Gaming

Wii accessories that will make somebody else rich someday

Gerry Heidenreich — Thu, 14 Dec 2006 21:28:00 GMT

So... I'm not gonna do this stuff... instead, I'm gonna put it up here and laugh someday when it's actually done and it was my idea to begin with.

Boxing Gloves
Wii Sports boxing needs some 20oz gloves that I can snap my controllers into. This way, the game will be more realistic, I will get more exercise, and those near me will be in greater danger of getting brained (more of a sport for everybody that way).

Hula-Hoop
Jeanne decided that a Wii hula-hoop would be cool, so you could hula-hoop on the screen as well as in real life. I have to admit, this is one of those non-gamer type ideas that would result in more exercise and more people laughing at each other, and more pets getting hurt, which is what all the Wii Sports games are all about... but I agree with my brother's commentary, “Weren't video games invented because hula-hooping kind of sucks?”... I can see the non-gamer-types liking it though.

Cage Match
I'm sure it would have to be big, and probably expensive... I'm not into wrestling, but a cage-match getup would rule. The equipment along with ambulance fees would add up, and having a cage in front of your TV could be a pain, but a cage-match video game with a real cage in your living room would have to be the cat's ass.

Quick Release Controller Adapter Thingies...
Finally... I think, to bring a new level of realism to your game, there should be some kind of quick-release thing with which to affix your controller to your baseball bat (not the ball though), golf clubs, tennis racquets, boxing gloves, samurai swords, grenade launchers, other video game controllers, farming equipment, dogs, coffee mugs, and of course, flight yokes. Not bowling balls though, you probably gotta stick with the wiimote for bowling and risk hurting someone or even breaking your TV.

Well that was productive... back to the code...

Jeanne got us a Wii!

Gerry Heidenreich — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 18:16:00 GMT

Yup, Jeanne got us (me) a Wii. She was up EARLY a couple sundays back, and ended up 4th in line outside of Target, in 7F weather (she's not a big fan of the cold) for 2 and a half hours. The #2 coolest part of the whole thing is that she personally had little interest in the system, she did it for me. The #1 coolest part of the whole thing?: After 2 weeks, she's loving it as much as I am. Though I'm completely impressed with the system, it pales in comparison with how impressed I am with my girl (note that I would have TOTALLY done the same for her if I had the chance).The Wii comes with Wii Sports, which (once I warmed up to it) is easily the best video game I've ever seen or played, ever, in all time, ever. Didn't seem like much at first, but after countless boxing matches with Jeanne's brother, a few close rounds of bowling with her parents, some intense 2-on-2 tennis matches, and some ingenious “training“ mini games to boot (bowling 91 pins???), I'm hooked.

The Wii console is still bare, but with it's 24-hour wifi connection, we get updates as they drop - there are some nice channels coming, including news & weather forecasts, and an Opera channel for browsing the web. [Wii Channels on wikipedia]

Beyond sports... Jeanne and the girls have spent countless hours making and tweaking the Mii avatars, and I've picked my through the beginnings of Zelda. The game is amazing, with great attention to detail... I've spent way too much time just fishing.

Though our controller straps, dog & children, tv, and furniture are still completely intact, we've all suffered from the soreness that comes with flailing your arms around trying to keep up with each other. Ironically, our new video game system has given us more exercise and family time than we've had in a while.

Thank you Jeanne, I love you - Everybody else, Merry Christmas, drop me an IM or email me with your Wii #!

Small Step for Man, Big Stack for Wife

Gerry Heidenreich — Mon, 02 Jan 2006 04:07:00 GMT

Small Step
Well... over the last week, I've finally got Jeanne playing (& appreciating) poker. It's been a long, uphill battle, as she fought through stereotypes, preconceived notions about the game and players, and difficulties with the rules (dealer's choice), probabilities, and the betting. I've played with her family for years, but she's always chosen to sit it out and watch over the kids. I've known for almost 10 years now that she would make one hell of a poker player, she can read me like a book, whether or not there's a game between us, she was born with an intuition that just plain freaks me out sometimes, and she loves pissing off her big brother, with whom we play many of our games.

I tossed her some chips a couple weeks back and talked her into playing a few hands to get a feel for it. Her mom had the big stack, her brother & I were in the middle, and Dad was struggling after a long expensive game of baseball. After a few instructive hands of TH & 7card, I could see the walls start to crumble...

Big Stack
Fast-forward a couple weeks to this last, New Year weekend, where Jeanne owned the table, repeatedly beat her brother down with no end to the trash-talk, and served as my bankroll as I went broke time and time-again by traditional poor new-years-eve-type judgement. I've created a trash-talking, check-raising, wheeling, dealing, 7-card stud-loving monster... couldn't be prouder. :)

Now to work on the etiquette & get her in shape for the big-time...

A Summer full of gaming. . .

Gerry Heidenreich — Thu, 08 Sep 2005 15:56:00 GMT

The list of games I enjoy grew a little this summer... (so did the list of games my wife beats me at).

T3X45 H0ld3M P0x3r
I played a some cards this summer, even lost some cash with my Dad in a basement game of holdem. It was an interesting experience to watch my Dad work the table while I fumbled and tripped over myself trying not to get annihilated too quckly. I love this game, but my wife will never have any interest in it. . .I'm on my own.

Tennis - Jeanne grew up playing tennis, played it through high school. Growing up in the frozen-tundra Wisconsin northwoods, the closest I ever came was hitting rocks with sticks (frozen rocks, with frozen sticks). I'll put this down as the game Jeanne was born to beat me at. I have one helluva serve if I must say so myself, but that stupid white box on the other side of the court is too small for it. We've been playing at least a few times a week all summer.

Volleyball - I've always loved this game, just haven't played it in over a decade. This year I started showing up at the sand pits to play for the Firm team. We did horrible; I don't think we played as the same team for any two games, but I'm inspired to rally up some bumpers and setters for next season. I'm fully aware we have some VB lovers in our community, maybe the wi-nug can have our very own VB team.

Golf - Another game Jeanne really enjoys, we've been out a few times this year together. In the rare instances when we've got the TV on, it's as likely to be on the Golf channel as it is any other. My recommendation for those interested in getting good golf equipment on the cheap: Find someone that works at a lawfirm, and have them send out a request for some used clubs. All lawyers are required by their state Bar Association to have at least 1 extra set sitting in their garage for each year as a practicing lawyer. There are a lot of partners that can't even fit their Beamers and Lexi in their garages right now because of this clause.

House Hunting - This game just plain sucks. We found our dream-house and quickly got outbid by another family sporting the one-two punch of $15k and the influence of some overzealous Remax-spaz. We've changed our priorities, we're now on the market By Owner, and hope to have cash-in-hand for our next opportunity.

Marketing - What a complex, curious mess of a game. The more I learn about the industry, the more intrigued I get.

Fluxx Bang!

Gerry Heidenreich — Thu, 18 Aug 2005 03:12:00 GMT

We went down to Chicago last weekend & I swung by the game shop (just like funagain but you can actually touch stuff!)...

I had to pick up Fluxx when I saw it. I believe it was Chris Brooks that once mentioned he doesn't take the family for a trip without it... great for kids, etc. Rules are simple: draw a card, play a card. There are 4 card types:actions (i.e. switch hands with another player), rules (bread & butter of the game, rules keep your head spinning, making the game purely tactical and minimizing any feeling of initiative), “keepers” (object cards required to win, but serving no functional purpose), and “goals” (combinations of “keepers” that players need in play to win).

Also, I picked up Bang!, because it was $10, and Sue Rozmiarek has given it some good coverage, including a good review, and a session report or two. Haven't tried this one yet, but it looks like fun, with the right kind of crowd.

Also, casey chesnut has written a pretty amazing game written in managed Direct3D that emulates an old wooden labyrinth game on the tablet, using a webcam as an input device (”optical flow”).

[check out the article] and see the vids at brains-n-brawn.