I posted a little rant about my wasted money on my PS3 a couple of days ago. It is a rant I feel a little justified in since I have only played 2 games all the way through on it thus far (and had an infinitely problematic aka slow experience with anything PS3 online oriented) while my Xbox 360, despite its numerous fixes, remains my main gaming fave.

I have also received some angry emails through DVDwolf.com that say sure there have been some issues, but you just wait, and then they list off a bunch of games I could care less about…until I spotted the title Little Big Planet and realized…riggggght. I do care about this title. Everything I see for it hypes me up, makes me interested and for now, before this game hits the shelves, I care again. I do have a game I want for my PS3.

So I will mildly correct myself here and say, Yes, I am interested in Little Big Planet, but then what…will there be a large drought of games again…or am I just being like the fanboys and saying yeah, that’s great, but what have you given me lately?

Alright, alright…I have been slacking, I admit it.

The goal was to see if I could lose 20 pounds via the Wii Fit juggernaut. However, as with anything in exercise, part of the battle is keeping within the battle and not wandering off to the ice cream shop and watching the battle while eating a hot fudge sundae…if you get my gorging drift.

Here’s the good news…thanks to the Wii Fit I have used the Wii more than ever since my girlfriend and I bought it. But that isn’t enough. During the month of August I reached the lowest amount of days on the Wii Fit so far and while the little charts tell me I have been maintaining my weight, I also have not been as productive as the month of June and July were.

So far, six pounds lost, (with typical daily changes within 2 pounds) but nowhere near the 20 I was gunning for.

Still, I am back on the wagon this month and will check in with you next month to see if I have reverted back to sloth mode.

That’s an almost insulting headline, I admit it.

However, and this is a good thing, these games are gateway games, you know, as a nice easy way to lead her into the more violent world of say, Rainbow Six: Vegas, which has now become a “we should buy it discussion” from my girlfriend everytime she sees it.

Back to Viva Pinata: Trouble In Paradise.

I didn’t get to spend much time with this at X’08 here in Toronto but I have already been raked over the coals for not buying this the first day it came out. My girlfriend loved the original and oddly enough this whole addition of the Xbox camera scanning Viva Pinata cards and adding the characters to the screen has some weird fascination that I don’t comprehend. Either way, I know it will be soon sitting on the shelf and I will be losing some GTAIV time.

I suppose that is something to consider on the getting your girlfriend interested in gaming situation. Possibly less screen time for the games you want to play. The nice thing, at least there is some co-op on this new Viva Pinata game.

You can read the full press release description below:
In a dual role that’s part conservationist, part wildlife biologist, your task is to attract various piñata animals to your garden as well as explore the Island’s nether regions retrieving some it’s most rare species for the purposes of cataloguing each of them in the Island’s central database. On your adventure you’ll encounter 30 newly discovered species as you explore the Dessert Desert in search of such exotic creatures as the S’morepion (aka scorpion) and Pinarctic where you’ll find equally captivating inhabitants such as the Jeli (aka Yeti or Abominable Snowman). But you’ll have to use your instincts and wit knowing full well that Professor Pester and his Ruffians will do anything to thwart your efforts to nurture these animals prior to sending them off to entertain at pinata parties around the world.

For the first time, players can experience the charm of Piñata Island together with cooperative gameplay modes that allow up to four people to work on a single garden over Xbox LIVE and by sharing photos of their garden inhabitants via Piñata Vision cards and the community Web site. With new areas to explore, more gameplay modes to enjoy and more ways to customize your garden, “Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise” presents a world where players will love getting lost in the endless charms of Piñata Island.

It looks nice.

It’s quieter than my 360. I own Uncharted and played it all the way through. I own Ratchet and Clank and played it all the way through. Both games are stunning to look at and play nicely.

The new update includes trophies which gives me incentive to try and play Uncharted again…but, and this is a big but…

I still focus my game buying towards the Xbox 360. I prefer the controller, the interactive menus…you know what I use my PS3 for?

Blu-Ray movies…which I have a very small collection of as they are overpriced and that makes me super picky about which ones I will spend my coin on. I run a lot of digital movies through the PS3 and have screened a few of my original films on there for friends (see www.416film.com) along with digital photos using it like a slide show…and I love these touches….but so far, gaming wise, they have yet to get me to make the big switch and focus on my PS3.

Tell me you have something in this Home project Sony. Tell me it isn’t just going to bore me, because so far, aside from a view digital perks (which I could use either my laptop or PC for) you are really making me feel stupid for having bought this machine.

Instead make me feel stupid for having written this article in the first place.

Came home today to find a nice new Live title already waiting to be demoed…and it turns out, this is another title worth purchasing this month (the other one you should get if you are into these things, is Braid, possibly the most unique game I have seen in years). August, for a sleepy month is rapidly becoming a pricey MS Points month.

From the press release - Castle Crashers” – Award-winning studio The Behemoth brings red hot arcade adventure to Xbox LIVE Arcade with “Castle Crashers,” featuring hand-drawn characters and an array of weapons to choose from as you defend your kingdom and save the princess. “Castle Crashers” is rated T for Teen by the ESRB.

Hopping on the bandwagon here. I debated buying this the entire time playing the demo…after all 1200 Xbox points is 1200 Xbox points and almost the price of the Pixies Doolittle album for Rock Band on Marketplace, right?

Well the long and short of it is, buy it. If you want to appreciate the fact that a game can be more than mindless destruction with some T&A (not that there is anything wrong with that) and actually have a singular, almost poetic voice, then buy it.

The puzzles are deceptionally simplistic and then really play with your brain, forcing you to change your way of thinking every board. One trick on one screen will not work the same across the board. An added bonus, this may be one of the most gorgeous looking games to come across the screen in a long while, like a breathing watercolour where the skies and terrain constantly blur and blend to create a stunning atmosphere.

Add in the fact that this is basically an indie game, with creator Jonathan Blow reportedly sinking $180,000 of his own coin into the game, you have to respect that, and personally if this is the result I want to make sure he gets at least a small chunk of my change in his wallet so he can hopefully follow this up with something just as impressive.

Besides…it has killer daisy bunnies. How can you go wrong with that?

It always seems to be this way for me, whenever the fun events crop up I somehow end up having the busiest day imaginable and at best, can only manage an hour or two to go through the line up of what games will be hitting the skids this fall.

That’s not to say I don’t appreciate the time I get, just wish I had more. There will be a more thorough follow up over the next few days covering off what I did see and some of the game producers/designers I got to speak to but thought I would give a quick overview.

Popped into X’08 Canada at about 11am over at CiRCA and wandered inside. For a brief moment I was reminded of the arcades of the 80s. Ah, memories…of skipping school to play Zaxxon, Pingu or even the odd old-school quarter-sucking pinball games.

Here’s what I did manage to peruse in my way to short hour and a half. Harmonix’s Rock Band 2…with that gorgeous new drum set which makes my old one seem replaceable. A couple of Disney Interactive titles like High School Musical, Disney Karaoke, the quarterly movie tie-in Bolt and then, from out of left field, Pure which not only looks gorgeous but plays that way as well, an ATV game that comes across like SSX Tricky - Snowboarding with machines.

A few others, Activision’s Guitar Hero: World Tour, Ubisofts awesome snowboarding game - Shaun White Snowboarding…ok, I admit it, I have been dying for a good snowboarding game and while I loved Amped, there’s been nothing since.

Sega has the very new, very odd, almost two games in one Sonic Unleashed where part of it is a regular Sonic style game, running, rings, bouncing, spikes are bad type Sonic. And then there is the night side of the game where Sonic becomes Sonic the Werehog and had all sorts of crazy hack n’ slash type attacks. Not sure where I stand on this, but I admit it was fun to play - the few brief moments I had that is.

Other things to note were the Microsoft titles including Viva Pinata 2 aka Trouble in Paradise, Lips, You’re In The Movies and some nice looking Xbox Live arcade titles.

I will get into a bit more detail with these over the coming weeks as I find the time to elaborate…and upload some pix as well.

Well been plodding along here…but seeing some success. Not a huge amount to report here and should really take some screen caps when I get some time and throw them up here…but so far, down five pounds from the initial posting.

Diet is a big part of this as well…and devotion. In the matter of full candor here…out of the 31 days in July only 15 were on the Wii Fit. Curiosity makes me wonder about daily use for at least 30 minutes a day but August is a busy month for me, so I am not sure if that will happen.

I thought it would be fun to chart my progress (if any) with this new gadget from Nintendo. My girlfriend wants nothing to do with this side of it…however her review of the product is nothing short of ecstatic so I would personally add this to the growing list of videogames to get your girlfriend interested (if she isn’t already).

I managed to use the Wii Fit 16 days out of 31 and am starting to see some result but it took about 12 of those 16 to even see a real flicker of change other than personal daily body weight fluctuations.

Still, the BMI and Weight lines are beginning to trend down so while this isn’t going to perhaps make me the Ultimate Fighter tomorrow, it is a start.

I have been mainly using the Aerobic programs, with some light Yoga and a few strength games as well…and a five minute warm up is standard using some of the balance games…usually the soccer one. I am finally getting good at that one.

The main favourite right now though is the 10 minute Boxing one…run that program through a couple of times and I guarantee you will at least break a sweat.

I love the web-comic Penny Arcade, and while I love the humour and really love the look of this game, it’s not really my thing. Don’t take that criticism to heart, it’s just I’m not a big turn-based game fan.

I feel like half the time I am waiting for my turn in those, I’m just not one. However, if that is your thing, this game is for you. Scroll down for the full press release.

PRESS RELEASE

The first episodic RPG-Adventure game to grace Xbox LIVE Arcade, “Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One” is the result of a collaboration between Hothead Games and Penny Arcade. The first episode sends players to a deranged 1920s comic-book-meets-pulp-horror universe called New Arcadia. Armed with unconventional weaponry, players join forces with Gabe and Tycho of the Startling Developments Detective Agency to make war on bizarre enemies and solve the mysteries hidden deep in the sinister heart of New Arcadia.

“Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One” offers players the ability to design their own customizable character, a dynamic turn-based combat system and the ability to transfer your customized character’s stats and inventories to future episodes, or start fresh with each episode. Fans of Penny Arcade will appreciate the authenticity of the game, which features distinctive artwork and characters designed by Mike “Gabe” Krahulik and a story and dialogue written by Jerry “Tycho” Holkins.