Featured Content from Ebay


Friday, May 9, 2014

Fable 3: Gnome Insults Video

Hey, just out of curiousity, are there any Fable fans here?  Here is a somewhat funny and crude video involving the gnomes in Fable 3.  If you remember playing that game, there are gnomes scattered throughout the land (which get activated after both the "Gnomes are Good" and "Gnomes are evil" side quests).  You know a gnome is nearby when he starts hurling insults at your character.  Here is a youtube video showing the many insults your character might hear from the gnomes.  Pretty amuzing too. 



Fair warning: this video might be offensive to some people.  You will encounter gnomes like the one in the video when playing Fable 3 though. 



Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Alaskan Malamute Puppy Walking The Dog

Hey, do any of you have 2 or more dogs?  I do, namely a golden retriever and a bichon frise shizu (Tucker and Angel).  One funny thing that can happen is if Angel has her leash on, Tucker will sometimes grab her leash and try to walk her.  Anyways, here is a funny video about 2 big dogs trying to walk each other with a alaskan malamute puppy trying to walk what looks like a german shepard.  This is a pretty funny video.





Like this post, feel free to like and share it.  Also, do your dogs try to walk each other?  Feel free to share your experiences in the comments section.  Note I actually meant to post this on my other blog (http://rjanimalvideos.blogspot.com) when I hit the share button on youtube.

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

GTA 5 Mount Gordo Ghost confirmed

Confirmed: Mount Gordo Ghost.  Check out this scary and yet true ghost story on Grand Theft Auto 5

Closeup shot of the ghost at Mount Gordo (with the words ghost on it)

Here is an unaltered picture of the ghost at Mount Gordo


You know, remember back in the day when Grand Theft Auto San Andreas was out (long before GTA 4 and 5), the game was full of paranormal myths and legends, including but not limited to:
 1. Bigfoot sightings on Mount Chillad (which I doubt as I have been up that mountain many times in that game, even on foot and never seen any sign of bigfoot, at least not in the Xbox version).
2. Ghost in CJ's house (I haven't been able to verify that rumor either in the Xbox version).
3. The suicidal photographer at the Flint Intersection, which was one of the few I was able to confirm. In the Flint intersection area of the game, instead of taking the freeway, you should drive the side road that goes along the waterfront there (preferably at night) and you will see a person (usually a man) taking several pictures of the ocean and after a short while, he will walk into the water and seem to drown (which does seem to repeat itself each time you drive by the same spot, which is a bit eerie)
4. The "ghost cars" in the Back and Beyond area which is also true (if you scout out the Back and Beyond area), you should come across a spot where one or two cars seem to roll down the hill by them selves and if you get a closeup look at the cars you will find that there is nobody in them.
And many others.

Anyways, after San Andreas and a trip to Liberty City (which feels almost like you are in New York City) in the GTA 4 era games, Grand Theft Auto 5 takes you right back the Los Santos area (a modified version of San Andreas) and as with San Andreas, GTA 5 does have its' myths and legends.  One myth that I checked out myself and was able to confirm was the Mount Gordo ghost.  The mountain is near the northeast corner of the game map (just south east of Paleto Bay and is actually right off the freeway connecting Los Santos with Paleto Bay) is a good sized area to explore.  There are no roads that go directly into the mountains mainly just trails and terrain, so you have to go on foot to check out this one (though you can use motorcycles to reach the top of the mountain too).  By the way, when exploring Mount Gordo I recommend brining a handy gun with you since there are cougars (aka mountain lions) on the mountain and they will attack you at random while exploring Mount Gordo (usually you will hear a growling sound and see a red blip on the map when a cougar is nearby).  On Mount Gordo there is an area around the peak of the mountain that overlooks a lighthouse on the far east side of the mountain and it is around that spot where the ghost appears (it is hard to really explain it without showing you, so I will share a random youtube video about the ghost down below for more info).  By the way, to skeptics out there, I was skeptical about the ghost too but after exploring the mountain I came across the ghost too.

Here is how you find the ghost.

Step 1. go to the area in the game where the red circle is on  the map (you will have to go either by bike or foot since there is no road through there).  By the way, when driving to the area, you know you have gone too far on the freeway if you arrive in Paleto Bay
Step 2: There is a window of time to see the ghost as she only seems to appear between 23:00 and 0:00 game time (and you can track the time either by the pause menu or checking the in game phone).  Note the ghost seems to disappear after that window, so if you arrive too late (after 0:00), you will have to wait till the next night in the game to try again (timing and patience is key here and you might consider camping out in the area if you arrive too early).
Step 3: between 23:00 and 0:00 a ghostly woman should appear on a rock in the distance.  If you have a sniper rifle (Franklin, my character, did not have one at the time of the photo) or binnoculars, you can zoom actually in on the ghost and a closer look of her.  By the way, it does seem to be a residual type haunt as the ghost doesn't seem to notice your character and just appears and disappears on its own.


Few warnings and tips about this easter egg:
- It appears that the ghost only appears for a short window of time (between 23:00 and 0:00 game time).  Outside of that range she disappears and you will have to wait till the next night during those hours before you can look for her again.
- The ghost does disappear if you get too close to her (though you can see what looks like blood on the rock she hovers around), so you will have to view her from a distance.  BTW, if you have a sniper rifle, you can actually zoom in on her and shooting her does nothing (the bullets just go through her and she doesn't chase you or anything).  Alternatively you can also snap a photo of her using the snap o matic feature on the ingame phone (if you have a social club account at http://socialclub.rockstargames.com/, you can also share the photo too).
- Watch out for cougars while scourng the area in the game and be sure to bring a handy gun with you (even a good pistol can do) as cougarss do seem to have a presence there and they will attack your character randomly (happened to me several times while on the mountain as Franklin, luckily my guy had some guns and able to take them out quickly).  You will hear a growl when a cougar is nearby and is coming in for the attack (also, if a cougar gets too close it will lunge at your character, killing him instantly earning your character a trip to a nearby hospital).

By the way as promised here is the video below.  By the way, this is the only confirmed ghost story I am aware of in GTA 5.  I like to think there might be other ghost stories in the game (it is a big map after all), but this is the only one I am aware of (feel free to correct me if I am wrong though in the comments section below).  Also, there are aliens and ufos in the game too.  One funny encounter with aliens I had in the game is where I was playing as Michael and did this side mission where he took some drugs (yes, Michael, Trevor and Franklin can all do drugs in the game at their safehouses with humorous effects) and did this hallucinatione trip where he had this mini gun and had to gun down aliens that were attacking (they look like the ones from aliens vs predator), but I can get into that more on a later post).



Well that is all for now and hope you liked this post. Feel free to leave a comment below. BTW, if you know of other paranormal related events in GTA 5 or similar games, feel free to share them in the comments section below.

By the way are you missing out on Grand Theft Auto 5 and/or GTA online and want to get in on the action?  Be sure to pick up a copy of the game and you can get in on the action almost right away.  Here are the links for both the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 versions.  There doesn't seem to be a version for the Xbox One or PS4 at this time though so you will need an Xbox 360 or PS 3 (unless if Xbox One or PS4 have backwards compatability, which I don't know if they do or not).

||



Monday, April 7, 2014

GTA 5 - Prologue [100% Gold Medal Walkthrough]

Here is a video of the proluge in GTA 5.  It was an interesting mission (reminds me of a similar mission from Grand Theft Auto 4, where Niko too had to take part in a bank robbery heist mission).  This missions is so signature to the series (yet twisted too).



Friday, April 4, 2014

Just got Grand Theft Auto 5 just a few days ago

Hey everyone, it's been a while since I have posted last, in part due to the job I was going for at Microsoft where I would have been working as a Bing HRS judge.  Despite my best efforts to pass the qualification tests, I fell short and so it looks like I won't be getting that job afterall (by the way, it was definitely tougher than it looks too since you have to be spot on your judgegments at least 80% of the time which can be easier said than done for most as you never really know if you got a judgment right till after you submitted a judgement).  Anyways, I do have some good news: I got Grand Theft Auto 5 (even beat GTA 4 a few weeks ago) which I purchased at Fred Meyer. By the way, here is a trailer for the game in case if you are curious.


Grand Theft Auto 5 (story mode) first impressions

I have been able to play the game several  times since I got it and here are my first impressions of the game.  Note that this is not my official review of the game (I will do that at another time probably when I am about to beat the game, whenever that is).  The game has 2 different modes of gameplay: story mode and online mode (aka GTA 5 Online) each with their own unique story lines and feels.  The game starts off in some foreign country (Russia?) where your character (Trevor?) is a part of a bank heist mission where your character is a part of a bank robbery scheme and he has to help secure hostages, take money and evade police.  I won't spoil  the whole prologue, but that is basically how it works in a nutshell.  Eventually the prologue ends and shifts over to Los Santos where you assume the role of an African American named Franklin and the real story begins.  I've done several missions already, including:
- A mission where you have to scope out a neighborhood (presumably for drugs) only to be attacked by a street gang and a shootout takes place and eventually leads to a scene where you have to chase a biker in a van (similar to many of the missions in GTA 4 where Niko has to chase down his targets in order to take them out).  Interestingly you can choose to skip the mission if you are struggling (which is nice as you don't have to keep repeating the mission if you are having trouble beating the mission).
- There was also a side mission where you have to help a random woman tow (which is definitely a first in  thee series as I haven't seen similar missions involving a Tow truck in earlier installments of the GTA franchise) a car from the street to an impound lot.
-  There is also a mission where you have to chase down a target with the help of a rottweiler (yes there are dogs in the game unlike the previous entries) at a train yard facility. Btw the dog can run off and get frisky with other dogs (which was kind of funny and yet twisted in my opinion).

Outside of missions, there is definitely a huge world to explore and plenty of things to do in Los Santos and San Andreas.  BTW this game will definitely remind you of GTA San Andreas in many ways which is definitely a change after hanging out in Liberty City throughout the GTA 4 era games.  Also just as Liberty City is alot like New York City in GTA 4, Los Santos is definitely alot like the Los Angeles area in California and will definitely make you feel like you are in Southern California.  By the way, interestingly your guy can smoke and drink alcohol too, which is kind of funny (btw, if you drink too much your guy passes out).  And if he smokes often he starts getting voices in his head.

Things I like so far:
+ Huge world
+ Great acting and clip scenes (much like how it is in GTA 4)
+ New mission varieties (especially the tow truck mission as the one involving the rottwiler)
+ Definitely a change of pace from GTA 4
+ During many missions, there do seem to be checkpoints where if you fail or die you can go back to the checkpoint as opposed to having to start all over in the mission.  This is definitely nice since I know in earlier installments in the series, you didn't really have this feature and if you failed at any point in the mission you had to start over from the beginning of the mission in most cases.  Also some missions do seem to have an option where you can skip them if you fail too many times (which can take out the frustration you might have on some of the tougher missions).  I am not sure if you can skip every mission that way but at least some of the missions do
+ At least 3 or 4 playable characters (though you start off with one at the beginning).  Not sure when the other ones open up

Downsides:
- Not sure if you can use taxis like you could in GTA 4.  Having cars is nice, but I liked the fast travel feature (especially if you are lazy or want to hurry and get to another part of the map).
- Your character (at least Fanklin) has a girlfriend at the start of the game so I am not sure if you can get girlfriends in the game like you can in GTA 4 or San Andreas, though you do get an email early in the game that implies that Franklin's initial girlfriend wants to break up with him (he gets one of those "dear John" letters where his initial girlfriend claims that she just wants to be friends and is not interested in continuing her relationship with him)., so he might be able to get girlfriends in the game.  Note: I haven't unlocked the

Online mode at a first glance:

Here is what I like so far:
1) Huge world to explore and do
2) The online mode does seem to have its own storyline that you can follow.  When I started out I created a character named after John Waynum (the screen name me and my brothers share on Xbox live).  I wanted to make John Martson his father (there is an easter egg in some versions where you can do that), though the version of the game I have doesn't seem to have  that feature.
3) Lots of things to do online.  You can do races, earn money do bounty hunter missions, fly jets (at least I saw a youtube video of someone flying a jet last night on GTA Online).

Cons so far:

1. Good Sport and Bad sport system.  There seems to be a new system on GTA Online where our actions can determine whether you are a good sport or bad sport.  I guess if you are a good sport, you reap the benefits of being a good sport.  Not sure what can make you a bad sport though apparently shooting other peoples' cars and failing jobs can land you in that category.

2. Kicking system.  On GTA 5 online, you can see other players' names and if you want to you can choose to "kick" or "report" the player.  While it might be a good way to prevent abuse of the system, sadly there are troll types (people who like to make life miserable for others online) that are ever present in GTA online that like to abuse it and sadly even innocent players can find themselves kicked from  the game or (worse flagged).  It seems to happen randomly as you can do a mission, accept jobs, take part in a race, etc and some jerk decides to kick you out of the game.  I remember on my first time playing online, I was just starting out and trying to familiarize myself with the controls and even did 2 missions when I got a message saying that someone voted to kick me.  No explanation why and I know I wasn't doing anything wrong either.  Hopefully kicking doesn't become problem for players (especially newbies), but that did seem to be evident when played the online mode.  If I were Rockstar I would make it harder for people to kick people (such as forcing them to state a reason why they want players kicked and make it easier for people to defend themselves when accused) off the servers (or at least if people want a private server to play on, encourage them to use private servers), otherwise that can be a huge issue that plagues the online mode.

Here is video for example of one of the players doing a mission where he had to get something from a gun store only to get kicked from the game (looks like someone didn't want him to beat the mission):


Other than those 2 things the Online mode seems pretty impressive so far.

Note that this is not my official review of the games as I will probably get a better impression as time goes on, but those are my thoughts so far.

Note that there doesn't seem to be a version of the game for xbox one yet, so you would need a PS3 or Xbox 360 to play it.

Interesting in getting GTA 5?  You can get them through Amazon or similar retailers:

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Changes coming to my posting activity level

Hey guys, I thought that I would make a quick update about adding new posts to this site (btw I am posting similar posts on my other blogs too, particularly the Animal videos blog and the empower network bog I have).  Basically, I have some good news and bad news for you all.  Note: this post will be off topic for the moment.

The good news is:
I am going new part time job that could eventually replace my job at Kohls.  I am going for a position with an outsourced company of Microsoft called Tech Mahindra.  Basically if I get the job, I will be working with he Bing search engine as a human relevance system (hrs) associate.  In this new position, I would basically be helping to look up and rate websites for the Bing search engine team.  Obviously, for  confidentiallity reasons, (I don't think they would appreciate it if I talk about how the job works and how it relates to sites ranking on bing) I can't get into all of  the details about my new job (other than basically looking up websites and evaluating them) but basically I will be doing that on a part time basis, which would be in addition to the 3 other jobs I have (Snohomish Publishing, Kohl's, and Advantage Sales and Marketing).  I will usually Mon-Friday 9:30 am to 1:30 pm (except Thursdays due to working at Kohl's those days), and might eventually replace my job at Kohl's if all goes well.  I don't officially have the job yet, as here is a class I have to take as well as a test to pass at the end before getting the job (though I might have the job officially by next week sometime as of this posting).

The bad news is: 
Obviously, my free time is going to be dropping significantly.  It has actually dropped quite significantly over the last few months anyways in part due to my mother breaking her leg back in December (she tripped down some stairs and broke her ankle that way) and have been having devote some of my time to help take care of her while she recovers.  Now, with this new job coming up, my free time will be dropping significantly more.  Below is my tentative weekly schdedule till further notice.  Note: if this new job doesn't go through my schedule will revert back to how it was.

Mon - Friday (except on days where I am working at Kohl's)
9:30 - 1:30p: Working at Microsoft
1:30 - 3:30: Free (though I still have to drive back from Redmond).  May try to get a work out in.
3:30 - 7:00: work at Snohomish Publishing (job number 2)
after 7:00 pm: free.  Note: on Tuesday nights I usually have bible study to go to after working at Snohomish Publishing and on Wednesday nights I help with Awana (an organization affiliated with my church, somewhat similar to cub scouts in a way)

Thursdays (or whenever I work at Kohls)
8am - 12 p - work at Kohls
rest of the day (same with other days)

Saturday: 
Free (except on days when I am doing a demo for Advantage Sales and Marketing)

Sunday:
8a-10a: free
10:45-12:30 - church
12:30 - night Free (except on days where I am doing a demo).

So, that is what the schedule looks like.  Obviously with less free time, it will be harder devote my time to blogging. Hey if I was either earning more ad revenue from blogs from the affiliate ads (such as Walmart, Amazon, etc) I am hosting or getting better hours at my existing jobs, especially Kohl's where I am only averaging one 4 hour shift each week there, I wouldn't need the extra jobs and could devote more time to blogging.  But circumstances have forced me to make the change.  I will try to add new posts whenever I get around to it, but for now, I will be limited these next few months.  Of course, if any of you are interested, feel free to help contribute to this site.

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Awkward Video Game relationships Part 2 (working draft)

Well, the wait is over, time to talk about more awkward video game romances and relationships.  Note: some of them will be from various movies and TV shows too.

****Spoiler alert******
This article assumes you have seen the movies or played the retrospective video games below

Relationship 6 - Amy and Sonic (Sonic Adventure and later Sonic games)
Here is a clip from Amy's story in the Classic Sonic Adventure (Dreamcast)

You know what is an awkward relationship in video games: Sonic and Amy.  Amy Rose actually actually debuts in Sonic CD where Sonic has to rescue her from the clutches of Dr Robotnik (long before he was known as Eggman) and his creation, Mecha Sonic.  However it is not till the Sonic Adventure Era games where she has bigger roles.  In fact, in Sonic Adventure 1, like other allies of Sonic, Amy has her own episode where basically she has to go through levels protecting a bird that has a hidden chaos emerald in its amulet thingy he is carrying while trying to fend off an evil robot that wants to kidnap both Amy and the bird for Dr Eggman (remember he wants to use the chaos emeralds to upgrade the Chaos monster he helped to create).  At the end of her story is a huge boss fight between her and the evil robot.  Anyways, as with Mario and Princess Peach (and similar hero rescues the girl type of scenarios), Amy has a huge crush on Sonic and is not afraid to show it around him.  She even manages to rescue Sonic out of trouble and certain death on more than one occasion, such as causing a robot to turn on Dr Eggman (the gama robot if I remember correctly), breaking Sonic out of prison after being framed by Shadow the hedgehog and even saves him from being killed by Silver the Hedghog (who wrongly thinks that Sonic is the villian behind the rise of Mephilles and the fire breathing monster Iblis that are responsible for a post apocalyptic future in Sonic 2006). She has even been known to help bring Knucles back into his senses when Dr Eggman manages to trick him into thinking that Sonic is the enemy on more than one occasion (happened in one of the episodes of Sonic X for example).  Of course, it is hard to really tell if Sonic likes her or not considering that he often brushes her off and it is possible she might be in for a heartbreak in a future episode.  Of course how their relationship story plays out is yet to be seen.  Of course, if Sonic doesn't work out for her, hey, there is always Shadow and Silver the hedghog too.



Relationship 7 - Anakin Skywalker and Padme / Queen Amidala (Star Wars Episodes 1-3)

Anakin Skywalker & Padme Amidalla
Touching scene of Anakin and Padme from Star Wars episode 2 (Attack of the Clones).  This was probably one of the happiest moments of their relationships, long before the start of the Clone Wars and before all hell breaks loose in Episode 3 (Revenge of the Sith).

Ah, I've been a Star Wars fan ever since I was a kid, starting with the original trillogy and now the prequel trillogy.  As you probably know, long before Han and Leia, there was Anakin and Queen Amidala (aka Padme) and their story plays a huge role throughout the prequel era of Star Wars.  In Episode 1 (Phantom Menace), she was the Queen of Naboo (an earthlike planet) and was around when the Trade Federation, at the goading of Darth Sidious (aka then Senator Palpatine unbeknownst to Padme at the time) and was rescued from certain death at the hands of the trade federation by Jedis Obi Wan Kenobi and Qui Gon Ginn. Long story short, it was on Tatooine when Anakin (who was a slave at the time) first met Padme (though he did not know she was the queen at the time, especially considering that she had a decoy taking the queen roll most of the time).  You know a quote I like: "Are you an angel?" (Young Anakin from Phantom Menace when he meets Padme for the first time).  Anyways, almost immediately he started liking here, despite the age difference (he was probably 8 at the time if I had to guess and she was probably at least 14 when they first met, though feel free to correct me if I am wrong).  Anyways, she cheered him on during the Pod Race, kind of begrugingly too though considering that her ride off the planet was at stake if Anakin lost the race (that would have been something if he lost, wouldn't it?).  She also seemed to support him when he was getting ready to see the Jedi council for the first time (while she and the "queen" attend the fateful session in the senate where the "queen" tries to persuade her listeners to issue sanctions against the the trade federation for their invasion, which in a way helped Palapatine rise to power, who would eventually become the evil emperor).  Anakin and Padme were definitely an unlikely couple too given their obvious differences.  I bet a young slave / farmer boy like Anakin from the desert planet of Tatooine never thought that he would wind up with such a beautiful queen from Naboo (despite her young age).  Here in the united states, we do not have kings and queens, but we do have a president (which is like having a king or queen in many ways despite the obvious limitations they have as rulers) and if would be like a minimum wage worker like myself living out in the boonies of Washington Stat marrying one of the president's daughter (whether it is Obama's daughters or some future president's daughter), very unlikely relationship.  Or meybe you live in Great Britian, it would be like if you were some farm boy living in Scottland or Ireland (somewhere out in the country) trying to marry Princess Kate (who is slated to become queen someday, btw she is already married too so don't get your hopes up on her).  Very unlikely scenarios, but that is basically what happens with Anakin and Padme.

Of course, things start taking an awkward turn as they seperate for at least 10 years and by the time Anakin sees Padme again, she is a senator that is the target of assasination plots by the seperatists, with the evil viceroy Nute Gunray along with Darth Maul's successor, Count Dooku (aka Darth Tyrannus, who seemed  to have a hand in creating the clone army for the republic which proves to both be a blessing and curse for the republic once the Clone Wars start).  Obviously, Palpatine is now known as Chancelor Palpatine (eventually to become Emperor Palpatine come Episode 3), Qui Gon Gin is dead (killed by Darth Maul), Obi Wann Kenobi is a jedi master and is the mentor of Anakin (much like how Qui Gon was a mentor of Obi Wan and later Yoda being the mentor of Luke Skywalker in the original trillogy).  Anakin of course was a charming, yet reckless Jedi Knight and is the padawan of Obi Wan.  Soon, Anakin and Padme's path crosses once again and he is immediately in love with her (even though apparently the jedi code forbids falling in love and marriage, which Anakin does anyways) and after a failed assasination attempt by Janga Fett and his associate Zam, Anakin becomes Padme's body guard and goes with her to Naboo and later Tatooine.  Of course, predictably, Anakin can no longer control his feelings and soon a romantic relationship forms (much to the reluctance of Padme too given both the fact she was a senator at the time and he was on the jedi council) and before long they are boyfriend and girlfriend. By the way, I can't blame Anakin too.  Have you ever had a crush on someone you know?  I will never forget the crush I had on Kim C, back in the day.  Anyways from a typical guy's perspective, what would you do if something came up where you had to spend extra time time with the girl you like (such as going on a camping trip with her, work the same job as her, living in the dormatory she is in, or maybe you happen to be neighbors)?  Would you be able to hide your feelings or would they come out (especially if you take the time to get to know her)?  Well, Anakin and Padme had that exact scenario and he ends up making Padme his girlfriend and eventually his wife by the end of the movie.
(this section is to be continued due to time restraints).

Relationship 8 - Peter Parker (aka Spiderman) and Mary Jane Watsons (and similar super hero / non superhero relationships)

Relationship 9 - Thor and Jane Foster (Thor Movies / Avengers)

Relationship 10 - Love Triangle in Mass Effect 3