I’ve been eating up Brain Age since I got my DS Lite last week, and suffice to say I am improving my poor old brain every day. My initial “age” was 50, and I’ve gotten that down to 38 in a week. Considering that speed-math is not exactly my strength, I’m kind of happy with that. Also considering that everyone else that I allowed to take the test scored significantly worse than me, I am really happy.

Brain Age is a wonderful example of really using the DS in a way that is not standard gaming fare, and that appeals to all sorts of people. I realize that I am about the 40 millionth person to say this about the game (well, it’s not really a game so much as a….a…..um……..er………something else?) but I get a big smile each time I use it.

Between talking to it (which never fails to surprise the people I show it to), drawing pictures, filling out Soduku puzzles, and writing answers to simple math problems, the DS’s capabilities shine through in Brain Age like very few software applications I’ve ever used.

1996-2006: Gyroid to Big Man Face: VHS to HD

It’s hard to believe BigWig Productions has been cranking ‘em out for so long, but it must be believed. You must persevere!

In commemoration, here is the 10th anniversary special BigWig trailer! Please enjoy it!

Note: I’ve changed it to a newer version with full audio on all the clips; by popular demand, of course!

Yesterday I managed to stumble across a Nintendo collectable that has recently become quite popular in gaming cameos at a flea market. He’s appeared in Pikmin 2, Mario Kart DS and F-Zero GX…any guesses?

In case you’re still wondering, I found ROB. He didn’t have his Gyromite parts, but he is in excellent condition and was $3. So I couldn’t pass him up. When my fiance and I get a bigger place and I can flood a room full of gaming merchendise, he’ll be one of the centerpieces.

There’s also a consignment store near my hometown that carries all kinds of cool gaming stuff. Last time I was there I picked up the legendary Ninja Gaiden II for $1. ^^

So, anyone partake of the flea market/yard sale/consignment store bargains? What excellent game or gaming knickknack have you managed to find? And was there something that you just couldn’t quite get but wished you could?

Three weeks ago MGS: The Twin Snakes added its 2nd knotch to my gaming bed post. A week ago I beat Metal Gear 3 for the 3rd time, and this week my copy of Sons of Liberty recieves its 4th play through. I could have watched a spy flick and saved myself hours of frustration, but it’s honestly no substitude for any of these titles. Nothing beats a movie you’re the star of. Your actions control the situation, Your fear pumps adrenaline through your veins.It makes me wonder if Hideo Kojima ever considered directing films instead of producing some of the most influential games we have today.

Great. I’m rambling on like I’m your damn grandmother. Sorry, I just felt like sucking a little e-cock. As you were.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first Atelier Iris game, I was in love with the cute and vibrant art style and I love games that involve alchemy. I was overjoyed to hear that the sequel was being localized and bought it the first day it came out.

If there is one theme that runs through both games (and perhaps the whole series) it is whimsy. The story never gets too heavy or the plot too involving. You can spend most of your time hanging about making items and hunting for ingredients. Atelier Iris 2 focuses more on fighting this time, but don’t fret, there is plenty of synthesizing for you to experiment with.

The story starts out with two alchemists, Viese and Felt (who makes these names up?). Viese is a cheery girl who is average at alchemy but studies hard, while Felt would rather practice sword fighting than read a book. They live in Eden a place of magic and Mana. The story gets underway when Felt pulls the legendary Azoth sword from the stone and sets into motion a chain of events. It eventually spans between two worlds, Eden the Mana Land and Belkhyde a land with no Mana.

In a more original twist, Viese and Felt are now in two different worlds but they remain connected through a Share Ring which allows them to communicate and share items. Viese stays in Eden to synthesize items and Felt goes to Belkhyde to fight. The alchemy has been streamlined in this game, Viese only needs to make a Mana Item once with the materials then Felt can replicate them using only Mana Energy. This makes finding and making items much less tedious.

The graphics are more of the same, in fact they reused a lot of enemy sprites and even some backgrounds from the first game. The high-res 2D art looks wonderful if you are into that type of thing, but some people may find it dated. The animation is pretty smooth, but there can be some slowdown in a battle if there is a lot of enemies on the screen. The music is the high point of the series and does not disappoint here. Each track is catchy and memorable and hopefully you preordered the game and got the free soundtrack.

Complex battle systems have never been a staple with this series, but they tried to put some spice into this one. You can learn many skills by equipping items and some of them have pretty neat animations. You can also upgrade your weapons and learn new character specific skills that way. You have two types of attacks Charge and Break. A Charge Attack fills your SP (Special Points) gauge which enables you to use your skills. A Break Attack pushes an enemy back on the timeline and allows you to rack up combos. High combos equal higher bonuses after the battle. I found myself getting bored of the battle system by the end of the game.

This game is about 40 hours long and that is with doing all the side quests and making every item. Not much opens up after you beat the game. You can listen to all the music in the game, watch the anime cut scenes, look at character profiles and art galleries. You can also fight a few extra battles at the Dragon’s Den an arena type place. I think it was the perfect length for this type of game but I wish it would have had an extra dungeon like the first one.

I would say I enjoyed this game about as much as the first one, but I prefer the characters and story of the first Atelier Iris more. If you are a fan of the first game you might want to give this one a rent to see how you like it.