Cave Story : Best. Game. Evar.

HEY THAR.

I haven't posted in a while, since I had no idea what to blog about. Particularly since I'm not the person who sits in front of their computer with a webcam and some cereal and talks about their new cat. Personally, cats scare me a bit ...

Anyway, I was kinda busy. But I decided to talk about a topic that really, seriously, fascinates me to no end. Repeat after me : Cave Story. 
It's the god of freeware games. If you don't know what it is, download it. I guarantee you'll turn into a chip-munching, sofa-squatting computer gamer in five seconds. Even if you have a normal life and are actually really responsible and shiz. It's that awesome. 

It's been out for a super-long time and it's not obsolete, many people know about it. I just wanted to talk about how awesome it is. So what makes it so phenomenal. One, the storyline. I obviously can't tell you too much, which would be called a spoiler, but it involves a soldier attempting to save bunny rabbits from a medical specialist who uses red flowers. Makes no sense? That's okay. If you play the game, it will.  

"But that can't be all that makes it awesome!" you argue, and you are correct. Second, the gameplay/game design. Pixel, or Daisuke Amaya or something similar *wikipedia's* spent five years on Cave Story, and it's been a well-spent five years. There's about six main areas to explore, and other minor ones that you traverse through in the game and it's not just Start Point _________________________ End point for each map. They're pretty unique in direction, and as you can see from the screen shots, design. Furthermore, the physics are awesome. "Eh," you say, "It's just jumping and stuff." No, it's not. Don't ever say that again.

Okay, three, it has some of the most lovable/hateable characters ever. Mostly lovable, except for the antagonist, of course. You're going to love the main character, you're going to love the humans, you're going to love the bunny rabbits, you're going to love the humans-turned-bunny rabbits, you're going to somewhat love/hate a certain person who turns humans into bunny rabbits you're going to love a toaster and you're going to adore a certain female robot. The characters are generally flat, I have to admit, but there's something about them that makes you worry about how they're going to make it through this storyline and what's going to happen to them. 

It's also one of the most addicting games of all time. There's about twenty different mods of it, and I've played about ten of those. But that's so obvious, so ... what was I forgetting. Oh yes. Best. Music. Ever.It's a freeware game so it's not too complex, just 8-bit or so. But each song really does fit the area and the mood of the current ... erm ... game? There's been orchestral tributes and stuff. Pixel apparently just played around with some music and picked it if it sounded good, but I swear he's secretly Mozart or something, but better because he can design an entire game with perfect-mood-fitting music. You can interpret the music anyway you like according to how your game's going. It has different endings and stuff, but the gameplay's mostly linear.

There's more than these four, but I only have these screenshots because I don't want to give away any plotline stuff. I just restarted the game and am playing it through for about the one-hundred and fiftieth time. 
If you have played Cave Story, then you get a virtual-high five from me. If you haven't, you can download it here. Free. 'Cuz even Pixel knows it has to be shared with the world. Or you can buy the Wii version. Your pick ;)
Heh, thanks for reading !

End of the World?

So, for anyone who knows me, I'm somewhat conscientious about the earth and environment and similar whatnots. Did anyone catch this article on Monday, however?

Professor Frank Fenner, who helped to eradicate smallpox, said that people will be extinct in about a hundred years. Granted, he's nearly a hundred years himself, his claim may just be plausible -- he would know, having driven a virus to such extinction. Perhaps it's because he's so old that he's more pessimistic, while us young'uns believe we still can make a difference.

He doesn't. 

I mean, we're definitely driving our race to extinction. Think about it. Ever since the Industrial Revolution, our population has shot up unnaturally. There has to be that balance between death and birth, but since people hadn't adjusted to less people dying, they didn't figure on overpopulation. But that's true, with the massive amount of people we are putting far too much demands on our planet.

Second, the big issue -- global warming. I'm not an expert scientist myself, but anyone can tell you that global warming is a major issue currently. The waters are rising, making it even more crowded for an overpopulated planet, the weather's wreaking havoc -- we had a record cold winter this year -- with tsunamis, hurricanes, earthquakes, all kinds of natural disasters. 

If that continues into the next hundred years, even I have to admit that our population probably will drop back down to Middle-Age status -- if we manage to survive it at all. For teens and kids like myself, that's kind of dark -- considering the technology we have nowadays, you'll be likely to remain around throughout those years. 

Other scientists, like colleagues of Prof. Fenner, still believe we have a chance, as do I. If we can raise awareness of this issue, and it's definitely an issue, why can't we all just search "How to be more Eco-Friendly?" Here's where we get into that whole philosophy over what is true happiness, but I really think we don't need to be so materialistic about everything. 

I can't provide you with 101 ways to Save the Earth, but you guys can be creative, right? Thanks for reading.

Here's the link to the article. 

http://thetechjournal.com/science/eminent-scientist-claims-humans-will-be-extinct-in-100-years.xhtml

--Kristi

Wheelz: Worst Skating Place Ever?

So there's this place nearby called Wheelz. Clever, spelling it differently, with a Z. Just to confuse people. I always thought the place was cheap and cheesy, but I really do love skating. Ice and in-line. In fact, I am a MASTER.

Hmm, maybe I should have had a color background. :/ And yes, the skates are really that big. O.o

Anyway, we decided to be crazy [as in we, my family] and really thrifty and go on the cheap night. That would be today, and it only costs a dollar to get in and three dollars for skates. What are you waiting for? NO. DO NOT GO. 

....

I'm pretty sure it ruined my night. Here's how it went down.

Every Wednesday, what I dub "Cheap Night" arrives. It means a bargain. Unfortunately, unlike sales at the mall and auctions, you are not there to buy a personal gift for someone. You are there, the entire time, with a thousand other people [probably ....], who also believe that if they go tonight, they'll save money. 

First order of business. Get skates. We marched over to the Get-Your-Skates rental place, and offered up our shoes to get some skates. There's the roller skates, that's shaped like a car, and in-line skates, wheels all in a row. My two sisters decided to be spontaneous and get roller skates, because they're apparently in. Well, Katherine, does it seem cool when you're like THIS : 

I don't know why I added little people in the background. That's to represent how crowded it was. My sisters were completely incompetent at skating with roller skates, because they've been using the other kind all their life. I, being my gifted self, casually drifted by them as they struggled to keep balance. I was ... was ... like ... MAGIC. I pretty much felt like it, and was God of the Skating Rink, until this happens.

Yes, it was a kid. Freckled. Wearing a track suit. With an afro. Confused? So am I. 

Because I was ambushed.  By a midget. In the middle of Ke$ha's hit song that I kind of love/hate. Sheesh, I was even skating backward, and all of a sudden someone's RIGHT in front of me and I'm about to crash any second into them and I'll probably be sued for liability issues and whatnot --- FALL. Painfully. 

This happened to me several times during the course of the two-hour long skating session. It was so crowded, I had to actually pay attention and use my maneuvering skills to NOT crash into anyone. 

Instance No. 2. I hadn't skated in about a year at a rink, so there was a race coming up and I considered, why not? I lined up, not at the easiest spot, 'cuz that's unfair to everyone else since I'm so awesome, and took off -- BAM! elbowed, in the GUT, by a kinda chubby girl who's wayyy older than me. Well, maybe it didn't hurt that much, since as my sisters pointed out, her blubber probably cushioned the effin' blow. Still, a blow to my dignity as I careened into the wall. That's not fun ... 

They didn't even give out free food as a prize ... 

I hope you guys didn't go to the New Years skating party there, either. You'd be better off curled up on your couch stroking your cat, alone, watching the Seattle fireworks. O.o

Happy New Year!