A Very Special Christmas Gift + A Glimpse into the New Year

Hello, all! Sorry for the holiday dry spell: I was working like crazy with my parents to prepare for our Seven-Fish Dinner on Christmas Eve, not to mention there were my Christmas goodies and a...certain project I'll be sharing shortly.

So what were my new gaming-related gifts? Well, Santa deemed me a very good boy this year, so I was quite lucky to obtain both a PS4 and a brand-new gaming PC. Much as the likes of Overwatch and Dragon Ball Z: Xenoverse 2 have captivated me, there was a certain barrage of surprise gifts that were the holiday highlight. See, an aunt dropped by with no less than three boxes of old games that belonged to her grown sons. There were NES games...SNES titles...N64 cartridges...AND THIS.

Wait, is that...what I think it is?!?

It is!

Yes, that is an Atari 7600. And yes, it indeed came with NO LESS THAN TWENTY DIFFERENT GAMES FOR IT.

HUMMANA HUMMANA HUMMANA HUMMANA HUMMANA HUMMANA HUMMANA HUMMANA

Just look at that collection! The Nintendo-licensed ports of Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. andDig Dug, my favorite Namco arcade game! E.T., the movie tie-in that nearly killed the gaming industry! A number of Star Wars games to fuel my revived interest in the famous space opera! I've certainly stumbled upon a treasure trove, eh?

Now for the bad news: like my recently-acquired Famicom, I can't play it. While the system turns on fine, I lack the proper antenna box and whatnot to hook it up. But for the moment, it doesn't matter: as a collector, all of it was an incredibly generous gift by a very awesome aunt, and I'm deeply grateful. In the future, I definitely plan to scrap together some funds and get that retro goodness going!

Speaking of the future...2016 is coming to an end. As far as the blog goes, I felt it was relatively productive. While I still didn't commit to my writing as much as I would've liked, we not only finally saw an end to Ten Years of Kirby, but produced a number of non-Kirby Nintendo game reviews. I'm very proud of all the pieces involved, and I think they rank among Leave Luck to Heaven's best efforts. My 2017 New Year's Resolution is generating a harder work ethic towards my writing, and I'm already instilling the values of hard work into improving my favorite hobby.

What do I mean? Well, see for yourself!

My basement gaming lounge is being renovated! This was something I'd been planning for a long time, but we finally got into full-gear just yesterday. As you can see, the entertainment center has been stripped bare, ready to house new items (pay no mind to that collapsing shelf on the bottom left; we'll finally fix that, too). Needless to say, a lot of cleaning and heavy-lifting was--and still is--necessary; I'm actually a little shocked things got as messy as it did, so it's all gonna take a little while.

But when it's finished, I'll finally get the chance to show it all off! Believe it or not, there's actually a LOT of room to cover, and I mean that literally, so stay tuned for that!

In the meantime, have a happy New Year!

Kirby’s 25th Anniversary Concert To Hit Japan Next Year (Hey Poor Player)

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aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAHHHHHH SWEET JESUS YEEEEEEEEEEEESSSS

Would you look at that: one of my predictions came true! Well, I guess the music notes gave it away, but still, a Kirby live orchestral!!! I need that songlist now!

I probably wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't come abroad, so at the very least, I'm hoping Nintendo and HAL will release a soundtrack (and seeing as how the Zelda 30th Anniversary Concert is receiving one, I'm certain that'll be the case).

Work your magic, Takemoto Taizo!

Biweekly Music Wednesday! No. 44 ~Snow Road~ (Paper Mario)

Origin: Paper Mario

Plays In: Shiver Snowfield
Status: Original Composition
Composed By: Yuka Tsujiyoko

Listen. Do you hear it?  Do you hear the jingling bells down the street, echoing faintly in the night sky? Do you see the neon lights decorating your neighborhood, the snowmen lining up across the street? Do you taste the snow resting upon your tongue, smell the crisp winter air chilling your nose and cementing the warmest of winter memories?

'Tis the holiday season: be it Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanzaa, families across the globe gather around to celebrate togetherness and holiday cheer. Children dream of Santa and his infinite stash of presents as the scent of cedar trees fill living rooms everywhere. Candles and carols are ubiquitous, as are the imagery of flying reindeer and wreathes.

For over the past nineteen years, my house has been the Christmas mecca for our family. Celebrating our Italian heritage with the Seven-Fish Dinner, family and friends come together to feast upon seafood and engage in joyous festivities. Due to my sensory issues, I've never so much as touched the fish, but I do get to feast on delicious Pillsbury Shape cookies. And bread rolls. And fried dough. Mmm.

It only makes sense it'd be my house, after all. Not that our relatives don't have party-built homes, but we have the biggest house, complete with a pool table and a game-filled basement. Now that I'm grown up, I wonder if it's a bit selfish, but everyone always seems to have a good time.

I'm still a big kid, so hardly anything thrills me more than the Christmas season. I always dictate what ornaments hang on the Christmas tree. I salivate at the thought of carb-filled snacks laid out in the dining room table. I can't help but dream of a White Christmas, and always cheer the presence of snow. And yes, even at 25 years old, my parents can't help but still leave presents under the tree.

Maybe it's that quality of mine that attracts kids' attention. At family gatherings, I'm always surrounded by nephews and nieces, all practically climbing over me to come play games, come watch cartoons, come laugh with us. All are still dreaming of Santa, still enraptured by the innocence of the Christmas spirit.

What courage and dedication it must take for us grown-ups to carry on that spirit for their sake. Tensions are still high across America, and I'm certain some family gatherings won't end so happily. Things certainly won't be perfect at mine: my aunt, despite her broken ankle, is dedicated to attending our Seven-Fish Dinner and I'm certain there'll be a cousin or two gloating about the US election, but I'll be focused on ensuring the kids have a Christmas to remember.

A Christmas to remember like mine: where the scent of cedar trees instantly bring to mind of sprite comics and Nintendo GameCube and SpongeBob Squarepants. Where maybe there'll be small tiffs between friends and siblings, but it's nothing fried dough can't cure. Where new toys and gifts become irreplaceable pieces of our lifetimes.

These are dark times. But so long as the laughter of children surround us, it's a sign we'll make it out okay.

Final Thoughts: I wonder how much holiday cheer has involved Paper Mario.

Kirby to Celebrate 25th Anniversary (Hey Poor Player)

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Aiieeeeeee!!!!

Is this a dream? Am I about to wake up? ANOTHER Kirby anniversary celebration? And right after I finally wrapped Ten Years of Kirby...surely, those folks at HAL must be spying on me!

With this on the table, I really do wonder what's up for Kirby in 2017. We just had Planet Robobot come out this year, but I suppose there's nothing stopping the Mass Attack/Rainbow Curse B-Team from churning out another solid title. Another compilation package in the vein of Dream Collection would probably be too much for my heart to take.

Anyone got any ideas? Thinking of writing a Nintendojo article on this...