Bare with me, I started FFXIII a little later than most players so this might be old news for some but for me, this is what I am living through. I surpassed the 50 hour playing time mark and finally beat Barthandolas for the second time. (Took 21 minutes and I had full Crystalarium, how the hell is the goal 10 minutes???) Now I beat Proudclod twice and fought my way into Orphan's Cradle. Now, after all this time, the side quests open up! The game is almost over at this point!

Maybe I am looking at this wrong, but I would have liked to see some side quests available throughout the game instead of bunched up at the end. Plus, from what I understand, there are some you cant do until you beat the game and get a new crystal expansion! Why would they do that? When I beat a game I want the final battle against the last Boss to be the final part of the game. I don't wanna have to keep playing mindless side quests that have rewards that dont help me in the main mission, after the final Boss is dead. What would be the point? To get trophies? Big deal!

Anyway, I will try to get through as many quests as I can before enemies are too strong and I must continue the final level and beat the game. Once finished I will write a nice long game review.

It's really not that big of a deal, butApril 26, 2010 marked my 5 year Anniversary as a member of gamespot. I actually have grown to really like this site even with it's flaws. But the ability to blog about games, give my opinion in reviews and list my collection really puts this site close to the top of my favorites list.

I was kinda bored and noticed that I haven't created a log in a while so I am doing another survey. I am currently playing FFXIII for PS3 but I always like to have 2 games going to I can altenate between the 2 and not be bored with one game. Here are the choices:

Wii - Star Wars Force Unleashed or Final Fantasy Crystal Bearers

Xbox 360 - Magna Carta 2 or Two Worlds

I know the choices s-u-c-k but I dont wanna play another PS3 game because I am too lazy to keep switching discs between games.

I was just curious... I watched the trailer for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow and see something very similar to some other games available. This game, although I am a big Castlevania fan, kinda looks like or similar in game play to Conan, Dante's Inferno and God of War. But here is the kicker... will it get the same score or rating?

We all know that GS and other ratig systems always will give certain games higher scores than others just based on production companies or good marketing. (GOW 3 got good marks when Dante's didn't. Uncharted got good marks when Tomb Raider doesn't.) How will they judge Castlevania? Which game will they base it on? The story is not new... how can it be? A Belmont will fight Dracula or some other Vampire, we all know this. But we also knew what Kratos was fighting for and Zeus was his enemy. GOW 3 was the third game of the same gameplay in the series... the same thing 3 times, but each with better graphics than the previous. so that means higher scores right? It would have to be because 9.5 was the final score with a game that had the same storyline 3 different times. If the graphics of Castlevania are great... will it also get a 9.5 because of a story that has been repeated over a dozen times?

Conan, Viking and other similar games get really low score because they are compared to GOW. Why? I happen to think Conan and Dante were great games with excellent gameplay.

Here is my point... Every single action game will be compared to GOW3 from now until the end of time. But how can they be better? How is this fair? GOW3 got a 9.5, so the next game has to be a perfect 10.0 to even be considered any good. How is that possible? Can anyone create a perfect action game? Why should any other companies make more games with similar gameplay? They obviously can't be perfect... can they? In order to be fair to each game... we have to look at each game as an individuality. We cannot constantly compare to previous games or we will never be satisfied as gamers. In my opinion, GOW3 wasn't worth such a high score. It was not an original game or story.

What I truely think is that the numbers 8-10 in the rating system themselves are overrated. People will avoid games rated lower than 7 becuase they feel the game isn't worth playing. However, I personally have play some games rated 6 or lower and found them to be very enjoyable. Yeah they weren't "up to par" with other games but did they deserve to be thrown in the gutter by the rating system? Absolutely not!

PLus, did anyon ever read through the entire review? I did with some similar games and found a lot of discrepancies. Some games were reviewd as great fun and lots of fun and worth playing, and got a 8.5. then I saw some games reviewed as: been there done that, old story, good to play until something better comes along, and got a 8.5. Wait... did I miss something? How can both games be reviewed so different but get the exact same score?

Oh well... guess I'm done ranting for a while. Until i see the review and score of Castlevania and start up complaining again. (:

Well it's happened again... I gained another level in GS and I don't have any idea what Ippon! means. LOL Oh well, I guess my mind is growing older and I can't remember things anymore.

On the game front, I am playing FFXIII for the PS3 and Bioshock 2 for Xbox 360, both in the somewhat early stages of the games. FFXIII so far is beautiful and fast paced. Bioshock is kinda slow but I love the environment and twisted story. I look forward to the reviews once I complete both games.

I will be in Houston, TX this weekend on a business trip, so I hope to find a nice bar to entertain myself and maybe meet some nice people.

By now, I am sure that almost everyone in the gaming world has been to this threshhold and beyond. But since I do not play online and am constantly switching from PS3 to Xbox to Wii in terms of games, it's a big step for me to finally get to this mark: 10,005 Gamer points for Xbox.

I achieved this mark by playing Dragon Age Origins and starting the Landsmeet Quest. Didn't realize it at the time because I was playing the game, but next time I loaded it up I saw my score and was happy to finally reach that mark. The next benchmark would be 15,000? 20,000? By then there will be a whole new generation of game consoles at the rate that I am going. LOL

There is the majority opinion that Softball is for women or girls. That is not true. Around the Nation, there are plenty of Men's or even co-ed softball Leagues that are either Arc picting or modified fast pitch.

I live in NYC and have been playing on softball leagues since I was 18 (I have been playing since before then but you need to be 18 to officially join a League) League's are played 7 days a week depending on your schedule but I normally playing only on weekends. Each weekday we would play a double header, and since I join 2 leagues each season, that's 4 games in 2 days, and the season is about 20-28 games long. (Weather and holidays can shortan a season)

This year will be a first for me. Normally, I have been an assistant manager or team captain on a few different teams over the years. Now, starting in Summer of 2010, I will be running my own team in the hopes of bringing home a Championship trophy. I recruited several players from different teams and leagues and feel we have a strong chance to win. The league us modified fast pitch, meaning you can throw it as hard as you want without your arm windmilling (going above the shoulder), or as slow as you want. We have our first official practice together this wekeend and I am very excited about it.

Wish us luck! Team Name: Dark Side Dragons

Remember the good ole days... when the Konami Code was Godlike and impossibly difficult games can be won with an "invincibility code" or" Unlimited Ammo"? I do. In fact, when I was younger, I actually had a binder with a collection of all the cheat codes and password needed to finish any game I played on my NES. Even SNES, Genesis and PS1, PS2 had them, and they made the game fun at times.

Where have they all gone? Now-a-days, the only thing you can do it get a virtual trophy or points. Big Deal. Plus, in order to get a new outfit or pretty colored gun, you still have to play through the whole game first. Afterwards you can get this "bonus" just so you can play through the game again. How does that make any sense? The game would be more rewarding if I can get my hands on that "bonus" while playing the game for the first time. Not the second time, on Super-extreme-hard mode. Why would I torture myself by playing this impossible mode of the game to get this weapon or outfit? After playing that mode, I dont wanna go through the game again. Just betaing the game without throwing my controller through the screen would be rewarding enough. Most of the games today dont even have that high of a replay value anyway, hence the reason Gamestop makes so much money off trade-ins. Players get bored and give their games back to the retailer for something new anyway. So much for that shiney new weapon or sexy outfit you just spend your last bit of sanity on.

Developers need to re-establish the real Cheat Codes. The passwords and button configurations that gave me reason to wanna play games. Take GTA for example. EVERYONE used the chat codes and the game was so much more fun afterwards. Otherwise, it would not have had any replay value because the missions were repetative and boring. But add in unlimited ammo, tanks, health and rocket launchers and BAM! people couldn't out the game down if they wanted to.

I have to work long hours and I honestly dont have the time to dedicate hours and hours to any one game. I have been called a cheater because I always try to use the strategy guide for my games. Really??? Does that really make me a cheater... or just more efficient? Since my time is valuable and limited, I have to make the best use of it and a strategy guide does that for me. Why wonder aimlessly around, looking for a clue to a puzzle that was 3 caves, 2 towns and 5 hours ago? Or why miss out on the best weapons and armor in side quests that I would normally miss because they aren't obvious in the games main storyline? This just re-establishes my need and want for the return of cheat codes. Give me that password that restores my health or mana. Give me an extra thousand dollars to buy back my inventory that I just sold to get that key to open the dungeon just to find out later that the secret entrance was right around the corner or inside a tree.

I really think players would be happy to see some cheat codes return. Maybe not in the capacity as they were in the past. (Every game had them) But at least let me have that option, just in case I cant seem to beat that Boss or find that item I desperately need. So much playing time would be saved and we would be able to finish the game and maybe even consider replaying it, now knowing that if we get stuck, there are codes to help make things easier.

Now I know everyone will come after me saying I want the challenge taken away from games which is not true. I just want the option to jump into an army of enemies and slaughter them all wihtout fear of dying, just for the fun factor alone. Give me millions of money to buy the biggest house and best weapons so the replay value of my games would skyrocket. Bring back some of the fun that cheat codes brought to GTA and Contra! I dont care about a PS3 trophy or Gamerpoints... reward me with invincibility or infinite ammo!

Ahhh... the good ole days. UP, UP, DOWN, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT, RIGHT, B, A, START ;)

I was finally able to complete the 4 add-on missions for Fallout 3: Broken Steel, Point Lookout, The Pitt and Operation Anchorage. Although I have not played Mothership Zeta yet, I am putting Fallout 3 back on the shelves for a while as I try out one of the highest rated RPG games, Dragon Age Origins. It received rave reviews and even already has additional DLC available.

I am a few hours into the game and I can see why so many people like it. I am trying to get used to the controls and battle tactics. (I am dying a lot but getting the hang of it) Of course, once it's completed I will give my opinion via a game review.

As for Fallout 3, the add-on's helped revive a great RPG and I loved playing every minute of it. Getting more weapons and better armor made it that much more enjoyable. Although most missions were short, they were packed with action and some amazing rewards. Plus, killing enemies and slow motion never gets old. One of my favorite features was being able to be bad, very, very bad. I was rated "Very Evil... Devil" by the time it was over as I felt no reason to behave myself in the wastelands where it is everyone for themselves. For those who played it, I decided to destroy the Citadel instead of the Enclave. LOL

Anyway, I am back in my apartment as renovations have been completed so I am able to play games in HDTV quality once again. Now I just have to decide on which PS3 game to start...

I have owned almost every console ever produced in one way or another. From Commodor 64, Atari 2600, NES to PS3, Wii and Xbox360 and each one has had it's positives and negatives. However, except for the game selection and revolutionary status of the NES, the PS2 has to be a close second to being the best console debate. Let me explain...

I own an original PS2, the think black, bulky unit that was cutting edge technology of it's time. It's been treated farily well, but through time and sometimes minimal physical abuse, the console has seen better days. Of course, when PS3 was released, I was able to get a fuly backwards compatable unit so my PS2 and PS1 would finally become retired, so to speak. Since then, new slim PS2 units have come out and are still be produced and sold. I left my old unit in a box, wrapped in it's own wires and controllers.

As my apartment is being renovated, I was forced to use only my Xbox 360 since my temp location does not have HDMI or any HDTV available for my PS3. But, as luck would have it, after about 4-5 years of service, my Xbox finally had the red ring of death. Almost completely removing my ability to play games until I could unpack and move back into my place. I went into storage, hoping to find my PS3, buried in a box somewhere. While looking through I happen to come accross a box that had my PS2 inside, complete with all wires, controllers and even 3 memory cards. I thought to myself, I still have some old PS2 games on hand, I should try to hook this up an dsee if it works. After taking it to my temp location, with heavy doubts in mind ready for dissapointment, I plugged in all wires and powered it on. The PS2 came on instantly with no issue. Somewhat surprized, I loaded a game and it started up as if it had been used the whole time. This was about 3 weeks ago and it is still working as if it was brand new.

Now do you see my point? I have had 3 NES units that had to be refurbished with new 72 pin connections, a portable PS1 that wouldnt turn on after a while, 2 different Gameboy types that had screens burn out, Xbox that stopped turning on, Xbox 360 red ring of death and plenty more game disks that the console's wouldnt even read. (That covers almost all disk reading consoles, including one PS3 game) But after years of constant service, being retired to a box in a closet, banged around I'm sure during use and during the move, my original PS2 console still works like a charm and going strong.

So, if I had to rate all the console system that the world has ever produced, I would have to vote for the PS2 hardware as the most reliable. And this time I dont have to rely on reviews or word of mouth, I have all the proof I will ever need sitting on a TV stand ready and waiting for me to insert a new game to start again.