Top 25

Damn. I's been tagged. Fair enough. In the spirt of blogidarity, here is my list of the top 25 console/computer video games of all time:

25. Pitfall, Atari 2600. Let's start with a classic. I wasted hours of my life on this game.
24. Final Fantasy VIII, PlayStation. I may have been the only human being on Earth that liked this game.
23. Sonic the Hedgehog, Sega Genesis. Simple, fun, and addictive. Plus, at the time, we were prone to imbibe certain relaxing substances and then play what we lovingly called "Chronic the Hemphog."
22. Sea Battle, Intellivision. I can still sit down and play this to this day. Awesomely fun naval strategy game.
21. Demon Attack, Atari 2600. Somewhere I have the Polaroid I took of my top score on this game: 1,250,000. Yeah, I played for about 13 hours straight.
20. Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe, PC. Lucasfilm's testbed for the 3D modeling engine they used for the X-Wing and TiE Fighter series of games. Big time fun as you bomb German factories into submission with your B-17 or take the helm of a theoretical Gotha GO-229 Flying wing in an attempt to preserve the Reich.
19. TiE Fighter, PC. Speaking of Lucasfilm, a highly enjoyable flight sim based on the Star Wars franchise where you play one of the hapless thousands assigned to a rickety, poorly constructed interceptor charged with taking out much better armed and armored opponents. The frustration factor early is offset by the coolness of some of the toys you get later.
18. Super Mario Bros., NES. I still have the music stuck in my head to this day.
17. 1942, NES. Would have been higher on the list except for the crappy ending.
16. Diablo, PC. The grandfather of all MMOs is still fun to play.
15. Doom, PC. Quite possibly the biggest reason PC gaming is as popular as it is today.
14. Madden '93, Super NES. The first of the next-gen sports games that took advantage of 16-bit tech to introduce realistic-looking characters.
13. Super Mario World, Super NES. Nintendo's franchise goldmine just gets better with age.
12. Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, NES. A much more robust and difficult game than the original; added a "battle screen" side-scroller for in-depth gameplay.
11. Resident Evil, PlayStation. So incredibly cheeseball, but tons of funs. Introduced the idea of "survival horror" as an archetype to the industry.
10. Sim City, PC. Be your own city manager/mayor and make your townspeople happy...or find yourself testifying before Congress.
9. Master of Orion, PC. The first, and best, Empire-builder I ever played.
8. X-Wing, PC. What nerd didn't want to be Han Solo or Luke Skywalker growing up? Well...then again, I always wanted to be Darth Vader. I guess that's why I play an undead...
7. The Legend of Zelda, NES. The game that introduced the concept of role-playing to a generation of geeky kids.
6. Starcraft, PC. The king of the RTS games for my money. Great graphics, amazing storyline, replayability out the wazoo.
5. Civilization, PC. It was electronic crack long before WoW came along. The other titles in the series are amazing, too, but this one is still my favorite, bad graphics and all.
4. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, PlayStation. Hear our battle cry: "Dude, I can grind that."
3. Legend of Dragoon, PlayStation. Quite possibly the best RPG in terms of story and playability ever made. I actually cried at the end, it was that good.
2. World of Warcraft, PC. Sorry, Blizz. You're #2. A strong #2, granted. I've had more fun with this game than any in a long time. But it still doesn't beat...
1. Resident Evil II, PlayStation. Fantastic voicework, great graphics that withstand the test of time, an engaging storyline, plenty of replay fun, and basically 2 games for the price of one as you get to play from both the heros' perspectives. This is the only original PS1 game I still own, and I still enjoy it every now and again.

Postcards from the Edg-AIIIEEEEEeeeeeeee.....

Looky look! Tsuri sent me a card! How nice of him. Not sure how he got that picture on the front, but it's very epic-looking...

Holy crap! I didn't realize how freakin' tough critters out here would be. One second I'm king of the hill, straight murderin' Lich servants, Scourgies, and huge bugs. The next? Gettin' gored in the junk by some giant Javelina! WTF??

Well, it ain't all bad. After I got my bearings, the Orcs in a lovely little Hamlet called Thrallmar (not too inventive, are they?) gave me a job killing the various Scourgies that are runnin' all over the place. They neglected to tell me about the Fel Reaver, though. Two words: Tsuri pate'.

No, I am most definitely not hiding from the Reaver. I'm performing tactical reconnaisance...from extreme distance.

This place sucks so bad even the ghosts try to kill you. All I did was run past them, too. Wasn't even gonna' mess with them, until they decided to mess with me. Then I had to regulate, yo (like my impression of the Pally circle of death?).

Luckily, thanks to some work helping elements of thier forces take vengeance on the Fel Orcs that slaughtered them, I was able to make them see the error of their ways...and then they made me their King. All shall serve the Forsaken! BWA-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Ha ha...ha....ahem.

Yeah, that's me and three Alliance DKs rolling on Arazzius. What? Hey, the enemy of my enemy and all that jive. Might as well at least try to be diplomatic. Additionally...DK's!: When it absolutely, positively needs to fucking die this very second, accept no substitute (and all the hordies were apparently passed out for the night).

All in all, I've been too busy to notice the suckage goin' on out here too much, what with being sent on seek-and-destroy missions against errant Voidwalkers, fortifying our defenses against the Alliance, and running messages back and forth to Thrall himself in Orgrimmar. Plus, the local General has been giving me some totally stompin' armor for being his Mr. Wolf. I've even gained enough strategic know-how to make it halfway to my 64th season.

Only a few loose ends to tie up before heading to Zangermarsh. I hear them Orcs in Hellfire Citadel have been causing a ruckus. Someone should really...talk to them...about that.

He Got Next?

So now that Tsuri's in Outlands and the endgame is in sight, I am already thinking about who gets leveled next. I have a few choices, all of which are fun in their own way, but I haven't really settled on one in particular yet. Hopefully you kind, gentle readers out there can assist me (and take the decision-making process out of my hands...shirking responsibility FTW). So, here's a quick dossier of who's available:

Name: Fujimaro

Faction: Horde

MO: Hunter

Race: Orc

Server: Silverhand

Tradeskills: Leatherworking & Skinning

Current Level: 9

Benefits: Hunters are still EZ mode, even with the BM nerf, and it's really nice being able to pay attention to just one or two things in battle vs. the 50 different things you need to worry about with a tank.

Detriments: BM, what I wanted to get into, got smacked with the errata anvil really hard. Not sure about MM or SV as a main type, really.

Favorite Quote: "I'm old, but you're dead. I win."

Name: Richhard
Faction: Horde

MO: Warlock

Race: Forsaken

Server: Silverhand

Tradeskills: None chosen
Current Level: 5
Benefits: Dude...it's an undead Warlock named Richard! How can you go wrong? Plus the racial abilities of the Forsaken are still the best in the game, IMHO.
Detriments: I've tried Warlocks before (the failed Tsuko experiment) with very little success. Getting my mind wrapped around the squishy world is difficult.
Favorite Quote: "I...like...to...kill...things. What part of that is difficult to understand?"

Name: Kusamoto

Faction: Horde
MO: Paladin
Race: Blood Elf

Server: Silverhand

Tradeskills: None chosen

Current Level: 2

Benefits: Pallys, in general, are pretty powerful and flexible. I can DPS, tank, heal, whatever. This I like.

Detriments: I really can't stand Blood Elves as a general rule. Not sure why; playing one rubs me the wrong way. Plus, their racial abilities and survivability factor are not good, and the starting location sucks for quest leveling.

Favorite Quote: "Better to die for something than live for nothing."

Name: Tsanuri

Faction: Alliance
MO: Shaman
Race: Draenai

Server: Blackhand

Tradeskills: Mining & Engineering

Current Level: 10

Benefits: I rolled up this toon so I could mob around with my boys from the Swift Sword, and ended up liking the class really well. Shamans are a nice mix of Priest and Warrior, and the space goat racial heal is very cool.

Detriments: I wouldn't be able to roll with my local friends on Silverhand very often, except for raiding and heroics with Tsuri.

Favorite Quote: "Wait, don't tell me. The ship crashed again, didn't it?"

So each choice has its good points and bad, and I'm really torn as to which one should be my secondary focus after 80ing Tsuri. Please shoot me a reply with which you think would be the logical next choice.

It's Time to Make the Donuts!

Well, here I am...for better or worse. The Dark Portal. The end of my time on Azeroth, for at least 10 seasons. A new beginning for me as a tank. I hope I'm ready for this. For posterity's sake (and to take a page from Kinnavieve's book), here's how I looked going in (ignore the sword, I've got a new one; basic stats nearly unchanged, except damage is now 220-270):

Soon to be old and busted:

• Emerald Helm of the Bear
• Heroic Commendation Medal
• Big Bad Pauldrons
• Cerise Drape
• Ursa's Embrace
• Bracers of Valor
• Gauntlets of Valor
• Belt of Valor
• Revenant Leggings of the Bear
• Sapphiron's Scale Boots
• Dragonclaw Ring
• Aquamarine Signet of the Bear
• Rune of Duty
• Mark of Resolution
• Phantom Blade
• Revenant Deflector of the Bear
• Sylvan Shortbow

True to form, I ran trough the portal with reckless abandon, luckily with a guide, and soon found myself flying over a blasted wasteland of doom to end up in the end-all, be-all of Outlands...Scenic Shattrath. Isn't Aldor Rise lovely at this time of night?

More to come soon, I am sure...

57

57.

57...

It's just a number. It means nothing. Well, maybe not nothing numerogically speaking...

57; 5+7; 12; 1+2; 3

3, in classic numerology, was the perfect number. 3 represented harmony, balance, prosperity. In the Indian Vedic traditions, the number 3 as a name number meant artistic, and having the ability to pull society up through idealistic contributions. In Life Path numerology, 3 was reserved for those people with endless wells of creative energy and optimism.

Closer to home, 3 is the number of times a President has not won the popular vote but been elected by the Electoral College. 3 is the number of Series' the BoSox have won. We have 3 traffic signals, 3 branches of government, the big 3 automakers, 3 Blind Mice, and 3 Little Pigs.

So I guess, as a number, 57 could be worse. It adds up to a lot of things when you break it down numerogically. But...no matter how many different ways you add, subtract, or divide it...

57 does not equal Outlands. :-(

When nothing Happens...

Been awhile since I've posted...apologies. Annnnnnd I have nothing WoW-related to say. But, here's an amusing email conversation my wife and I had regarding the possibility of going to Vegas for vacation. Enjoy...

Wife: I feel soso about Vegas. But I have heard you can get some really good deals with Hotel and food there. There just isn't much there that appeals to me.

Me: Barry Manilow! All the time!
Otherwise, if we aren't gambling, meh

W: Ooh My Gosh...BARRY?...WHOOT! yeah, not much of a gambler......I think we should see what kind of return we are going to get and bonus you are going to get before we consider going anywhere.

M: ......killjoy......

W: Oh man.....did I have to be the practical one? sorry.
We could get some cat sand, wine, and something to make the bathtub bubble and pretend we have Hawaii in the bathroom. Would that be considered a staycation or just sad?

M: I think that would be considered a desperate cry for help.

W: And a klingon drink at the Star Trek experience isn't?

M: No...that's made of awesome.

Tsuri Update

This will probably be in my Top 5 for 2009...

Turns out I was a day later dinging 50 than I anticipated, but oh well. I'm there, and that's what counts. For posterity, I figured I might as well post this here, too...