Sooo...Anyone remember a few months back when I mourned the loss of one of my favorite childhood gaming mags, Electronic Gaming Monthly?

Well, I'm browsing a Defunct Games article one day, & guess what I learn (as if this journal's title didn't clue you in already)?

[link]

F*** YEAH!!

But wait a minute: This was announced on May 29?? How come I haven't heard about until now? No news from GameSpot or anyone? Or even 1Up...Oh right, I was boycotting them due to EGM's loss. Whoops. Well, at least I can go back there now.

On the downside, there goes my dream of somehow winning the lottery, using part of my winnings to help fund a re-launch, then being hailed as a hero for it & finally being able to get some gaming-related job.

Well, there's always trying to help revive Invader Zim somehow.

Anyhow, welcome back EGM!! ^_^

P.S. Since I brought up my crazy dreams...What would you help resurrect if you won the lottery?


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So I was just mulling over all the movies I've seen this summer (I geekily see at least one each week), & looking back on it, I've noticed something...

- X-Men Origins: Wolverine was an uninspired disappointment & a bit of a stinker, but at least it had one bright spot in the form of Hugh Jackman's solid, spirited, & standout performance as Wolverine.

- Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian was a chaotic mess with almost no real plot or substance, but at least it had one bright spot in the form of Amy Adams' solid, spirited, & standout performance as Amelia Earhart.

- Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs was pretty much just average, & kind of just felt like it was blandly going through the motions, but at least it had one bright spot in the form of Simon Pegg's solid, spirited, & standout performance as Buck.

- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen was...Well, you've seen what I've thought about it before. The less said, the better, but at least it had one bright spot in the form of Mark Ryan's solid, spirited, & standout performance as Jetfire (minus the incontinence joke).

- Terminator Salvation was...Actually, I liked it! The critics, however, slammed it a bit, but at least it had one bright spot in the form of Sam Worthington's solid, spirited, & standout performance as Marcus Wright.

...So has to come to this? Are the big-budget blockbusters of our free time no longer able to just have an all-around excellent cast, instead just relying on one performance to carry the movie?

Probably not, but it has been an annoyance this year.

But adding to the annoyance is the fact that...

SPOILERS

...With the exception of Wolverine, every one of the characters I've mentioned either dies or goes away at the end of their movies, thus insuring that we never see that killer performance again. Maybe it's for the best, but man, would I have killed to see characters like Worthington's Marcus Wright tear it up on the big screen again.

END SPOILERS

So yeah, Hollywood kinda blew it this year (for the most part, at least). Well, there's always next year...Or this holiday season, actually.


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...Okay, quite honestly, this journal entry is here mainly just to keep the updated Mini-DD Archive off the front page. Though I have to say it's been months since I added a new page...How many thumbnails can the average journal entry hold, anyway?

But anyhow, for something actually interesting...So I pop into Honestgamers a few days back, & what do I see reviewed & available for release? The first chapter for Tales of Monkey island...O_O

I mean damn, talk about a sneak attack! It really just seemed to have popped up out of nowhere...Well, one visit to Steam & 35 dollars later, & the full series is pre-ordered, with Lauch of the Screaming Narwhal installed. So how was it?

Well, despite some framerate/slowness issues my PC apparently had, pretty damn fine for a first chapter!

Dominic Armato was in fine form, playing Guybursh like a pro as usual. Same said for the writing as well, nice, funny, & still sharp as ever. The new control scheme was a bit odd at first, but it quickly became easy to get into. The graphics were great, the story was great, & the puzzles had just the perfect balance. ^_^

The only flaw? The length. This being but the first chapter of a five-part game, it took about two hours, tops, to go through. In the end, it just left me salivating for the next part...Well, I do have my newly-purchased BlazBlue to tide me over until then...8D

Bottom line, I give it an 8 out of 10, so go check it out!


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Okay, let's see here...

1. Rush
2. basketball
3. Superman
4. Corner Gas
5. Cow's ice cream
6. David Cronenberg
7. The Raccoons
8. Jim Carrey
9. Trivial Pursuit
10. Neil Young

...And so off the top of my head, those are just ten contributions (not in order) to pop culture Canada has provided that make me damn proud to live in this country. ^_^

Granted, I doubt anyone here will know what #5 is, but it was just too damn a memorable part of my youth to ignore.

Happy 142nd birthday, Canada!!


See the newest Mini-DDs here: [link]

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