After waiting so long to even hear if Camelot would make another Golden Sun game one would think they would have spent an inordinate amount of time making sure every aspect of the game was top notch. Unfortunately, they did not. Reading numerous reviews and fan reactions I have come to the conclusion that Camelot simply thought, "Look at all these people wanting a new GS game! We can just throw something together and easily cash in on this!"

You got a bramble seed.

-- end of battle --

But Felix's party couldn't carry the bramble seed, so Felix threw it away as far as possible.

After giving my first Wii to my neice for Christmas last year I've been going through video game withdrawals. Finally I couldn't stand it anymore and I bought another Wii last week - a sleek-looking black one this time. This also came with the black nunchuck, controller, and the sensor plus. I'm a happy camper now :)

I knew it would happen eventually. So that's why I'm posting this again. For some reason I just had a feeling they would make a third Golden Sun and that it would be on the DS - heck, I even said it would be called "Golden Sun DS".

Now, my next prediction: Golden Sun for the Wii - muhahahha.

I so love tax time. I was able to purchase Phantom Hourglass yesterday and this got me to thinking about all the other Zelda games I've played over the years. For me the seminal moment in my gaming life was when my Mom purchased an NES system and I got The Legend of Zelda. I spent countless hours traversing strange lands, caves, and dungeons. There was a lot of backtracking in this game, but that didn't effect my enthusiasm one bit. To be able to walk around this new and exciting virtual world was too much of a thrill. Eventually I got the sequel, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and this solidified my love of both Zelda and RPGs forever.

Since my Mom was as much into video games as I was she eventually bought us the SNES system. My Mom didn't care for the NES versions of Zelda or the GBA, but she loved A Link to the Past. We spent countless hours trying to unravel the mysteries of this new Hyrule and it ended up being one of our favorite Zelda games of the time. I love visiting my folks and playing these games with my Mom. She will get so involved in solving a dungeon or battle that sometimes she'll spaz out in frustration and her feet will sometimes catch the cord of the controller and unplug it from the SNES. It can be quite hilarious.

Although I never played Majora's Mask I did enjoy Ocarina of Time. I didn't have any of the Nintendo systems at my house (except for the GBA), but my Mom had them all and so I would play the games with her at their house. She bought a N64 just to play Ocarina and this became her favorite Zelda game (and still is today). Ocarina was HUGE and it was a long and satisfying adventure in a whole new and wonderful world of Hyrule. The fact that Link could ride a horse was one of the perks for me, and catching the Poes was a lot of fun. This game had some interesting sidequests and learning the new tunes for the Ocarina was a lot of fun. I can see why this was her favorite game and when Nintendo ported it for the GameCube later on I fell in love with it, too.

Unfortunately, I missed a large section of the Zelda craze with the Gameboy, because I didn't get my hands on one until about seven years ago. But once I got one I sought out any Zelda games I could find for it and discovered Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons along with Link's Awakening DX. There were untold hours lost to time while I played these games - slowly, at first, because I really didn't want any of them to be over. What I loved about these GBA Zelda games were the diverse new characters, lands, dungeons, and enemies. The weapons Link acquired were always a favorite thrill for me and these games did not disappoint. Overall I found the these Zeldas to be a bit more difficult than the previous NES iterations, which was great because that's what I love about playing RPG games anyway. If it was too easy then it wouldn't be fun.

Next up came The Minish Cap and this became my favorite GBA Zelda game. Not only was it unique (with the small world Link could visit), but the game had many long and satisfying sidequests. My favorite part was spending hours collecting the Kinstones. Every Zelda has something unique about it and the Kinstones were the "cap" on this game.

Finally I broke down and bought a Nintendo system of my own - the GameCube. I bought this system just to play The Windwaker, and this became MY favorite Zelda game of all time. I got the Zelda/Ocarina disc, too, although I didn't play that game as much as I did Windwaker. I think what I loved most about Windwaker was the artwork: that cell-shaded look appealed heavily to the cartoonist in me. I not only loved playing the game but looking at it. The adventure was also a huge draw, because for the first time Link was taking to a whole new world - the Great Sea! A lot of people have said they hate traversing the ocean in Windwaker, but for me I love it. I also loved the system - for me the GameCube was truly a wonderful invention, and it had some wonderful perks as well. I bought the GameBoy Player so I could play my GBA games on it and I also bought the WaveBird wireless controller. For me this was and still is my favorite controller of all the Nintendo systems.

My brother was over visiting one day last summer and he got to talking about how he loved playing the bowling game on his daughter's Wii system and since I had just come into some extra cash with a design job I did we headed over to our local Gamestop and bought one. I also bought an extra controller, so we could both play bowling, which turned out to be quite fun. Since I had the Wii now in my possesion naturally I had to buy The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. These games were expensive, but it would have been a crime if I didn't get it. This soon became my second favorite Zelda game. TP is a beautiful game to look at filled with stunning visuals and awesome game play. What was amazing about Twilight Princess was using the Wii's controller to navigate this new Zelda world. The responsiveness of the Wii controller surprised me and soon I was spending countless hours trying to catch every fish there was in Hyrule.

So there you have it - my Zelda trip down memory lane. Have you got your own Zelda memories to share? Let us hear about it in the comments.

Today I finished Golden Sun. Ahh, what grand old memories! Beating the Fusion Dragon with a team at level 31 was hugely satisfying. Heck, it was even a pleasure having to write down that obscenely long Gold password afterward. Now on to Gold Sun: The Lost Age!

Being 8-bit at heart I now plan on picking up some other older GBA favorites like Final Fantasy VI. There's no better adventure than playing the very first game that launched my love affair with RPGs. The first time I saw that lovable little Moogle do his dances I was forever hooked.

Next up I plan on getting some DS games - Spirit Tracks, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy IV, March of the Minis, Yoshi's Island, and of course Golden Sun DS!

I figure I owe it to myself for being so long away from the D-pad.

So what's on your game agenda?

Bless my mom's heart she lent me the money to buy my new DS Lite today. I also got a couple GBA games. Golden Sun is gracing the screen now (have to play the original GS games to warm up for Golden Sun DS). I couldn't find an onyx one so I had to settle for the black one with the red lid. It's actually kind of slick looking. My mom likes it, too. Now to get some other GBA titles and some DS ones as well (Spirit Tracks here I come!)

Well, it's that time of year and I'm starting to go through video game withdrawals. I gave my Wii to my niece for Christmas since I wasn't playing it all that much and I sold my DS and GBASP last year (needed money to pay those dang bills, ya know). Now I'm looking around for another GBASP. Got my eye on one of those Classic NES limited edition ones on eBay. Also, I'm keeping tabs on a new Famicom styled Gameboy Micro, too. If you want to see how sweet this little puppy is check out this Flickr photo.

Been feeling the urge to play some GBA games again, like Golden Sun and The Minish Cap. I'd play them on my computer, but I don't have a joystick to use (and I hate using the keyboard). Plus I've been wondering if I shouldn't just buy another DS, because then I could play both GBA and DS games on it. The new DSi doesn't do much for me so I'd go for the original DS Lite. Unless of course Nintendo makes another DS Lite version (besides the DSi).

Anyway, that's it for me. How is everyone else doing?

Been a while since I posted anything here. Let's see, where to begin .....

Well, I've bought a new Wii game (Super Paper Mario), been busy working on my design blog, promoting my design services, and I started on online store to sell my designs. Oh, and I made a new Gamespot banner for my page here. Nifty, eh? It's defintely me, don't ya think?

Haven't been visiting Gamespot much except to check up on the latest Wii games and see what some of my old friends here are doing. If you happen to see this blog post why don't you leave me a comment and let me know how you're doing?

You know who you are :)

Until next time ....

I knew it would happen eventually. The only thing that stinks is I already sold my DS, grrr....

My next prediction: Golden Sun for the Wii - muhahahha.

Well I've rented Super Paper Mario and been playing it for the last six days and it's AWESOME! I'll definitely have to own this game eventually. Next up I'm going to try Mario Galaxy and then Twilight Princess. I've managed to unlock all the characters in We Love Golf! Now I just have to finish the Pro Tournaments.

Wheeee!