Russell Peters

Kevin has alerted me to the fact that he hasn't watched Russell Peters before. Insane!!!!

I've seen him live twice now. Once when he came to our high school and last friday when he performed in Dundas Square. I missed him when he came to Waterloo (FED Hall) and when he sold out the ACC....for TWO nights in a row. It's unheard of for a comic to sell out a 50,000 seat stadium.

So for those that haven't seen his stuff, I've provided a link from where you can download this comedy goodness. Unfortunately, it's a .rm (real player) file and the compression is cranked up all the way, but it doesn't matter. You can play real player files in Windows Media Player if you download a codec for it.

Let me know if the link causes problems.

Enjoy!

Pokemon can be Heart Warming

First off, I just wanted to link to this heart-warming story with a video gaming theme. I especially like that part about the kids shaking hands and thanking each other after each match. A sharp contrast to what you'll find on something Xbox Live. If only everyone was as civl. To cap it off, a little girl sent an email upon reading about Gabe's kind actions.

Besides that, here is a boring list of some games that sound interesting (to me):

Raving Rabbids 2. I think I'll buy this one as soon as it comes out, just based upon how much I enjoyed the first one. There are more multiplayer games that can be played simultaneously, a definite improvement over the first one.

I had a chance to play Mario Strikers Charged on someone's modded Wii recently, because it was out in Europe months ago. The gameplay is suppose to be fantastic with enough depth for lot's of replayability. Should be a great multiplayer game. I think I'll purchase this right on August 1st, when it comes out. I checked today and the stores haven't received it yet. It has online play as well, which should be fun. I'm thinking of modding my Wii as well, and hopefully it won't wreck online play in any way. I'll delay modding to make sure it has no problems with online, or maybe just until my warranty runs out, as I have had Wii hardware problems in the past.

With the recent release of The Simpsons Movie, there was bound to be a simultaneous video game release. The difference is that this one is suppose to be good rather than just some licensed crap. Could be fun.

Mario and Sonic at the Olympics sounds promising, but is probably going to suck. I'll keep an eye out on reviews when it comes out.

Wii fit was Nintendo's big announcement at E3. Could be intersting, but I don't know if I'll buy this. Maybe it'll finally make doing cardio enjoyable for me, because I really hate cardio.

A DDR game is coming out for Wii. They add arm motions into the mix using the wiimmote. Sounds interesting at first, but the reviews says it's just a gimmick.

Boogie, one of EA's first orignal IP to hit the Wii is a singing+dancing game. Comes with a mic too. When they first announced it, it sounded promising, but I don't think the end result is great. They have a pretty good soundtrack. Too bad I can't sing.

The most important information about Smash Brothers is the controllers that are supported. Originally they were only going to support gamecube controllers, but now they've expanded the roster. Thank goodness. This is a guaranteed instant buy on release day.

Softball Injuries and Losses

I getting old. I had 3 softball games this weekend and went to the Docks. Docks was full of young people, including my younger cousin, Eric. Getting back home at 4 AM is an activity for younger people.

The next day was a softball game. In MCBC, our team is unfortunatly under .500. I haven't played on an organized softball team with a losing record yet. Perhaps the reason why is because I'm playing shortstop (a first for me, not counting little league hardball) and got voted for the heaviest player. I am neither the best defensive player or the best hitter out there. But I do think we have potential and all that really counts is the tournament.

During the game, I took a grounder off my throwing hand. It hit the ends of my fingers. I made the out after gathering the ball up, but there was blood everywhere. I had some splatter on my shirt and blood on my arm. Anyway, it bled alot and felt numb. I couldn't finish the game. We lost.

The next day, although it hurt a bit, I could throw. I had a double header in CCSA against the "best" team in our division. We lost for the first time this season, blemishing our perfect record. Just like the MCBC game, we got mercied during an early inning and I could only watch. I think we really beat ourselves, making numberous silly errors. Also, I hit into a fielder's choice with the bases loaded. Boo. But I'm looking forward the playoffs. Maybe I'll even get to face Edmond's team.....again!


Anyway, I'm sore and bruised. I need better conditioning and flexibility. I really need to practice my hitting. I don't even own a bat. Anyone know any good deals for bats? Or does anyone know if there are batting cages in Waterloo?

Godfather

I always have a tough time posting in the summertime. It's seems like there are so many activities to do that blogging becomes secondary.

This weekend, I hit up Docks, saw my cousin Eric there with his gf, played 3 softball games + practiced, checked out Missisauga Ribfest, ate out for dinner twice and had a BBQ with extended family.

I also opened Godfather for Wii, which I had bought 8 months ago. Wow, that game is violent. Maybe I'm not in the right demograph for these type of violent sandbox games, but having it on the Wii makes it even worse. The controls are really well done and you perform violent actions, like beating people up with bats (or my favourite, the flaming 2x4), punching them, grabbing them, throwing them around, choking them, etc. After my initial shock, it became really fun. I still can't bring myself to needlessly kill innocent civilians, but I have no problem with rubbing out rival mobsters. Check out the video to see it in action.



Godfather is my favourite movie, so maybe I was destined to like the game as well. If there is a popular license, the actual content can be subpar and the license can bring it up to make it an enjoyable experience. Like Transformers the movie for example. Maybe I'll like the Transformers game, even though it was rated horribly by all outlets.

A nice touch is that I recognized a lot of the real life NYC locations in the game. I can't wait for a game to recreate Toronto. This is one of the first "sandbox" games that I've played. I've somehow managed to avoid GTA all this time.

EA did a relaly good job with the Godfather license. They've recreated all the characters from the movie and you follow along with the movie plot For example, one of the early missions has you beating up the college preppie who violently raped Bonasera's (Funeral Director in the opening of the movie) daughter. Another one has you accompanying Luca Brasi to befriend Sollozo. Another mission has you helping Micheal Corleone protect the Don at the hospital. I can't wait to play out the rest of the movie. This leads me to believe that I'll give Scarface a try as well, although I didn't like Scarface as much as The Godfather movie.

So far I think this is one of my favourite games for the Wii. Right up there with Zelda for single player games. But now, I can't wait for Smash Brothers Brawl, Mario Galaxy and Mariokart Wii.

Transformers Review

As I try to recall my childhood, Transformers exists more in my imagination than on the TV screen. Much more time was spent using my imagination to play with my Transformers than watching the show itself. My imagination was limitless and satisfied my every desire, and therefore Transformers was the best thing....EVER...as a kid. But twenty years have passed and if I was pessimistic, my imagination is sadly overshadowed by things like sex and money. As a kid, the battle between good and evil was so clearly defined as a fight between Autobots and Decepticons, but real life is never as clear. This loss of innocence is something everyone laments. So how can you objectively evaluate something that puts you in touch with your childhood innocence? You can't.

Perhaps that's why I felt exhilarated coming out of the theatre. Speaking from my gut, it was an AWESOME movie!!!!!!111!!!!one!!!!!!!!!! It was a movie that satisfied my inner child's impulses. And really, that was the kind of mood I was in considering the subject matter. It gave me big explosions, giant robots fighting, cool transformations and ultimately good triumphing over evil. What more can you expect? What more can you want?

At the same time, part of me wishes for more. I have a habit of reading reviews immediately after viewing a movie to get differing opinions. I hadn't even look on Rotten Tomatoes beforehand to get a feel for the rating (bad, 57%). Some of the following ideas were from reviews I read, and they make good points that were perhaps "clouded" by nostalgia.

*** SPOILER AHEAD ***

One common theme was that the plot was very simplistic/juvenile, but in my opinion, this is largely irrelevant for a movie like this. The subplot with Anthony Anderson and the Blonde was largely pointless and wasn't even that funny. And yes, there were plot holes and such, but it was serviceable and that's good enough.

Personally, I thought the majority of the jokes were funny, while some failed miserably. I didn't like any of the scenes with Sector 7, but I really liked the early scenes when the boy is trying to get the girl with Bumblebee's help.

A lot of people complained about the quick cuts in the battle scenes and having too many closeups. I admit some parts were tough to follow, but overall it was well done. The last battle could have been more involving though, because it just seemed like random battles were happening all over the place without much purpose. There wasn't much satifaction when one decepticon was defeated or sadness when an autobot was injured.
    I think they missed a great opportunity to develop the Autobot characters (besides Optimus) further. For example, I struggled to remember which one was Jazz when they said he was destroyed. On the Decepticon side, I wished they played up the Starscream and Megatron conflict. From what I remember, it seemed like the downfall of the Decepticons was usually due to inner squabbling and pettiness and unfortunately the movie didn't reflect this.

The effect were undoubtly top notch, but I do have a small bone to pick. I thought the robots were too complicated. You couldn't really tell how they transformed from robot to vehicle. It's so much more obvious in this video.

It was great that they paid homage to the original transformers by saying things like, "Autobots, roll out", "One shall stand, one shall fall", "Lord Megatron" from Starscream, "More than meets the eye", and seeing a sword arm on Optimus. On the other hand, Optimus also says "My bad" - wtf?

*** END SPOILERS ***

Then there is the matter of Michael Bay directing the movie. Everytime there was a cheesy needless slow motion shot, I sighed. Speilberg got heavy billing as the executive producer and I think his influence is really felt for the first half of the movie. But it's all Bay for the second half.

Choosing Micheal Bay as director was controversial, but I would argue it's appropriate since the source material is for young kids and you can't expect that much more from it. It delivers exactly what a young boy would want out of a movie and Bay is a person that can deliver exactly that. By the end, the boy has the girl, car AND Transformers buddies. What more could you want?

Nothing.

Grace in NYC

My sister, Grace, has not only moved out of the house but even away from Toronto! She recently graduating from Queens in Concurrent Education and started to look for a job in the Toronto area. Unfortunately, there seems to be a glut of teachers in the Toronto area and she wasn't able to find a placement. I suppose Toronto is not a growing area for new schools.

On the other hand, NYC is a growing area for schools. I hear that NYC is a city that more people are rasing their children in, hence the demand for teachers. She got an offer from the New York Board, the largest school board in the USA, and decided to go. They are training her during the summer months and provide residence, so she had to leave quite abrubtly. I sincerely hope she gets placed at a decent school.

It feels strange with my sister in such a faraway location, but I wish her the best of luck! It must be scary and exciting at the same time. And now we can't play Animal Crossing together :( (A retarded game, but addictive nonetheless). But there's always wifi :)

So have fun in NYC sis, and I hope you find a good placement. Hopefully I'll be able to visit soon!

Transformers

When I was a kid, I was a HUGE fan of Transformers. I hated going to chinese school because I would miss the show. I loved getting Transformers as toys and figuring out how to transform them. I must have had over 50 Transformers...I even had an original Optimus Prime from Japan!

So far this summer I haven't watched any movies yet, but I will break that streak for Transformers. It is with apprehension that I approach the newly released movie. There is no way they can live up to my expectations....especially with Michael Bay directing the movie. I avoided all previews and trailers so far and have set very low expectations.

I tried to go today, but unfortunately they were sold out. :( The movie was actually released on July 2nd, a full two days ahead of the date I thought it would be released, July 4th. Maybe it's a different day in Canada to take advantage of the holiday. Anyway, I'm going to try again, maybe this Friday, or after my softball game this week.

TRANSFORMERS, MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE!

Rock Band vs Guitar Hero III

Music rhythm games are fun....especially when drinking. This fall, two really popular music rhythm game variants will go on sale and consumers will have to pick one. One is the 3rd iteration of Guitar Hero and the other is called Rock Band.

Rock Band includes not only two guitars, but also drums and a mic for singing. If you have four people together and all the necessary equipment, you could "play" as if you were a band. Doesn't that sound fun? I'll let the video speak for itself


*NOTE: apparently this video isn't representative of the final gameplay, but I think it gives the general idea

Meanwhile, Guitar Hero III will include a multiplayer "battle" mode.


So the question is which to buy? On one had, Rock Band will be crazy expensive, likely costing as much as the Wii itself after buying every accessory, but it has the potential to be much more fun having four people "jamming". Guitar Hero III doesn't look that innovative from the previous generations, but it should be cheaper and includes an interesting multiplayer competitive mode. Any advice on what you would rather play?

PS where the heck am I going to put all this stuff, let alone transport it every week to and from Waterloo!