I'm not daring enough to wear this, but I want it anyway

Can you think of a better way to beat the winter cold than by wearing a Piranha Plant scarf? I can't.

Actually, I take that back. The only competition the scarf above, which was made by etsy shop owner enemyairship (aka anenemyairship on Flickr), has in the "coolest scarf ever" category is this Noby Noby Boy scarf.

Here's another shot of the Noby Noby Boy scarf, and here are two more shots of the aforementioned Piranha Plant scarf.

You know what? I've changed my mind about the NES version of Bubble Bobble

I've always turned up my nose at the Famicom/NES version of Bubble Bobble for no other reason than, well, it isn't the arcade version.

While composing this post the other day, though, I thought to myself, "You know, the sprites in the NES version aren't so bad. In fact, they're pretty darn good."

I bought the NES version via the Wii Virtual Console shortly after it was added to the service (yes, despite my aforementioned disdain for that iteration of the game), so last night I decided to take it for a test run--you know, to see if it's better than I remember it.

Surprisingly, it is. Sure, the background graphics and music are simpler than the arcade version and the game becomes a flicker-fest when more than a few bubbles are on screen, but the Bob, Bub and enemy sprites are spot-on, as is the all-important gameplay.

Don't get me wrong, I'll still play the arcade version of Bubble Bobble over the Famicom/NES version if given the chance, but it's nice to know I can turn to the latter in a pinch.

(In other Bubble Bobble news, check out this awesome piece of cover art--which appeared on the cover of the Sega Mark III/Master System version of the game.)

Nintendo opens up about the North American launch of the 3DS

During a press event held earlier today, the folks at Nintendo of America (finally) loosened their lips regarding the soon-to-be-released 3DS system.

Specifically, they revealed that the system will hit the streets in North America on March 27--which means we'll be getting it one month later than the Japanese and two days later than Europeans. Two colors will be available at that time, Aqua Blue and Cosmo Black, and both will carry the same price tag ($249.99). (For more juicy tidbits from today's press event, check out this tinycartridge.com post.)

The system is available for pre-order at Amazon.com, so head over there if you just have to have one at launch.

Inazuma Eleven, now in English

I have no idea why I'm so interested in Inazuma Eleven. It certainly isn't because I'm a soccer/football fan. Maybe it's because it was developed by the same folks who made Dark Cloud, Dragon Quest IX and the Professor Layton titles?



Regardless of the reason, this soccer/football-focused RPG has piqued my curiosity and interest. Here's hoping it's released in the US at some point (or at least in the UK, so I can pick up a copy via sendit.com).

(Via gonintendo.com and tinycartridge.com)

*1*0*0*0*

I've been looking forward to this post--which is the 1,000th to be published on this blog--for a few weeks, but now that it's time to write it I'm not sure what to say.



Maybe I should just keep it simple and say "thank you" to everyone who has visited and commented over the last four or so years.