Random Rant

Well, it’s the end of the week. Uh…wait a minute. Not yet. Anyways…..What is up with….

- ISP Monthly Usage : Rogers, recently sent me a message that 75% (0.75 x 60…for the naive) of my monthly usage (60 GB) has been used up. One of the reasons I hate certain internet service providers. Why can’t they provide a service that expands based on your usage. Some months, I rarely download anything and other months I download like a mad man. I only have 15 GB’s left (possibly less) and wonder how I’ll survive the rest of the month with that little. Yes I know, I should switch to TekSavvy but with a 50% discount going on, it’s hard to switch.

- Throttling : Well Rogers is throttling my connection ‘causing me to get extremely low download speeds with uTorrent. I should have did this earlier, but now outgoing connections are encrypted. I noticed way faster download speeds. Yayz. I find it stupid that Rogers advertises “fastest downloads with BitTorrent” yet they throttle your connection. I call false advertisements?

- Wii Fitness Studies - I’ve been seeing a slew (if that’s the right word?) of them, recently. Often conflicting studies. How long will it take people to learn that the Wii is not a fitness device and is not trying to be a fitness device. Using your Wii is obviously better then sitting on your couch and doing nothing (well….not with all games). Playing your Wii is no substitute for going on a treadmill or jogging in the park. I find it baffling that people fail to understand that.

- Olympic Branded Items: The 2010 Winter Olympics, is hosted in my home country, Canada. That isn’t much of a negative. I do, enjoy the Olympics. The problem is most manufacturers try to cash in on the Olympics selling keychains and water bottles for a premium because it says “2010 Winter Olympics”. Why do people succumb to these scams?

- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: I recently watched the movie and it was mediocre. It had enough mindless shooting to satisfy the crazy and wild and had a good enough plot to interest people. One thing I hated about the movie was that it was hard to “see” what was happening. The action scenes were filmed in such an eccentric manner that I couldn’t tell which robot was which. Michael Bay’s filming style, I guess.

- Youtube Community: Just the other day, in the elevator, I heard two kids, around the age of 8 talking about how they “dissed” someone on Youtube. That explains a lot. The number of immature people in the Youtube community is shocking. Age cannot be enforced on Youtube or any site as there is no efficient way to know the real age of a person.

A simple thought: Fonts: Make or Break a Site

A bad font can destroy a site. Many sites suffer from what I call fontalaria (fear of using pleasant fonts). microsoft.com uses a pleasant font.

Good font! Elegant and easy on the eyes!

While other sites use a decent but not good font such as…

Decent font but could be better considering this is .gov site!

I would have thought the government of Canada would use a better font. After all, they are the government! A bad font combined with a bad site…..below

Plain ugly site combined with an even more ugly font

 

It isn’t that hard to have a decent/good font. When a site creator doesn’t incorporate a good or decent font than they’re just being lazy. Plain laziness. Only if every site on the internet had a good font

The Success of the DS/Wii

Nintendo has done amazingly well this generation. Both the Wii and the DS sold like hotcakes. Innovation was key this generation and that’s what Nintendo had a lot of.

Senses

Have you noticed that the DS incorporates two of the human senses? Touch (touch-screen) and Hearing (mic.) The DSi brought one more, sight (camera). These senses when brought

My DSi!

together result in an innovative experience. The touch-screen works well because it is something that we as humans already “know“ how to do. It`s a natural experience. The control method is easy as every human-being knows “to touch“. Touch-control is becoming more prominent. The iPod Touch utilizes it, Windows 7 supports multi-touch and tablet-PCs. When the DS first came out the touch-screen was touted by critics as a gimmick, but look where it is now. The microphone is another factor in the DSs success. It`s easy to speak into a microphone, even fun! It`s a natural experience just like the touch-screen. Nintendo obviously put in a lot of R&D (Research and development) in the making of the DS.

Less Focus on Graphics

One main difference with the DS and Wii compared to other systems is the graphical power. The Xbox 360 and the PS3 have high-definition graphic capabilities. They can display up to 1080p while the Wii can only display up to 480p. Obviously the Xbox 360 and the PS3 are more powerful then the Wii. One may be wondering why the Wii has better sales despite the terrible graphics. The Wii innovates unlike the PS3 and 360. The PS3 and Xbox 360 may have more `power“ but the Wii has motion control. Very few devices of this day and age use motion control so it`s more of a new concept. People are fascinated by how it works in videogames. Motion-control makes it easier for elderly people to play videogames. Most of them wouldn`t even bother trying an Xbox 360 or a PS3 as it isn`t as inviting as the Wii. The Wii literally tells you to `join in“ and play. The other consoles have focused on other things in addition to gaming such as movie-playing and music. The Wii on the other hand primarily focuses on gaming. The Wii isn’t perfect. It still has its flaws but it’s ‘pros’ outweigh the ‘cons’.

Focus on everyone

Bowling - Wii Sports - scchiang (Flickr)

The Wii/DS has games that can appeal to everyone not just to core gamers. The vast majority of games in other systems don’t appeal to casual gamers because they are ‘hard’. Too hard for their ‘skill’ level or their attention span. Not everybody is a fan of this, me included. It feels like Nintendo is making the games suprisingly easy, removing all/any challenge. Hopefully ‘Super Guide’ will help prevent that from happening more often. Elderly people play the Wii because it’s simple and easy. Bowling in Wii Sports requires a simple flick of the wrist as do other in-game sports. Children love the Wii because “it is easy to use”. Iconic characters such as Mario and Sonic combined with simple gameplay results in a great experience.

In Summary

These three factors are the key to Nintendo’s success this generation. Hopefully Microsoft and Sony will get their consoles /handheld done right next generation so we can get a proper console/handheld “war”. Nintendo had it won this generation with their easy to use, fun systems. I look forward to what Nintendo will do in the next generation!

7 Whopper Patties

Windows 7 released on the 22nd of October (as most of you already know). The majority of you readers, probably purchased 7. You know how Japan typically gets the “great stuff”. Blazing Fast Internet, Bullet Trains, the list goes on and on. Well now they got a Windows 7 Patty! Not just any patty.

I sure couldn’t finish that. That’s freaking humongous. Heck, I can’t even finish this.

Review: Mario Luigi Bowsers Inside Story

Mario Luigi Bowsers Inside Story. The third game in the stupendous Mario and Luigi series. This game contains many of things people loved in Superstar Saga and has the witty dialogue of  Partners In Time.

Story

The game begins with a meeting in Peaches Castle. They are discussing on how to cure the blorbs (disease which makes toads fat). Bowsers (as always) breaks in half way through the meeting and attempts to kidnap the princess. He lands in a forest after getting knocked out of the castle. He then meets Fawful there and gains the “Lucky Mushroom” which gives him the ability to suck in everything. After inhaling Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and others he falls down out of exhaustion. When he wakes up he can’t remember anything. He than meets Fawful who tells him he inhaled like a hungry syrup pig at the free pancake buffet (his words!) You then venture on a quest to take over the kingdom and crush Fawful. I’ll talk bout the dialogue in this game later on.

Graphics

The sprites in this game are stupendous. The Mario Luigi series graphical style never gets old. This is one thing enhanced graphics won’t improve. The animation when Luigi hammers is fluent and precise. The visual clarity in the images and the amount of detail in the background make for a great game. I’m glad that the background is consistent to where you are in battles (such as a Fawful Castle background in a battle in Fawful Castle). It’s sprites like these that make you appreciate videogames.

Dialogue

The dialogue in this game is amazing. Whether it’s Midbus talking about his “SUPER ULTRA WONDER ULTIMATE RUTHLESS GREAT IRON BALL” or the Fawful Train arriving at the “run-down-falling-apart-dirty-nasty-thanks-to-Bowser Castle” Do you have “fury” or “chortles’ at the awesome dialogue. Bowser has some of the most epic dialogue in the whole Mario Luigi series. Whether it’s un-knock-downable barriers or power high-fiving Fawful’s face this game will surely make you laugh. I hope you can see how awesome the dialogue in this game is by my examples.

Sound

The soundtrack in this game is pretty good but doesn’t have a memorable tune to it. The regular boss battle music isn’t catchy like Superstar Saga. Heck, even the Partners In Time boss battle music is better. Most of the music in the game isn’t annoying but it is forgettable. The final boss battle music on the otherhand is catchy and has an “epic” feel to it.

Battle/Overworld Gameplay

Overworld Gameplay

The overworld gameplay has many unique aspects to it. You can hammer Mario to a smaller size to reach small areas or dig into the ground to retrieve beans. Many of Mario Luigi’s abilities are used to enhance Bowser in some way such as hammering his nerve or digging into a hurt muscle. Bowser can do many things such as breathe fire, punch and roll around in a shell. Gameplay aspects such as mandatory minigames and “flying” use the touchscreen.

Battles

The battles in this game are different form the traditional RPG in many ways. You have the ability to counterattack your enemies attack with the correct timing. The Mario Luigi series are built in a way where you don’t have to pay attention to stats. When you level up, all your stats are raised in a way that’s equal. With Bowser, you can perform “big” battles in which you have to turn your DS in a horizontal direction and use the touch screen to fight. The “big” Bowser battles are short and seem more like a gimmick than anything else. The battles are similar to the battle system of Superstar Saga and Partners. The enemies in this game seem unnecessarily easy. It seemed like Nintendo was trying to appeal to everyone with this title but making it easier. The final battle was surprisingly easy. I was shocked because I had gotten used to the hard boss battles of Superstar Saga (Cackletta – Ghost) and Partners in Time (Princess Shroob).

Overall

Overall Mario Luigi Bowsers Inside Story is a great game that I would recommend everyone to get. If you were a fan of Superstar Saga but hated Partners In Time don’t worry. This game is more like Superstar Saga than Partners In Time. The awesome final battle music combined with the stellar gameplay results in a must have game.

Score:

Story: 9 – Great storyline but Fawful needed more fury!

Soundtrack: 8 – Decent but nothing memorable

Battle/Overworld Gameplay: 10 Stupendous just like the old games

Dialogue: 9.5 Amazing. This game made me laugh out loud at more than a few parts

Final Score: 9.1 - Worth Purchasing

Scribblenauts!!! Write anything, solve everything.

Scribblenauts was released yesterday! I will write a review on this amazing game soon. This game is the most innovative, unique and special game released this year! The vast amount of words you could write is equally as amazing. I’ve changed the header to celebrate this marvelous game. I hope you all buy it and remember to stay tuned for Scribblenauts coverage!