YouTube had audio issues with this video, so I’m using SoapBox.  Sorry about the video quality, the iPhone camera is ballstastic.  But the gist is there, and really, that’s all you need.

Next stop: 250K.  SuperCar knows NO LIMITS.

SuperCar is fast approaching an epic milestone. We should be hitting 200k on our ride back from Strathroy. EPIC.

Word on the street is that iTunes 8 is being released tomorrow.  How about some WiFi media syncing?  Having to connect my iPod to my PC to sync music just seems so unnecessary.  Since I’ve got my USB cable plugged into the little power adaptor beside my bed for night-time charging, syncing my media requires some behind-the-nightstand cable retrieval followed by some blind cable plugging in when I’m all done.  It’s just a matter of time before I plug myself into the socket instead of my iPhone. Every time I sync music, I have to ask myself ‘Is this worth me risking my life?’.  One day, that answer may be no.

Now, it’s not THAT big of a deal, but the technology is there (see: Zune) so they should just make it happen.  Having things like podcasts automatically transferred over at night would be fantastic.  In fact, my iPhone should be doing a lot more things while I sleep, like crunching the latest figures or balancing the books.

It happens more then you think.  Like here. AND HERE:

Agh!! If that pic looks familiar, it’s because the building beside ours has a history of giant insects attacking it.  

In the spirit of discussing baseball video games, I thought I’d share with you my epic disappointment with MLB Power Pros 2008 for the DS.

Disappointment Scale

-> 10 – Epic Disappointment
     9
     8
     7
     6
     5
     4
     3
     2
     1 – Mild Disenchantment

The actual baseball-y gameplay is fine.  But, no Success mode? No MLB Life?  No SEASON mode?  Really, there’s no decent single player mode to be had outside of Playoff mode.  Considering the Japanese version is chock-full of awesome features, this is a pretty big letdown.  2K Games, no skimping out next year, okay??

I picked up the Wii version of Power Pros yesterday, so I guess I’ll be sinking my 10,000+ hours into that instead.

With no sign of The Bigs 2 coming out any time soon, I’ve had to look elsewhere for my baseball-gaming fix.  I attempted to play MLB2K8 a while back, since it’s the only baseball game that’s come out this year for the 360.  Too bad it’s absolute garbage.  The pitching, batting, fielding, etc. is just way too complicated.  The beauty of The Bigs is that the mechanics of the game itself are incredibly simple and intuitive, resulting in a game of baseball that is just a lot of fun to play.

I thought all was lost, but lucky for me, I was COMPLETELY wrong.  Since I’ve been TV-less for over a month, I decided I’d bring my old PS2 upstairs and hook it up to my computer monitor.  Looking into some of the new games, I saw MLB Power Pros 2008.  I grabbed it, tried it out.

Turns out the game is absolutely fantastic.  First of all, the actual baseball game play is simple.  While not AS simple as The Bigs, you can get by with a basic knowledge of the controls.  There’s a swing button, a bunt button and pressing R1 will toggle ‘Big Swing’ mode.  Pitching consists of selecting your pitch using the analog stick and pressing X.  Base running and fielding are both straight-forward as well.  Good stuff! All of the characters are big-headed, deformed little fellows, which kind of reminds me old-school MLB games on the NES.

The real great thing about this game, though, is the MLB Life mode.  Well, wait, I’m getting ahead of myself.  Before you play the MLB Life mode, there’s the Success mode.  You start off on a AA team called the Green Apples, and the goal is to impress the scouts enough to get promoted to AAA and then the Majors.  It plays like a mini RPG, requiring you to level up your character, meet new people, hold down a job, impress the ladies, etc.  During the actual games, you only need to play your character’s At Bats.  It makes every At Bat seem pretty important. Once you successfully complete Success mode, you can then use that character in MLB Life mode.

MLB Life mode starts you off in the Grapefruit league, trying to earn a spot on the Big Club.  If you’re decent, you join the team and get a couple opportunities as a pinch hitter to prove you’ve got what it takes.  Impress the manager enough and you’ll earn a regular spot in the line-up.  Have a bad game and you run the risk of getting demoted.  It’s similar to the Rookie Challenge in The Bigs, but with a lot more depth and a lot more character development.  Also, it’s incredibly addicting.  Since each game only takes about 2 or 3 minutes to complete, ‘One More Turn’ syndrome is out in full-force.  Also, I don’t usually get angry at a game, but when Little Chris goes 0-4 the first game back from injury and is forced to sit the next game… oh boy. 

If you’re a PS2 or Wii owner and you’re looking for a solid baseball fix, I highly recommend this fine piece of software.  There’s also a DS version on the way in the fall, which I’m confident will be the absolute end of me.  If the MLB Life mode makes it over in-tact, and the game play isn’t muddled with some sort of crappy stylus-based control scheme, I’ll be in some sort of baseball-gaming heaven. 

What else can you find in baseball-gaming heaven?  Dogs.  That’s the heaven they all go to.

I ordered some cables on Monoprice last week.  I paid like an extra $8 or so to get them shipped via UPS instead of the USPS.  They were supposed to be here yesterday, but it appears as though things have taken a turn for the worse. Visit the UPS tracking page.  They got close.  But Fredericton?  Really? Here’s a picture of a sad panda.

Disney-licensed produce? Really?

And yes, we bought a bag.

I saw this as I was coming in from the parking lot this morning. Strange idea, running the parking machine on Windows 98.

Someone on GameFAQs posted a list of tracks from the next Guitar Hero.  Then it was posted on NeoGAF and then I read it.  Looks golden!

Eagle Rock High School Tour:
"Dope Nose" by Weezer
"The Middle" by Jimmy Eat World
Encore: "Today" by Smashing Pumpkins

Big City Kids Tour:
"Roland" by Interpol
"Santeria" By Sublime
Encore: "Mr. Brightside" by The Killers

Feelin’ Nostalgic Tour:
"Take It on the Run" by REO Speedwagon
"Hold the Line" by Toto
Encore: "Rebel Yell" by Billy Idol

Vixens Tour:
"Heartbreaker" by Pat Benatar
"All Around Me" by Flyleaf
Encore:"Misery Business" by Paramore

Undertow Tour:
"Stinkfist" by Tool
"Lateralus" by Tool
"Schism" by Tool

Synchronicity Tour:
"Guitar Battle Vs. Sting" (Guitar Career Only)
Encore: "Every Breath You Take" by The Police

Fight the System Tour:
"The Kids Aren’t Alright" by The Offspring
The Good Left Undone" by Rise Agaisnt
Encore: "Bleed it Out" by Linkin Park

QQ Tour:
"Face Down" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
"The Kill" by 30 Seconds to Mars
Encore: "Thank You for the Venom" by My Chemical Romance

Rockin the Carnival Tour:
"Dammit" by Blink 182
"When You Heat Stops Beating" by +44

Neva’ Forget Tour:
"Jumpin Jack Flash" by The Rolling Stones
"Don’t Fear the Reaper" by Blue Öyster Cult
Encore: "Light My Fire" by The Doors

We Want the Funk Tour:
"Take it Away" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
"Renegades of Funk" by Rage Agaisnt the Machines
Encore: "No Sleep till Brooklyn" by The Beastie Boys Feat. Kerry King

Rockin’ the Joint Tour:
"Are You Gonna Go My Way" by Lenny Kravitz
"I Don’t wanna Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith

On Top of the World Tour:
"Man in the Box" by Alice in Chains
"Kickstart My Heart" by Mötley Crüe
Encore: "Spin the Black Circle" by Pearl Jam

G. Stinger Tour:
"Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana
"Car Chase City" by Tenacious D
Encore: "Everlong" by Foo Fighters

Lands End Tour:
"Animal" by Def Leppard
"Runaway" by Bon Jovi
Encore: "Paradise City" by Guns N’ Roses

Doin’ it Different Tour:
"Song for the Dead" by Queens of the Stone Age
"Vasoline" by Stone Temple Pilots
Encore: "Assassin" by Muse

Hootin’ and Hollerin’ Tour:
"The Boys Are Back in Town" By Thin Lizzy
"Life in the Fastlane" by The Eagles
Encore:"Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd

All Pissed Off Tour:
"Here to Stay" by KoRn
"Dragula" by Rob Zombie|
Encore: "Bat Country" by Avenged Sevenfold

Here Me Roar Tour:
"10,000 Fists" by Disturbed
"Duality" by Slipknot
Encore: "Toxicity" by System of a Down

S.D.M.F. Tour:
"Guitar Battle Vs. Zakk Wylde" (Guitar Career Only)
*Encore: "Demise of Sanity" by Black Label Society

Fathers of Metal Tour:
"Don’t Talk to Strangers" by Dio
"Heaven and Hell" by Black Sabbath
Encore: "Crazy Train" by Ozzy Osbourne

Making Progress Tour:
"The Spirit of Radio" by Rush
"Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd
Encore: "Pull Me Under" by Dream Theatre

Eruption Tour:
"Beat it" by Micheal Jackson Feat. Eddie Van Halen
"Hot for Teacher" by Van Halen

Tooth Fang & Claw Tour:
"Guitar Battle Vs. Ted Nugent" (Guitar Career Only)
Encore: "Stranglehold" by Ted Nugent

Decades of Metal Tour
"Warriors of Time" by Black Tide
"Leather Rebel" by Judas Priest
Encore: "Hallowed be Thy Name" by Iron Maiden

Livin’ in a Nightmare Tour:
"Angel of Death" by Slayer
"Tornado of Souls" by Megadeth
Encore: "Master of Puppets" by Metallica

Legends of Rock Tour:
"Johnny B. Goode" by Chuck Berry
"The Wind Cries Mary" by Jimi Hendrix
Encore: "Purple Haze (Live)" by Jimi Hendrix

Bonus Tour:
"45" by Shinedown
"96 Quite Bitter Beings" by CKY
"Bombshell" by Powerman 5000
"Clavado en un Bar" by Maná
"Enjoy the Silence" by Lacuna Coil
"Feuer Frei" by Rammstein
"Fury of the Storm" by Dragonforce
"Never Too Late" by The Answer
"Nottingham Lace" by Buckethead
"One Armed Scissor" by At The Drive-In
"Satch Boogie" by Joe Satriani
"Schrei" by Tokio Hotel
"Soul Doubt" by NOFX
"We’re An American Band" by Grand Funk Railroad
"Guitar Battle Vs. Sting" by Sting
"Guitar Battle Vs. Ted Nugent" By Ted Nugent
"Guitar Battle Vs. Zakk Wylde" by Zakk Wylde

Sample Songs:
"Untitled Drum Sample" created by Chad Smith
"Untitled Drum Sample" created by Dave Grohl
"Untitled Drum Sample" created by Travis Barker
"Cliffs of Dover" created by Neversoft
"Misirlou" created by Neversoft
"Walk This Way" created by Neversoft
"YYZ" created by Neversoft