ZeroAnd09

Mario…how can I paint you in a positive light? You and Nintendo brought gaming back from the brink of death. You are a worldwide celebrity on par with Mickey Mouse. You have saved the same princess from the same angry turtle monster for the past 20 years. That is what New Super Mario Bros is, a fresh coat of paint on a game you’ve played countless times before. The story is as simple as always. Mario, Luigi, and a couple of Toads are at a party for Princess Peach. An ominously large cake is brought in when suddenly Bowser’s reptile children spring from it and run off with Peach. Cue the long journey to multiple castles where the Princess is not. The game is set up near identically to Super Mario 3. There are nine worlds with a total of 88 levels. You move from level to level on the map depicting each world. There are two castle segments where you fight the same Koopa kid per world. Along the way, you stop at Toad’s house to gather power ups for later use. What makes this version...

I just finished my first story arc using City of Heroes' mission creator.  It's a three part task force with plenty of challenges and even an Arch Villain.  So if you have a CoH/V account, feel free to give it a whirl and rate it when finished. Title:  A Celestial Dirge Creator:  @ZeroAnd09 Length: Long

The trailer for Dead Space 2 dropped yesterday.  It looks amazing.  Story wise it seems that Isaac was rescued at the end of the first game and has been spending time in a mental facility in a large city.  Should make for some creepy settings in what is looking to be another fantastic game.

Ever since seeing the original Assassin’s Creed, I knew it was a game I needed. Problem was, by the time I had a current gen system, the sequel was announced. So I did what I normally do in these situations and waited. Before long, I picked up my copy of AC2 and the wait was worth it. The story picks up immediately after the first game and follows Desmond as he breaks out of the lab he’s been held prisoner in. He is brought into a small fold of assassin’s who put him in the Animus 2.0 to train him as an assassin and find the other pieces of eden. The majority of the game revolves around the new assassin, Ezio Auditore de Firenze, an Italian who lived during the Renaissance in the late 15th century. Ezio’s family is framed and when his father and two brothers are hung, he must take his mother and sister into hiding. Along the way, he is trained as an assassin and receives help from notable historic figures, such as Leonardo da Vinci. Ezio’s entire driving force is unraveling the cons...

I received a package in the mail yesterday.  It contained an ink blot and a note from a Dr. Samara Yasmin.  Apparently, it's some kind of consolation prize for my entry in the Dead Space 2 contest.  I was bummed about not winning, but this made it all better. The ink blot appears to have multiple images in it.  In the center is Isaac's helmet.  The fence looking object is the obelisk from the dig site.  The two figures at the top look to be necromorphs.  There is also faint Unitologist writing in the background. The notes are taken by Dr. Samara Yasmin on patient 1544C, specifically session #18.  1544C is clearly leet speak for Isaac.  It looks as though Isaac survived the ending of the first game only to wind up in a mental institution.  The note is transcribed as follows: Notes on Patient 1544C, Session #18 1544C condition shows scant improvement from previous assessment. OBSERVED SYMPTOMS INCLUDE: DELUSIONS: Subject vacillates...

The latest entry in the popular Square-Enix series, Final Fantasy XIII marks a milestone for the series. This is the point where I stop buying Final Fantasy games. The series has been on a steep decline since X and I fear there is no coming back. Square-Enix has instituted a trend with their newer games. They are convinced that an eight to 10 hour tutorial is necessary for each of their games. XIII is no exception, only this tutorial is dragged out. In fact, many things are dragged out. It isn’t until hour 22-25 or the third disc if played on the 360 version that the player is given full control over the party, their abilities, and other essential functions. I can understand limiting the player for the first few hours as they get used to the learning curve, but this is ridiculous. Until you hit that 25th hour sweet spot, the game is linear, boring, and repetitive. It consists of the player moving the characters down a linear path with occasional encounters along the way. When you re...

I’ve never been one for war based shooters or even first person shooters in general. There are only a few shooters that demand my attention (Borderlands, Halo, Gears of War). So it was easy for me to evade the hype that Call of Duty generates. It went on to be the biggest selling game of all time and I still had no interest. It took my sister and her husband buying me a copy before I would play it, I simply had no desire. After playing it, I know now that I wasn’t missing much. MW2’s story picks up five years after CoD4. It involves multiple factions vying for power and plenty of obvious double crosses. You spend most of your time playing as two characters and switching between their respective stories. There are grand moments of suspense as you’re locked in an overwhelming firefight or racing down a mountain on a snowmobile. There are times where you’re meant to feel quiet terror. A prime example being the bombed out DC level where rain pours down onto your unit and lightning illum...

If I were a Pokemon trainer, this is what I would look like: Hit the link below to create your Pokeself. Pokeyou

So Gears of War 3 was officially announced last night.  Here's your trailer: Dom has a beard.  Marcus is going sleeveless.  Oh hey, there's a girl now.  Baird is still alive and the Cole train has a bitchin' bandana.  It's a very moving and emotional trailer.  A shame we have to wait a year to get our hands on it.  April 5, 2011.

Found this while browsing the bowels of the internet.  Credit to the creator, whomever they may be.

A little tip for those playing Borderlands.  If you want to change the way the split screen is oriented, you'll need to change your Xbox's display settings.  For horizontal, put it on a 480 SD setting.  For vertical, change it to 720 or 1080 HD.  The vertical makes it a lot easier when played on a widescreen TV.

Yesterday, I spent a few hours cutting back and shaping a ten foot tall monster of a bush.  I then repaired the hood latch on my car with some help from a friend.  After that was finished, I topped off all of my fluids and put in a new air filter. Today, I spent a few hours replacing all the guts and plumbing to our toilet.  It would have been quicker if someone had decided to put in a rubber washer with the kit and I not raged at why the toilet was leaking.  I also took in Kim's car to get the oil and battery changed.  I then struggled with changing the oil in my own car.  Mind you, the process itself isn't hard.  But whoever made the decision to put the oil filter where it is in a 2000 Ford Taurus needs to be shot. Tomorrow, I get to change out the faucet in our bathroom sink. Why did everything decide to need replacements all of a sudden?

Did these for my niece and nephew.