Deal or no Deal is such an awful show. I don't know if it's even worth explaining why. The only good thing about it is the girls who open the cases.

Merry Christmas

I had a pretty good Christmas. Just stayed home and watched five, yes five, NBA games. Here's the breakdown:

Hornets vs. Magic:
This was the only disappointing game of the day. I expected the Hornets to put up a fight but the Magic were on fire early and the Hornets never recovered. They went on a run in the third but it wasn't enough. Chris Paul's steal streak came to an end too. I had the Magic winning anyways.

Suns vs. Spurs:
I did expect the Suns to take this one but forgot about their lack of D. It was refreshing to see Shaq dominate though. Suns had it but Jason Richardson left Roger Mason open at the end and he nailed the three. Reminds me of Game 1 of the playoffs.

Celtics vs. Lakers:
Ah yes the big one. This was the one everybody was looking forward to. The Lakers came into this game hungrier. I was thinking the absence of Farmar and starting Luke Walton wouldn't be good for them. Walton did airball a three, but he did contribute. It was pretty close until the closing minutes when Gasol started playing and Lakers pulled away. Garnett and Pierce were in top form. Ray was off and Rondo was in foul trouble though. The biggest problem was the Celtics' bench. This is when they miss PJ Brown and James Posey. Hopefully they can add another player to the bench before the playoffs, or at least give Patrick O'Bryant more minutes. But congrats to the Lakers. Don't draw any conclusions though.

Cavs vs. Wizards:
If any game was gonna be a blowout, it was this one. Wizards are horrid this year. I knew it would still be entertaining because these two teams are rivals. But I didn't think Wizards would almost win it. Mike James really stepped it up at the end, but it wasn't enough. Lebron took over the game and the Cavs pulled out the win.

Blazers vs. Mavs:
I didn't know who would win this one, only that it would be close, and it was. Good game from both sides. Jason Kidd knocked over a ref too. Can I just ask where is Greg Oden? All the guy does is foul. This guy isn't playing like a first round pick. I hope he can pick it up not only for the Blazers, but for my fantasy team too :)

finishing up FF5 right now.

Greg Oden sucks

I'm looking forward to watching Paul Pierce against Luke Walton on Thursday

Tried this stuff today:
Mezzetta Habanero Chile Hot Sauce

It's up there with the hottest I've ever had.

I drink your milkshake!

Latest movie reviews:

Tropic Thunder: 3/5
There Will Be Blood: 4/5

soon: Stranger Than Fiction, Ironman


Lakers almost had a 3-game skid but managed the W tonight. The big game is coming up!

Need to do some coding...

Finished up the tree today

Check out these sales numbers from november:

Wii 2.04M
DS 1.57M
Xbox 360 836k
PSP 421k
PS3 378k
PS2 206k


2 million Wiis sold in one month?? Holy crap. Now I'm beginning to wonder if the Wii can outsell the PS2 in its lifetime. The DS is getting close to that point too.

Lakers on a 2 game skid? What's going on? I know what's going on, too many in-n-out shots at the end of the game.

5 days left until the big day! 2 sick games on TV.

Tropic Thunder wasn't that great.

Sake bombs are good. The unfiltered kind.

I thought you said we're going out for a steak dinner

I hope the Thunder can get 10 wins at least.

This weather is madness. I like it to be a little cold, but not this cold. It's gonna be 40 something tonight.

Need to do some coding over the break.

Full Throttle tastes like Mountain Dew, and sucks.

Top 10 favorite NBA players

I'm so glad finals are done, even though they weren't too great. That quarter sucked. Now let's unwind. Here's a list of my top 10 favorite players in the NBA, along with their career average stats. Do not confuse this with what I think are the top 10 best players. That list will come later. Players who almost made the list: Rajon Rondo, Steve Nash, Dwight Howard, Kenyon Martin, Ron Artest (for what he did to Detroit).

10. Derek Fisher

Fisher was my first favorite player in the NBA, right when I was just starting to get into it. It makes sense since the only team I watched at first was the Lakers. I liked how he would always be willing to take a charge, and especially his smooth stroke.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	886	0.402	0.376	0.814	2.2	3.2	1.1	0.0	1.26	9.0

9. Michael Finley

Finley also used to be my favorite player. He was a pure shooter, and what a shooter. I tried to model my shot after him, and I think I got pretty close. The Mavs were such a good team with Dirk, Nash, and Finley. Unfortunately they didn't go all the way.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	998	0.444	0.371	0.812	4.5	3.1	1.0	0.3	1.58	16.6

8. Andre Iguodala

A few of these players are on this list because they are just exciting to watch. This guy is one of them. After Iverson left Philly, Iguodala really got to show what he can do. He was just a joy to watch, and he still is.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	345	0.466	0.325	0.762	5.7	4.2	1.8	0.4	2.42	14.8

7. LaMarcus Aldridge

I only noticed this guy last year. What a solid guy. Reminds me of another one of my favorite power forwards... He has a lot of potential, and his midrange game is top-notch.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	164	0.486	0.200	0.743	6.4	1.1	0.6	1.2	1.21	14.2

6. LeBron James

Ah yes, The King. Where would the NBA be without this guy? Better yet, where would the Cavs be without him? Among the most exciting and charismatic players in the game, Lebron is on many basketball fans' favorite lists. He's still young, and will end up with a slew of career accomplishments. Just look at those numbers!

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	414	0.468	0.322	0.732	6.9	6.6	1.8	0.8	3.28	27.3

5. Amar'e Stoudemire

He's come a long way after a big surgery on his knees. But I'm glad he's back. Another exciting player to watch, he's made so many top 10 plays of the night lists. Lately he's also improved his jump shot. Hopefully Jason Richardson can give the Suns a boost. Otherwise Stoudemire needs to go to a better team.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	405	0.542	0.186	0.749	9.0	1.3	0.9	1.5	2.55	21.1

4. Josh Smith

This is about as thrilling as it gets. Josh Smith is just dynamite. He has some of the most ferocious throw downs and amazing blocks. I have a thing for defensive minded players. He's only 6'9" but he's among the league leaders in blocks cause he doesn't give up on the play and chases down the ball to swat it. He just needs to develop his shot a little more.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	317	0.444	0.262	0.702	7.4	2.7	1.1	2.5	2.50	13.6

3. Gerald Wallace

This guy is on here cause he's a defensive player too. He's among the very few who have averaged 2 blocks and 2 steals per game over an entire season (05-06). That's very hard to do. The best part is, he looks and talks like a bum, but he's actually a baller.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	417	0.474	0.300	0.673	5.1	1.8	1.5	0.9	1.72	11.7

2. Vince Carter

The best dunker of all time. He's done some dunks that I didn't think were possible. He's not a bad shooter either. I just wish he had a more successful career. Sadly, he's on the way down. He went 0-13 a couple nights ago. However, he did score 39 last night! He will always be the best dunker in my book.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	718	0.448	0.376	0.793	5.5	4.2	1.3	0.8	2.41	23.7

1. Kevin Garnett

KG has been my favorite player since the 03-04 season. I remember I was a senior in high school when I watched a few Timberwolves games. I thought to myself, wow this guy is talented. I could watch his low post spin move all day. He makes it look so easy. Plus he's a defensive player too, and he finally won an NBA Championship after deserving one for so long. He's one of the best passing big men to play the game, and very unselfish. Look at his numbers and tell me they're not impressive. To average those numbers over a decade+ puts you in Hall of Fame territory. He's the only MVP on my list as well.

My favorite "team" is the one that contains my favorite player. So for a while it was Minnesota. I'd been waiting for him to go to a better team for years. I'd prefer he went to the Lakers, so I wouldn't have to go against everyone. But now my favorite team is Boston cause of KG. If he were in the Thunder they'd still be my favorite team. It makes not difference. He's been my favorite player for years. If you think I'm a bandwagoner, we can take it outside.

	G	FG%	3p%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
Career	1021	0.495	0.284	0.781	11.2	4.4	1.4	1.6	2.52	20.3

more finals

well it's 6:30 am right now, been awake since 5 after sleeping at 3. 2 hours of sleep should get me through my final then I can take a quick nap and start studying for the next one. The CS one went well, but I have a harder one in an hour and a half. Here's a shot of the sky outside, the sun is about to rise. Oh well it'll all be over soon. We also have a little war with fruit flies going on here. We're winning.

finals

got a final in 2 hours, shouldn't be too bad.



Also, John Edward is a douche.

clutch

it's crunch time. It has begun. Got a lot to do in the coming days.

"you should sell the jersey then burn the money" - Citrus Mike

tuesday

I sometimes forget we have a hot tub on the roof.

Lunch meats are wack. You get 50 calories at most per slice and a few hundred milligrams of sodium. It's not cheap either. You're paying for a lot of sodium and it won't even fill you up that much. So you put two or three slices, and get your daily sodium intake in one sandwich. Mess. Honey ham has a little less sodium than smoked, and a little less taste. Turkey doesn't have much taste. Salami has the most sodium, and I'm not a fan of roast beef. Hopefully downing cups of water afterwards will dissolve enough of it.

week 10

1 more week then finals start. Here's my schedule:

Saturday: CS final
Tuesday: Physics final
Thursday: Math final

I'm still rocking the beard but it's getting tough. When I sleep on my side it presses up against my face and that's uncomfortable. Also I don't feel clean when I get out of the shower and I'm not shaved. My goal is to keep it until finals, but I doubt that's gonna work.

This game is sick! I love these kinds of games. Give it a try if you have time to kill:
http://www.playauditorium.com/#index

Black Friday

At midnight I went to look at the lines in a few places. There were tents around Best Buy, and a few people in front of Target. There was a line at office depot too. I didn't do any shopping. I was on Brand though, and the traffic sucked. But it was also cause of the Americana.

It turns out in NY that some people trampled and killed some guy running into a Wal-Mart. Never underestimate how cheap and/or greedy people can be.

Nice win by the Lakers. Mavs continue to demonstrate that they're the chokes of the NBA. But to be fair, Josh Howard was sitting out.

Finals coming up :(

turkey

Happy Thanksgiving everybody.

long weekend

Waiting on traffic to die down before I head home. It should be good by 8:00. The 405 and 101 looked terrible about 2 hours ago.

Celtics came back and beat the Warriors

Thanksgiving break is a tease. At least for us. We get a 4-day weekend only to come back and start studying for finals. It's bittersweet.

rain

finally some rain. I love it. It's kinda weak here. Supposedly it's stronger in G-dale.

I got a lot done today. Red Bull is clutch.

Paranoia sucks.

I'm so pumped for Lakers vs. Celtics on Christmas.

Thanksgiving is almost here :)

I don't think I need anything on black Friday. There are some great deals on plasma TVs. If it were next summer, I'd get one. But I'm good right now.

short week

Well there are only 2 days left to this week, that's good news. My friend invited me to her party today. My response? "South campus majors actually have stuff to do, remember?" For those of you who don't know, UCLA is split into a North and South campus. North campus contains the humanities, languages, political sciences, history, etc. South campus contains the sciences, engineering, math, and to a lesser extent, psychology. I'm not even gonna get into how easy the north campus students have it here. I'll save that for another post. But I felt pretty good about what I said to her.

Went to Gordon Biersch tonight. The beer was good, food was decent. I've had a mild headache the past two days and still am tired.

When I got back to my place, the garage gate clicker wasn't working. Mess. I tried it 100 times, every which way, angle, distance, and direction. I had to call my roommate to come open it. Now I have another errand to to take care of.

Working on some CS stuff right now. Hopefully I'll get it done before I sleep. Then I'll wake up, do physics, then start on math, etc., and then it'll be Wednesday :)

weekend

I'm so tired. I slept like 6 hours Thursday night and 6 again last night cause I had to wake up at 8 for my tennis tournament. On the plus side, it went well. We won our first two matches then lost in the quarterfinals in a tie breaker. Oh well, I did better than I thought I would.

The Albertsons across the street is closing down so a new apartment building can be built in its place. So they're having a liquidation sale where everything is 10%, 25% or 50% off. I stocked up nicely.

iPhone 2.2 update is out. Hurray... now we get Google street view. That's alright I guess. Where's copy/paste, video recording, MMS, and a widescreen keyboard for texting? Pick up the pace Apple.

Still need to see Quantum of Solace.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne sucks.

It's gonna rain during Thanksgiving. Awesome. I love rain.

friday

douchey parties going on tonight. I want none of that.

I have a tennis match tomorrow. Hope I'm not too rusty.

top 10 South Park characters

Here's another of many top 10 lists that I'll have in this blog. This one will rank my favorite South Park characters. I started watching this show about a year ago, and I'm almost all caught up. I have about 22 episodes left then I'll be in the current season (12). This is up there with Simpsons. It's one of the few shows that genuinely makes me laugh. Yeah, some of the episodes are very wrong and offensive, but the rest are great. I don't think there's a huge amount of character development in these later episodes, so this list should be pretty solid at this point. Enjoy.

10. Chef

This guy is great, especially his reactions to the kids' problems. They'd be like Chef, we did so and so, and he'll say, WHAT? Then he'd bust out in spontaneous song, singing something like I'm gonna make love to you womannnn... RIP Isaac Hayes.

9. Tuong Lu Kim

Being the only Asian guy in the show, he has to fit stereotypes. The funniest thing about him, besides the fact that his eyes are always closed, is his accent. He can't make the 'l' sound or 'c' sound. So he says things like "God damn Mongorians!" and "Welcome to Shitty Wok."

8. Kenny

Besides the fact that this guy is immortal (well, maybe not, but I won't spoil anything). He's funny cause his voice is always muffled. Good thing too, cause he has a pretty dirty mouth. You can sometimes make out what he's saying. Also, he's always been the medium between the boys. If any of the other three are fighting, he'll be neutral.

7. Jimmy

This guy is a comedian. Literally. He tells fantastic jokes and loves the audience. Timmy is okay, but this guy is way better. My favorite episode with him in it is the one where he gets a hooker. I was in tears.

6. Cartman

Yeah, he is a douche, asshole, jerk, etc. But you can't help but love this guy. He adds so much to the show. One, his voice is hilarious, and two, he's the funniest one of the main characters. There are too many notable episodes to list. But if you're even a noob to the series, a few should come to mind. The one where he joins NAMBLA and the Sea People one are great. Plus he sings a lot too.

5. Randy

Randy started off like all the other parents in the show. Mature, calm, quiet, and actually boring. But in the later seasons, he's really picked things up. He overreacts to a lot of things and goes crazy sometimes. A few notable episodes are the new one about the election, the Easter one, Guitar Queer-o, and of course the Warcraft one. He's actually the only parent who's funny. Kenny's dad was funny for a few episodes, and Kyle's dad was funny for the episode where Kyle becomes black, but that's it.

4. Tweek

Hehe, this guy is awesome. AHH geez! I can't take the pressure. He's always nervous and jittery because his parents own a coffee shop and always give him coffee. He doesn't say much except that he can't take the pressure.

3. Towelie

The second episode I ever watched was the one with Towelie and the Okama Gamesphere; and boy did I laugh (the other one was Cartmanland). I must've watched it a dozen times before realizing there are other episodes. I nearly collapsed the first time I saw this. He just comes and tells them about towel safety, then RANDOMLY busts out "you wanna get high?" He's a towel who gets high. What's not to love? He was in only two other episodes I think.

2. Butters

I love this guy. He's clueless and nervous. He's usually the one who gets manipulated by the others and believes everything he hears. Like the time when he thought he was in love with the Raisins girl, or the time when he first saw a porno. One other quote I like is when he said "hey guys should we just pull our pants down or turn around, put our weiners between our legs and give her a nice fruit bowl?" LMAO. The one where everyone though he was bi-curious was great too. Also his voice just inherently makes you laugh.

1. Mr. Mackey

This guy is the best, mmkay? He's the school counselor, but does a lot more than that. My favorite episode of his was when he hooked up with the 4th grade teacher. When he grew, his body stayed the same but his head just kept getting bigger, according to him. Drugs are bad, mmkay?

basking

i'm enjoying it, it's great having some free time for once

I'm trying to decide on which classes I'll be taking next quarter. So far it looks like discrete math, comp sci, and an upper div lab. Then in spring i'll take one more lab, my last physics class, and one more comp sci class. I need some A's though, i'm just a bit below a 3.0 and need to be at or above it for grad school or things will be tough.

Anybody see that new commercial for the Nikon Coolpix with Ashton Kutcher? He's such a douche.

I'm in g-dale right now enjoying the time off, but I still have work to do. The weekend should be great.

temporary freedom

I finally have a few days of freedom. The next thing due is another programming assignment next tuesday, but I have the weekend for that. I started the one due tonight early in the day, and didn't even finish it. It's okay, cause I got an A on the midterm. I'm gonna enjoy my free time by hanging out, playing tennis, catching up on gaming and basketball, and hopefully see Quantum of Solace.

TGI Fridays kinda sucks. The food quality is whatever, and they overcharged me. Hooters also sucks, and so does thai food.

It's 4 AM. Guess who's not going to class tomorrow?

I saw this video last night and can't remember the last time I laughed so hard. Take a look.

week 8

those midterms were gross. Glad they're over with. After I turn in a programming assignment tomorrow, I'll be clear for at least a week. Excited for that.

The air was still ashy last night.

Why do people insist on standing in doorways in groups to talk? Or even in the middle of a walkway. Are you that dumb to not realize you're standing where a lot of people walk? Or are you just too selfish to care? I make an effort to purposely bump into them to knock some sense into them. But I need to start bumping into them harder.

How do you suspend KG for one little play and not Shaq for escalating a fight? Stu Jackson is a joke. Oh well. But I doubt the Celtics need him for the game against New York.

The Physics department at UCLA needs some changes. 10 spots for the solid state lab? TEN? Considering there are about 30 students in the lecture for it? My enrollment appointment started half an hour ago, and the class was full this morning. How does that work? I don't wanna take the particle physics lab. Ideally I will take the solid state lab, one upper div elective that I've almost decided on, and finite math. Then in spring I'll take CS 32, another 180 lab, and maybe Armenian or something. Then it's all over!

so tired. 3 hours of sleep will do that to you. Tonight's sleep will be incredible though.

triple double

let's see, what's in the news?

Dwight Howard had a monster game with 30 points, 19 boards, 10 blocks, 3 assists. Thanks bro.

Hit up Red Robin and got an A1 Peppercorn burger. GS.

So we're still pretty early into the season and there was already a fight in the NBA. It was in the Rockets/Suns game if you missed it. Last year there were no fights, and this year there's one already. But it wasn't that big. No suspensions will be handed out, at least I don't think so. It was mostly a shoving match. But it's still bigger than anything that happened last year. It was funny seeing Shaq push people over one by one with ease though.

Need to do homework tomorrow and over the weekend, and CRAM for two more midterms. Why do they almost always end up on the same day??

cold

it was pretty cold today, I actually turned on the heater. It was pretty lonely too, up until around 6:00. But I did get a good amount of studying done. Good thing too, since I have two midterms on monday.

Lakers over Mavs. It was a nice game. Still undefeated too. Impressive. So are the Hawks. How did that happen?

There's this tree outside that sways in the wind and grinds against the wall and window of my room. Not only is it annoying to hear, but it wakes me up sometimes. It's also ripped the window screen and now bugs are getting in at will. They said they would replace the screen and cut down the branches too. But that was what, a month ago? Usually they're really quick about maintenance. But not this time. I took things into my own hands. I got my Miracle Blade and cut off some of the branches. That should help with the noise. But I have to go tell them again to replace the screen.

Monday

Didn't the UCs put Veteran's day on a Monday before? The old calendars aren't up anymore so I can't check. But having tomorrow off is useless for me, and many south campus students. I can't imagine how thrilled north campus students are. This gives some of them 5-day weekends. No wonder they party every day. Poor guys, they have it so hard >_>

Firefox sucks lately. It's been crashing on me frequently. What happened? It used to be so stable. Hopefully a new update is coming.

I got a 12-pack of Red Bull. I drink about 1 per week, two at most. I have two midterms next Monday, and the usual weekly homework in each class. Let the studying begin.

I borrowed Ico from a friend. It's by the same people who brought you my #3 favorite game (look down two entries). Maybe I can play it next week.

rounding out the top 20

First and foremost, I apologize for my two week absence. It shouldn't happen again. Let's leave it at that and get back to business.

Here are 8 more games to my top 12 list to bring it to a clean 20. This is because there are too many games I like, and also since 12 isn't a clean number. It's even, but I like multiples of 5.

20. Donkey Kong Country (SNES, 1994)

This was one of the first games I ever owned. Before getting an SNES, I had only a Game Boy and an NES that I borrowed from my cousin. But after going over to a few friends' houses who had the SNES, I was convinced it was for me. I can't believe I remember these details: It was a Thursday. I got out of school, went to the back exit where my mom was waiting for me, went to Toys R Us, and picked up an SNES console with this game. Then I would just sit there taking turns with my sister playing this thing. What sets it apart is the gameplay and graphics. Yeah, graphics. In 1994, these were the graphics to beat. This game was platforming bliss, rivaled only by the Mario franchise at the time. It had animals you ride, collecting tasks, several allies, memorable bad guys, and just a dash of humor. Even though Donkey Kong appeared in the original 1981 game with Mario in it, this was the true start of the franchise since he was the main character from this point on. I indeed came back for more, picking up the next two on the SNES, two on the game boy, and even the incredible N64 adventure.

19. Super Mario World (SNES, 1991)

I have a certain rule about trying to not put more than one game of a single series in this list. This way I can express when I thought the series was at its peak. But I had to violate it sooner or later with the Mario series. It's just that good. This is actually the oldest game on my list. The fact that it's up there with games from the past few years should really tell you something. Again, this was platforming at its best. My memories with this one include going to my neighbor's place a few times a week just to play this. Back then it was pretty hard to master this game since there were so many secrets and unlockables. But we finally did, finishing the traditional path of the game, the Star Road, and then Brown World. If you don't know what those are you're a noob. But about the game, it has everything there is to love about platforming as well as the Mario series. It set the stage for the transition to 3D in Mario 64, which is higher up on this list.

18. Gran Turismo 4 (PS2, 2005)

Here's one that belongs to a distinct segment of the gamer market: the car enthusiasts. If you know me at all you know I am one. The Need for Speed series and the others are all good and fun, but sometimes you wanna be a little more serious about your games. This is as realistic as it gets for racing games. You get real cars, real physics, real world locations, and a very real driving simulator. It's a car lover's dream. You start off taking driving tests to get your racing licenses, get a little money, buy a used fixer-upper, mod it, and take it to the tracks. The more you win, the more money you get. You eventually get better cars and better modifications, and work your way to the top. To me, that's my idea of car heaven. I even started with the first car I had in real life, an Acura Integra. That sense of nostalgia is great too. I'm still playing this game, after jumping into it rather late (2 years ago). The next one is due out soon and I look forward to it. Hopefully I'll have this one completed by then.

17. Super Smash Bros. Melee (GCN, 2001)

Except for maybe Diablo II, this is the game I have poured the most time into. No joke. It's somewhere near 1000 hours. You wanna know how I did that? College dorms. 2004-2005 was the year. Our door would be open all the time, and people would just come in to play. There were days that my gamecube didn't turn off the whole day. People would come in at 9 am and wake me up to challenge me. I kid you not. I was even in a few tournaments. I did pretty well but never took home the gold. I'm not sure what it is exactly about this game that's so good. It's tremendously fun, one of the best multiplayer games, easy to pick up, and very difficult to master. Wait, I just answered my own question. Mastering the game was the most fun part. I even trained a few people. There are so many little things that take a while to develop, I had it down to a science. Yeah, maybe my GPA suffered a bit that year, but that year was definitely the most fun I've ever had in my life, and not just cause the gaming.

16. Perfect Dark (N64, 2000)

This game really pushed the N64, as well as the gaming world at the time, to its limits. Literally. You had to have an "expansion pak" for the N64 to play it. Most people didn't mind though. It was well worth it. This game took everything Goldeneye had presented and made it better. They're not part of the same series though. They're both made by Rare and very similar, but not the same series. Only the Mario series gets two games in this list. But yeah, this had it all: a full array of awesome, technologically advanced guns, inspiring characters, good story, and excellent gameplay. What's more is that it was VERY difficult to complete the game on the hardest difficulty. I wasn't able to do it, and neither was anybody I know. I got through about half the levels on the hardest difficulty, but some levels (Attack Ship? Pelagic II?) were near impossible to finish on that difficulty. It was very advanced for its time though. It had hostage situations, cloaking, rockets that you can guide, drugs you can take to slow down time, and just so many cool little things. It was also one of the best multiplayer games. However, I still put Goldeneye above it since it came earlier and brought more to the gaming world.

15. The Sims (PC, 2000)

The Sims, Diablo II, and Smash Bros Melee. These are the three games that I spent the most time with. This game definitely earned its game of the year award. I first played this in middle school when a friend brought it over. Now that I think about it, it might've been my first entry to PC gaming. I remember thinking that I had never seen such an in-depth and fun game before. I still think so today. You get to customize people, their lives, their surroundings, and almost everything else. Talk about power, the addicting kind. I would play for hours thinking I'd played for only a few minutes and realize I had to get back to my homework. It's really fun to start a bachelor, have him gain skills and friends, advance through his career, get married, have kids, and so on. In a way, you can plan out how you'd like your life to be. It may sound cheesy, but that's one of the biggest reasons people like this game. I only enjoyed the original though. I got the two expansion packs after it, but it eventually got killed with the dozens of expansion packs and the sequel. But it was truly revolutionary for its time, and one of the few PC games I actually bought.

14. Max Payne (PC, 2001)

This is still my favorite PC game of all time (even though Bioshock and Diablo II are higher in the list, don't ask). Presentation, innovation, gameplay, story. All top notch. We've all seen the Matrix (I hope). But this game presented the whole concept of slow mo into shooters to make things better. You're one man, framed for murder, out for answers. But the odds are against you. That is, until you discover bullet time. You can slow down time to get an advantage in shooting people, and dive out of corners for a stylish kill. What I really loved about this game is not only the story, but how it's presented. Production value is high. Voice acting is excellent. The cutscenes are these comic strips drawn with pastel or chalk. Whatever it is, it looks great and really gives you a sense of how the story is going. If only the game were a bit longer. Don't get me wrong, I played it through several times. I have yet to see the movie, but will since I'm such a fan, even though I have heard only bad things about it.

13. Grand Theft Auto III (PS2, 2001)

An open ended environment is a great thing to have. No other game (that I have played) has a better one than this. Like its 2D predecessors, GTA3 is one of the only games where people spend 99% of the time doing something other than the main objective. Similar to the Scarface story, you're a guy who escaped jail and had nothing, but will end up with everything. I'm an average fan of the mafia world, and this game portrayed it fairly well. You start with small jobs with some people, possibly end up whacking your boss, then move on to the bigger, better deal. Missions vary from escorting a person, robbing a bank, stealing a car, or a gang fight. That's the main game, and it's very fun. But often times you'll find yourself in the middle of a mission and decide that it's much more fun to just drive around and reach the city limits, find weird people, start a high speed chase, or a killing spree. It's fun, trust me. There's just so much you can do, and you should take the time to explore everything this game has to offer. There were a few more installments of the series afterwards, but this was definitely the pinnacle of the series.

first top 10, or 12, list

One of my original intentions of this blog was to have a top 10 or top 5 list here and there since I like to be opinionated about everything. That's what a blog is for right? So here's the first one, something I'm passionate about, my top 12 (instead of 10, you'll find out why) video games of all time. Oh and about my "all time" window, my gaming prime was from the days of SNES up until last year, so keep that in mind. Enjoy. Comments are welcome.

12. Bioshock (PC, 2007)

Okay, I couldn't choose only 10 games. Can you blame me? There are just too many good games I've come across. So here's the start of the top 12. After I thought PC gaming was dead, this jewel came along. While not a full blown Shooter/RPG like Deus Ex, it's an amazingly creative shooter with good RPG elements. You can upgrade your equipment, hack turret guns to work for you, and mess with your body to gain super powers. Even better is the incredible story. You have currency, abilities, and specific ammo types. On top of that, the humor factor is through the roof. You'll find yourself laughing at many points in the game (circus of values?). I won't spoil anything, but it's very unique. What's not to love about an underwater city with little possessed girls who walk around with giant "big daddies?" The length of the game is very good too, long enough to satisfy, but not to bore.

11. Pokemon Red/Blue (Game Boy, 1998)

When I first heard about collecting monsters, I thought "this will never catch on." But oh did it ever. The basic idea is to collect pocket monsters (hence the name) and train them to battle each other. Sounds too bland? That's what you think. Once you start collecting, you realize that you gotta catch em all (sorry, had to). It's just wildly addicting, as are most good RPGs. What made it even better is that you can trade with or battle your friends' pokemon (yeah, that's plural). It's just so much fun to train your pokemon, strive for greater agility or strength, and to assemble an awesome team of 6. I could go back and start over right now.

10. Super Mario 64 (N64, 1996)

Ahh the N64. What a time to be a gamer. This was probably the best launch game to go along with any console (except for the NES). It fully demonstrated what the N64 was capable of right off the bat. Huge, colorful worlds ripe for exploring. You could just jump in (literally, mario has about a dozen different jumps) and play the game. This was platforming at its best, and a faithful transition from the days of the incredible 2-dimensional Mario games to the age of 3D. You could very well finish the game with the minimum 70 stars, but this game offered more to the hardcore gamers. You can max the game after getting 120 stars, which was rather difficult back then since each level had a 7th star that you need 100 coins in each level to obtain. But in retrospect, it wasn't terribly difficult. If only this game included Yoshi or Luigi. Well it did, but not in the way I was hoping.

9. Final Fantasy X (PS2, 2001)

Just like the 2D -> 3D transition that the Mario franchise went through, the transition from the PS1 Final Fantasy games to the PS2's FFX was faithful. While it wasn't as major as the Mario franchise (not 2D to 3D), it was a big change in that the franchise got voice acting, as well as a huge bump in visuals. The voice acting is top notch, and really makes you feel a part of the game. The story is just incredible, albeit a bit confusing at some times. In all honesty, I was bored out of my mind the first 6 or so hours due to the large number of cut scenes relative to the game play. But eventually they decreased and gameplay took over. The battle system was different from conventional RPGs in that weapons do not have inherent statistics, only abilities and slots for you to add statistics. The character attribute system was very different too. Instead of gaining regular upgrades in strength and magic, players earn points that can be used in the Sphere Grid to upgrade their characters in their own, custom way. All this, combined with the incredibly memorable story make up for one of the most memorable RPGs. This game was way ahead of its time. I can't believe it was released in 2001.

8. Super Mario RPG (SNES, 1996)

It's funny how I hear about certain games. This one is a good example. Believe it or not, this was the first RPG game I ever played. I was borrowing my friend's Nintendo Power magazine and it featured some tips on this game. I looked at the screen shots, the inn, the shop, buying/selling/upgrading your weapons, gaining stats, and then I discovered the essence of the RPG, which was an engrossing story, coupled with a way to customize the flow of the game by making choices. It instantly appealed to me. I rushed to Toys R Us and picked up a copy of this game while eating Round Table Pizza. Oh man memories. You have Mario, you have an RPG, you have humor, and therefore you have an experience like no other.

7. Diablo II (PC, 2000)

You want addicting? This game is as addicting as it gets. Remember that customization as a part of the RPG essence that I was talking about? Yeah, this has it. Not just has it, has more than you'll ever get to. When coupled with its expansion pack, Lord of Destruction, this game has 7 different classes to keep you busy. How you say? Well each class has 30 distinct spells. There are hundreds of unique items, hundreds of items belonging to a set, and plenty more rare ones that are generated on the spot. So let's see, 7*30*100*100 = you are addicted. While not exactly massively multiplayer online (only 8 players can be in one game at once), you can play with your friends to take down enemies, to hunt items, or to fight each other. Some people even made a good amount of profit by selling items or rushing players through the levels. It has everything there is to love about the hack and slash genre, and a top notch story doesn't hurt.

6. Chrono Trigger (SNES, 1995)

Preceding Super Mario RPG was its first cousin, Chrono Trigger. I didn't find out about this game until way after I played Mario RPG. But when I did, the parallels were immediate. But what sets this game one notch above Mario RPG is its visuals as well as its music. I have a soft spot for good music in my games, and this one hit it. Unfortunately, I never finished this game. I did get very close, and from what I hear, there are multiple endings based on how you played through the game. How's that for customization? This game perfectly demonstrated the essence of Squaresoft.

5. Goldeneye (N64, 1997)

I had heard a lot about this game before trying it, and wondered what the hype was about. Well let's think about it. What shooters were there before this? Doom? Wolfenstein? Yeah they were good and all. But most would agree that this game defined the FPS genre. What's not to like about James Bond? Put him in a first person shooter game that has all the pieces of the movie and allow for four players to play at once. I remember getting together with friends and cousins to just shoot it out with rocket launchers, shotguns, RCP90s, and all sorts of wacky scenarios. This is the one that truly launched the FPS world, and for that it's #5 on my list.

4. Resident Evil 4 (GCN, 2005)

I'm ashamed that I didn't notice this game on my own. Thanks to a friend letting me borrow his copy, I got to experience this game. I'd always loved the Resident Evil franchise, as well as the survival/horror genre as a whole. But this went above and beyond expectations. The gameplay was outstanding, and is what made the game. From the ease of aiming your gun to the introduction of items and more customization options, this game presented a whole new way to look at survival horror. It was scary, which I like, but not as much as the previous installments of the series. I think it's due to the view point of the game. In the previous ones, pre-rendered backgrounds and eery silence were the reason for the scares. In this one, it's still existent, but not as much. The length of the game is perfect, about 20 hours the first time through. I also like how it required you to be alert at all times since there are instantaneous button sequences you have to press to survive. Very enjoyable, marvelously fun.

3. Shadow of the Colossus (PS2, 2005)

I don't know whether to call this a game or a masterpiece work of art. This is not a traditional game by most means. It only consists of 16 boss fights. I use the word "only" very lightly. First off, these are the most enjoyable boss fights you'll ever come across. They are colossi (most of them are huge, not all), who are no pushovers. Most of the time you're trying to figure out how to get on the colossus rather than to kill it. Here is where the fun starts. Once you figure out how to kill it, then you can proceed to do so. This is what makes the game so enjoyable. For example, some of the later colossi require an hour or so of trying to get on top of them, and maybe 5 minutes of actually hurting it. What else? How about an epic soundtrack? All of this game's music is orchestrated, and is incredibly beautiful to hear. What's more is that there are no real words in the game. You are left to figure out the story by yourself. While the visuals aren't technically impressive, they do their job to give the player a sense of desolation while showing how beautiful nature can be. This was a game like no other, and I can't classify it under a specific genre. I was blown away, end of story.

2. Metroid Prime (GCN, 2002)

I was immediately blown away by this one. Yet another faithful switch from 2D to 3D. Not just faithful, but glorious. It has everything there is to love about the Metroid franchise, in a very polished and smooth 3D package. Good music is there, good gameplay is there, and especially great visuals. I think I played the middle third of this game in one sitting, about 7 hours. It had me hooked. This may have been the final console FPS that I enjoyed. The auto aiming seemed to dull the game at first, but then I realized it worked out perfectly. The bosses were enjoyable, as were the various puzzles. Then you have four different guns, four different visors, and a host of neat abilities like ball boost, double jump, and a grappling beam. I tend to not like sci-fi games or movies, but I loved this one. That can only mean it's my #2 favorite game of all time.

1. The Legend of Zelda - Ocarina of Time (N64, 1998)

Was there ever any doubt? No. There wasn't. This one also has an interesting story to it. I had no idea about the Zelda franchise in 1998. But I'd been hearing so much hype about it from others, magazines, and a few epic commercials. So I bought into the hype and went and got my copy. Oh my. I remember when playing it that the definition of a video game changed for me. I hadn't known games like this existed. What an experience! You play a little elf boy who goes through such an astounding adventure, full of weird characters, crazy locales, incredible music, and perhaps the best video game story I've ever seen. The game required you to solve puzzles in very creative ways too. Few games can give me goosebumps. I get them when I think about the scene where Zelda tossed Link the ocarina and then Ganondorf saw him. WOW. It's hard to explain. It was just an amazing experience. Engrossing above all others. This was the pinnacle of gaming in my opinion. I doubt a game can ever do this for me again. This was gaming at its finest, and is my favorite game of all time.





There you have it, there's my top 12. Yeah, I got carried away. I couldn't limit my favorites to just 10 games. But now I can round out the top 20 with another 8 since there were so many I wanted to include. Thanks for reading.

1 more

scratch that again! There's no hw due on friday since I had both midterms this week. But I have hw due next tuesday, wednesday, and friday. Oh well, beats two midterms that's for sure.

At least I'm not tired at all. I got like 10 hours of sleep last night after getting 2-3 the night before. Got a long night ahead of me though. Looking forward to friday and saturday.

I try to include a pic with each entry but usually don't when I'm too busy to find one. Still need halloween plans. Should I be Manu Ginobili?

in the fray

scratch that, only one hw assignment due friday (i think) but I have a programming project due next tuesday. Tomorrow should be like last night, but less intense I hope. The midterm was decent, at least I think it was. It was a bunch of proofs so I threw in a lot of bs. Hopefully it flies. I just might be able to go out this weekend.

About to go to sleep. This is gonna be so fun....

been there, done that

the next few days are NOT going to be fun

I'm studying for one midterm tomorrow so I won't get much sleep tonight. Then tomorrow I have an interview. When I get home I have to study for my next midterm on wednesday. Then I have two homework assignments due on friday, tutoring on tuesday, and a project due on friday. Should be a fun weekend after all this though. Wish me luck.

If you were ever wondering why my blog is titled how it is, now you know.

just like old times

I did about half of my hw the past few hours, and i'm going to sleep now to wake up early (about 8:30) to finish up the rest. My first class is at 11:00. After a while you're just burned out and things don't get through to you as well. So why not sleep now, then wake up and finish the rest after you're slightly refreshed? Makes sense right? It's what got me through my first 4 years. Of course, none of this is necessary if you don't leave your homework until the last day, but who does that.

I had a fantasy draft today, but was almost late. I had to run from my newspaper meeting to the apartment. Got there just in time, I even had the first pick which I used to get LBJ.

LA weather is a joke

Halloween is coming up and I still need to decide what i'll be doing.

2 midterms next week. There goes my weekend. At least CS 31 is cake.

Obama looked poised in the debate.

Movies to watch soon: Seven Samurai, Episode III, Sarah Marshall

My NBA 2k9 season is well under way.

why is it so hot during the day and so cold during the night? There's like a 30 degree difference these days. To make it worse, one day it's really hot and the next it's really cold. I walk to class and I'm sweating by the time I sit down.

Now those are blurbs if I ever did see them.

But here's something different from a blurb. A short rant. Focus: the iPhone. It's a great phone and all, but I still want to know why Apple left out basic features in it. The chart below describes my gripes. The things I want changed are the inclusion of MMS (picture/video messaging), video recording (which phones have had for a while), and a horizontal keyboard for texting (it works in browsing, but not texting). Nice phone, not perfect. The price for the phone is good. The price for the plan isn't. It turns out I'm not in a ranting mood tonight so I'll stop there.

it came!

Sweet! My NBA 2k9 came today, just in time to distract me before midterms. I drove to Glendale to pick it up.

I can't believe how often frats and sororities party. It's a Tuesday night and there's a nice party going on at Sig Ep. If only it were easy to get in to them...

Nothing major happened today. I got my draft order ready for fantasy basketball. Here's my top 10 for those who care: Lebron, Paul, Kobe, Garnett, Stoudemire, Wade, Dirk, Marion, Davis, Butler. I made it in a rush though. I should put some more effort into it. A good draft goes a long way.

I was gonna have two midterms on Monday, but one of them got postponed until Wednesday because some students are taking the physics GRE on Saturday. Thanks guys!

what was that?

So I woke up this morning and couldn't open my left eye. I thought it was just the usual eye boogers but after washing up it was still that way. It felt like there was something in it but I washed it out and made sure. It was just some irritation that made it seem like something was stuck inside. Well it stayed that way for like 3 hours and I ended up skipping all my classes. I need to do a lot of catching up tomorrow. Sigh

Ralphs has some savings program that donates money to some charity and it turns out you can get ice cream for $4 off, cheese for $2 off. It's amazing. I walked out with $60 worth of stuff after $20 off.

Here's a sample of what my dinners consist of. Mom's good home cookin' (fettucini alfredo) plus one my famous salads. I don't have feta cheese yet so it's a gimped version.

start of another week

here we go again. The weeks do get shorter though. Is daylight savings time over yet?

Has anybody ever made a music cd then hopped in the car for a drive as well as to test the cd? Yeah, I didn't think so. But since I love driving, and trance music, I had to. Drove for about 20 throughout Sunset, the CD indeed works. I don't burn CDs often since all my music is on my phone. But sometimes you just have to. It's easier.

Looney Tunes is way underrated. Too bad they don't show it anymore. My favorite was Foghorn Leghorn and how he would always ramble on and push people around. He made that dog's life a living hell. Remember this scene?

It begins...

I've wanted to do this for a while since things come up that I just need to get across to others and I figured this way would be more efficient than addressing everyone one by one. Don't have much to say for now except that In n Out's animal style fries are a huge rip off.