May the Fourth Be With You (Star Wars Day)!

May the Fourth Be With You! Or, more commonly known as Star Wars Day! One of the best days of the year where I get to celebrate one of my favorite universes. Star Wars is a huge part of me. I grew up with it. Almost like a figure instead of just a movie, it became an entire world! The imagination, adventure, and virtues from the movies (and beyond) definitely left an impression me that I carry today. I feel that it’s made me unique in a way that I like.

One of the best days ever–great moment with Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) and I

Dec172015

Top Ten Manga of 2015

In 2014, we saw the end of Kenichi (12 years) and Claymore (13 years) with 2015 having a colossal ending with Naruto (15 years). With One Punch Man and Attack on Titan finally grabbing some attention in the United States after six years, the scene is certainly changing. With some very questionable anime adaptations of great manga, such as Toriko, I’ve become even more excited for my manga releases and less for most anime.

Dragon Ball Z is making a resurgence with some major motion picture releases, but nothing sets the scene like some good old-fashioned, black and white panels full of unique artwork and storylines. Here are the ten manga that I am currently enjoying the most, in no particular order. Of course, I realize Hunter x Hunter isn’t on my list. I’ve also neglected any one-shots released in 2015, or adaptations of series such as Star Wars, as well as spin-offs because Fairy Tail has too many to be counted right now.

Jun142015

The Future of Dragonball Z – Resurrection of F, Super, and Beyond

Akira Toriyama has provided us with quite the roller coaster since we met Son Goku when the Dragonball manga was first released in 1984. Two animes based off the original 42 volumes, 19 feature films, countless video games, trading card games, the infamous GT, and the remake of Z known as Kai, have been the highs and lows of that thrill ride. While highlights such as the Frieza and Android saga offset the dips of GT and some questionable films, fans are here… over 20 years later, wanting more.

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Aug182014

#21 Greatest Video Game of All Time

Finally, #21 is here! We apologize for the hiatus, we’ve been busy with the move and settling in. However, we are now back on track! If you have no idea what I’m talking about, look at this post here. Please meet our Video Game Brain Trust before you continue on. We put this together as a somewhat weekly display of what our favorite video games are. What we love about it is the variety between all of us and what we prefer. If you missed it, please see #25, #24, #23, and #22! Let’s get started..

#21 Best Video Games of All Time

Kai — Gunpoint – A much more recent game than those I’ve listed so far, Gunpoint is a stealth puzzle game with great atmosphere. You play a private detective in a noire style adventure. Although short, the story is really interesting and ties in great with the gameplay. It doesn’t feel like you’re figuring out puzzles, it feels like you’re trying to move the plot forward. The difficulty curve is very good, challenging but not overwhelming, unveiling various mechanics and techniques as time goes on. My only real complaint is that the game is short and not very replayable, but definitely worth the price ($10). If you’re looking for a game to while away a rainy day, I’d recommend Gunpoint.

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Po — Super Mario 64 (N64) – Brought 3-D gaming to the mainstream. I’ll never forget the first time I walked through a door and entered a new room — it blew my mind.

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Andrew — Ninja Crusaders (NES) – Really nothing much to say here other than that I spent countless hours playing this with my brother. YOU COULD TURN INTO A DRAGON. Top 5 NES Game.

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Alana (Fit) — Yoda Stories – For me, this is an absolute classic. It’s a LucasArts game not many know about, but it holds a very special place in my heart. Released in the 90s, this game has no ultimate goal. It’s simply a collection of various levels you have to play through. So when you start the game, you could be doing one of the various Hoth levels, Endor levels, Death Star levels, Tatooine levels, and so forth. There were tons of different “levels” aka scenarios, each one with different surroundings and plots. Sometimes you’d meet Boba Fett, sometimes Vader, sometimes the Wampa. I remember my cousins, brother and I would always crowd around the computer playing and laughing at the subtly funny LucasArts writing characters said.

You usually played as Luke Skywalker, out to save the day or escape or something of that nature. You also could gain other weapons like a lightsaber and find hidden things behind boxes. It’s really a puzzle game in order to find the objective. This game was basically just the arrow keys and that’s all it really needed. It was a blast to play any of the levels over and over. I think I will play it again today.

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Chris — Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (PS2) – Vice City is close behind on my list of favorite GTA games. While I typically enjoy some of the earlier entries in a franchise, the expansiveness and ability to do so many ridiculous things makes San Andreas my favorite. I might have enjoyed the story in Vice City a little bit more, the game based on Los Angeles takes the cake over the game based in Miami. However, San Andreas really is one of those games that I put on that highest level of near perfection.

Simply, the graphics, soundtrack, and controls were all top-notch at the time. The story was what you would expect from a GTA and as I mentioned before, they expanded on what the player could do a million fold. One example is the ability to get in a plane, jump out, and go skydiving. Every vehicle was an option and if you had the money, you could customize your really fast cars however you wanted.

But this is a favorite list and not a list of the best games, so what really makes San Andreas stand so tall. Completion. This game truly had an RPG feel to it and I put in hundred of hours in order to get to a 99.9% completion rating. I never got to 100% but it always offered enough mini-games and side quests to keep my attention and that replay value in a game like this is untouchable.

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That wraps up our picks for #21 Greatest Video Game of All Time. Stay tuned for next week’s #20 and read up on the previous ones if you haven’t already! We are having a blast doing this. I hope you’re having fun as well looking at what we have to bring to the table. And as always, stay hungry and fit!

*Question of the Day: Have you played any of these games? Do you like them?

May132014

#25 Greatest Video Game of All Time

So finally we start the list! The list of our video game brain trust‘s top 25 video games of all time. We are–of course–starting with #25. Everyone’s criteria is different: that’s what makes it so interesting. Click here to be reminded of who is making these reviews. We aim to put out one of these each week for 25 weeks all the way down to our #1 choice! Here we go…

#25 Favorite/Best Video Game

Kai – Railroad Tycoon – I could not make a list of my favorite games without including the title that ignited my passion for gaming. Sid Meier’s Railroad Tycoon (1 of 2 games on this list with his name attached) came to us via the US Postal Service in a package from my grandpa. It arrived on Thanksgiving day in 1991 with the note “Too hard for me, maybe you guys can figure it out.” I watched my dad play it for 6 hours that day.

Eventually I took over at the keyboard and never looked back. It was a deceptively simple game of tycoons and industry which I never really mastered, but loved all the same. It perfectly captured the evocative power of the railroad and the addictiveness of building your empire. It had realistic historical and geographical models. It even had a functional stock market that allowed hostile takeovers. Firaxis recently made it free to download here: http://www.2kgames.com/railroads/downloads.html

I played a lot of Railroad Tycoon 3 in college. It’s a very deep game, with a powerful economic simulation driving the construction of your railroad empire. There are a number of scenarios that allowed you to explore different places and eras. While not as approachable as the original, it was a lot of fun to try and figure out which routes would bring your railroad to prosperity.

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Scott (Po) – Morrowind/Skyrim – I’ve spent a disgusting number of hours in the Elder Scrolls world. I regret none of them.

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Andrew – Star Fox 64/series (SNES + forward) – I feel like I am going to be saying this a lot on this list but I feel like this title should be higher. Star Fox felt so ahead of its time…sure, when I played it at Bradley’s, a friend’s, or someone else’s house it took forever to beat but then I borrowed it from a friend a couple years ago and it actually took like an hour so, as always, childhood nostalgia plays a role. Star Fox 64 (like a couple other games on this list) marked a hugely successful jump into 3D. Star Fox 64 had great music, a great branching path that included “fake” final boss battles, and you had to defend your squad mates or risk losing them (and had to score high in order to repair them). Star Fox: Assault was more of the same (not a bad thing for a game like that since I didn’t think Star Fox Adventures was a good move) and this series badly needs to be updated. My only issue is that I think this is a game best played on a controller and doesn’t need motion integration…unless it’s getting the full arcade treatment with throttle control and buttons galore.

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Alana (Fit) – Age of Empires Series – It was incredibly tough to pick #25. I had several options and finally after a few days, and a long swim in the pool, I decided my order. My top 25 video game list isn’t about what’s critically acclaimed to be “best.” It’s about what has the most meaningful impact and memories. My #25 is Age of Empires. This may have been my first RTS, but I can’t be completely positive. The first of the series came out in 1997, so I would’ve just been seven years old. No doubt I watched my brother playing until I could figure it out on my own (without a manual, to be sure–for some reason, I always prided myself upon that). Age of Empires is a classic RTS, starting at the beginning of civilization, gathering resources, starting an army, to continue to advance. I played this series up until AoE 3 and it was an everyday thing. Seeing how you could build your empire up, explore the land, gather resources and conquer always interested me. It’s fairly basic, but you can play for hours on end. I played this loads of times when I was little. We did some LAN parties with it too–miss those days! It also taught me somewhat of history and also how to handle a RTS. I still go back and play it today!

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Chris (Hungry) – Outwar – I cannot stress enough how difficult it is to make this list! I have to really limit myself to not picking multiple games from the same franchise! I’m starting it off with a game that very few will know of, but those that know it will freak out to see it listed. OUTWAR. This internet browser-based MMORPG started off as a free game where players entered groups ruled by stronger players, gaining power by defeating other players in fights and recruiting others to play Outwar. I have not played in a very long time, probably at least 10 years, so I don’t know what the game is like now, but it is still around. Nevertheless, my short-lived obsession with this unique game and the amount of customization that you can put into yourself earn it a spot on my list. I am sure my accounts are inactive at this point, and those accounts were not impressive at all, but people were selling Outwar accounts LONG before World of Warcraft was even a thought. That game was just so awesome at the time and anyone with internet access could play. I don’t remember much about it, in all honesty, but Outwar originals will have a blast of nostalgia when they see the image below!

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So there you have it–the first of our long list! I love how different and similar they all are to each other and can’t wait until next week! Please comment below with YOUR #25 game of all time. Also let us know if you have any questions about any of these games. Thanks to all who contributed! Remember to stop by next week to see what lands as #24 for this video game trust! And as always…stay hungry and fit!

*Question of the Day: What’s your #25 video game of all time?

May012014

Video Game Brain Trust

Before we start the countdown of our 25 favorite video games of all time you should be introduced to the individuals that will be participating! This group will be know as our Video Game Brain Trust and will in time provide our readers with more countdowns and other content pertaining to video games (and other nerdy stuff!). On the surface there may not appear to be a great amount of diversity in the members, but everyone is very opinionated and the lists will reflect just how different we are. So, in no particular order, here is a introduction to the Hungry & Fit Video Game Brain Trust.

Kai Powell – The oldest in the group, Kai favors playing games on his computers that he builds himself. While he currently does not own or play any consoles regularly, Kai has plenty of experience with them, especially GameCube. He also has experience in the video game industry, having worked on the Transformers game for the first live-action movie release and X-Men Legends. (We all want to thank him for the latter.) Kai has extensive experience on the PC having played many MMORPGs in depth, including WoW, ToR and ESO. His list might reflect his love for the computer but it will certainly show his decades of high level gaming. It will also reflect his great level of intelligence, patience and composure. Expect to see some games with high levels of thought process on his list.

Scott Polhemus – “Po is not one to deny his Nintendo fanboy ways. He suckled on the mustached teet of Mario, due in large part to his older brother’s playing of Super Mario World on the Super Nintendo in the early 90’s. But, that was only the beginning. Over the years, he’s played (and owned) Nintendo, Sega Genesis, Nintendo’s entire handheld family (except for the 3DS), Nintendo 64, Playstation, Dreamcast, Playstation 2, Gamecube, Xbox, Wii, Xbox 360, and PS3. Po spent a semester abroad in Tokyo and managed to play a great deal of arcade and Japanese games as well. He admits his tastes are big on RPG and action/adventure…so, basically he’s big on story and plot. He’s limited his list to Console gaming. And frankly, these aren’t the 25 best games of all-time, but they’re the 25 games that expanded his mind and made his heart roar…so, naturally, they’re very dear to him.” (This bio was provided directly by Po.)

Andrew Tucci – Andrew boasts both an extensive collection of games and an insane amount of hours played. When Andrew beats a game, he beats it multiple times, on every difficulty rating, until he unlocks every achievement possible. He has spent time on virtually every console since the release of the NES but he also has a great deal of experience in both the arcade and on the PC. His current collection of systems include Wii, Xbox 360, Xbox, PC/Mac, N64, Gamecube and more. If there is a lack of anything, it’s clearly Sony, but he most likely has more hours logged on Microsoft consoles then every other member of the brain trust combined. He is extremely opinionated and has no problem disagreeing with Metacritic and other experts. If he thinks a classic is garbage, he will let you know. If he thinks a piece of trash is pure gold, you will hear about it. His decades of experience, ability to replay games until the discs no longer work, and his strong views make Andrew a wild card in this group. I have an idea what to expect from him but he can be highly unpredictable.

Alana Powell – Like her older brother, Alana is an avid PC gamer, being so bold as to claim the superiority of the PC over consoles. While she has been exposed to more consoles lately, the frustrations of the different controllers brings her heart back to the mouse and keyboard of a PC. Alana favors games that give the player control over their character and world, so expect to see some BioWare games on her list. She also has been playing Elder Scrolls games for as long as she can remember, so those may also make an appearance. Nevertheless, Alana has been playing for years so her list will reflect PC games that are both new and old. She does not think a game needs to have been out for decades to be consider great, so newer and less known games might slip onto her list. It will be interesting to see if any console games even crack her top 25!

Chris Tucci – Soundtracks. Epic stories. Character development. All aspects that heavily influence how Chris feels about a game. Like Po, Chris favors JRPGs and action-adventure games, however, he has weaker feelings for Nintendo and that will dictate the major differences in those two lists. Chris admits his favorite systems of all time are NES and PS2 but after having owned nearly every console until the release of the newest generation, it is hard to predict what his list will exactly include. There will most likely be a mix of every console, Nintendo handhelds, 1990s arcade games, and PC games around the Millenium. Don’t be surprised to find a lot of games from a few key companies and one game that highlights an entire franchise.

Well, there you have it. A short introduction about what to expect. I am sure the members of the brain trust are most interested to find out what their fellow members release throughout the countdown. You can start to see what lists will be the most similar, but will anyone pick the same games the same week? The suspense continues to build and next week you will find out what games crack the top 25 countdown! And as always…stay hungry and fit!

Apr102014

Nerds Unite and Stay in Shape!

Fit and I are considered “interesting” individuals because we are a mix of very physically active and extremely nerdy. Somehow, we find a way to balance everything and although we aren’t quite as fit and don’t have as much time to play video games as we want, we still get the best of both worlds. Sometimes it is difficult to balance busy lives, and sometimes there isn’t motivation to do something that you don’t want to do but we are always stressing to individuals to stay healthy and active.

You don’t need to be a professional athlete, bodybuilder, or martial artist to be healthy and active. You need to maintain a healthy ratio of lean muscle mass and body fat, eat nutritional and wholesome foods, stay hydrated and well-rested, maintain proper hygiene and be able to control your own body. Absolute strength is your total power output, but relative strength is your strength to weight ratio and your ability to handle your body. I am proposing that everyone, even those nerdy people that love to sit down for hours and play MMORPGs (we would love to do this when we have time), try to achieve what I consider a healthy and active lifestyle and here’s a few steps of how we can do that.

1. Eat healthier! I know that Red Bulls, Mega Monsters, and Mountain Dew are great ways to keep you awake through your dungeon raids but they are nutritional black holes! Consider other electrolyte heavy drinks such as Gatorade, Powerade, Smart Water, Vitamin Water, or even some supplements to keep your energy levels more naturally high. I logged 72 straight hours of Final Fantasy XII the night that it was released and I didn’t have one energy drink or sip of soda the whole time. My good health helped me stay energized and if you can increase your endurance and conditioning it could help with long nights of playing.

Captain American: Master Chef

2. Exercise! Working out helps us increase muscle mass, decrease body fat, create definition in our muscles, increase our metabolism and more. You don’t need to buy expensive clothes, equipment or memberships to work out. If you’re reading hundreds of issues of manga or comics at a time like I do, try to set goals. Every week when my new manga are released I blaze through them in minutes. After waiting a week and sometimes more! Make the volume last a little longer by doing 10 pushups and 20 crunches after every few pages. Set goals for yourself. Try to do body weight exercises such as pushups, variations of pushups, crunches, abdominal and core exercises, planks and more every few pages. If you’re playing a video game, set requirements for every time you level your character up or beat a major boss. These little things can make a big difference.

Planking–keep it tight!

3. Sleep enough! I am not asking you to sleep 10 hours a night. Try to get at least 6 hours of sleep or quality rest every 24 hours. Really try to get 7 hours and push yourself to get 8 on the weekends if you can. Your body needs to rest and recover to continue operating at a functional level. If I tried playing a hard platform sequence in Ninja Gaiden while I was exhausted, then I would have no hope. If I’m playing Settlers of Catan and can’t think straight because my brain is trying to sleep, I won’t be able to compete against my opponents if they’re well-rested.

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I am speaking out of experience and trying to help my fellow nerds. And please do not take offense to the term nerd. You could be a console gamer, PC gamer, manga fan, anime fan, comic book fan, RPG fan or any other person who enjoys these types of fun activities. We enjoy all of them and are proud of it. So if any of this relates to you, if you think that you could better your diet, exercise, and sleep then please consider some of our suggestions. If you are really interested in turning your life around contact us for our help because that is what we love to do. We want everyone to stay nerdy while being hungry and fit!