Nine Over Ten 9/10

Talk Show Host: Good Evening, we have here today as our guest, Miss Jojo, a Level 7 Elf Ranger from Dungeons & Dragons: Tiny Adventures.

Jojo: I’m sorry, but I’m actually Level 8 now.

TSH: My bad. There you have it from Miss Jojo herself, a true-blue, or should I say, true-blood Level 8
Elf Ranger.

J: It’s ok. It’s pretty common for normal folk to think that we D&D: Tiny Adventures characters level up slowly while it’s actually the total opposite. I should be at Level 9 once I’m finished with this interview.

TSH: So tell me Jojo, as an Elf Ranger in a big bad world of Tiny Adventures, what are you good for?

J: I can’t say I can give you a good time (who would want to), but apparently, I’m good at duel-wielding stuff but please don’t get any ideas. I’m also apparently good at ranged weaponry like bows, but what I’ve seen so far in Tiny Adventures are daggers, swords, maces..and more daggers!

TSH: Speaking about weaponry, what’s your favourite instrument for administering pain?

J: Definitely my Lifedrinker’s Dagger. It gives me a +10HP, + 3 ATT stats boost. Remember the duel-wielding thing I said earlier? Well I carry two of these babies at all times and I have another two in my inventory. You know, just in case? A gal can’t have enough of these LsDs.

TSH: Do you mind telling us your stats?

J: You mean my vital stats? Sure…32..27..

TSH: I don’t mean that, I meant stats for Attack Bonus, Armor Class and Hit Points…

J: Oh that.. that would be 18, 22, and 99.

TSH: That’s a mighty a load of hit points you’ve got there Jojo.

J: Why, thank you.

TSH: How do you keep yourself protected in your adventures?

J: Well.. not that I’m promiscuous or anything, but there’s always rubber..

TSH: I meant Body Armour..

J: Oh..oh.. Well, I use a Horned Helm on my head, Dragonscale Bracers, Gauntlets of Ogre Power, Ironskin Belt and Fireburst Robes. We Elf Ranger ladies aren’t accustomed to heavier armor, so I usually end up selling whatever Heavy Armor loot I find for some sweet sweet gold. I’m saving up for one of those Louis Vuitton handbags actually.

TSH: They have those in Tiny Adventures shop?

J: No, don’t be silly. Of course not. Talking bout the shop, it’s always out of Healing Potions and Elixirs of Vitality. A word from the wise, aside from nice stats (and killer heels), you can go anywhere with these two potions.

TSH: It sounds like a pretty tough world out there in Tiny Adventures. Do you get someone to accompany you on your adventures?

J: You know what? It’s pretty hard to get a guy, especially if you are like..a couple hundred of years older than him. I spend my nights when I’m not killing a kobold or two, alone, listening to Akon on my iPod.

TSH: Guy problems aside, what’s your pet peeve when you’re out adventuring?

J: I hate any kind of ability check with high difficulty. I get bad rolls in that kind of situation.

TSH: What happens when you get a poor roll?

J: Lots of things, usually my hit points will take a hit (pun not intended, it’s not funny at all) but there are times my other attributes are hit as well. This is so embarrassing but there’s this one time I had 4 points deducted from my intelligence attribute. I felt so stupid throughout the rest of that adventure, kept bumping into trees and falling off small cliffs all the time!

TSH: That sounds..dangerous, but what do you have to say for aspiring adventurers on Tiny Adventures?

J: It’s addictive! Once you are done with one adventure, you would want more! Don’t forget your potions…very important! Anyways, I gotta go now, the Monsters Isles are a-calling. Thanks for having me here by the way.

TSH: You’re welcome Jojo. There you have it folks, a seasoned adventurer on Dungeons & Dragons: Tiny Adventures. Get your own adventure now, at your Facebook profile!

I just spent the better part of Sunday afternoon doing some gardening. As I was mixing the soil to plant a new batch of cucumber seeds (fresh from the Malaysian Agriculture Research and Development Institute…so says the makcik who gave me the seeds), I realized how much fun people who are hooked to Animal Crossing (and therefore “virtual tree planting”) are missing.

And unlike Animal Crossing, where you can cheat; gardening and planting seeds (watching them grow and then reaping the harvest), gives a certain sense of satisfaction no “farming simulator” can match. So, switch off the DS, get out of the couch, get a pot (the non-smoking type :P), some soil, and seeds, and don’t make a mess :).

First there was the DSVision Starter Kit released by am3 and marketed as Nintendo’s official flashkart for the Nintendo DS. Bundled together with a 512 MB MicroSD card, this flashkart allows the user to view movies, tv shows, comics, and stuff that an adequately equipped un-endorsed flashkart such as the R4 can do, minus playing ROMs of course.

Anyways, it looks like AM3 is going to release the DSVision Adapter Package sans microSD card come this mid-September. Play-Asia lists the item to be available on September 11th with a price tag of USD 19.90 (to pre-order, click here).

Also being released on the same date are content for the DSVision cart and I suspect are sold in microSD format as they require the DSVision cart to work. The list (obtained from Play-Asia) is as follows:

• Maboroshi no Pokemon Rugia Bakutan (click here for further details)
• Serebi toki wo koeta souguu (click here for further details)
• Myuu to hadou no yuusha rukario Special Pack (click here for further details)
• Kesshoutou no teiou entei (click here for further details)

It would be interesting to note that these are actually Pokemon movies. The last I heard, Sony’s UMD movies were pretty much with a lame response. Perhaps a repeat of Sony’s missteps eh Nintendo?

Sony Malaysia has come up with a teaser of sorts for the Playstation 3 launch. Check it out here

Wassup with the August 8th date though.

Okie Dokie. What turn-based game is so addictive, and yet it crashes every single time? I think I’ve asked this question before, but nevermind, here’s the answer again: Dungeons and Dragons: Tiny Adventures on Facebook. I’ve been clocking in the hours on this game, and like my friend said: You’ve been busy.

Burnt-Out?

That aside, I’ve tried out Burnout Legends for the DS. According to conventional wisdom, if game review sites label a game as sucky, it should suck. But hey, at Nine Over Ten 9/10, to hell with conventional wisdom, lets play the game and find out for ourselves.

Now, if I was driving, and subjected to driving Burnout Legends style, I would be suffering from major whiplash without even trying to hit something. But once you get used to the driving style, and getting tossed about in collisions, you can probably appreciate the rest of the game. For one, the graphics are rather decent, and it does feel like the PS2 game has been transported over to the DS.

SONYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!11

It looks like Sony Malaysia would be revising the pricing of the PS3 bundle for the launch on 20th September. In lieu of a possible price hike…I is sad. Anything above RM1700, lol, and I’ll just sit here, wait, and probably get one of those Xbox 360s, however dodgy they may be with 3ROD.

We live in interesting times. While Nintendo has its official counter right here in Midvalley and Sony officially launching the Playstation 3 at 1 Utama on the 20th of September (click here), the Xbox 360 is yet to be seen with official support from Microsoft, on Malaysian shores.

Yes, Gamers Hideout is selling these RROD-vulnerable machines, but for warranty claims, units have to be sent down south to Singapore.

Anyways, at RM 1699 for a launch offering of: 1×80 GB PS3, 1xSoul Calibur 4 game, 1xSelected PS3 game and with a 1 year warranty for the console…it’s a pretty sweat deal. Hmm…

I’m already “lost” trying to get my head around the series Lost currently showing on TV. But the Kubrick version of the characters from Lost are a different matter altogether as I’ve the complete list right here with the assortment rate:

- Jack: 20.8%
- Kate: 18.6%
- Sawyer: 20.8%
- Sayid: 12.4%
- Hurley: 8.3%
- Locke: 12.4%
- Charlie: 8.3%

The Lost Kubrick figurines are available at Play-Asia at USD 7.49 each. Click here for details.

What’s more interesting than your normal, run-of-the-mill, Street Fighter figurines? Well, Street Fighter figurines that look like they just came out from a box of Legos of course!

It wouldn’t hurt that they are selling at a discount as well. Street Fighter Minimates Round 1 Pre-painted Figurines are going for USD 2.90 each at Play-Asia.

Get them now before they are all sold out. Click here for further details.

Dad has been to Japan several times and has experienced a number of things over there, amongst them an earthquake and expensive sashimi. One thing that he always mentions (besides the earthquake) would be the speed limit on Japanese roads.

Unlike the speed limit on Malaysian roads which can range from 70km/h to 90 km/h, the Japanese would have to contend with a sedentary and sleep inducing range of 40km/h to 60km/h, with the exception of highways, of course.

Busses and Trains

Now, you can actually experience of driving within this kind of limits on your Nintendo DS with the release of Norimono Oukoku DS: You! Unten Shichai na You! The game takes a feature found in Grand Theft Auto games, which is making money by jacking a taxi, picking up passengers and dropping them at their desired location, to greater heights, minus the criminal aspect.

Norimono Oukoku will have you driving buses, trams, cranes, ambulances, police cars and even more. The objective of the game is pretty simple. The game provides you with a vehicle, you drive the vehicle around town in a GTA-III-ish fashion in a 3D town (complete with other vehicles on the road and sparse pedestrian population which you won’t be able to run over) and complete missions to gain points.

Have Points, Will Drive

There are a certain number of points to be fulfilled in each level, and once done, you get to drive another vehicle. Before I forget, points are deducted if you get into too many fender benders or by hitting the curb too hard. However, you don’t get the stick for traffic infractions such as driving against traffic, going pass the red light, etc etc (funny eh?).

Touchy Feely

As mentioned earlier, the entire game is in 3D, and even though the graphics are a little wash-out, the game handles itself admirably with decent draw distance and constant frame rate. The game features the touch screen as the main means of driving the vehicle. Accelerating and braking are controlled by the D-pad but the touchscreen has the steering wheel.

The touchscreen also plays host to a number of vehicle specific buttons. If you are driving the ambulance, there are buttons to turn on the siren and to open the vehicle’s back door so that the stretcher (and patient) can be taken out or placed in.

A mini-map and a pager round up the rest of the touch screen’s features. Aiding the mini-map in navigation is an on-screen arrow that points to your next objective, which is triggered by accepting your pager calls.

Driving Limits Revisited

Ah yes, regarding the speed limit. The vehicles in the game seem to have the same rev-limiter, in which they chug along at 71 km/h per hour. The horn is pretty useless in the game; and other vehicles on the road seem undeterred by an ambulance (or police car) with sirens blaring, and won’t move over. I don’t know whether the same thing happens in real life in Japan, but people can die because of that.

The gripe about speed and ignorant AI drivers aside, now I’m driving a police car and nabbing people driving slowly in their fancy sports cars. Hehe.

Lost in Translation?

Norimono Oukoku is pretty playable despite being a true-blue Japanese game. Don’t let the long (and rather talk-ie) intro deter you. I would pretty much like to drive a fire-truck next, if there’s one in the game.

Norimono Oukoku is available at Play-Asia now. Click here for details.

Fans of One Piece anime/manga are in luck today as the One Piece Mini Trading Figurine collection has just been released by Zacca P.A.P.

Measuring 30 to 40 mm each, this collection features a total of 18 characters + 1 secret character. Interested? The collectibles costs USD 2.90 each and Play-Asia ships out random characters, although is possible to get a full set sometimes by ordering the total number of characters. Click here for further details.

Have you been to your local bookstore lately? Browsing through the Sci-Fi and Fantasy sections would probably yield a number of books which are video game tie-ins. The usual suspects are Diablo, Starcraft, Warcraft and Halo.

The next question would be, as a video gamer, are you ever inclined to read these books? Well, I for one wasn’t, until my brother got me a Halo 3-book set for Christmas, and the books turned out to be an interesting, if not, enjoyable read bar one.

Hello Halo

The three books in the set were “The Fall of Reach”, “The Flood” and “First Strike”, and are best read in the aforementioned sequence. Everyone’s favourite hero in green armour (I’m not talking bout Link) gets his introduction and backstory in “The Fall of Reach”.

Here, you get to know how John, became the Master Chief and that there are other Spartans as well. “The Flood” basically retells the first Halo video game, and it reads like a video game as well. This picture best sums up my feelings for this book:

First Strike shares the same author as The Fall of Reach, and is pretty good, but having said that, you’ll need to read The Fall of Reach to get an idea on what’s going on. With my first batch of video-game tie-ins read and sitting pretty on my bookshelf, are there any other recommendations?