Today, I'm going to take a minute to explain what I meant by the Punching Bag status, so my brother doesn't look so bad. This status isn't literal. My brother and his friends never beat me up, or anything like that. At least, not in real life. Generally, one only becomes a Punching Bag in two types of games: pvp and co-op with friendly fire.
PvP (Player-vs-Player) is any game where the objective is to beat the other players. Now, in a straight two player pvp game (such as just about every fighting game), there isn't really a Punching Bag, though there's a good chance that the player that loses the most often is probably the Punching Bag in other games. Where Punching Bags really come into play are multi-player pvp games.
In these games, more than two players are fighting each other, usually in a free-for-all, every person for him/herself battle. The best examples of this I can think of from my childhood are the old wrestling games and the Smash Bros. series. There are two outcomes for a Punching Bag in these games. Either the rest of the players will ignore the "weakest" player till they've dispatched with the real threats, or, worse, they will all team up from the beginning to get rid of this player so they can focus on the "real" battle. Either way, the Punching Bag is either ignored or overpowered, and the game is not at all enjoyable for them.
Once I began to understand and accept my role as the Punching Bag in these types of games, it became a simple matter of just refusing to play. However, in the other sort of game, the co-op with friendly fire, it was a less certain outcome, and so it was harder to turn away from. These games were, after all, co-op: my favorite kind of game. The difference was that in these games, while you were playing together for a common cause, as an added "challenge" the two players could hurt each other if they weren't careful with their aim. In practice this is, at best, mildly annoying, but what made it truly irritating was that these games often devolved into "beat the crap out of the Punching Bag" (who just wants to get on with the game). This seemed more likely the more of my brother's friends who were present while playing.
So, that's what a Punching Bag is. They are the default target for any video game bullying (at least, before the internet, wherein any random person might grief any other random player for no real reason). But, to be fair to my brother, I was a year and a half younger than him, bent on following him around and doing whatever he's doing. Not a big deal once we got older (which probably didn't happen till after high school), but back then I'm sure a bit of the Punching Bag status came from wanting to get rid of his annoying little sister.
I couldn't decide which picture to use, so I used them both.
I have been a "Player 2" all my life. My family has always been into gaming: we had Intelivision (I've been told, anyway) and Atari (that's the one I remember, not the Intelivision), just about every Nintendo console that ever existed, Sega Genesis, Playstation 1-2 (and my fiance continued the tradition by getting a PS3 - we actually own 2 now!), and Xbox/Xbox360. While we've always been primarily console people, I still remember playing games on the old DOS computers (and spending HOURS trying to get them installed), and my dad using up the phone line on the shittiest internet that ever existed (I believe he could only play a few card games on it - browsers didn't exist yet).
Matterhorn Screamer. One of the earlier pc games I remember.
From Matterhorn Screamer to Mass Effect, I was born to video games. But I didn't always enjoy playing them. A lot of games were too hard for me to get anywhere past the first level (hell, I go back and look at some of those old games and I -still- can't get any further). I'd get so frustrated that I wouldn't want to play anymore, but oftentimes I still wanted to see the game. Enter my dad and brother, who were both way better at games than I was. I would spend HOURS just watching them play through whatever game I had given up on. I particularly remember this with RPG's like the early Final Fantasy games, and more story-minded action games like Legacy of Kain. I was, literally, just along for the ride. If the internet had existed back then I could have just jumped onto Youtube where, today, people have conveniently combined game cut-scenes into nice little movies for me, in lieu of that option, I gamed vicariously through my dad and brother.
(This game intro was always so cool to me, too bad I sucked at the game and my brother never really got into it. I never did see how the story went.)
There was one type of game, however, that I loved to play no matter how hard it was: the co-op game. Co-op games (cooperative games, for the laymen out there) allowed two or more people to play together towards a shared goal. Here, my generally suckiness was offset by my partner's prowess. Sure, my dad practically dragged my ass through the 100+ levels of Bubble Bobble, but, damnit, it was fun anyway! I won't end up with as high a score as my partner in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2, but I still got to the end and had a blast getting there! I love the Halo games. Not because I like talking smack with 12 year olds and getting my ass handed to me by lonely 40-somethings, but because I love fighting the Covenant side-by-side with a friend (and, occasionally, multiple friends). Hell, my brother and I made ActRaiser a co-op games by dividing the gameplay: he played the side-scroller, action parts, and I played the top-down, world-building parts.
But there's a difference between being a Player 2 and being a Player 1. My brother was a Player 1. When we got a new game, he was the first to play it (unless it was something he wasn't interested in). He was also likely to be the first to beat it (once he got old enough...for awhile my dad was the only Player 1 in our house). We had two controllers in our house. The nicer one was the main controller, while if we had one with a button that stuck a little, or that was older, it was requisitioned to Player 2 status. Player 2 only joins the game when Player 1 says they can, or, in the case of single player games, Player 2 only gets to play once Player 1 is finished.
This probably sounds worse than it was, particularly if the one reading this is a Player 1 (or not a gamer at all). But, generally, I didn't have a problem with it. Player 1 was likely to get further than I was anyway, and I could watch them get to storylines and bossfights that I otherwise wouldn't see. Having a Player 1 around also meant I could call him in as backup whenever I got to a particularly hard part in the game I was playing. I remember calling my brother in to help me whenever I got stuck (often due to a lot of platform jumping, which I have never been good at). He could get me past that point and I could continue on my merry way (though at times it was hard to wrestle the controller away from him again).
The only downside to being a Player 2, is there isn't a whole lot of room for more than two players. Very few games back in the day allowed for more than two players at a time. When other gamers join the equation, Player 2, if not good enough to "play with the big boys", usually gets relegated to Player 3 or 4 (if they get to play at all), so when my brother had friends over it was back to Watcher status for me. I didn't usually mind this, particularly as it was far better than the other status I could find myself in in these circumstances: Punching Bag (more on that another time).
While I've always loved co-op games, I didn't realize quite how much till relatively recently. When I look back on all of my favorite gaming memories, aside from a couple of awesome RPG moments, they are all co-op moments: Playing through Bubble Bobble, Joe and Mac, and Rampage with Dad, Jason and I taking turns with the second player after each death. Beating X-men/The Simpsons/Ninja Turtles at an arcade, with all four players getting filled up by random kids. Playing through the various Halo games with Jason, and later with Kenny (who is my new Player 1 <3 ).
I've also realized that I'm often a Player 2 in life as well as in gaming (not always intentionally, and not always happily). I tend to sit back and let someone else take the reins, someone "more experienced" or just "better" at whatever it is than I am. I'm also not "best" at anything, so I tend to relegate -everything-. Needless to say this touches on some self-esteem issues, and what have you, and since this blog is getting too long already, I'll leave that for another day.
Anyway, I hope this post gave some insight into what it means to me to be a Player 2, and how one can be a Perennial Player 2.
Sorry, guys, got a little distracted back there, but let's give this blog thing another go, shall we? I'm in the process of changing a few things, hopefully adding more videos and pictures, and features. Oooooh! Features! As you've probably noticed, the title of this blog has changed. Rather than focusing on the wedding planning (which has gone just about nowhere since I last posted anything), this blog is going to be more of a catch-all for nerdy stuff (movies, games, comics, etc). For those who liked the wedding planning rants, don't worry, "Nerds Get Married Too" shall live on as a feature in this blog whenever I have updates.
Unfortunately, I don't have enough time today to do a full post before work, so you're just getting the basics while I dust off some cobwebs. I'll try to post tomorrow or Wednesday for sure.
I'll leave you with this fun little song and a list of the things that have begun eating up my time lately (i.e. things I've been doing instead of posting here). Games I've Been Sucked Into: Star Wars: The Old Republic, Sims 3 Pets (Xbox360), Skyrim Shows I've Been Catching Up On: How I Met Your Mother, Being Human (US), Star Wars: The Clone Wars Movies I've Seen Recently: North, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Mission Impossible 4, Moneyball, Batman: Year One
Boy, do I feel like a slacker! I haven't really had too much in the way of wedding news or planning stuff to talk about, so I haven't posted in awhile. Can't let this thing get stagnant though, so I'm going to blab about something nerdy in lieu of anything wedding-related to blab about.
Blog Shout-Out
First off, I'd like to do a shout-out to my cousin, Mark, whose blog I so far love: Plausible Deniability. I'm not into running, but I do walk on a treadmill and am trying to get in shape. He also talks about video games, and I am jealous of his pixel art game covers and what I believe is a Tetris-shaped shelf or something. He's done a couple things with his blog that I've been thinking about doing with mine. One is dividing his blog into topic sections. Even before I saw his (and I love how each has a different pixel art drawing to represent each one), I was thinking of having a section for movie reviews, one for gaming stuff, and if I get back into crafts, one for that (and, of course, the wedding stuff once it starts going). I still have to hash out what they'll be, but it might be the best way to keep this alive until the wedding planning really gets going.
The second thing I'll be trying to do, and this is only related to Mark's blog because he too mentioned it, is get more pictures in. It's one thing I've noticed on a lot of blogs, and it's one of the things the "experts" say will improve readership. Unfortunately, I have some of the same issues with this as Mark: I don't take good pictures, and I don't look good in pictures. So, we'll see what I can hash out.
Games I'm a'Playin'
In other nerdiness, I've popped out some old games to play. Picked up Bubble Bobble Revolution on the DS as well as Dragon Quest IX. I'm waiting for Kenny to get his own copy of BB (only $5 used at Gamestop!) before I really start playing that one. Revolution comes with both the Classic game and a "New Age" version. Even $5 isn't worth it for the New Age, but that's a bargain for the Classic. (Oh, and the box art totally blows) I barely got to the second level before I had to revert back to the Classic game. Bub and Bob jump too high, and the levels are so big you can't see them in the whole screen. So, no fun-shaped levels, and it seems a bit hectic trying to find all the baddies when you can't even tell where the level goes. About the neatest potential thing for the New Age is that if you can get 4 people to buy it you can all play together, but what are the chances of that?
Dragon Quest IX has a lot of potential. I've always wanted to try out a Dragon Quest game, but never did. This one's got nice animation (art by the guy who drew the Dragon Ball anime series), and in addition to being an old school rpg, it's also co-op capable! YEAH! Unfortunately, you have to get to a certain point in the game before it lets you play with someone else, so Kenny and I haven't had a chance to play together yet. I made it far enough a few days ago, but Kenny's not as big into the "play for hours on end" gaming these days, so it's taken him till last night to get to the right point. Now we just need to have time to try it out.
We also picked up Suikoden IV for the PS2. It's the first Suikoden that I didn't buy back in the day. And having played it for a bit, I can kind've see why. It feels an awful lot like someone tried to make a 3D Suikoden game using RPG Maker 3 (which I also own...my tastes are...eclectic). I'm sure most of you have never heard of RPG Maker. For good reason: it sucks. But it does exactly what it sounds like: it lets you make an RPG of your own. Unfortunately, it's impossible to make an RPG that anyone would want to play (and the PS2 Keyboard and Mouse addons don't work...which makes no sense). Anyway, Suikoden IV might not be THAT bad, but just as the story started picking up last night I went to bed. This morning the controller stopped working, so I may never know if it gets better.
One more! Kenny also picked up Hotel Dusk: Room 215, which is an "interactive mystery novel". I'm not very far in, but it's already INCREDIBLY BORING. And that's coming from me! Story is one of my top concerns in any game, in RPG's I love talking to EVERY person I can whenever I run into a new town, and I read through all of the tutorials, even if it's probably mundane stuff that I already know (unlike a certain someone I know *cough* Kenny *cough* who skipped over all of the tutorial stuff in Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, and so didn't realize that he could just jump to towns through his map rather than physically running everywhere). So far, I'm at a hotel talking to people (I can't even remember WHY I'm at this hotel, and I've only barely started the game!). My character seems to get irritated over every little thing that people say, which turns every passing chit-chat into an ordeal. Other than finding my room so I can crash for the night, I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing. It's just SO MUCH talking. And the talking gets you NOWHERE. I'll give it more time...but so far I have no interest in continuing.
Movies I'm a'Watchin'
This weekend is Transformers 3. I don't care what anyone says, I think it looks good, and I liked the first one. The second one was kinda crappy, but half of that was the writer's strike which froze the script. So those two racist caricature robots couldn't be erased even if the director knew they should be (though, how any writer today could think those two were a GOOD idea in the first place is beyond me). The new one looks like they've finally started panning out far enough so that you can actually tell what is going on in the action scenes, which is probably one of my biggest complaints with the other two. Anyway, we might see that as early as tonight, or as late as Sunday. Then, next week is my BIRTHDAY, and Horrible Bosses, which looks pretty funny.
I don't have a lot to say today, but I thought I'd share the only thing really productive I've done since I started wedding planning. I contacted an artist on deviantart, Stevoluvmunchkin, about possibly making Bubble Bobble cake toppers!! I actually did this a week or so ago, but I just heard back from her today. It's still early of course, but she at least sounds excited to do it. Here's an image of the Bub she made for another customer. Just imagine that with a bow-tie and maybe a tophat (and maaaaybe glasses, haven't decided yet), next to the blue Bob with a veil/tiara and/or something bridal looking.
I'm also considering asking a second artist, Slycherrychunks, who did this version, but I can't tell what they're made out of. I'm not interested in edible cake toppers. The only thing I like about these better than the above is they're a bit rounder and closer to how I think Bub and Bob should be shaped. But, I still suspect these to be edible (not to mention TINY!). Anyway, I'm contacting both artists to see where my options lie. Fingers crossed these won't be too expensive!
First off, a couple announcements of sorts: my sister-in-law Julie (you can find her blog on the right under JMZH) has agreed to be my Maid of Honor! Hooray! She has her work cut out for her as I'm not very good at this party planning stuff! Second, and this isn't so much an announcement as an update, had another discussion with the folks about the wedding. This one went better than the first one, but it's still shaky ground. Still no real discussion on budget. Oh well, getting closer!
Anyway, on to the real discussion for today: wedding theme! I have two main ideas for a "theme" for my wedding. The main point of these themes are to bring out as much of Kenny and me into the wedding as possible (but no costumes...this is still a wedding and we're not into cosplay). To that end, the first possible theme is Video Games. We play a LOT of games. We met in a game. And more than that, I'm HUGE into co-op games (for the laymen out there that means a two-player game where you play together rather than competing), and since whoever's playing with me (be it Kenny, my brother, my dad, or whoever) is usually better than me, I am ALWAYS the Player 2. I like that as the focus of this theme.
It starts with co-op games, though I would bridge off into classic gaming duos as well. I'm even looking into Bubble Bobble cake toppers (though they might fit with the next theme too) as this is one of my all time fav co-op games. I'm not 100% sure where the rest will fit in exactly, but I might do a different game for each table's centerpiece or something of that nature. I'm still researching ways to incorporate this stuff without it looking like a kid's birthday party. I'm also seriously considering having our wedding bands engraved on the inside to say Player 1 and Player 2.
The second theme idea is similar to the first in some ways. I've seen a lot about "nostalgia" themed weddings, but this is always used as some sort of code for "wedding set in the 30's-60s". How is that nostalgia? None of these people were alive in those eras. Nostalgia, for me, is the late 80's and early 90's: my childhood. And I'm not talking about turning our wedding into an episode of "I <3 the 80's" either. This isn't about popular culture in the 80's and 90's. This is about the things Kenny and I remember most from our childhood: toys, cartoons, movies, books, etc. (and even old video games) All hairdo's and clothes etc. would be contemporary. One of the things that inspires me in this theme is that Kenny is always saying that he wishes we'd known each other when we were kids. Well, here's our chance to throw that into our big day.
I've yet to get any feedback on either of these themes from others. Everyone nods their heads now, but eventually, when I'm actually trying to incorporate the themes, someone is likely to speak up. Anyway, leave a comment and let me know what you think! Prefer one over the other? Think there's a better idea? Hate them both? Have a suggestion on ways to incorporate the themes? Let me know!
I know this may come a as a shock to some of you, but weddings are EXPENSIVE!! I know. I was shocked too! Unfortunately for me, I'm dirt poor. Even more unfortunately, so is my fiance, my parents, and my future parents-in-law (and no rich uncle's around to die and leave us lots of money either! So sad!!). Dirt -fricken- poor. And the economy being in the crapper hasn't helped any of us. So, that means we're holding off on the wedding for a few years while we try to get some mullah together.
One thing that has frustrated me so far in my wedding research is that every single wedding planning guide tells you that rule one (and step one) for any wedding is making a budget and staying within it. That's hard to do when, as far as I can tell, my budget is $0.00. (Another frustrating thing: every guide says that the "average wedding today" costs $26,000. Thankfully, I know from several testimonials that that number is utter BS here in the Midwest. Everyone I've spoken to thus far has pretty much done theirs for less than $10,000. In many cases, closer to $3000-6000.)
According to the world at large (at least in wedding planning), everything hinges off of everything else. You can't pick dresses or decorations until you choose your colors. You can't pick your colors until you've picked a date and looked at what flowers might be available at that time, or for that matter, what colors your venue might already have. You can't pick a date until you have a venue. You can't be sure of your guest list until you have a venue and a budget. And you can't pick a venue till you have a budget.
I was a bit frazzled when I left my parents' house after the first visit since our engagement. I knew money was tight, and that we'd likely have to wait a couple years before having it, but to walk away with no idea of how much we would have to work with was a bit overwhelming (I might have had my first tiny wedding planning breakdown on the ride home that night).
So, instead of starting with a budget, we're going to start with the most expensive (I think, anyway), and second most important item: the location! Neither Kenny nor I are particularly religious, so there will be no church involved, instead we're looking to have the ceremony and reception in the same place. An indoor place: outdoor weddings scare me. That's about as specific as we've gotten.
Trying to calm me down the day after talking with my parents' (and probably already getting sick of my constant wedding prattle), Kenny suggested we start our planning by looking at various venues. Once we'd gathered a list of likely suspects and their prices and guidelines we could then go back to my folks with that info and see where to go from there.
So far I've looked at one whole location: the Henry Doorley Zoo. I had originally suspected that this would be way too expensive of a venue to even consider, particularly since it would be the perfect place for us to get married. But, after reading in several "bargain wedding" guides that zoos were actually a "low cost alternative" to the usual culprits, I started getting my hopes up. Unfortunately, the guides were wrong again. The Omaha zoo would cost at -least- $2500, and likely a lot more than that. Oh well. I knew that idea was too good to be true. The next step will be calling around to the various halls and hotels in Omaha to get some price comparisons. Sounds like lots of fun.
