Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare Game Showcase with Xbox One Exclusive Splitscreen Offline Co-Op

This isn't really an unboxing, but rather a video to highlight a great game that may fly under a lot of people's radar...

Checking Out Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare

On that same note, there are some drawbacks you will want to know about if you aren't equipped with a solid internet connection, or aren't fond of the additional subscriptions like Xbox Live Gold and PlayStation Plus.

After having played the game with my Nephew tonight I can honestly say it is a blast, just as I had hoped...It is sad knowing we are missing out on the "online" aspects of the game (see almost everything), but I am equally hopeful that my trial of Xbox Live Gold will pan out with the connection and I can move forward to enjoy the rest of the game.

Please note that the Split Screen Offline Co-Op is only avaialbe on Xbox One!

Speaking of which, let's take a look at the available maps!

PvZ Garden Warafare Xbox One Offline Co-Op Part 1:

PvZ Garden Warafare Xbox One Offline Co-Op Part 2:

Oh and what about the pre-order bonus I mentioned that enticed me to commit to GameStop?  Well, sadly I didn't check things out PRIOR to entering the code, but it will showcase what is available.

GameStop Pre-Order Booster Pack Bonus

Name that Skylander: New Frito-Lay Promotion Let's You Name a Skylander and Win Big!

So...if you have been in stores recently you may have noticed yet another Skylanders and Frito-Lay promotion...I actually spotted the bags tonight at my local grocery store...

This promo doesn't entail you trying to win a Skylander, but the prize is much greater...There is artwork for three potential Skylanders.  Fans can submit a name and a story behind the name for evaluation.  Judges from Activision and Frito-Lay will select a finalist for each character.  At this point, fans get back in the mix by voting online for the character name they like best...

The person who came up with the winning name/story will be awarded a $100,000 scholarship  That is a very big deal!

If academics aren't inspiration enough, everyone can take pride in knowing that if their named Skylander wins the character will appear in promotional settings and even in the game.  I would assume as a playable character, but that is not etched in stone based on what I have read thus far...That would be insanely cool though.

So, who can you name?  Check it out:

If you are interested in participating in the contest, head this direction:

http://fritolayskylanders.young-america.com/home

If the contest isn't up your alley, you at least get a look at some potential Skylanders AND you can score some tasty Frito-Lays Multipacks with sweet savings on Skylanders!  Each bag will have discounts, so be on the look out!  

You can find more info and official rules on the website linked above!  Good luck!!

Nitro Freeze Blade and Easter Themed Spring Edition Skylander Single Packs for Fryno, Punk Shock, & Spring Time Trigger Happy

I have been meaning to post this for a while, but things have been quite busy on my end..plus, the pre-orders went lightning fast (ie I should have pre-ordered on lunch break instead of when I got home).

That said, we had a pretty nice reveal of some new Skylanders that will be hitting the shelves soon (although for some folks, "soon" in this instance may not be as quick as you would like).

First off, let's go with the solid release date.  Thanks to Target, we know that they are listing their store exclusive and in-game variant Nitro Freeze Blade with a release date of Sunday, March 23rd, 2014.  I've never been a huge fan of Sunday releases, and Target has been hit-or-miss with pretty much all of their exclusives, but I will keep my fingers crossed things go down smooth.  You would be wise to start checking the store regularly a week or so out...just in case.

I have been looking forward to Doom Stone, Trap Shadow, and Freeze Blade...I think folks have underestimated him based on the performance in my poll.  Once he is out, that should change.  Given the fact we haven't really seen a "special" figure out BEFORE their standard counterpart (special being in game variant etc, not just LightCore etc), I would have to imagine that standard Freeze Blade should be in the mix around or before this date as well.

He looks pretty solid from this box art, but I will hold final judgment for when I see him in person...He joins Nitro Magna Charge as characters treated to the Speed Boost, special paint job, and Target Exclusive status.  As always, I recommend you pick him up ASAP to avoid any issues.

Something that should be much more obtainable and less worrisome is the batch of Easter themed single packs.  They are technically called "Spring Edition" but for the vast majority of people the packaging looks like an Easter Egg so that name tends to stick...

What's more important is who is included in the basket stuffers...

The first entry should be no surprise given his name, Spring Time Trigger Happy.  

A lot of people still don't seem to grasp this is an in-game variant!  So yes, STTH will look just like his figure in the game...crazy right?  The other perk is the Spring Time hat (kind of an Easter Egg with Rabbit Ears) that should be just as impressive as the "Jolly Hat" from Jolly Bumble Blast.  Spring Time Trigger Happy's hat is only available via the figure.

On the same "Spring Edition/Easter Landers" front we have juxtaposed Newlanders in Fryno (Fire Element) and Punk Shock (Water Element).  Both should be well received.

I would have to imagine that this coming wave would include some other Skylanders as well, but as of me typing this I am unaware of any other leaks...

Likely suspects would be Turbo Jet-Vac and LightCore Bumble Blast...I say that because to me they seem more like "Spring" than a later release that might include warmer characters like Fire Bone Hot Dog etc.  Again, that is just my logic and speculation.  Based on Toy Fair media, it looks like Trap Shadow should be coming out with Freeze Blade or shortly there after...There has been no sightings for Doom Stone.

If you are hoping to catch any of these early, here are some links...Keep in mind, I think that they will heavily stock the special "Spring Edition" ones based on what we saw with Jolly Bumble Blast etc...If you have to prioritize one, go with Target's Nitro Freeze Blade.

Nitro Freeze Blade at Target $14.99:

http://www.target.com/p/skylanders-swap-force-nitro-freeze-blade/-/A-15177797#prodSlot=medium_1_0&term=nitro freeze blade

Spring Time Trigger Happy at Best Buy:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/skylanders-swap-force-character-pack-springtime-trigger-happy-xbox-360-playstation-3-nintendo-wii-nintendo-3ds/3976003.p

Spring Edition Fryno at Best Buy:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Skylanders%253A+SWAP+Force+Character+Pack+%2528Fryno%2529+-+Xbox+360%252C+PlayStation+3%252C+Nintendo+Wii%252C+Nintendo+3DS/3978029.p

Spring Edition Punk Shock at Best Buy:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Skylanders%253A+SWAP+Force+Character+Pack+%2528Punk+Shock%2529+-+Xbox+360%252C+PlayStation+3%252C+Nintendo+Wii%252C+Nintendo+3DS/3985004.p

Skylanders SWAP Force: Team Survival, Rival Survival, and Ring Out

Here is a little Skylanders SWAP Force Showcase where my Nephew and I took some time to see what all the Two Player Battle Modes had to offer.  In all the videos my Nephew (thewalkthruking) plays as Slam Bam and I play as Terrafin.  Both Skylanders are Series 2 and Fully Upgraded!

Here is a look at the action:

Team Survival:

Rival Survival:

Ring Out:

Skylanders SWAP Slam Bam & Terrafin vs Super Evil Kaos

Hey Everyone,

One of the things my Nephew (thewalkthruking) and I love to do when I've wrapped up a blind playthrough of Skylanders is go back and take on Kaos together.  Just as we did in Giants, we opted for a Terrafin & Slam Bam team-up to take on SWAP Force's Super Evil Kaos!

*Please Note: If you are watching my Blind Playthrough and are holding out to see the Final Boss Battle, you might hold up...I'll have my solo showdown vs Super Evil Kaos LIVE pretty soon.*

1ofWiisdom & thewalkthurking as Terrafin and Slam Bam 

vs Super Evil Kaos

Toy Fair Exclusive Red Metallic Dune Bug

What:  Skylanders SWAP Force Exclusive Edition Toy Fair 2014 Dune Bug
Where Did You Get It: Special Delivery
What is Stock Like: Limited to Toy Fair 2014

Wow!  My Wednesday at the office just got a lot better...

FedEx swung by with the 2014 Toy Fair Exclusive Red Metallic Dune Bug!  The technical name is as listed out above "Exclusive Edition Toy Fair 2014 Dune Bug," but most will refer to him as Toy Fair Dune Bug, or Red Metallic Dune Bug etc.  The color looks great, but it is really one of those ones that needs to be seen in person...Judge for yourself:

Checking Out Toy Fair Exclusive red Metallic Dune Bug

The red coloring is definitely a metallic red...It is almost like an anodized finish, although I'm not sure how many of you deal with anodized aluminum fittings.  It is a deep, vibrant red...It is not maroon, yet I feel it is closer to that than "lipstick red."  You can get a decent feel for it via the pictures and video, but it really would have to be seen with your own eyes to accurately pick up on the color.

The entire figure is covered in the red paint...Tip of the top, staff, hands, all the way down to the base.

In game, he registers as:

It is important to remember, these were intended for promotional use...Something to entice folks to visit the Skylanders section at the Toy Fair and something "physical" to send home to always look back on and remember the display and series.

I know a lot of you have stated your allegiance to Dune Bug and think he is a great Skylander.  I won't lie...anytime that is the case (ie your favorite gets a variant of any sort), it is a great addition to your collection.  At the same time, I have to caution folks not to spend crazy money to acquire something...

Everyone knows how big a fan I am of Terrafin and Warnado.  There is a GITD Warnado that I've never seen, held, or thought of buying because of the crazy price.  My life has gone on just fine.  If Terrafin ever got a really cool variant I would love to find it, but if I came up empty I wouldn't think of spending a couple hundred to acquire it.  You have to be smart with your money and keep it all in perspective.

If you do pop for one that is sure to come up on ebay etc., I hope you get a fair deal.  He does look awesome and this is really the first time I have seen a metallic in person, let alone in red.  I don't think anyone would be disappointed in the alternative decoration here...it is very impressive.

Hopefully this post has helped to showcase Toy Fair Dune Bug for you.  If you are bummed out about how hard he will be to acquire I can offer good news that Nitro Freeze Blade is coming soon along with some special Easter themed Skylander singles that include Fryno, Punk Shock, and of course in-game variant Spring Time Trigger Happy!

Unboxing Think Geek's Minecraft Light-Up Redstone Ore

What? Minecraft Redstone Light
Where Did You Get It?  Toys'R'Us
What Did It Cost?  $24.99 plus tax
What Was Stock Like?  Probably 8-12 total, but it was the first time I'd seen them in person

Unboxing Think Geek's Light-Up Redstone Ore

While making my usual rounds hunting for Skylander variants etc., I spotted this Minecraft Redstone Light from Think Geek.  Technically they call it the "Light-Up Redstone Ore" but I think 99% of people would agree that "Redstone Light" successfully and succinctly describes this item best.

My Nephew, as you should know, is big time into Minecraft...given that it was red and that we have recently been playing around with Redstone, I figured it would be a cool Valentine's gift.  The product was not priced on the shelf, but the nearby stickers seemed reasonable...I didn't know it was $25 till I got home.  That is a higher price than you can get online at Amazon $22.49, or Think Geek at $19.99, but I suppose the fact it was there, I didn't have to pay freight, and I had it for Valentine's Day covers the premium.

This is your typical novelty gift, but it seems to be well made and looks like it will give him years of enjoyment.  My only concern is that the "tap" action isn't quite smooth...there is no set point to trigger a change and sometimes you can inadvertently do so, but all-in-all, I think that constitutes only a minor issue.

The light itself is pretty cool.  Don't forget that you need 2 AA Batteries and a small Phillips screwdriver to access the battery compartment.  Once you have the power source in place you simply slide the switch to the "ON" position (it is tucked away nicely on the bottom side).

The cool thing is there are 3 levels of brightness that go from a dim glow all the way up to an impressive output of red.  I don't think you'd want to read by the Redstone light, but it would work well as a night light, side table tap light, or just a really cool light up block at parties and get togethers.

For the price, I think it is a nice item and should function as intended for years to come.

Below you can see the 3 different levels of brightness...If nothing else you know you've got a hit with any Minecraft fan and a sure fire conversation piece!

All-in-all I am happy with this Redstone light, my Nephew loves it, and I think it is going to look pretty cool in his bedroom.  There is also a Diamond Light that I may pick up at some point in the future!

Nintendo Direct February 13th, 2014: Notes from 1ofWiisdom

Nintendo Direct February 13th, 2014

Hey Everyone, 

Happy Valentine's Day and Happy Nintendo Direct Viewing!

I am pretty stoked about this Nintendo Direct because I called it...

I had anticipated not only that we would get a release date for Mario Kart 8, but that we would see the actual Nintendo Direct right before Valentine's Day!  I can get confirmation for this from a few folks I made the prediction too...Pretty cool go get both of them right!

The worst news from the ND is that we have to wait until Friday, May 30th, 2014 for Mario Kart 8.  The best news, imo, from the ND is that the Koopalings are going to appear as playable characters in MK8.  If you haven't picked up on it yet, I am VERY EXCITED about Mario Kart 8.

Don't get me wrong though, there was some other very exciting news in this rendition...

Without further ado, here are my quick notes from the broadcast...Please note they are just rough notes that I literally type out while watching the ND.  You can use them as a guide to where the info you might be most interested is within the video (it is fairly long at 40+ minutes).  

* * * * * * *

Nintendo Direct 2-13-2014

Iwata presents direct to you…

Little Mac joins Super Smash Bros.

-Coming 2014

3DS

Mario Golf World Tour

-Customize Mii with 8 types of items

Gloves, golf balls, and clothing…change abilities

Win tourneys at castle club to advance

May 2^nd, 2014

Kirby Triple Deluxe

-Easy to pick up and play

-Copy abilities for lots of different actions

-Lots of collectibles…Keychains

--Star Stones, help you progress…find them all for special bonus

-Special Waddle=helpful items in times of need…Street Pass for better items and key chains

May 2^nd, 2014

Yoshi’s New Island

-Adv thru each stage with Baby Mario…attacked by enemies = timer to get baby Mario back…no time limit=explore each stage=giant eggs act as egg dozers

-Metal Egg Dozers by eating Metal Shy Guy

-Yoshi’s transformations

--Jackhammer, submarine, via gyro

--Super Yoshi via star…flies thru levels and along walls

--Flap Down Wings, Flutter Wings…helps beginners

March 14hth, 2014

3DS eshop

-FPS like Steel Diver (2011), competitive FPS by staying step ahead of competitor

-7 Single Player Missions

-Free Version Steel Diver Sub Wars=2 basic types, enjoy beginning on single player and all multiplayer

-Upgrade to paid…more subs and all single player

-Today, after ND

1^st Time 3D

Rusty’s Real Deal Baseball

-Rusty Slugger Sport’s Shack

--Lots of mini games including Umpire like “Make the Call”

-Buy from in-game menu…haggle the price…lower it significantly

-April 2014, Free

Pokemon Battle Trozei

-700+ Appear in the game

-Red and Blue to X and Y

-Catch and become your own for use in battle

-Connect type advantage together etc…

-UP to 4P

-March 20^th, 2014

Erik NOA

3DS Exclusive

-Professor Layton & the Azran Legacy

-Emmy Altva, Layton’s assistant

-Feb 28^th, 2014

-Street Pass to keep you playing

-Treasure Hunts by hiding items

--Points for many items

Capcom-Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate

-Big leap forward for series

-take on foes in dynamic new ways

-hunt with friends on 3DS via Internet

-Early 2015

Weapon Shop de Omasse

-Level 5 developers

-Mange weapon shop inside traditional RPG

-experience humble life of an RPG shop keeper

-Rhythm game component

-February 20^th

Soccer RPG  InaZuma Eleven

-Middle School

-RPG in school and soccer practice

-Improve team members with stat boost and leveling up

-Pass shoot and duel to determine possession

-Team ups etc                      

-Available Today after ND

Renegade Kid

-Treasurenauts

-Moon Chronicles

--FPS adventure

Shovel Knight

-Side Scrolling Action Game in 8 Bit

Nicalis

-1001 Spikes

--Inspired by 8 bit NES games…killer package

VBlank Retro City Rampage

-GTA reflash

Lots of new titles

Wii U Ubisoft

-Child of Light

-RPG inspired by fairy tale

-Princess retrieve three sources of lights

-April 30^th, 2014

Iwata 1^st Party updates

-DK Country Tropical Freeze

--New Trailer

-Online Leader Boards

-2/21/2014

NES Remix

-Collects best moments from NES games

-Volume 2, NESRemix 2…pulled from later NES Titles

-Full Bonus Game

--Super Luigi Bros!

---Luigi Goes R to L in World 1-2, but includes all levels from the game

--High Jump for Luigi is available

-April 25^th, 2014

GBA to Virtual Console, announced Jan last year

-Finally re-releasing them this spring, starting in February

-Metroid Fusion

-Mario & Luigi Super Star Saga

-Yoshi’s Island Super Mario Advance 3

-Over time, continue to release more titles

Mario Kart 8!!!

-New Characters, not expected

-New Trailer

-Koopalings!!!

-up, down, and all around new 3D courses

-May 30^th, 2014

Monolith Soft

-Battle Scene Sneak Peak

-Xenoblade Chronicles battle system, but more polished

Bayonetta 2

-New footage from Platinum Games

-Later 2014 Launch

End of ND

* * * * * * *

So, I have to ask, what are you most excited about?

Minecraft: Love It, or List It

Minecraft: Love It, or List It is a parody my Nephew and I came up with to put a spin on the popular HGTV Show, "Love It, or List It" by way of Minecraft builds...

We are currently using Minecraft Pocket Edition, but if folks like the series and it takes off, we might expand it to Minecraft PC.  The main thing here is just having fun...

Let us know what you think of the video!  You can find the entire Series here:

Minecraft: Love It, or List It

Season 1

Episode 1: Steve and Mary

1ofWiisdom's 3 Year Anniversary on YouTube

Today, February 9th, 2014 marks my 3 Year Anniversary on YouTube!

I am typing this at 6 AM (not because I'm up early, but because I haven't gone to bed yet...although anyone that watches my vids regularly would already know that is how I roll), but look for a Channel Update later tonight as well as the release of some videos I've been saving!

Thanks to everyone who has enjoyed the videos on YouTube, commented, subscribed, shared, etc...That is what I started the channel for to have fun and let others in on the action!

It honestly began just because my Nephew and I wanted to record our Mario Kart Wii races (which were routinely, ridiculously epic finishes)...I was unaware at the time that it would snowball into what it has now become, but I wouldn't change anything.

I sincerely appreciate everyone taking their time to watch the videos.  There are tons of options out there and I am humbled you prefer my take on things...

I'll cover the anniversary and a few other topics in the Channel Update and once it is LIVE I will embed it here.

Thanks again for your support,

1ofWiisdom

Skylanders Franchise Hits $2 Billion in Revenue!! Check Out the Timeline