What went wrong here? Although I’ve never really liked Strider all that much, it isn’t a bad game. It’s also quite different to most platformers, as you can climb walls, hang from platforms, and that sort of thing. Only, you can’t. The NES version of Strider, it seems, does away with everything that is Strider and removes it. So now, it’s just a generic crap platformer. Rubbish.

Wow! This is great! I always kind-of liked Final Fight, but thought Streets of Rage to be somewhat better. I did wonder if a super-deformed version, on the NES, would actually be any good. And it is! It’s a bit simple, but there’s actually more to it than the original game, as there are more moves and you gain experience points and levels improving your strength, health and move-set. It’s a bit hard though, as a continue sends you back …

Two crap EA demos in two days. Who’d have thought it? Firstly, what’s with the stuttering during the set-piece cutscenes? It’s like it’s using the same engine as NFS:Carbon it’s so bad. Then there’s the carding system. I managed to get three red cards and two yellows in less than 6 minutes of game time (not real time). I conceed that one of the reds was my fault (although the tackle wasn’t exactly nasty), but one of the others was …

I started off by finishing a few of the recently-found Snatch missions, before moving on to pimping up my Mag (which I’ve been using as my car of choice for later Snatch missions as it’s pretty durable and can carry three passengers). I then found a new Insurance Fraud activity, so set about clearing that one out too (which was pretty easy, even without the police-car-head-on tactic). I also killed a load of people (starting with the DJ) in a …

Today’s animal-wot-is-trying-to-leave is Kabuki. Again. He-she seems much more resolved to go this time, however, leaving no suggestion of staying even after multiple attempts at persuading him/her otherwise. It was also a flea market day today. I went round a few animals’ houses, but with Kabuki all packed to go and most of my other animals outside (and Bluebear refusing to sell me anything) all I picked up was a bed, which I suspect I already have in my catalogue. …

Hmm. As I cheered the fact I’d completed the last Snatch mission, I realised that, in fact, there was another location to do with 8 more Snatch missions. Pah. Set about doing some other stuff instead – a couple more Mayhem missions, hunted for some more CDs and tag locations (I found none), and generally just explored a bit more.

Oh lord. I thought the Sonic demo was bad enough. This is even worse. It’s jerky, it lurches all over the place like grandad after he’s been on the Guinness, and the handling is just all wrong. In Circuit Mode you can barely steer at all – it’s like you push the left stick as hard as it will go and it just about registers as slightly off-centre, and in Drift Mode it’s like you’re on ice and a slight …

Hurrah! Or at least, “Hurrah to some extent!”. I managed to get past stage 5, finally. That’s the sort of scrolly maze thing which requires pixel perfect ship maneuvering. As a result, I reached the Base Stage, but didn’t really know what I was supposed to do until I realised there was a thing I needed to shoot. I then remembered you could collide with the base, and you’d win (but not lose as life), so few at it, and …

Gngh! Too hard! I’m trying to work my way through all the Snatch missions, and although I’ve finished the Rollerz one already, the Vice Kings one, on level 8, is just too hard. There’s not even anything specifically difficult about it – I just can’t do it. Usually my car gets blown up by a molotov, or I have to swap car and then my bloke just stands there instead of entering the car I’m standing right next to. I’ve …

Played more games with my wife this evening. Found a version of Dominos which seems most “normal” (“Block”, in case you’re wondering), as well as many games of Spit! and several goes on Hasami Shogi. Played plenty of others too, though.

Another somewhat lax day in Cheese. Did my usual stuff of buying things I didn’t already have, and chatted briefly with my animals, as well as a load of weeding (which seems pointless now as it comes back with a vengance each day). Also gave three of my animals some clothes. Do I look like a walking branch of Oxfam or something?

Hurrah! I broke 100,000 points! Sadly, this did not gain me any achievements, nor did it get me to the top of the in-game high score table. And I managed it by only getting to wave 7. This game is too hard. FACT.

Played this with my wife for quite a while this evening. The Balance game got quite ridiculous as we had about ten blocks stacked up, lengthways, up the middle of the see-saw. I lost horribly at Bowling, Dominos confused us with it’s silly “5 Up” rules, and the battleships “clone” was OK, but the one-square-big “ships” were rubbish.

Well, Purrl didn’t move out, so perhaps my animals do like me. Having said that, they’re not all that interested in talking to me today. Redd was about, and I bought a merry-go-round from him for the alarmingly cheap price of 1,800 bells (or so). Maybe he was ill, or something. And weeds! What’s with them? Billions of them again today.

Strangely, and rather like many of the Xbox 360 games I’ve completed this year, this game’s last few levels seemed to get shorter and shorter (and the bosses easier and easier) until quite soon I’d done the final three stages and it was complete. It was quite fun, but ultimately pretty repetitive. I did unlock a fish I could stroke though. Which was nice.