Want some Guitar Hero for your DS?

Seriously I think my Nintendo DS has to be one of my favorite inventions. Nothing is better to entertain yourself on road trips or sick days. Though I don't play it every day I certainly rely on it for those times where I can't live without it. Like wise I absolutely love Guitar Hero games but sometimes I just don't feel like breaking out controllers and planting myself in the middle of the living room floor. If I'm at home playing with my DS it usually means I need a little quiet time for myself.

Guitar Hero On Tour Modern Hits is everything I love about Guitar Hero but with the portability of my DS. Actually an expansion on the original Guitar Hero On Tour DS game it's game play is really quite similar but the soundtrack is far improved with bands such as AFI, Coldplay, The Offspring, and Weezer. I'm as happy to listen to it as I am to play it. Though there are a few new changes to characters and the career paths for the most part its really almost the same game just a new storyline. Not that that's unexpected however at all.

Included with the game is the little adapter you need to play Guitar Hero on your DS. Like my last review of the On Tour series if your used to playing Guitar Hero on the big consoles this may be a bit of a stretch for you at first. It's really quite simple to pick up it just took me a bit to reprogram my brain around the controller change. Honestly now I almost prefer playing it this way though it doesn't give you the same sort of rockstar feel as playing it on a guitar.

All in all if your a fan of the series or even a first comer its a great addition to your Guitar Hero collection and super addicting. It's also the perfect size to stuff in those stockings come the holiday season. I know quite a few teenagers who would be thrilled especially with the new soundtrack!

Guitar Hero on Tour Modern Hits is available right now and you can pick up your copy on Amazon!

Wow, I never realized this was possible on the DS.

I've spent a good amount of time playing ds games. I'm a huge RPG game fan so much so that I've gone back and played my very first RPG game several times over the many many years just to reminisce. Usually I prefer to play RPGs on my computer or console system as to be honest with you I'm a little spoiled, part of the fun of a really great RPG is the amazing cut screens and detailed story lines. Though I have played many RPG games on my various handheld game systems over the years usually my biggest disappointment is the quality of the storyline, the hours of game play, and of course the virtual lack of cut screen scenes. You can't totally blame it on the handheld systems though we are talking about small screens and a limited storage space. I've dedicated most of my DS game play time to strategy games and of course my beloved sim games and its been some time since I even considered a RPG, role playing game for those of you non gamers, but its not that I've not thought about it. I just don't have time to sit down and play a long game at my consoles anymore and forget even talking about computer games. I feel way to guilty about not writing or studying. I do however have time to sneak a little game time in while in the car, no not while I'm driving but when I'm the passenger, or any other time I'm spent waiting.. I've just sort of given up the idea of a RPG for my ds that would really keep my attention.

I've never played the other Blue Dragon games so I can't tell you how it compares to the other games. I can tell that without a doubt Blue Dragon is the most impressive role playing or even strategy game I've played this far with any of my gameboys. The game play is sort of a mix of a role playing game with a pretty in debt plot line mixed with a real time strategy game which makes it quite challenging. Things don't stop just because your still thinking or your toddler just knocked over his entire glass of juice on the dog, though there is a pause button for the second moment. The last real time strategy game I played was for the computer and I was a little concerned that the learning curve would be a hindrance on how to maneuver all these little people no the screen to the battles but really its no different. For each of the battles you pick your team from the group of members you have currently which really is quite impressive as usually in most games of this type you have five or six choices but Blue Dragon Plus gives you a real range making your game play options quite endless. Once the battle has started you use the stylus to control your members individually or as a group by circling them with the stylus, basically the same tatic you'd use on a computer game with the mouse, and sending them off. There is also this really cool animation of a dragon that is used when you use magic as well that I found interesting.

What I really want to talk about though is what I find to be the coolest part of the game and seeing as my first real "wow" factor in video games was the cut screens, Blue Dragon Plus has really an impressive array of cut screens that use both the top and bottom screens on the DS. Now you can't really fairly compare them to something you'd see on the 360 or PS3 but for a handheld especially a gameboy it's really neat to see both screens used that way. I wouldn't normally even bring up cut scenes in a review as we come to expect them but I'm just not used to seeing them as often in the games I review most often for the DS so it was really a impressive change.

I do have to remark though there is quite a bit of toilet humor in the game and when I say toilet I mean poop humor. Come on people what is not funny about poop, really. heh.

Blue Dragon Plus is available right now for the Nintendo DS and you can pick up your copy on Amazon. I highly recommend it for children and adults though it's most likely best suited for children over seven as the strategy aspect of the game play is pretty advanced. I'm only a little ways into the 30+ hours of the game and I've found some of the battles quite challenging.

I'm so excited to say that I have four copies of Blue Dragon Plus to give away to my readers including the official strategy guides which is a HUGE plus.

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Blue Dragon Plus and tell me what sort of video games are most popular in your household and what you like about Blue Dragon Plus.
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
  • For an extra entry :
  • Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
  • Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
  • Let people know about the giveaway on Twitter with a link to the giveaway!
    
  • TWO extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
  • This contest will end April 30th at midnight!

What do you mean it can do everything?

Anyone who has spent more than 20 minutes with me on the phone knows that I have a very short, very ADD, attention span. Some days I'm super super mellow but one drop of stress or excitement and I can talk your ear off in 30 seconds or less and discuss everything from the weather to the color of my dog when I was three. I've been told by certain people in this household that watching me use a computer is the equivalent of watching a restless boy flip channels on a tv every thirty seconds. So needless to say I'm easily bored and easily distracted which is absolutely the reason why I've been fascinated with computers since the moment I realized there was even such a thing.

Its no secret that I love video games and its even less of a secret that I love gadgets. So when Tomy's new My DoItAll DS game came across my desk I was pretty excited. I remember my very first reaction to the game when I saw the press release, simply stated, "What do you mean it does it all?". Well um, folks, it does it all. Ok well maybe not everything it won't open your canned food, its not going to vacuum the living room, and it won't cook you dinner but when it comes to mini applications Tomy's My DoItAll for DS is the king.

I say mini applications as My DoItAll falls somewhere in the grey lines of game, learning tool, chat tool, and organizer as it does a little of everything. Call it the "trapper keeper" of the ds world. You can chat with your friends, use the sound changer to change your voice or add sound affects, keep track of your dates, homework, and schedules in the calender, play card and mini games with your friends and it even helps with homework and has a world map! Seriously it may not do everything but it certainly does more than any other DS game I've seen thus far.

I like to keep it loaded in my ds when I carry my ds with me for its calender and calculator features. My memory seems to be friend lately since midterms and the lack of sleep I'm getting so its great just to be able to open my ds and realize not only what day it is but what the agenda is for the day. Kids especially could hugely benefit from that feature as they can keep track of their homework, tests, and family events. Not to mention occupy themselves in the car with some of the cute mini games.

My only complaint about Tomy's My DoItAll for DS is the quality of the graphics. It's very basic but seeing as they had to cram a ton of information into a tiny package that's not terribly unreasonable. Compared to the graphics on most DS games and applications thus far though its still a bit of a disappointment. Otherwise Mom's will totally dig the educational aspects as it seems more and more than educational games keep getting lost in the mix.

Tomy's My DoItAll for DS is available right now for the Nintendo DS. I would recommend it for children who have at least a moderate reading ability as many of the features are based on friends and using the chat capabilities. You can pick up your own copy on Amazon!

I have a copy of My DoItAll to give away to one reader!


To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out My DoItAll and tell me what interests you about this game!
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
  • For an extra entry :
  • Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
  • Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
  • One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
  • This contest will end April 30th at midnight!

All the fun without cleaning up the mess.

Have someone on your Valentine's Day list who all they ask for is a cat or dog but can't imagine yourself cleaning up after one more person or animal in the house. Don't even get me started about cleaning up after my zoo, between Connor and our seven and sometimes more if there are puppies dogs, I feel more like a zoo keeper some days than a mom. Luckily Alabama is fairly warm most of the year and the dogs can spend most of their time outside otherwise I would loose my mind as that's just about five "kids" too many in a house this size.

The great news is Ubisoft makes great games that are perfect for that girl, or adult, who wants a puppy or a kitten or just really loves animals. Personally I have no urge to add one more fur kid to my pack here but I do really enjoy playing sim games that involve animals. Actually I've been a fan of the Petz series since its first PC game back in the mid 90s and their newer Petz series Petz Dogz Pack and Petz Cat Pack for the Nintendo DS has come such a long way and its just one of those series that gets more and more entertaining over time.

Petz Dogz Pack includes quite a few breeds of dogs you can choose from and basically you pick out the dog you like from the adoption center, and you play with them, feed them and the more you play and the happier your dog is the more items you can unlock through exploring, playing, and making friends with other dogs. You can also "breed" your dogs by making friends with other dogs and make new unique dogs for you to play with. Though I have to say I am not a big fan of "mix breeds" with as many dogs as there are in the pounds these days but with my prejudices aside I've always loved that feature in Petz games. Petz Catz is very familiar to the dog version and the game play is very similar the only difference really is the fact that Cats look ridiculous in outfits.. and that's a general statement not one of the game it just cracks me up to see a cat in a tee shirt. Both us the stylus on the Nintendo DS to interact with the pet!

Both Petz Catz Clan and Petz Dogz Pack are available right now for the DS and either would be a great Valentine's gift for someone on your list! You can check out the Ubisoft Petz website to learn more or pick up a copy of either on Amazon!

I have a copy of Petz Dogz Pack to give away to one lucky reader!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out the Ubisoft Petz website and tell me which Petz game would you most like to play!
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
  • For an extra entry :
  • Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
  • Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
  • One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
  • This contest will end Feb 15th at midnight!

I feel a little like I'm playing air guitar!

Wake up your inner Wayne and Garth because air guitar is the coolest thing ever especially if your playing Guitar Hero On Tour Decades for the DS. Playing Guitar Hero on the DS has always been portable fun and a great way to entertain the kids on road trips but the Guitar Hero on Tour Decades has quite possibly my absolute favorite hands down soundtrack of any of the Guitar Hero games I have played thus far.

The game play itself is very simile to Guitar Hero On Tour the previous DS release. However the soundtrack received an impressive upgrade. Some of the best songs from the 70s, 80s, and 90s bless this awesome On Tour upgrade. I honestly for the first time ever cannot say that I even remotely dislike one single song on the soundtrack. REM, Bon Jovi, Stone Temple Pilots, Linkin Park the list goes on and on and they are all awesome. Hey for our Alabama readers you can even rock out to Sweet Home Alabama. heh. Seriously for those of you that do not live in Alabama you'd be excited to know that if you listen to the radio here in Montgomery a few hours at a time you will hear Sweet Home Alabama at least three times a day or more.

The coolest aspect of Guitar Hero On Tour Decades is the brilliant multi player option. For those of you that have multi kid households you know how much it can kill a budget to buy double copies of the same game just so your kids can play together with the DS wireless link. However for those of you that already own the original Guitar Hero On Tour you will be beyond delighted to know that the Guitar Hero On Tour Decades is not only backwards compatible with the original On Tour but you can play them together without any hesitation. Meaning one player can have the first On Tour and the second player can have Guitar Hero On Tour Decades and they will share songs without skipping a beat.

The only disadvantage to Guitar Hero On Tour Decades is the controller. The controller on the new Decades version is exactly the same as the On Tour original version. Though its not bad it is slightly uncomfortable until you get the hang of it. I was really expecting an upgrade on the controller but I guess they took the stance if it isn't broken don't fix it.

Guitar Hero On Tour Decades is available right now and you can get your copy on Amazon!

Some girlie fun on the Wii!

Bratz Kidz is the perfect game for your next sleepover. The Bratz Girls are having a sleepover and its your job to help the girls earn new items for their clothing.

Bratz Kidz Slumber Party for Wii and DS follows the Bratz Girls as they have a girls only slumber party. As the game goes on through playing the games you earn points that earns you extra parts of the story and accessories for you Bratz girls. You can get new clothes, shoes, makeup and even nail polish for your girls and dress them any way you like. Points are earned through games you can play on your own or with your friends.

The mini games are fun play the apple pie attack game, pillow case hop, or my personal favorite bounce and dance on the beds and try to avoid getting caught by mom. heh. The games can be played by yourself or you can have up to three of your friends join you. The dancing game is absolutely hilarious as a group as someone always ends up getting caught. Once your done playing the games you can go shopping with your points. The items you buy you can then trade with friends or keep and dress up your Bratz girl any way you wish.

Bratz Kidz is available right now from Game Factory on Wii and DS and you can purchase your own copy on Amazon!

I have a copy of Bratz Kidz to give away for the DS!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Game Factory and tell me which game you'd most like to play.
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
  • For an extra entry :
  • Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
  • Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
  • One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
  • This contest will end Jan 30th at midnight!

Nintendo DS games, great for stocking stuffers!

Looking for a stocking stuffer for the adult on your list that has everything but loves their DS? Video games have always been one of my favorite gifts and usually 90% of my gift lists are filled with different games. For the first reason they are easy to buy I can give potential gift buyers a list of several games and there is no guessing what color I will like or what size.. You just buy the game and go. Nintendo DS games in particular are always one of my favorites as unlike many of my other consoles once I'm done playing a game I sell it or trade it in and move on to the next one. DS games tend to stick around here a lot longer as I like to have a little arsenal of DS games to take with me anytime I go on a long car trip, family vacation, or anywhere where I think I'm going to have a massive amount of free time as I'm not one to sit and do nothing I'm far to ADD for that. Needless to say my DS goes pretty much everywhere with me not unlike its many predecessors I'm fairly positive I have not been without some sort of gameboy close by since its original release in 1989.

One of my favorite type of games for the gameboy has always been minigames. I mean where exactly would the gameboy be without Tetris. They are the perfect short term distraction especially if your attempting to get some relaxing game time in between the baby's nap, while your kids are out playing, or especially on a plane (Seriously I do not and I mean DO not get on a plane without a game as I've been stuck in taxi way too many times besides very large smelly guys and a distraction is always fabulous.)

Needless to say when Midway sent me over their two new DS titles to try out I was pretty excited. The first of which is Touchmaster 2. Touchmaster 2 is a collection of 20 popular mini games from card games to scavenger hunts they remind me a lot of the type of mini game that you find on most people's computers. Personally I love mini card games which this one does include, especially a Speed Solitaire game which is incredibly entertaining. Possibly its taking que from the Wii but my favorite game included was Bowling which takes advantage of quite a few of the DS's special controls. Either way with 20 games to play everyone in the family will find one or two they really enjoy and everyone is happy.

Though if your really looking for something unusual to get the brain working and the time flying Mechanic Master from Midway is incredibly entertaining as well as a huge time killer as you really just won't want to put it down. Its sort of a huge game of mouse trap, you must have to work your way through each level moving objects, causing things to go boom, and pretty much manipulating everything on the screen to make it to the end. What really gets challenging though is if you upgrade the game to the Drawing Mode and you have to actually draw the solutions. I'm not quite ready to start the drawing process yet as I'm really terrible at DS drawing games but I did enjoy the rat maze sort of appeal to Mechanic Master. Its really quite a unique game I honestly in the 20+ years I've been playing video games on a daily basis I've not really seen anything even remotely like it. Its easy to play, fun, incredibly addicting, and even the novice gamer will really enjoy it. The only problem will be getting your kids to put it down long enough to eat dinner. Personally I really love the fact that its an entertaining family game that does not involve someone cutting someone else's head off. Not that I don't enjoy a good action game but the change of pace is actually really nice.

Mechanic Master and Touchmaster 2 are both available right now and would make fabulous stocking stuffers for anyone on your holiday list.

I'm giving away my copy of Mechanic Master to one lucky reader!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Touchmaster 2 and Mechanic Master and tell me which is your favorite and why!
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
  • For an extra entry :
  • Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
  • Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
  • One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
  • This contest will end Jan 15th at midnight!

The Zen of gaming!

I've never been one to watch a bunch of TV usually if I have free time you can find me either watching a movie or series on DVD with family or if I need some alone time more times than not I'll be relaxing in bed playing a video game. I am a certified game addict I actually think I own almost every game system there is out there right now and yes I actually use all of them. The only issue is life has been soooo stressful lately that sometimes even a simple game will get me all worked up if I am already having a bad day.

Zenses is a game designed for just those sort of days. Zenses comes in two varieties Ocean and Rainforest and I tested out the Ocean. Zenses features simple games similar to the ones you can purchase and download online but all of the games are set to a very comforting mellow soundtrack that reminds me a bit of a spa. I was a little concerned that the sounds themselves would lull me to sleep but the games kept me playing and before I knew it I had been sitting and playing for almost three hours.

Zen Stones is my favorite game included as part of the Zenses collection its a pretty simple game that's easy to learn, basically you match up similar stones and eliminate them in the process and the goal is to get rid of all the stones. It starts out pretty easy and progressively gets harder as you play.

Though I would classify this as an "adult" game only from the theme all of the games included are very easy to play and do not require any reading skills so children as young as three can play. Actually Connor loves to watch me play and Hot Spot a game where you have to rebuild the "glowfish" you see at the top of the screen. The glowing parts are very appealing and I actually have a hard time concentrating on the game as he is usually crawling all over me so he can see too. heh.

With six games included Zenses Ocean will keep you busy for some time, and the games are as fun the first time you play them as the 20th time. With a wide appeal from adults to preschoolers its a good investment in your game collection and a fabulous game where a short simple game is key.. like waiting rooms!

You an pick up your copy of Zenses Ocean on Amazon right now.

I have two copies of Zenses Ocean to give away to my readers!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Zenses Ocean and tell what sort of video games you love to play!
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
  • For an extra entry :
  • Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
  • Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
  • One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
  • This contest will end Dec 15th at midnight!

A group of Ponyz that you'll fight your daughter to play with!

The Nintendo DS is the king of mini games and the new Bratz Ponyz 2 game incorporates all of the DS's abilities into a package that is fun for the whole family. Ok when I say the whole family the boys in the family will most likely enjoy the game but don't pressure them to admit it. heh.

Bratz Ponyz 2 opens where you can choose which of the ponies you'd like to play. No worries though if you decide that you want to be the blue pony today and the pink pony tomorrow you can change your mind anytime by visiting your house. Similar to other "sim" type games you start off outside your own house which as the game progresses you earn rewards and new things for your house. The game is really quite simple every "day" you start off the game with an agenda of mini games you need to play to complete the game and earn a new reward. Though I do recommend some reading skills to play, the game is a series of mini games that you play to earn new accessories, makeup, and goodies for your pony. The games are really simple and are pretty self explanatory so almost everyone in the house can play.

I started off with the blue pony and I've been playing awhile and I've earned new jewelry, some awesome ballet shoes, diffrent color sparkles for her hair, jewelery, and of course made pictures of myself for my house. I've met some new pony friends and uncovered treasure. Its really strangely odd just how addictive the game can be. I started playing thinking that I'd just play for a few minutes before bed and next thing I know I looked up and it had been two hours and as a seasoned gamer many of the kid games get repetitive to me after a short while I found myself not wanting to put Bratz Ponyz 2 down. Something about wanting to collect some new jewelry and how the games change day to day.. it's hard to to stop.

Other than possibly teaching little girls that having too much jewelry is the cool thing to do, Bratz Ponyz 2 is really family friendly. The retail version even comes with a tiara that the girls can decorate themselves and wear while playing with their new Ponyz friends. No, I will not indulge you guys with the fact if I did or did not wear the tiara while I played but I will say I was all alone and no one will ever know. heh.

Bratz Ponyz 2 is available right now on Amazon!

I have one copy of Bratz Ponyz 2 to giveaway to my readers!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out the Bratz Ponyz 2 and tell me which of the mini games sounds most exciting to you.
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end Nov 30th at midnight!

Bring the magic of Build a Bear home!

So you've gone to Build a Bear and built your bear. They have had their clothes changed how many times by now? Well now what? heh. Build A Bear Workshop on DS offers the magic of build a bear with far more things to do!

Just like the real thing, you get to pick out your own bear in the DS game. You pick the stuffed animal (bear, dog, monkey, ect), the clothing, and you even get to name your new creation. Once you have your new friend made the fun begins. You can earn new outfits, dance moves, and accessories. You do this by playing mini games, my favorite of which is the cooking game as it reminds me a lot of the cooking game I play through one of those online game play sites. Along with the cooking game there is a dance game that is sort of a simon says, the game shows you a shape then you draw it correctly, a common type of control for DS's that honestly I am horrible at.

Needless to say I loved the game especially its simple controls and easy mini games, as this game is ment for children under 12 (though I'd really say its perfect for the 4-7 range) the only real issue with it as all the directions for the games is in text. Though I'm fairly positive a three or four year old could master at least some of the games the reading would be an issue. So, I would highly recommend that parents play the games through with their kids at least once if they cannot read the directions. Once they understand how to play though, I'll bet you'll have a hard time tearing them from it!

If your kid has friends with the same game they can link up through wifi and share outfits, photos and more. You can learn more about Build A Bear Workshop on DS on The Game Factory website!

Build A Bear Workshop for DS is available right now on Amazon!

I have one copy of Build A Bear Workshop to give away to one lucky reader!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Build A Bear Workshop and tell me what is most exciting to you about this game!
  
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end September 15th at midnight!

So whats the deal with Guitar Hero..?

Ok, I hate to even admit this but I have yet to play Guitar Hero.. though all I ever hear about from my friends Jason and Heather is how Guitar Hero rocks and how much I need it. Well I haven't gotten my hands on an actual copy of Guitar Hero yet but I did score the next best thing Guitar Hero On Tour for the DS.

When I first got it out of the box and hooked that cool little guitar adapter to the DS I felt a bit thrown off.. how exactly was I supposed to push the keys with my left hand and use the pick in my right. It was a bit of a learning curve but I did get it figured out in a few attempts and made it through my little tutorial session unharmed. Though I can't say it makes me feel as if I am actually playing a guitar at all.

The game play is actually very fun but it takes an immense amount of concentration at least on my part as I found out through many attempts that I may not be the most coordinated person on this planet. heh. For those of you that can just pick up a Guitar Hero game and really pound it out.. I am feeling little left out. I'm fairly sure that Heather's youngest daughter could beat me at this game, but I am not going to let that get me down.

One really interesting feature that will make you possibly look insane if your playing in public is the use of the mic to really boost your "star power" seriously, I am not joking, but if you scream at the game it actually boosts your score. I also found a squealing toddler that is pulling at your leg while your attempting to play does the trick as well. Hey at least I have one fan!

All in all, once I got used to holding the controller really my only complaint on the game is the fact that its not terribly long. Basically you get five levels of game play with several songs in each level (i haven't gotten to the end yet but I think its five per level don't quote me on that though) and seeing as I've only been playing about an hour and I'm more than halfway done I'd say its fairly easy to beat. Though seeing as I am currently playing on easy I will go back and attempt it on the harder levels as well. I only wish I had someone else nearby that had a copy as well so I could try out the duel mode.

Though I can't say I have any future as a rock star myself, not by this game's standards I can say I'm enjoying practicing. Now I know what the deal with Guitar Hero is.. its addicting.

Guitar Hero On Tour is available right now on Amazon!

Kung Fu Panda..Is Awesomeness!

Why do I keep having quotes from Real Ultimate Power Ninja website stuck in my head all day?! I've been obsessively playing Kung Fu Panda for the DS all day and I have to say NINJAS ARE SWEEEET. Ok I'll stop now before I scare my readers with my sheer geekyness but its true.

I haven't seen Kung Fu Panda in the movie theater yet but if the game is any indication of how funny the movie is, I need to add it to my to do list. The game opens with a cut scene where Po is dreaming of being a kung fu master. When in reality he just works for his father in a noodle resteraunt. Though did you notice his father isn't a panda? hmmm.

I was curious as to how the game play would work with a stylus. Though many of the controls are traditional the larger jump moves must be done with the stylus. I have to admit I am not good at action games, but I actually had a much easier time playing with the stylus than I would with a traditional game pad. As the game progresses you earn additional skills and stylus moves until eventually you become a kung fu master! I am no where near a kung fu master yet, but maybe if I keep at it! heh

Kung Fu Panda is available for the Wii, PC, DS, PS2, PS3, and 360 (I think that covers everyone but the PSP users!). So really no matter what console you have you can get in on the action! Though the basic game is pretty much the same across the versions depending on which console you have the graphics and game play will differ. One of the major differences I've found between the DS version and the other version is the lack of a mutli player option and it lacks the extra game play options that its bigger brothers have, but especially for the younger crowd the DS version is my favorite thus for its ease of playability. For the older crowd (12+) you just can't beat the multiplayer options in the other versions.

I will say one thing though, sometimes I dread movie to game titles, though its not always the case sometimes they seem a bit rushed and lacking in game play from titles that are not based on games. I will say that Kung Fu Panda is a great exception to that rule with stunning graphics across all the platforms (even the DS version is VERY good) and a well laid out game play system. Its strangely addicting even for a non action gamer like myself. Though I did not get the chance to try out the Wii version I have to say I'd really like to see how they incorporated the Wii controller into the game. I'd make a bet that the multi player option is a riot with the Wii!Though the prices vary between consoles the PC version is the best value at only $19.99 and has all the great features of the console versions. The PS3, Wii and 360 versions are currently selling for $49.99.

You can see more of Kung Fu Panda at its website!

I have a copy of the PC version & DS version of Kung Fu Panda to give away to my readers!

To enter :

• Leave a comment on this post. Check out Kung Fu Panda and tell us what is most exciting to you about the game. If you have seen the movie tell me what you think I haven't gotten a chance to yet!
  
• No "i want to win" stuff without a little effort (and I do mean little!)
• Make sure there is a way for me to contact you - if your email address is not on your profile or you are not a blogger you may leave it in your comment or email it to me directly (angelaandconnor at gmail dot com) We have had to disqualify a lot of potential winners as of late as many people do not have emails available in their profiles or leave anonymous posts without any way to contact you.
• Please US entries only.
• To get extra credit :
• For an extra entry :
• Bloggers - Blog about this contest and leave me the link on your comment, or add me to your sidebar and let me know its there.
• Non Bloggers (or bloggers) subscribe to my mailing list/RSS feed and earn another entry!
• One extra credit per person. Please post your extra credit in a separate post.
• This contest will end June 28th at midnight!