Coffee Talk #85: Your Favorite Videogame Valentine’s Couples

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, what Tiger is buying Elin for Valentine’s Day, your favorite American Idol hopeful, or Kevin Smith’s performance at MacWorld, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

With a lovey dovey holiday coming on Sunday, I thought it would be a great time to talk about your favorite romantic couples in gaming. Whether you like traditional romances, bisexual elf assassins, or the timeless tale of a paddle and ball, I want to know who your favorite videogame couple is and why.

As for me, I’m going with Zack Fair and Aerith Gainsborough from Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. Their love was innocent and tragic. It also led to one of the most emotionally powerful game endings I’ve experienced in years. Here’s part of the ending (spoilers ahead, duh!):

*sniff* Excuse me…a gnat flew into my eye. I have to run off and take care of this gnat-eye problem. For now, tell me who your favorite videogame couple is. Name the couple, the game, and why you chose them (please)!

FFXIII Xbox 360 Bundle, Nomura Faceplate on the Way

Square Enix has announced that a special Final Fantasy XIII Xbox 360 bundle will be available for $399. It will include, “a 250GB Hard Drive engraved with the Final Fantasy XIII name, two Wireless Controllers, exclusive downloadable avatar items and a standard edition copy of Final Fantasy XIII.” The console itself is completely ordinary and not nearly as sexy as the limited edition FFXIII PlayStation 3 available in Japan.

I’m more excited about the limited edition Xbox 360 faceplates designed by Tetsuya Nomura. Square Enix stated that these faceplates will be available in limited numbers. I want one!

I’m guessing most of you have Xbox 360s in working condition. Are you tempted to replace yours with this bundle?

NPD Hardware Sales Figures for January 2010

The first NPD hardware numbers of the new year and new decade are out! Let’s take a look at the console hardware sales figures for January 2010:

  • Wii: 465,800
  • Nintendo DS: 422,200
  • Xbox 360: 332,800
  • PlayStation 3: 276,900
  • PlayStation Portable: 100,100
  • PlayStation 2: 41,600

Naturally, sales had to be down from December and the ultra-busy holiday period. The Wii and DS continued to lead the business, while the Xbox 360 beat out the PlayStation 3. It will be interesting to see if the PS3 picks up in February and March. There are a few PS3 exclusives that will surely sell well, what will they move hardware?

Now channel your inner Jesse Divnich and analyze the numbers yourselves!

NPD Console Sales Figures Top 10 Games of January 2010

NPD Group released its console software sales figures for January 2010 and it pretty much looks like the previous couple of months, though a few new entries managed to crack the top 10. Check it out!

  1. New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii): 656,700
  2. Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360): 572,100
  3. Wii Fit Plus (Wii): 555,700
  4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (Xbox 360): 326,700
  5. Mario Kart Wii (Wii): 310,900
  6. Wii Sports Resort (Wii): 297,600
  7. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (PS3): 259,000
  8. Army of Two: The 40th Day (Xbox 360): 246,500
  9. Just Dance (Wii): 191,900
  10. Darksiders (Xbox 360): 171,200

New Super Mario Bros. Wii and Modern Warfare 2 continued to dominate the charts. Although Mario took the top spot, MW2 for 360 is actually beating it out in North America. Globally it’s a different story and if Mario has legs like other Wii titles, I expect it to take the lead over here. Speaking of legs, Mario Kart Wii has demonstrated crazy lasting power, appearing on the charts well after its release. The awesome peeps at BioWare put up strong numbers with Mass Effect 2 — seriously guys, you’re my second favorite thing about Canada. You rule!

One question for you: Just Dance?!? Really?!?

Best Care Package Evar!!!

My friend Justin (RPadholic @jpkmets) sent me an awesome care package consisting of an Amazon Kindle, a Big Trouble in Little China t-shirt from The Wing Kong Exchange, and a Porkchop Express sticker. Everything in the box is pure awesome.

As many of you know, Big Trouble in Little China is one of my favorite movies of all time. I want to be more like Jack Burton. I reviewed a first-generation Kindle for a friend’s newspaper and loved it, but had to send it  back. I love the look and feel of the Kindle 2 and promptly downloaded Bill Simmons’ The Book of Basketball (i.e. the reason why I started late on the site today *snicker*).

Thanks Justin!!!

I Used Wii Fit at Physical Therapy and it Kicked My Ass

On Monday, I used Wii Fit as part of my physical therapy for my ailing knee. Some of the therapists know that I write about games and some don’t. I think the ones that didn’t were disappointed that I wasn’t incredibly amused by the game. I didn’t bother to tell them why because I was amused that they were surprised that I wasn’t amused. (It was internally hilarious. Trust me.)

Getting to the actual game, I did a bunch of balance exercises and some light stepping. I haven’t played the game in a long, long time — you know, when my knee was in working order. I was surprised at how challenging some of the exercises were. I definitely felt it in my quadriceps the next day.

It’s also funny that my gamer instinct took over. In my previous sessions, I concentrated on doing everything properly, not overcompensating with my hips, and not getting hurt. In a Marble Madness-style game, all of that went out the window. It became all about winning. Ha!

Anyway, I just thought I’d share my worlds colliding with Wii Fit and physical therapy.

Follow RPad.tv on Google Buzz and My Google

Are any of you using Google Buzz? I’ve been playing around with it. There are some things that I really like and some things I’m not digging. I’ll post more thoughts on it later. For now, if you’d like to follow me and help me test it out, head here.

If you happen to use My Google, you can add RPad.tv to the list of sites you follow by clicking this link.

Dragon Age: Origins Awakening Character Reveal: Velanna

The next Dragon Age: Origins Awakening NPC revealed by BioWare is Velanna, an angry Dalish elf. She appears to dislike clothing and has the power to animate trees. Along with Anders, this makes two Awakening NPCs that focus on magic. I’m looking forward to learning more about this angry chick. I’m also pretty sure a bunch of you are wondering, “Yeah, but can I bang her?”

Source

20th Anniversary of Buster Douglas vs. Mike Tyson

Today is the 20th anniversary of James “Buster” Douglas victory over “Iron” Mike Tyson. This was one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport. At the time, Tyson was viewed as an unstoppable force that mauled most of his opponents with dynamic power and fierce determination. Douglas, on the other hand, was seen as an extremely talented pugilist that was too lazy to get his sh*t together. So many things changed leading up to the fight in Tokyo on February 11, 1990.

Today is the 20th anniversary of James “Buster” Douglas victory over “Iron” Mike Tyson. This was one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport. At the time, Tyson was viewed as an unstoppable force that mauled most of his opponents with dynamic power and fierce determination. Douglas, on the other hand, was seen as an extremely talented pugilist that was too lazy to get his sh*t together. So many things changed leading up to the fight in Tokyo on February 11, 1990.

On Douglas’ side, he finally found the motivation he needed when his mother past away weeks before the fight. He used the tragedy to get in the best shape of his career (and the best shape he’d ever be in). Douglas had all the physical tools and the right punches to beat Tyson. He was much taller and had a greater reach than his foe, which he used to establish a rocking jab. Tyson was also susceptible to uppercuts, which Douglas used to nail Tyson. None of that would have happened if Douglas hadn’t gotten into shape. It all culminated in a beautiful moment in sports television when Douglas broke down crying, overcome with emotion from winning the championship for his late mother.

On Tyson’s side, arrogance played a part in his defeat. He started believing his own hype and barely trained for the fight. He forgot all those lessons taught to him by the great trainers Cus D’Amato and Teddy Atlas (and the not quite great Kevin Rooney). It was even amateur hour in Tyson’s corner; his “cutman” used what looked like a condom filled with ice water to control Tyson’s facial swelling. Any cutman worth a damn uses an enswell. Perhaps Tyson completely dismissed the notion of his face getting busted up by Douglas. Perhaps his cornermen were lackeys pretending to be professional boxing trainers. It was probably both.

Legendary promoter Don King added some controversy after the fight…or should I say bullsh*t controversy. King claimed that the fight should be a no-contest because the referee took too long to count to ten when Douglas was knocked down. It’s true that the count was slow, but if you’ve seen the fight then you know that Douglas wasn’t in any danger of being knocked out. He was complete aware and followed the referee’s instructions (like a fighter is supposed to). Seconds after he hit the canvas, he even pounded his fist to the ground, angry at the mistake he just made. King tried to hold up the title change and had the fighters’ money frozen in a lame attempt to keep the title around Tyson.

I was in high school when the fight happened and it was on pretty late. I remember running up to my parents’ room to tell them that Mike Tyson lost. I’m pretty sure they were mildly annoyed that I woke them up. I even remember the local television guide listing the fight as (I’m paraphrasing), “The latest Mike Tyson slaughter will be like all the rest, only this one will take place in Tokyo.” It was truly one of the most memorable sporting events I’ve ever seen and certainly the biggest boxing upset of my lifetime. It’s just fun to reminisce. It’s also crazy that it was 20 years ago. Whoa (like Joey from Blossom).

Do you remember the Douglas/Tyson fight? I’d love to hear your thoughts on it.

Coffee Talk #84: Vote for the Superman 64 Award!!!

You asked for it and you’ve got it! Here are the nominees for the Superman 64 Awards for worst game of the decade!!! After sorting through your nominees, I’ve selected eight offenders for your voting pleasure. So make your pick and tell everyone why you selected the game you did (please)!

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames,whether you give a damn about the Winter Olympic Games, Degeneration X breaking up, or Spider-Man in 3D, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

You asked for it and you’ve got it! Here are the nominees for the Superman 64 Awards for worst game of the decade!!! After sorting through your initial picks, I’ve selected eight offenders for your voting pleasure. So make your choice and tell everyone why you selected the game you did (please)!

[poll id=”25″]