would never find it and that perhaps, I should just order the replacement for it. At that very moment however, I calmed myself down and took a deep breath. I told myself that the cable was still inside the house and that I would find it eventually. With my body relaxed, I walked into the Game Treasury where I did most of my search and in the corner of my eyes, I caught a glimpse of the stacked boxes of LG 3D glasses that came with the display. I looked inside the opened box and there it was... The cable that I had been looking for!

This silly little thing almost ruined my day.

Of course the storage location makes perfect sense! I always try to store things in the most logical of places to ensure that I would be able to get back to them eventually. I was so excited to have finally found the cable that I ran downstairs to the living room to share with the spouse a fascinating revelation... If the brain had seen an object in the past, even when you think that you can't recall the location of said object, your body would be capable of leading you to the object if you just calm yourself down and think positive thoughts. Of course I had to conclude my tale by telling the spouse not to look at me like I was one of those crazy guests from the Maury show. I am getting old eh? Let's get this GameCube hooked up.

Update Note: 7:56pm - Finally got everything in order. My body is hurting right now because of the ridiculous amount of stretching involved to ensure that those wires don't get all tangled up in the back of the receiver and the entertainment center.

2013: The Year of the Wii?

I finally forced myself to use my Wii U tonight and not even for the purpose of doing something particularly Wii U-ish for I decided to play a Nintendo Wii game on it. I did notice from the main screen that the TVii functionality is now available. Since I barely spend my time watching television shows in my Game Room - I normally watch TV with the spouse in the living room - I have a feeling that I will not be using TVii but I will definitely check it out in depth over the next couple of days. So I browsed through my Wii games and decided on Wario Land: Shake It! I really thought that I had played this game before. I knew that I had never completed the game but I was then very surprised to find out that I actually never did play this game ever since I got it. I found no save file available for me to continue the game with and I actually didn't remember watching the cute cut-scene at the beginning of the game at all. My poor, poor Wii. Sorry that I have been too distracted to give you much of my time. My Wii games certainly deserve my attention and I will prioritize them over the other console games this year. Sorry, my Personal Computer gaming will always come first however...

Dismissing a quality platform game is just not me. What have I become?

Wii U Sold Out at Launch? Shocking!

Having signed up for that silly PowerUp Rewards program when I picked up Xenoblade has made me prone to these promotion emails from Gamestop. Urgh. The latest is this notification that the Wii U is sold out right now but you can get yourself into a waiting list... Hooray? Well, let me tell you something ladies and gentlemen, there should not be a rush to get the Wii U. I am not going anywhere near it at launch. You know why? Well first off, read this article I wrote about surviving the modern gaming age. The one reason why you shouldn't touch this launch model is simple - there will be a revised model in some sort of fashion for the Wii U in the not so distant future after the launch. It's now a 100% guaranteed occurrence for a Nintendo gaming device. Remember how the Wii got a better Wii-mote later on with the whole MotionPlus debacle? Remember how that MotionPlus attachment became obsolete soon after when the actual sensor got built into the newer Wiimotes? How about a more recent example: Remember how the Nintendo 3DS got remade with a much, much larger screen? I have a strong suspicion that the Wii U GamePad will receive some kind of revision - perhaps longer battery life, 3D/larger/higher-resolution screen, or more ergonomic shape. So if you are already panicking because you think that you may not be able to secure yourself a Wii U at launch, that energy is better spent going to the store to pick up components to upgrade your Personal Computer. Let the Wii U go. Get it at a much later time.

 

Aww, really? Watch these crocodile tears rolling down my cheeks.