Video Game Explosion!

Well, it’s been a wonderful time lately in my house because I’ve gotten a number of games since my last video game update and they’ve all been great. So blame these games on my lack of updates…

Rock Band 2 – I’m pretty ticked off because the strum bar on my guitar never even worked correctly. I can only strum up, not down. Still, it’s pretty cool to have a full band set and the DLC definitely blows away anything Guitar Hero has been offering on the Wii. I’m not a big fan of the in-game set list though. Too many wimpy pop/indie rock songs.

Assassin’s Creed II – Got this one for Christmas as I’ve already mentioned and besides a few rounds of Rock Band every now and then, this is the only game I’ve been playing. I was a fan of the first game, but my 360 died before I got too far into the game. This game is more interesting in terms of playability and story and it is also slightly easier. Sounds good all around! I’m just sad because I think I’m nearing the end of the game. Not many conspirators left to assassinate!

Conan – Okay, I have to be honest, I haven’t played a single level of this game yet. I’m having too much fun with everything else. I know this isn’t considered a great game, but for $10, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play as Conan the Barbarian. I played the demo, and it was actually kind of hard. I’ve read the entire game is, that doesn’t bode well for me, but I’m sure I’ll still get my ten bucks worth whenever I decided to sit down and play it.

InFamous – Really great game that’s be at the top of many “best of 2009″ lists. Even Game Informer listed as one of the Top 200 games of all time. I wanted to be evil in this game, but I keep doing nice things. The upgrade system is really fun and so is all the jumping and climbing you get to do. Some parts get frustrating (like having to protect an item/person) but it really is one of the better games I’ve played in a long time.

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion – I was way over my head with The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind on the original Xbox and I’m way over my head with Oblivion. These games are just way too in-depth for someone with a short-attention span, but so far for the few hours that I’ve played it, I like it better than Morrowind. I doubt I’ll ever beat this one though. There’s just too much to do.

Cartoons of the 1990s? They weren’t so bad.

I’ve talked a lot about cartoons from the 1980s, but believe it or not, there were actually some decent cartoons that came out of the 1990s. ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX were still putting out a variety of (non-anime/card game-driven) cartoons every Saturday morning and FOX struck gold with their weekly afternoon FOX Kids block.

This list will be skewed towards the early-mid 90s, because that’s when I was still safely in the “it’s okay to watch cartoons” age. By the late 90s, I had to use discretion when it came to watching cartoons. This list is also by no means the ultimate list, but a collection of a lot of ‘toons that come to mind when I think of what I enjoyed watching in the 90s.

Batman: The Animated Series (1992-1995, FOX)

One of the greatest animated series ever and it’s mine all mine on DVD. It would later be repackaged as The Adventures of Batman & Robin for the 2nd season. Then, the show was given a slight makeover as The New Batman Adventures (1997-1999) when it made the jump to The WB. Some would argue that’s a totally different series, but it was Volume 4 of the Batman: The Animated Series DVD sets. Nonetheless, the original FOX run was the best and features some of the greatest Batman stories ever told.