Left Turn at Albuquerque

Before the Game Boy was invented, handheld LED games were awesome. They usually only consisted of a handful of different combinations of LED screens and 2-3 different bleep and bloop sounds but they were fun! The classic 1970’s LED football game is being remade for the iPhone and iPod Touch and it will only cost $.99. Here’s to hoping they keep the beeps and squeeks of the original.

ledfootball.com/

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Cubeecraft are free papercraft toys you can download, print and cut to create characters and put on display. The details on these little guys are pretty amazing. I created the Duck Hunt character and it took about a half an hour but the final product turned out nice so it’s worth it if you have some extra time to kill.

cubeecraft.com

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There are two neat Olympic related features on the NY Times website.

The first is a 360 degree rotating high-res picture of what it’s like to look off the top of the diving platform in the Water Cube. It would be difficult enough to jump off this thing but imagine doing it with 17,000 people staring at you. Here.

The second is a map of Olympic medals. The countries that won more medals in a particular year are represented by a larger circle. Here.

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At this years Leipzig Games Convention, Sony has announced a new model PSP; the PSP-3000. This new model however won’t be as significant of an update as last years “slim and light” PSP-2000 model and will look identical. Not sure yet how the unit will be priced but I suspect it will be in the $169-$199 range.

The new features of the PSP-3000 include:

• improved glare-free screen
• a PS button instead of a home button
• smoother edges
• built-in mic

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The largest vinyl record collection is for sale for $3 million dollars. The owner must sell it due to health issues and a struggling record industry. This is a really good documentary of the story of the man and his records. You can view the official website of the collection for more information.

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USB 3.0 is almost ready to hit the market with amazing new transfer speeds and more!

Features include:

• Backwards-compatible with USB 2.0
• Transfer rates up to ten times faster than USB 2.0 (4.8Gbps)
• Uploads and downloads are kept on separate lanes with thicker cables
• Charge devices more quickly
• Much more mindful of energy waste

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Probably like most larger companies, Sega has a room somewhere deep in their Headquarters with a copy of every product they’ve ever made. Sega is one of my favorite development companies so I found this picture awesome. Jammed inside the room (they ran out of room in just the bookshelves) are games, consoles, controllers, accessories and more Sega nostalgia stacked from Floor to ceiling and everywhere in between. More pics can be seen on Segas Flick Page and in the Sega Blog.

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I’m usually not big into the Olympics or sports for that matter but when I saw Michael Phelps representing Baltimore tearing up the charts with gold medals and records, I had to see what all the fuss was about. The Olympics is a great way for all the world’s countries to show sportsmanship and respect for each through the competition of sports. It’s a beautiful thing. Another beautiful thing is the design behind the newly built Water Cube.

Breaking ground in 2003 and being completed more recently, the structure has a capacity of 17,000 during the Olympics. It is composed of steel space frame. The Swimming, Diving and Synchronized Swimming events are being held there during the Olympics. What makes the design so successful is the the outer wall which is based on the Weaire-Phelan structure and look like soap suds. The way the light shines through the outer wall is breathtaking.

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There’s an easy way to get cash back on everyday items you purchase on eBay. I’ve already got back over $100 (some of it still pending) by signing up for Live.com cashback. It’s pretty simple and here’s what you do:

• Go to http://live.com/cashback and register an email with them
• Do any live search on http://live.com and add EBay to the item you looking for (like: “iPod eBay”)
• Click on the link in the header that says “Live Search cashback” on the search results page
• Once you choose what you want on eBay, but prior to committing to buy (to buy, not to pay) make sure the 25% cash back is being offered there, otherwise you won’t get it! Only Buy It Now auctions are eligable for cashback
• You will receive a message after you pay for you item that you have new cashback. Click that link and register it to your newly created Live.com account

It works! The cashback ranges from 15% – 30% and is currently at 25% which means that if you buy an iPod for $200, $50 will be put in your Live.com account. After 60 days of a pending status the money will be yours to withdrawal from your Live.com account.

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I didn’t quite know how to categorize this post which involves both the classic Nintendo game Donkey Kong and the party block game Jenga. Should it be considered video games? Is this an invention? Should I create a new category for board games? I settled on video games since this is both a video game and a game.

The classic tower building game of Jenga features 54 black hardwood blocks decked out with the iconic Donkey Kong girders. In addition custom Mario, Donkey Kong and Pauline playing pieces and a Donkey Kong themed spinner are included for alternate game play. USAopoly is releasing this game which should be available in September but is currently back-ordered on Amazon.

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This is an interesting concept and I love it. I’ve seen the iHomes around which are good alarm clock replacements but this one is great because it rotates depending on 1. your mood and 2. the vertical or horizontal orientation of the iPod entertainment you’re watching/listening to. In addition, rotating the unit will automatically adjust the alarm clock rotation to the desired position. The unit sells for $79.99 and inclides a remote.

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Street Fighter IV has been out in Japanese arcades for almost a month now and is headed to the PS3, 360 and PC within the next few months. Street Fighter II is arguably the best fighting game of all time so the fact that Street Fighter IV will be similar in certain ways is very exciting. The fighters and backgrounds are rendered in 3D, while the gameplay is on a traditional 2D plane creating a 2.5D effect. In addition, car-smashing bonus rounds may be back in the console versions of the game.

There is currently a poll on streetfighter.com asking users which collectible they’d like to be given away with the collector’s edition of the game.

Returning Characters:

• Ryu
• Ken
• Chun-Li
• Guile
• E. Honda
• Blanka
• Dhalsim
• Zangief
• Balrog
• Vega
• Sagat
• M. Bison

New Characters:

• Abel
• Crimson Viper
• El Fuerte
• Rufus
• Seth

Home Version:

• Dn Hibiki
• Fei-Long

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Delayed for a month after failing seizure tests, WipEout HD is almost ready to fly onto your TV. The game will be running at an extremely fast 60 Frames per second and will sport some gorgeous graphics. The game will feature the same WipEout gameplay we’re used to from previously released wipEout games plus will add a few new upgrades in gameplay including music that changes depending on what’s going on in the race. If wipEout HD lives up to the PSP versions of the game then it will be a blast to play on the big screen. You can see more at PS3Fanboy.

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Platform: N64 Developer: Racdym Publisher: Atlus Co. NA Release date: Mar. 15, 1998 Genre: Racing Media: Cartridge

History:

Snowboard Kids was ATLUS’s first title released for the N64 in 1998. The game features characters that games are 10 – 11 year old characters who decide to have a snowboard tournament and battle it out across 9 levels of action. There was a sequel to Snowboard Kids, Snowboard Kids 2, released on the N64 in 1999.

Gameplay:

Snowboard Kids features three modes; battle race, skill game and time attack. It also features a board shop where the characters can buy new snowboards and choose from a few different design styles. Battle race is a multiplayer game mode where players can play each other but can only play on levels that are already unlocked. In Skill Game, there are a few modes including speed cross, shoot cross and trick cross. In these levels, the kids earn money based on things like their speed tricks and accuracy. The money earned here will unlock new levels and snowboards. In time attack, the snowboard kids travel down slopes in attempt to get a new best time and have fun while doing it.

Review:

At first the game seems childish but ends up being a lot of fun. The graphics in the game look cartoonish but that adds to the arcade feel of the game. The levels are creative and there is a decent amount of them. The music and sound is simple but catchy. The controls will take a few levels to get used to but will eventually be easy to master. What I like about this game when compared to other snowboard games is that one level has to be played multiple times before it’s done. After the character goes to the bottom of the slope, a ski-lift will take them back up two or three times where they rerun the level until it is complete. The characters can do tricks off the jumps which is fun. There are also many shortcuts to be found. The game is totally fun.

Courses Name ; Number of laps ; difficulty:

Rookie Mt. ; 5 ; Beginner
Big Snowman ; 2 ; Beginner
Sunset Rock ; 3 ; Beginner
Night Highway ; 3 ; Intermediate
Grass Valley ; 3 ; Hard
Dizzy Land ; 3 ; Hard
Quicksand Valley ; 1 ; Very Hard
Silver Mt. ; 3 ; Very Hard
Ninja Land ; Beginner

Characters:

Slash Kamei
Nancy Neil
Jam Kuehnemund
Linda Maltinie
Tommy Parsy
Shinobin

Secret Course Code:

At the menu that says: Start Lession/Option, Enter the following:

Press Down, Up on the analog, Down Up on the D-Pad, then Down C, Up C, L Button, R Button, Z Button, then Left on the D-Pad, Right C, Up on the analog joystick, B, Right on the D-Pad, Left C and then press Start.

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Platform: Game Boy Developer: Nintendo Publisher: Nintendo NA Release date: May 9, 1990 Genre: Action Media: 2 megabit cartridge

History:

Originally, Qix was released in the arcades in 1981 by Taito. It was ported to a number of systems before it was ported to the Game Boy including Atari 5200, Commodore 64, DOS, Amiga and Apple IIGS. It was developed and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy in 1990.

Gameplay:

In Qix, the player must fence off the playfield piece by piece until 75% of the playfield is fenced off. The player does so by controlling a character that draws lines around the playfield border, and then connects the line back to the border again. Once that is done, the player has won that piece of the board and can travel on it as they try to take more pieces. The player must avoid the Sparx while claiming areas. If the player comes in contact with a Sparx, which travels around the borders, a life is lost. In addition, a Qix travels in the open space inside the border that the player has created. If the player comes in contact with a Qix while trying to complete a block of the playfield off, a life is lost. In the later levels, the game becomes more challenging including multiple Sparx and faster Qix.

Review:

The graphics in the Game Boy version of Qix are very weak but that’s not where the game shines. The game is all about gameplay and lasting appeal. In my opinion, the gameplay is almost as addictive as Tetris. The Game Boy version of Qix features Mario in some cutscenes where he’s in the desert.

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