A little known series called Mass Effect just released its second iteration on the series this Tuesday. Since none of the major outlets seem to be covering it, I figured I’d give some impressions. Note that the screenshots were taken in windowed mode because my stupid computer didn’t want to actually capture images in fullscreen. Thanks computer! [caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“500” caption=“The bridge and CIC haven’t changed too much, just got a new paint job…”][/caption] ...

After being slammed by the players and owners year after year, the Marlins have finally started to buckle and spend a lot more for their personnel. You can partially thank the finalization of the stadium deal for this renewed vigor, of course, but the benefit is the same no matter what the source of this change is: actual spending on player talent. That’s why, for the first time in years, the Marlins have actually entered a season looking to capitalize on the previous year’s success with a squad that mirrors the year before. Josh Johnson, one of the ace pitchers of the NL, has been offered a 4-year contract worth $39 million and Dan Uggla will not be traded at this point in the year either. It’s looking like the core producers will still be around. ...

One of the first major features on this blog was a Villains of Final Fantasy series that ran for 13 weeks covering the main enemies of every numbered Final Fantasy game from I to XII including X-2. With Final Fantasy XIII launching in the states in just over a month, I figured it’s high time to give some recognition to the teams who are actually responsible for bringing those villains to justice and saving the world. I bring you the Heroes of Final Fantasy. ...

Coming out tomorrow! I can’t wait! Video Games | Mass Effect 2 | Red Carpet Trailer HD XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii

Man do I love these commercials.

This is amazing and it makes absolute sense in why it works.

Video Games | Green Day: Rock Band | Spike VGA 09: Exclusive Debut Trailer HD XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii Right around Christmas of 2009, Zelda Reorchestrated completed a pretty ambitious musical project: a reorchestration of the Ocarina of Time soundtrack. The free, 82-track download is available to download here and I’ve given the songs a listen or two and they’re fantastic. As someone who actually owns the original Ocarina of Time soundtrack, I was impressed by the high quality work that this fan group was able to bring to bring to the project. Not only are the tracks faithful to the original music, they’re actually a vast improvement from the original MIDI-synthesized tracks that we’ve all become accustomed to. ...

[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“500” caption=“Damn good Brit-Rock”] [/caption] For a band that’s only been around since 2006, the Arctic Monkeys have made quite a splash in England, setting all kinds of sales records and winning tons of awards. As someone who is officially late to the party, here are some words about their three albums released since 2006 Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I Am Not ...

I wrongfully believed that the difficulties in finding an embeddable version of the video for the site was due to OK Go being restrictive. I should have known better and assumed it was the record companies. Below is an open letter by Damian Kulash to the fans of OK Go about why their videos are not embeddable on Youtube. Sorry for doubting you OK Go, you guys are amazing. Record companies: Your days are numbered. Get with the times. ...

Just got home from the Capitals vs. Red Wings game down at the Verizon Center. It was my first time down there, so here are some impressions: -I really hate DC’s Chinatown. It’s the most Americanized Chinatown I’ve ever seen and it’s an absolutely terrible venue for ice hockey/basketball. There’s just no character to it. It’s too corporate! -The Verizon Center is pretty mediocre. Not a lot of character because it’s shared between the Caps and Wizards, but it filled up nicely. -The Caps came out in the first period looking pretty sluggish, but they picked it up a bit in the second and third to come back from deficits and eventually pull ahead. -No beer once the third period starts?! Really?! -I miss Cornell ice hockey… ...