Black Friday Findings

After a deep slumber I departed from my chambers and ventured out into the madness of Black Friday. It was, of course, madness. Overall it wasn't too bad since I waited long enough for the worst of the crowds to thin out. I came away with some nice deals today, mostly of the new/modern game variety.

I got a pretty nice deal on these, but nothing too major. I paid full price on Super Mario 3D World($60), but got 40% off on another game. So that knocked DuckTales: Remastered down to about $12. Since I was planning to get both games, it made sense to go ahead and get them both while Toys R Us had this sale going on. Even though I already own DuckTales on NES, it will still be nice to see what they've done with it on the remake. CANNOT WAIT to dig into Mario 3D World!

As much as I despise Gamestop, I could not pass up this deal(of sorts). The fact that Michael Ironside did not provide the voice of Sam Fisher in Blacklist almost made me pass up on this game entirely. A friend (who is as equally fond of Ironside as Fisher) told me that the game is good enough to barely make up for that loss. So for $25, I pulled the trigger. What was real crappy/Gamestoppy was that I noticed my "new" game had multiple fingerprints and a few small scratches on the disc. Luckily, the Gamestop close to my home let me swap the disc out with one that is closer to "new" condition than the other one. Too bad the cover art has "Gamestop Edition" on the front. I can get their crappy stickers off, but they went s far as to put their name in the cover art with this one. I've never noticed that before on any game. Oh well, at least I got a good deal on the game.

Now here are two games I've been meaning to get for a long time, though neither is too high on my playlist now. This was also a Toys R Us deal. You could buy any game that was $15 or $20 and get another of the same price for $1. So I paid $21 for two sweet games. Nice!

 And to round it all out, here are three NES games I picked up at Top Games. The Three Stooges, Tag Team Wrestling, and Joust with the manual. Top Games had the "buy two, get one free" deal going on used games. So $15 buck for these three games wasn't too bad at all. Concerning Joust, which is a really fun game, there are two things to note. First, I found out when I got home that I already own a NES copy of Joust(d'oh!). Secondly, this copy of Joust came with the manual(score!).

And as a special showstopper, here are two nifty items from the belly of the beast(Wal-Mart). Tropic Thunder on dvd for $2. Aaaaaaaand the fantabulously awesome show Firefly for $10! I'll take that deal any day. Until next time.

Bombs Awayyyyyyyy

This week I made away with only two games, but they are two games that I'm very happy to have. First up, for the NES....

Hudson Soft's timeless hero himself, Bomberman! Honestly, it has been ages since I've played a Bomberman game. I'm especially looking forward to playing Bomberman here on the NES, back when things were simple. I played Bomberman Jetters(I think it was) on the GameCube some years back, and it really didn't feel like Bomberman to me. It's always refreshing to go back and rediscover what made a lost and confused series(as it is now) so great in the beginning. And to top things off, check out that sweet label art. Gotta love it.





And next, continuing the Bomberman theme, Panic Bomber for the Virtual Boy!

I don't know much about this game, but being that it's a Bomberman game from years past, I'd bet it's pretty decent. Oddly enough, though I only own a handful of Virtual Boy games, I now own roughly half of the Virtual Boy library. I guess it's not that strange when you consider the Virtual Boy only has a library that is a few handfuls. Anyways, I plan to one day sit back with the Virtual Boy and give each of the VB games I own a good playthrough. This is probably the one I'm most hopeful for.




Well, enough jibber jabber. It's time to get a movie playing and pray that sleep comes to me soon. Oh yeah, have I ever mentioned how awesome it is to have a wife who thinks your game collection/collecting is cool? Well, let me just say that it is awesome!

welcome back, welcome back, welcome back

After a few hectic weeks(marriage, honeymoon), it was definitely time to grab a few oldies. It felt a little weird being out of the loop. Not hunting down dusty old carts can make you feel lazy. It's like you're not accomplishing anything and wasting time. So it felt great to be back in the saddle again. Hopefully I can continue to add a few games here and there every few weeks now. Anyways, here's the mini-stash I compiled the last week.

I was pretty surprised to find a few TurboGrafx-16 games out in the wild: Ordyne and Dungeon Explorer, both unfortunately without their jewel cases. Still, they are games(that hopefully work). Maybe I can test them out soonish. Also, Double Dragon for the Master System! Too bad it's got some heavy wear along the label aaaaaand no case. I'm REALLY looking forward to playing it, as it is supposed to be superior to the NES version. Also, the 6-Pak for Sega Genesis complete. 6 hot Genesis games on one cart! I primarily picked it up to finally have a physical copy of Streets of Rage(unless you count the Genesis Collection for 360). I'm finding it particularly hard to find a decent copy of Streets of Rage 1 & 3...

I also picked up two NES games: The Legend of Kage with the box, no manual, and Dragon Warrior III. I really hope that DWIII's battery is still working, as I've become quite fond of the Dragon Warrior/Quest games the last few years.

So what does the future hold for my game hunting? Only time will tell. The good news is my wife thinks my collection is cool and wants to go on the hunt with me. It will be nice to have a partner to get out there and pound the pavement with me. Well, until next time, kiddos!

Two coins in a bucket

Sometimes life can be very cruel. For example, I have only been able to pick up two games in the last few weeks. I don't know how I've made it through these trying times, but what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. There are two culprits to this game drought: getting married and Xenoblade Chronicles. Now, as for the two games that I did pickup....

Astyanax. Don't know much about this one. It is a Jaleco game, so that automatically makes me interested. From what I know, it's an adventure game and the descriptions I read online make me think it will play somewhat like the sidescrolling areas in Zelda II. I've also heard this is a pretty fun game, so at $4 it was an easy and affordable decision.






And then...

Shadowrun for the Genesis. Cult classic and all that jazz. It seems to be a really interesting game, and besides, you can't really go wrong with a cyberpunk theme from a game in this era. I had been kind of holding out for the SNES version, but did not know until recently that the SNES and Genesis versions are completely different games. Fantastic, now I have to get the SNES and the Genesis one.The word on the streets is that the Genesis Shadowrun is the more highly regarded of the two, but that the SNES Shadowrun is a must-play as well. Who knows when I will get around the trying this one out, but it's nice knowing that it's there waiting whenever the day does come.






So that about wraps things up. I'll be getting married in a few days and then off on the honeymoon for a week. I was hoping to finish up Xenoblade Chronicles before the big day, but it doesn't look like that is going to happen. Truthfully, I could have finished Xeno already, but I've been sucked into the game and have really been enjoying it. I've probably spent more time in the last week doing sidequests in the game than actually moving the story forward. It really is an amazing game and has me pumped up for the "sequel" that is coming to WiiU.

Anyways, it's time for me to fly. Sleep beckons. See you on the flipside.

Castlevania Legends (GB) text review: Timeless and Timeline-less

Time for another of my reviews, as game hunting has necessarily been slow going as of late. This is my review of...

...a  fun and somewhat overlooked game for the GameBoy. This game had the misfortune of being "officially" omitted from the canon of Castlevania by Koji Igarashi...apparently fancying himself as a bit of a Martin Luther and omitting what made him uncomfortable. Nonetheless, Igarashi has made some fine Castlevania games, so I try not to hold a grudge. Now let's get to the review. Ladies and germs, I present to you Castlevania Legends....

I really dig the boxart

Castlevania Legends is the third and final Castlevania game released for Nintendo's GameBoy. Hitting North American shelves in 1998, Legends, like many games released at the end of a system's life span, was not as widely played as the previous two GameBoy entries. Though it may have gone largely unnoticed(for a Castlevania game) and has a bit of a negative reputation, that doesn't necessarily mean that there isn't plenty of fun to be had in this short, sweet game. It should also be mentioned that, at the time of this review in 2012, Legends has been removed from the official timeline of the series. Bummer. Now, lets talk more about the game itself.

The storyline is simple, as is to be expected of a Castlevania game. The heroine, a first for the series, is Sonia Belmont. Sonia is a teenage girl who has shown uncommon powers since birth and has been trained by her grandfather in the use of his powerful whip. As you might expect, the creatures of the night attack Sonia's home and she sets out to stop Dracula and his minions.

Making your way through the adventure, things unfold in the traditional Castlevania manner. There are six sidescrolling stages Sonia must make her way through. You will mostly find yourself moving left-to-right/right-to-left, though quite often you must move up and down via ropes, rather than stairs as in many of the Castlevania games. The stages themselves are not exactly short, at least not as short as I was expecting. However, thanks to unlimited continues and the fact that you are not sent back to the beginning of a level when you die, it shouldn't take you too long to plow your way through to the end.

As far as controls go, Legends is simple and precise. Every strike of the whip and every jump feels quick and responsive. At first I had some issues hopping onto the ropes, as I thought you had to press up on the D-pad once you were aligned with the rope. Legends makes it easy for us: simply keep holding the direction you are jumping on the pad and Sonia automatically latches onto the rope. Thankfully, in Legends you don't have to worry about control limitations or imprecision masquerading as game difficulty.

Sprinkled throughout each of the stages are the usual assortment of creepy crawlies, such as bats, spiders, armored knights, zombies, and mermen. Most enemies can be defeated with one or two strikes from Sonia's trusty whip. However, some enemies, such as the knights, are tougher and require a bit of strategy to defeat.

Each level has a main boss character, and sometimes a sub-boss as well. These characters are some of the better looking points of the game, as they are well drawn and have nice detail for a GameBoy game. The boss characters have a menacing look and can be very large, though they may not be quite as fearsome as they may appear.

Nice graphical detail compared to Adventure

 

At various points in each level, you may be faced with a choice of which direction to go. Some paths lead to special items like a 1-up or a healing item, some take you to the end of the stage, while some will lead you to a special item, such as the axe or cross. Unlike many Castlevania games, these items cannot be used as sub-weapons to attack enemies. Instead, they are simply collected in your inventory and reward you with a special ending should you collect all of them and finish the game. Though these traditional sub-weapons do not serve their usual purpose, Legends does have a secondary feature that fills their void.

After beating each boss at the end of the level, you collect an orb as you might expect. Each orb grants you the ability to use it's inherent magic. The "ammo" for these abilities, as you might have guessed, are the hearts you collect from candles along the way. Most of these magical abilities can be used to attack, though one freezes time much like the stopwatch in older games, while the other will completely refill your health bar for a mere 20 hearts! All of these abilities are useful, though I found it best to save and spend my hearts on the time-stopping and healing abilities. Stopping time is especially useful as it can freeze those pesky bats as you are trying to move through precarious platforming sections or climbing the ropes. Interestingly enough, these magical abilities are not the only change to the classic Castlevania formula.

"Burning Mode" is a useful feature that can really help you out of a tight situation. Once per section(and life), you may press both the A and B buttons to activate this fearsome change. Sonia will be surround by flames and is invincible for a short time. Not only that, but she moves much faster and her attack power increases dramatically. This is especially useful against boss characters when you are running low on health. This feature makes many of the bosses a cakewalk, which ties into something about Legends that you may not care for.

Unlike many of the older Castlevania games, Legends is pretty light on difficulty. If you are looking for a challenge, Legends is not the place to find it. Not only are many of the bosses a breeze, but "Burning Mode" will make them laughably easy. The platforming and combat is normally very straightforward and only mildly challenging, so the magical abilities and "Burning Mode" features can often be used to plow through the trickier sections with relative ease. All of this, combined with the unlimited continues and not being sent to the beginning of a level when you die, makes Legends the least challenging Castlevania game I have ever played.

Graphically, Legends represents itself fairly well on the GameBoy. Sonia and the enemy characters are well displayed and distinct. I never had an issue with enemies being lost against the platforms or background due to the limited color palette. However, I did play the game on a GameBoy Advance which gives the game a nice, colorful boost in the graphics department. The boss characters are the true highpoint of the visuals. Each boss is detailed and has a fierce look about them, as opposed to some other enemies, such as the ghosts, which have a slight comical look to them. The background imagery in the game is sparse, but nice and well done where present. Being a GameBoy game, Legends won't have any of the grand, detailed levels you are used to from other Castlevania games. Despite these limitations, the game still manages to retain that distinct look and feel that is so important for Castlevania fans.

The music is not especially memorable, but that is not to say it is bad in any way. Being a GameBoy game, there are certain limitations that can be expected from just about any game on the system, and music is one of them. However, you might find yourself humming along to a familiar theme or two along the way. I found the music pleasant and enjoyable, with just the right amount of melancholy to set the mood.

The game is still fun...deal with it

All things considered, Legends is a fun and enjoyable experience. The graphics and music are clean and a bit simple, which is a good thing for a GameBoy game. Thankfully, Konami did not try to do too much with the game and designed a fun and solid journey within the constraints of the GameBoy. The controls are surprisingly precise and on point, which I think has a little bit to do with how easy the game is. A game doesn't need to be challenging to be fun for me, so I had a good time hopping platforms and whipping away at the enemies and really enjoyed the experience. If you are a classic Castlevania fan, or a fan of old school hack-n-slash platformers, Legends will be right up your alley.

Back from the dead

It's been a while, as life has been a little bit busy with the arrival of the little lady and getting ready for the wedding. Also, I've actually been getting some gametime in between all of that and work. Here are some of the pickups from the last week!

Picked up about 18 games on craigslist. 3 of the games I already had, and 2 of the games were duplicates(Mortal Kombat 3). So here are the new editions to the collection. Two of the better ones in the lot are TMNT Tournament Fighters and Paperboy 2. Paperboy 2 has one of those cursed rental stickers right on the frakkin label! I'll have to perform a Goo Gone operation on it and a few others some time down the road. Now, here are two other notable games that were in the lot...

Sunset Riders and Ghostbusters! I've never played either of these before, so the back catalogue of games to play continues to grow. Both are a bit valuable and combined are worth about what I payed for the whole lot. Sunset Riders for the Genesis is worth about half the price of the SNES versions, but it will be nice to be able to experience the game regardless.  However, if I'm not mistaken, the SNES and Genesis versions do differ from one another. Roo from Clanof thgraywolf.com did a nice video on Sunset Riders on his 16 bit Gems show, but it's been a while since I've watched it. Check it out if you're so inclined, it's a great show: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUkiWZDoWHY

Also, the Craigslist lot included a Genesis and a 3 or 4 controllers. I guess it never hurts to have a third Genesis around the house. Better yet is having extra controllers. The controllers for the SNES and Genesis were pretty sturdy, but most of them that you find are 20 years or more older and have withstood there fair share of (ab)use.

And to wrap things up, another Craigslist find. Not exactly old school stuff, but for 5 bucks I think it's worth mentioning. Wii Sports(appears to be unopened), 007 Quantum of Solace(couldn't care less), and Link's Crossbow Training. Link's Crossbow Training I never bought for some reason through the years even though I really wanted to play it. Unfortunately the zapper attachment thingy didn't come with the lot. It also looks like Link's Crossbow Training isn't opened, though that seems unlikely. Maybe the owners were experts at peeling those stickers back and replacing them perfectly?






I do have a few games that should be arriving in the mail soon that I'm pretty happy about, but those aren't old school either. If I don't get any oldies sometime soon I may do a little ditty about them here once they arrive and I have some time. So until next time, keep it real folks.

Streets of Rage 2 (GameGear) text review: Takin It To The Streets

Streets of Rage 2, for the Sega Game Gear, hit store shelves in 1993. Many console franchises were making their way to portable systems back in this era, often with poor results. The trip to portables often resulted in slow, water-down games that were a shadow of their console counterparts. However, Streets of Rage 2 makes a fairly successful jump to Sega's hulking little handheld. Now let's talk about the particulars.

As you would expect in a Streets of Rage game, you start out by selecting your character. There are three playable characters, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. First up is Axel, a rather well balanced character who excels in "technique" and does his best work putting his fists in enemies faces. Then there is Blaze, the tough, yet sexy gal, who is the most balanced of the bunch. Last, but certainly not least, we have Skate, who excels in "speed" and "jump" categories, and can't seem to resist the rhythm of the memorable Streets of Rage music. There is enough variety with each character, and their corresponding special moves, to make it worth your while to try each out. Also of note, there is a 2-player option for the game, which I am unfortunately unable to test out.

As far as the storyline goes, the evil Syndicate, headed by Mr. X, is up to no good again. In order to lure our heroes out, Mr. X's goons have kidnapped Adam, friend of Axel and Blaze, and brother of Skate. That's your plot and that's all that's needed. Now you can justify beating countless thugs to a pulp. Which leads us to how the game plays.

Streets of Rage 2 does an excellent job of bringing the thrills of the classic Genesis franchise onto the Game Gear. As you would expect, the controls are simple and take no time to get accustomed to. Move your character with the D-pad, attack with the 1 button, and jump with the 2 button. The developers did a great job of packing a good variety of attacks into the game. Even more impressive, they did so with only two buttons to work with. You have your standard jump attacks, grappling attacks, as well as specials performed by directional and face button combinations and button "charge" attacks. The controls work wonderfully and feel very intuitive. The actions seems to have been slowed down some compared to the Genesis games, but this works out pretty well to accommodate the Streets of Rage action nicely onto the small screen.

There is a decent enough variety of enemies to lay bare knuckle to throughout the game's six levels. Most are simple unarmed hooligans, though some carry knives and pipes. These weapons can be picked up from the ground and used to smack, stab, or throw at the enemies. For the most part these enemies are rather simple to do away with. You will find a little more challenge when coming across some of the more advanced enemies like the charging, fire-breathing "Big Ben" type enemies, and the sexy, whip-cracking dominatrix "Electra" badgirls. Things can get a little frustrating when the enemies start to "juggle" you, as in knocking you down, then knocking you down again the moment you stand up. This happens occasionally and it can be frustrating to see your entire health meter drained by such a cheap tactic. But then again, this is pretty much the tactic you will use against your enemies throughout the entire game. So turnabout is fair play? The only real challenging enemies are the boss characters who, after defeating them the first time, will reappear in later stages as mid-level bosses. Still, after a little practice, the bosses attacks and patterns are not to hard to master. You also have a few continues to work with. Thankfully, you will continue right where you left off and do not have to restart the entire level.

Graphically, the game is one of the better looking handheld action games of the era that I have played. It has that classic, Streets of Fire-inspired art design and the character models are drawn well. And is a review of a Streets of Rage game complete without at least commenting on the music? Sure enough, the music is excellent and as we would expect from Yuzo Koshiro. Even as I write this review I can't keep the main theme of the song out of my head. Naturally, the music here does not sound as nice as on the Genesis, but it certainly is a highlight of the game and successfully gets the vibe across.

There are a few drawbacks to the game, but nothing that really gets in the way of having a good time, which is what playing games is all about. There are only six stages in the game, none of which are very long, and the pace of the game is a tad slow. The enemies don't pose too much of a challenge, though you could crank the difficulty up to the highest level and set your lives down to the minimum level if that's your bag. These few quibbles, along with the instances of being "juggled" to death by the enemy as mentioned earlier, are fairly minor complaints when you consider all that the game does right.

In closing, if you have never played Streets of Rage 2 for Game Gear, it's definitely worth a look. You would be hard pressed to find a classic portable game that gets the beat-em-up formula so right. If you have played the game and it's been a while, it's a quality title that deserves a revisiting. From the graphics, to the music, to the near spot-on controls, Streets of Rage 2 is a classic beat-em-up that should never be forgotten. Enough talk, get out there and bust some skulls...in the finest of traditions. Long live the Streets of Rage!

Here are two pickups from this week. I've really been going on the cheap lately, and I found these two at a good price at Top Games.

Two games that I've never played before, so wonder and the splendor of discovery surely await! Caveman Games, I heard a few good things about it in some youtube videos. It looks to be a pretty fun game, and right up my alley. For some reason(maybe the caveman thing ya think?) this game brings to mind those Inventhelp commercials that show the little caveman chiseling a wheel out of stone.

Ultimate Muscle for GBA is a game that I have little knowledge about. I remember when it was released, along with the GameCube Ultimate Muscle game. As I recall, the GC game was supposed to be pretty fun(and retailed for $39.99 I believe), but I don't know about the GBA game. All I know is that I really enjoyed my Ultimate Muscle figures as a kid and I bought this game complete and mint for just 5 clams.

Life will be getting busy here in the coming week. My humble abode is 99% finished with all of the repairs, so I will be moving furniture back in and I will have access to my NES, Master System, and will finally have the chance to hook up the Turbografx 16 and Colecovision that I got a while back. Also, the little lady will be here this week and a lot of my focus will be with her. The cool thing is that she totally digs my game collecting sickness and wants to join me in my game hunting!

Pancakes.

Pennies From Heaven

What I assumed would be a light drizzle quickly became a monsoon for the collection this week. First let's start with the only game I actually bought this week.

 Yes, the one, the only, BurgerTime. When I think of classic, straightforward arcade goodness, this is one of those games that immediately comes to mind. It's the classic tale of chef Peter Pepper raining down divine retribution, consisting of buns, lettuce, and burger patties, on fearsome minions of evil such as pickles. You can play this game for 30 seconds and know all there is to know about the controls and what you're supposed to do. Simple. Fun. Ridiculous. I love it.

Now comes the monsoon. As I said before, I only bought one game this week, but there were 19 other games that came my way...for free.

19 Sega Master System games! A friend of mine had found these in his father's garage. He knows I collect and just gave them to me. I even offered twice to give him something, but he refused. How cool is that? The two games I am most excited about are Phantasy Star and Ys(which I forgot to include in the photo). Those two are worth a pretty little penny too. What's even better is that I only had two of these already, Black Belt and Thunder Blade. When I get my room finished up from all of the construction, I'm going to have a ton of games to play through. So a big "thank you" to my friend Shane for the massive hookup here. Wow, you just never know when something like this will fall into your lap. To borrow a line "That's the way game chasin go".

Last pickup for July

So things have been slowing down for me as of late. Money is getting tight and I will be getting hitched soon, but that doesn't mean I can't keep looking and spending wisely. Truth be told, I actually knowingly overpaid bit for the only item that I picked up.

Ok, so if you're going to overpay, make it a good one, right? Gargoyle's Quest is yet another classic that I never got to play back in the day. I was never big on the GameBoy in it's prime, mostly because it hurt my eyes. But now we can play all of those classic oldies on a GBA/GBA Player. I really look forward to playing this one, hopefully soon at that. Maybe life will slow down soon and I can waste time the right way, retro-gaming to my heart's content. Until next time....

Segaaaaaa

Amazingly enough, I kept myself to a bare minimum this week. I only picked up a few games, but two of them are pretty much kind of a big thing...kind of.

Soul Calibur for the DreamCast has been a long time coming. It's a game I've wanted for my DC for years, but things just never quite synced up right for it to happen until now. I held off on ordering a copy online, as that game is common enough that it WILL show up if you are looking. I had come across it a few times through the years, but it would usually be over-priced or pretty scuffed up. Aside from a crack in the jewel case, this one is in really good condition and for a fair price to boot. As usual, What's on 2nd comes through where other stores wanna gouge the price.

Now, the two GameGear games. I was kind of surprised to see Shining Force: Sword of Hajya at Wo2nd the other day. It didn't take long for me to decide this was going into the collection. I've never actually played a Shining Force game before, but the series' reputation speaks for itself.

Star Wars. Well, what can I say other than I'm a sucker for Star Wars. I'm not sure if it is a quality game or not, and we all know Star Wars game tend to be really good or really sucky. The price was right so I brought her home with me.

And to wrap things up, what have I been watching lately you ask? Why, Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040 of course.

Finally, something of substance. Yesterday the gods of video gaming showed favor and I gots me some goodies. Oh, and we will have a guest star on tonight's very special episode of "Blossom" who teaches us that drugs are bad, racism is bad, and and it's not how you dress or look that counts, but what's on the inside. But first, the games....

 Zone of the Enders for PS2 at the low, low price of 5 bucks. This was one of those games I was interested in and wanted when it was first released, but never got around to actually getting it. Some 10+ years later, here we are. Welcome to the gamily ZotE!

Also, Ultima Exodus for the NES. I've never played an Ultima game in my life, yet always had a desire to try them out. Although I don't remember which one it was, there was an NES Ultima that I had planned to get and was actually anticipating it's release, but it got lost in the hoopla so many moons ago. Once I have access to my NES again I'll finally fulfill that youthful desire for some Ultima.

Also along for the ride, Dig Dug II. I'm a big fan of the original, so this was a no-brainer. It's not every day Dig Dug II pops up, so I couldn't let it just sit there. Come to papa...

And now for our guest star of the evening, who in addition to combating racism, drugs, and materialism, will also tackle the tough issues of bullying and show us the importance of sharing....

R.O.B.! I don't actually have Gyromite or Stack Up, and all the doo-dads, but he is functional. Nice! If nothing else, he will look crazysexycool on my shelf watching me play rad games. It wouldn't be a very special episode of Blossom with out ya R.O.B.

Step By Step, Day By Day

Sadly enough, I've been unable to do much in the way of adding to the pile the last week or so. It's really sad when you just don't have the money to take care of the necessities like buying 25 year old games that need a loving home. But I digress...

These were picked up from a local lady I met a few weeks ago at the garage(say it with a French accent) sale. Although the games were pretty darn dusty, the labels are in really good shape. I already own Super Mario/Duck Hunt and Super Mario 2, but Donkey Kong Classics and California Games are new additions to the family. Dig that high cut swim suit(say it like Balki) on the California Games label.

And I'm not really sure why, but I've always liked the Donkey Kong Classics label for it's choice of orange as the background color. Really, how many games use orange as the main color for their label/cover? I can think of The Orange Box/Half Life 2 game, but that's all that really comes to mind. I suppose if I actually had readers, I would be snowed under in "duh, so-and-so game had an orange cover"-comments, but having anyone actually read this stuff is very much not an issue.

Remember when they moved from their small Chicago apartment to that castle?

Vice: Project Doom (NES) text review

Given the fact that I haven't been able to grab any games this week, I decided to dole out one of my GameFaqs reviews I did about two months ago, the excellent Vice: Project Doom for the NES.

A perfect blend of Kurt Russell&Mel Gibson,
along with some Tia Carerre and caution tape

Vice: Project Doom is an action/platformer released by American Sammy in 1991 for the NES. Filled with tension and excitement, it's a game that went largely unnoticed in the twilight years of the NES lifespan. While the Project Doom didn't exactly break new ground, it did take the road less traveled on the NES.

Games of this era are not particularly known for having much of a plot, especially action games. Vice: Project Doom, obviously inspired by Ninja Gaiden, has a fairly deep, and adult oriented storyline. Centuries ago landed on the Earth and developed a neon green gel substance to survive. In order blend into human society the aliens developed clones. The BEDA corporation was established by the aliens to manufacture the gel and clones, but also has begun developing weapons systems for the militaries of the world.

The main protagonist is Vice officer Quinn Hart. Hart and his partner, Detective Reese, are assigned to investigate the gel manufacturer, which has deadly effects on humans. Reese goes missing and is assumed to be dead. Hart sets out to solve the mystery of his buddy's death and the mysterious BEDA corporation. Hart is assisted by his lovely fellow Vice officer, Christy, who is also his lover. Christy's associate, Sophia, also shows up and provides Hart with info along the way. Over the course of 11 stages, Hart uncovers the mysteries behind the BEDA corporation which leads up to a climactic showdown with Damian Hawke, the leader of BEDA.

Remember this awesome Nintendo Power cover?

From the beginning of the game you will find yourself with 3 weapons at your disposal. Hart has his trusty laser whip, which arcs just above his head and immediately in front of him, as his main weapon. He also carries a .44 magnum and grenades to use against enemies, though ammo is limited for these two. Defeated enemies consistently drop ammo to replenish your supply, so you should seldom find your supplies depleted. Selecting between your 3 weapons is as simple as pressing the SELECT button to scroll through them.

The majority of Vice: Project Doom's stages are sidescrolling platformers. Various enemies, of the humanoid, monstrous, and mechanical variety, are present throughout the stages. The controls are simple and straightforward: press B to attack, A to jump, and press down to squat. You can also run while squatting, which comes in handy against many of the boss characters in the game.
The controls feel very intuitive and sharp. There is virtually no learning curve to the gameplay. The button commands do what they are supposed to do and do it well. Jumping with Hart feels very natural. Many games of this era featured characters with stiff or "floaty" jumping mechanics, and thankfully Vice: Project Doom has no such hindrances.

There are also two top-down driving stages, and two first-person, lightgun-type stages(though these are also handled with the gamepad, not the Blaster). As with most of the stages in the game, these are short and feature simple controls that take no time to get used to. For the driving stages, simply steer the vehicle with the D-pad and fire your mounted weapon with the B button. You can also shift gear to change your speed if you wish, though it's not really necessary. For the first-person stages, aim the cursor with the D-pad, fire your magnum with the B button, and launch grenades with the A button. As with the side scrolling stages, the controls are tight and responsive here as well.

Aesthetically, Vice: Project Doom takes the mature and "realistic" approach. The character designs are more naturally proportioned and true to real life than many games of it's time. The cutscenes, which evolve the story between levels and boss battles, are well drawn and are similar to the style of Ninja Gaiden and Golgo 13. The look of some of the stages seemed to have been inspired by the aforementioned Ninja Gaiden and Golgo 13, as well as other more "realistic" NES games like Castlevania, Contra, and Batman. The stages usually take place in the wild, the underground, or in industrial environments have a dark feel to them. As you might imagine, Project Doom makes use of a lot of earth tones throughout the game. That's not to say that the graphics are dreary or bland, as the developers did a nice job of mixing in neon colors and shadow/light contrasts to keep things interesting.

The sound effects are your typical fare for an NES title and are not especially noteworthy. Project Doom features some fine music and has a few memorable tunes sprinkled into the game. Overall, the music meshes well with the story, artstyle, and overall atmosphere of the game.

You ain't the only one, brother

Vice: Project Doom is a rather short game, and not overly difficult. Most of the bosses do not pose much of a problem once you figure out their attack and movement patterns. There are a few challenging areas here and there, but all of the stages are short and you will have unlimited continues at your disposal. All in all, it should not take most players more than a few hours to finish the game. Appropriately enough, the final boss is definitely the most challenging part of the game, but not extremely difficult.

The only real complaint I had with Vice: Project Doom was concerning the ending. You would think that with the healthy dose of cutscenes and the somewhat deep(for an NES game) plot, that the developers would have went all out at the conclusion of the game. Instead, you get a short, though enjoyable cutscene, the credits roll by quickly, and then a final image that leads you to believe the developers fully intended for Project Doom to become a full-fledged franchise...and all of that takes place in about 60 seconds. Despite the somewhat abrupt ending, the adventure is worthwhile and the story an enjoyable one that is pretty unique among the NES library.

Given the high quality of Vice: Project Doom, it's a bit surprising that it was largely ignored by the public and continues to languish in relative obscurity. When friends sit around and talk about great NES games you might hear names like Castlevania, Ninja Gaiden, Contra, and Batman mentioned. It's highly unlikely Vice: Project Doom would be mentioned in such a conversation, which is really a shame as it was obviously inspired by those great titles and did such a great job by taking cues from them, all while carving out it's own unique and memorable experience. If you're ever looking for an NES action/platformer with smooth controls, an engaging storyline, and an atmosphere that you could cut with a knife, just give Vice officer Quinn Hart a call...you won't regret it.

Gong Li, just because...

Systems this week!

Well this week was light on games, but I was able to get a few systems I've wanted for a while now. Take a gander...

 Ian at What's On 2nd hooked it up with a TurboGrafx16 and a Colecovision. I've wanted both of these systems for a while, especially the TG16. I actually have wanted a TG16 since I was a kid, so it's nice to finally have it now that I'm practically a senior citizen. The two TG16 games are Bonk's Adventure and Keith Courage in Alpha Zone. For the Colecovision he tossed in the timeless classic, Donkey Kong. Also at the bottom below the Colecovision is the module that allows you to play 2600 games on the Colecovision. Not pictured are all of the hookups for the systems, as well as two TG16 controllers and a multi-tap. In the center is a factory sealed Space Armada(Space Invaders clone) for the Intellivision. The price on this lot was to die for! Unfortunately, repairs are STILL ongoing in my slumber cave and I don't have access to my retro system tv to break them in. Life in America is so tough sometimes.

And to round things out, another pickup that I can't try out until the repairs are done, WCW World Championship Wrestling for the NES! Hmm, World Championship Wrestling: World Championship Wrestling...perhaps the most redundant title of all time.

I've never played it before, but those old school rasslin games have such a charm that I'm sure it was worth the money. Besides, not many games allow you to live vicariously through the Freebird Michael Hayes!

I may not be able to get much loot in the coming week, as a weekend full of work looms in the distance. Still, you never know when the bug will crawl up your rear and you'll go out searching. Until next time....

Super R-Type, one of those sadistic, hard as hell games from the early 90's. Shmups(shoot em ups) are notorious for being difficult, owing to their arcade roots and being designed to suck quarters/tokens from your pocket. While shmups by and large have retained their difficulty through the years, in the early 90's games were starting to get a bit easier. Many more fleshed out games were being designed from the ground up for home consoles, and even ports of arcade games were having their difficulty adjusted for the home console market. However, there were still many games being released at the time that were just plain brutal in their difficulty.

One of the launch games for the SNES, and what a launch that was, Super R-Type was one of those games that haunted me for years. To be more specific, it has haunted me for over two decades. Like so many younglings around for the debut of the SNES, Super R-Type was one of my very first SNES experiences and memories. It was(and is) such a fun game, just oozing with character, but it was insanely hard. We(my bro and I) never owned the game originally, just rented it from Video Xpress. So while we really enjoyed the game, we never really came close to finishing it during those 3 days of R-Type beatdowns.

There are certain games that you play as a kid and never beat that are always gnawing away at the back of your brain. Some of those games I would later finish as an adult, like Mega Man, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out, Ninja Gaiden. There are always some that still remain unbeaten, such as Contra, Ghost n Goblins, Super Ghouls n Ghosts, and Gradius III. Super R-Type was on that list of hard games that I never beat...until today!

Lately I have been playing me some shmups(UN Squadron, Star Soldier, Star Soldier: Vanishing Earth, Gradius III), but I had not touched Super R-Type. It had probably been 7 or 8 years since I had last played it, and that was just for a stroll down memory lane, not a serious attempt at playing it. Then yesterday I decided to man up and pop the cart into my SNES. This game has unlimited continues, so it can't be THAT bad, right?

Well, maybe. It definitely was every bit as hard as I remembered it to be. One thing that really makes this game such a challenge is that enemies come at you from every direction and angle imaginable. Front, back, top, bottom, even the corners of the screen. Not only that, but often you will have enemies coming at you from all these angles at once. On top of that you have to deal with random enemy fire, enemies that "snake" around the screen, and moving/shifting environments. If that wasn't enough, once you die you have to restart the level. That's right, no checkpoints. That kind of stinks, but at least when you are facing a boss you will have your ship powered up. Checkpoints in a game like this aren't that great when you have to face a boss with just your measly peashooter and no speed upgrades. Of course there is also the infamous slowdown that was present in many early SNES games. This is both a blessing and a curse on Super R-Type. It comes in handy when dodging a screen full of bullets and enemies, but it sometimes backfires when enemies go off-screen. In that case your ship suddenly goes from molasses speed to lightspeed and you wind up flying right into an enemy or a wall.

Anywho, yesterday I spent quite a few hours battling my way through the first 6 cruel stages of savagery in the game. If you ever want to know what YOU really think about YOURSELF, play a game like this. Apparently, I am of the opinion that I am an idiot, worthless, a literal pile of feces, and worthy of being sodomized. But we say things to ourselves that we don't really mean in the heat of battle, so I've forgiven myself for talking to myself like that. I had a few choice words for Super R-Type as well, but that's the name of the game when taking on such a challenge.

I finally took a break last night after cursing myself out a little too much. This morning I picked back up on the final level and was able to make it to the final boss fairly consistently. The final boss is really cool, what with his four tentacles holding on to trapped ships(that you can free), and the two space fetuses he is protecting inside. You don't have to rescue the ships, but it does give you more room to maneuver if you destroy the tentacles holding them. To finish him off you just blast the fetuses(I'll skip on the obvious democrat joke here) whenever he opens up. The pattern of the boss isn't that hard really, it's just getting to him that is the real pain.

You're treated to a cool little scene where you blast a whole into the wall to escape the explosion , then you and the rescued ships head out into space.The game informs you that the evil Bydo empire is defeated and you, of course, feel like a champ.

                                                        See you space cowboy....

 

As John Madden would say "BOOM"

For the week "ending" on June 23rd.

Well, it was another somewhat slow week for me. I didn't have any great finds this week, though I did have a first...a real deal retro game find at a garage sale. More on that in a moment, first, let's have a look.

To the left are two Master System games that I picked up from What's On 2nd: Thunder Blade and Gangster Town. As my cave is still undergoing repairs at this time, I don't have access to my Master System and have not got a chance to try them out. From what I have read, both should be well worth the price. I'm particularly looking forward to Gangtser Town.

Atop the two SMS games are a few items from estarland: Ninja Gaiden for the Lynx, and Macross: Do You Remember Love, an import for the Sega Saturn. Ninja Gaiden is fun and, apparently this is a "port" of the original arcade game; the gameplay is more of a beat-em-up, and less of a platformer like the NES NG's. Macross is a short shmup, but quite fun, especially if you enjoy Macross(Robotech). It is also one of those games that is a cakewalk until the very end, when the difficulty is cranked up considerably. Still, it wasn't too hard to finish. The game also features cutscenes from the anime movie.

In the middle are the five NES games I picked up this week, Double Dribble and Mickey Mousecapade courtesy of What's On 2nd. Aaaaand, I got them for the low, low price of $2 a piece. Double Dribble brings back memories of my early NES days playing with my brother. I can still remember what a thrill it was to initiate those slam dunk "cutscenes". The Mickey game I'm not sure if I played before, but if nothing else will be sure to reek of some cheesy cuteness that I can never seem to get enough of. The bottom three NES games I picked up at Top Games. Originally I just got 1943 and Pin-bot(LOVE the label art) from there, but Mega Man 2 beckoned me back the next day. $10 for Mega Man 2 ain't too shabby.

Now about those Atari games...those are what I found at the garage sale. I have had ZERO luck at garage sales through the years. My luck has been so bad, I rarely even bother any more. But this one was right down the road from my house, so I gave it a shot. As always happens at yard sales I go to, I initially saw nothing but, shall we say, woman stuff: lamps, cups, bowls, that kind of useless stuff. I did spy a computer mini-joystick box, and lo and behold, Atari games inside! My heart probably should have skipped a beat. Could it be? Had I finally found favor with the gaming gods? What hidden treasures await in this crappy joystick box? Perhaps Custer's Revenge? Has the spirit of Gunpei Yokoi directed me to a copy of Air Raid?!?!? Of course not. Inside were six games, all of them very common. Pac-man, Slot Racers, Space Invaders, Basketball(the only one I didn't already have), and to add insult to injury, TWO copies of Combat. Yes, Combat. Regardless, they were all in pretty good shape and I only paid 5 clams for them.

When I was snapping the (fuzzy) pic of my pickups this week, I felt like I was missing something. Sure enough, I did forget one game. Luckily, I had snapped a pic while playing it earlier in the week...

Ultraman for the SNES. My, my, how could I forget you?

And to wrap things up, I also got my copy of Pat The NES Punk Vol 1&2 in the mail this week. For those who don't know, Pat Contri is a retro game reviewer/funny lad on the Youtubes. Not only does he have weird hair, he is also my personal favorite retro game aficionado on the interwebz. I thoroughly enjoyed the dvd and encourage anyone who reads this blog(both of you) to check out his Youtube content as well as his personal site, thepunkeffect.com. Pat is one of the many talented and lovable yokes who contribute to an awesome site called RetrowareTV. If you love retro games, or just want to learn a thing or two about them, RetrowareTV is an awesome place to go.

So that's it for my pickups. Hopefully I will have more luck in the coming weeks. Then again, let's just leave luck to heaven. Get it?

Games From This Past Week

This week I picked up a few nice games, but didn't really have any major finds. Still, I was able to get a few games that I've really wanted. Things are a bit hectic with some home repairs having me out of my bedroom and stuff all moved around. Enough jibber jabber, let's have a look.

Of particular note here are the two Virtual Boy games, Galactic Pinball and Mario Tennis. I already have all of the VB games that I really wanted and I only started collecting VB a few weeks ago.

I am also happy to have Panzer Dragoon II in the collection now. Once the repairs at the house are done and I'm moved back in, I'll definitely give it a play. The Panzer Dragoon games are one of the reasons I most wanted a Saturn in the first place. The only PD game that I've ever spent any serious time with was Orta for the X-Box and it was a true joy to experience.

I'm also looking forward to playing Adventure Island(top left) here in the (hopefully) near future. It's been over 20 years since I last played it. I don't remember much about the game besides the look and feel of it, the fact that I did not beat it, and that it was a really fun game!

I also picked up Chip n Dale for the NES. I don't believe I ever played it back in the day, but, as with most of the Capcom Disney games, it is sure to please. A boxed Airwolf is now part of my NES collection. I'm sure it's not the most high quality game, but I picked it up at a good price and look forward to what I'm sure is an ultra cheesy game. The boxed Battle of Olympus is a welcome addition as well. The game looks to be pretty fun and a friend recommended it to me a while back. It also came with a mostly complete manual that has some passwords written in the password section of the manual; remember those??

Super R-Type was thrown in because I couldn't remember if I had included it in this blog or not(I had included it already) when I was pulling out all of the game pickups for the last week. It's an awesome game and brings back lots of good memories. I also got a few GameGear games on the cheap and one GameGear game(the Sonic one) that I slightly overpaid for. Speaking of overpaying, I have to mention Ninja Gaiden II. Yeah, I overpaid for it by a few bucks. I was a little off my game this week. :(

That wraps it up for this week. I will definitely be slowing down my collecting here in the near future. Not that I won't be getting games regularly. Since I have most of the systems that I want, I will be focusing more on quality games for the newer systems in the collection(Saturn, Master System) and trying to locate some must haves for systems that I already have a decent collection for(NES, SNES). I'm also going to be focusing on looking for game lots that I can purchase for a good price. With that said, game on!

Well what do you know, a few more games to add to the pile. After having lunch today I decided to drop by a local shop, Top Games and see if they had nay new stock. They certainly had some nice, new retro stuff, but being tight on cash I just picked these two up for a total of 15 bucks.

I'm ashamed to say that I did not have Super R-type in my collection until today. This was actually a game that I thought I had for years. Sometime last year I got the urge to play it and discovered that I did not have it. Well, problem solved now. It's in nice condition it's one of my earliest SNES memories. Then there is Section Z by Capcom for the NES. I don't think I ever played this one, and if I did it got lost in the ol' memory banks. Still, it looks fun and was only 5 bucks. Can't complain about that!

Few New Pickups

Yesterday morning after work I had a dentist appointment and while I was passing by, decided to drop by What's on 2nd to check up on something. While I was there I picked up a few games. So here they are!

Darkwing Duck for the NES! I'm really looking forward to playing this one. I never played it back in the day, but it looks like it's going to be a lot of fun. It's one of those Capcom-made Disney games. If you didn't know, Capcom-made Disney games are probably responsible for 50% of the quality licensed games ever made.

Now, about Batman Returns...I'm a big fan of the two Tim Burton Batman movies, and I've always enjoyed Batman Returns on the SNES, so Batman Returns for the Lynx cannot be that bad, right? Besides, I wanted another game to play on my Lynx. Well, let me tell ya, Batman Returns on the Lynx is pretty much as abysmal of a game as you can get. It's as abysmal as it gets for a game that works like it is supposed to. No glitches to blame here. My first inkling was at the title screen where there are no options at all. I pressed a button and the game begins, no setup to the story or anything, it just begins. In the game you just walk to the right of the screen and get completely overwhelmed by enemies that constantly spawn. You get peppered in the face with bombs, shotguns blasts, and knives, and find ol' Bats picking himself up off the pavement constantly. You start out with one life, and once you die it's all over. No continues. Youch.

I think I'll go play Batman Returns on the SNES to cleanse the pallet.

This weekend was pretty busy, and I was fortunate enough to get some pretty good loot. I wish that I had more time to actually play games, but considering the games that I got my paws on it was well worth it. Let's have a gander.

This is the load from Saturday. It came from a combination of a friend, the flea market, and a somewhat nearby store. Not a bad haul for a Saturday.

The Sega Saturn 3D controller came from a friend and was something that I really wanted for my newly acquired copy of Nights. I also got a copy of Rise of the Dragon for the Sega CD from my friend. RotD looks really interesting and, since I'm a fan of Blade Runner and the book that it's based on, should be quite an experience. If you've never watched Ridley Scott's masterpiece, Blade Runner, or  read Phillip K. Dick's wonderful book that the movie is based on, Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep, do yourself a solid and check them both out. I also got Batman Returns for the Game Gear from my friend.

Goldeneye, Ninja Gaiden, and Joust all came from the store. Nothing much to say about these. All are pretty common and not very vauluable. However, I am a fan of NG and Joust and really wanted to have them in the collection. I got a fairly good price on Goldeneye.

The flea market run turned out pretty well. The two most notable pickups here are Crash n The Boys: Street Challenge and Mega Man X4. Golden Axe II(GEN), Shinobi(Master System), Millipede(2600), Ecco the Dolphin/Sega Classics 5 in 1(SegaCD), Ghostbusters II(NES), and World Series Baseball(GameGear) round out the list for the day. I was able to get Mega Man X4 for $10, and the rest of the games for $20. Not too shabby!

Sunday was a pretty eventful day as well. Another friend hooked me up with some rarities, as well as some common, but always welcome, NES games. First up, an unopened GameBoy battery pack. That was unexpected, but pretty cool. Tiny Toon Adventures is a game I've always been curious about. Q*bert was one of my favorite games as a kid and it's good to have the NES version, although I already have the 2600 one. Captain Skyhawk is one that I've never played before, so I'm happy to get it. I already have the Super Mario/Duck Hunt and Bases Loaded games, but it never hurts to have more.

Now, on to the main course. This is what I've been looking forward to all weekend. Take a peep at this.

A Virtual Boy, alone with Wario Land, 3D Tetris, and Nester's Funky Bowling! 3D Tetris seems to work the best and boots up every time. I have to work a little bit with Wario to get it going, and Nester is being rather Funky(sorry) about booting up, but a little patience goes a long way.

Nester's Funky Bowling is the VB game that I've always wanted to play the most. I did get to play it for a little while earlier and it's a pretty fun little game. My biggest complaint, besides being stingy about booting up, is that there is no battery save. Unfortunately, this means it won't save your high scores.

Wario I only briefly tried out, but it played really well and similar to the GB Wario games. The graphics were really nice and the controls were smooth. I'll definitely get around to playing this some time down the road.

3D Tetris seems ok, though I only tried it out for a few minutes. It seems kinda slow and a bit bland. But a lot of the classics from the 2D era made the jump to 3D, so who is to say Tetris didn't deserve a shot at it. Still, I prefer my Tetris in glorious 2D.

So that is all for my weekend game hunt. I'll definitely be getting some more the weekend after next, but should have some more stuff coming in from the friend who hooked me up with the VB. Until then, game on!

Friday Findings

Friday is always a great day to grab some games. It's a great way to kick off the weekend and get your hands on some totally non-essential things that you're more concerned about than your own health. So here are some pick-ups courtesy of the lovely What's on 2nd in Birmingham.

 

 Not too dag-gum shabby. I had to calm myself and keep from spending a lot, as they had tons of new stuff in today. If I was still 21 years old I would have bought a ton more, charged it all on a credit card and not even worried about it until years later. But I'm older now, and have to worry about that now(thanks, 20-something me).

Star Wars: Rebel Assault for the Sega CD. I honestly don't know if it's a decent game or not. I honestly don't care. I'm just starting to collect for the Sega CD now and I love to play Star Wars games. So that justifies this purchase.

Nights Into Dreams, the legendary Saturn game. I've had the sequel for the Wii for a few years now, but refused to play it until I played this bad boy first. Now I have no excuses. I probably should get the 3D controller though....so maybe I do have an excuse.

                                                 Sega Saturn Action Replay, so I can play...

                                                  

Fire Pro Wrestling and Puzzle Bobble 2X! I got these for a pretty good price too. I don't have many imports, but that will change as many of the best Saturn games were never released here in the good ol' U.S. of A.

Here are a few games I actually want to play on the Game Gear. I'm hoping Shinobi II is comparable in some way to the Genesis Shinobi games, which are pretty darn fun. I kinda pooped myself a little when I saw Streets of Rage 2 sitting there. It's not a rare or expensive game at all, but I just didn't want to ebay a copy. It's hard to find a good lot of Game Gear games and usually with ebay'ing a cheap game you're going through a lot of hoops for something so inexpensive. Shame on the kid who wrote his name on the label! And I didn't really poop myself, not even a little.

                                                          

                                                            And as a special bonus....

Ian at What's on 2nd threw this in for me. A genuine Captain N: The Game Master VHS! I knew my Captain N handle would pay off one day. The box is in really good condition, which is not too surprising since it was probably watched once 20 years ago and sat on a shelf since then. Personally, I love the show. It's Nintendo, it's super cheesy, and it brings back lots of great memories. Captain N was also one of the last of the classic Saturday morning cartoons before the networks starting moving away from the traditional Saturday morning cartoon format. :( But anyways, I actually already own all of the Captain N episodes on DVD. I got them, along with all of the Super Mario Bros Super Show, from Shout! Factory a couple years back.

Enough rambling! Hopefully I will have another update or two this weekend, as I have a few sources bringing me the goodies I need. Until then, game on!