Review: Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep

January 11, 2011
James Skemp

The following is a review of Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, for the Sony PlayStation Portable. Having played Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 years ago, I skipped most of the other iterations of the Kingdom Hearts series either because I didn't have the console (DS) or because the games just didn't seem to have the same appeal (Chain of Memories). Shortly before picking up my PSP I heard a lot of really great things about this game, with most reviews saying it had a good story, graphics, and an improved combat system, but a quirky camera.

December 13, 2010
James Skemp

Former colleague Rob Lumley posted an article a few months ago about Netflix instant viewing. While responding to another comment I had an epiphany. The PSPgo was Sony's attempt to go all digital for game distribution. And it wasn't much of a success, especially since not all games are available (even recent titles, like the 'new' Kingdom Hearts). However, the iPhone, iPod Touch, and now iPad use completely digital distribution for their games, and they're doing absolutely wonderful.

November 29, 2010
James Skemp

Techmeme had a couple of interesting titles this evening. "Kinect is Selling 2X as Fast as the iPad" and "Microsoft: Over 2.5M Kinect Sold." Even if I thought I had the space for it (I'd have to move furniture every time I wanted to play it in my current apartment) I still wouldn't pick up the Kinect. Why? First there's the price. At $150 you might as well buy a PSP (which I did) or a Nintendo DSi.

November 28, 2010
James Skemp

This is a review of the Sony PlayStation Portable game Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. Final Fantasy VII was the game that made me want a PlayStation 1. I played Final Fantasy VII briefly after it was initially released at a friend's house, then my own copies later in college on both the PC and PlayStation 1. So when I ordered a PlayStation Portable (PSP) recently it seemed like a no-brainer to pick up a copy of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII as one of my first games.

November 28, 2010
James Skemp

At the lowest level, any Sudoku puzzle consists of a number of squares. There are rows times columns squares consisting of a single value. There are x number of larger squares consisting of y values, where x is the smallest of rows and columns, and y is the largest of rows and columns. As already mentioned, there are a x number of rows, as well as a y number of columns. Overlap is possible, but the puzzle still consists of these basic parts.

November 12, 2010
James Skemp

Having just received this month's issue of Game Informer I was pleasantly suprised by the article 'The 30 Characters Who Defined A Decade,' contained on pages 46 to 69. I was particularly surprised to see Elena Fisher on the list, since Nathan Drake was already present, but feel that was an excellent choice. Lost Odyssey doesn't show up as much as I feel it should, so it was great to see Kaim Argonar showing up on the list.

October 30, 2010
James Skemp

I've spent a great portion of the day researching current gen portable consoles; the Nintendo DS(i) and Sony PSP. MLB for the latter was disappointing (I'm not much of a sports fan, so no surprise), but the Pokemon (I'm ashamed to admit) game was a blast. If any of the stores in Madison actually carried the Metal Gear PSP bundle I would have purchased it, even though I logically have a difficult time justifying it.

October 2, 2010
James Skemp

This afternoon I picked up a PlayStation 2 slim model from Best Buy. I've already got a fat PS2, from way back in 2004 (after a bit of research, it looks like January, and that I paid about $200 for it), that still works pretty darn good, although the controllers are a bit ... discouraging. My PlayStation 3 is also backwards compatible, so between the two I should be able to play my 52 PlayStation 2 (plus those I purchase in the future, as purchase I will) games for many years into the future.

December 4, 2009
James Skemp

Did you know you have to go through 4 screens - 3 of which are adverts - to turn off Xbox Live auto-renewals? And it seems like there's only one click (or one purchase) to turn them back on.

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Review: Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep

iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch - digital-only distribution devices that work

The Kinect is selling really well; but is that good for gamers?

Review: Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII

Sudoku observations and programmatic considerations

Game Informer's The 30 Characters Who Defined A Decade is an excellent read

Oh why can't I find a reason to buy a current gen portable console?

On why I purchased another PlayStation 2

Did you know? Xbox Live auto-renewals

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