Favorite Video Games: Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Continuing my series on favorite video games. I'll continue my stroll down memory lane with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). I spent many an hour playing this system, and these games most definitely composed the greatest enjoyment out of it.

In dramatic reverse order....

5. Donkey Kong Country

One of the first games to excel at 3-D graphics. It was still a side-scrolling game, but graphically amazing for a 16-bit system. In addition to the aesthetic quality, it was superb to play, and co-op made it enjoyable for a group.

4. NHL Hockey (EA sports)

The screenshot is from the '94 variation. However, I'm pretty sure I played multiple years of this title. Despite not really being a huge hockey fan, this game was superbly fun. Learning the art of the one-timer was the secret to success. Also, you can count on one hand, the number of times I was out body-checked by anyone.

3. Madden Football (EA Sports)

The system that started my love affair with Madden (please don't take that out of context). Despite the poor graphics, the gameplay was second to none. Many games were played of Madden football throughout the SNES's lifespan.

2. Super Mario World

Another excellent outing of Mario. Easily one of the best Mario games out there. Fun to play at any time.

And the best video game for the SNES...

1. Super MarioKart


Hands down the best game for the SNES...no questions, accept no substitutes. I have some vivid recollections of playing this game. Both the single player GPs against the computer, and more so, the many many hours of battle mode against my brother. We loved snow days away from school in order to play this game. An amazing game.

Honorable mentions: NBA Jam, Star Fox, and F-Zero

Well, that brings this stroll down SNES memory lane to an end. I hope you enjoyed it. Stay tuned our next outing in a DeLorean for a trip to the N64 days.

Favorite Video Games: Nintendo Entertainment System

Well, let me start by saying I'm stealing the idea from my brother. He recently has posted his top 25 video games of all time (25-18, 17-10, 9-1). Now to be fair, he has far more video game experiences than I do. I'm mixing it up a bit, and will discuss my top 5 games for each of the systems I've owned. That way I stick to comparing apples to apples.

Here we go...My Top 5 Video Games from the Nintendo Entertainment System

5. RC Pro-Am

A top down racer that would be a fore-runner to my enjoyment of kart racing games. Oil slicks, wet spots, bombs and missiles all added to the enjoyment of the game. I never mastered it, but I did get pretty good and hated missing the letters to spell out NINTENDO and upgrade to the next batch of cars.

4. Super Mario Bros.

It's hard to make a list of NES games and not include the original game. Packaged along with Duck Hunt, this game established one of the best video game characters ever. For a long time, side scrolling adventures would be compared to this one.

3. Ninja Turtles Arcade Game

Never really progress that far in this game, due to the lack of continues and monster difficulty of bosses. However, that did not stop my great enjoyment of the first 3 levels. Playing along with the brother was great fun too.

2. Super Mario Bros 3
An excellent and fun game. Back on track after the bizarre Mario Bros. 2. Very enjoyable game. Always wanted to make sure you had a leaf hanging around.

And my favorite NES game ever....

1. Little League Baseball

Quite possibly my favorite baseball of all time (granted I've not really played a baseball game since the N64 days). The fielding worked, the pitching worked, and the batting was fun. The uniqueness of each team made this game special. I still recall setting up tournaments with my brother and our neighbor. This game also got me through a hospital stay as a kid. Superb game!

Honorable mentions: Duck Hunt and Rad Racer

Stay tuned as over the next week, I'll give my top 5 SNES, N64, PS2 and Xbox 360 games. Hope you enjoyed this minor stroll down memory lane.

Three Movie Reviews

This past weekend I experienced a slew of movie viewing consisting of two trips to the actual theater (I know, impressive). Since I'm due for an update and I've got these three films in my mind, this post just seemed natural. I'm going to review the films in chronological order...which also turns out to be best to worst. Without further ado...

Iron Man
Starring: Robert Downey, Jr., Gwenyth Paltrow, Terrence Howard, and Jeff Bridges

Synopsis: The owner of a weapons company is captured by terrorists and held hostage to make weapons for them. Instead he creates and iron suit. After returning to civilization, he has a change of mind about weapons and chooses instead to perfect his suit and get rid of all his weapons in the wrong hands.

Review: A superbly entertaining film. I'll let it be known that I've never read the comics, so I'm not sure how faithful it stayed. Downey, Jr. is excellent. Whether as a arrogant playboy millionaire, or as a man concerned with others well being, he is always believable and plays the role perfectly. The character development is sound. The story workable, and the special effects outstanding. Right up there with Spiderman 2 as the best comic book movie to date. I give this one 4 1/2 out of 5. Highly recommend the big screen for this one.


Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
Starring: The kids from the first one, some guy you've never heard of, and Warwick Davis

Synopsis: The kids from the first return to Narnia after 1300 years (Narnia time) has passed. Narnia has been captured by a group of humans known as Telmarines, and the mythical creatures are in hiding. The titular Prince Caspian and original kids unite with the Narnians (the creatures) to battle the Telmarines for control of the land.

Review: Let me get the disclaimer that I've never read the novel, so I can't make claims about how faithful this adaptation was. Compared to the first CoN movie, this one has a darker tone and more action. Both of which were greatly welcomed, as I felt the first was rather campy. However, I felt a little lost in the story, where the first was pretty much laid out for all to know, this keeps things unsaid for nearly the entire movie. As a Christian allegory, it only works if you are looking for it. It is certainly not an in your face type of movie, and not as obvious as the first. I give this one 4 out of 5 stars. If you liked the original, check it out on the big screen (the battle scenes are worth it), otherwise wait until DVD.



The Orphanage
Starring: Spanish actors

Synopsis: A lady returns to her childhood home (an orphanage) with her husband and adopted child to run a home for mentally challenged children. Her son sees and plays with make believe friends that worries his mother. Her son disappears and she seeks out answers believing that his make believe friends are actual ghosts.

Review: I don't normally do foreign language films, but was intrigued by the idea of a good ghost story. I never really got around to liking this movie, but at the same time, did not hate it. Every time things started to get tense, the movie just lets it slide. The end result was a somewhat boring film that didn't live up to its potential of being an edge of the seat thriller. Needless to say I'm not really recommending this one to people. I give it 2 1/2 out of 5 stars. It is possible that people who like artsy-fartsy might like it more than I did.

Last Class...Ever?

Yesterday marked a historic event in my educational life. Short of winning the lottery, or a sudden mid-life crisis, I am finished with traditional classroom education. Yep, yesterday marked the end of my life as a classroom student. I am done with classes...forever. I know, never say never and all that, but for the current planned future, I will likely not be attending class as a traditional student.

This does not mean I'm done with testing (Comprehensive exams sometime this summer...probably August), presentations (once a quarter for my lab, and once a year for the department), or even lectures (a seminar is just a lecture that you won't be tested on). At some point, I will probably still have classroom responsibilities, but hopefully in the role of lecturer/professor.

Really, for seeming like such a milestone, it comes with very little fanfare. Now, I simply continue in the life of a graduate student. Nothing special happens, no weeks/months off (as with the end of high school or college), just show up today and go about business as usual. Nonetheless, I'm choosing to mark the event...by making a post about it. It seems strange in some regards though. For the past 22 years of my life (preschool at age 3), going to school and taking classes has been the mainstay. I know I had summers off from classes, but that only represents 2-3 months a year. I have spent the majority of my life in a classroom...and now, it is no more. I'm almost sad...almost.

What's next? Lab work, lab work, comprehensive exam, and then more lab work. Once I clear the hurdle of comps, I will be exclusively focused on getting out of here with that piece of paper and 3 little letters. Hard to imagine that's likely 3 years away. Oh well...back to work, I guess.

Note: Picture stolen form some website. Google image search for classroom.

Summer Movie Must-see Movie List

As promised, I'm going to give you my current must-see movie list for the summer of 2008. Keep in mind this list is only my opinion of movies that have announced a release date, and I've heard of them. My research relies mostly on previews and internet buzz. I don't doubt that I've missed some movies that will be good, and that I'll probably see, but I'm only human and I'm only going to hit the blockbusters. Fairly picture heavy posts, as I've tried to include a movie poster for each movie on the list of must-see. The honorable mentions do NOT get a poster (sorry). Here they are (in order of release date)....

May 22nd - Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Clearly, this is a must-see movie. I loved two of the original trilogy (Raiders and Last Crusade...Temple of Doom was okay). And Indiana Jones is simply one of the coolest characters ever.

June 13th - M. Night Shyamalan's The Happening
Generally, I don't go see movies, or avoid movies because of a director (Uwe Boll being one to avoid at all costs); however, M. Night Shyamalan is an exception. I've liked all his movies (Signs and Sixth Sense a lot, The Village well enough, and the concepts of Unbreakable and Lady in the Water), and the previews really make me interested in this one. Certainly should be worth price of admission.

June 27th - Disney/Pixar's WALL-E
Similar to a director standpoint, I'm not big on specific producing companies, but Disney/Pixar's track record speaks volumes. Now, I may not get around to catching this on the big screen, but I'm certainly going to try...and definitely pick it up to rent immediately.

July 11th - Hellboy II: The Golden Army
The original Hellboy was a bit of a guilty pleasure. I'm pretty sure I liked it more than was necessary. It was simply a fun movie to watch. Good action and a wise-cracking demon, what's not to love. The previews promise more of the same from this one.

July 18th - The Dark Knight
Another one of the most anticipated movies of this summer. The Batman Begins franchise reboot was an awesome film, and with the same creative team returning, this promises more of the same. The previews look excellent, and Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker promises to be phenomenal.

August 15th - Star Wars: The Clone Wars (cartoon)
Star Wars returns to the big screen with an all-new adventure in CGI cartoon. Current reports on a stand-alone story will be released in theaters prior to episodic content on TV. All-in-all the series is supposed to tell the story about what happened between Episodes II and III. I'm not complaining about more Star Wars.

Honorable mentions (not necessarily big screen, but rentals for sure):

5/16 - Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian - the first CoN film was childish, but enjoyable. The previews appear to up the action, which would be very welcome.

7/25 - The X-Files - I really enjoyed the TV series, especially when it wasn't dealing with conspiracies, but with really strange creatures/happenings. This film claims to return to that type of plot.

8/1 - The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor - The original Mummy was excellent, and it was all downhill from there. A new "mummy" and change in locale might be what this franchise needs. Just bring back fun and wise-cracking, and I'm in.

There are others coming out that I'll rent and are worth keeping an eye on, but these crack the list as must-see. What are yours? Anyone? I mean really, I want to know...it'll be fun.

Later

1000 miles, 6 days, and 36 games

What a week! In the past six days (since last Saturday), I've driven 1000 miles and have bowled 36 games (plus practice balls). Aside from a little tenderness in my right shoulder and wrist, and an ache in my left quad, I'm in pretty good shape. Tired, for sure, but certainly capable of bowling again. For those possibly forgetful of why I've traveled and bowled so much, I've been in Albuquerque (NM) for the USBC Open championships. And while in town, did 2 sets at the Bowlers Journal and 3 sets at the Bowling This Month tournaments. While, I never scored extraordinarily well, after the opening set at the BJ and BTMs and game 1 of team event, I threw the ball very well. I was pretty consistent and close to the pocket. I shot my single pin spares well. The difficulty was a very small miss was often magnified and resulted in splits or washouts (think split with the headpin still present). I think I was close to a 180 average for the 29 games in Albuquerque.

I followed that up by driving back into Denver for the final night of my winter league. It was nice to be on an easier shot. I actually didn't throw the ball all that well, but due to having a bit of room I was able to score ok. Most importantly was only one open (split). Last night started my summer PBA experience league. Side note: the irony is I started my summer bowling league when it was 32 degrees and snowy...gotta love Denver weather, huh? Ok, back on track. I threw the ball really well last night and got off to a pretty good start in the PBA league.

Well, as of right now, I'm likely not going to be bowling again until next Thursday. If only I would hit the lottery (Powerball at $175 mil this week), I might bowl this much every week. Until then, I'll keep my day job and bowl at least weekly.

Have a great weekend. Up next: My summer movie must see-list.