ICandee's Top Five: Christmas Edition

Still need some last minute gifts for the gamer in your life? Target out of the DS? No Wii's to be found? The only edition of Rock Band you can find is for the PS3? Well fear not, my friends! I have gathered the finest in last minute gamer gifts that are guaranteed to be available in stores! And here they are (in no particular order)-*ahem*

ICandee's Top Five: Last Minute Gamer Gift Edition

1. Wii Points Card: If you know someone lucky enough to have been able to actually find a Wii this holiday season, why not buy them a points card for the Virtual Console? Or if you know someone who really really wants a Wii for Christmas and you also know they're not getting one, get them a points card and make them open that first. They'll think their next present is a Wii and you'll have the pleasure of pointing and laughing when they start crying.

2. XBox Live Subscription (the year one, don't be a cheapskate and get the 3 month one jackass): If they don't already have XBox Live, this is a great gift! And if they do have Live...well, who doesn't like saving $50.00 bucks? Woo hoo, free year of Live!


3. Game Stop Gift Certificate: Let's face it, with the exception of a Play N Trade here and there, Game Stop is all we've got as they push forward in their plan to annihilate every "mom and pop" game store in their path. So just give in and get your gamer a gift certificate from Game Stop. Nothing says "I love you and stuff but I'm too lazy to really put any thought into a gift and this way you can get what you want and I don't have to hear your bitching" like a gift card, yes?

4. XBox Live Points: With all the downloadable content for games like Rock Band and Beautiful Katamari your gamer is going to be truly grateful that, thanks to you, they only need to spend $60.00 bucks on a game since you're picking up the rest of the tab by buying them a points card. (oh yeah, they can get movies and stuff too I guess).

And last but certainly not least: *drumroll*

5. PS3: Let's face it, finding a PS3 this holiday season is like shooting fish in a barrel.

Don't forget to check back for ICandee's Review of Everything 2007-coming soon!

Betrayal And A Two Hour Drum Solo

Well, we're already getting into the holiday spirit around my house: dreaming about finding a pink DS in my stocking, wondering if Rock Band would ever consider coming out with a Christmas carol song pack and crying over Heroes' betrayal since they've crossed the line between good (engaging story lines and characters) and evil (this craptacular season). Which reminds me of one of my favorite Simpsons quotes, "I didn't think it was possible, but this both sucks and blows". Up yours Heroes!

Speaking of The Simpsons, I'm trying to play through this game and let me just say this: the humor is fantastic, the look of it (on the 360) is almost perfect Springfieldian and if I have to have another argument with the camera because I want it to go one way and it insists on go in the exact opposite direction, I going to pitch my controller at it. (Then Ill pick my controller up lovingly, dust it off, apologize, then I'll flip it the bird and go play Rock Band...I'm totally awesome on drums by the way...)

I'm Taking My Katamari and Going Home

Ah, the sweet sensation of glorious rumble when your speeding Katamari collides with that stupid jerk dog that won't get out of your way...Oh Katamari, how I've missed you! Sort of anyway...

Being a rabid fan of the Katamari Damacy series of games (Me and My Katamari was the reason I wanted a PSP and I still listen to the soundtracks in the car) I was overjoyed to learn that Katamari was "rolling" onto the Xbox 360. Not only that, but it was going to be $40.00 bucks. Woo hoo! Now of course once all of the downloadable content comes out, King of All Cosmos knows how much the game will end up costing me but at least I have it now on the 360 and can take a break from playing the old games through BC power on the PS3. At least for a while...

Unfortunately, being one of the few Katamari fans that liked the 2nd game better than the first, I was disappointed to find that Beautiful Katamari is more along the lines Katamari Damacy. Which isn't a bad thing all told, however in BK instead of telling you it's a size objective they try to disguise it as a specific object..uh, objective. Of course, you still need to get a certain size within a certain time period and rather than success being measured by how many "Japan" things you've managed to roll up, it's more dependent on size a la Katamari Damacy without being based on number of things rolled a la We Love Katamari. The temperature mission is back although it's made more frustrat...er, challenging this time around by cold things making the temp go down. Ironically, the "roll cold things up" mission is missing the "hot things bring the temp up" aspect. There's no cut scenes to speak of so the story they tell you in the beginning is it: no quirky Japanese family, no King backstory, no nothing....Just plug the hole, no time for small talk! *TWSS*

The "All New Music!" soundtrack has me slightly confused as with the exception of a few new songs, it's really just remixes of songs from previous Katamari games. Which is fine with me I suppose since I'm a huge fan of Katamari music. (FYI: I swear one of the songs features a girl that sounds JUST like the video instructor from Battle Royale!)

For all my whining, I still like the game. It is Katamari after all (and the 8-bit credit game is back from Me and My Katamari, woot!). However, I'm ready to spend my hard earn points on some downloadable content that will hopefully give me more of a reason to not run back crying to the PS3 for Katamari backwards compatibility consolation.

And now it's time for "ICandee Tangent Time!" *pause of applause*

I watched The Descent for the first time last night...what a depressing freaking movie (Original UK ending FTW!)

Next On A Very Special Episode of Puzzle Quest

On the next episode of Puzzle Quest:

Let Them Eat Cake...Creepy Creepy Cake

Ode To A Cube

Oh Weighted Companion,

That helped me through that level,

How my heart broke for thee,

When I sent you to the Devil.

Return of the JedICandee

Well I'm back from Disneyworld and can now start my new gaming life as a married woman...dun dun DUN! Here's a random picture from our honeymoon. I thought it'd be funny for RuFfNeCk to try on some mouse ears:


He didn't think it was so funny but I'll let you judge for yourselves, yes? He's too busy concentrating on the Halo 3 countdown to still be mad anyway (Is it too early to start my Beautiful Katamari countdown?).

However, the best picture has to be the one we took after riding "Star Tours" at Disney MGM Studios. After you leave the ride, they have a photo area in the gift shop where they will stick your head into a scene from the Star Wars movies and do their computer magic to make it look good. Here's the result of RuFfNeCk and I as Princess Leia and Han Solo:

As you can see, I love my husband very much...

At any rate, the honeymoon was fabulous (I highly recommend a Disneyworld vacation) and we found a couple of arcades that had Mario Kart which was awesome! But I'm glad to be home and I'm ready for some new games...Game on!

Honeymoon in DS...Wait, I Mean Disney

Just a quick update before we leave for our Disneyworld Honeymoon:

The wedding went off without a hitch (that I know of) and a huge group of TehBiasers showed up which was awesome! You always think it's going to be strange to meet people in person that you've known online for years but meeting these guys over the weekend was great and luckily we didn't feel the need to wear headsets while we talked to each other. Here's a group shot:

Whoops! Wrong group shot...

It meant a lot of RuFfNeCk and I to have all of them here with us for our wedding. Now all I have to do is get my husband out of the COD4 beta to finish packing and we're off to the airport! We've restrained ourselves to bringing just our DS's (I'm also bringing the book, "Battle Royale" which is awesome, get the book or see the movie!) and hopefully while I'm at the airport I can pick this up:

Anyhoodily doodily, everyone have a great week, see ya when we get back!

I Made It Into The Wedding Beta!

My dearest fiance RuFfNeCk was rabid about getting into the COD4 beta. And I mean rabid...He even signed me up in hopes that both of us would get in. Well, I'm happy to report the following:

1. We're getting married today and yet I still found time to blog (I'm so dedicated to the 2 people that read this blog).

and

2. I made into the COD4 beta and he didn't...Suck on it Honey!


The beta is awesome, in a few hours the wedding will be awesome and all is right with the world...

Told You So!

It's so nice to have my feelings about games validated. Especially when it concerns the Excellent Game Psychonauts, which I try to get people to buy on a regular basis. Of course, what makes it even better is when said validation is put in such a witty witty way...

Please to enjoy

Demo Derby

In between getting ready for the wedding (2 weeks!) and watching "Rock of Love" on VH1, I've been demoing a couple a games here and there and I have to say that some have been great and some not so much. One of my favorite aspects about gaming these days is that there usually are a lot of demos available for you to try before you spend your hard earned money (or allowance you get for free...I miss those days). Here's what I've been trying:

Beautiful Katamari: While some say this demo is too short and others say "WTF is this?", I say I still love Katamari and the simple 3 minute demo was glorious! I think what made this demo even better for me was the knowledge that I was playing on my 360...where there will be achievements! Online play! Beautiful HD graphics (?)! I'm actually really excited to hear the "all new soundtrack!" as the Katamari games get my vote for best soundtrack any day...

Hexic 2 (or whatever they call it): I am all about some Hexic: it's free, it's fun and I have played many hours of it (I think it's still the #1 game on my 360's blog). So when RuFfNeCk said, "Honey, Hexic 2's hitting the XBLA!" I knew it was going to be a good day...and then I downloaded the demo. Know how Coke and Pepsi keep coming up with all of these cockamamie flavors, like this one has vanilla, this has vitamins (yeah right), this one tastes like dirt...and while they may be legit flavors that do taste great, part of you can't help thinking, "What'd they change it for? The original was great!" Thus, my feelings about the new Hexic. It's not that the game is bad...It does have a battle mode which seems cool and maybe I'm just getting slow in my old gaming age, but it has so many different things you can make now (create a line? What the hell does that mean?!) that I was never sure what went where and why that explosion just happened and what I'm suppose to do now with the red thing I just "created". Add to that a board that seemed far away now for some reason and washed out graphics where I have trouble seeing and I'm one step away from shooing kids off my lawn with a broom. Unless you all feel the same way and then it's the game's fault...In conclusions, meh.

Bioshock: OK, I didn't really play this demo and those of you who read this blog at all know I am too wussy to play scary games. However, that doesn't stop me from watching RuFfNeCk play scary games and he played this demo...a lot. And I watched him play it...a lot. So far, best looking game ever and I don't really mean the graphics. I love the whole art deco 50's thing they've got going on...the look is great, the music is great, the creepiness is creepy and I am going to love watching RuFfNeCk play this game. We're thinking of decorating the game room in art deco and do some sort of mural on the walls to look like Bioshock (without the corpses everywhere though). But this demo...wowowowowow.

Yo Ho Yo Ho A Goomba's Life For Me

With just a couple more weeks until the wedding, starting a new job and trying to not be overwhelmed by the monster that is Disneyworld (our honeymoon destination), gaming has not been much of a priority for me sad to say (although once this blasted wedding is over, look out September Games, woo hoo!)

But I shouldn't complain, since my life could be a lot worse...like a Goomba's life for instance:

Zen and the Art of Doing a Whole Lot of Nothing

Well, once again Spaces has changed. I no longer have my pink font option and it took me a good 2 minutes to realize that the "add" function to write a new entry was right above the old entry....Silly MSN...stop changing! Tongue out

In other news, I have been slightly ignoring my games lately in favor of 2 activities I used to do often: read books and go to the movies. Specifically, I saw the midnight premiere of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (otherwise known as "Harry Potter and everything but the Order of the Phoenix"), I finished "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" a couple of days ago (satisfying end to the series for me) and tonight RuFfNeCk and I are headed out to see the midnight premiere of "The Simpsons Movie" (woo hoo!) and last but not least we're going to the drive-in with friends on Saturday to see "Transformers" and "Harry Potter and the Order of etc and so forth". Should make for a fun time.

I did pick up Oblivion for a while the other day but just ended up running around and then quitting to play Animal Crossing Wild World. (Yes, I went back to my town...took me forever to clear the weeds!) Ah well...good times...

ICandee's Top Five: Retro Games Edition

My new favorite website: retrojunk.com. Why is it my new favorite site? Because at 30 years old I am already retro and apparently this is where my childhood has gone to die (or be fondly remembered, whatever). But what makes this site really great is that they have a commercials section: woo hoo! Nothing better than cheesy commercials from days of yore...ahhhh, smell the moldy smell of materialism...Therefore, please to enjoy

ICandee's Top Five: Retro Video Game Commercials

1. Super Mario Bros 2 (NES)-I realize that for Mario purists this game was a travesty, but my brother had this game and I do remember loving it (I could choose to play as Princess Peach!!):

2. Ms. Pac-Man (Atari 2600)-Oh yeah baby, this was craptacular! My favorite part of this commercial however is the "Ethel Merman" Ms. Pac-Man singing "Don't you know, I'm more than Pac-Man with a bow!".

3. Atari's "Buy One Get One Free" campaign-Ah valley girls...where would the 80's be without you? This commercial makes me mortified to have grown up in the 80's and yes, I did talk like this sometimes...God help me, I did...

4. The Legend of Zelda (NES)-Best part of this commercial: "Whoa, nice graphics!". The rapping nerd is a nice touch too though. "Your parents help you hook it up!"

5. Nintendo Power Glove (NES)-Ah yes...the power glove...I guess we can't laugh too loud, Nintendo did change it to a remote like shape years later...

 

And there you have it, my top 5 video game commercials: retro style. Ever notice that video game commercials these days aren't really directed at kids anymore? I'd like to leave you with this last gem from the good 'ole days...A Super Mario Bros 3 cartoon entitled "Kootie Pie Rocks" wherein Princess Peach goes to see her favorite music group...Milli Vanilli.

OK, now I'm off to see if all of my E3 goodies are done downloading yet. If everyone could pause their downloads so that mine may finish, I would greatly appreciate it.

A Little From Column A, A Little From Column B

With E3 beginning, every blog and their grandmother is going to be writing about what's going on, therefore I am not going to bring you up to the minute news on E3...mainly because I don't get paid to do that so I'm not going to do it (in your face Corporate America!)...I'm also still bitter that I'll never be a booth babe since they decimated the size of E3, so although I will be watching, reading and waiting, there are hundreds of other fabulous blogs you can read for your news. I'm here to bring you the non-news...so hang on to your controllers because here we go!

1. I played my first PC game last night! American McGee's Alice. I must say that it's fabulously creepy and has a very cool art style. Only problem is that the whole "W-S-A-Damn I Can't Do This" controls that ruined it for me. I was backing Alice up like a Mac Truck trying to get her to turn around and ended up getting stuck in some sort of slime lake that I couldn't jump out of (I kept forgetting to move forward with "W" after hitting the space bar to jump) while stupid card guys pelted me with a fireball or something. You know, (at least for me) PC gaming is like driving a stick and console gaming is like driving an automatic. So a little practice is in order but it's a bruise to the pride when you can't play a cool game only because your fingers won't cooperate.

Interesting side note: As we're looking through all of RuFfNeCk's PC games to decide what would be best for me to try, he noticed that "Alice" is rated M for "Animated Violence and Animated Blood and Gore". Then he noticed that Call of Duty is rated T for "Blood and Violence". Ummmm...wha?

2. TMNT for the 360-Yes, yes a virtual shooting achievements in a barrel type of game, but it is fun to play. It's also even more fun because I rented it free with my Blockbuster Online monthly coupon that I can use on a game or movie. Woo! (I just realized that there's quite a bit of product placement in my blog as of late...I think I'm due some sort of compensation...or at least an article written about me called "Gaming and Blogs: Have Advertisers Gone Too Far?")

3. I was a member of Face Book for about 2 minutes before I was lost in a sea of confusion and deactivated my account. Sorry guys, I just don't get it...Do I have to use "W" to move forward? :P

4. Wowowowowow-I got my second achievement in DOAX2 the other night: all of Kokoro's suits. Woo hoo! Is there an achievement for most hours wasted in a game for nothing? Ah who cares-second achievement!!!

There's more but I'll save it for next time...Game on y'all (and a very merry E3!)!

And Now A Word From Overlord

Stupid minions...If I say go and blow up the Halflings hole thing they spawn from, I mean go and blow up the Halflings hole thing they spawn from!!!

Whew...it's hard being an Overlord. *turn to camera* Oh hi there! I'm the Overlord. You may remember me from such games as Overlord for the Xbox 360. You know, it's not always easy being an Overlord. You never know whether you should kill the human you just rescued or take his head with your axe. Some old minion is always yelling in your ear and telling you what to do, tower construction takes so long it might as well be a second Death Star and those minions you hired thinking it would be great to have someone else do all your dirty work? Well, they don't tell you about all the paperwork you have to do when one of those morons dies and believe me, they die...a lot. The minion insurance rate is so high these days I'd be better off taking over the world by myself. *chuckle* Yeah, it's not always easy being an Overlord.

But what is easy is eating a delicious Subway sandwich! *Hold up sandwich* With only 6 grams of fat or less, these babies are delicious and nutritious! Letting minions do all your killing and pillaging can make for one fat Overlord but now that I've made Subway's yummy 6 inch chicken breast sandwich part of my daily diet, I can eat and command my way to a slimmer, healthier me! Subway, eat fresh! *take bite of sandwich and smile* Ummmm, mmmmmm...Subway!

ICandee In Space

I finally decided to become a non-conforming conformist and created a My Space page yesterday. I know, I know...but the deed is done and there it is. I'm not abandoning MSN Spaces however and will probably copy blog entries from here to there for the most part so you won't be missing out on anything. It's nothing special but if you'd like to see it, you can check it out here. (Don't forget to send me a friend invite if you have a Space!)

In other news, I'm playing Overlord at the moment and might I just say that other than how slow I run (I am in full Sauron armor after all) the game is pretty wicked. My current mission is to find a mistress...oh yeah...

I Wish I Could Fight On A Boat

When I first heard that they were making a movie version of Dead or Alive, I rolled my eyes. Can't Hollywood just leave my games alone? Go think up your own stuff and quit ruining my games! But then again, a bunch of scantily clad girls jumping around and kicking butt? OK, I guess I can see the appeal of making that for the big(ger) screen. So I knew that it would suck but those are the breaks...Video games and movies just do not mix. Whether it's Super Mario Bros., BloodRayne or just a movie where characters play video games (i.e. Stay Alive) it just doesn't seem to work very well. And now, despite everything everyone else has said and despite my own misgivings, I have a confession to make:

This movie is not bad. I like this movie. And no, I don't mean this movie:

I do indeed mean this one:

This is the way game-to-movie translations should be done: know your material and never take yourself more serious than that. The material: people that fight go to tournaments where they fight. Period. Now I will admit that the last 15 minutes are wrapped up in some crazy scheme where you think they may just pull off the bad guy's mask and hear him exclaim "I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for those meddling kids!", Helena is not French but come sort of bubbly rollerblader and Devon Aoki scares me. Other than those things, DOA never strives beyond it's abilities and that makes this movie entertaining...to me anyway. I have to say that I was surprised to read reviews of how "boobtastic" this movie is...um, am I the only one to see that virtually none of these women have any kind of boobs to speak of? I mean, any true fans of the game (and by game I mean boobs) can see that compared with DOA 4 and DOA X2's extreme boob physics, this movie really took the tame approach. Yes, the girls are scantily clad, yes one of them does an entire fight scene in nothing but a towel and yes, there is an all-girl fight in the rain...but even with that, you see that in any movie these days and it's interesting what a tame approach they took. Even the obligatory volley ball scene is short and sweet and since these actresses aren't all that well endowed, it's not even a big deal. Funny thing is, I think I'm the only one who sees that.

Ah well, I liked the fights scenes, I like the sense of humor it had about itself (let's face it, DOA is no Oscar contender and it never pretends to be otherwise) and other than the three things listed above, I enjoyed this movie. It's short, it's fun and it's DOA. To each his own I suppose...If you'd like to read other reviews, just take the above sentence and say aloud the exact opposite. That's ok, I perfectly comfortable all alone in my I-Like-DOA-The-Movie-And-I'm-Proud camp...

Fight For Your Right to Mario Party

Well, Sean80 sold his Wii, TormentX couldn't get rid of his fast enough and I'm looking at our Wii wondering what the heck I can play on it. I almost passed out from playing Super Monkey Ball last weekend (Red Light, Green Light is stressful) and although I am hoping to finally get the courage to play Resident Evil 4 Wii at some point (I'm notoriously chicken when it comes to horror games) I was at a loss to find something truly addictive and fun to play on the Wii...

Enter Mario Party 8

I love this game! Where the heck was I for the last seven? This game to me is the Wii seller (assuming you're looking for group play). The games are long though and have that "Monopoly-go on forever and ever feel" which isn't a bad thing I'm sure. So if you're looking for a great group/party game and unlike Sean80 and TormentX your Wii is still intact-make sure to grab a copy of Mario Party 8!

P.S.-Yes the pink-burn your retinas-theme is back...oh how I missed you Pinky!

P.P.S.-I can hear my fiance, RuFfNeCk in the other room yelling at Prince of Persia for the XBLA. I think I just heard him say, "You stupid British &*%$ sucker!" Which is weird since the Prince is obviously Persian. Hey Honey, who needs to calm down now? In your face Sweetie!

Couple of the Year: Persian Prince and Alpha-152

I was so excited when I heard Prince of Persia Classic was coming to the Xbox Live Arcade. I was even more excited this past Wednesday when I heard it was waiting for me to download it in all it's Prince-y glory. It's been a while since I was so excited to get my hands on a game and the time had come! I was going to play classic Prince of Persia...all was right with the world...

Until I started playing it and realized that the Prince hated me and wanted to see me die slowly and painfully. Or maybe it's quickly and stupidly since the little bastard seems to like to jump off platforms in some sort of freaky gaming free will stand against me. I haven't been this frustrated with a game since Alpha-152 and that's saying something. And to be brought down by an arcade game is just humiliating. I've always said that there is a fine line between a game that's challenging and one that makes you play the same section 1,000's of times until you finally beat it only to fall of an edge and die. He can pull himself up off of crumbling ledges and can't survive a two foot drop to the ground?!?!?!?!? "Son of a $%^ I hate you #$%&*& why God can't he just #@*& when I hit the $&^% A button %^&* over and over again! Mutha #$%*&(!"

Annnddd that's been life with me for the past couple of days. I at one point even told the Prince to lick my balls which is so wrong on two levels: 1. It's an ugly thing to say and wildly inappropriate and 2. Since I am a woman, I don't even have balls. Therefore, I've decided not to play Prince of Persia for a while, RuFfNeCk says I'm scaring the dog...

ICandee's Top Five: I've Been Playing! Edition

Well with RuFfNeCk the Fiance moving in last weekend, there's been practically no time for gaming, much less blogging. /end excuse

But that was then, now that he's here we can get on with the gaming! (Especially since he brought a PS3 and Wii with him, woo hoo!) So here's the June 1st Edition of my Top Five:

ICandee's Top Five: What I Been Playing Edition

1. Ninja Gaiden Sigma (demo on PS3): I never played the original but this looks good. I like button mashing which served me well until I got to the Boss. Oh well, still fun. (of course, it's last-gen-Xbox-now-next-gen-PS3-duh-huh fun but whatever...)

2. Mad Tracks (demo on XBLA): How cute is this game? I've only played the demo on XBLA but I really enjoyed it. I had the most fun with the "dodge the ball" game. Had I the points, I would have bought it. :P

3. Resistance Fall of Man (PS3): OK, I didn't play this so much as watch RuFfNeCk play it but I got the general gist. Looks pretty good although I was expecting better but the weapons are cool and it had a very Call of Duty feel to it in my most humble opinion.

4. Halo 3 beta (Xbox 360 via Crackdown): OK, again, didn't play this myself but I had a house full of guys last weekend and they played the tar out of it. Very fun to watch and I love watching good Halo players play. There's something about watching someone running, picking up weapons, strafing and getting the kill in virutally one fluid movement that fascinates me. But I think the best part was some guy sending me a friend request (thinking that I personally was the one that schooled him in a few matches) and then sending me a picture of what I'm assuming he hopes I believe to be his torso. Classy...I of course declined the friend invite...

5. Shadowrun (Xbox 360): You know, it's never a good sign when no one reviews your game when it comes out. WTF? But I had seen the game being played and it intrigued me. The difficulty came in when RuFfNeCk and I couldn't decide whether to share one copy or buy two. Our sensible sides won out and we got only one. This game is a lot of fun. I quite enjoy teleporting around and that shotty is powerful as all get out, in your face AI bot for jerks! I may just venture into the unwashed masses to play this one as I'm not sure anyone else I know is getting it. (Might be nice for IGN to review the 360 version instead of wasting time bitching that they can't hook up the PC version) But I guess that's moot anyway since I already have it and I'm liking it. Up yours reviewers that don't review!

Boom Boom Banished to the Wii Room

OK, I admit it...I'm one of those gamers that will exclaim, "but I was hitting the right button and I died anyway! Stupid broken game..." Case in point: Boom Boom Rocket. I know for a fact that I was indeed pressing the Y button at the correct time but alas, the game is broken. I'm trying my best to complete Hard mode but holy firework Batman, I just don't think my thumb can move that fast!

In other relationship news, RuFfNeCk's power supply for his 360 died a painful death and while it is being whisked away for surgery at Microsoft Medical Center, we are having to share my 360 by switching out hard drives. This actually has gone smooth as silk...until last night...Having a PS3 in the house has meant that I have rediscovered We Love Katamari and decided to play through it again on the new system. Between that and my shouting matches with Boom Boom Rocket...well, let's just say that I became a little bit of a console hog last night and my poor fiance got banished to web surfing on the Wii (which is in our second gaming area). I felt bad but he got his revenge when he played Worms on the 360 with the guys and I had to listen to "Surprise!" and "Uh oh!" over and over and over again...AAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!

Please let the power supply come back today-Please let the power supply come back today-Please let the power supply come back today

Let The News Eat Cake!

You know, I could write about Jack Thompson supposedly writing Bill Gates and blaming him for the Virginia Tech shootings or I could touch upon David Jaffe's hissy fit and the various jackass responses there to. I could even discuss the latest shaky cam Halo 3 multi-player video or why I'm thinking of moving my blog to 1up.com because Spaces hates Mozilla Firefox, but that's not what ICandee, You Game is about...

ICandee, You Game is about issues that matter. Games that you really care about playing and news that means something. I'm of course referring to Cake Mania for the Nintendo DS...

Yes, yes I've read the reviews and they aren't particularly pretty, but so freaking what! Cake Mania is a lot of fun and if it weren't for the searing chest pains and panic attacks I have while playing, I would probably play it every day. As it is, I try to bake my way to glory every other day in between rounds of Boom Boom (the XBLA game, not the fun kind of "boom boom") and Scrubs reruns.

So there you have it...Hard hitting gaming news and up to the minute updates on important developments? Pfffftttt...Whatever, I'm too busy trying to save my grandparents' bakery from those no good corporate slimeballs...

Arcade Go Boom

So how come no one told me about all the new games for Live Arcade?

/sarcasm

Current Addiction 1: Boom Boom Rocket-The only thing that would make this game any more fun is if they added some symphonic Floyd and symphonic Doors. Nothing better than classical dance music...

Current Addiction 2: Luxor 2-Just like Zuma only easier and more difficult...Oh Microsoft, is there anything you can't sell me twice?

Current Addiction 3: Puzzle Quest-OK, not an Arcade game...yet...Muwahahahahaha

Elite Beat and the Clockwork Effect

The other day at work, "Believe" by Cher came on the radio. I've never cared one way or another about Cher but I found myself on the point of dry heaving when this particular Cher song started playing. The strange thing was that the same thing happened whenever I heard "September" by Earth Wind and Fire or "Let's Dance" by David Bowie. What the heck? Then it hit me...I had become a gaming Clockwork Orange...Dun-dun-DUN!

I spent so many hours playing these songs (among others) in Elite Beat Agents on the DS that they have become almost cringe worthy to listen to now. If nothing else, my finger will start tapping the EBA "ultra violent" beats as if I were still playing the game. Sort of like: take away my stylus and I can still feel my fingers tingling...

All that's left for me now is to get my butt kicked by an ex-droog. And where's the nearest milk bar anyway?

ICandee Strikes Back and Actually Finishes a Game

Episode VII

I Totally Pwned Lego Star Wars II

When we last saw me, I was having difficulty beating this game as glitches were trying to destroy me.

Jedi Luke would miss a jump and then continually spawn in mid jump with no escape in sight...

Dagobah R2-D2 would slide down hills and not be able to get back up...

Dagobah Luke would get stuck behind a truck and not be able to move...

Someone would be in my way and I would shoot them...

*sigh*

But none of this stopped me!

I continued to fight the Force!

(The bad one, not the good one)

And yesterday I had victory over Lego Star Wars II for the Xbox 360...

To celebrate my triumph, here's a guy playing the Star Wars theme on a banjo:

Engamement Picture

It's hard to know what topic to hit on today as there is a lot going on: GRAW 2 is out! I fought Lego Star Wars II and Lego Star Wars II won! I have gaming engagement pictures or "engamement" pictures if you will...

OK, maybe I'll explain that last one first...

Anyone that's been reading this here blog for a while (you know who you are and I thank you) knows that my fiance and I met on Xbox Live and we're getting married this year. A "marriage made in Microsoft" I suppose. So as RuFfNeCk was down here in NC over the weekend, we went to get engagement pictures made. We got the usual poses taken (for the family and what not) but then...to immortalize our love (for games...and maybe for each other I have no idea) we took this one:


Ah yes, true love...

In Your Face Hitomi!

Well it's finally happened! After hours of relentless bathing suit shopping and volleyball playing, I unlocked an achievement in DOA Xtreme 2. Woo hoo!

When I first bought this game, I assumed that the achievements would be easy ones to unlock...Then I remembered Itagaki made this game and my hopes were dashed. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem working for my achievements. There's nothing like that feeling of, "Yes! I did it!" when that precious little banner flashes along the bottom of the screen. But for me, DOAX2 started to taunt me when I hadn't unlocked a single achievement after playing through multiple vacations as Hitomi (who, by the way, isn't even my favorite character but once I got going with her collection, I didn't want to start over again with someone else). Not to mention that Christie is my partner right now and she's mean...

Anyhoo, I now have an achievement in a game that refused to give me one for playing it non-stop for I don't even know how long. Ironically, if this game had no achievements, I probably would have just played through one or two vacations and then traded it in. Pure genius Microsoft!

*I can't wait to see Jay get 100% completion in this game.

By the way, for anyone currently playing this game, make sure you play it long enough for Zack to give you the "strange volleyball". Wow..

The Craftsmanship of Video Games

Nothing like a change of scenery to breathe new life into a blog, eh? (Here's to finding an Photoshop cutting tutorial, cheers!)

In my recent travels (and by travels I mean visiting sites other than mine), I've come across an entire side of video gaming that has nothing to do with the act of playing video games but is part of our "culture" nonetheless. I was unwittingly a member of it and didn't even know it...until now...

May I present: Video Game and Handicrafts...collide!!!

We have gaming cross stitch, created by Becky over at The Pink Samurai:

We also have gaming knitting in the form of a Katamari hat (I want one!), created by Natalie Zee Drieu at Craftzine.com:

There's Duck Hunt in Lego form from Skinny Coder (check out his other ones too):

And last but not least, a knitted Two-Headed Baby from Doublefine, created by Jessica Hutchison:

So what is the lesson for today children? Here it is: Even though Mom's made you put down the controller, that doesn't mean the gaming has to stop.

Minor Celebrities and Major Weeds

My last entry regarding my Top 5 Comfort Games reminded me that I actually hadn't picked up Animal Crossing Wild World in a while (3 months actually as my villagers were so kind to point out to me every 2 seconds). So from 2/11 when that entry was posted until tonight: I have been de-weeding my village. *shudder* I was really wishing I had the Action Replay DS that turns weeds into goldbags...that would have much more fun and I could have gone shopping at Nook's instead of spending all of my time pulling weeds and kissing my villagers' backsides since I've been away so long...Oh AC:WW, how I love thee!

In other exciting news (that actually is more exciting than the news of my weedy village) TormentX's first episode of Minor Celebrities is up on You Tube, woo hoo! Check it out here or you can also watch it via TormentX's fabulous blog here.

ICandee's Top Five: Comfort Games Edition

I was watching a cooking show the other day that was making "comfort food". You know, those particular dishes that always give you that "at home" kind of comfortable feeling. Down here in the South, that would probably mean chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and buttermilk biscuits. *yum* Comfort food can be anything in my opinion, it's all about whatever gives you the feeling that all is right with the world...

Which got me thinking about certain video games that give me that same feeling. I have a lot of "favorite" games but there are a select few that I always go to for that "comfort" feeling. Happy or sad, whether I have 5 minutes to get some gaming in or hours to play, these are my "go to" games where I get that sense of comfort and relaxation. So without further ado, I'm proud to present...

ICandee's Top Five: Comfort Games Edition

1. Fable (Xbox): Being the first game I ever played on the Xbox, I still have fond memories of this game. Beyond that however, there's some solace to be had in running from forest to forest, killing everything in your path just to gain enough experience for the level up you need or playing blackjack for hours and hours just to be able to afford that sweet sweet Solus Greatsword...oh baby...

2. We Love Katamari (PS2): I'm a rabid fan of the Katamari games anyway but We Love Katamari really got it right. This is one of those games that is always played whenever I need a shot of cuteness or in the mood to try and get 1,000 paper cranes in one shot. Even though you're on a timer, this game has always been a laid back treasure for me.

3. G.R.A.W. Online Co-op (Xbox 360): I'm sure by now it's well know that I adore G.R.A.W. but co-op is really where my heart lies (lay? lies? whatever...) There's no better feeling than "us against the world" in co-op. A lot of games have this feature and they all do it pretty well but I always get that comforted feeling when we launch into a G.R.A.W. co-op mission. I still laugh whenever there's a team kill (and no one's let me forget that I can be the worst offender) or when the lone wolf of the tribe runs off and bites the dust 3 seconds into the mission. And I still yell at the screen for a team mate to "watch out behind you!!!" when I'm waiting in the dead lobby. It's one of those online times where it's not always frantic but it sure is a lot of fun.

4. Viva Pinata (Xbox 360): Although this game has a habit of getting hectic at times, there's always that one moment (for me it's usually the time between night and day when my sherbats are going to sleep and my cinnamonkeys are waking up) where everything is serene and soft cutesy music plays in the background. Everyone's getting along, all your plants are watered and there are no sour pinatas to be seen. The perfect time to take a cleansing breath...right before a stupid syrupent tries eating your mousemallow...again.

5. Animal Crossing (Nintendo DS): Some games have fishing in them but none have captured that actual "all the time in the world to fish my little heart out" feeling like Animal Crossing. Other than trying to time yourself to meet specific events, you have the freedom to spend your days doing whatever you want. There's no missions to get done, no one to escort and no boss to battle. It's the one place where you can literally spend the day doing whatever you want. Make friends, write letters, dig for fossils, fish, make constellations or clothes, shop, plant...Play for 2 seconds, play for 2 days, play for 2 weeks...It's your world and you're in charge...

And in the end, isn't that a part of why we play video games in the first place?

ICandee, You Game Turns 1!

Believe it or not, one year ago today I created this Space and made my very first blog entry. What a long game trip it's been...What's this? A congratulatory greeting for little 'ole me? I wonder who it could be?


Why thank you Mr. Gates! I feel so honored...

You know, I would like to thank everyone that reads my blog for well...reading my blog. I've met a lot of cool people (a.k.a. Spacers) through this little blog of mine (most of which are now gaming buddies) and I have to say that I'm thankful for our gaming community here on Spaces. Thanks also for visiting and leaving comments here at ICandee, You Game as well as writing the entertaining blogs that I enjoy reading every day. I really do appreciate it!

Y'all come back in another year now, ya hear?

Neither Rain Nor Sleet Nor Snow Will Keep Me From Gaming

There's nothing like finally getting back on Live and having a G.R.A.W. 2 demo waiting for you. I had no idea Ubisoft was going to celebrate my return! (Actually, celebrating would have included a multiplayer demo as well but I'll take what I can get!) Thus, it looks as though the next couple of months will be another quarter deluge of game releases with G.R.A.W. 2, Guitar Hero II and Dance Dance Revolution Universe all for the 360. (To name a few on the ICandee Gaming Radar)

This morning I woke up to...get ready...SNOW! So now (after listening to my fiance and his coworkers laugh at me and my homeland because we shut down at the mere whiff of flurries) I get the day off and I'm gonna play me some games...viva la sleet and slush!

The Good, The Better and The Cable

Well well well and just who is the Space of the Week you ask? Why I do believe that would be yours truly! So everyone go check out the Spaces main page so you can then click the link to come back to my space so Microsoft will think I'm cool.

Now could there be any other good news? Yes! I won a Frag Dolls t-shirt from Ubisoft! (Picture to follow soon) Can anything be better than that? Why, my internet is up and running again! *cartwheel of joy* And what's better than that? A new G.R.A.W. 2 developer video! The Day of ICandee has arrived! Woo hoo!

The Birth of a Psychonaut and Other Beat Agents

You know how they say when a woman has a baby, that the labor hurts but then she forgets it and usually goes on to have more children? Well, I forgot how frustrating some parts of Psychonauts actually are simply because when it comes right down to it, the game itself is so much fun to play and worth the time invested in said playing. Ah well...such is the life of a Psychonaut...stupid theater for jerks...It is interesting to note however that there are a select few games which are excellent, they just happen to include incredibly difficult and/or frustrating sequences. Am I the only one that wanted to throw my controller out the window when Alpha-152 showed up in DOA4? Anyone else have games that would be included on both their "Favorite" and "Most Frustrating" lists?

Case in point, for all of those that assume that beating "Jumpin' Jack Flash" on Sweatin' difficulty in Elite Beat Agents would be easy, here's a video of a guy that actually does it. I'm pretty sure this guy made a "Faust" type of deal to be able to complete this song. He's pretty much my idol at this point...

In other news, I have once again been shut out from playing on Live. Apparently the cable for my internet connection is bad (as in shorted out not as in getting down with it's "bad" self) and tomorrow night it is going to be rewired. Thus, I am hoping to have a triumphant return to Xbox Live and there shall be much dancing and celebrating in the village to be had by all.

BC Psychonauts Are Go!

have to admit that I never thought backwards compatibility for the 360 was that big of a deal. Once I got the 360, I was ready to move on to the "next generation of games" and besides, I kept my original Xbox so if I ever wanted to play old games (which I doubted) I could do so on my Xbox. There were two, maybe three games I wished was BC but other than that, whatever. I really liked Jade Empire but I have to be honest that when I put that game into my 360, what used to be a beautiful game on the Xbox (and my 24 inch TV) made me vomit in my mouth a little when I saw it "upgraded" on the 360 (and my new 51 inch TV). Bleech...

But that was then...

Now that Psychonauts is BC on the 360...all gaming hell has broken loose in the best possible way. I spent a good four hours playing it over the weekend and I have to say: it looks great and it plays great. I don't even mind so much that I don't have access to my friends list while I'm playing it. That is saying a lot for yours truly as I much prefer having my finger on the pulse of Live when I'm playing my 360...

For those that have yet to see the light on this game, go get it! It's cheap and has provided me with one of my more enjoyable experiences playing a BC game on the 360. Ah 360 Psychonauts...is there anything you can't do?

I Am The Handheld Queen, I Can Do Anything!

Since my internet at home is still not working because some cosmic force does not want me on Xbox Live (Why God, why?), I decided to temporarily focus on some handheld gaming. (Because let's face it, 360 single player games are just not fun for me without "So-and-so is online" popping up every few seconds.) Thus, I have the following announcement:

I have BEAT Elite Beat Agents for the DS AND Me and My Katamari for the PSP. In your face broken cable modem! I finally conquered "Let's Dance" and was soon on my way to the "Boss" songs (for lack of a better term) and proceeded to kick the their butts too...OK, that was a lie...I beat the first "boss" song and have yet to beat "Jumpin' Jack Flash" which is impossible to beat because Elite Beat Agents are cheaters. There, I said it...At any rate, I'm counting EBA as done and done because I have now fully beat the game twice and am one song away from beating it a third time...This thing is B-E-A-T for me. lol

In Katamari news, one swollen thumb and 8-bit ending later, Me and My Katamari went on the finished list as well. Crappy-one-analog-stick-duh-Sony control scheme aside, this was a fun game and I will more than likely go back to it for more punishment in the future.

In conclusion, I may not be on Live but I'm not far behind...Cable Guy is suppose to be coming tonight to repair my modem and I will be back in the fray once again, shooting my team mates and blowing myself up with my own grenades...Woo hoo! See you on the battlefield...

Elite Beat Agents, You Just Made The List!

Since a broken cable modem has prevented me from getting on Xbox Live for the past week and it won't be fixed until sometime this coming week (ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!), I decided to focus all of my gaming energy on Elite Beat Agents for the DS. I finally beat the "Breezin'" and "Cruisin'" difficulties (in your face Nintendo!) only to unlock an even harder difficulty-"Sweatin'", led by some agent that looks like Macho Man Randy Savage. (Does anyone remember him? Does he still wrestle? Wait, why do I remember him?)

Anyhoo, I was doing pretty well on this go round (my third time playing through these songs I might add) until I got to "Let's Dance" which I think was written by Lucifer himself. I think it's humanly impossible to move the human hand that fast. I tried to get my dog, Lebowski to beat it for me but he just licked the touch screen. Lousy dog couldn't last 3 beats!

In conclusion, I hate Elite Beat Agents and everything it stands for...Darn you Elite Beat Agents! *shaking fist high above head* I will be victorious over you if it's the last thing I do!!!

To Have and To Hold GRAW 2 From This Day Forward

You know, I was going to type something all sweet and mushy about my fiance and being engaged...but nuts to that, there's G.R.A.W. 2 footage yipee! (Sorry honey but you knew about me and G.R.A.W. when you met me :P)

I love Ghost Recon.

I mean it.

I really do.

Seriously.

Hackers, Beat Agents and Daxter Oh My!

So here we are in the beginning of 2007 when I get to "resolute" that I'm going to finish more games this year (even though I won't but at least I can enjoy the "Season of Guilt for Not Finishing Games" when December rolls around).

On the bright side, I did "rack up" so to speak this holiday season...The addition of the PSP allowed me to add Daxter and Me and My Katamari to my collection. My fabulous fiance also got me the latest Halo book and Elite Beat Agents for the DS.

**Quick sidenote: You know what I love best about spyware and hackers? I think it's the way they try to get me to click on alert balloons by telling me to "Click this baloon"...Frakkin jerks...**

Anyhoo, Elite Beat Agents rules! Anyone with a DS that likes rhythm games needs to pick this up for sure. I'm going to try and get more into Gears of War and Rainbow Six Vegas now that things are starting to get back to normal. Woo hoo!

I would like to say Happy New Year to everyone in my first post of 2007...Now, on to the games!