Coffee With Games

December Brewed! Coffees Consumed, Games Played - Happy New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 23:13:32 PST

Coffee Beans
Happy New Year! December was super busy, with January and the new year in full swing, let's take a quick look at the coffees and Ed Hardy Energy Snacks I consumed, and video games I played in December.

Coffees (and Energy Snacks) Consumed in December
Maxwell House Dark Roast - I believe this was purchased by Mrs. Coffee for us early in December, and was one of the 270 cup coffee containers. It didn't survive through December, but we did enjoy it.
Community Coffee - I consumed several different blends of this during December. We had some Community Coffee Medium Roast at our house, but we also consumed some Community Coffee blends while we were visiting family in Louisiana. Mrs. Coffee's family likes to brew the Community Coffee blends.
Folgers Coffee - This was another coffee blend I consumed when we were visiting family. The Folger Coffees blends are what my mom likes to brew.
Maxwell House Gourmet Roast - This is another big 270 cup coffee container, that was purchased after we arrived back home from Louisiana. We still have a good amount left, and it should last us at least another 2 weeks or so. I think Mrs. Coffee enjoys this blend a good bit, because it's the second time she has purchased it in 2 months.
Trader Joe's WAKE UP Blend - Upon arriving home from Louisiana, we had a lot of packages in the mail. One of the packages was pretty big, and it contained a 28 oz. (1 LB 12 OZ) container of this Trader Joe's WAKE UP Blend Medium Roast coffee. Like in the past, this Trader Joe's coffee blend was mailed to me from fellow reader Charlie, who writes on his own blog at NicodemusAtNite.com. Thank you Charlie!
Ed Hardy Coffee & Chocolate Rocks - What do you do to stay awake while driving through the night? Well, I chose to eat some Ed Hardy Coffee Rocks, and the Chocolate Rocks, to help me stay awake. I found the Ed Hardy Energy Snacks to be great while driving, as I was able to eat a few at a time, without overdoing it. I ate them in moderation, so I would not become super caffeinated and get pulled over for driving 100+ mph, but I was in the driver's seat for about 13 hours with the help of Ed Hardy's Energy Snacks. Not only did I find them useful, but I discovered Mrs. Coffee was sneaking some of them after we made our final stop!

Games Played in December
Super Mario Bros. - I played this random nights in December, as our oldest son plays the "delay fish" game before bed. Basically, the "delay fish" game is where he names everything he can possibly think of to delay going into his room by a few minutes, that I may fall for. Super Mario Bros. is one of those things. I did end up beating Super Mario Bros. in December, when Mrs. Coffee and I had some friends over one night for a Christmas get together. It took me multiple tries, but I eventually made the dash just right, and hit the switch(if you have played it, you know what I'm talking about).
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 - Played some more online, and a bit more of the single-player for a video project (not just the coffee one). Haven't played it since we left before Christmas, and since we made it back. Perhaps a few rounds in a bit to see how it's playing would do well.
Tenchu: Shadow Assassins - A game on my New Year's Video Game resolution list. I had played this on and off, but really started playing it a good bit in December attempting to finish my resolution. Did I finish the game? That's for another post!
New Super Mario Bros. Wii - When Mrs. Coffee and I visited family out of town, one of my friends brought this over to my parents' house and Mrs. Coffee, he, and I played through this in one night. We "completed" the game, by using the canons (he knew where they were), and defeated the final boss in just over 3 hours. I did record a lot of it, but my PC's HDD is almost 100% full, so I'm having to shuffle files around now.
Endless Ocean: Blue World - Another game on my New Year's Video Game resolution list. I had played this almost 2 years ago, but started a completely new file in December so I could try and actually pay attention to the storyline. I have enjoyed my time with the game, actually much moreso than I thought I would. Was I able to reach the end of Endless Ocean: Blue World though? More later!

Filtered Thoughts
Can you all believe another year has already flown by? Crazy. If any of you are wondering, "Coffee, why aren't you posting much right now?" Well, we were out of town for a little over a week, then I was sick. I have been working since we got back also, and now school is starting up.
Also, to add a little more to my craziness, as I mentioned above, my computer's HDD is nearly 100% full (typing this on Mrs. Coffee's laptop actually), and I just installed a new PSU and GPU (Christmas gifts), and am waiting on a DVI to HDMI cable to show up any day now, because the one that came with my PC is AWOL. Once I get my desktop back 100% functioning with the HDD cleared off some, posting should pick back up a bit.

Questions
What coffees did you consume (or other beverages) and games did you play during December?
Also, do any of you have Endless Ocean: Blue World by any chance?

The 2012 Olympics! Mario and Sonic Style

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 23:03:05 PST

Coffee Beans
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games was released in North America on November 15, 2011. The game was developed by Sega Sports in Japan, and it was published by Nintendo in Japan, and Sega in North America and Europe.
The game received an ESRB rating of "Everyone" with "Mild Cartoon Violence" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of. Mario and Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games released with a MSRP of $49.99.

How many hours have Wii owners spent playing the 2012 Olympic Games, just in 2011? Let's take a look!

The Brew
Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games has 7,554 Wii owners that have reported data through the Nintendo Channel, since it released. The game's average play-time per day/session is 2 Hours 45 Minutes.
The game released for both the Wii and Nintendo 3DS, and the Wii version has a "professional" review score average of 68.13%, based on 19 reviews on GameRankings.com.
It currently has a 4.5 out of 5 Stars rating on Amazon.com based on 9 customer reviews, which is equivalent to an 86.67% review score average on a 100% review scale.

Caffeinated Thoughts
I have not played Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, or any of the past games in the series, but I can remember watching my oldest nephew play the Winter Olympics one about a year ago.
Being that Mrs. Coffee and I don't have cable television, I do find it interesting seeing what type of commercials the companies come up with for games, and you can see two slightly different commercials for Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games below:

Seeing the game already have game-play hours show up on the Nintendo Channel I think shows two things:
1) The game is selling decently well, which probably should not be surprising when it has the names Mario and Sonic in its title.
2) The players that own it, are playing it a good amount already. From the reported data so far, Wii owners are playing the game nearly 3 hours each time they sit down to play it.

Questions
Have any of you played Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games on the Wii? If so, what do you think of the game?
If you have played all the games in the "Mario & Sonic" lineup, how does this one compare to the others?

If you are interested in any of the "Mario and Sonic" games, you can see a few on Amazon.com linked below:

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 20:23:56 PST

Just wanted to wish all of you a very merry Christmas! Mrs. Coffee and I, along with our sons, were out of town over the last week, which is the main reason for no posts.
I have a few posts lined up for the next week already, and posting should return to a more "normal" schedule, but until then I hope you all have a great Christmas!

Hot Coffee in Modern Warfare 3? Yes Please!

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 14:46:34 PST

What good are night vision goggles, if your eyes can't stay open to use them?
Order of successful night vision goggles usage: drink coffee, then use night vision goggles.

Coffee Beans
What's more awesome than drinking coffee and playing video games? Drinking coffee, and finding coffee related items/references in video games while playing!
I received Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on the Wii last month, and as I was playing through the game's single-player campaign I recorded a lot of footage from the levels.
I was still early in the campaign, when I ran across something coffee related. What was it? Take a look below.

This is what you survive with.

Caffeinated Thoughts
Modern Warfare 3 is not the first video game I have played to have a coffee item/reference, but it was the first one I can remember having a "Hot Coffee" vending machine in a level, as the image above shows.
If you have played Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, but perhaps missed the "Hot Coffee" vending machine, the video below shows what level I discovered it in, and where:

While I have completed Modern Warfare 3's single-player campaign, this was the only place in the game "coffee" was spelled out that I found, though I may have missed it in other levels.

Question
Have you found any other coffee items/references in Modern Warfare 3, or perhaps a coffee item/reference in another game that really stuck out?

If you are interested in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, you can see prices for it on Amazon.com linked below:

FPS Friday! Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's Hours Report

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 22:45:31 PST

Coffee Beans
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 was released on November 8, 2011 for all the current generation home consoles. The Wii version released at a MSRP of $49.99, and it was developed by Infinity Ward/Sledgehammer Games and ported to the Wii by Treyarch, and it was published by Activision.
The Wii version received an ESRB rating of "Mature" with "Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

How many hours have Wii owners put into Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and does it appear they are playing the game online any? Let's take a look!

The Brew
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has 3,895 Wii owners that have reported data through the Nintendo Channel since it released last month, and the game's average play-time per day/session is 3 Hours 7 Minutes.
The Wii version of Modern Warfare 3 has a "professional" review score average of 70.67%, based on 9 reviews on GameRankings.com.
The game currently has a 4 out of 5 Stars rating on Amazon.com, based on 21 customer reviews. When converted to a 100% review scale, Modern Warfare 3 has an 84.76% review score average from the 21 reviews on Amazon.com.

Recorded December 9, 2011

Caffeinated Thoughts
I have been enjoying my time with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on the Wii, and if you aren't aware, the Wii version has been patched not once, but twice now; and they even did some behind the scene "fixes" that didn't require a download.
I finished the single-player campaign in roughly 6 hours, and have spent about another 2 hours going back and playing through some of the levels again. Based on the reported hours, I definitely think Wii owners are playing the game's online multiplayer.
The video below shows off the first few minutes of one of my multiplayer matches after the second patch was released for the game. If you're wondering, the results in the video were based off of luck, not skills:

Seeing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 debut already I think continues to show there is a market for FPS games on the Wii, and specifically FPS games with online multiplayer even given the Wii's online use of "friend codes".

Questions
Have any of you been playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3? If so, which version have you been playing?

If any of you are interested in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, you can see the PS3, Wii, and 360 versions on Amazon.com linked below:

More Money for Coffee! UPDATED Amazon.com & Best Buy Deals, Now GameStop Also

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 09:42:06 PST

Coffee Beans
We love coffee around here, and we also enjoy video games. What happens when video games go on sale? Well, that means you can buy video games at discounted rates, and save more money for coffee! More games = win. More coffee = win!
Amazon.com is currently running a great "Buy One, Get One 50% Off" video game sale and the image above shows where to look for it at the link, and BestBuy.com is running a Buy any Two Games Priced $29.99 or More, Get a Third Select Game Free. sale for a limited time (thanks superphillip for the reminder!). GameStop just sent out an email announcing their Buy 2 used games, get 1 free at GameStop.com
sale happening through Sunday. Take a look!

The Brew
Over 1,000 video games and accessories are currently part of Amazon.com's deal! Every current console is covered: Wii, Xbox 360, PS3, DS, 3DS, and PSP.
The video games available include recently released titles like Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Uncharted 3: Drakes Deception, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 for the Wii, and many more.
So, if you are video game shopping for Christmas, or just in general, you probably want to head HERE, and start browsing the selection while the sale is still happening! And there's more...

Amazon.com is also currently running a "19 Days of Deals in Video Games", where each day new video game deals are posted. You can see the current days deals for this sale HERE.

BestBuy.com's Buy any Two Games Priced $29.99 or More, Get a Third Select Game Free., sale on video games over $29.99 is lasting through the end of the week, and the image below shows the tab to look for at the link above:

A Few Other Current Amazon.com Deals
GoldenEye 007 (Wii) for $14.50(Save 52%, Ships Free on Orders Over $25)
Just Dance 3 (Wii) for $29.99(Save 25%, Ships Free)
NBA 2K12 (360) for $39.99(Save 33%, Ships Free)
Reserve the PlayStation Vita First Edition Bundle now for $349.99(Releases on February 15, 2012)
Resistance 3 for $29.99(Save 50%, Ships Free)
uDraw Gametablet with uDraw Studio (360) for $49.96(Save 38%, Ships Free)
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception for $39.99(Save 33%, Ships Free)

Questions/Thought
Have any of you seen recent video game sales that were just too good to pass up? If so, were the sales online or in a store, and what games did you pick up?
For me, Best Buy recently had Metroid: Other M on sale for only $5. I quickly forwarded the link to Mrs. Coffee, as I'm trying to stick with my New Year's video game resolution of not purchasing any video games until I finish my backlog, or the year is up.

Ape & Monkey Together = Awesome Game! A Year's Worth of Donkey Kong Country Returns

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 13:32:40 PST

Coffee Beans
Donkey Kong Country Returns was released on November 21, 2010 at a MSRP of $49.99. The game was developed by Retro Studios, and published by Nintendo. It received an ESRB rating of "Everyone", with "Mild Cartoon Violence" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

How many hours have Wii owners spent hoarding bananas over the last year in Donkey Kong Country Returns? Let's take a look!

The Brew
Donkey Kong Country Returns now has 259,963 Wii owners that have reported data through the Nintendo Channel with 372 days possibly reported. The game has seen approximately 249,460 more Wii owners report data through the Nintendo Channel, compared to the number on its debut from December last year.
DKCR has almost 5 million "Total Hours" of gameplay reported in just over a year, and the game's average play-time per day/session is now 1 Hour 50 Minutes.
DKCR's "professional" review score average is now 87.79%, based on 53 reviews on GameRankings.com. The game still has 4.5 out of 5 Stars rating on Amazon.com, but now it is based on 306 customer reviews.

Caffeinated Thoughts
Mrs. Coffee and I beat Donkey Kong Country Returns together earlier this year, but we haven't really played it since. As a matter of fact, it is not currently in our game "collection", as we traded our neighbors it back in July in exchange for Kirby's Epic Yarn and Wii Sports Resort. Before we traded off Donkey Kong Country Returns though, how many hours did we put into the game?

Our 65 hours reported are nearly all of just the two of us playing through the game together, with maybe an hour or two of the total being from us playing our own files in the game.
If you have played Donkey Kong Country Returns cooperatively, you can probably relate to the frustration from the infuriatingly awesome level designs when trying to survive through a level with another player.
Somehow, Mrs. Coffee and I survived the entire game together though, and we may have to give it another run in the future. Below is a video of Mrs. Coffee and me playing through DKCR's World 5's, Level 5-K Blast and Bounce. SPOILER WARNING - If you don't want to see where at least one hidden puzzle piece is, don't watch the video; but if you want to see us attempt a level together, just click play! I play as Donkey Kong, she plays as Diddy Kong:

Donkey Kong Country Returns' first year of reported data places it behind Mario's games, but ahead of Kirby. Seeing the play-time that Mrs. Coffee and I reported, over 60 hours, compared to the average reported on the Nintendo Channel being under 20 hours, is really surprising to me. It makes me wonder if perhaps Donkey Kong Country Returns is so much of a challenge, that many of the players aren't finishing it?
I think DKCR is an excellent Wii game, and an excellent cooperative 2D side-scrolling platforming title in general. I really hope that Nintendo announces very soon Donkey Kong Country Returns is becoming a Nintendo Selects title so many more Wii owners can experience it.
If you are looking for a new Wii game for Christmas that you can play with just one other person locally, I can recommend Donkey Kong Country Returns.

Questions
Have any of you recently acquired and/or been playing through Donkey Kong Country Returns? If so, have any of you completed the game 100% cooperatively and, have you or anybody know you completed everything in the game, "Time Trials" and all?
If you don't own Donkey Kong Country Returns is it on your Christmas list, or would you purchase it almost immediately if it became a Nintendo Selects title with a MSRP of only $19.99?

If any of you are interested in Donkey Kong Country Returns, you can see prices for it and some Donkey Kong toys on Amazon.com linked below:

Dance Fever is Contagious! Just Dance 3 Report

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 23:11:47 PST

Coffee Beans
Just Dance 3 was released on October 7, 2011, and it was the first game in the Just Dance series to be a multi-console release.
Just Dance 3 was developed by Ubisoft Paris, and of course published by Ubisoft.
The game received an ESRB rating of "Everyone 10+" with "Lyrics" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

Just how much have Wii owners been dancing with Just Dance 3, and how well does the game appear to be selling? Let's take a look!

How many hours have you been dancing?

The Brew
Just Dance 3 has 10,847 Wii owners that have reported game-play data, and the game's average play-time per day/session is 1 Hour 32 Minutes. The average play-time per day/session simply means that each time Wii owners are firing up Just Dance 3, they are dancing for an hour and a half on average.

Just how well has Just Dance 3 been selling though? I think the image below should put to rest any doubt the series is doing extremely well for Ubisoft, and I believe we will see Just Dance 4 in 2012:

I wonder what the ROI is for the games shown?

As the image above shows, Just Dance 3 on the Wii has been ranked #1 on Amazon.com for at least the last three days, every time I have checked Amazon.com's "Top 100 Video Games" list. I really think this should put to rest any/all doubts that third parties can find success on the Wii. Just Dance 3 has been outselling Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and many other games on Amazon.com, that I wouldn't have expected it to at this point.

Caffeinated Thoughts
Here's something fun from my caffeinated thoughts, be the first U.S. resident to email me(Scott@CoffeeWithGames.com) Just Dance 3's Wii's "professional" review score average/percentage on GameRankings.com, for example is it 65.00% or maybe 100.00%, and I will mail you one package of Ed Hardy Energy Sticks to help keep you dancing/gaming through the night! When you email me the "professional" review score average, I will update "The Brew" section with the "professional" and customer review scores as I normally show them in other posts.
I have not played any of the Just Dance games, but after watching trailers/videos for many of the games, I can see the appeal. If you have not seen Just Dance 3's debut trailer, take a look at the video below:

If you missed it, go back and watch the kid dancing around the .15 second mark. I still LOL at him, the poor guy!
As for the data, Just Dance 3's data debuted in 52 days, which is slightly longer than Just Dance 2's data did last year; but I think it's impressive considering the game is available on more than just the Wii.

While Just Dance 3 isn't on my Christmas list (yet), as I mentioned above, I definitely can see how people enjoy this game and the fact that it is once again selling, apparently, extremely well, I think speaks volumes for how much fun people are having with the game/series.

Questions
Have any of you been playing Just Dance 3, or have it on your Christmas list? If you have been playing Just Dance 3, do you think it is the best Just Dance game to be released?
Is it your first game in the Just Dance series, or have you been a fan of the series since the original Just Dance, and you played them all so far?

If any of you are interested in Just Dance 3 you can see the console versions on Amazon.com linked below:

November Brewed! Coffees Consumed, Games Played

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 18:42:07 PST

Coffee Beans
First, if you are the proud owner of a 2011 Club Nintendo Original Calendar, don't forget to change your month to December!

Now, November was a great month! Not only was it Thanksgiving, and we have a lot to be thankful for, but we also had a family member visit us for a week. I was able to play a good bit of games, and consume coffee and caffeinated products throughout November. So, without further delay, let's take a look at the games I played and the coffees I consumed in November!

Coffees & Caffeinated Products Consumed in November
Community Coffee Medium Roast - This was a bag I discovered buried in our pantry. Now, when was this first consumed by us, and how long had it been hiding in our cabinet waiting for discovery? 4 MONTHS! Mrs. Coffee's mom brought this up when she visited us in July, and it had somehow gotten stowed away in the back of the pantry. We finished the rest in November though, so no more Community Coffee, at least probably not until later this month...
Folgers Black Silk Coffee - This was one of my birthday gifts in October from my wife, and we finished the container in November. I enjoyed it while it lasted, which sadly wasn't very long.
Chick-Fil-A Coffee - More random cups during work days when I would get off. As usual, I would grab a cup when heading out the door to drink on the way home.
Yuban Original Coffee - This was another birthday gift from Mrs. Coffee for me, but I had held off on opening it until some of the other blends were finished. We not only opened the Yuban blend in November, we also finished it! We went through a lot of containers in November. I enjoyed the blend, and thought it had a good strong flavor.
Maxwell House Gourmet Roast - This was a big 270(maybe 240) cup container Mrs. Coffee purchased for us in November, but we finished it about midway through the month. It was a new coffee blend by Maxwell House that I don't think she had seen at the store before, so she decided to give it a try, and we both enjoyed it as a daily brew.
Trader Joe's Joe's Dark Coffee - Remember Charlie from NicodemusAtNite.com? He sent me this container in August, and I had some of this still stowed away in the cabinet, but like the Yuban, Folgers, Community, and Maxwell House blends, we finished off the remaining bit of Joe's Dark Coffee in November as well.
Starbucks House Blend - I purchased one cup of Starbucks House Blend during the month, when I needed to use their WiFi to locate a post office. I'm one of those people that feels like if I use their "free" WiFi, I should at least support the business with a purchase of some sort. So, a cup of coffee it was!
Variety of Ed Hardy Energy Snacks - I'm still eating a few of the Ed Hardy Energy Snacks, all in moderation (sort of!). The Coffee Rocks get consumed more than the other Ed Hardy Energy Snacks, but I'm finding their use very good. If I forget/don't get my coffee at Chick-Fil-A, I'll usually chew up five of the Coffee Rocks when I get in, to help give me a slight boost of energy, so I don't pass-out!

Games Played in November
Super Mario Bros. - Playing this game is becoming almost a nightly occurrence now. Our oldest little bean requests "Mario!" right before bed, basically as a delay tactic, but I usually give in and allow him to hop around. He has now progressed a little, and can actually walk and jump...and survives jumping over Goombas, which always surprises me. He doesn't quite understand how to press "2" hard enough for the higher jumps, so getting over pipes and higher blocks are difficult for him, but he still loves hopping around and the words "Mario epic fail!" are still said occasionally.
Chess - I played a few matches of chess early in November, but not many after the beginning of the month. I still enjoy the games though, and will probably play some later this month.
Tenchu: Shadow Assassins - I have been playing this one for more consistently since October. I think I'm at least half-way through it, but not really sure because I'm not sure how long these games typically are. The quick-time events are still fun, though a bit more variety with them would be nice this far into the game.
PAYDAY: The Heist - This was the FPS released in October on the PlayStation Network, for the PS3. I have enjoyed my time with the game, and have almost finished the main campaign, which is relatively short, but I'm still finding it enjoyable and polished for a downloadable FPS. I have a video project I have had "in the works" for a bit now on this one, hopefully it will see the light of day!
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 - I completed the single-player campaign in the game on November 20, and I enjoyed my time with it. I can even see myself playing it again, and trying to find certain items that are scattered around the levels. The game's online multiplayer has been patched twice already, and the last time I played it, it seemed to be running pretty well.
Wii Sports Resort - The biggest surprise of the month, would be this game. My father-in-law visited us early in November, and he was here for a week. He mentioned how he had played a game on the Wii, that one of Mrs. Coffee's brothers had. He described it, and it sounded like Wii Sports Resort, and interestingly enough, we had it in our collection. Why is it interesting? Well, we don't own Wii Sports Resort, but we had borrowed it from our neighbors way back in July, and NEVER PLAYED THE GAME. When he mentioned it though, I broke it out along with the Wii MotionPlus unit, and that resulted in hours upon hours of bowling and frisbee each night. The verdict? My father-in-law is amazingly good at bowling and the frisbee games, and I didn't/haven't beat his high scores yet.

Filtered Thoughts
I consumed seven different coffee blends in November, and we finished off five different coffee blends we had in the house during November. You should be expecting a game-play video from Wii Sports Resort later this month, and also a video of PAYDAY: The Heist. I'm also working on a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 video, but this one may take a bit longer because of what I'm HOPING to show with it.
Also, we have had a bit of a coffee emergency the last 2 days, we are out of coffee! I know, how does "Mr. Coffee" run out of coffee? Well, luckily I found another hidden stash in the cabinet, that lasted through this morning with rationings being divided between me and Mrs. Coffee. She is actually at the store right now as I'm typing this, getting more coffee (and supposedly those other important food items).

As for the games I played, if you own a PS3 and are looking for a unique take on the FPS genre, I recommend giving PAYDAY: The Heist a try, and it's also available through Steam as well. If you enjoy the FPS genre and own a Wii, you would probably find Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 enjoyable, and I'll be sharing more thoughts on the game throughout December.

Question
What games did you play, and coffees (or other drinks) did you consume during November?

Kaos! Skylanders Spyro's Adventure Hours Debut

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 22:55:31 PST

Coffee Beans
Skylanders Spyro's Adventure was released on October 16, 2011 for the Wii, as well as the PS3, Xbox 360, 3DS, and PC. The game released in a "Starter Pack" with a MSRP of $69.99.
The console version was developed by Toys For Bob, and published by Activision. It received an ESRB rating of "Everyone 10+" with "Cartoon Violence" listed as the only content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

Does it appear Wii owners are enjoying Skylanders Spyro's Adventure, and how many gameplay hours have they reported? Let's take a look!

The Brew
Skylanders Spyro's Adventure has 2,496 Wii owners that have reported game-play data through Wii's Nintendo Channel with 43 days possibly reported, and the game's average play-time per day/session reported is 2 Hours 38 Minutes.
The Wii version of SSA has a "professional" review score average of 80.22%, based on 9 reviews on GameRankings.com. The game has a 4.5 out of 5 Stars rating on Amazon.com, based on 43 customer reviews.

Captured December 1, 2011

Caffeinated Thoughts
I remember seeing initial coverage for Skylanders Spyro's Adventure and thinking that it was a very unique idea for a game. If you have not seen the idea behind the game, the video below will give a decent idea:

Basically, now you can literally "play" with toys in a video game. I honestly can see this continuing to be a success with proper marketing, and perhaps expanding to other toys.
Seeing Skylanders Spyro's Adventure average hours "Per person" being more than 20 hours on its debut is extremely impressive, and shows the audience playing this "game" seems to really be enjoying it, as I believe the Amazon.com customer reviews testify as well.

I have never played a Spyro game, but I am definitely interested to see how this game continues to do. Mrs. Coffee watched the trailer as I was downloading it, and when she realized what it was she said, "Oh no, that game used to make me sick!" Now, I don't know which older Spyro game she played, but the flying/gliding/free camera movement aspect is what made her sick. Hopefully though, that would not be such an issue with this game, as she could choose which character(s) to play with.

Questions
Have any of you been playing Skylanders Spyro's Adventure? If so, what do you think of the game, good or bad? If you haven't played Skylanders Spyro's Adventure, were you a fan of the older Spyro games?

If any of you are interested in Skylanders Spyro's Adventure, you can see the Starter Pack of each console version on Amazon.com below:

Modern Warfare 3 Wii Patched, Again! Patch Size & Details

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 21:39:46 PST

Not the patch you were expecting?

Coffee Beans
Modern Warfare 3 has been out less than a month, and Infinity Ward/Treyarch have been busy trying to make sure the game is running well for all console owners. Last week I posted how Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 had been patched on the Wii, and the first patch addressed two major issues players were experiencing: corrupt save files and lag shooting.

Well, Activision/Infinity Ward/Treyarch just released another patch for Modern Warfare 3 on the Wii. How big is the patch, and exactly what "major fixes" does this Wii patch address? Take a look!

Patch size.

Major fixes

The Brew
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's latest Wii patch only requires 6 blocks of room, now making the required space for the two Modern Warfare 3 Wii patches 46 total blocks.
This patch addresses four main/major problems, with the "Major Fixes" being:

"MP - Major optimization work to improve host frame-rate issues ("host-lag")"
"Spec Ops - Major optimization improvement to help with reports of spec ops 'rubberbanding/lag'"
"Session Host Migration Fixes"
"Added 'Add Friend' option in the multiplayer shell when selecting a player's playercard"

Overall, with the "Major Fixes" and the "Other Fixes" this MW3 Wii patch is supposed to address/fix 25 issues with the game's online multiplayer and Spec Ops modes. The "Other Fixes" from this patch can also be seen in the image below:

"Other Fixes"

Caffeinated Thoughts

I am very encouraged to see Modern Warfare 3 on the Wii getting patched, and not ignored. The fact that Activision is allowing Infinity Ward/Treyach time to work on patches for the Wii version, I think shows great respect to Wii owners that purchased the game. Not only will the game hopefully continue to improve with each patch, but hopefully word-of-mouth will spread that Activision is not ignoring the Wii version, allowing Modern Warfare 3's Wii online community to grow stronger.

After I downloaded the patch earlier this evening, I hopped online for one quick match to see if I noticed anything drastically different. I thought it was running a lot smoother than normal (normal with Netflix streaming in another room), and the video below shows off the first few minutes of the match:

My online friend code for Modern Warfare 3 is 0359-9573-5494. If you add me, feel free to leave your ally code in the comments below, or by emailing it to me at Scott@CoffeeWithGames.com.

Questions
Have any of you been playing Modern Warfare 3 on the Wii? If so, have you downloaded both patches for the game, and noticed an improvement in performance?

If you are interested in Modern Warfare 3, you can see prices for the console versions on Amazon.com below:

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Flies Onto the Scene! Debut Hours Report

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 17:59:49 PST

Coffee Beans
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword was just released for the Wii on November 20, 2011. The game was developed by Nintendo's EAD studio, and it was of course published by Nintendo.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is the Wii's first exclusive Zelda title for the system, as Twilight Princess was also available and basically developed for the GameCube, and Skyward Sword received an ESRB rating of "Everyone 10+" with "Animated Blood, Comic Mischief, Fantasy Violence" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

How many hours have Wii owners reported playing The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword since it released? Let's take a look!

The Brew
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword already has 10,489 Wii owners that have reported game-play data through the Nintendo Channel, with only 8 days possibly reported.
Skyward Sword's average play-time per day/session played is currently 3 Hours 44 Minutes!
Nintendo published/distributed two versions of the game. One version was the software only version with , which has a MSRP of $49.99, the other version was bundled with a special/limited edition Gold Wii Remote Plus with Triforce Symbol with a MSRP of $69.99.

Caffeinated Thoughts
For Skyward Sword to debut on the Nintendo Channel only 8 days after its release is super fast, like other Nintendo first party titles, as most Wii games take at least a full 2 weeks to appear, if not much longer.
If you do not have cable television, you may not be familiar with how Nintendo has been advertising the game. The video below is one commercial Nintendo has been running to help let Wii owners know that The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is now available:

I think it will be very interesting to see how The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's hours continue to increase, and where the average hours "Per person" end up in a few months.
Seeing Skyward Sword's average play-time hours per day/session reported played at nearly 4 hours makes me think the average hours "Per person" will increase pretty significantly each week over the next 2 months, as more Wii owners get the game and play it through to completion, and then perhaps as sales slow down for the title after the Christmas holiday.

I have not played The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and I am currently debating on whether to add it to my Christmas list or not, based on the fact that I only played through Twilight Princess once. If I do end up with the game though, I will definitely share my thoughts on it.

Questions
Have any of you been playing The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword? If so, what do you think of the game from what you have played? Was it worth the wait?
If you have already completed it, do you see yourself playing through the game many times, or is once enough?

If you are interested in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, you can see both versions of the game on Amazon.com linked below, as well as a hat you can wear to make you feel even more like Link when playing the game!

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess' Half a Decade of Hours

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 20:57:25 PST

Coffee Beans
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was released on November 19, 2006. It was developed at Nintendo's EAD studio, and published by Nintendo for both the GameCube and Wii.
The game received an ESRB rating of "Teen" with "Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

It has been half a decade since The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was released on the Wii, and exactly how many hours have Wii owners reported playing Twilight Princess with 1,828 days possibly reported? Let's take a look!

The Brew
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess now has 1,296,257 Wii owners that have reported game-play data through the Nintendo Channel, which is an increase of 74,354 more Wii owners that have reported data since May 16th this year.
Twilight Princess' average play-time per day/session reported is 2 Hours 21 Minutes, and the game has increased by 3,933,722 "Total Hours" reported in the last 6 months.
As I reported on earlier this year, Twilight Princess released with a MSRP of $49.99 and remained at that MSRP for basically 4.5 years. If you are just getting a Wii system, or know somebody that is getting one as a Christmas gift you can now find The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for under $20, at its new MSRP of $19.99.

Caffeinated Thoughts
I believe The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess helped give the Wii system a great kickoff, and as the reported data shows (at least in the United States) Wii owners have gotten many hours of enjoyment out of the game. In just the last half decade since the game released, Wii owners in the United States have reported "Total Hours" which are equivalent to 7,156 years of straight game-play!
If you have never seen what The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess looks like, below is a trailer to give you an idea:

Questions
Have any of you purchased and played Twilight Princess in the last 6 months since it had the price drop? If so, what do you think about the game?
If you have not played The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, do you perhaps have it on your Christmas list?

If you are interested in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and the Zelda universe in general, check out the items on Amazon.com linked below:

New Super Mario Bros. Wii Turns Two! Hours in the 2D Mushroom Kingdom

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 20:26:18 PST

Coffee Beans
New Super Mario Bros. Wii has turned two!
New Super Mario Bros. Wii was released on November 15, 2009. It was developed by Nintendo's EAD studio, and published by Nintendo.
The game received an ESRB rating of "Everyone" with "Comic Mischief" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

How many hours have Wii owners spent playing New Super Mario Bros. Wii over the last 2 years, with 736 days possibly reported? Let's take a look!

The Brew
New Super Mario Bros. Wii now has 1,442,116 Wii owners that have reported data through the Nintendo Channel, which is an increase of 620,982 more Wii owners having reported data since November 15, 2010.
The game's average play-time per day/session reported is 1 Hour 50 Minutes.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii released at a MSRP of $49.99, and it's one of the tougher Wii games to actually find on sale, even now 2 years after its release! Nintendo is now bundling the game with the "newer" modeled Wii, but for current Wii owners finding only NSMBW for under $40 is difficult.

Caffeinated Thoughts
On November 15, 2010 NSMBW had 30,885,215 "Total Hours", and seeing New Super Mario Bros. Wii now with 65,052,569 "Total Hours" reported I think is incredible because the game has doubled in "Total Hours" reported since last November.
Being that Mrs. Coffee and I don't have cable television of any sort, I don't know if Nintendo has been advertising New Super Mario Bros. Wii any throughout the last year, or if it has simply been by word-of-mouth. If you never saw how Nintendo, at least initially, advertised for the game, below is a compilation video showing two commercials Nintendo put together for New Super Mario Bros. Wii when it released:

The last time I played New Super Mario Bros. Wii was in August this year, when Mrs. Coffee and I started a completely new save file in the game, and started our first 4-player attempt through the game with our neighbors. While we made good progress the first night, we haven't been back to it since, so we are due another New Super Mario Bros. Wii appointment!
Our current "Total Hours" played as shown on the Nintendo Channel can be seen below:

While my wife and I played through the game completely together, and we both started our own separate save files, neither one of us completed the game just by ourselves. I think this may show the magic that is in New Super Mario Bros. Wii's cooperative mode!
As I mentioned above, the game is hard to find on sale for under $40, but hopefully Nintendo will add it to the Nintendo Selects lineup in the near future, so many more millions of Wii owners can enjoy it!

Questions
Have any of you been playing New Super Mario Bros. Wii recently? Also, if any of you have played the game cooperatively, did you play and beat every single level in the game with 4-players?
If you haven't played New Super Mario Bros. Wii and haven't purchased it, would a price drop down to $20 get you to buy the game?

If any of you are interested in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, you can see prices for it on Amazon.com below:

Black Friday Black Ops! Becoming the Wii's most played FPS in only a year

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 21:21:43 PST

Coffee Beans
Earlier this week we looked at the Wii's most played FPS game according to the "Total Hours" played, as reported through the Nintendo Channel; you can read that report HERE.
This FPS Black Friday report though, takes a look at the reported game-play data for Call of Duty: Black Ops over the last year.

Call of Duty: Black Ops was released on November 9, 2010. It was developed by Treyarch, as was World at War, and published by Activision.
The game received a "Mature" rating from the ESRB with "Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

While Black Ops does not have the most "Total Hours" reported, it has become the Wii's most played FPS game "Per person" according to reported data.
How many hours have Wii owners spent playing Call of Duty: Black Ops over the last year, with 377 days possibly reported? Let's take a look!

The Brew
Call of Duty: Black Ops now has 134,161 Wii owners that have reported game-play hours through the Nintendo Channel, which is an increase of 25,176 Wii owners having reported data since August of this year.
Black Ops' average play-time per day/session reported for Wii owners is now 2 Hours 44 Minutes. This simply means that each day/session Wii owners are sitting down to play Call of Duty: Black Ops, they are investing nearly three hours of their time in the game.
The 10,511,714 "Total Hours" reported is equivalent to playing the game for 1,199 years. Nonstop, FPS action, 24/7/365 for basically 1,200 years. Do we have any volunteers?
The Wii version of Black Ops released with a MSRP of $49.99, but can be found on sale at different retailers depending when you look.

Caffeinated Thoughts
I completed the single-player campaign in Black Ops earlier this year, as part of my New Year's video game resolution, but I haven't really played the game since. Like each Call of Duty game released for the last several years, Black Ops is still selling well considering it was released over a year ago.
If you don't know a lot about the Call of Duty games, and how they are marketed, below is a video that Activision and Treyarch released helping advertise Black Ops before it came out last year:

As for the reported data, seeing Call of Duty: Black Ops with more than 10 million "Total Hours" reported in just a year, I believe is absolutely incredible for a Wii FPS. Black Ops already has 2/3rds of the "Total Hours" reported that Call of Duty: World at War has on the Wii, and World at War had a 2 year head-start.
Not only do the reported 78 Hours 21 Minutes "Per person" make Black Ops the most played Wii FPS per person and/or Wii console, but those hours put Black Ops in the Top 10 "most played" Wii games "Per person" as well. Again, this has happened in only a year.
If Call of Duty: World at War's and Call of Duty: Black Ops' reported game-play hours don't show third party developers that the Wii has a FPS audience, and one that really enjoys the genre, I don't know what will at this point.

Questions
Do any of you play Call of Duty: Black Ops on a regular basis? If so, which version do you play?
If you are playing the Wii version, have you enjoyed the Zombie mode in the online multiplayer?

If any of you are interested in Black Ops, you can see prices for the PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii versions on Amazon.com linked below:

2011's Video Game Turkey Award!

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 20:54:46 PST

Coffee Beans
What do Bobby Kotick and Michael Pachter have in common? They received CoffeeWithGames' Video Game Turkey Award in 2009 and 2010, respectively.
The Video Game Turkey Award goes to either a video game company, and/or a person within the video game industry that through actions or words caused uproars in the video game community during the last year; and in return the company/person was roasted/baked/fried like a good turkey by the video game community.
A lot has happened in the video game world in 2011, but did Bobby Kotick or Michael Pachter receive the Video Game Turkey Award again? Take a look and see which video game company/person receives the 2011 Video Game Turkey Award!

The Brew
Reggie Fils-Aime, and Nintendo in general, receive the 2011 Video Game Turkey Award! Why do they receive the Video Game Turkey Award? Here's are the reasons, separated in bullet points:

Nintendo released the new 3DS system and drastically dropped its price within months. The 3DS price dropped from $249.99, down to $169.99 in North America, and though Nintendo did the 3DS Ambassador program to alleviate people's anger/concern, many people felt burned by the price drop.
Nintendo released the 3DS without all its features fully functional: no web browser, no 3DS eShop, no effective communication with friends, etc. Why would a company release a system without having all its features fully functioning? I still have no idea.
Nintendo failed to see the usefulness of a second circle pad with the initial 3DS' design, and then it was leaked within months of the system's release that a separate 3DS Circle Pad attachment would be coming out for the system, sold separately of course. This rumor/leak made many people wonder if an imminent 3DS redesign would be announced, something that I think will happen in early 2012.
Reggie's apparent failure to lead Nintendo of America by having very few first-party Nintendo titles for the Wii in 2011, lead to the Operation Rainfall effort. For me, this is why Reggie gets the 2011 Video Game Turkey Award. I know many Nintendo fans like Reggie, but I think he failed Wii owners and Nintendo fans in 2011 by not bringing either Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story, or Pandoras Tower to the States; just one of those titles would have been nice. This wasn't the first time Reggie and Nintendo of America failed to bring fully developed Wii game to the States though, as Disaster: Day of Crisis still has not been released for us, but it has been out for a few years now in Japan and Europe. The failure of Reggie Fils-Aime and Nintendo to support the North American Wii in 2011, with games that were already developed, makes me wonder what/if any pull Reggie actually has in decision making.

While I have many more areas I could mention(Wii U), for me the 3DS' rough start, and Reggie's and/or Nintendo's failure in bringing fully developed games to the Wii in North America, caused them to get baked/fried/roasted in 2011, and I believe most of it was absolutely deserved.

If you are interested in trying to get Reggie and Nintendo of America to bring Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story, and/or Pandora's Tower to North America, you can learn more about the ongoing effort at OpRainfall.Blogspot.com.

I personally think that North American Wii owners will probably get Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story, and perhaps Pandora's Tower in 2012, but then again I have been looking for Disaster: Day of Crisis for a while now.

Questions

Do you agree with my 2011 Video Game Turkey Award? If not, what company/person would you give the award?

Also, do you think, like I do, that the main three Operation Rainfall games are likely to see a North American release in 2012?

Happy Thanksgiving!

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 16:24:43 PST

Our fridge stuffed with Thanksgiving dinner!

Coffee Beans
Happy Thanksgiving! The day has been pretty relaxing so far. It started off with a few cups of Yuban coffee this morning, followed by some great eating. Mrs. Coffee cooked us some great food earlier today, the dishes were:
1) Turkey
2) Cornbread dressing
3) Eggplant, zucchini casserole
4) Baked macaroni and cheese
5) Cranberry sauce
6) Rolls
7) Apple pie

After eating, our oldest son and I went into our backyard for almost an hour, and he ran around collecting rocks from one side of the yard, and throwing them to the other side. He even created "rock slides", by picking some up and dropping them down his slide. A new meaning to the term, "rock slide".
Soon it was his nap time, and I followed his example by passing out for about an hour.
I just made another pot of Yuban coffee, and am enjoying my first cup as I type this. Later tonight will be some video game play-time, then bed, before heading into the crazy work world tomorrow!

I hope you all have had a great Thanksgiving, and just a great day in general, and hopefully you all have been able to find some time to relax today. Do any of you plan on leaving soon, or perhaps you already have, to go shopping for some deals?

GameStop's - Buy 2 Used, Get 1 Free Sale!

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 23:28:44 PST

Coffee Beans
This is one of GameStop's occasional video game sales that I wish I could take advantage of. GameStop stores and GameStop.com are running a "Buy 2, Get 1 Free" sale "on all in-stock pre-owned products". The sale is happening right now, Thanksgiving Day(Happy Thanksgiving!), through this Sunday, November 27.
The sale includes pre-owned games for the 3DS, DS, PS3, PSP, Wii, and Xbox 360 systems. If you see any games worth grabbing that you think are too great to pass up, leave a comment letting us know(causing me further torture, because I will resist).

You can browse the online selection of games they are offering, HERE, Buy any 2 pre-owned games get 1 free at GameStop.com!

The Wii's Most Played FPS by "Total Hours" Is?

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:44:49 PST

The Roast
According to one "professional" reviewer for Modern Warfare 3 on the Wii, "The words 'Wii' and 'online multiplayer' aren't used in the same sentence very often...".
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 released 2 weeks ago, and I have been playing it a good bit since I received it.
The Wii has single-player focused FPS games like Metroid Prime 3: Corruption which lack multiplayer of any sort, and the more online multiplayer focused FPS games like the Call of Duty games. While the Wii may not have as many FPS games as the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, it has had at least one FPS released every year with online multiplayer since 2007.

What is the most played Wii FPS according to "Total Hours" played, as reported through the Nintendo Channel, and does it have online multiplayer? Can you guess it before seeing the answer? Let's take a look!

Coffee Beans
Call of Duty: World at War is the Wii's most played FPS game, according to the "Total Hours" reported on the Nintendo Channel. World at War was released on November 11, 2008 for the Nintendo Wii and was the first Call of Duty Wii game to have online multiplayer.
The game was developed by Treyarch, and published by Activision. It received an ESRB rating of "Mature" with "Blood, Strong Language, Violence" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of. World at War does have a "content filter" that allows players to have certain violent scenes and some language removed from the single-player campaign, if they wish to enjoy it without all the "Mature" content.
The data displayed in the image below is for game-play hours reported from Wii owners, again through the Nintendo Channel, over the last 3 years; with 1,105 days possibly reported.

The Brew
Call of Duty: World at War now has 301,334 Wii owners that have reported data through the Nintendo Channel over the last 3 years.
Wii owners playing World at War have averaged 2 Hours 5 Minutes for each session/day they sit down and play the game. The nearly 15 million "Total Hours" of game-play reported are equivalent to over 1,700 continuous years of game time. That's 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year for 1,711 years of nonstop FPS action.
While World at War released with a MSRP of $49.99, you can now find the game on Amazon.com for under $30 HERE, and GameStop.com for under $20 HERE.

Caffeinated Thoughts
To quote IGN's Modern Warfare 3 Wii reviewer again, "The words 'Wii' and 'online multiplayer' aren't used in the same sentence very often...". While that quote is perhaps true of general video game sites like IGN, I think it's only from the lack of understanding that there is a Wii FPS audience, and one that enjoys the FPS genre very much.
If you are a new Wii owner and perhaps looking for a first-person shooter with a World War II settting, I would suggest Call of Duty: World at War. I have played through the game's single-player campaign twice, beating it once on Veteran; and I enjoyed the story very much. Below is a brief trailer for World at War that shows how Activision marketed the game:

I haven't attempted to play the game's online multiplayer in quite some time, but for me it was the "meat" of the game. I spent many months playing the online multiplayer, and I really, really, really....really enjoyed it, and because of the online multiplayer, World at War became my most played Wii game. You can see my "Total Hours" spent in Call of Duty: World at War on the Wii below:

While the image above shows my reported play-time with the Wii version, it doesn't show the many hours I spent playing World at War on the PS3 with my friend Keith, from RespawnAction.com. The Wii version lacked the multiplayer Zombie mode, and you can read how I came to own the PS3 version of the game HERE, if you missed it.

Questions
Have any of you played any version of Call of Duty: World at War? If so, did you enjoy the game and do you perhaps still find yourself playing it?
Are any of your surprised that World at War is the most played Wii FPS by Total Hours, or did you guess it before even seeing it?

You can see prices for the PS3, Wii, and Xbox 360 versions of the game on Amazon.com linked below:

Modern Warfare 3 Wii Patched - Issues Addressed, Patch Size

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:47:04 PST

This guy's arm is going to need a patch!

Coffee Beans
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 released 2 weeks ago, and as with many new games released these days there have been some bugs reported in the game.

Some Wii owners were reportedly experiencing a severe online multiplayer bug, where their Wii system would freeze, and the Wii owner would have to erase the Modern Warfare 3 save file and start completely over. They could be completely leveled up in online, and have no choice but to erase the corrupt file and start over.
I had played about an hour of online multiplayer when I saw reports from different Wii owners about the freeze/memory lose issue, so I decided to finish the game's single-player campaign first and hoped that Treyarch/Infinity Ward would get the game patched quickly to address the issue.

Another issue with the game's online multiplayer was something called "lag shooting", and I did experience it, but at the time I wasn't sure if it was the accuracy of my weapons and/or lag. Basically the hit detection in the online multiplayer was not working well, and it resulted in emptying full clips of ammo all around enemies, and never knowing if they were being hit.

Well, last Thurday, November 17 a patch was released for Modern Warfare 3 on the Wii, and the patch was designed to fix the two major issues above with the online multiplayer. You can see the message to Wii owners that they posted on the Modern Warfare 3 Wii forum below:

How much room do Wii owners need to have available to download the first multiplayer patch for Modern Warfare 3, and how long did it take me to download the patch? Take a look!

The Brew

As the above image shows, Wii owners will need just 40 Blocks of memory to download the MW3 patch. If you are wondering how long it should take to download, the video below shows what you can expect using a WiFi connection to download it:

Filtered Thoughts
I am glad to see Treyarch/Infinity Ward actually taking the time to patch the Wii version. While some Wii owners are experiencing other issues, at least according to the MW3 Wii forums, the first patch seems to have fixed the two huge issues with the online multiplayer.
As for my time online, I have been sticking with Team Deathmatch matches, and leveling up slowly. I played last night and over the weekend since the patch, and the hit detection is now very accurate, and I haven't noticed any considerable lag shooting since the patch.

Also, I did finish the single-player campaign over the weekend, and will be posting more thoughts on that in the near future. If any of you own the Wii version, my friend code is 0359-9573-5494. Leave your friend code in the comments below, or send me an email with it to Scott@CoffeeWithGames.com.

Questions
Have any of you been playing Modern Warfare 3? If so, have you finished the single-player campaign yet, or have you just been playing the online multiplayer?

You can purchase the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii versions from Amazon.com linked below:

Ocarina of Time's Hours Played, Money Made - Virtual Console Report

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 19:06:07 PST

Coffee Beans
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is the best Zelda game ever released, at least according to the professionals' review score average for the game. It was the first 3D Zelda game(in two ways), and it was the first Zelda game I can remember playing through to completion. I digress!

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time originally released for the Nintendo 64 on November 23, 1998 in North America. The game was developed at Nintendo's EAD studio, and published by Nintendo.
It was re-released on the GameCube, the Wii's Virtual Console, and the 3DS this past June.
The Virtual Console release received an "Everyone" rating from the ESRB with "Violence" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of, and it is available for just 1,000 Wii Points, which is only $10.

How many Wii owners have reported playing The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on the Virtual Console, and how many hours have they spent with the game? Let's take a look!

The Brew
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has 240,177 Wii owners that have reported game-play data through the Nintendo Channel in the United States, with 1,722 days possibly reported. Can you imagine playing Ocarina of Time every single day, 24/7, just for 10 years, well the "Total Hours" reported are equivalent to more than 780 years of game-play!
The game's average play-time per day/session reported is 1 Hour 53 Minutes. This simply means that when Wii owners are sitting down and playing the game, they are playing it for nearly 2 hours before stopping and picking it up again at a later time.
How much has Nintendo made from the game's Virtual Console re-release? Ocarina of Time's Virtual Console release, just in the United States, has made Nintendo about $2,401,770 based on the number of Wii owners having reported data and the game's $10 price point.

Caffeinated Thoughts
I still have The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time in my Nintendo 64 collection, though I have not played it in a very long time. The video below is the menu video that plays for the game when the N64 is turned on:

I remember enjoying my time with the game, specifically fishing a lot, but I remember being very disappointed with the ending. It was a shallow reason that I didn't like the ending, but at the time I remember being very disappointed with it.
What was I disappointed with? For some reason, I thought the ending of Ocarina of Time was very much like the ending from Star Wars: Episode VI - The Return of the Jedi with the dancing Ewoks and celebration; and it just felt like a ripoff from the movie. Perhaps I should give the game another try now that a decade has passed?

I think the average hours "Per person" and the game's $10 price point, probably make this the best Zelda game on the Virtual Console for Wii owners to purchase. While the game takes more time/dedication to complete, the fact that the game provides so many hours of game-play at such a low price I think is a great value.

Questions
Have any of you been playing any version of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time lately, in preparation for Skyward Sword's release today? If you own the 3DS version and you have completed it, do you know how many hours it took you to finish?

If you are interested in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and the Zelda universe in general, you may find the items linked below to be of interest:

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's Trade-In Value Is?

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 16:53:45 PST

Coffee Beans
The biggest Nintendo Wii game of 2011 released today, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Many of you reading this may have already picked it up, and found yourselves many hours deep into the Zelda universe.
I was looking at video game sales on Amazon.com earlier today, and decided to check out what the user reviews were saying for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. I'm always intrigued whether the early reviews appear legitimate, or if they appear like fan boys(that perhaps haven't completed it) just rating up a product they want to see do well.
What I found more interesting than the reviews for the game though, was how much trade-in value Amazon.com is giving for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.
How much is The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's trade-in value worth according to Amazon.com? Let's take a look!

Click to enlarge

The Brew
One whopping dollar! That's right Wii owners, Amazon.com has The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword's trade-in value listed as $1.00.
Now some of you may be thinking, "Coffee, it has to be a mistake. There is no way they would only be offering $1 on Nintendo's biggest Wii title of the year."
Well, I assumed it was a mistake also and sent Amazon an email asking if the $1 listed trade-in value was correct. What was their response?

"If you're unhappy with the current value of 'The Legend of Zelda' at $1, and wish to receive a better price, you could keep visiting our Trade-In store to see if the trade-in value increases, or you may want to consider selling the item yourself through Amazon Marketplace."
So, I checked the Trade-In store after getting the response to see if it had changed. Did the trade-in value go up?

Nope. As of the time for this posting, around 5:20PM EST, on November 20, 2011, the trade-in value for the game is still just $1.00. Do I think that will change? Yes, and I imagine it will change very quickly, especially with stores like GameStop offering a much better trade-in value for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.

So, if you are playing through The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and looking at trading it in after you finish it, make sure to check with multiple stores to get the best value you can.

Questions
Did any of you pick up The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword? If so, have you enjoyed your time with the game so far?
Once you finish Skyward Sword, do you think you will trade-in the game, or keep it in your Wii/video game collection forever?

You can see prices for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword on Amazon.com and GameStop.com linked below:

GameStop.com for $49.99

Site Note: Discuss with Disqus! The New Comment System

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 18:43:48 PST

Coffee Beans
For those of you that haven't noticed yet, I changed the comment system on the site yesterday. While the Blogger comment system worked fine, I made the change to the Disqus comment system after a reader sent me an email saying he was trying to upload his coffee mugs photo to the comments, but he couldn't figure out how to do it. The reason he couldn't figure it out though, is because the Blogger comment system doesn't have an upload feature for photos.
It was actually the second time in a week that the lack of photo upload feature was mentioned, in one way or another, because Keith from RespawnAction.com mentioned that he was going to leave a comment/photo on the "That's like a dollar an hour!" post, but realized even if he found the photo he was looking for, he wouldn't have been able to upload it.

If you have a Blogger account you may be wondering, "Coffee, can I still comment with my Blogger account, or do I have to create a Disqus account?"
Well, if you haven't tried commenting yet, after you type out your comment and click the "Post as ..." button a box will pop up asking you what account you wish to comment with. You can see the "Post as..." and the popup box in the images below:

So yes, you can still comment with your Blogger account, and you just select the "Google" button in the box as shown above. Also if you wish, you can create a Disqus account for free and use that to comment, or the plethora of other choices including Twitter and Facebook accounts.
Hopefully those of you that have already commented with the new Disqus system found it easy to use, and if you have any issues/questions about it just let me know!

Question
Do you find the new Disqus comment system easy enough to use? Any likes, or dislikes?

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past - Money Made, Hours Played

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 23:13:51 PST

Coffee Beans
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past was originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System on April 13, 1992.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past was re-released for the Wii's Virtual Console service on January 22, 2007. The Virtual Console version can still be purchased for just 800 Wii Points, which is $8.00. If you are a serious video game collector though, and you want the original SNES version brand new, you can purchase it for about $300.00 on Amazon.com, HERE!
The Virtual Console release received an "Everyone" rating from the ESRB with "Mild Animated Violence" listed as content for parents and gamers to be aware of.

How many Wii gamers have reported playing The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past through the Virtual Console, and how much money has Nintendo made from the game with 1,757 days possibly reported? Let's take a look!

The Brew
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past has 164,960 Wii owners that have reported game-play data through the Nintendo Channel, just in the United States.
The game's average play-time per day/session reported is 1 Hour 14 Minutes.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past's United States release has made Nintendo about $1,319,680, just based on the number of Wii owners that have reported data and the game's $8.00 price point, since it was released.

Caffeinated Thoughts
If you have never seen what The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past looks like, below is a brief video from the Nintendo Channel showing off some game-play from it:

Have I played the game? Well, we own this one on our Wii, but I can't remember playing it since the 90s, and I don't even remember beating it. Now you may be thinking, "Coffee, how do you own it on the Wii, but you haven't played it?"
Well, I wasn't the one that downloaded the game on our Wii system, it was Mrs. Coffee. She was a big fan of the original game, and can remember her and her brothers playing the game a lot when they were little. How much has Mrs. Coffee played our Virtual Console version of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past? The image below shows her reported hours with the game:

She hasn't finished the game and hasn't played it in a while, but she picks it up every once in a while.

Seeing The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past with more than a 10 hour average "Per person" reporting data I think is really great for the game, and I think that average play-time, along with seeing how well received this game was, shows it is definitely worth the $8.00 price.

Box art for the SNES version.

Questions
Have any of you played through The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past recently, perhaps playing even the original SNES version or Game Boy Advance version?
If you are a fan of the Zelda series and have played many of the games, where would you rank The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past compared to the other titles?

If you are interested in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, you can purchase it from the Wii's Shop Channel for $8.00, which is 800 Wii Points; or if you own a Super Nintendo Entertainment System, you can buy the SNES version from third party vendors on Amazon.com linked below as well:

I Drank Coffee from a Toilet, and Will Continue!

noreply@blogger.com (coffeewithgames) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 15:11:24 PST

Coffee Beans
Have you ever heard the phrase, "My coffee tastes like toilet water!", or something similar? Well, I drink my coffee black, so some of you may think that phrase applies to my coffee. It has gone a step further though, and I can now say that I have consumed coffee from a toilet, and I will continue!

What do I mean that I have consumed coffee from a toilet? Take a look!

The Brew
If you saw my post in October titled, "My Birthday Coffee Gift Items - Part I", well this post would be "Part II". Early in October a package arrived on my porch which I assumed was a birthday gift, so I left it unopened until right after midnight on my birthday.
When I opened up the package it contained the coffee mug you see in the images above, properly titled "Toilet Mug". My brother and sister-in-law were the ones that gave me the wonderful gift, and I appreciate it very much!

The Toilet Mug holds about 12 ounces of coffee which is nice, and makes for fewer trips to the coffee pot. A description on the Toilet Mug box reads, "Why should dogs be the only ones who get to drink out of the toilet? Enjoy a nice, hot beverage in this unique mug shaped like everyone's favorite throne." The description ends by saying, "Great for those Monday morning coffee breaks at the office!
The Toilet Mug takes after a real toilet when it comes to cleaning. Just as you can't throw a toilet in a washer for cleaning, the Toilet Mug is not dishwasher safe and it must be scrubbed/washed by hand.

A big thanks again to my brother and sister-in-law for the gift, and I will continue to drink coffee from a toilet thanks to them!

Questions
Do any of you have an awesomely designed coffee mug that you enjoy using? If so, feel free sharing an image link to it in the comments below, or just a description of what it is.