During the last week, I’ve maybe spent a total of an hour on this game so I didn’t make allot of progress. I did some exploring with Bowser, got zapped by the Mushroom Kingdom security system (I think) and then managed to somehow get out of Bowsers body with Mario and Luigi trough one of the pipes he inhaled. It seems these pipes are really technical, because I have no idea how that worked. Anyway, after doing that I also did some exploring with the bros. and managed to get a new item – the blue shell. This allows me to access areas I couldn’t before so I expect some overusing of the new ability for the next hour or two of gameplay.

Not much train riding lately, so not much DS gameplay either. I managed to rescue the princess but then she got beamed out of Bowser’s body by Fawfull. That’s basically all that happened. It did take a while for me to save the princess though. I had to answer allot of quiz questions correctly and kill a boss in the end. This means Mario and Luigi gained a few levels, and their rank has risen to, so they can both carry 3 different equipment pieces now.

I had lots of traveling to do during exams, so I was stuck in a train for 3 hours a day for the past 2 weeks. I had nothing else to do, so I decided to start a new DS game. I don’t think I got very far, but for now, I like it. It’s a Super Mario RPG style game that makes use of the DS capabilities. I’m at the point where Bowser got really fat, so Mario and Luigi used the opportunity to look for the princess inside his fatty areas. I needed to answer a few questions about Bowser correctly in order to continue, but the game froze on my, so I decided to stop there. I will probably be playing this one when I don’t have access to my computer for some reason so I won’t complete it any time soon, but I definitely plan to keep playing it.

I woke up early this morning for some reason, so I’ve been playing Mario some more. I managed to clear World 7 and find all the hidden passages in World 8. All I need to do now is get all the star coins from World 8. Easier said than done.

EDIT: Notice the subtle change in the completed games list. That’s right, boys and girls, World 8 is now cleared of star coins, and New Super Mario Brothers is 100% complete. Now, how should I celebrate this? I know! I’ll play another game!

EDIT2: I solved a few more Final Fantasy quests. The story didn’t advance, but I completed a side quest group. My main character is 2 skills away from becoming a ninja, which he will continue to be, until the Parivir job is available. I don’t really know what to do with my Moogle. He learned all the Thief and Juggler skills, so he doesn’t really have anything to do right now. I will keep him as a Juggler tough, because I think the class has superior stat growth compared to the Thief.

Another few hours invested. I advanced the story, and solved a few side quests. I think it’s about time to start planning my endgame party, so I trained a Viera Archer/Sniper, and a Nu’Mou Sage. My main character is currently a Paladin/Fighter, but right now he’s training as a Thief to unlock the Ninja job (so I can improve his speed and learn a few useful skills). My Summoner started learning red magic to supplement her summons. My Banga will probably be a Defender/Gladiator with a few levels in Trickster for speed. My Moogle is a classic Thief/Juggler, so he isn’t very useful in battle, but I use him for loot stealing. I’m also training a Moogle Fusilier just in case.

EDIT: I’ve collected all the star coins from the third and the fourth world of New Super Mario Brothers. I’ve also found all of the secret passages on the map (including all the cannons). I haven’t played Final Fantasy…

EDIT2: Just cleared the fifth world of New Super Mario Brothers…

EDIT3: World 6 cleared!

So after another long break, the summer has finally begun. I got a bunch of games I missed trough last year, and I’m currently catching up on TV shows I missed. I recently finished New Super Mario Brothers for the second time. Right now I’m collecting all the gold coins I missed (the first two worlds are cleared). I’m also playing Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, currently about 25 hours in, and nowhere near the end. I’ll try to get some work over the summer, so I can pay for my tuitions (and maybe invest in some new entertainment gadgets), but mostly, I’ll be playing games. I will also try to turn my blog in to a daily routine.

EDIT: I invested a few more hours in FFTA2. It’s really a great game. I managed to become region champion in all regions of the starting continent, and I did a few item auctions already. I got a Genji Helm, and a few other nice items. My main character is now level 36, and I’m planning to train him as a ninja for a few levels, because he’s really slow right now. I also tried Civilization Revolution for the DS. I like it, but it could have been better. I really hate the constant animation stuttering. It’s pretty obvious that the DS wasn’t the primary platform.

I had a lot of work to do for the last month, and I still do. Plus, the European soccer championship started, so I spend what little free time I have watching the games. I did play some games also tough. I finally have my DS operational again, so I’m mostly playing all the DS games I planned. I finished Ninja Gaiden (I had to play from the beginning), and I recently also completed Summon Night Twin Age. It’s a hack & slash game similar in style to Diablo. It’s nowhere nearly as good as Diablo, but it isn’t bad either. I finished the main story in about 12 hours, and completed the Ex chapters in about 2 and a half hours. I also started playing Super Mario 64 DS. It’s a great remake, and the graphics are actually better then on the Nintendo 64. I got about 35 stars collected, and have also unlocked Mario (you start the game with Yoshi). I tried some miscellaneous other games, but none of them are good enough to mention. I have about two weeks of exams left, and after that I will be spending most of my time playing games that got released recently. I promise I’ll try to post more often…