Fumblerooski

09.20.2004

Over the weekend I played my first football videogame since... I think 2000. For years, the Madden franchise of games has been the one to beat. It's supposed to be the best as far as football simulation. Keeping that in mind, I decided it would be way to hard for me. I'm used to side-scrolling football games where the right offensive play, picked over and over, can win the game. Every time. So with that, I opted for the ESPN football game, which is supposed to be less hardcore than the Madden game.

The best thing about the game is that it's easy to pick up and learn. How easy? Well, with the difficulty on "Rookie", or "Easy" to us old timers, I've managed a 4-0 preseason and 2-0 regular season with the Titans so far. To make it even easier, my defense has yet to allow the other team to score. Plus, there hasn't been a game where I've scored less than 56 points, and my passing sucks so I'm constantly running the ball. I guess it might be time to up the difficulty a little bit.

For once I'm not playing a wrestling game. I'm not playing a wrestling game. I'm expanding my videogame horizons. A little. I still want to bodyslam receivers, though.

Permalink video games

Car Car Truck

09.17.2004

Years ago at ResGen Jerry and I invented a game: Car Car Truck. We would sit out on the breezeway, watch the Parkway, and count how many cars, or trucks, would pass by in a row. Usually one would pick cars, the other trucks. For some reason, the goal was to get to 10 cars, or trucks, in a row. amazingly, this happened only once or twice.

Of course we came up with special rules. What does an ambulance count as? Or a motorcycle? Or a wrecker? Towing a car? It only served to try and complicate things, but I remember many a day sitting there counting "Car, Car, Car, Truck, Car,....".

One of my alternate rules was First Person Car Car Truck. This is played while driving, and you count the cars and trucks around you. It's a little more of a challenge as traffic behind you changing is harder to keep up with, but it also easier to manipulate if passing the car in front of you will up your needed count. This morning I found myself playing first person Car Car Truck. As I came through Madison, I noticed I was in a long line of trucks and vans (vans count as trucks). A quick count showed that I could see 6 trucks in front of me before I saw a car. Behind me were 3 trucks, the last being a tow truck carrying a truck and 2 cars. Being in a truck myself, this could bring the quick truck count to 11! 11 is unheard of in the annals of Car Car Truck! A new record! At this realization, the lead truck passed a car while a car came swooping past the lagging tow truck.

I quickly smiled at the thought of the new record. Then I thought of Ying, the only other person to truly play and understand Car Car Truck outside of me and Jerry. I wonder if Ying ever finds himself playing Car Car Truck? If he does, I wonder if he ever tops the new record of 11? Wait, I think a car just went by! One...

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Cables Galore

09.15.2004

In the ever continuing effort to make the house more grown up, I've updated pretty much all the bookshelves in the house to non-Wal Mart Pressboard Provided. The experimental paint room now has the barrister bookshelves (technically still pressboard, but way better than Wal Mart quality). The computer room has glass shelving that matches the desk. The great room has shelves with doors of opaque glass meant for stereo units instead of the old bookcases.

When updating the computer room shelves, it really hit me what a mess of computer cables were running along the floor. There was no telling what was really going where. So I did one of those things I had been putting off for a while - clean up the computer. It helped that I needed to replace a USB card with a USB 2.0/Firewire card, so I kind of had an excuse.

Step one was unplugging everything from the pc. I had 4 USB ports on the PC. 2 ran to USB hubs that eventually connected a total of 12 devices. The other 2 ports ran... well, somewhere. Once everything was unplugged, I was wondering what all was plugged into the computer, after all, I evidently had 15 USB devices plugged in!

But I could only find 7. Somewhere along the past 5 years, I managed (I think) to unhook devices while leaving the cable plugged in. Maybe that mess of cables was really the bermuda triangle of USB devices?

I started sorting things: USB cables. USB extension cables. Ethernet cables. I even went into my closet of old parts to see if maybe I had something that would better fit my set-up (why use a 20-foot Ethernet cable when this 6-foot one will do?). While looking there I found 2 more USB cables and a Firewire cable still in the original packaging. I know I've got enough spare parts to build another computer, if not 2 (granted, they would be 1995 quality computers...), but why am I hoarding USB cables?

I'm still putting everything back together, this time trying to limit what I connect to the things I actually use. Why plug in the external blinky lights when I never turn the silly things on? But using that logic, I should probably take out one of my 3 hard drives, too.

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Boonie Trash

09.14.2004

Today was trash day out in the boonies. It's on a day like this that I'm glad to live in the middle of nowhere. I don't have to fret like the city folk I work with, hoping my garbage will fit properly into the city provided trash can. No, I don't even have to have a can. I can still put a bag of trash by the roadside to be picked up. Today I had 5 such bags, bags that combined would have filled one of the city provided trashcans. In addition I had boxes. 5 mighty, empty, cardboard boxes that formerly held bookcases that have now been assembled and are mightily holding the crap I've accumulated over the years. Were I city folk, I would have had to tear the boxes apart and try to fit them into my city provided trashcan. But I'm not city folk, so I just dragged all 5 boxes to the roadside, not even bothering to take out all the styrofoam and whatever else may have crawled inside the boxes.

One day the city provided trashcans will creep out to the county, and the city will force their rules on us. I rue that upcoming day.

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495-105-0

09.13.2004

When it comes to video games, I play is wrestling games a good 80% of the time, driving games 15%, and dabble in other things the remaining 5%. I get hooked on the wrestling games when they're good, though. Case in point, Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain came out last November for the PS2. I probably shelled out $50 for it the first week it came out, because I have a hard time putting off playing wrestling games.

Most games tend to lose their luster after a few months, if you're lucky. Sports games tend to mainly be played the season during the sport. People play football video games during football season, baseball games during baseball season, etc. There is no true wrestling season, but it seems to peak between Christmas (the gift giving time) and Wrestlemania (Late March/Early April). So with luck, people will get caught up in the game from November to April. About a 5 month play-life, probably not bad for $50.

10 months later, I'm still playing the game. I've gotten other wrestling games (I think 3 or 4, at least), but I'm still drawn to Smackdown. Back around April I erased everything on my memory card and started the season mode over. I created a new character and set out to unlock the unlockables and win what I could. Last night was match #600 for my created character. That comes out to about 8 cents per match if I don't count however many times I played before erasing the memory card.

The next Smackdown game is due Nov 2. From the pre-reviews, it's to have better graphics and sound while otherwise remaining the same as far as match types and playability. After 600 matches, that sounds just fine to me. The key now is to wait the remaining 50 days until it arrives. Hmm, I wonder if I can fit in another 600 matches?

Permalink video games wrestling