I'd like to think that we as gamers are more than just games. I'd like to think we have good taste in music, movies, and even books. I will include topics like this in my journal. Given that, here is a review of Fort Minor's first CD, "The Rising Tied" For those who don't know, Fort Minor is a side project of Mike Shinoda, the rapping frontman of Linkin Park. I have found that many "side projects" are either the exact same sound as their original group or very different but with little effort put in due to time and energy. This is not the case with Fort Minor. First off, Fort Minor is pure hip-hop. No rock here whatsoever. All of the rap talent that Shinoda showed slightly on the Reanimation album comes to full bloom here. He doesn't pigeonhole the album into one form and keeps it branched out. Tracks such as, "Petrified" and "Remember the Name" are great bass bouncing tracks. "Where'd You Go" is an excellent song full of loneliness. We even get a glimpse into his family's past on "Kenji." Finally, on "Cigarettes" he challenges the current state of the hip-hop music industry. The guest spots he has on this CD make it that much better. He has Common, John Legend, Black Thoughts of The Roots, and many times with Styles of Beyond. Rather than being random offshoots that have nothing to do with the rest of the song, these inclusions tie in well with what Shinoda is trying to say in the song. By the way, the fact that Jay-Z is executive producer on the album certainly doesn't hurt. He gives the album that extra little shine. If you are a fan of Linkin Park or Mike Shinoda, or like hip-hop or dislike current mainstream hip-hop then this album his highly recommended.

So I finally got it. I have a Game Boy Micro in my posession. The black one. I love it. It is gorgeous. I set it next to the original Game Boy out of curiosity and it is rather amusing. But this is a lovely little thing. I didn't have the SP. I got the original Advace shortly after it came out and I loved it althought, it looked very different from previous entries. When the SP came out I wanted it but not $100 and then $80 wanted it. So I got the Micro for several reasons First off, backlit screen. Something I've desired for a long time on my Advance. It is so nice not having to sit directly under a light. Also, tininess. I can fit my Micro in the change pocket you have in jeans. All the other Game Boys you could fit in a regular pocket uncomfortably. This will make it even better than normal to take it everywhere. I am really looking forward to playing it during breaks between classes. Especially next year since I'll be on the St. Paul campus which has nothing around it. I decided to christen my new toy with a new game but being as it is Christmas I'm a little strapped for cash so I got Rebelstar: Tactical Command for twenty bucks. So far I am rather enjoying it. I think it'll be a perfect game for quick pick up play and quit. Nice little game for having with me between classes. Eventually, I am hoping to get some of the better RPGs for the Game Boy. The original Golden Sun, Final Fantasy IV and Dawn of Souls, Dragon Warrior Monster, etc. Also I'm thinking of getting the Classic series, or a few of them at least. Like Castlevania for instance. I've never beaten it because I've never had time to sit down and play through it all and then start over at the beginning. So having a game save will be a wonderful feature for that. Me thinks me likey. I loves me some Game Boy Micro.

So the other day I bought my girlfriend a Game Boy Advance SP because out of the blue she said she wanted one, basically so she could play Super Mario World on it. A few days later Zelda: The Minish Cap came out and when I went to go get it she said she'd like to try and so I got her a copy too. She's addicted. She won't stop playing. It is amazing. She's addicted to it like Tony Montana is to nose candy. Crazy stuff.

So the other day I decided to collect all of the Resident Evil games even though I own none and have played none of them. Actually, I think I may have played the first one for about 30 seconds when it first came out. In the last 2 days I have purchased Resident Evil 0 for Gamecube, Resident Evil and Resident Evil 3 for PS1, and Code Veronica for Dreamcast. I hope to play and beat them in succession. I started playing Zero and now I understand why everyone says Resident Evil controls suck. It is simply because they SUCK. Moving around is clunky and stupid because when you push back you don't run back you step backwards. It is annoying but I'm sure it'll be better once I get used to it. I want to get Resident Evil 2 for the Dreamcast but it is much more expensive than the PS1 version so I don't know if it is worth it. Ah well, back to the Jets/Steelers game.