Category: Games

(Not So) Basic

December 10, 2011

Magic The Gathering has been around for over 15 years now, and the basic design of the cards has barely changed in that time. However they were modernized in 2003 by updating the card frames. Here’s an example of the old frame:

And here’s the new (and still current) frame:

But did you know that WoTC spent about 3 years deciding on the updated frame, and during that period even did some test prints of alternate frame designs? I’ve seen scans of a few of these now, and unquestionably the ones I find most attractive are these two:

Incredible aren’t they? Only two of the first were printed (and in foil no less) and only three of the latter. They are now in the hands of private collectors and valued at many thousands ($7k+ apparently). Many other cards exist using these never-used frames, but the lands (2 islands and allegedly a mountain) are by far the most expensive because they are tournament legal.

As if the owners would ever play with them 🙂

As I have mentioned before I have a collection of basic lands, which is now upwards of 650 unique basic land cards. It makes me feel strangely happy to know that as complete as my collection almost is, there exists ‘holy grail’ lands like these that I will never, ever, ever own 🙂

8 Bit Fortress

December 8, 2011

While I sit here waiting for others to get their damn work done in time so I can do my own (grumble, grumble)… why don’t I show off my new home?

There it is. Click on it for a mega-sized version. I haven’t named it but I will right now: Cloudgate!

This is, of course, my creation in the fantastic iOS ‘game’ Junk Jack. I built the whole thing out of blocks and parts collected and fashioned myself. It started off as the (now) dungeon, before becoming the castle/house thing aboveground. Note the finer touches, like grass on the roof and glass walls on both sides of the second floor.

My plans are grand! In time I will remove all earth below the house, and have it floating like one of those castles in Dragonlance (or rocks in Avatar…). I will then build a bridge between the castle and the remaining land out of pure gemstone. I shall call it Bifrost, and it shall shimmer like a rainbow. The cavern below the house will be flooded, and nearby I will have a pen of livestock that I will harvest for food to fuel my spelunking into other worlds to obtain more raw materials.

On the very top of the castle I shall build a tower up to the heavens. It will be crested with pyramids and guarded by gigantic, ancient statues. On the very top I will place a gigantic unblinking lens forged from a single massive diamond. It will forever look out amongst the clouds.

Most of the above is currently possible in Junk Jack. Some will come with updates. It’s a clever, clever ‘game’, highly recommended if you like exploring and building.

Not So Bad After All

December 7, 2011

I’m feeling a little Halepule today, so this entry must be brief to give me a period in which to convalesce.

What’s this photo?

Yep, it’s Mario facing down a Dalek. This was taken with my 3DS, using an ‘AR card’ which makes Mario appear in the image on top of his card. You can actually move him around and even animate him, but I kept him on the card so you could see the effect. It’s a bit nifty as you can see, and several different cards are supported by the OS.

Here’s another little feature of the 3DS OS I like:

I’m still disappointed Nintendo hasn’t yet embraced a robust online identity with all the trappings (such as achievements), but I suppose extensive stat-tracking on a device is the nearest and next-best thing. You can see in these shots how the OS ranks your use and even keeps track of it on an hourly basis. This should be fun to look at years down the line…

I’ve now got a few games for the 3DS, including the two ‘big’ ones (Super Mario 3D Land and Zelda Ocarina Of Time). I haven’t yet played either though – I’m saving them! But I have been playing Samurai Warriors and Pokemon Rumble Blast and they are both pretty good. The 3D effect, although I rarely turn it on, is effective and occasionally very impressive. Even if the system did not have 3D though it would be quite a beast. Obviously much more powerful and much higher resolution than the PSP, this feels like a next step in handhelds and I think it may have a long and successful life ahead of it after all.

That’s a screenshot of Monster Hunter Tri G, which comes out next week in Japan. I’m still hoping the game sees a US launch, but I’m starting to think that even if it doesn’t the 3DS may be worth buying after all.

There was an OS update today, which added the ability to record 3D video. I tried it out. My reaction…? Well it was a bit like this:

I’ll have the 3DS with me in Australia. So some of you can eventually see for yourselves 🙂

Robot Claw