Update on Vacation Plan

It looks like I got lucky this year. Originally my itinerary was something like this: MSN > ORD > SFO > HKG > ORD > MSN. It wasn't my ideal plan, but since all the other dates/flights are fully booked, I decided to buy the ticket anyway.

I purchased the ticket last Saturday (20th), and this past Monday, I got a call from the travel agent saying that he was able to find a direct ORD-HKG flight on the 7th as well. Even better, he was also able to find me a seat on the 30th (the original date was 29th) as well. At $1155, i think it's a good deal and i am very impressed with their customer service.

More proof this is becoming a gaming blog...

Nowadays it feels like I only blog when there's something related to either Wii or DS. Hahaha...

Anyway, after looking around for several days, I finally got my hands on Capcom's newest Wii game - Zack and Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure. The game supposedly shipped this past Tuesday. Knowing that this is Madison, I wait a day before checking the major outlets for the game. So on Wednesday after work...BestBuy - nope; Toysrus - nope; GameStop - nope; Target - nope; Wal-Mart - nope... and then I gave up. I pretty much repeated the same "shopping" (more like searching) trip Thursday and Friday. Finally this morning afternoon after I woke up, GameStop's site said that they have copies in store (finally!) Rushed over, hand over credit card, game GEEEEEETTTTT!



The guy who works there says that the game is flying off the shelf, I was like.."Yeah, tell me about it"

Anyway, the verdict is this: If you have a Wii, you should not miss this game. In fact, go buy it now! Wait, you should call the stores first to make sure they have it in stock to avoid my fun experience



* Yeah, that stage with the frog bomb? Died 3 times... >_<

Next question: should i rely on local retailers for the 11/5 release of Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn? Or should I buy it online? Decision, decision...

Notice anything unusual?

Below is the search result I got when from UAL for ticket prices between Madison and Hong Kong. Notice anything unusual?

Totally forgot...

that Nintendo was doing there fall conference tonight (in Japan). Hence the blogs are flooded with new Nintendo news... From what I've read so far, it was quite an impressive event with a lot of new information on new games and release dates.

For those who are keeping an eye out for WiiFit, it will be released in Japan on December 1st for roughly $75.

Oh... SquareEnix has a new WiiWare game (think of them as XBox Arcade or Playstation Network) that is a spin-off from the Crystal Chronicles line - Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles: The Small King and the Promised Country. Being a big SquareEnix and FF fan, no complaint there (well, maybe a release date for FFCC:Crystal Bearer would be nice. Also wouldn't mind getting the main FF line back to Nintendo...XD)

P.S. Fire Emblem DS was also announced during the conference. I guess my game lineup for next year will be as packed as this year. Mwahahaha...

Not enough sleep... it's all Link's fault

Bought the newest Zelda game last Friday and have been playing it since. It's the first Zelda game on the DS (which increased my DS game collection to 15) and I have nothing but praise for it. The game is controlled totally using the stylus and yet it feels so natural. I don't think I can actually go back to the old scheme any more.

And with the stylus, some of the puzzles were extremely entertaining. The puzzle on the island with no maps was definitely an amusing one. Without the touch screen input, I don't know how Nintendo could pull off such genius trick. =) There are tons of jokes/funny scenes sprinkled throughout the game. The story is very compelling and not to mention I totally dig Wind Waker/Phantom Hourglass's art direction (cell-shaded cutesy figures). I guess my only concern is that it might be a short adventure (comparing to the 60 - 70 hours I put into Twilight Princess). Now only if Nintendo would let us know when we can expect the true Wii version of Zelda...