Scrabble Interactive 2009 Edition may seem like a casual game, but it actually would appeal more towards competitive/hardcore Scrabble crowd and basically trumps the previous Scrabble 2007 Edition game released on the Nintendo DS in every single way.

More than Words

The game offers a variety of gameplay modes, among which is a new campaign game. There’s a pretty ridiculous back story involving ancient letter tiles and you are supposed to win them back by winning Scrabble matches. Each of these matches in the campaign mode come with their own win-conditions, such as maintain a lead over 5 rounds or form a word that nets you more than 50 points.

While you actually need to be pretty good at Scrabble to get through the campaign mode, you’ll find the game a little more forgiving in the quick play mode. Again, variety is the name of the game here, as you can choose between 3 different Scrabble modes namely Classic, Duplicate and Tempest. While Classic and Duplicate (tournament) modes are pretty common, Tempest introduces cards that can modify the game.

Tempestuous Style

An example would be the Triple Word card, which when played, allows you to place a Tyiple Word square on the board or the card that forces your opponent to score less than 5 points in his next turn. Heh. Such concepts are pretty common in collectible card games but certainly not Scrabble. Thankfully, this mode is not the main way of playing Scrabble in this 2009 edition.

There are plenty of other distractions in Scrabble Interactive 2009 Edition should you get bored with the main game. Under the Other Games mode, you’ll find mini-games such as Scrabble Hold ‘Em (think of Texas Hold ‘Em poker but played with Scrabble tiles, gambling aspects remain the same) and games that will have you create anagrams and such.

Misses A Few

While there are plenty of things to do, the entire experience is slighted with a poorly implemented menu system that isn’t exactly intuitive for both casual and experienced NDS users. The game’s interface is still Spartan, but it does a good job conveying the look and field of the game.

But Gains A Lot More – The Bottom Line

If you are a Scrabble aficionado or looking for a training partner when you don’t have one in real life, Scrabble Interactive 2009 Edition is the game that you are looking for, and then some. Scrabble Interactive 2009 Edition is available for pre-order at Amazon UK, click here for details

Plenty of drama with the very soon to be released Grand Theft Auto Chinatown Wars. While the game officially goes on sale March 17th, the pirated version of the game found its way to ROM sites on the 14th of March. In any case, the game was initially not compatible with the whole bunch of flashkarts (you know, the usual suspects) but a few firmware updates later, the game was running on the likes of the AceKard.

However, R4 users (the device is probably the most used among all DS flashkarts) were made to wait a little longer (not more than a day) for an ARM binary fix, which involved patching the game with both ARM 7 and ARM 9 binary files.

All this while there were plenty of people moaning and complaining about not being able to run the game. To me, if you so excited about a video game, might as well go out and purchase an original copy of the game. At least that will work right off the bat.

To purchase the game, head over to Play-Asia. Picture credit: Rockstar Games

I just got back from the MPH clearance sale at Mayang Plaza (Taman Mayang, Petaling Jaya), and there were so many books in there I don’t know where to start. In any case, if you are looking to build your book library, this will be the place to start. I also don’t know about the previous clearance sales (never been to one prior to this), but Mayang Plaza is a really stuffy place to have one at.

Ample parking aside, the clearance sale area was hot and the smell of books and sweat intermingling with each other can be a really heady mix. The lighting in some areas can be really dim, so unless you are poring, strike that, scrutinizing through the aisles, its pretty hard for stuff to catch your eye.

What I Bought?

In any case, I got away with 6 books, for a bargain price of RM 106. Among them were two cook books (did I tell you that my banana raisin loaf is a sought-after item?), 1 gardening book (mum’s), a couple of novels (dad’s) and Scott Adam’s The Dilbert Principle.

Getting There

The clearance sale ends on the 22nd and it’s on everyday from 9.30 a.m. to 7.00 p.m. It’s pretty easy to reach Mayang Plaza from the Kelana Jaya LRT station and there’s plenty of parking space available in the basement (Malaysians are too damned kiasu to pay for parking and would rather hog the space in front of someone’s front gate and cause traffic jams up-side) for just RM 2 (and almost always scratch-free experience, compared to parking outside).

For more info, check out MPH Online’s page on the sale.

Planning a 2D trip down memory lane to Earthbound (Mother) on the NES? How bout taking the 3D-ride instead. Benjamin Friedrich has gone about creating a 3-D version of the town of Onett, one of the earlier towns that you would encounter in game.

Come to think of it, having played the game on my Nintendo DS, thanks to the nesDS emulator, this new 3D version is rather accurate looking. Have a look:

*Source: Wired.

Most of the time, if someone were to mention a video game bundle, it usually means a video game title bundled with a console. However, when it comes to the people at Konami, they take the notion of bundle differently, but still charge the ridiculous price normally associated with this sort of thing.

The Otomedius Gorgeous + Hyper Stick Pro Otomedius Gorgeous Version (Konamistyle Limited Edition) is a video game bundle like no other. Featuring Otomedius Gorgeous, a shmup featuring pretty girls for the Xbox 360 and a control stick designed to emulate the arcade version (it even comes with a touch screen!), the bundle was previously priced at a crazy USD 389.90.

You can actually purchase this for a slightly saner USD 299.90 in a limited time offer. Click here for details

Ever felt there’s only so much a 2D Picross puzzle can offer, and that you need a new challenge? How bout taking your conventional Picross puzzle and add a Z-axis twist to it. Yup, that is just what the boys and girls at Nintendo and Hal Laboratory did for Rittai Picross!

This is Not Your Father’s Picross

While Picross DS had you puzzled on a 2D field, Rittai Picross will have you colouring or breaking blocks based on the number clues given to unlock 3D block renditions of anything from pets to daily items.

The game comes with a whole bunch of tutorials before you start and in between levels. This is done to get you up to speed on techniques needed to solve the 3D Picross puzzles. While 2D Picross veterans can basically jump right into the game, there’s no skipping these mandatory tutorials.

Now in 3D

In any case, the real meat of the game is in the puzzles. Presented in 3D, you can move the camera around puzzles, to give you a clearer picture on what to mark or destroy. You can only mistakenly destroy up to 5 blocks; anything beyond that is game over (personally, I have not reached that mark). Puzzles are also timed with a stop watch running at the top screen.

The idea of solving 3D Picross puzzles can be pretty daunting, especially at higher difficulty levels. Here’s a video on solving several of those “easier” ones:

The Bottom Line

Rittai Picross is a must have for Picross fans. While there are other features that I’ve yet to explore, the main part of the game is pretty accessible despite being in Japanese and should provide some interesting challenges until the next Picross sequel comes along. The game is available at Play-Asia for USD 44.90, click here for details.

Forget Watchmen, this is the movie that I want to watch this year:

Video game related news seem to be getting a little bit more attention than usual in our press these days. First up was the couple of guys who got swindled after thinking that they could get Sony Playstation Portable consoles at a bulk discount.

More recently the president of the Consumer Association of Penang wrote a letter to the News Straits Times abhoring violence in video games and expounding the fact that kids can pick up violence from video games. What I’m disappointed about is that some people, and the president of CAP fail to understand that, video games have evolved to a point like film, no longer catering for kids, but for adults.

While I agree that violent video games can be a cause for concern, a ban is not feasible; might as well we start banning anything that even hints at violence and start living a hermit existence.

I do feel that parents a bigger role their parts in ensuring that their children are not exposed to such games and educating kids on moral values and such. Parents should also make it a point to research games that they are about to purchase. I doubt anyone would want to give their 12-year old a M-rated game that contains “Partial Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol, Blood, Intense Violence“.

It’s funny how CAP articles sometimes urge people to read the labels on grocery items and the one thing S.M Mohamed Idris and most parents have failed to do is to read the ratings label.

I thought you guys were out to create conscious, concerned, and committed consumers?

I would love to see an article publish by CAP on how to purchase video games instead of trying to be a moral policeman going about asking stuff to be banned (on supposedly moral grounds). You can start your research by reading those labels, Mr. Mohamed.

What would be the first thing to cross your mind when you hear that the hit TV show Grey’s Anatomy has been turned into a Nintendo DS game? A Trauma Center clone?

Well, you got that nearly right. Couple your answer with some role-playing elements to help the whole cast of characters achieve their individual goals, which includes trying to get it on with each other, and you would have scored a home run.

Grey’s Anatomy is a little like playing Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Acts are divided into scenes and in one scene you might be stitching someone’s finger up and the other will have you playing mini games (like collecting bubbles) to get over choices, challenges and stuff like that (e.g. to get a particularly interesting assignment, or simply to get McDreamy’s attention).

It’s just too weird playing the game. The cast and scenes are presented as stills and the artwork can really be horrendous at times. Meredith ended up like looking like the Cheshire Cat, while the rest fared slightly better. I wouldn’t want anything to do with this game, despite being a fan of the first season of the show.

But if you do want to get the game, I guess there’s no stopping you. Grey’s Anatomy is available for pre-orders at Play-Asia. Click here for details.

For all you Japanse Club Nintendo merchandise collectors, a pre-owned copy of Tingle no Balloon Fight (Club Nintendo Limited Edition) starring that weird Tingle dude is currently going on sale at Play-Asia at a discounted price of USD 29.90 (Click here for details).

As for fans of arcade hit Sangokushi Taisen, the Sangokushi Taisen Ten [Arcade Shutsujin Pack] for the Nintendo DS is selling at a discounted price of USD 39.90, brand new. Why is it a must get? It comes with 4 exclusive bonus cards for the arcade version of the game as well as the operator’s manual (arcade version)! How cool is that? Click here for details.