Games Clocked 2005

I guess it's the time of year again to list the games I managed to finish playing last year. Gotta admit, it wasn't the best of gaming years for me, what with the 3 exams I did (mrcp 1 twice, mrcp 2a once :)), my moving homes, and ofcourse meeting Kelly since July has kept me more company than video games. Ofcourse, she loves playing games and now that her initial welcome period is over (and me turning into normal SoB, not polite, caring SoB), I'm gonna start playing more games with her... am sure she won't mind (I hope :p).

Anyhow, here's a list of games finished last year, according to format:

PC
Doom 3 Resurrection of Evil
Half Life 2
F.E.A.R.
Quake IV
Call of Duty 2

GAMECUBE
Resident Evil 4
Metroid Prime 2
Killer7
The Legend Of Zelda : Wind Waker (AT LAST!!!!)

XBOX
Splinter Cell:Chaos Theory
Fahrenheit
Project Snowblind

Nintendo DS
Nanospray
Warioware: Touched!

PSP
Lumines (all skins unlocked)

ARCADE
raiden fighters

AMIGA
Battle Squadron
Prince of Persia

MAC
Doukutsu - Cave Story

And currently playing:
PC - X3/The Threat
XBOX - Prince of Persia Sands of Time (with Kelly), Stubbs The Zombie
GAMECUBE - Geist
PSP - Katamari Damacy
NDS - Sonic Speed (with Kelly)

And life has a funny way...

of helping you out when you think everything's gone wrong.

Speak to me two days ago about life and the future, and I'd of said that I had no future job, that things are looking grim for doctors in Britain, and everything sucks.
Just 2 days ago, I was sprawled on the sofa playing XBOX Psychonauts (really good game! ps2 and pc so no excuse not to play it), when my house mate came running down saying "MRCP 2 RESULTS OUT! I'VE PASSED! GO CHECK!!!" oh no!! So I checked, and sure enough there was my code number, and I had passed!! (got the confirmation letter today, got 64%, passmark was 59%). I had passed the damn exam from the first attempt, a miracle :)

Then, just yesterday was my interview for a job in Colchester (Oncology SHO, ie cancer), and there was one post and 3 candidates (one of which was the same house mate). I managed to do well in that interview too and was offered the post!!

So, within 24 hours I got an exam and a job! Life can sometimes really turn around quickly, and as Alanis sang, it sure has a funny way of helping you out when you think it's all beyond repair!

Next stop, the FINAL damn exam of MRCP, otherwise known as the PACES (practical assessment of clinical examination skills), July '06. Wish me luck :)

Lik-sang

The other day I was reading The Official Nintendo Magazine, and found out that the big N had released a special edition Gameboy Micro celebrating Mario's 20th birthday. The machine was designed to look like a Famicom (Or NES, or even Rakan if you're arab :p).

As I'd given both my old GBA's (the standard and SP) to my nephews, I thought I might as well get one of these. Problem was that I couldn't find them in the UK. So, off to good old www.lik-sang.com, my favourite import shop. There, I ordered the Micro and also a copy of "Boku no Watashi no Katamari Damacy" for PSP (don't ask).
The order was placed just after midnight on Friday 6th of Jan. Monday morning (9th) and at 8:30 the DHL man knocks on the door with the package, straight from HK, and with NO TAX! Great service eh?

Thing is, it didn't stop there. Not only did I get the GBA micro and the game, but I also got a whole bunch of very Japanese goodies:

A Gameboy capsule toy: you get these from vending machines in Japan, and are basically teeny weeny models of classic consoles. Mine was the original gameboy, complete with a cartridge and a connection hub!
A Lik-Sang Badge Holder, A Lik-Sang Mouse Pad

A Katamari Prince shaped PSP case: this I was really happy to get, cos these are uber-rare, and only came with pre-ordered games. For some reason, I got one :)

I know most these things are silly, but you should've seen the look on my face when I was discovering goody after goody between the pyrofoam filler! So, here's a big thanks to lik-sang, and again to the Big N, for making my life happier...
And here's some pics from the back of the micro, and the little capsule gameboy thingie :)

Western Digital Raptor X

Western Digital have today announced their new Raptor HDD, called Raptor X (lot's of imagination there then). Those that don't know, the Raptor HDDs are awesome things that give home computers near-SCSI like performance, and spin around at a godly 10,000 RPM. The only 2 sizes are 32g and 74g. Their also not cheap.

I've owned 2x74 and 1x32 since last summer, and the 2 big ones are RAID-0, and they make loading times a doddle.
The new X series has the same specs as before, but come in at a reasonable 150gig, and a crucial 16mbyte cache (double that of it's older brothers), and also feature a see-through case and leds, useful for anyone with a window in their case. They don't come cheap either, and can be preordered from the Raptor X website for just $349. Check the site for more pics and even a video.

Am I gonna get one? maybe...... :p

I wish I was a kid (or had kids!)...

...to get me (or them) one of these things...
A kids bedroom with this TV would look awesome.....

Hanspree Batman 15" LCD TV

Dolby Audistry...

Dolby have launched their new "sound enhancing" system, the Audistry. Claiming to make your music and movies sound better, the Audistry home page has several examples and demos on how it works.
Thing is, the technology and results are very similar to Creative's "Sound Crystaliser"! Essentially accentuating certain frequencies, making the music or movie sound better. It's a brilliant system (I can't listen to my mp3s any more without that function, it's awesome! anyone with an x-fi will agree), but I'm wondering who's copied who. Creative have allegedly said that they've been working on their product for 5 years, while Dolby hasn't mentioned anything.

Expect seeing "Audistry-enabled" products in the hear future, like speakers, players, etc etc. An Audistry enabled sound card would be interesting, and I bet you dollar to dime it won't be from Creative ;)

I Won A Quake IV Deathmatch!

Happy New Year!

Just wanted to say HAPPY NEW 2006! to everyone, especially those that take the time to read this boring blog :)

I've been working way too much these last two weeks, but today is my last 12 hour shift for some time, so I can't wait to get back home this evening and just chill......

In other news, I've decided that it's time for me to take the final leap, and start playing flight/space sims! So I've ordered a Saitek Cyborg Evo Force game controller (it's ambidextrous which is useful!), and I've also ordered a copy of X3 - The Threat (games looks gorgeous!)
These will all arive mid next week from ebuyer.co.uk and amazon. Seeing that I'm not working for the next two weeks, I know how I'll be spending my time!
Which reminds me, I'm currently playing:

PC - The Movies, Quake IV multiplayer
XBOX - King Kong, Prince of Persia - The Two Thrones
GAMECUBE - Geist
NINTENDO DS - Mario and Luigi Partners in Time, Mario Kart DS
PSP - nothing (sucks eh?)

I'll post about the games i've clocked last year later on

Have a good one people and salam!