Posted by Rob on September 2, 2010 – 12:41 pm
Filed under Video Games
Tagged as 360, big bad bob, bigbadbob, bioware, ea, gamefly, mass effect 2, nhl '11, PlayStation 3, PS3, xbox
I beat Mass Effect 2 early this morning. In truth, had I known I was so close to the end, I would have stayed up last night to finish it. Anywho, it was a really fun game, and I can’t wait for the third one to come out next year! PS- my entire crew survived, so I will definitely be importing my character once again. I think it’s neat that I was able to play the same character from the first game through the third…kudos to Bioware on giving players that option.
I realized that, based on todays date and the fact that NHL ’11 releases on Tuesday, I should be able to snag it from Gamefly as my next game! A nice plus to owning a PS3 and 360 is that I added both versions of the game to my queue, so I have a pretty darn good chance of getting the game next week. Although I just don’t like the fact that EA is making me pay an additional fee to play online since I’m renting the game…
Posted by Rob on September 2, 2010 – 7:11 am
Filed under Video Games
Tagged as 360, bioshock, bioware, collectors, dragon age, game review, hacking, illusive man, loyality, mass effect 2, mini-game, mission, pc, PS3, RPG, Sci-Fi, shepard, third person shooter, x-files, xbox

It’s not very often where the sequel to anything, be it a video game, movie, book, or some other medium, surpasses the original. Mass Effect 2 is one of those rare cases where everything good about the first game is included in an improved way along with some new features that make it better than the first time around. Whether you carry over your character from the first game or create a new one from scratch, the continuing adventures of Shepard and Co. prove to make a great story and amazing game.
The game picks up weeks after the first one, but Shepard’s adventures are briefly cut short when his ship is ambushed and he is left for dead. He is picked up by a mysterious company and over the course of two years his body is healed and he is ready to stand on his feet again. A new alien menace known as the Collectors are threatening the galaxy, and Shepard joins up with the company (who is headed by someone called the “Illusive Man”, who simply reminds me of the “Cigarette-Smoking Man from the X-Files), recruits his own hand-picked team, and prepares to take the fight to these new enemies on their homeworld. Along the way, Shepard will also have to gain their trust to make them completely loyal to him and their overall cause. To do this, you will need to talk to your new allies a lot, and also go on special “loyality” missions for them. These missions consist of helping that squad member deal with some demon from the past, which, upon successful completion, technically brings them at peace with their past so that they can give 100% devotion to the mission.
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Posted by Rob on September 1, 2010 – 5:23 pm
Filed under Sports
Tagged as ahl, albany, big bad bob, bigbadbob, carolina, devils, farm, hockey, minor league, nhl, rangers, river rats, Sports, times union center
I had mentioned a few months ago that the local AHL team, the Albany River Rats, had been sold and moved to Carolina. I was extremely upset about this, since I loved being able to go to the Times Union Center, an easy twelve-minute drive from my apartment, to watch a cheap hockey game. Sure, they weren’t the Rangers minor league team, but I rooted for them anyway, because to me they were an Albany team.

Well the good news is that the people who own the Times Union Center have purchased a new AHL team…the Albany Devils! The Devils farm team is no stranger to Albany, as they were based here prior to the Hurricanes’ team coming in a few years back. So I will be able to continue seeing cheap hockey games this season. While I dislike the Devils, being a Rangers fan, I will be cheering on the Albany Devils as my home Albany game.

Posted by Rob on September 1, 2010 – 5:14 pm
This year’s Yahoo! Fantasy Hockey leagues are up and ready to go! I already registered my public team, and my live online draft will be tomorrow afternoon at 12:00pm. Here’s to another great season of fantasy hockey, which is how I keep up-to-date on all the players in the NHL, especially the players in the Western Conference which I no little about since I rarely watch them play the Rangers. I have been playing every year for the past four years now, and it really got me more into the sport than I ever was. It’s funny…I laugh at people who talk about their fantasy football and baseball leagues, yet here I am with a hockey one…I’m such a hypocrite!
Posted by Rob on September 1, 2010 – 3:17 pm
Filed under TV Shows
Tagged as 2011, ahl, albany, kane, mma, nxt, smackdown, smackdown vs raw 2010, superstars, svr, times union center, ufc, undertaker, wrestling, wwe
I went to a taping of WWE’s Smackdown show last night (Tuesday, August 31) at the Times Union Center in Albany (home of AHL hockey!!!), and enjoyed myself quite a bit. The arena about a twelve minute drive from my apartment, tickets were only $25, and the Undertaker was going to be there…all aspects which made me want to go, despite the fact that I haven’t sat down and watched wrestling since the very early 2000′s. I must say that it is a heck of a lot more fun when you’re there as opposed to watching from home.
Note: I did not bring my camera, since I assumed they would be searching and Shell was not around to hide it in her pocketbook. Turns out that cameras are encouraged, just no video cams, so I could have brought it, and if I had known, there would have been a lot more pics. Instead all I have are a few crappy ones I took with my cell phone.

Let me talk about the overall feel in the arena first. It was hot, sweaty, and stinky…I have to say that the stench was far worse than anything I had to endure at PAX East. But the slight discomforts made up for actually being there, surrounding by raving fans who probably believe that the WWE is the same as UFC and other MMAs, in that the fights are real. There were kids, teens, and full-grown adults walking around sporting various WWE shirts, signs, and even belts (professional and makeshift.) To hear the crowd react to the wrestlers in the ring was also pretty cool, from everyone shouting for a fan-fave to kick out of a pin or submission to the crowd booing at the heel when he flaunted to the stands. You could hear everyone say “oooh!” with each chest chop and dropkick that was received. The other mind-blowing reaction was when a wrestler’s theme music hit, indicating they were on their way to the ring. The people got so worked up to see their fan favorites, and it really did make the experience a fun and memorable one. Read More »