Wednesday, December 20, 2017
Nintendo Switch Day One
Thursday, November 23, 2017
Black Friday 2017 2DS Zelda Ocarina of Time
I had to do a quick unboxing of my 2DS The Legend
of Zelda Ocarina of Time bundle. This is
a Black Friday release from Nintendo, but I couldn’t wait to open this bundle
up today. Besides the Nintendo 2DS
console, it also includes a copy of Ocarina of Time, a manual, AR Cards, and a
charger.
YouTube:
Friday, November 3, 2017
How to Remove a Sticker or Label from a Video Game Box
Unfortunately one of my burdens as a collector
is that I like my collectables to be in pristine condition. So when I first started collecting complete
in box video games I noticed that finding near mint games was very expensive
and difficult to find. And so I had to
settle for whatever I could find in my price range, which usually meant games
in fair condition that required only a little cleaning to be considered
satisfactory. While most games and boxes
could be cleaned with a wet cloth and a magic eraser, I found removing stickers
or labels from a box was difficult.
Thankfully after doing a little research I found
a solution that worked for me. The
method I use requires some lighter fluid and a Q-tip or cotton swab or cotton
ball. All you do is wet the Q-tip with
the lighter fluid liquid and moisten the label; then gently peel back the
label. I do caution anyone from doing
this especially children because the lighter fluid can irritate your skin and
dry it as well. I would also advise you
to practice this method on a label/box that you don’t care about first before
you do it on an important box. If done
correctly you should be able to remove an old sticker/label without much
residue left over.
YouTube:
Friday, October 27, 2017
Lucky Charms Super Mario Edition Cereal
Lucky Charms:
www.luckycharms.com
Sunday, October 22, 2017
AJ Styles vs Finn Balor WWE TLC
What an amazing… no, what a phenomenal
match between AJ Styles and Finn Balor at WWE TLC 2017. You could clearly see the talent that both
these wrestlers had tonight. They’re the
reason why I love wrestling. This WWE viral
infection was a blessing in disguise because there would have been no other way to have gotten this match (and avoided Sister Abigail). Thank you AJ Styles, Thank you Finn Balor. That match was Too Sweet!
Wednesday, October 18, 2017
Vans Nintendo Zelda Classic Slip-On
Part of the excitement of being a modern day
Nintendo/Zelda collector is that you never know what’s next as far as new
merchandise is concerned. It can also be
a headache when you have to follow websites every day to keep up to date with
what’s releasing on certain days. Of
course I decided many years ago to limit myself to just collectables that I
really wanted and not just hoard merchandise.
My latest collectable is the Nintendo with Vans collaboration shoe line.
While many shoe models were released, I decided
to get the Zelda Vans Classic Slip-On.
This model features canvas uppers with retro 8-bit characters from the
original NES video game The Legend of Zelda.
It comes in a faded navy blue colorway with what I like to call southwestern
Native American print. At the bottom of
the sole “GAME OVER” is printed in white.
One of my favorite parts of this collaboration
is the shoe box packaging; it’s exactly like the NES console. This attention to detail is what really gets
me excited as a collector when companies go the extra mile in releasing a new
product. As a bonus for buying this pair
on release day I also received a very cool pin set. Hopefully this isn’t that last time we see a
Nintendo Vans collaboration because just like the NES Classic, a follow up
version of the SNES would be awesome.
Can you imagine SNES box packaging, and shoes that feature A Link to the
Past, Super Mario World, and Super Metroid.
Vans Nintendo Collection:
YouTube:
Friday, September 29, 2017
Casio G-Shock DW-6900-1VCT
I bought this watch at Wal-Mart last year when
it went on sale. I had been eyeing it
for a while because of how nice it looked.
I just couldn’t believe that such a nice looking watch would be sold in
Wal-Mart of all places. In my opinion
this budget friendly no frills watch looks better than most limited and expensive
watches that are released.
The only visible features that make this watch
different from other G Shock’s is the plastic buckle and the “shock resistant”
etched on the steel back (it normally says “shock resist”). And I guess you can include the packaging as
well because this Wal-Mart version comes in a standard Casio box. Other than that, this watch is perfect and
good to go, especially for the price ($59.96 Canadian retail).
Casio G-Shock:
YouTube:
Friday, August 25, 2017
Batman Year One Part 1 Issue #404
Released in February 1987 Batman Year One Part 1
issue #404 tells the story of Bruce Wayne’s first year as Batman. The story also simultaneously follows James
Gordon’s return to Gotham City. It’s
such a great story that follows the beginning of the friendship between Jim
Gordon and Batman as these men battle a corrupt city. I just love how their battle is not easy and
how they make mistakes along the way; learn from them and overcome obstacles
that eventually molds them into the heroic men they become.
I bought this particular issue a few years
ago. At the time a lot of magazines were
going out of print. This had me worried
that eventually all print magazines including comics would either go digital or
end production. That’s when I decided to
start buying popular comics as collector pieces (relics of the past). Thankfully the prices were still affordable
so I definitely had to get this issue of Batman and others. While I do love the story and can read it in
digital format, there’s definitely something special about holding the physical
copy in my hands. The smell of the pages, the ink that runs off my fingers, and
the vibrancy of the colors is something special that makes collecting older
comics nostalgic and worthwhile.
Batman Year One Wiki:
YouTube:
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Advice for getting the SNES Classic Edition in Canada
The SNES (Super Nintendo Entertainment
System) mini will release on September 29th for $99.99. Nintendo has stated that it will be a limited
release and will stop production by the end of the year. While it might seem ridiculous to most that
Nintendo is making the SNES mini limited, you have to remember that Nintendo
has always made certain items limited since 1985. As a life-long Nintendo fan this has been
frustrating, but I understand it. Hype
Sells. Also, all these retro games will
eventually be sold on the Virtual Console (a service that lets you download
retro games onto modern consoles).
Saturday, August 5, 2017
New Era MLB Retro Classic Collection
New Era’s MLB Classic Collection is a throwback
to their 90’s Pro Model fitteds. These
retro hats feature 100% wool material, a New Era tag, grey underbrim, white
sweatband, flat embroidery, and are made in the USA. This release has revitalized my interest in
New Era fitteds after years of poorly made polyester hats. I knew it was time to quit collecting
on-field fitteds as soon as the MLB batter man was missing his hat, and
occasionally the ball on the logo. Thankfully
New Era has corrected all their quality control issues and has made an immaculate
product. Every stitch is perfect, the
crown is true the original, and the sizing is correct (past hats could be off
by 3 sizes).
Please note that unlike their Heritage Wool
series from a few years back the MLB Classic Collection doesn’t have 3D
embroidery, the New Era logo on the side of the hat, or a black sweatband. Admittedly these are more subjective
preferences on a fitted that I’m personally indifferent about. Although I do love seeing the return of the
white sweatband, a feature that I used to hate but I have now grown to
love. Just seeing a brand new pristine
white sweatband just makes it look so much better. For now I have only purchased the Away blue,
Blue Jays fitted but I do plan on getting the whole Jays collection eventually.
New Era:
YouTube:
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
John Cena vs Shinsuke Nakamura
You’re telling me this will be on SmackDown LIVE
for free? Vince McMahon has lost his
mind.
Friday, July 21, 2017
World of Nintendo: The Wind Waker Toon Link (Wind Waker version)
When I first started collecting World of
Nintendo figures from Jakks Pacific I never imagined the toy line would go so
deep as to include various versions of Link.
Especially considering Nintendo having such strident restriction on
licensing Nintendo figures other than Super Mario in the past. Thankfully the prosperous toy line has been
allowed to blossom and we’re now getting Toon Link from The Wind Waker
game. Actually to be correct, we’re
getting two versions of Toon Link; one with the Wind Waker accessory and
another one with just his shield as an accessory.
This version of Toon Link with the Wind Waker
was the only version I could find in my city.
Unfortunately World of Nintendo figures are unpredictable and difficult
to find when a new wave is released.
Sometimes certain figures that are abundant in the US, aren’t even
released in Canada. Regardless of that,
I’m just so happy to finally add Toon Link to my collection. The quality of this toy is astonishing
because the only way you can get toys like this now is through importing them
from Japan. So it’s amazing that Jakks
Pacific is delivering this high quality for a reasonable price of $12-$17 in
Canada.
Thursday, June 22, 2017
Nintendo Disappoints me Again
Tomorrow is the release day of the next
installment of the 30th anniversary Zelda amiibo which features 3
different versions of Link which are from Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and Majora's
Mask. For some unknown reason Nintendo
decided to release each amiibo as a store exclusive to EB Games (Twilight
Princess), Best Buy (Majora's Mask) and Amazon (Skyward Sword) here in Canada. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to reserve any of
these amiibo, and most likely won’t be able to buy them. While I was aware of the pre-order dates, I
decided to not pre-order because as a collector I prefer the experience of
entering a store and selecting the best version I want. It’s something I have been doing ever since
the first amiibo released. I never
imagined that Nintendo Canada would make these so limited that they would sell
out on pre-orders. Online they sold out
within minutes, and in-store some stores received between 8-10 figures while
other locations didn’t receive any at all.
I’m now left angry and disappointed by
Nintendo for using these evil marketing strategies to garner hype for its brand. And I do mean hype because it’s not about the
money. If it were about the money, the
NES Classic Edition would have been released in large quantities and made
Nintendo millions. While I’m sure
Nintendo must have some reasoning behind its marketing strategy, I feel like
there are times when intentionally depriving the market of some popular item
can have negative consequences. Beyond disappointing
loyal fans, and leaving profits on the table I feel like it consequently
creates a need for piracy.
As a disappointed Nintendo fan I now
feel justified in looking for NFC enabled amiibo cards. NFC (Near Field Communications) cards are unofficial
Nintendo cards that contain all the data from one particular amiibo figure. You then basically scan the tag on the card
and it works as if it were the original amiibo figure. If you can’t even buy the original figure in
a store, then this is the best option for people who want to enjoy the full
amiibo experience from their Nintendo games.
So this is my only option now, especially because the resell market is
too expensive and profits don’t support Nintendo either. I can imagine this is how people who weren’t
able to get the NES Classic Edition must feel when they resort to getting a NES
Raspberry Pi in order to play those games.
Saturday, June 17, 2017
Tim Hortons Nanaimo Bar Donut
With Canada celebrating its 150th
birthday this year (1867 confederation), Tim Hortons has decided to partake in
the celebration by releasing Canadian food favourites. Of course I was most interested in the
nanaimo bar donut; a delicious brownie-like treat that was invented in Nanaimo,
B.C. The Tim Hortons version is also
delicious and manages to capture the right balance of chocolate and custard.
Nanaimo Bar Wiki: