Blogger Archive: Crabmaster2000 
[img width=700 height=393]https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4326/35499784613_a54b10c1a0_c.jpg[/img]
If you missed out in June, I was one of many who joined the Playcast gang in enjoying the great last gen action game Enslaved. Most of the discussion, as it should be, was focused on the game itself. The characters, the design, the variety of experiences, the ending, the gameplay, etc. But there was a small side discussion that I found quite interesting and as I've played a few games since then has peaked my interest further. Should technical issues hurt your gaming experience?
Continue reading Literally Technically Complaining
[img width=700 height=376]https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4263/35220171350_5bd51101ca_o.jpg[/img]
Is there any better feeling for a collector than adding a new item to your collection? How about simultaneously adding a new item while helping a friend also get something they crave? Lately, I've seen the phrase "Trade is King" used quite often in game collecting groups. I really can't argue with it. Other than perhaps scoring a crazy good deal at a garage sale this is my favorite way to get new games these days. And honestly, it's a lot more likely to happen than a thrift store pick up nowadays.
Continue reading The Art of the Deal - Lining Up That Perfect Trade
[img width=480 height=640]https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4193/34561918921_0420ede792_c.jpg[/img]
Recently my city held it's third annual Fan Convention. Each year I've had the pleasure of setting up and running the gaming area. It's a lot of work, and honestly I'd rather just attend the event as a patron and fully enjoy it. However, this year, I have more staff and experience doing this kind of thing than ever before, so I got to spend a bit more time than I have in the past experiencing the convention. I still had to work my butt off leading up to the event and during the prime times, but was able to explore a lot more than in previous years.
Continue reading Herculean Weekend with my Waifu Flash Mario!
[img width=610 height=305]https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4177/33568129213_dbff52856d_o.jpg[/img]
I had an interesting conversation with someone not too long ago about how they want to collect on a larger scale, but just get overwhelmed with the task and had given up multiple times. I had two pieces of advice to offer. The first, and probably the most important, is to take a good look at your goal and make sure it's something that you actually want to invest the time and resources into. Collecting something like a full library can take years and thousands of dollars. If you're not committed and have stalled or even gone backwards in that goal, is it really something that is important to you or simply something that used to seem enjoyable, but maybe isn't quite what you though it was? Even on a smaller scale, such as collecting all the games from your favorite series, can be a huge task. There are dozens of games across multiple platforms in series like Mario, Mega Man, Final Fantasy, Zelda, Pac-Man, Harvest Moon, Pokemon, etc. Beyond the time and money, you had better enjoy research and have the space available in your home to display or store them like you want to.
If all that checks out though, then my next suggestion is to enter the delightful world of Sub-Sets!
Continue reading Collection Baby-Steps AKA Sub-Sets
[img width=480 height=360]https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2827/33641450201_682af0b661_o.jpg[/img]
Over the last several years I've noticed that popular gaming trends have been moving in a direction that largely doesn't appeal to me. That's not to say I don't still get excited for new game. I am beyond thrilled for the release of Persona 5 in a few days. Injustice 2 looks like a stellar follow up to the first game. South Park: The Fractured But Whole seems like it's going to improve on the previous game in every way. Ni No Kuni II is sure to live up to the pedigree of the first Ni Nu Kuni. And Bloodstained already has my money and is working hard to impress.
There is a lot to be excited about even if 90% or more of the AAA releases are for a different audience these days. One thing that is very new to my "Day 1" purchase list is the exclusion of Nintendo franchises. Usually I'm 100% on board for the next Mario, Zelda, Fire Emblem and more. But my world got a lot darker on March 17th.......
Continue reading What happened Amiibro?
[img width=350 height=500]https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2111/32302133874_3b19110d66_c.jpg[/img]
As my collection has been growing, my acquisitions have been slowing. It makes sense that at some point, you will eventually reach a saturation point in your collecting in which it's harder to find titles that interest you than it used to be when you had less games. However, I still really enjoy gaming and collecting so I don't want it to stop quite yet. Over the last few weeks, one of my collecting goals has been to update my rfgen wishlist. Sounds simple enough. Yet, I found myself pouring well over 50 hours into this project. I wanted to make sure my list was comprehensive and accurate. This meant reaching out to trusted friends with expertise beyond mine for certain libraries, doing a fair bit of research, and watching a ton of YouTube playthroughs before assigning a coveted checkmark to the wishlist box.
Continue reading Collecting Wishes
[img width=640 height=360]https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/733/32489217232_5bc6de1c48_z.jpg[/img]
I'm not a huge Pokemon fanatic. I have dabbled in the series on and off since Blue and Red though. I've beaten and enjoyed Pokemon Blue, Diamond, Y, Snap, Trozei, and Stadium. I've played several others like Gale of Darkness, Mystery Dungeon and the more recent Pokemon Go, and found myself satisfied with the experiences. Heck I've even occasionally enjoy a few games of the Pokemon TCG.
My son is now 8 years old and is in prime Pokemon territory. After hearing some good things, I decided to get us a joint Christmas present of the Pokemon Sun/Moon double pack (which has both versions of the game). It took a few weeks after Christmas to get some attention from either of us as we were pre-occupied with Lego, comic books, and life for a while. However, we finally decided to jump in and I've had a very interesting experience playing through this game alongside my son.
Continue reading Having Fun While Not Having Fun
[img width=500 height=530]http://s3.media.squarespace.com/production/465215/5339598/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Amazing-Threadless-T-Shirt-Chronicles-The-Coming-Gaming-Revolution.jpg[/img]
Image by GeekTyrant.com
This blog entry is gonna be quite different than my usual ones. I'm looking for help from you guys this time around. I was recently offered a position to write for a local magazine. It has a small area of distribution, but regardless, I'm very excited about it. I get a whole page to write about gaming once each quarter. I can discuss something new, something old, board games, video games, RPGs, card games, and basically, whatever gaming related topic I want. The book will have an overall theme, and I have been asked to try and make my topic relevant to the theme for the issue.
My first article is already printed and out in public. I would like you guys to read over my article below and throw your brutal and honest feedback at me. I had very little time to put this one together, so I fully expect future articles to improve with more time to plan and revise. The theme of this issue was "Revolution." I used this broad topic as a way to introduce myself as a writer and my relevance to the subject matter. Please let me know what you think:
Continue reading Crabmaster Gets Published!
[img width=700 height=457]https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5721/31347247235_99fd5303a4_c.jpg[/img]
Back around 2004 I ordered my first box of NES games off of Ebay. There were about 40 games in it and it cost me around $100. I was mostly trying to acquire some games I had as a kid like Hydlide, Karnov, Ninja Gaiden and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It was very cool to explore other games that I didn't even know existed that also came in the box, including unusual games like Chiller, hidden gems like Kickle Cubicle, and classics like Contra. In retrospect, it was an amazing deal, but I didn't know that at the time. I had just picked up a cheap NES at a local Pawn Shop and was looking for some software to play on it...simple as that. After enjoying the next couple of weeks of immensely exploring each and every title in the box, I realized I had awakened something I didn't know was inside me.
Continue reading Full Set of Friends
[img width=700 height=393]https://c8.staticflickr.com/6/5611/30624449111_80bd10b342_b.jpg[/img]
First Box packed!! Only 60-70 more to go!!
I've moved a few times in my life. It's never been much of a hassle and I usually kind of enjoy it. My family and I had lived in the same house for about 7 years now. Over the last 7 years, while feeling settled, I've definitely added the most pieces to my collection in that time. Last time I moved to a new home, I had around 1000 items in my collection and just a few shelves and a handful of consoles. Nothing crazy and was a fairly smooth move. Turns out it's moving time once again......
But this time there is SO much more to worry about!!
Continue reading Relocating a Lifetime Obsession
[img width=600 height=340]https://c3.staticflickr.com/6/5130/29717153530_c59c2f56b6_z.jpg[/img]
If there is one thing Crabmaster loves, it's DLC.......right?!?!
When Shovel Knight first came out, it reminded those of us that had forgotten, or maybe those that had never experienced, what pure bliss retro gaming could be. The simplicity, the sprites, the level design, the challenge and wow, those chip tunes! It was really something special, and as a primarily retro gamer, it was really exciting to see just how well it was received. After playing it at a friend's house and instantly getting drawn in, I got very excited and eagerly awaited the physical release for my Wii U so that I could play through it again. What was even better was that this version included the Plague of Shadows DLC on the disc!!
Continue reading Spooky Plays: Shovel Knight - Plague of Shadows
[img width=640 height=360]https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8227/28738225674_57637b13a2_z.jpg[/img]
I want to take a brief break from my usual blogs about my store to talk about Mighty No. 9 now that I've had several weeks to take it all in. If this is something you'd be interested in reading about please click the link below. If not then we can't be friends......
Continue reading Mighty No. 53......%
[img width=700 height=393]https://c3.staticflickr.com/8/7420/27143500402_2e5d06bd60_b.jpg[/img]
Last time, I discussed things like setting up the temporary venue, running events, and planning. This time, I'll just discuss how I had fun enjoying the convention!
To make sure I got a chance to enjoy the convention a bit this year, I made sure to load up on support at the event. We had five Game Quest staff there over the entire weekend and typically 5-6 volunteers. We made sure to have our area fully supported so that if any of the people involved wanted to take in a panel, grab a signature, or just shop the vendors, we would be able to accommodate them.
Continue reading Blog Quest: Conventional Pleasure
[img width=700 height=206]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8808/18226401432_5aac114362_c.jpg[/img]
If you've been following my game store blogs since around this time last year, you may remember me writing about a local fan convention that we held in my city, the first we'd ever done. This year I got to play a bigger role in our second annual Northern Fan Convention. I thought I'd break my discussion of the event into two parts, since I got to participate as both a vendor/organizer and as a patron. For this entry, I'm going to talk about the business side of the event and then follow up with a discussion of the con as an attendee in my next blog.
Continue reading Blog Quest: Conventional Business
[img width=500 height=147]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8808/18226401432_5aac114362.jpg[/img]
If you've been following my blog for a while, you may remember that nearly two years ago my business butted heads with my local city government. Once we successfully put that behind us, I was hoping to not hear from them again outside of renewing my business license each year. Turns out that was just wishful thinking.....
Continue reading Blog Quest: Crabmaster vs The City Round 2
|
