Critter Crunch (PSN)

Lots of great things to say about this little treasure of a game.

Well, technically I haven't completely beaten the game. I managed to finish up Adventure mode and saw the credits roll, so in my eyes, this game is considered beaten. But, there are a couple modes (Puzzle and Challenge modes) that have yet to be mastered. I will definitely be spending more time in finishing that up.

Anyway, Critter Crunch is a surprisingly deep puzzle game. As far as puzzle games go, Bejeweled Blitz has been my outlet for puzzle game madness for a while. It's nice to play something that has more depth and tension to it. I like how as you beat each stage, they add another element to the game to make it more complex.

Graphically, the game is very pretty on my HDTV. Everything is sharp and crisp, with cute character design.

It's amazing that I only spent 4.99 on this game! It's surely worth more than that, and if I had paid more, I would have been totally fine with that. Another highly recommended Playstation Network game (along with Braid), this experience has left me more considerate of what these smaller indie-developed games have to offer.

Games Beaten: 6/36

Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (NDS)

So, the newest iteration in the Zelda series, I feel a little ambivalent about it. I love certain parts about the game, namely the temples with their top-notch dungeon design and the boss fights that feel extra epic, while everything else in between I despise.

To be more specific, I hated the segments of the game that involved the train and traversing the lands. It just took too long and felt like they made it so that they could artificially increase game length. Also, fetchquests with the train and giving people rides to distant towns was just tedious. There was absolutely nothing fun about this.

Also, using the stylus makes my hand cramp up. I hate games that require the stylus.

Don't get me wrong, I do get the sense that this is another quality Nintendo product. Zelda always brings quality gaming to me. Not to mention the dialogue and story was just extremely charming, and watching Zelda and Link work together to solve puzzles and actually spend the whole game together and have a relationship develop between the two was really well done and much appreciated.

However, everything concerning TRAINS just ruined the game's chances of being GREAT to me and made it turn out to be JUST OKAY.

I really need to get on Twilight Princess now.

Games Beaten: 5/36

Update on Life!

First non-videogame entry, GO!

January turned out to be an amazing month. Mostly due to the surprise birthday party that Sid threw for me. Located on the 53rd floor of Palms Place hotel, Sid managed to get a lot of people to come to this. It was the biggest surprise of my life, and honestly THE sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me.

Walking into the hotel, I was led to believe I was attending some random hotel party being hosted by our friend Dani's roommate. Once I walked into the room, I noticed John and Rachel in the corner of the room and thought to myself "Oh shit, John and Rachel are here! I didn't know they were coming... that's cool!" And then, a bunch of hollering and yelling ensued. I couldn't make sense of what anyone was saying and I also didn't recognize anyone in the room since the lights were really dim. And then bam, I saw my old co-worker from Marriott, Jamie. Still, things didn't register in my head. I was frazzled and confused. My eyes were darting back and forth, left and right, as faces started to become familiar. "Wait, what is she doing here?!... OMG?!" I spotted my cousin Clarisse, a co-worker or two, and then things finally clicked. Everyone was yelling "SURPRISE!!!" and it all finally made sense. I was overcome with happiness and joy, so much so that I couldn't help but buckle down and start crying. I crouched onto the floor because my legs couldn't support how surprised and elated I was. Looking into the crowd, all I saw were peoples' camera flashes going off, like a celebrity surrounded by a bunch of paparazzi. It was surreal.

I think what got to me the most was that people from out of town came for this party. It really made me feel special and loved. Seeing my cousin Clarisse and her friend Melissa, seeing Sid's friends (Sarah, Pam, Retchie), and being surprised by Henry and William's attendance and drag performance were what really pushed me over the edge to actually make me produce tears of joy. They all drove/flew from the Bay to come and celebrate my birthday with me! Fucking whoa!

I was bumrushed with hugs and salutations, everyone was asking me to take a picture with them, to take a shot with them. My attention was all over the place. Every person I ran into, I had to say hi, or hug, or socialize with. Some of these people I hadn't seen for months! It was overwhelming to say the least. I feel like I didn't hang out with anyone at the party because I was stretched way too thin talking to everyone.

Anyway, surprise of my fucking life. It was the best party I've ever had. I really wish I moderated how much I drank so that I could stay up the whole night, but I couldn't help but take a shot with anyone I saw. Surprisingly I wasn't the first one to black out (that feat can be attributed to Dani, hahaha), but I came a close second. I remember waking up intermittently to people coming to my bed and wishing me a happy birthday here and there, and a bunch of other scandalous stuff that shall remain unspoken of, but sadly I regret not being awake for the entirety of the night.

So yes, this past January was definitely one of the highlights of my life. Other highlights were celebrating New Year's on the Strip for the first time with Dani's family. We partied in their hotel room in the Venetian, and then watched the fireworks out on the Strip. Also, we celebrated my co-worker Arlette's birthday. So much fun both of those nights too. Pictures for all of these events can be found on my Facebook or Sid's.