nerd alert : Alice for DS

Alice has fallen down the rabbit hole again! but this time, its into a highly stylized illustrated environment. Meet characters, each with a special ability. The rabbit controls time, the caterpillar stretches across gaps, and the cat claws his way clear of confusion as they steer Alice down the right path.

 01/ Alice In Wonderland for DS $11.64  //  02/ Alice $7.80  //  03/ Cheshire Cat $9.48  //  04/ Mailbox $17.97  //  05/ White Rabbit $8.03  //  06/ black hair ribbon $3.75  //  07/ White Gloves $3.08  //  08/ Bicycle Clear Playing Cards$6.48  //  09/Nintendo DSi XL $169.99  //  10/ Mad Hatter$9.50

Thats right - you don't control Alice, in this game your objective is to protect her using the whole Wonderland gang.

The illustrated style of this game is great - I was additionally thankful for my Nintendo DSi xl - the extra large screen made it easy to see the graphics in all of their intended glory.

The red queens army is not to be taken lightly as they try to steal Alice away from the band of Wonderland characters. As the game progresses, your crew gains not one, but 2 abilities (ex. the cat can not only claw, but now also makes things appear and disappear) creating new puzzles in each environment.

Switch between characters at will throughout the game while protecting Alice, finding keys, tracking down treasure chests, and putting together pieces of the jigsaw puzzle as you search for the Red Queen and Jabberwocky

This wasn't just a great movie adaptation - it was a great game! Personally loved the little quips of humor and the games method of layering abilities and characters over the course of the story.

5/6 polly toes - not going to beat around the bush - LOVED this little game. In fact, I couldn't put it down... its as if little Alice belonged in her digital wonderland all along.

nerd alert : clue

murder mystery? check. array of probable weapons? check. characters cool enough to fight my sister for *cough*scarlet*cough*? check.

01/ lead pipe $8.43  //  02/ clue journal $20.00  //  03/ peacock hat $45.00  //  04/ rope $21.00  //  05/ floorplan napkin $5.95  //  06/ candle stick $15.00  //  07/ clue suspect glasses $126.00  //  08/  wrench $43.50

Well, board games are only brought out at holidays, and the idea of finding a place to store one in my apartment is slightly nauseating. so playing clue has sadly fallen by the wayside for the past few years.

But recently I played Hasbros newish video game version of the 50 year old gaming classic.

Its pricey - so I only played the free trial... but i will admit a strong temptation to buy. I am very happy with the art deco stylized illustration of the game, and it seems to move quickly, even while playing all the characters.

There are three difficulty levels you can set for you opponents, which i think makes the game more true to life, set a few at rookie and the rest at expert to mimic your competitive sister and 'not so into this' neighbor.

Sorry mom for never letting you play the cool characters... you're the best.

Polly gives this one 3.5/6 toes - very over priced - it is, after all, a board game

nerd alert : sins of the fathers

Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fatherswas the initial installment of the three part Gabriel Knight series by (my all time favorite) Jane Jensen.

01/ st. louis cathedral $15.00  //  02/ picayune $227.40/year  //  03/ new orleans cemetery $28.00  //  04/ snake ring $591.00  //  05/ dagger $110.00  //  06/ mardi gras beads $1.50  //  07/ crocodile mask $24.95  //  08/ coffee print $35.00  //  09/ clock box $180.00  //  10/ hair gel $2.90

Gabriel is a loner of sorts, a writer who idolizes beautiful women, owns a book store, and is haunted by terrifying nightmares.

Strange murders in New Orleans are scaring off tourists and making the locals quiet. Seeing the VooDoo inspired murders as a great plot line for his novel-in-progress, Gabriel takes advantage of his friend Detective Mosley to get some dirt on whats been going on. Little does he know the case will not only change his future, but also give him great insight into his past.

// from here

Set in new orleans, this 1993 title is high on both pixels and charm. you wont be dissappointed (if you cant get this to run, its also available in novel form)

6/6 polly toes

nerd alert : the 7th guest

You may not have been aware that Friday July 8th was Video Games Day... now you know.

In honor of the great holiday I decided to pay a visit to my overflowing (vintage?) game collection... where i found the 1992 classic The 7th Guest...

the 7th Guest was one of the first CD-ROM games ever released (floopys were on their way out) - even Bill Gates told everyone how cool it was... and let me take a moment to tell you about how hard i tried, over and over, to get this game to run on newer windows platforms. it never happened. i literally cried about it... not only because i was like 9 years old, but also because that's how cool this game was..

Nostalgia kicked in and i went to the internet to look up some info on the game, maybe read old reviews and look over the walkthrough ans screenshots to get some old memories going....

but what I found was better than I could've imagined - The 7th Guest has been made into an iPhone/iPad App.. to say the least I was thrilled, and immediately downloaded it.

01/ porcelain doll arms $12.00  //  02/ doll house $1,056.59  //  03/ brass telescope $865.80  //  04/ playing card decanter set $32.00  //  05/ skull cameos $3.25  //  06/ microscope set $40.00  //  07/ skeleton shoes $60.00  //  08/ chess vinyl decals $28.00

You find yourself in a mansion, with no recollection of how you got there... but you aren't alone... 6 (or 7?) other guests seem to be haunting the house, giving you clues and leading you to puzzles. The (rather annoying) owner of the house promises them their wildest dreams if they stay the night and solve the puzzles. but they don't know the truth about their host or what he's after (and neither do you - yet)

i will warn that this game is very frustrating. i know the last time i played it i was barely 10, but the puzzles are still hard. so hard there is also a free walkthrough app to help you out... there's no shame in getting a little help. but he (or she) who tames this title without the walkthrough will earn my eternal respect.

It took me the weekend to get through the puzzles, it was slightly difficult to get through the puzzles with my clunky fingertips on my tiny iphone screen, but I muddled through.

If you App people out there keep releasing titles as close to my heart as this, I may have to shell out some cash and get an iPad sooner than later.

5.5/6 polly toes - she says its the best $2.99 shes spent all year!

monster journal

how freaking adorable is this monster journal!? its called the nightmare snatcher and i think its mostly for little kids... i kind of want one....

mario kart

this should make you smile. a lot.