YES!

Proof that the Nintendo guys are still the smartest dudes around when it comes to marketing...

Check It...

Source: Double3

Double3 delivers again...

One of my favorite "random" blogs these days has to be Double3. I found this guy through Carlos and his site is always good for some distraction.

Over the past few months, Double3's been doing a "Friday Fun" post where he links all his readers to cool online games.

Last week, he shared Ragdoll Cannon and I am addicted. I'm pretty stuck right now...can't figure exactly how to advance to the next level! But I will...and I will do Double3 proud!

Good News For Rock Band(s)...

Rock Band will offer more than 500 songs by the end of the year, according to information confirmed by developer Harmonix on Wednesday.


The disclosure came during a private gaming preview at the E3 gaming conference.

"We'll have 500 songs by the end of the year," Sean Baptiste, manager of Community Development at Harmonix, told Digital Music News.


Baptiste stopped short of naming names, though he pointed to "big bands" ahead. Ahead of a September release, Rock Band 2 is rolling with a catalog that includes AC/DC, Bob Dylan, and an exclusive Guns N' Roses track.


Currently, the game offers more than 200 songs, either from the disc itself or download. Rock Band has already amassed 16 million in-game downloads, according to up-to-date figures supplied by an MTV representative. The game is published by MTV Games and distributed by Electronic Arts.



Source: Digital Music News

Gamer Dad Update...

Yeah...we bought it.

And it's great.

Control!

Jonah and Todd Are In...

Now, THAT'S a funny shirt.

Another Demographic...

In the past, I've tried to be very honest about my video gaming.

With regard to my video game skills, I have maintained two points:

1. I like playing video games.
2. I'm really quite bad at them.

But I'm having a problem, and I dare say it's a common situation facing many other married-men-with-children-in-their-30s-and-above.

Games are just too hard.

I wish all these game manufacturers would realize that there are a lot of us that simply like to play a game every once in awhile. We don't want to spend a week trying to figure out how to hack into the missile guidance system on a submarine. We don't want to have to do try levels over and over and over again just to get to an even harder checkpoint.

I want games that are easy. Games that I can pop in and play through and not have to restart again and again. I'm sure that teenagers and college students enjoy this - these marathon sessions wherein they toil without food, sleep or proper hygeine just to complete the basic levels of the game, but I don't have the time or the energy. I just wanna' blow some stuff up, okay?

I don't mind a game getting harder...but can't it get harder slower? And can't it get harder, you know, easier?

I'm telling you - games could make even MORE money by targeting dudes like me - guys who like games and will pay for them as long as they are fun and don't encompass my entire existence.

Who's with me?
Who doesn't care?
Who thinks I'm a giant whiner?

I like video games.
I'm a sucker for documentaries. So, right after I see King of Kong, I'm gonna' check out "Second Skin."
Because I'm weird.

Some of my long-time readers know that I've longed for a Sony PSP for some time.

I recently made contact with Jordon Cooper, who, in addition to being the first blog I ever read and therefore my inspiration, is always well versed in all things PSP.

Jordon gave me a pretty nice breakdown of the PSP's pros and cons, but recently, I got to check it out a little deeper.

I didn't know this, but one of Kristen's cousins got one for Christmas and had it at a family birthday party. I'd like to say that I acted cool and nonchalant and very adult about the whole situation.

But I can't say that, because, in reality, I did everything but pry the little device out of the hands of the children as they played with it.

There's usually not a lot of gadgetry that I find myself longing for, but this is one of them. Would it be wrong to use CD money to buy a video game/mp3 player/web browser/portable movie player? That's a ministry expense, right?

(I almost bought one a few hours ago. Pray for me, saints.)

I Can't Imagine Editing THIS...

TONIGHT, I:

1. Planted explosive devices on two giant German silos, then crept through a factory to flank some bad guys who had my boys pinned down.

2. Drove a jeep full of soldiers through a fire-strewn roadway.

3. Handled my own tank in search of "The Black Baron." (Who got owned, by the way.)

4. Participated in a forest attack as the company sniper.

__________________________

I may not be able run through the woods outside playing army like the old days, but thanks to the good folks at Nintendo, I'm badder and better than ever.

To those of you familiar with the Nintendo Wii, the little picture makes perfect sense. It is Ninetendo's Mii creator.

Essentially, the Wii lets you create a little character. Ideally, the character is supposed to be YOU so that you can use him or her to play games, "mingle" with other Mii characters online, stuff like that.

Well, our Wii isn't hooked up to the Internet, but that hasn't mattered much. My wife has become a Mii Artist.

Now, let me tell you something about my wife that you may not know. A lot of folks know that she's pretty artsy - she can pretty much learn how to do about any creative thing. But what most of you probably don't know is that Kristen has a soft spot in her heart for caricatures.

As a matter of fact, it's a long-standing tradition in the Wright house that if we are ever in proximity of a caricature artist, we will have one done. About six or seven years ago, Kristen decided she wanted to learn how to caricature. We bought a book, some paper, pens, whatnot, and she got pretty good. But alas, along came children and busier days and the caricatures disappeared.

But they're back...

My wife has been busy creating very realistic and charming little Mii characters of our family and friends. To date (since Christmas morning,) here are the folks she's designed:

1. Me
2. Her
3. Jonah
4. Finley
5. Kristen's Mom
6. Kristen's Dad

7. My Mom
8. My Dad
9. My Grandfather
10. My Grandmother

11. Her brother
12. Her sister-in-law
13. Her neice

14. Robert

15. Shelly

16. Ashlin

17. Her cousin
18. Her cousin's husband

19. Her cousin's daughter

20. Her cousin's son

21. Lance

22. Amy
23. Jason

In addition to that, Jonah created 2 characters named 515 abd 709 and I did my best to make a mock-up of Shooter Jennings.

If you're not on the list yet, don't worry. I'm sure Kristen will be getting to your profile soon. In addition, I found the Mii creator online today, so maybe Krist can showcase some of her folks over at her blog. (She's gotta' blog something, right?)

And if you're one of those people reading this, thinking, "THAT GIRL HAS SPENT WAY TOO MUCH TIME ON THIS STUFF."

You're absolutely right.

ADDICTED...

Spending way too much time on this little game right here.

Fantastic graphics, a story line longer than the last three Zelda games combined and easy enough that I can progress normally through the levels and mindlessly enjoy myself. (Something you can't get from a game based on the writings of Tom Clancy.)

Who Appreciates This?

Thank You, Romack!

A few months ago, Justin Romack said,

"Hey, you guys want to borrow my Zelda game?"

I said, "OF COURSE," and then he gave it to me.

I played it for one night and then decided that it was a game fashioned in the very fires of Mordor and would forever be the pre-teen video game that bested me.

And then, there was Jonah.

Somewhere along the way, Jonah decided to play the game, moving me from gamer to armchair coach as I help Jonah navigate the journey of the Wind Waker. Parts of the game are much too complex for Jonah, so I get the chance to show my skills, but what's more interesting is the entire family-aspect of this addicting little journey game.

Now, Kristen and I sit and watch, helping Jonah decide which door to take or how to use the grappling hook to get past the Lava Scorpion.

Even Finley enjoys watching this.

John Piper would hate my guts.

The Way I Spent My Night

Thanks to half.com, I recently bought Splinter Cell:Chaos Theory for $9. Yeah, $9.

It came yesterday and once the children were in bed and the living room cleared of toy debris, I popped it in and began playing.

2 hours later, I had only finished the first level. This thing is like actually being in the army.