A Funspotty Proposal

Mike_Proposal_Pic
Originally uploaded by HazeStudiosGames

I've tweeted and facebooked it, but It's time I blogged about it. Yes, I'm engaged now. I'm set to marry my long-time gf, Melissa. She's a fellow gamer and all-round great gal.

The manner in which I proposed is blogworthy. I took her on a weekend trip to Funspot, 6 hours away in New Hampshire. This is not only the largest arcade in the world, but our favorite romantic getaway. There's nothing like renting a small cabin in the woods by Lake Winnepesaukee. Being a resort town, there are SEVERAL arcades there, not just Funspot, so it's right up our ally.

The plan was to fake a weekend trip as a birthday present, then take her bowling on the lanes inside Funspot, then have the "Will you Marry Me" punched onto the scoreboard while we're bowling. Unfortunately, with so many arcade games, I couldn't tare her away from playing uprights. I eventually had to concede and took her outside and proposed the old fashioned way.

The news made the Funspot website.

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Wil Wheaton Played Sinistar at Funspot

sinissatr_wheaton
Originally uploaded by HazeStudiosGames

I love arcade games. Being a lover of such games, I spent the weekend at Funspot in New Hampshire, despite this being the pre-season at Lake Winnepesaukee. While I was there, I was playing one of my fav games, Sinistar when I noticed something strange.

At the game over screen there is a message that says "Wil Wheaton Played This". This leads me to the question, how did that message get in there? Is this message on all Sinistar uprights? How did they put that message in there? Wil Wheaton does have a twitter account, and there a picture of someone playing Sinistar-- is that the Sinistar at Funspot?

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Hero Core Review

I just finished playing Hero Core. I must say, this is the best free downloadable indie game I've played. I'm not mincing words here. This is one of the greatest games I've ever played PERIOD.

The gameplay is so ridiculously simple-yet perfect- that I was taken aback after the first play session. It's super addictive, and the black and white tones only make it better.

What made it so great for me was being able to play with the Xbox controller. It felt like an XBLA game that cost 15 bucks, but I got it for free!

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Iron Man 2 Review

iron_man_2 copy
Originally uploaded by HazeStudiosGames

I got to see Iron Man 2 last night. I loved it. It's great to see that likable Tony Stark character. There were a lot more characters and action sequences this time around, and It was all around a satisfying experience.

Iron Man was so much about one singular character, even to the point where they could have introduced War Machine but didn't. Here we get to see lots of characters shine. They each get less screen time, but it was nice to see a pay-off for so many characters, including Whiplash, Justin Hammer, Iron Man, War Machine, Pepper Pots, Nick Fury, Black Widow, and even that bodyguard played by Jon Favreau. That SHIELD agent from the last movie even gets to shine.

The action sequences were great. Any disappointment from the ending of first movie is washed clean here. It's just all round good fun.

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New Nightmare on Elm Street

Well, I saw the new movie, as I promised. I liked the movie. I'm sad to see it getting such a low rating on Rotten Tomatoes, as I had a good time with it. I suppose people just can't help but front load their expectations for such a surreal film franchise. When a movie could have any imagery in it, you can't help but build up your anticipation for it to be something specific you'd like to see. And you get disappointed when you don't get it.

The fact is the movie does a good job of making Freddy the protagonist, even though he is a shadow most of the time. The trade-off is that it makes a poor job of making any of the victims a protagonist. This seems like a flaw, but when you you step back, it becomes obvious that the MONSTER is the main character in a monster movie. Making a key victim or everyday-hero the protagonist is always unsatisfying in some way. We've just been taught that such structuring is appropriate.

In conclusion, I liked the movie. I don't think is surpassed the original or some of the better Freddies, but I enjoyed it and chalk it up to one of the better slashers I've seen.

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