[3DS] Animal Crossing - Happy Home Designer

A simulation game based off Nook's homes in Animal Crossing. The player gets to design houses for the animal clients. However, there is no challenge to designing the house to tailor the clients interest.

[Amiibo] Olimar & Pikmin

About

Olimar & Pikmin are from the Pikmin series. Olimar is from a planet named Hoctate and while travelling, his ship hit a meteor. This led him to crash landed into a unknown planet where Pikmin lived. Together with Pikmin, Olimar is able to fix his ship.

[PS Vita] Broken Age

A point and click adventure game which probably would have been much easier to play on a larger screen than the PS Vita.

[Wii U] Captain Toad

Captain Toad is MOSTLY a casual small puzzle game. I say mostly because the hardest part was in the Bonus book.

[Crochet] Colorful Star Mini Blanket

Final product. I quite like it.

Winter is almost here and when it gets close, I tend to want to knit/crochet something. This year I decided to crochet a mini blanket for the couch. I was finally able to use some of the yarn that I been hording for years (...and still brought some).

The easiest way to make a blanket is to make granny squares and attach them together. I wanted something that had stars and with the knowledge of regular granny squares, I modified it to look like stars. These are very small granny squares (a little less than 2" each).

KickBeat Overview

KickBeat is a rhythm game mixed with martial arts. There are 18 songs in the game with difficulty ranging from normal to master. It is easy to play but difficult to master.

Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX Overview

After spending the last month and a half casually playing on this game, it is very difficult to get all the stamps (achievements). The game is much more extensive than it first appeared. It can also be a grind fest.

Tokyo Jungle Overview

Where did mankind go? They all disappeared...but why?

Tokyo Jungle is a survival game as animals. Animals are either predators or grazers who have to survive as long as possible. 

[Amiibo] Ganondorf

About

The villain in some of The Legend of Zelda games. This version is from Twilight Princess. He tends to want to rule the world (Hyrule) and possesses the Triforce of Power.

IA/VT Colorful Overview

IA is a Vocaloid with her own rhythm game. Similar to the Project Diva series, it has a variety of songs and costumes to unlock.

[Painting] Totoro in Watercolor

2nd in the series. Probably my favorite among the rest.

Once again, I been challenging myself to one watercolor a day. I am amazed at the results after getting new brushes and cheap 140 lb paper. I am starting to understand which brushes I use more often and what techniques I can use. I realized some techniques will not work with the size of paper/brush I use. There is a ton of trial and error.

Instead of doing landscapes, I wanted to paint something with a character. Totoro seemed easy enough so I decided to try it. Plus I watched the movie again while doing this.

Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX Demo Overview

Originally, I was going to get a Japanese 3DS and buy the Project Mirai games until DX was announced for the west. I did not pay much attention to the mode differences since I thought buttons were better. Now that a demo has been released, the demo was very enjoyable (though small).

[Painting] New Watercolors, New Paintings

I decided to buy a block style watercolor set since many tutorials are shown using a few colors and mixing them for the desired effect. The set I brought was the Sakura Koi 24 Watercolor travel size set. The set was a good value and I wanted something portable in case I wanted to paint landscapes when I hiked.

I like this set better than my watercolor pencils set. I am able to mix colors much more easily and achieve different effects. Though I just recently learned, I could have taken a wet brush to the watercolor pencil and used it that way. Well, I thought the color would have dissolved faster but I was wrong. I also learned my Sakura Micron pens are waterproof and I could use them with watercolors.

Now I am wondering what else there is....

On to the paintings below:

Hometown Story Overview

A very simple simulation game where the player runs a store. Everything revolves around the store's improvement and there is not much to do after a while. While the game was fun and interesting, it ended up being boring after most of the events were seen. The events were the best part about the game since it felt like progression. The drawback was collecting pieces to the blue feather.

[Painting] A Watercolor a day

This week I challenged myself to learn how to use watercolor. About a year ago, I brought a watercolor pencil set and barely used it. It felt almost too precious to use but I finally broke through to use it without remorse (almost).

I been trying to inspire myself to use them over the past year. I really wanted to paint images in beautiful colors but I lack self confidence. I always feel that I can't do it but I want to break through that barrier. Hopefully, one day I can paint sites and landscapes. For now, I will have to learn through tutorials and images online.

Waterlily

 July 20, 2015 - Start
Watercolor waterlily tutorial I found on youtube. I could not make it as expansive as the tutorial showed since I was trying to save paper by cutting a 9" x 12" paper into 1/4. Watercolor paper is expensive after all. This 90 lb paper also curled so I would probably get thicker watercolor paper next time.

I can't say I am too proud of this work but it was a start. Using watercolor pencils was difficult when trying to imitate the techniques.

Learned: Can't mix the color I want as easily with watercolor pencils. Also less is more.

[Amiibo] Ness

About

Ness is from Earthbound. He has powers and uses them to fight aliens in order to protect the planet.

Tearaway Overview

Tearaway is a short yet fun game that utilizes all the controls. There are many creative aspects that makes the game feel interactive, fresh and different.

[Hiking] Anthony's Nose Trail

A beautiful view of the Hudson River and mountains. The hike was a bit of a workout but it was nice to be able to see the amazing view up top.

[Amiibo] Jigglypuff

About

Jigglypuff is the balloon Pokemon. 

[Amiibo] Robin

About

Robin is the main protagonist in Fire Emblem: Awakening. He/she represents the player's character (who usually was a tactician with no battle capabilities) at the time of creation. 

Fossil Fighters Frontier Overview

Fossil Fighters Frontier is the 3rd game in the Fossil Fighter series. There were many changes compare to the first two games but some of it was not for the better. This review is mainly on the changes/differences, and the features of the game.

[Amiibo] Lucina

About

Lucina is from Fire Emblem: Awakening. She is a descendant of Marth. She disguises herself with a mask and calls herself Marth.

[Hiking] Indian Kill Nature Preserve

Indian Kill Nature Preserve has a few trails which are short and fun to hike. The trails all connect again at some point to continue to the falls. The trail continues across the water after the first falls but only if it can be crossed.

Style Savvy Trendsetters Overview

A casual style and fashion game with a few management features. There are also fashion competitions based on a random category.

[Hiking] Great Flats Nature Trail

A small and very easy trail with lots of wildlife around. Many different birds can be heard on the walk. There were also many different type of insects we have never seen before. I would consider this more of a short walk in a forested area than a hike.

[Amiibo] Marth

About

Marth is from the Fire Emblem series. He is the main protagonist in the first Fire Emblem game. 

[Amiibo] Toad

About

Toad is from the Super Mario series. Toad is seen to be Princess Peach attendant and plays a supporting character role. In a few games, Toad is a playable character and is a main character in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker.

Stretchmo (Tutorial) Overview

Stretchmo is a puzzle game where Mallo pulls/push blocks and jump to get to the goal flag. A "free" Nintendo eshop game that came with the last 3DS update. The only part that was free was the Welcome Center (tutorial) and everything else had to be paid for after.

Project Diva f 2nd Overview

Japanese version on left, English version on right. AR card came with Japanese version.

Another Project Diva game has been localized and I ended up with both English and Japanese versions. At first I had the English version but my save data from f would not transfer over so I had to get the Japanese version. The English version does allow importing the Japanese data from f 2nd over. So, I waited until I finished the Japanese version before importing it to the English version.

[Hiking] Wolf Creek Fall Preserve

One entrance is to the right.

A nice hike/walk in a forested area. Wolf Creek Fall Preserve has a few trails and feels like a short walk. There were no waterfalls due to the lack of water. Most of the paths are well marked.

[Hiking] Plotter Kill Preserve - Try 2

Good news! We found one of the waterfalls. We barely saw the second waterfall since it was hidden behind trees. The waterfalls did not have much water and I assume it's due to the lack of rain. There has been some rain but not a whole lot.

[Amiibo] Ike

About

Ike is from Fire emblem: Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn. He also shows up in Fire Emblem: Awakening as DLC. He wields the Divine Blade Ragnell.

[Hiking] Plotter Kill Preserve - Try 1

Looks like a super hot day.

There are two entrances to Plotter Kill Preserve. The entrance from NY 159 is closer to the waterfalls while the entrance on Coplon Rd is further. We went to the Coplon Rd entrance and did not realize the map we had did not match with this entrance. We backtracked often and never found the waterfalls. We do plan to go back soon to find them.

[Hiking] Christman Sanctuary

Nice sunny day for a hike.

A beautiful area with waterfalls and a good length hiking trail. There are two marked trails and they both loop in a circle. The blue trail is where the waterfalls can be seen and enjoyed. The orange trail is longer and goes through the forest.

[Hiking] Lisha Kill Preserve

Nice day for a short hike.

A simple hike in Niskayuna, New York with some nice views of water and wildlife. The trail has lots of trail markers so it is almost impossible to get lost. We decided to tackle the entire trail by going through all of them.

[Amiibo] Rosalina & Luma

About

Rosalina & Luma are from the Super Mario Galaxy series. Rosalina is the guardian of the Luma's.

[Hiking] Hadley Mountain

There are many trails to hike in/near the Adirondacks. It was overwhelming looking through the internet for a trail so J and I went to get a book. Now that the choices narrowed down, it was between a few trails but we chose Hadley Mountain since it was the closest.

Gardening Mama 2 Overview

Gardening Mama 2 is an improvement over the first game in the series. As a spin off from the Cooking Mama series, it is very enjoyable and very casual. Unlike the first game, there is a reason why plants are grown. The forest animals ask for X amount of plant in order to get more customers to visit their stores. Of course, the player gets tickets in return which can be used to buy things in the store or lottery tickets.

Change of website name

It's almost 5 months since I have started to blog again. It has been fun trying to achieve more than I did last year. I am amazed at how many games I have played so far. I can't even count how many I played last year since I can't remember what I played. I been posting smaller projects for crafts since I haven't done anything big yet. I will be posting a much larger project soon and I can't wait to get started on that.

I decided to change the name of the website now that I have a bit of content posted. I figured that the new name would help define what I'm trying to do. I went through a bunch of variations but I think Quest was the most appropriate. I feel like I'm on a quest/path/journey learning about different things. Also I seem to be posting quite a bit on games versus crafts so it felt more appropriate.

I realized the quality of some of my photos are terrible. I don't know when I'll get a better camera but the one I am currently using is from 8 years ago or so. I tried using my sister's phone and was shocked at how much better quality her phone camera was. When I do get a better camera, I'll be able to retake a bunch of pictures in higher quality.

Until next time.

Sakura Samurai - Art of the Sword Overview

Sakura Samurai is a short and interesting 3DS eshop game. I got the game off Club Nintendo and it is definitely worth playing.

The story is about a samurai (the player) who encounters a Kappa by a tree. The Kappa asks for your help to rescue the Sakura princess and makes the samurai into a Sakura Samurai. The game does not allow the samurai to spam his sword to kill his enemies since the enemies can block. Instead, using dodge then attack is more effective. Timing and precision is the key to victory.

Warning: Slight Spoilers

[Amiibo] Shulk

About

Shulk is the main character from Xenoblade Chronicles. Haven't played the game so I don't know much else about him.

Pokemon Rumble World Overview

Another free eshop Pokemon game by Nintendo. Pokemon Rumble World has the same concept as the other Pokemon Rumble games before it. Player plays as a Pokemon toy and runs around to defeat other Pokemon in hopes of being able to get the defeated Pokemon as a toy to also play with. However, in this version a Mii is selected to join the story. Streetpass and other features allow other Mii's to join the game. Usually, the Mii's need to be saved and protected. Of course a reward of a diamond or coin is given by the Mii's as well as a power up until the end of the level.

htoL#NiQ - The Firefly Diary

This game is interesting and fun as it is frustrating and annoying. While it is not a long game, it took about a week to finish the game. The only way for J and I to beat the game was to switch off and sleep once we realized we were unable to beat the part. Taking a break really helps a lot in this game. No break and the game starts to become unbearable to play.

Warning: Spoilers

[Amiibo] Toon Link #2

We decided to buy a second Toon Link when Target had a 25% off sale for amiibos. We wanted a Yoshi but there was none, so we pick up a Toon Link instead. On our way to the four swords collection! I doubt it would happen in the end.

[Amiibo] Peach

About

Originally named Princess Toadstool, Princess Peach is the Princess of Mushroom Kingdom. In the Super Mario Bros games, she is kidnapped often by Bowser at the beginning of the game. At the end, she is saved.

[Painting] The Legend of Zelda - Hyrule Crest

I haven't done any artsy stuff lately and I finally decided what to do with my second token. I will paint more tokens and switch it around on the amiibo box. Since J is a huge The Legend of Zelda fan, I figured this would be appropriate to have around. I also got Testors Dullcote lacquer and wanted to try it out. Thus this painting project was born.

[Amiibo] Sheik

About

Sheik is from The Legend of Zelda series. She is usually shown for a very brief period of time where she helps the hero Link on his journey. It's never revealed that Sheik is Zelda but it is implied. In Hyrule Warriors, she is shown to transform into Zelda.

[Amiibo] Kirby

About

Kirby is the protagonist to the different Kirby games. Many of them involve in going on an adventure and helping someone in need.

Weekend Fun

This past weekend, Nintendo World Store had a doubles tournament for Super Smash Bros for Wii U. At first, I was thinking J and I both should try to enter. Upon inquiring about more details, it seemed like a pain to be the first 128 players lined up early on Saturday. We lived about 4 hours away from the store so it wasn't exactly easy to get there early in the morning. Also we realized if we lost early, then we would just end up heading back early. It would be a waste of time. Instead, we decided we rather play with our friends.

[Amiibo] Zelda

About

The princess from The Legend of Zelda. Her whereabouts are usually unknown throughout the game. She helps the hero, Link, through his journey by keeping away and guiding him.

HarmoKnight Overview

After posting about amiibos constantly for the past week, I think it's time for a game.

HarmoKnight is an eshop only game. I tried the demo a while back and fell in love with it. I didn't have money for it and decided to wait on getting it. I got it off Club Nintendo and was excited to play the full version of the game.

[Amiibo] Bowser

About

Bowser is from the Mario series. He is the villain who captures Princess Peach. Also appears in other side games along with Mario characters.

[Amiibo] Toon Link

About

Toon Link is from The Legend of Zelda series. He is the cartoon version of Link.

[Amiibo] Pikachu

About

Pikachu is from the Pokemon series. In the anime, he accompanies the main protagonist and goes on a journey.