Even though it’s technically for the older set of gamers, I can’t help but want a giant new DSi XL.  I really only ever play my DS at home, so might as well have some bigger screens.  Kind of makes me glad I didn’t rush out and buy the DSi when it launched with its only slightly larger screens.

via Kotaku, Iwata: DSi XL Not Just For Seniors, It’s For Watching Others Play Too [Nintendo].

Small Worlds is a short, simple Flash game about exploration. There’s not much to collect, nothing to kill you, and an almost non-existent ending.  The music is okay and the control is kind of meh.  But the level design is amazing, with loads of detail and atmosphere packed into a retro style. Though there’s nothing to be earned from doing so, if you’re anything like me you’ll avoid your goal until you’ve explored every corner of the map.

• The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
• Team Fortress 2
• Portal
• Half-Life 2: Episode 2: Freeman Strikes Back
• Some Xbox Tetris game

I am also finishing up my video game website, but it doesn’t help that I don’t have enough time to play these games let alone write anything about them. The only solution, it seems, would be to sleep less.

I think we can all agree that they look cool. Now I just have to figure out what to do with them.

They come in sets of seven (of course) and are available for preorder for the low, low price of 198 rubles! That’s, like, seven bucks! Great for sticking on your refrigerator, car, metallic knee, or ferrous satellite hull!

]]> http://nexthttp.com/2006/08/23/from-russia-with-love/feed/ 1 http://nexthttp.com/2005/06/13/katamari-was-the-case/ http://nexthttp.com/2005/06/13/katamari-was-the-case/#comments Tue, 14 Jun 2005 04:28:02 +0000 Joseph http://nexthttp.com/2005/06/13/katamari-was-the-case/

I had wanted to get the Logitech case for my PSP since it came out, and this Katamari “mod” makes it all the sweeter. I didn’t like the premade skin though, so I went ahead and made my own, which still needs a bit of work. Also, the laser printer at work is teh sux0rs. Once I get the Logitech logo off of the front, I’ll have a very Princely PSP indeed. I’d like to do this for the back, too (which I found on this site). You know, it’s gotten to the point where I really should just create a Katamari Damacy category.

Hopefully those make up for the dearth of pictures recently. Regardless of which graphic style you like better (blurred beyond hope or pointy and jagged), it cannot be denied that the DS version of the enemies look more like they should.

As for the game itself, I’ve only played using Mario and Yoshi thus far so I can’t say much yet. I’ve found a couple of the levels that are new for the DS and defeated Bowser in the Dark World, but then got distracted by chasing bunnies around. Catching them unlocks a myriad of mini-games which I was initially entranced by. This wore off when I realized I needed to get a cover for the touch screen. I’m afraid I’ll scratch it up with some of the violent actions the games want me to perform (like in the curling mini-game). I’ve gotten use to a cover on my PDA, so now I press way too hard on touch screens. I heard that they’ve created some sort of unscratchable DVD coating. They need to start putting that on touch screen devices, stat.

Boktai: The Sun is Rather Astoundingly Bright is a solar powered game. Not to say that it runs off of light, but instead requires that you “collect” it’s energy for use in the game. Specifically, for the vanquishing of the undead with the Gun del Sol, a weapon that focuses sunlight into a powerful beam. The sun hitting the system enters the game via a small solar sensor on the back of the cartridge, which sticks out from behind the Game Boy a bit. It will work with either model GBA, but is more convenient when placed in the top of the original. Also, the GBA looks perfect in direct sunlight, negating the need for the back light. More also, my shiny platinum SP creates a constant, annoying glare that I can do without.

Even with the bright SoCal sun beating down on Boktai: This Game Should Come With Sunblock, the in-game meter that shows the sun’s brightness never fills up all of the way. What would it take to max it out, a super-nova? And there’s no tricking this thing, either. Lamps won’t work, so you’ve got to play outside (actually, at a friend’s house I tried the game under a heat lamp they have for their lizards and got one bar on the meter to fill in, roughly the same as a very overcast day, and not nearly enough to effectively play the game).

You may be thinking that this game is just a ploy to get kids to go outside once in a while, but there’s another side to Boktai: Skin Cancer is a Small Price to Pay. While the sun is your main weapon against the undead minions (where I would prefer a shotgun or perhaps a chainsaw or perhaps both) it can be your enemy as well, allowing foes to detect your position through a devious technique known as “seeing you.” And thus a stealth element is introduced. You may think that it came out of nowhere, except you’re forgetting that the game was designed by acclaimed Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima. Or possibly you never knew. Or cared. If you’re anything like me, you fall into the last category. I owned MGS for about a week and a half before I got bored with crawling around on my stomach and sold it back, but not before I made everyone laugh by running away from gunmen while hiding under a cardboard box. Good times. That doesn’t explain where I was headed with this paragraph, though, and to be honest even I’ve forgotten, so let’s just call it a day.