Hey all,

I’m on Facebook now. Can’t remember if I mentioned that before. Anywho, just upgraded Wordpress and installed an app that should notify my friends of new posts here on 8bN. This is just a test to see if it works.

So, there are two things that beg to be discussed this week, Iron Man and camping. First things first, Iron Man. Iron Man is an excellent movie. I loved it. It’s worth noting that I am a big Iron Man fan. He is probably my second favorite superhero next to Spider-Man. I like Iron Man because under the suit he is still human. Spider-Man has super powers, but they aren’t over the top like, say, Superman. In fact, in the comics anyway, he actually had to invent web shooters, making his trademark ability something that’s actually man made.

Iron Man, on the other hand, is all man made. I like my superheros vulnerable, what can I say? Anyway, the Iron Man movie is great. Robert Downey Jr. does a very good job in my opinion, though honestly I didn’t read a lot of the comics, so I’m not the best judge if you really, really love Iron Man. I’m not positive if Iron Man is really the best comic book movie yet made (an opinion held by my friend Thomas). I’m still waiting for something to top the train scene in Spider-Man 2. Regardless, Iron Man is great and deserves to be seen by many, many people. I liked it so much that I’ve decided to rent the game and give it a go. It got me all excited to play as Iron Man, so I’m going for it, damn it.

And now, camping. My wife and I went camping this weekend. Now, when I tell people that, I imagine they have a different idea of what actually happens. When I think of the sheer amount of stuff that was crammed in our car for two days of sleeping outside, I kind of shudder. Without listing it all, we had a tent, air mattress, cooler, blankets, toiletries, tons of food, tons of liquor, and more that I’m sure I’ve forgotten. In fact, we didn’t have enough blankets the first night, and were lucky enough to be able to borrow some sleeping bags for the second night. There were also (very clean) bathrooms with running water and showers about 100 yards from our campsite. The point is, it’s hard for me to think of a trip with so many amenities as “camping.” Still, I didn’t have my precious laptop and cell phones didn’t work, so that’s got to count for something.

Oh, and it was fun. That’s important too. I twisted my ankle really bad though. I heard it crunch and everything. Oh, it hurt like hell. I wince every time I think of it.

Final note, I’m on FaceBook now. Look me up if you’re so inclined (and not a dick). Also, my T-Mobile contract expires this month. I want me one of these … now.

[Holy crap. I was in the middle of writing up this entry when I saw the many, many comments that have been left in my absence. Thanks, everyone! I'll try to keep it more regular for you :)]

Yeah yeah, it’s been a while. I know. Things have been super busy at X3F. Of course, you’d know that if you read it. Chances are, if you’re reading this, then you do read X3F. Anywho, we had over 3,300,000 page views in April. That’s a new record for us, and it makes for the second record-breaking month in a row. Very nice. If only that conferred a pay bonus, I’d really be happy.

I picked up GTAIV on Monday night. I’m really liking it so far. That may seem like a stupid statement, but I’ve never really gotten into a GTA game before. That’s not to say that I wouldn’t have, but I never had the desire to pick one up before. So far, the game is great. Multiplayer is surprisingly fun, although I’ve yet to get into an actual game. I keep starting up a party (the lobby where you can just run around the world doing whatever with your buddies) but whenever I try to take us into a proper game of Team Deathmatch, I get disconnected. It’s annoying and I don’t know what’s wrong. My NAT type is open and everything. Still, the single player is excellent, and Niko is a wonderful character. Well, he isn’t wonderful himself, but he’s well-written. I’ll put it that way. Also, Vlad’s a prick.

Anyway, what else? I got my E3 invite a while ago. Things are looking pretty good as far as me attending. It’s not set in stone, but chances are good. At least I know that they won’t turn me away if I do go. I’ve got an invitation.

I’ve returned my copy of COD4, and now I’m waiting for Condemned 2. I’m hopeful that it will scratch that survival horror itch. Condemned was actually one of the games I reviewed on here before I got my gig at X3F. Read the review if you’re so inclined. Or I could just save you the trouble and say that the first Condemned was excellent (despite a so-so ending). I know Alone in the Dark is coming out soon, but I’m just not sure if it will actually be good. The tech that’s there is certainly intriguing, but so far they’ve made a lot more fuss about the technology than the actual story. I’m wary of Silent Hill: Homecoming too. The recent round of screenshots didn’t really impress me. Maybe it looks better in motion…

Finally, I saw someone asking about whether or not I like Smash Bros. I definitely do. Melee got more time than any other game on my Gamecube. I played it for years. Seriously, I don’t know any game that has had more longevity. We’ll see if Brawl can keep up. If anyone is interested in exchanging friend codes, be my guest. If anyone does, I’ll go dig mine up. Though honestly, the set up is so stupid, I doubt I’ll ever organize a match. It’s just so much easier to use Xbox Live that I have trouble even caring about Brawl’s online play. It doesn’t hurt that every game I’ve played has been laggy as hell either.

Oh, one last thing. I’m thinking of picking up a new digital camera and a portable HDD sometime soon (gotta take advantage of Time Machine now that I finally upgraded to Leopard). If you know a decent or cheap item you could suggest, let me know.

It was a Nintendo heavy week for me. Between Zelda: Twilight Princess (GC version), Smash Bros. Brawl, and Lolo on Virtual Console. If you have a Wii (or an NES), you really should try Lolo. It’s one of the better console logic puzzle games out there. If you like to over-think things (and I do), you can even see shades of Lolo in Portal. Yes, I was completely serious about that statement.

My niece convinced me to get back into Zelda: Twilight Princess, and I’m glad she did. After only an hour or so of playing it, I’m already engaged in the story again. It’s good stuff, and much more mature than I was expecting.

Finally, I’m looking to actually get back into some semi-regular multiplayer gaming again. Not sure if this is going to be at the same time every week or what, but I’m trying to squeeze at least an hour and a half or so at least one night a week. The X3F crew has been toying with the idea of grabbing community members to try out Community Content before we write it up. Just imagine, you could be featured in one of our videos! Isn’t that exciting? No? Oh, well, we might do it anyway.

I’m actually really proud of the videos we’ve been doing lately, both for XBLA in Brief and Community Content. I embedded one of our Community Content videos in this post, just to show it off. Feels pretty cool to be making our own videos now. And I probably can’t say too much, but we have some cool news regarding X3F videos that should be coming pretty soon. Stay tuned.

Greetings loyal subject(s). So, a few things to discuss. Number one, Smash Bros. Brawl is still awesome, though it is nigh unplayable online. It is made better when played with friends and simultaneously voice chatting via Xbox Live (or your VOIP app of choice). I unlocked Sonic and he’s pretty good, so I’m happy. On a much more manly video game front, Call of Duty 4 is awesome. Tycho from Penny Arcade once described the ending of Prince of Persia as “masterful,” an assessment I wasn’t sure I agreed with. Call of Duty 4, on the other hand, most certainly ends masterfully. It’s just about perfect. Yeah, it’s super short, but it is oh so very sweet.

I’ve yet to delve into the multiplayer portion, but I was part of the beta a few months back, so I know how addictive it is.

I’ll probably wait for a bit before I get into multiplayer, as I still have to wrap up Lost Odyssey. I say “wrap up” but what I mean is “put in another 30 hours or so.”

In other news, my niece is in town, and we’ll likely be playing through the adventure mode in Smash Bros. Brawl. That makes me immensely happy.

Ahem. If you own a Wii, go get this game right now. Actually, I’m inclined to tell you to go get this game anyway. Apart from a less than perfect online system (which can be made better, by the way), it is as excellent as I had hoped. It does not reinvent the wheel, but it really didn’t have to.

That’s really all I wanted to say. By the way, if you still read me (both of you), let me know. I’m feeling lonely.

I was under the impression that I was supposed to write a new entry here at least once a week. I haven’t done that lately. I apologize.

So, with that out of the way, it’s been incredibly busy at Xbox 360 Fanboy lately. In the space of one month — the short month of February at that — I contracted two new writers, coached them through their first week or two, went to GDC, and started producing video features. Sweet googa mooga, I can’t keep up. I barely find time to play games anymore, honestly. I have worked out a way to get some more time though, but perhaps I’ll talk about that some other time.

For now, I have to say this: I interviewed Peter Molyneux. One on one. It is thus far the highlight of my career as a games journalist. It was great.

As for everything else. I’m enjoying putting together video features. I picked up an eyetv hybrid from ElGato, which allows the capture of video to a Mac computer from any composite or S-video source. Combined with a distribution amplifier (a purchase I was hoping I wouldn’t have to make unfortunately) it works like dream. If you read X3F (which is more likely than you reading this) expect to see a lot more videos in the future.

That’s it for this week. It’s effing cold here right now.

Yeah, you probably noticed that posting stopped for a while. You may have heard on X3F that a vicious winter storm blasted Oklahoma (and many other states) a few weeks ago. Annie and I were actually very lucky, as we only lost power for a day or so (some people didn’t have power for weeks). We did, however, lose our cable/internet/telephone for pretty much the whole week. That meant I had to do my posting at my parents’ place, which was difficult. Don’t get me wrong, I love going to see my folks, but it’s not my work environment. As such, I was behind on my posts in December. I’ve got some nice pictures I figured I could share, so enjoy.

My neighbor’s Car

Our car (AKA Annie’s car)

Glass grass. I took a lot of these.

More glass grass

Lenny is confused.

Oh look, glass grass!

Yet more grass

Another neighbor’s yard.

My car’s antenna

My car’s antenna: EXTREME CLOSEUP!

Leaves

Glass grass: the return

Shopping carts don’t know it’s cold.

The street was completely blocked to the east

So there you go. Crazy, no?

Oh, and, just so there is at least one reference to video games in here, I’m incredibly excited about Bionic Commando Rearmed. If you haven’t seen it, go take a look.

So, yes, the holidays caused quite a slow down around here. I started working on a post about the massive ice storm that blew through Tulsa before Christmas, and you’ll get that soon, complete with some great pictures. In the meantime, I thought I’d put up an update to let all five of my readers know that I’m not disappearing again. Just so this post isn’t completely devoid of things you might actually enjoy reading, here’s a rundown of my gaming related Christmas and B-Day gifts (my birthday is December 20, by the way).

Rock Band — complete surprise gift from my mom. And before you ask, yes, I do know how to play a whole song on my guitar, even though it’s just four chords repeated over and over again. I’m not sure she knew that, but I’m not exactly complaining :)

Super Mario Galaxy — some of the purest fun I’ve had in a while. The only gift I really wanted this Christmas, and I got it. It’s Mario and it’s good. What more do you need?

Halo: Contact Harvest — the fifth book in the Halo series. So far, it’s excellent. Much, much better than the Mass Effect book, which I’ve yet to finish. If you enjoy reading about the interactions between the various races of the Covenant, I think you’ll enjoy it. For instance, if you know what a Huragok is, go get this book now.

That’s pretty much it. I’m currently awaiting Overlord from Gamefly, really looking forward to it.

Oh, and I should mention that the 50th episode of the Xbox 360 Fancast is now available and I’m really happy with it. It took a full two working days to put it together and I’m glad I’m done with it. Go check it out and let me know what you think [whoops, forgot to add a link. There you go]. Also, a sneak peek at some of the images coming your way from the Ice Storm of ‘07:
My neighbor’s car

So, as usual, I’m in the middle of editing the Fancast as I write this (update, Audacity just crashed. I lost four hours of editing or so. Fuck). This week, we had tremendous recording difficulties. One of our merry band, you’ll find out whom once the show is uploaded, had his internets destroyed by a vicious snowstorm. As you might expect, this had something of an effect on his Skype connection. This resulted in some hilariously glitchy audio. You’ll hear plenty of that in our outtakes. So, fun to listen to, not so fun to edit.

The guitar quest is going apace. The fingertips on my left hand are beginning to develop the thick carapace prized by guitar players the world over. Said carapace has advantages and disadvantages. Advantage: holding down guitar strings doesn’t hurt like hell. Disadvantage: in addition to dulling pain, all sensation is deadened. I guess I’ll get over it.

Someone asked me about my opinion of the whole GameSpot / Jeff Gerstmann issue. If you’ve been living in an internet-proof shelter for the last few days, GameSpot fired its Editorial Director under some curious circumstances. Essentially, he trashed Kane & Lynch. GameSpot, as it happens, had loads and loads of Kane & Lynch ads plastered all over the site. There are other pieces to the puzzle — feel free to sift through them at the link above — but I’ve given you all you need to put together where “the story” began.

Anyway, do I think he was fired because of a negative review? I honestly don’t know. What I do know, is that it looks damned shady. CNET and GameSpot have done very little to assuage the fears of gamers and game journalists everywhere. The fact that plenty of former and current GameSpot employees have spoken about the issue says volumes as well.

I’ve seen a range of comments on the subject, one of the perks of running a site about such things. I’ve seen comments against GameSpot and I’ve also seen plenty of blasé comments from people asking why we should care. So someone got fired, who cares, right? Happens all the time. Comments like that are really missing the point. It’s not that he was fired, it’s why. Granted, we don’t have any proof, and it’s likely we never will, but if the story is true, it puts a mighty black eye on game journalism. Then again, it’s not like all critical fields aren’t fraught with problems anyway. Websites are given bribes (i.e. games, swag, etc) by the companies they write about, they’re whisked away to exotic locations to play fucking Dead or Alive Extreme 2, and so on and so forth. It’s the same in the movie industry, and probably every entertainment industry. Don’t misunderstand me, companies give stuff to X3F, but we turn around and give it to the community. We also get offers for junkets, but refuse them out of policy.

Frankly, I never visit GameSpot anyway, apart from finding the occasional news story. Most of my need for reviews is more than satisfied by Metacritc (update: I’ve learned Metacritic is also a CNET company. Small world.).

Anyway, rambling a bit. The point is that the critical field is crooked. Blogs are a little less crooked (especially the fine establishments found on the Joystiq network), but they’re susceptible to the same temptations. This GameSpot issue really just throws the whole problem into sharp relief, with the possibility of bringing it into the public eye. If GameSpot does go down because of this, don’t go thinking that any other site is any better (again, except for the integrity-ridden blogs on the Joystiq network). Finally, the fact that the industry is crooked isn’t exactly news, but someone actually getting fired because of it … that’s bad.