Long Hard Road

This blog's title refers to my adventurous past three-ish weeks. After my 360 decided that it didn't want to read my game discs anymore, I decided to focus my newly found free time into more schoolwork. During that 2 - 3 week period, I learned better study habits as well as-.... Yeah ANYWAYS, I got my 360 fixed, with the help of my roomie by ordering a new disc drive, disassembling the damn thing and replacing its motherboard with the old one a la 'open heart surgery'. It works perfectly now and Ive been enjoying it hardcore even since, as detailed by the following:

ACHIEVEMENTS:
Assassin's Creed II ( 50 / 50 ) !!!! (Awesome game, cant wait for AC3)
An Unexpected Journey [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 6.
Bleeding Effect [30g] - Complete training and reenter the Animus.
Art Connoisseur [10g] - Buy a painting from Florence and Venice.
Podesta of Monteriggioni [30g] - Reach 80% of your stronghold's total value.
The Merchant of Venice [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 7.
Hallowed be thy name [20g] - Discover the Assassin's Tomb inside the Basilica di San Marco.
Fly Swatter [5g] - Kick a guard while using the flying machine.
The Impenetrable Palazzo [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 8.
Venetian Gladiator [20g] - Discover the Assassin's Tomb inside Santa Maria della Visitazione.
Masquerade [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 9.
Victory lies in preparation [10g] - Get all Hidden Blades, Item Pouches and Armor upgrades for Ezio.
Bianca's Man [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 10.
The Prophet [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 11.
Vitruvian Man [20g] - Unlock all 20 pieces of Subject 16's video.
The Vault [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 14.
An Old Friend Returns [100g] - Escape the Hideout.
Messer Sandman [10g] - Stun 4 guards at once by throwing sand in their face.
Doctor [20g] - Perform an Air Assassination on a Poisoned NPC.
Sweeper [10g] - Sweep 5 guards at once by using a Long Weapon.
No-Hitter [20g] - Kill 10 enemies while remaining in conflict without being hit.
In Memory of Petruccio [30g] - Collect all the Feathers.
Show Your Colors [10g] - Wear the Auditore cape in each city.

Lego Rockband ( 39 / 49 ) (It just doesn't end!)
Royal Command Performance [10g] - King's of Rock 'n' Troll completed.
Super Stars [30g] - 1000 Stars achieved.
Solid Gold, Easy Action! [50g] - One song Gold Starred.
Start Me Up [10g] - Rock-It-Fuel completed.
Teleportation nation [10g] - Teleporter unlocked.
#1 Boss [40g] - All Entourage members hired.

Cabela's BGH 2010 ( 24 / 27 ) (Should be done by the week)
A True Hunter's Sense [100g] - Completed any level without using Hunter Sense.
Muzzlelover [30g] - Hunted 30 animals with a muzzleloader.
William Tell [30g] - Hunted 30 animals with a crossbow.

Borderlands ( 53 / 60 )
Braaaaaaaaaaaaaains! [25g] - Completed the Braaaaaaaaaaaaaains mission.

Bayonetta ( 25 / 50 )
Temperantia, Manipulator of Wind [15g] - Defeat Temperantia on any difficulty.
Chapters 5-7 (Normal) [20g] - Complete Chapters 5 through 7 on Normal difficulty.
Double, Doub;le, Toil and Trouble [10g] - Create 20 concoctions.
Wicked Weaver [10g] - Execute a Wicked Weave attack while using Dodge Offset.
Platinum! [20g] - Earn 10 Platinum Medals. Must be earned in 10 different battles.
Iustitia, Giver of Life [15g] - Defeat Iustitia on any difficulty.
Chapters 8-11 (Normal) [20g] - Complete Chapters 8 through 11 on Normal difficulty.
Feels Good, Doesn't It? [20g] - Execute 50 Tourture Attacks.
Treasure Collector [10g] - Discover Half of all the Umbra Witches' final resting places.
Sapentia, Controller Of Seas [15g] - Defeat Sapentia on any difficulty.
Chapters 12-13 (Normal) [20g] - Complete Chapters 12-13 on Normal difficulty.
Master of The Heavens [15g] - Defeat Father Balder on any difficulty.
Nice Try [20g] - Engage Witch Time successfully 10 times consecutively.
Taste of The Witching Hour [30g] - Complete all Chapters on any difficulty.
Chapters 14-Epilogue [20g] - Complete Chapters 14 through the Epilogue on Normal difficulty.
Umbra Witch [20g] - Complete all Chapters on Normal difficulty.

Resident Evil 5 ( 51 / 65 ) (New DLC = teh awesome)
Must've Got Lost [15g] - Complete "Lost in Nightmares" on any difficulty setting.

Dead Space ( 48 / 48 ) !!!!!
Epic Tier Engineer [150g] - Complete the game on the hardest difficulty setting.

Magic The Gathering: DotP ( 14 / 15 ) (Should be completed by this week)
Spellslinger [0g] - Defeat someone who has earned the Spellslinger achievement.
Planeswalker [30g] - Unlock 100%
Duelist [10g] - Win 5 Xbox Live Ranked matches.

Geometry Wars Evolved 2 ( 10 / 12 )
Rebound [15g] - Destroy 75 enemies in a game of Deadline using bullets bounced off of gates.
Treaty [15g] - Activate 30 zones in King without firing a shot, or destroying any enemies.


ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:
FINALLY finished Dead Space as well as AC2. Big pat on the back there, they were both very challenging. Also, I loaded a new game via my old save in Bayonetta and just... wow. The jump in difficulty was unreal, I had an extremely hard time on just the first LEVEL! Its insane, but I'll have to give it some time.

Aside from gaming, everything else in my life is going well. Classes are dishing out the first round of exams this week, so I have begun preparing for those now.

And thats about it...


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Games, Games and Life in General.

Its Sunday, and that means updates! Below is the achievement progress the past two weeks. I'm really enjoying Assassin's Creed II and my Dead Space adventure on Impossible difficulty will be coming to a close shortly. Also, I hope to get my Bayonetta disc working again/replaced very soon. I've been calling Target every few days to try and get it exchanged. Stupid faulty merchandise. Anyways.. enjoy my gamer update below and stay tuned [or scroll down past the boring stuff] for a juicy inside look at my life when I'm not playing my Xbox. {The following may be inappropriate for small children and/or individuals allergic to mundane stories of daily college student activities.]

ACHIEVEMENTS:
Dead Space ( 47 / 48 ) !!!!
There's Always Peng! [15g] - Find the Peng Treasure.
Slugger [10g] - Kill the Slug Boss with more than 50% hull integrity remaining.
Maxed Out [75g] - Upgrade all weapons and equipment.

Modern Warfare 2 ( 30 / 50 )
Operative [30g] - Earn all 3 stars in at least 10 different Special Op missions.
First Day of School [25g] - Complete the first two missions on Veteran difficulty.
Black Diamond [25g] - Complete the third level on Veteran difficulty.

Bayonetta ( 9 / 50 )
I'm a Bit...I mean Witch [5g] - Execute a Torture Attack.
A Primer in The Magical Arts [10g] - Complete the Vestible level.
You Want to Touch Me? [10g] - Engage Witch Time successfully 10 times.
Just in the Nick of Time [5g] - Dodge the runaway streetcar during Chapter 2.
Record Collector [10g] - Obtain three complete Angelic Hymn Gold LPs.
Fortitudo, Bringer of Flame [15g] - Defeat Fortitudo on any difficulty.
Chapters 1-4(Normal) [20g] - Complete Chapters 1-4 on Normal difficulty.
Seeker of Magic [10g] - Purchase three new techniques.
A Mother's Love [20g] - Defend Cereza during the out of body experience, ensuring she takes no damage.

Lego Rock Band ( 33 / 49 )
Dooyafunkhesaurus [10g] - Securi-T-rex completed.
Into The Deep [10g] - Submarine purchased.
No More Mr Ice Guy [10g] - Rock the Boat Completed.
Jet Setter [10g] - Private Jet Purchased.

Assassin's Creed II ( 28 / 50 )
Myth Maker [5g] - Find the 8 statuettes of Monteriggioni.
Undertaker [20g] - Discover the Assassin's Tomb inside the catacombs under Santa Maria Novella.
Choir Boy [20g] - Discover the Assassin's Tomb inside Santa Maria del Fiore.
Bloody Sunday [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 4.
Assassin for Hire [10g] - Complete your first assassination mission for Lorenzo Il Magnifico.
I can see your house from here! [20g] - Discover the Assassin's Tomb inside the Torre Grossa.
Red Light Addict [10g] - Spend 5000 florins on Courtesans.
The Conspirators [30g] - Complete DNA Sequence 5.
Prison Escape [20g] - Discover the Assassin's Tomb inside the Rocca di Ravaldino fortress.
Perfect Harmony [10g] - Tint your clothes with these colors: Wetland Ebony and Wetland Ivory.

COMMENTS:
Most of these accomplishments were fairly easy to get, and/or just took a set amount of time in order to complete them. Dead Space's Impossible difficulty is fairly challenging. Lots of the enemies deliver one-hit instant kill attacks simply because the damage they deal is so overwhelming. Additionally, The amount of supplies (ammo, health, etc.) is pretty scarce. So far, it's required a steady hand and careful aim in order to make my shots count. Modern Warfare 2's hardest difficulty, Veteran, has also proven to be challenging in both the campaign and the Special Operative missions. Its disappointing that the Campaign must be finished solo [No split screen game play there.] but then I suppose it simply takes away from the brilliantly done cinematic, summer blockbuster movie game play. And lastly, the Assassin's Tomb missions that reward an ancient seal [6 total] to those who can traverse the winding mass of jumps, ledge grabs, and quick puzzle solving while avoiding or dispatching guards. They have been very strenuous and tiring. Since Assassin's Creed II only provides gamers with a single difficulty setting, it is up to the player to adjust to the game's design as well as their playing style accordingly.


As far as my real life adventures, I've made some very tough choices this weekend, but I believe its ultimately for the better. Thats kinda all I have to say about that.

Until next time... Laters.

Achievement Update 1/21/10

Here's the first of many updates in my quest for more Xbox 360 Achievements.

GAME: Dead Space

ACHIEVEMENTS:
Playing Catch 10g - Catch a Brute or Leviathan Pod using Kinesis.
Crackshot 5g - Achieve a perfect score in the shooting gallery.
Full Arsenal 30g - Own every weapon in the game.

COMMENTS:
The Crackshot achievement was by far the most challenging and also the least rewarding in terms of gamerscore given. The in game prizes however, ranged from bits of ammunition, health, credits, air canisters and a grand prize of a Ruby Semiconductor, which is valued at 10,000 credits. A worthy prize, for a challenging task.

COMPLETION:

44 completed / 48 Achievements

Glorious Return

Well, I'm back from the dead, I suppose. Havent posted in a long ass time. Been too preoccupied with school and games and friends to bother. And i suppose a lack of motivation exists somewhere in there as well. I think I'll try to keep up a regular blog posting, be it bi weekly, bi monthly, whatever.

School starts Tuesday, 7 days. I suppose I'm excited, but at the same time its a stressful time. Perhaps I worry too much, but I think I have reason to. Put simply, its another semester of tedious assignments, grinding for upcoming exams as well as still maintaining the status quo in feeding my self-proclaimed addiction to all things belonging in the virtual reality. I'm taking all Psychology classes this semester, and they look difficult, but I'm up to the challenge as always. I just really would like to pass all of my classes this time around... I'm trying to get out of this expensive institution, not stay for the rest of my life like some people end up doing. Sure its fun, but the assignments and pressure to excel and do great is too much for me sometimes. I want my degree, i wanna be out, and i want to move on to (hopefully) better things.

Okay, okay fine. Here's a New Year's Resolution List

(In no particular order. ahem.)

1. Dont fuck up.
- Life is tough, I get it. But I'm tired of getting caught up in stupid pitfalls like procrastination and such.

2. Be accountable.
- Again, life is hard, but I need to realize a long term vision of my life and myself. What do i WANT out of my life? (Isnt that what that froshmen "Creating a Meaningful Life" class was all about?) So, I guess i have alot to work on there. (Like starting to worship Satan or Jesus Christ or maybe even Neil Patrick Harris to help me actually LAND a job that i apply for)

3. Be happy. (within reason*)
- I added 'within reason' because my immediate thought was gaming related and I need to watch my spending. But again, 'within reason' has an asterisk (adding it now) because the asterisk stands for "By any means necessary". I need to get my life/world/existence in a master lock choke hold, place it into a Playdoh press, and start molding it into what i truly want it to be.

(...Eh, three's plenty.)

Currently been listening to: Silversun Pickups, The Arcade Fire, My Chemical Romance, The Audition and a few other indie bands. (So my taste in music hasnt changed much.)


Eh, i guess more updates will follow soon. Nothing too nerdy in this post, so i'll add in that I'm gonna either pass out, or continue purging the USS Ishimura of Necromorphs while I watch Robot Chicken or the Spawn anime. Either way, it should be bedtime. Kitty is already in bed and she's lightly snoring.

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Maybe I deserve it all...

Maybe I do...

After all, i dont try as hard as i should. I dont have many responsibilities. My own girlfriend must think im the worst, hardcore slacker boyfriend ever. She doesnt think i try... and she's probably right. I feel like i try, but does that count for enough? Doubtful... I fucking suck at school and i do terrible in my classes, EXPECIALLY the ones im really excited about, like those in my major. Im debating switching majors to something less intense because it seems that what i WANT t do requires someone whos a little smarter and better motivated individual. i dont have a job or a fucking liscence. And all i truly seem to like doing is sitting inside playing the same games over and over because I KNOW that i WILL SUCCEED at them with little effort. I feel like i hardcore fail at life ad everyone today has been telling me to get motivated and do this and do that and try harder and ALL this shit has been attacking me at once. The day has been overwhelming, exhausting and emotionally draining on many different levels. I have no clue what to do except breakdown.

So much is being expected of me lately, and i feel like its crushing me. I just dont have the motivation and personal drive that my parents/I want and need me to have.


I know i just need to try....be it in school, relationships, whatever comes my way. I need to find that personal drive deep down... i MUST find it. because i dont want to be a failure all my life. I would like to do great things or help people out... but im just not sure if i know how. Christ, at 20, you'd think i'd get this down by now.

,,,,

Only Zombies could truly make this day perfect....

Oh My Freaking Hell! I am having the best day that I've had in a fuckin LONG time. Such excitement prompted me to frantically blog asap. I must warn my readers, for there are some intense moments of nerdiness that exist in the next paragraph. You've been warned.

Firstly, there was an earthquake. A magnitude 4.3 to be exact, at around 10.40 this morning. Being the second earthquake that I've actually felt in my lifetime, and the very first Ive felt since deciding to become a Geologist, I 'fell' out of bed. And by that, i mean i rushed to my computer and began casting 'Lvl 12 Rapid Turbo Push' on my F5 key when i logged onto the United States Geological Survey website, eager to get the results of the quake. It was at this moment that a figurative and literal lightbulb went off in my life. My roommate turned on the hallway light, not only blinind me when i walked out, but also allowing me to 'see the light' about the future that i want for myself. I'm going to be a Seismologist. And no, i wont define it. That's what Google is for, however, its not a terribly complex definition. Therefore, load your IE or Firefox and look it up if you feel so inclined. On another note, if you've been paying even a slight amount of attention to this paragraph, you'll realize exactly what it is.

Next, I went to Philosophy class, with is quite humorously taught by Jesus. Unfortunately, its pronounced 'hey-sus', but its funner to say 'Jee-zus' teaches my Philosophy class. If he was aware of this, he might be really funny and offer snack in class, like Jeez-its or something. [That one's for my Dane Cook/Hoover people] He handed back our Midterms [High B, sha-wing!] and our Philosophological Comparison papers, which contained nothing but comments regarding my 'brilliant and descriptive writing'. And apparently I 'supplied excellent concrete details and a positive, well-reinforced counter argument'. I guess he liked it or something, cause i think my score looks very similar to a 97%.

And then I went to Geology/Paleontology. Learned about all kinds of brachiopods, including the six types of Articulate species... oh i wont bore you with them. Be advised, however, they were fascinating, and unique with terrible complex names that sound like someone sneezing in Latin. [Yeah, thats pretty much covers it]

And with no class tomorrow, I'm gonna play Resident Evil 5 [Xbox360] and Pokemon Platinum [Nintendo DS] till i pass out. PEACE!

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Zombies, Games and Vampire Weekend

So I've realized that Ive had a weekend that was kinda, pretty much the most incredible weekend I've had in a long time. It was comprised of: friends, the epic madness of killing zombies in video games with friends, zombies, friends dressed as zombies, considerable amounts of fake blood and fantastically shoddy acting, fake British accents, overcrowded car trips to Dennys and mediocre Grand Slamwhiches at said Dennys, as well as a small handful of scattered 'F' words and copious amounts of over exaggerated, dramatic situations that would otherwise be considered mundane and typical.

The days before break were filled with mini-papers and midterms. Thats all I'll say about that.
As far as the actual break goes, its almost over, but its been nice and relaxing. I plan to head back to SJSU tomorrow, Wednesday, because there are several things that i must give my attention to. As for tonight, I plan to massacre the living hell out of zombies in Resident Evil 5 [[ exbawks 360, I'm no Sony fanboy ]] and watch Shaun of the Dead with the 'rents tonight. Because other than the amazing, life changing short film that i took part in, my parents know nothing of SotD. And this ghastly circumstance must be ratified on a big screen tv later tonight after dinner.

Other than that, things are good in life. I recently got around to downloading more Vampire Weekend. Good music there, its upbeat lyrics and catchy tunes are enough to keep me listening, aside from the great band name. You should check them out.

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