If you're like me, you are probably not very happy with Nintendo. I've had a few tirades against the Wii here in this blog, and I could probably continue these rants for a few years if I wanted to. But, in an attempt to retain some credibility in this blog, I'm going to try something a little different. Thus, I present to you...

Extending the life of your Nintendo DS
5 small tips to retain your faith in Nintendo's dual-screened fiend.

Are you broke like me? If you are both a DS owner and broke, then you are probably finding it hard to get enjoyment out of your DS. Well, I'm here to share with you a few ways to put some life back into the DS. 5 ways, in fact.

5. Invest in Homebrew

One of the best decisions I made when I had some cash was investing in a slot-1 Homebrew device. Basically, homebrew allows you to download homebrew applications onto the DS cartridge, which you can then use on your DS. It's nothing compared to the wide array of options available to PSP owners, but it is definitely a wise purchase. Not only have people made games, but there are also a ton of helpful homebrew applications to choose from, such as web browsers and Instant Messengers. For more information about Homebrew, check out this thread.

4. Share With Friends

Someone mentioned this in another blog, but I figured that it was worth a mention here. If you have an old game lying around that you don't really want to play anymore, trade it with a friend for a different game. I have received a few games this way, and it's been a huge benefit for someone like me, who may not have a steady cash flow.

3. WiFi = Longevity

When you go to buy a new game, look for the WiFi symbol on the box. Online multiplayer options can add hours of play time on to the game, and will increase the replayability of the game. WiFi is always a plus when dealing with DS games, so make sure you look into it.

2. Make Use of Offline Multiplayer Capabilities

This may seem obvious, but make good use of the single-card download ability of some games. If you don't have a copy of Clubhouse Games, for example, but your friend does, you can still have a ton of fun using the Single-Card download capabilities. And if you all have the same game, the Multi-Card options are usually much more robust, and is a ton of fun. I still have a ton of fun playing Mario Kart DS with a group of three other people, and that game has been out since 2005!

1. Revisit!

My number one tip for increasing the life of your DS is pretty simple: Revisit old games! I understand that some games grow tiresome after playing for weeks on end, but remember that the game will feel fresh and new a year down the road. So if you can't afford to pick up the latest Final Fantasy game, give your old copy of Final Fantasy III another playthrough. If you don't want to play through the entire game again, then try and complete all the sidequests in the game, or maybe spend your time maxing out the stats of your characters. There are plenty of things to do in games if you look for them.

And games without a linear story are great to replay! Games like Mario Kart DS, Tetris DS, Animal Crossing: Wild World, and Harvest Moon DS are all great titles to play in short spurts, especially if you haven't played them in awhile.

----

There you have it. These tips aren't really revolutionary ideas or anything, but they are tips that have helped me get through times when I couldn't splurge on a new game. I hope these may be of some use to you!

gaming related ds nintendo budget

If you couldn't tell already by the content of this blog, I work in Information Technology. One of the sites I've enjoyed visiting since I joined this profession is The Daily WTF, where many different stories point out the quirks of people and products in this industry.

If you are tech-savvy, then I guarantee you'll get some laughs out of it. If not, don't worry, you don't have to be! You can still have a few laughs at some of the visual articles. :)

The interviews are also a treat.

Check it out!

technology

I got into the closed beta for Cave Online Entertainment and Atlus' Shin Megami Tensei inspired MMORPG, Shin Megami Tensei Online: Imagine (whew). Aeria wil be the North American operator for the game, and you can visit their page here. Maybe I'll write a bigger feature for the game when I get deeper into it, but for now I thought I'd share some impressions of Imagine thus far.



First off, if you're into PvP as seen in Warhammer Online, this isn't the game for you since Imagine so far seems strictly PvE. I haven't encountered an area yet where players can duke it out online, but I've just started so I can't say for sure.





Combat: Pretty basic so far, you have the regular "Attack", as well as "Rush" for taking down opponents on the defensive and "Spin" for crowd control. You can chain Attacks together to send enemies flying, and you can also go into defensive and counterattack stances, so there's some element of strategy. It actually reminds me of some of the stuff I pulled off in the last MMO I tried, Mabinogi. Countering enemies charging at you is always good stuff.

You can also learn magic which for better or worse retain their Sanskrit names from the other MegaTen games, so if you know the difference between Agi, Bufu and Garu you should do fine. :P





Character Development: There aren't any classes in Imagine, though there are three general routes to developing your character: as a fighter with melee proficiencies, a gunner with ranged attacks, and a "mage" for attack/support/healing spells. In truth, you can specialize in any combination of these proficies, through distribution of skill points you earn when you level your character up. But in general, it's best to distribute points to your stats to suit a specific battle style; spreading points out amongst stats evenly usually isn't a good idea.

You can also rank up your skills simply by using them, and you can even choose which ones will actually get experience to level up. Again, there's only so much experience you can gain for skills, so it's best to focus on ones that suit your character build. Even conversation skills can rank up, which helps with Demon Contracts.



Demon Contracts: Every MegaTen game featured the ability to converse with Demons and coerce them to join your side. It's one of the series' most defining features, so it's good that Imagine keeps it. The basic way is to contact the Demon you wish to befriend by talking to them over and over again until they warm up to you and transform into an "egg" you can download into your handy DB computer. Then you can summon them later at the cost of "magnetite", which you earn by fighting and defeating Demons. Demons you summon can help you in battle when you access their attacks and skills through the shortcuts, and you can even switch to controlling the Demon yourself if you want.

You won't always be successful in your attempts; sometimes they'll run away, get angry and attack you, or things will just end up going nowhere. You might get an item instead, which isn't bad. It's a little confusing at first, but the game does provide guides on how to get things done, but it's mostly reading until you try it yourself.



Game Flow: You're not just wandering around aimlessly; you are given quests by NPCs, and I've run into a few optional ones as well. There's some variety to these; there's even fetch quests. After an early mission, you'll have the chance to explore dungeons. You buy items in the shelter (essentially one of the towns in the game) to create one at a specific areas, meaning dungeons are instanced by player or party. This reminds me of the system in Mabinogi, and perhaps you've played other MMOs like this too. I haven't fiddled around with this yet in Imagine, but I'll definitely give it a shot while the closed beta is still running.







So far Imagine seems alright. There aren't too many people online while I was checking things out, but it is still in closed beta. Already other guys are kitting their characters out with new gear and Demons, so I'm getting jealous at how much time they're able to put into the game even though it's closed beta. XD I'll try to post more impressions later.



No MegaTen/Persona game is complete without this fellow! ^_^

shin megami tensei online imagine megaten demons mmorpg pc gaming related

That's really the best way I can describe this whole situation, sparked by my previous blog post and an image of my menstrual fluids/blood. As it turns out, menstruation is practically a no-no.

I've talked to a couple Supermods, briefly contacted by another, and from what I understand none of them appear terribly offended by the image or find it inappropriate. The one who removed the image did it because he's looking out for younger readers, or so he tells me. Speaking with another, we both agreed that Neoseeker is not the proper forum for such a topic, that some levels of intellectual discussion are still beyond Neo because of its more juvenile population.

I don't know if any actual complaints were filed, but the complaint forum and IRC seemed devoid of such, so if any were made, they were by PM. The majority of responses I received in the blog comments and by PM were positive, however, and for that I am grateful. Even some of my fellow Neo staff have expressed their frustrations over the removal of the menstrual blood image.

It's quite sad though, that a site which contains movies and screenshots from games that depict prostitutes, (alien) dismemberment, disembowelment, war time atrocities, being mooned by a leprechaun, etc. would need to remove an image of blood that is devoid of violence or sexual content because some people can't accept where it came from (a woman's *bleep*). Even more amusing is that the photograph was not included in the shortened version of the blog, which has a title featuring the word "Menstruation." Readers actually need to click that title or "read more..." to see the image of that blood.

But some people want to be offended just so they can cry about it later. The Supermods will contemplate what to do when they manage to meet up. Hopefully, we can reach the compromise I discussed with one of them, but it's all been incredibly vague, especially considering the blogs are new territory for them as well. For now, the original post will remain without the "controversial" photo, though a link to it may eventually be allowed.

It's important to say that I'm actually not personally offended by the removal of the image, though it is a personal piece that's being censored. This is mostly because I do understand the way people are, and it isn't necessarily just the guys at Neoseeker who feel their e-peens are being threatened. Or maybe it's because I'm too busy laughing my ass off at the absurdity of this entire drama. It's just a plastic container of blood. People eat animal blood. People bleed, man or woman. People exist because every month, women bleed out of their genitalia. And cramp, and bloat, and have really bizarre food cravings -- the list of symptoms can go on forever.

I just shake my head and shrug, then laugh because really, what can you do? Female sexuality is still a touchy subject, even though females as sexual icons is so openly accepted without question. Why should Neoseeker be exempt from this unfortunate social contradiction?

Rawr, said Godzilla as he ate handfuls of Japanese like French fries.

Thanks, Jamie.

-------------------------------------------------------------

UPDATE Here is the original image. It's been decided by the Supermods that a link is appropriate, provided I also give fair warning about the contents. I'd say this entire blog entry is a warning in itself!

other musingsthoughts neoseeker related neoseeker moderator sexuality feminism censorship

Tell me, Neo. Why do we need to have photos taken? Why do people feel the need to preserve my mug for ever more? If I were Prince Charming's even more handsome brother, sure. But I'm not him, so why me ffs?

Anyway, for some reason, one (and ONLY ONE) of the colleges I'm applying to required me to have passport photos. I wasn't expecting this when I started filling out the forms last night, so I had to get some photos done on the way to school yesterday morning. It did not end well.



Yes, that is the photo I'm giving to the college, mostly because it was my last attempt before I had to fork over another £4 and I really didn't have the money to do that. I only just fit in the photo booth (goddamn being tall) and my ****ing massive bag took up most of the footwell. So yeah. If I grow anymore, we're going to have to find me another way of getting passport photos. :|

Bit short, I know, but I should probably be revising for my mock exams- I'll rant about those later. >:E

musingsthoughts

UPDATE Here is the original image, in the form of a child friendly link. Obligatory warning Photo is of blood from my peeeeeeriiiioooood~

That seems to be the case as far as polite conversation goes, though there is a saying that "polite conversation" is rarely both. It's a little sad, even pathetic to see people overreact to menstruation.

I know blood scares the hell out of men, whether they admit it or not. They'll put lots of it in games and movies so they can feel so great about themselves when they can stomach the gore while their girlfriends cling to their arms, but when you present them with an excess of it in real life, most of them will just get queezy. Never mind what happens when you show them blood coming that came out of a woman's *bleep*. Never mind that menstruation is the whole reason we exist as a species, and the fluid is just all your brothers and sisters that didn't quite make it. Yes, there are unfertilized eggs in that shit, and one of them could have been you.

An artist's husband apparently asked her to draw her MegaMan, and her medium of choice was menstrual blood. Of course, the folks at GameGrep (and the site that posted it) freaked out. Seriously, it's like everyone has been reduced to the state of awkward teenager who's scared of touching girls. Maybe 4 years of art school has just exposed me to more things... opened my mind to some things most still consider taboo or GROOOOOOSSSS EEEEEEEEWWWWW.

-------------------------------------------------------------

Edit Keep the comments coming, no matter which side of the fence they're on. That's also not the actual piece. It's just a photo I took documenting the process, and the paper in the background just has practice strokes (diluted with water).

And just so you guys don't think I did the piece just for kicks, I included an explanation somewhere in the comments.

quote RCG

Traditionally (and to this day), sons are more desirable in Asian cultures because the son carries on the family name. Yeah, I know that there are people who take on maiden names and what not, but somehow that's not enough. That's why there's all those stories of daughters who were killed or abandoned years ago due to China's one-child law; today, it is illegal in China for doctors to tell a couple if their unborn child is male or female because people will sometimes abort the fetus if it is a girl.

This piece pertains to my mother's side of the family and the fact that is has come to an end because of two daughters (and a son who has no children). That's why the menstrual aspect was so important -- it addresses the feminine aspect.

It all has to do with what you're trying to convey. Example, African American artist Alan DeSouza did a racially driven piece using the blood from his veins; in his case, the blood represented him as a black man, just as feminist painters often use menstrual blood to convey their feminine identity.

Edit x2 Image removed? Had a talk with a Supermod and apparently a vat of menstrual blood "sets precedents" for the younger readers. This is pretty unfortunate, but I guess it means our blogs will have certain guidelines soon. I respect the decision, but I'm definitely disappointed. I enjoyed the discussions that took place here, regardless, though in a weird way, the removal proved something I really wish weren't true.

Edit x3 Thanks to everyone who expressed their support. This whole situation actually makes me laugh, from the first comment to the Supermod interference. Didn't expect it to cause such a hullabaloo! I'll present my case tomorrow, and we'll see what happens.

mega man feminism sexuality censorship other musingsthoughts neoseeker related gaming related

Well, it seems as though blogging + cake was a theme in the main announcements about blogs (found here and here), so I thought I might as well blog about a cake I baked.

On Saturday I was a little bored and craving cake. Now baking (or cooking for that matter) isn't my forte, but with instructions and ingredients it isn't too hard. I found some strawberry cake mix and some strawberry icing, so I thought I'd take a whack at it. I had made one cake before, so I was fairly new at it. Still, I think I did fairly well (except for the icing job).

Unfortunately the cake was gone by Sunday (six people at my house, most of which enjoy cake, you do the math), but I did snap some pictures of it with my crappy camera phone before it was devoured.

The work I intend on getting done hopefully this week on the wikis.

Advance Wars Wiki

• Upload CO Avatars for the original Advance Wars
  
• Finish several CO pages from the original Advance Wars
  
• Comission help from previous members of the AW community here on Neoseeker (skythelegend, jondog, dbzmaster, etc...)
  
• Properly categorize the COs into their proper subcategories.

Fable Wiki

• Reinstall Fable: The Lost Chapters on my desktop - play a bit and get weapon stats/info, clothing stats/info, a bit more mission info.
  
• Develop a Weapon/Clothing Stats Template
  
• Create the Bowerstone Market
  
• Create a list of Quests in Fable II

Digimon Wiki

• Try to knock out as many Digimon Profile Pages off of the wanted list as possible.
  
• Commission GalacticDramon to take some time away from Sonic to assist me :P

Guitar Hero Wiki

• Give it some LONG overdue attention.
  
• Contact my previous staff members- commission their assistance - if not start removing members for inactivity.

Misc:

• General Spam Maintenance
  
• Keep an Eye on the Mortal Kombat Wiki and Need for Speed Wiki
  
• General assistance with any/all questions pertaining to the wikis.

And then the work I would like to see accomplished on other wikis I am less involved with.

• Meet with Rome to go over the Kingdom Hearts Wiki, see what needs to be done, and where I can help.
  
• Properly categorize the James Bond Wiki - take a pulse on it - see the direction it is going.
  
• Get all the game pages created on the Suikoden Wiki. Set them up properly with infoboxes and neotabs.
  
• Get all the game pages created and set up on the Tales Wiki, include neotabs, and infobox (the latter depending on the staff's opinion.
  
• Add achievement avatars to the Gears of War 2 Achievements

neoseeker related neowiki fable wiki digimon wiki advance wars wiki

I figured I could start with Christmas, it does seem to be the topic of the month after all. Christmas for a lot of people is happiness. It's a time of giving, receiving and keeping a tally to make sure it's more of the first than the second.

Last year I found myself disappointed. I found that age has covered the Christmas spirit in a damp cloth, from which I'm receiving less and less until it dries up. Sure I still really get into Christmas. My house is covered in lights, the tree looks like a woman from a Port Kembla street and my room is done out with all the works.

All this still does not satisfy my hunger, as I find myself in a life which is slowly depreciating. The transition from childhood to adulthood is not one of merely physical change, as we as children always imagined. No doubt when you were younger you wanted to grow up to see an M15+ movie (though does that stop us sneaking in?) or getting to go on the big people's rides at a fun park. Then you get there, you suddenly realise there's a lot of mental and emotional baggage with it.

I no longer enjoy the celebrations I once did and then you suddenly gain a greater appreciation of what you never noticed before. As a child you never realise your parents more or less go without on Christmas, they buy each other a few small things and spend all their money on their children. This year my presents won't tally past five. I don't mind, they're things I want but it's not the same as when you're a kid and spend those first couple of hours ripping through the wrapping paper with twinkling eyes. The magic of Santa has long gone, now the idea of Christmas with the jolly fat man. When you're older you know all your presents, whether it's by choice or making the choice for them. There's no mystery and therefore no fun.

It's a similar thing with birthdays, I personally have always been quite saddened by them. My parents never have a party, it's a shock if they have a cake and a couple of presents. As a child they tried to make it the best time of my life. One year I remember my dad spent months constructing things from wood like swords and a boat to give me a pirate themed party. There was a treasure hunt, a walk-the-plank game and all sorts of little things that stimulate someone. The last two years I've not had a party, though this is deviating from the subject because the reason is no one came. My point is that what was organised was merely a small thing with some friends to a pizza place or bowling, it's not fun or imaginative like it used to be.

Or perhaps I muse too much? I know I still enjoy Easter, but can you really say chocolate has a depreciating value? A lot of people say that things like Christmas are ruined by commercialism, I believe they're ruined by age.

No doubt I will soon have another transition stage. I will begin going on parties to drink and not give a care to the world. I will settle down with my own family, give my kids the time of their life.

A little depressing? Sorry, but I'm like that a lot. Now what I plan to do with this blog you might enjoy a bit more. I feel that I'll use this now and then for just shooting blanks, to know that people are feeling what I am. At other times it'll hopefully have interesting thoughts such as views on feminism or backwards evolution.

Sadly today is a bad day, so I apologise for the somewhat gloomy outlook though if I've made just one person think then it is still entirely worth it. Yes the thoughts were of negative connotations, but perhaps they brought up one or more valid points for you.

Perhaps I should finish this first ever blog entry off with a little introduction. My name is Richard (please call me Richie) and I'm a 17 year old male. I live in New South Wales, Australia but my original birth place was a small town called Southampton in England. I plan to do journalism once I graduate and try out for University. Hopefully this is a viable option given my subjects. Speaking of which, my favourite subject is English. I'm currently taking Advanced English, Extension English and Extension English 2. In terms of journalism credentials I feel these are nicely complemented by Modern History, Economics and Business Studies. I am very much a music person, see me without my iPod around and you're probably in my shower because it's in as I speak... no I'm not in the shower right now thank you. I don't just listen but play, having a very beautiful $1200 guitar so I promise to take some proper pics some time. I'm self taught, having taken some lessons on and off. Perhaps I'll bore you with my hobbies some over time, I mean who wants to hear about a guy who likes to talk a walk along a beach at sunset right?

So this is my first ever entry, I'll try not to make all of them so long in the future but it's not something I can confidently promise. I hope this one hasn't but you off too much, it's more or less been a means of helping myself mentally. Anyway, I'd better get back to my Modern History assessment task so I can get into that journalism stuff later on so catch you next time.

musingsthoughts

I was looking for some Nintendo news today and I came across this little diddy. It's not a new interview, but one that I haven't seen before. It's MTV blogger Stephen Totilo's interview with Cammie Dunaway. In it, she talks about games to expect next year. Now, here's the question that I am hung up on:

quote

Multiplayer: You mentioned two third-party titles. But maybe not since “Metroid,” which was last August or September, has Nintendo internal created a title that we would probably agree is squarely targeted at that audience I spoke of. Does that need to happen more with first-party development?

Dunaway: You tell me… I would assume that a title like [Nintendo-published 3D shoot-em-up] “Sin & Punishment” — and bringing that [intellectual property] to the U.S. for the first time — would start to get at that action-seeking, thrill-seeking need that that audience has. “Punch-Out,” while it may be more of a Nintendo fanboy [kind of game], still, I think, gets at that need for action.

Umm... what was that you just said? As a hardcore gamer, I am supposed to accept Punch Out as the next hardcore title? Sure, Sin and Punishment 2 is a good move, but Punch Out? Really? Next, you're going to tell me that Wii Sports Resort is the Wii's Halo killer, right?

This got me thinking about what Nintendo's first party support is shaping up to be in the coming year. And that led me to the picture you see at the top of this post.

What new games do you see on there? Wii Sports Resort, Punch Out, and Sin and Punishment 2. That's it. We get a few Gamecube ports that I don't really care about, and three new titles. What the heck Nintendo? You used to be so good about maintaining a heavy flow of first party games. Now it's like you don't even care anymore.

I guess this is just another piece of evidence that proves that I am a disgruntled Nintendo follower. Maybe they are keeping their new projects under wraps, but something tells me that Nintendo isn't going to deliver much in the coming year. They are probably just going to sit back and bask in the success of the Wii.

gaming related nintendo 2009 wii bad

Call of Duty: World At War, the exciting continuation of the CoD series takes an unexpected turn using Modern Warfare game engines. With an all new storyline which takes you through the front lines of the bloody beach of Peleliu, to the heart of Berlin, to all the way to Okinawa. Though the fun doesn't stop there, take your skills to a fresher online system with new perks, weapons, vehicles and maps! Play against people around the world or team up with them in an exciting 4 player Co-Op campaign.

One of the new gaming features TreyArch brought to the gaming world which has never before seen in any War themed game is Nazi-Zombies! Go solo and face the endless waves of zombies or invite your friends to the horror to see how long you work together as a team to repel the Zombie hordes! If your lucky enough you'll get the chance to use the new hidden Ray Gun and easily blast away those Zombies.

xbox 360 gaming related

Recently i purchased an unlimited card at my local cinema which means i can watch all the movies that my heart desires for only £11.59 a month. I only have to go see three movies a month to save money by buying this, i can't believe it's taken me so long to get it. Before i got this card, i went to the cinema on a friday or saturday night maybe twice a month, but to get my monies worth i have been going a lot more often now.

So, in the past couple of weeks i have been to 3 or 4 early showings, say 11am, during the week and it's amazed me how many people go to the cinema by themselves! I would fell really awkward going to see a film on my own, and frankly find it a bit odd that others don't. Don't get me wrong, i don't judge the people i see, thinking they obviously have no friends or whatever, cause i'm sure they do, but i just can't ever see myself wanting to go to the movies by myself.

So, have you ever gone to the cinema by yourself? If you have, why, and do you enjoy seeing a movie (in the cinema) by yourself or with friends?

x

musingsthoughts movies

I tried and failed. Anyone wanna do a black/white/red motif for me? :P

Edit: Lydia fixed 'er up. Everyone say 'Thannnk youuu Lydiaaa'. :)

p.s. much as i would enjoy it, i am not sarah silverman.

web development neoseeker related