Hey everyone, I hope you all had a great holiday season and a safe New Year's. Today, I got an unexpected, exciting start to the new year.

At 6pm this evening, I got a call from one of my buddies. Usually he calls me for some sort of advice, but this time he called to brag. "I got a Wii!" he yelled when I picked up the phone. Immediately I asked, "Can I come over?" After asking his parents he said yes and I hopped into my truck, speeding towards his apartment. When I arrived, he was booting up the system. I took that time to make a smart ass comment. I put my finger on the system and said, "Look! I'm touching your Wii!" My friend replied, "Oh yea, that feels good. Now let go before I kill you."

My friend only had the pack-in game available: Wii Sports. First we started to play tennis. He only had one Wii-mote, so we took turns after each game. All you had to do is swing the Wii-mote like a racket; the game moves for you. I decided to play realistically with all games, so I swung the controller forehand and backhand when you would in real life. It works well both ways. It really felt like I was at the courts, minus the running around. I was surprisingly pleased with game so far.

We continued to play the other pack-in games. Baseball was okay. Just swing away and hit the ball when it comes to you. Golf was a little more difficult then I expected. The power control is tedious as it's difficult to repeat swings. The course is pretty easy, so all was forgotten about the power. Boxing was too easy for me. I just swung the Wii-mote randomly and eventually knocked my opponent out.

Finally, we played the game I been wanting to get my hands on: Wii Bowling. Let me remind you that I have lots of experience bowling. I can throw a small hook in real life, so I know what I'm doing. Surprisingly, a lot of the skills I use to bowl can be used on the Wii. I was able to throw a solid hook on my first throw. I ended up gutterballing because I hooked it too much from right to left. After adjusting the guest Mii on screen, I was able to hook the ball into the pocket, just like a professional bowler would. Just by using the same swing and wrist turn I would use in real life, I kept on striking or leaving makable spares. I had a hard time using the hook to spare, so my high score in 4 games was 158. By the time I was done with my last game, it was time for me to go.

Overall, my first impressions of the Wii are high. Wii Sports was a perfect game to pack-in with consoles as it got me comfortable and excited to play it again. The Wii-mote itself is very easy to hold on. I was playing pretty hard and I never felt it slip out of my hands. It makes me wonder how the spazoids turn them into Wii-missiles. If I do buy another console for this generation, I will choose the Wii over the PS3 any day. I can't wait to play with the console again!

According to Newton’s Third Law of Motion, “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Although this statement relates to physics, this is also true in the world of video games. Today, Microsoft announced that the warranty on Xbox 360 consoles has been extended. The now 1-year standard warranty has pleased many gamers as they are getting their repair costs refunded from Microsoft. As for me, I won’t see one penny of that money for my broken down Xbox 360.

As I explained in my previous blog, my first Xbox 360 died a couple weeks ago, outside the previous 90-day standard warranty. Thankfully, my mother had an extended warranty from Best Buy, which cost her $50. Since I filed the claim on her behalf, that warranty is dead once I got store credit back from Best Buy which covered the cost of a 360 premium package. Along with a new console, I spent $50 out of my pocket for another 2-year extended warranty from Best Buy.

On that Wednesday it seemed like a great deal. In reality, I got a replacement for $50. That’s about $100 less than the repair costs from Microsoft for a repair past the warranty period. Now on Christmas Eve, Microsoft puts on the Santa suit and rewards gamers with refunds from repairs. In my eyes, they put on the Grinch suit. The extended warranty was purchased so I could pay less for their potential mistakes. Today, since I didn’t go through Microsoft for my replacement, I am left out in the cold with my wallet $50 lighter.

Bravo Microsoft! I tried to outsmart you by paying less to fix your mistake. Now you outsmart me by rewarding people who were careless enough to buy a potential brick without insurance. Way to go.

Two weekends ago, my Xbox 360 took the stairway to heaven as it showed me the red lights of doom. That 360 was my graduation present from my mother, so I had to tell her about it. About 30 minutes after I wrote the short blog, I said to my mother, "My 360 is dead." She had a strange reaction. She quickly walked into her room and started rummaging through a file cabinet. Shortly, she came back to me and handed me a brochure. It was an extended warranty from Best Buy. I filled out a claim online and I was instructed to send the 360 away. I did so on that Monday and started the waiting game.

During the 1-1/2 week wait period, I started to play a lot of Counter-Strike. I spent most of my time at a server ran by the up-and-coming Indy Community. I got to know them pretty well and I noticed they were recruiting. So I decided to try it out. Soon enough, I was told from the leader that I was in. I was pleased that I got in as the members are filled with talented and entertaining people. Along side from playing CS, I did other activities like playing board games with the family and hanging out with my friends that I lost track of after high school. The change-of-pace was really nice.

This morning, A plain piece of mail came in my mother's name. Usually something important is placed in plain white envelopes so people looking through mail wouldn't think there was anything inside it. I asked my mother for permission to open it. After I was cleared over the phone, I open it and a Best Buy gift card falls out. The letter indicates that the gift card has store credit that covers the price of a new Xbox 360 and its tax. Before you could think, I was already off to Best Buy. They had at least 50 consoles to pick out and I quickly bought it with another extended warranty.

I sped home in my truck to set it up. While I was opening all the little bags that had cables in them, I displayed a wide smile. I was glad that this replacement deal is over with. Once I got everything set back up and was ready, I hit the power button. One second later, it displays the red lights of doom!! I preceded to drop so many F-bombs that I could have ended the war in Iraq. After double checking all the cables and using the controller to turn it on, I get the lights for a second time. I was disheartened. I came to realize that I'll have to get another 360. In one desperate act, I hit the eject button for the disk tray. I heard an angelic sound afterwards: The sounds of the start-up movie for the 360. IT WORKED! After regaining my composure, I recovered my gamertag and started playing Geometry Wars, which I was able to download again without paying for another copy. After being Xbox 360-less for nearly 2 weeks, it's nice to have the old console back just in time for Christmas.

I know short blogs are not my thing, but this event deserves it. I can sum it up with one picture:



That + On my 360 = Unhappy blogger. (insert words and phrases that violate the Terms of Service here).

That time is almost here. It's getting colder outside (it even snowed a little here in Dallas) and houses are being decorated with lights. Christmas time is upon us! I hope Santa declares me nice so I get all the gifts I want... but I'd probably break his budget. Here's everything that I can think of for this year that I want.

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas (X360):

I must admit. Gears of War let me down a lot. It has left me searching for another shooter. From what I hear, this game is very tactical and difficult. That is my style of FPS. This is definitely on the top of my gaming list.




Tony Hawk's Project 8 (X360):

I've been a Tony Hawk player since the very beginning. Although I don't skateboard in real life, I started following extreme sports because of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater. Lately, I've been less then excited about the series, ultimately skipping American Wasteland. Now with it being on a new console and the "Nail The Trick" mode, I want in on it!


GTA: Vice City Stories (PSP):

My PSP has been a paperweight for a while. I haven't been playing games on it lately... hell, Lumines is still my favorite game on the system. Anyways, how can you screw up Grand Theft Auto on the PSP? And don't say the top-down view!







Logitech G25 Racing Wheel:

Okay, I'm pretty much dreaming for this one. No way someone is gonna buy me a 300 dollar steering wheel for my PC. Nonetheless, it still is sexy. With a clutch pedal and 6-speed shifter, this is the most realistic wheel on the market. I can't wait to play this with games like GTR2.




Pinky and the Brain, Vols 1 & 2:

I like to collect animated box sets that I used to watch on TV. I have all the Simpsons DVDs and have some Family Guy and Futurama DVDs. Now I want to add Pinky and the Brain. Yes Pinky and the Brain. One is a genius; the other's insane.





Bowling Ball:
I've been bowling more than usual ever since one of my friend's gave me one of his family's old bowling ball. It's pretty nice, but it's not perfectly fitted for me. I can do well with it, but I can do a lot better with a new one fitted to my hand. Plus I can get a high-performance ball that hooks like crazy!


Brakes for my car:
Just today when I was doing some driving around the city, the warning lights for my brakes lit up on my truck's dashboard. That means it's time to replace them... just great.


A shelf:
With every new game or movie I buy, I run out of places to hold the box. I usually end up either stuffing them in a storage space on my TV stand or stack them to the side. Sure, I could just go out and buy one, but Christmas is a good reason for someone else to buy it for me.

That's pretty much what I would like this year. Odds are I won't get all of this stuff, but it's kinda cool to look at what you won't get. What's on your wish list this year?