I Kicked Off 2015 With A Mega Man X Marathon

Yatta!

While most people were out having fun or enjoying the company of their loved ones, I spent New Year's Eve at home trying to sort some personal affairs. Ever the party animal, I figured I may as well go to bed shortly after midnight struck. It'd be great to start off a new year with some sort of respectable schedule, right?

I followed this idea by brilliantly firing up Youtube, telling myself I'd watch a "handful" of videos while trying to relax enough to fall asleep. The recommended video section had an alluring Mega Man X playthrough that seemed like the perfect choice. I've played and watched enough of the game and its sequels to feel a strong sense of familiarity and comfort. I was sure I'd be yawning as soon as the Chill Penguin fight, but I ended up completely invested. I watched the whole thing.

Goodbye, 2014.

Hasta la vista.

Well, here we are at the end of yet another year. It's terribly unoriginal, but I'm compelled to bust out the "boy, time really flies" saying. Sometimes it's alarming how cool I am.

Before I dive into my thoughts about 2014 as a whole, you can check out some of my highlights from the likes of toys, gaming, and comics below:

• Castle Geek-Skull's Video Game Highlights of 2014
• 14 of Castle Geek-Skull's Favorite Comic Book Covers of 2014
• 14 Unexpected Surprises From TV, Movies, Games, etc. In 2014
• 14 Toys That Made Me Want To Break The Bank In 2014
• FanArt Frenzy - 14 of My Favorite Pieces of Fan Art From 2014!

The Only Christmas Video Game I've Ever Played Is Elf Bowling

AHHHHHHHHHH!

Somehow, I've only recently learned that there are a metric ton of Christmas themed video games out there. I'm not even exaggerating. There's even a Christmas Shopping Simulator! Their ubiquitous nature is hardly surprising, but they still managed to fly under my radar aside from one: NStorm's Elf Bowling from 1998.

I'm certain that Elf Bowling is one of those games that just about everyone found themselves sitting in front of at some point or another. I even saw my grandfather playing it at once. I know for sure that I didn't spend too much time with it, but its cartoony graphics and silly voice-overs remain memorable many years later.

The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson, I Bid You Adieu

Not like any other late night show.

The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson is coming to an unfortunate end tonight. During its ten years in CBS' 12:30 AM time slot, it's been home to over two thousand episodes of the most refreshingly format-bending programming any late night talk show has ever produced. Even with over half of its run being spent in a rinky-dink closet of a studio where Murphy's Law ran wild, Ferguson's razor-sharp wit and improvisational style made the show a true standout.

Like many, I first took notice of TLLS somewhere between 2006 and 2007 when highlights began hitting Youtube. While there were plenty of amusing sketches to go around, the monologues and interviews are what really piqued my interest. The initial approach was admittedly more traditional, but it became more and more relaxed with time. As Ferguson's confidence in deconstructing the genre grew, worn out standbys like jokes read from monitors and mapped out celebrity chats were long gone. One of the show's most famous trademarks is the shredding of the pre-interview questions as the guests are seated. It's long been clear that this was something special, and I quickly found myself making sure to catch every single episode.

Nintendo Amiibo: You Want What You Can't Have

Such cruel temptation.

When Nintendo amiibo were first revealed at E3 2014, I found myself thinking they'd make for a neat shelf display if nothing else. Their game compatibility was of little concern. Even so, I was well into a sabbatical from amassing plastic whozits and whatzits at that point. I still tend to want everything under the sun, but I was certain I'd be able to walk away without much of a fight.

Upon their initial release in late November, I still got a bit of the familiar "these are pretty freakin' cool" tinge that fueled many of my past plastic-crack purchases. The drop in quality from the prototype stage may have been off-putting for some, but I'm more than well-versed in the inevitability of such things. Regardless, my initial tune didn't change. I was happy to leave them behind, figuring that I'd have plenty of time to start up an amiibo collection.

Oh, how things change.

My Mother's Love Of Comic Books Helped Inspire My Own

A handful of my mother's funnybooks.

My mother was always a big kid at heart. As far back as I can remember, she collected toys, watched cartoons, and occasionally played video games. Her biggest hobby was a love of reading however, and she often read comic books between whatever novel might have caught her eye. She was a big fan of the DC Universe in particular, especially Superman. I have fond memories of visiting comic stores (and the comic sections of book shops) with her on weekends. Sometimes we even made trips up to the big city in our state just to see what issues we could find. Comics were at the center of a lot of really good times for us.

I'm not sure if my own interest in the medium started separately or not, but I know my mom's enthusiasm for comics clearly had an effect. They were always around, and I loved looking through them even before I knew what most of the words said. Rather than keeping me away from them, this was actively encouraged. I quickly formed interests in tons of characters that I still hold dear today, and I immediately took to drawing them in whatever rudimentary way possible. That ultimately lead to one of the biggest aspects of my creativity and overall identity.

The Fleeting Joy Of Finding USPS Spider-Man Packages

Thwippin' in the sunlight, thwippin' in the moonlight, having a wonderful time.

While grabbing some shipping material the other day, I was greeted by a variety I had never seen before: USPS Priority Flat-Rate boxes emblazoned with Spider-Man's beautiful visage. Given my lifelong love of the old Webhead, running into him unexpectedly is generally cause for celebration. I didn't go as far as breaking into dance, but the "I need to grab these, photograph them, and talk about them on the internet!" urge was definitely sparked. Here are just a few examples of the onslaught of pictures that ensued:

Variety 1, in all its slightly misshapen glory.

Living In The Moment: Let The GIF Go

o_______o

In the midst of my most recent late-night rummage through the internets, I stumbled across the following animated GIF on Imgur:

This reverse Jaws scenario plays out in a wonderfully absurd fashion that appealed to my sleep-deprived sense of humor perfectly. Of course, I immediately slid the cursor over to the image to hit "save as." A sudden moment of clarity fell upon me before finishing the act however. I thought back to the thousands upon thousands of other lulztastic animated GIFs I've downloaded over the years. I must have gigabytes on top of gigabytes of them at this point. And for what?

The Best Halloween Costume I Ever Had

Thwip.

Yes, that was me rocking a store-bought Spider-Man Halloween costume at some point in the late 80s or early 90s. Spidey was my favorite comic character at the time, so of course it was a thrill being able to masquerade as him in exchange for Tootsie Rolls and Skittles for a night. Even so, I can confidently say that this was not as good as it would get.

I'm pretty sure I was 9 years old the last time I actually went trick-or-treating, and it was very much a last minute affair. My mother and I were unexpectedly invited to tag along with my aunt and her step-kids early in the evening. With no other plans in place, we were happy to accept.

2014's Monster Cereals Have Absurdly Multilayered Appeal

Given their two-month-per-year sales window, General Mills doesn't need to get overly fancy with the packaging of their Monster Cereals. I'm pretty sure plain white boxes with the names scribbled on in Sharpie would sell just fine. Even so, they really went for the throat this year.

Snowflake Cheez-Its: Christmas Infiltrates Halloween Yet Again

I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed.

Everyone's heard the horror stories of Christmas music blaring in Walgreens and CVS stores as early as August. I've always assumed these accounts might be exaggerated, but signs of the holly and jolly do tend to turn up a bit earlier than I'd like. This year, the first blow was dealt by none other than Cheez-It crackers. Out of nowhere, I noticed the normal stock had been replaced by packages drowning in snowflakes.

Come on, man. It's not even past Halloween yet!

I'm Still Completely Fascinated By P.T. (Silent Hills)

You're tearing me apart.

When the radio announcer of P.T. (the much talked about Silent Hills playable teaser) threatened "Don't touch that dial now, we're just getting started," he may as well have been referring directly to my impending infatuation. If all of the puzzles are solved straight away, there's only around 10 actual minutes of gameplay, and they primarily take place within a single corner of a messy, roach infested house. Even so, I found myself watching (and sometimes re-watching) numerous playthroughs and continually checking online discussion threads to pour over the latest crackpot theories and analyses. Two months later, I still can't seem to keep the game out of my thoughts.

The Return of Twin Peaks Is 2014's Greatest Unexpected Surprise

On October 3rd, 2014, filmmaker extraordinaire David Lynch kicked us in the face with one of the most "no way" inducing tweets to ever grace the internets:

Given the overt references to well known quotes from Lynch's cult favorite television series Twin Peaks, it was clear that this was the sign of something major. Despite the show being firmly cemented as a thing of the past, "what if" driven thoughts have long inhabited the daydreams of its legions of dedicated fans. It would appear that good things do come to those who wait, for the tweet was quickly followed by an announcement that nine new episodes are scheduled for 2016 on Showtime.

Batman: Arkham Asylum Is A Perfect Game For Halloween

Welcome to the Madhouse!

I'm sure you've heard more than enough praise for Batman: Arkham Asylum by now, but I can't help commenting on the exceptional timing of its inclusion as a free Playstation Plus title for October, 2014. Many of us are already getting into the Halloween mood, and the Batman franchise fits the holiday perfectly. Its titular character is a dude that parades around the shadows dressed as a bat, for crying out loud!

All Final Smashes Are Not Created Equal (Super Smash Bros 4)

This is my boomstick!

While Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS' visuals are bolstered by a dazzling array of stages, the Final Smash moves of each character bring the wow-factor to the forefront. Even four-player games can leave friends waiting for a turn, and a little cinematic flair keeps watching from the sidelines a lot more interesting. The chaos that unfolds during the likes of the Giga Bowser transformation or Ness' PK Starstorm keeps up the hype for all involved.

Even so, I quickly noticed that said hype levels are a bit inconsistent among each character's Final Smash. They all have a bit of "cool factor," but some of them really go above and beyond. Perhaps there's some character bias involved, but not all of them leave me wanting to shout "best thing EVER" levels of hyperbole from the rooftops. No, that's pretty much exclusive to Mega Man's Mega Legends move.

Getting In The Halloween Mood

Behold: the makings of the dumbest still life painting ever.

It's hard to believe that October is already upon us, but I'm certainly not going to complain. The breakneck pace of time is usually grounds for disgust, but I almost find myself wanting to give it a (temporary) pass if it means the wait between each Halloween only feels momentary. Halloween is easily my favorite of the major holidays. It's hardly as stressful as the rest, and its embrace of all things macabre is great fun. As the weather finally begins to cool and storefronts fill with gloriously tacky skeleton and jack-o'-lantern decor, I find myself in a much better mood than most other times of the year.

Regardless, my personal celebration of Halloween is generally low-key. I usually get around to watching a horror movie or two, fall down the Monster Cereals rabbit hole, and vicariously revisit spooky old games, but that's about it. It may seem a paltry list of activities, but it's almost enough to get by on.

The Nintendo 3DS XL NES Edition Has Me Torn

The Nostalgia Gods are merciless indeed.

With the impending release of Super Smash Bros. 4, I've been gearing up to finally purchase a Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. The handheld version releases first, so that's been my initial focus. I've been considering buying used or refurbished to save a bit of cash, perhaps straight from the online Nintendo Store if not eBay or Amazon. I'd just about made up my mind when I saw the shiny new 3DS XL NES Edition pictured above. Cue one of the greatest first world existential crises of our time.

Super Smash Bros. For 3DS Has A Great Assortment Of Stages

Little Mac and Marth duking it out at Prism Tower.

Despite not being able to get my hands on it just yet, I've been looking forward to Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS far too much to ignore the onslaught of gameplay footage that's been coming in. I've even been lurking about in various Twitch streams to take in as much of an early look as I can. I'm loving what I've seen thus far, and I feel like I already have a nice sense of the game from a presentational standpoint.

With fighters, I think it's easier to take in all of the little details as a third party observer. I've actually found myself focusing on the scenery almost as much as the crazy slugfests taking place in the foreground. If you're interested, here's a collection of gameplay shots that show off a nice chunk of the game's stages:

Battlefield

Street Fighter IV's Ultras Are Impressive Even When Stripped Down

What did the five fingers say to the face?!

While the dramatic camera angles of the Street Fighter IV series' Ultra Combos offer the most visually engaging aspects of the games' 2.5D style, the effect would suffer greatly if the characters' animations were lacking. Thanks to Youtube user moo422, we can check out every Ultra from the Ultra SFIV iteration of the game in a fixed perspective. The end result reveals that many of these moves are impressive even without additional cinematics.

The Only New Movies I've Seen This Year Are Marvel Movies

Leave me alone, I'm watchin' mah stories.

Despite the crowds full of people that won't be quiet or turn off their cellphones, I still love going to the movies. I'm even the sort to keep my ticket stubs. I don't even let the apparent stigma that it's somehow sad to go alone get to me. If I want to go see something, I go for it. Regardless, 2014 has been a pretty light year for me as far as theatrical experiences go.

With the release of Guardians of the Galaxy, it dawned on me that it'll only be the third movie I've actually gone to see this year. As the image up top suggests, the first two were Captain America: The Winter Soldier and X-Men: Days of Future Past. It seems only Marvel characters have enough allure to actually get me to the theater these days. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 fell through the cracks somehow, but I did at least plan on seeing it. I may have also flirted with the idea of checking out Godzilla for a moment or two, but that's honestly it.

Maybe I've been too distracted, or maybe it's just been a mostly ho-hum year for mainstream movies. Beats me. I really enjoyed Winter Soldier and Days of Future Past however, so hey — quality over quantity!

As I look through the list of films yet to be released this year, there's only a small handful I have any interest in. While it's been nice to keep the list of movies I actually attend short and sweet for a change, I miss the days of seeing them more frequently. Maybe 2015 will turn things back around, or maybe I'll only end up seeing Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man! Shrug.

Side-note: I look damn good in a top hat. For more, feel free to check me out on Twitter & Facebook!