My kind of house plants

Something most of you probably don't know about me: I have the opposite of a green thumb. (Which I guess would mean I have a reddish-purple thumb--right, color theorists?)

Don't get me wrong: I like flowers and plants well enough. I just don't like taking care of them.

As such, I think Swedish artist Sandra Talving's "pixel plants," a number of which can be seen in the photo below, would be the perfect addition to our house or even our yard.

Of course, I'd have to put them in the backyard if we went with the latter option, since you know some jerk would steal them on sight, but that's OK with me. I'd put them on our back deck, right below our kitchen window, so I could look at them as I wash dishes.

Oh, who am I kidding? In reality, I'll salivate over them for a few minutes and then chicken out when it comes to buying one.

Should you have more guts than I do, you may want to check out Talving's etsy shop at your earliest convenience.

Mario art for those with a lot of moolah

What would I do if I had $2,000 burning a hole in my wallet? Well, I can tell you one thing: I wouldn't spend it on the piece of art below, which was produced by Princeton, New Jersey-based artist Erika Iris.

That's not to suggest I dislike Iris' work. On the contrary, I think this piece, called “Ghost in the Machine: Mario," is pretty darn fabulous. (I also like the pieces she's done that feature Link, Pac-Man and one of Super Mario Bros' goombas.)

Do I think it's worth spending $2,000 on? No, I can't say I do. Should you think it's worth that kind of money, though, by all means pick it up and then invite me over to your apartment, condo or house so I can come ogle it.

For more info on Iris and/or any of the pieces mentioned above, head on over to iri5.com.

Manual Stimulation: Ganbare Gorby! (Game Gear)

You know what I like most about Game Gear instruction manuals? They're small--and not just in size, but in length, too. That's a big deal to me because, well, scanning each and every page of a thick game manual (for use in one of these posts, of course) can be a real pain in the butt.

The only problem I have with short instruction manuals: Sometimes they're stuffed full of delightful illustrations and other details, and sometimes they're as dull as dishwater.

Sadly, the manual produced for Sega's quirky, Mikhail Gorbachev-focused puzzler, Ganbare Gorby!, falls somewhere between those two extremes.

It certainly starts out promising enough, with the game's colorful cover art showing up once again to remind folks what's in store once they press "play." (If this is the first you've heard of Ganbare Gorby!, it means you'll be acting as the aforementioned former president of the Soviet Union as he alters the course of myriad conveyor belts in order to deliver food, medicine and portable game systems to comrades in need.)



Anyway, the manual's first few pages are as bright and bold as its cover. Also, one of them features a completely adorable drawing of good ol' Gorbachev. I wish I could tell you why he isn't also carrying a Game Gear (one of the items he delivers to the poor in this endearingly odd puzzler), but I can't.





After that, Ganbare Gorby's manual becomes a bit boring, to tell you the truth. At least the following pages feature a number of nice screenshots. (Please note the right-most one in the scan below, which shows a citizen grinning from ear to ear after successfully grabbing a piece of meat that wouldn't look out of place in a PC Genjin game.)

Hey, Atlus USA: It's about time you made a few 3DS game announcements, don't you think?

Specifically, I'd love for you to announce North American release dates for Etrian Odyssey IV, Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers and Shin Megami Tensei IV.

Of course, Shin Megami Tensei IV has yet to receive even a Japanese release date, so it's unlikely North American gamers are going to get a release date for our region anytime soon.

An announcement that the game will, indeed, be brought to our shores at some point (hopefully next year) shouldn't be out of the question, though, don't you think?

Speaking of Shin Megami Tensei IV, Atlus' Japanese arm released a new, rather gorgeous trailer of the game yesterday morning. Here it is:



Doesn't it look divine?

I have to say, the first thought that popped into my head while watching the trailer above was, "Man, this would look great on the 3DS XL."

As such, I really hope Nintendo of America lets it be known soon that it'll be bringing the PINKxWHITE 3DS LL to our shores later this year or early next.

(Via tinycartridge.com)

Five more favorites: Famicom/NES platformers that don't involve a fat, Italian-American plumber

Just over a week ago, I published a similarly titled blog post featuring five of my favorite Famicom/NES games that didn't star Nintendo's famously mustachioed plumber.

As I'm sure you can tell from the headline above, this post covers five more such titles. Do I put them on equal ground with the games I mentioned in the last one? Not really. Still, they're all great and well worth playing, especially if you've yet to experience them.

1. Akumajō Special: Boku Dracula-kun--Often called Kid Dracula by North American heathens like myself, this Konami-made title is the platforming equivalent of the company's Parodius series of shoot 'em ups--only in this case, Castlevania, not Gradius, is the game being parodied. Anyway, thanks to its focus on projectile weapons, this one's always felt like a mash-up of Castlevania and Mega Man to me--which of course means it's a winner. Additional reasons to give this one a try: Its jaunty soundtrack and its brilliant, cartoon-ish visuals.

2. Gimmick!--My first thought upon discovering this Sunsoft-published gem a few years back was that it was some sort of Kirby rip-off. Although it definitely shares Kirby's Candy Land aesthetic (to a degree), Gimmick! plays nothing like that HAL Laboratory-developed classic. In fact, Gimmick! plays more like a Mega Man game than Kirby's Adventure, if you ask me, what with the adorable protagonist's projectile weapon (a star that spawns above his head) and propensity to bounce. Gimmick! differs from Kirby's Adventure in another important area, too--that being that it's far more challenging. In fact, it took me more than a few attempts to make it past this game's first stage. Don't let that keep you from giving this cart a try, though; tough as nails or not, this is a top-shelf platformer that should be experienced by everyone who knows their d-pad from their start button.