PixlBit

I know I've kind of dropped off the face of Pixlbit for awhile, but I'm still lurking. I recently posted two videos to my YouTube channel. Check them out.

Preppie! II (1983)

From Adventure International, which was best known for the Scott Adams adventure games (Scott Adams, the founder of AI, is of no relation to the recently departed creator of Dilbert). Wadsworth Overcash must work off his student and medical debt by painting mazes, while avoiding the Groundskeeper's giant frogs and deranged lawnmowers. The first Preppie! game was a Frogger-style game, this game is a maze game.

Breath of the Dragon (1985)

From English Software, an Atari 8-bit game developer based in (surprise!) the U.K. You must navigate a side-view maze filled with monsters. Once you complete the first objective, you must escape the maze again, this time with no energy recharges and a crazed eagle flying at random.

What else have I been doing?

In January, I got to fulfill the dream of a lifetime: I visited Japan. I have always wanted to visit; aside from what I know of Japan in video games, my father also loved Japan during his time in the Navy. I spent three days in Tokyo, three days at Mount Fuji, a day at a mountain lodge with a traditional Japanese bath, and three days in Kyoto, home of Nintendo. In Tokyo, I visited Akihabara, and saw stores owned by Namco (still using the old Namco logo) and Taito. There are also a lot of Konami-branded health clubs in Japan - in case you wonder how Konami stayed in business after their falling-out with Hideo Kojima, Konami is actually a huge company with a lot of businesses like health clubs and gambling machines. They are worth almost as much as Electronic Arts in market cap. Video games are the face of Konami most familiar to Westerners. I actually didn't spend a lot of time looking at gaming-related stuff. I was more interested in the scenic beauty of the mountains and in the temples of Kyoto. 

It is impossible to overstate just how huge Nintendo is in Japan. When I got off the plane at Narita airport for the first time, I was greeted by murals of Mario, Bowser, and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom gang. Mario is pretty much Japan's pop-culture ambassador at this point. Pokemon is also naturally huge there. 

I ate foods like gyukatsu (breaded steak served very rare), curry, sukiyaki, and of course, sushi. One day, we also sampled KFC, which is a big deal in Japan and China, and it is of higher quality than KFC in the U.S. 

My experience in Japan was carefully curated by a friend of mine who lived in Japan for many years (she is originally from China), and it was one of the best times I had. It was a vacation that was over all too quickly, and I definitely want to go back. I even thought about buying a Mario-themed tie at the Nintendo store in Kyoto.