Right now, I just feel pretty groggy and I'm not sure why.

Anyway, I just read that I'm supposed to get more snow this evening through tomorrow. Man, I really can't wait for spring.

Not too much to talk about but I'm going to write more reviews soon.

Also, I'm approaching my 50th blog post... Should I do something for that?

Is Valentine's Day. Surprised?

Even if I'm not too big on the holiday, I wish you all the best because I'm sure you all love something whether it be an animal, your family, or inanimate objects. =D

Not too much to talk about actually, which explains the lack of opinions from me lately but that should change soon enough...

Your (awesome) song for this post.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WA-fJnw10lk

I haven't been able to post pictures lately so...

Everyone's favorite* Mighty B! character!

* = Sarcasm

Well, the Super Bowl was yesterday and I've read reports that it surpassed the finale of M-A-S-H as the most watched program in history. Good job, NFL. =D

I haven't posted a blog in several days because I had a glitch that had a problem with my blog titles and I've only recently got to post one.

Now onto the dream I had on Saturday night. I didn't come on at all that day because I spent the entire afternoon and evening playing The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. After marathoning and finishing the game, I went to bed and had a pretty intense dream. Me and some of my friends were running around trying to get a lot of things and finish some stuff because the world was going to end in a few hours. You might find that frightening but that's what happens in Majora's Mask. You only have 72 in-game hours (that's less than an hour in real time) to complete tasks before the world ends and so does your game. The sky was red and we were running as fast as we could. The ground was shaking and people were panicking. I woke up and told my sister about the dream and she thought it was intense as well.

Then I played through the entire game again on Sunday. It was awesome. =D

...Now that I think you can't see this part from the preview anymore...

The Saints are the 2010 Super Bowl Champions! Whoo-hoo! =D

Now onto the review. =D

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

Mega Man 9

Original Release Date: September 22, 2008 on WiiWare, September 25, 2008 on PlayStation Network, October 1, 2008 on Xbox Live Arcade

Mega Man 9 is a WiiWare title and a sequel to the original Mega Man games on the NES through the SNES to the Sega Saturn. Unlike a lot of other spin-offs and 3-D sequels, the game is in the same form as an NES game. The graphics to the sounds to the gameplay are all like something from the 80's. Just so you know now, the Mega Man games I've played extensively are Mega Mans 1 and 2 but I have played Mega Mans 3 through 6, just not as much.

The story begins with robots all over the world suddenly going crazy. The main suspect to longtime fans should be Dr. Wily but he's apparently a "changed man" and he claims that the real culprit is Dr. Light. The police arrest Dr. Light and it's up to Mega Man to deal with the erratic robot masters and learn the truth behind their malfunctions.

The gameplay should be instantly recognizable to anyone who played the original NES game as it's exactly the same. Move left or right, climb ladders, A jumps, B shoots, fight to the end of the level to an encounter with one of the eight robot masters. When you defeat one of the robot masters, you get to take their weapon and use it in the other levels. Depending on which weapons you have, you can make the fight against the robot master either harder or easier.

The game is challenging just like an NES game but never too difficult to where you're not going to want to play anymore. The enemies are persistent and the spikes will be the end of you instantly if you touch them along with falling into a pit. Power-Ups like energy and extra lives are rather difficult to come by but can be bought at the lab with screws you obtain in each level. You can also buy energy tanks and shields against the level elements.

The graphics and sounds are pure 8-bit and they're flat-out awesome. The backgrounds are often one color but the enemies and animations look great. The music proves that Capcom really knew what they were doing back then. All of the tracks sound great even if they're just done with the NES capabilities.

To extend the life of the title, Capcom included a handful of Downloadable Content. They range from alternate costumes to a bonus level. Most of the downloads are under 300 Wii Points but options like harder difficulties really should've been unlockable extras. I don't see the point in paying to make a game harder but that's just me.

In the end, Mega Man 9 is a very well made title. Fans of old-school games along with people looking for a good action game will definitely get their fix here. It costs 1,000 Wii Points and that's a fair price for the title.

Graphics: 8.5 - The sprites and animations are nostalgic and look great.
Sound: 9.0 - It's one of the most head-bang worthy soundtracks I've ever heard.
Gameplay: 8.5 - It's challenging, action-packed, and rather addictive. A nice little combination.
Appeal: 8.0 - The game should be a no-brainer for fans but some younger gamers might not like the rather high difficulty.

Final Score: 8.5 - Great. Even if you're not familiar with the Mega Man games, I definitely recommend this game, so download it now.

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

That's pretty much it. Here is your picture for the blog. (You'll have to go to deviantART to view it. It won't let me post pictures here...)

http://cantdecideonaname.deviantart.com/art/Can-t-Contains-Our-Excitement-151144041

Until next time. Hasta luego. =D

Well, I haven't been on that much lately. I thought that some of you were wondering what happened to me. Rest assured I am well but I've been busy with other things.

School is going well. I'm keeping up with work and I understand a lot of the assignments well ahead of some others. I don't mind helping out people who need it, though.

Here's something interesting and a bit confusing. My sister and I were walking around in Walmart last Saturday and we passed by the area in the Electronics section where they have the game consoles set up for people to try out the games on display. On the Wii stand, the game was New Super Mario Bros. Wii. We saw a teenage girl looking at the game and playing, or rather, trying to play it. After several seconds, she walked away saying "It's too hard. I don't get this." My sister and I looked at each other, baffled, and asked "How can you not get Mario?" Are concepts from twenty years ago too simple for today's generation? I have plenty of experience, courtesy of my brothers, so my sister and I both know about it. It was something that I thought was funny.

And then I scratched off one of the numbers on a Wii Points card we got and we spent about ten minutes trying to figure it out.

That's basically it. See you next time. =)

So I was asleep last night, right? I had to have been to have had this dream.

I'm sure most of you know that Season 2 of The Mighty B! will be getting a one-hour special sometime soon. I dreamt about a preview for said special.

I don't remember all the details but I remember thinking that the episode was about Ben going on some spiritual journey to find himself or something of the sort. Bessie and the others decide to go after him and convince him to return home. Perhaps in an attempt to spice it up, I visualized the Dragonflies making their return in this special. They could get Ben and get him to spill the beans on everything he knows about the Bees. It was then a race to see who could get to Ben and convince him first.

Will this really happen in the special? Perhaps not, but it does give me something to think about for some time.

With No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars hitting shelves this Tuesday, it's the beginning of what promises to be a busy year in games for me. On top of that, this could also be a very expensive year for me, what with college expenses and whatnot this fall. Even then, I am determined to play as many of these as I can.

I haven't really told anyone what I want to do in college but...I am looking on going into the gaming industry. It's something that I really enjoy and could get into. My brother also told me that a game designer is one of the top careers that doesn't require a four-year degree. However, my plans aren't completely set yet and I'll have to get back to you on that.

Without further ado, here is the list of what interests me and my thoughts:

No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle (Wii) - The sequel to one of my favorite Wii games has scored a whole point higher on IGN and the footage looks really good. I'm not sure when I'll get to play it but I'll be sure to rave about it when I do. The game, like its predecesor, is shaping up to be VERY M-rated, so I can't give all the details.

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars (Wii) - It's been getting a lot of praise and won a lot of "Best Fighting Game" awards at last year's E3 so I figured we should pick it up. In addition, I've always liked the Capcom Vs. series and feel that it could be the best one since Marvel vs. Capcom 2, like so many other critics think.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii) - When the trailer to this game was shown at E3 last June, my mind was blown. In fact, it was the only thing that pushed the new Mighty B! that would air the following week right out of my brain for a few hours. With additions like Yoshi and new power-ups and a more diverse set of galaxies, it's shaping up to be a wonderful follow-up to what many consider to be the Wii's best game. I only hope the Mario Galaxy Orchestra continues their amazing performance.

Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing (Wii) - It looks like Sega has finally decided to cast their characters in a kart-racing game. By many of the previews I've seen, it looks to be shaping up quite well. If it's half as fun as Mario Kart Wii, then I'm sure we're looking at a very good game here.

Red Steel 2 (Wii) - I haven't played the original Red Steel and I've heard that it wasn't the best game. However, what I've seen of Red Steel 2 looks to be promising. A mix of first-person shooting and Wii MotionPlus enhanced swordplay make this one to keep an eye on.

WarioWare D.I.Y. (DS) - It's another entry in the awesome WarioWare series and this time, we get to customize our own microgames. What else do I need to say?

Metroid: Other M (Wii) - I've been spending a lot of time with Metroid Prime Trilogy lately and this game looks to be shaping up wonderfully. There looks to be intense action but let us hope that Team Ninja doesn't stray too far from the Metroid formula. Another thing to look forward to is hearing Samus, one of Nintendo's long-time silent protagonists, talk.

Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver (DS) - The second generation of Pokemon remains my favorite set of games to this day. So I am very excited about the opportunity to travel through Johto again with enhanced graphics and controls.

And that about covers what I'm focusing on this year. I won't know what else to obsess over until E3 this June and I'll be here to tell you guys all about it. In the meantime, I'd better start saving up for the rush.

Yup, the snow refused to let up. Let's leave it at that.

That was the main point of this blog but I also felt I could get some of your opinions on something. I have several story ideas that I want to write and while I do want to write them all, I want to see if you guys would want me to write any of them sooner. The list includes but is not limited to:

"Bessie and Portia Watch the Avatar: The Last Airbender Finale"

"Cherry and Gwen Miss Their Flight"

"Bessie's First Day in the Bees (Flashback)"

"Evening With the Dragonflies (Flashback)"

"Chelsea Punishes Portia (Flashback/Alternate Ending)"

"Cherry Misses Ben"

"Portia and Chelsea Wreck Mrs. Gibbons' Car" (That one might be up by the time you read this...)

How about that, folks? Two additional days off in a row for me because of the snow. Here where I live, we were blasted with snow last night and the previous. And we're not out of the woods yet: one last storm, the strongest, is supposed to hit us late tonight and stay until Friday night. It was cool at first but I can't help but think I'll run out of things to do...

Other than that, it's been going smoothly. I've just been sitting and being unproductive. Yesterday, my sister and I watched "Paranormal Activity". It was pretty freaky; the only part that really made me jump was the end. =) The only game I really played yesterday was Capcom vs SNK 2. It's an older game but I had the urge to play it. =D

I have some chores to do today and I'll get to that in just a little bit. Maybe some more writing is in store as well...

Until next time...

Needless to say, I'm not very happy with the game's outcome. Now I have to find some other teams to root for.

Other than that, my day has been good. I played Metroid Prime Trilogy this morning before watching the new Mighty B! episodes (both of which were great, by the way). Afterwards, my dad had to go to a funeral and I was told to wait in the car for about forty-five minutes. I held on and we had a good lunch afterwards. Then, we went to the local Walmart and I got an iTunes card (which I intend to blow on Mighty B! episodes). We came back and I played Animal Crossing: City Folk for a little while. I caught a pond smelt for the Fishing Tourney today and I'll check back later to see if I won. The game did discourage me a bit but I did go walking earlier. It was muddy but I made it through.

It's a long weekend, thanks to Martin Luther King. I have to read a copy of his "I Have a Dream" speech and analyze it a little bit. I also have some assignments that I want to study ahead for. I was in my Pre-Calculus class the other day and I saw some interesting posters around the room. They had words of wisdom on them like this:

Get Organized!
1. Plan ahead.
2. Make a to-do list.
3. Write down assignments and due dates.
4. Study a little each day to stay ahead.
5. Stay on top of assignments.
6. Reward yourself with free time.

It's good advice for all of you students. =)

Your pictures for this post:

It's a poster I originally posted on deviantART.

I haven't posted pictures in a while so have another one: =)

First up, I got Internet back at my mom's house so I can go online during the week days. =) She still gets annoyed if I spend too much time on here (not to be disrespectful, but you can write an encyclopedia on what my mom doesn't like) so I won't be on every single day. Still, it'll be nice to reply to some of you and throw in my two cents now and then.

As for school, it's our Winter Homecoming. Today's theme was "Get a New Name Day" which I didn't find too interesting. I don't want to call other people names because it might offend them. I'm a friendly guy who doesn't want to feel hostile or rude or disrespectful. Even if it's in good fun, you have to take into consideration the other people. Tomorrow it's "School Colors Day" so, as a Senior, I should wear Navy Blue, which is easy because I wear blue every single day. We also have a pep rally tomorrow which...I'm not too thrilled about. It's not because I don't have school spirit, but because things like that aren't really my thing. That and I don't care about basketball as much as the next guy.

For Piano, we had our weekly quiz today and I got an A+ on it. The song was difficult at first, but simple enough with some practice. (Something for all of you music players to keep in mind.) In English, we took a look at critiques for speeches and we got to watch part of a speech by President Obama. Perhaps it's fitting, but we also got a copy of Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech that we're supposed to analyze. In Algebra III, we took notes on the Summation Notation and got a relatively short assignment. (I finished it before class ended.) For Physics, we got a work packet on the Universal Gravitation Law which I will finish tomorrow, after having started today. In Economics, we had a vocabulary quiz and I got a hundred percent on it. For Spanish II, we worked on an assignment with the family trees we did recently. As for Pre-Calculus, we had a substitute teacher and didn't do too much. We just had to continue an assignment that we got yesterday and that's due until next Tuesday. And you know what's strange? I finished the assignment earlier today! Either I had nothing to do or I'm smarter than I realize.

Enough of all of this... Onto the review. I wrote this for English recently and I decided to share it with you guys. Enjoy.

Slumdog Millionaire

Original Release Date: November 12, 2008 (Limited) / January 23, 2009 (Wide)

Slumdog Millionaire is one of the most critically acclaimed films in recent history. It earned much praise from critics and then dominated at the Academy Awards along with the Golden Globes and BAFTA. This fact is made even more astonishing by the fact that director Danny Boyle shot it on a small budget with actors that have little or no experience who all made outstanding performances. There were brilliant opportunities and the crew behind the film executed them spectacularly.

The film opens with and centers on Jamal Malik, an 18-year-old chai wallah (tea runner) who is also an uneducated slumdog. Despite that, Jamal is a contestant on the game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire? And is one question away from winning 20 million rupees. The show's host, Prem Kumar, grows suspicious of Jamal's remarkable run on the show. When the show breaks for the night, Kumar has the police haul Jamal in for questioning. An interrogation follows and Jamal reveals how he knew each answer: each question related to a memory from his past. Through a series of flashbacks, the details of Jamal's life emerge. We see how Jamal had a hard life growing up in the slums with his brother, Salim and the girl he's meant to be with, the beautiful Latika. All of the experiences Jamal has had prepared him for the game show without anyone, even himself, knowing.

Right from the beginning, the plot is enthralling. Each flashback has excitement and emotion that make them the most polished aspects of the film but never seem too far-fetched. You get a sense that people would actually do what the characters do. Every scene features a vivid amount of detail that most people will appreciate because it doesn't take too long to understand the plot. As with many other films, the story will make sense in the end.

The struggles of the protagonist take center stage and many will find themselves attached to the characters. You get the feeling that they are all real people and not just characters in a movie because they all appear to act and speak naturally. One can clearly visualize children acting the way Jamal and Salim act when they were young boys. One prominent act is when Jamal and Salim think of themselves as two of the Three Musketeers, with Latika soon becoming the third.

Many of the lead actors had no to little experience in their roles but each of them made an outstanding performance. The child actors seemed to act naturally for each scene and the use of the native language (Hindi) helped to make the film more convincing. The mélange of traditional colorful garbs and modern-day suits show a clash of culture, something that is rarely seen in films nowadays. Each actor really makes their characters come to life with convincing actions and deep emotion.

Adding to the film's strengths is a stellar soundtrack. The score is fun to listen to and always seems to fit the situation. Whether it's a fast-paced tribal beat when the kids are running from the guards, an upbeat melody when Jamal and Salim are impersonating tour guides, or the beautiful serene theme of Latika, there is great musical variety here. During some scenes, there is an audio effect I found exciting: the background noises quiet and heartbeats and breathing intensify. This really does a fine job of placing you in the action. The uses of the sound effects from Who Wants to be a Millionaire? are also a nice touch.

The film's cinematography is as gripping as anything else. The camera is at different angles and moving almost as much as it is steady. More than once, it feels like we're seeing the action from the perspectives of other characters. One thing that must be said is that the film has a rather one-sided portrayal of India, which is the poverty. Most people would know that there is more to India than that.

Despite a handful of weak spots, Slumdog Millionaire is an excellent production. Deeply immersive and entertaining, this film caught the attention of critics and it wouldn't have done as well without the praise and awards. It isn't too often that we see producers try something that's ambitious and off the beaten path. Please encourage them: watch this movie.

Setting: 9.5 – The backgrounds look authentic with an extraordinary amount of detail put into each scene.

Sound: 9.5 – The wondrous background music and engaging dialogue can grip just about anyone.

Acting: 10 – The actors make their roles convincing and very entertaining to watch. They seem to be better than many other big-name actors.

Appeal: 9.0 – The setting will be shocking and the content disturbing, which makes this a film suitable for more mature audiences.

Final Score: 9.5 – Outstanding. Just about everything in the film is incredible and is worth every penny and moment of your time.