Happy New Year!!!

Picture Credit:  epoxy putty from Pixiv

I'm usually not one to make resolutions, but this year I am going to try to make a few improvements in my life.  I know it won't be easy, but I would like to do the following things:

Top AAA Games of 2014

Earlier, I shared my list of Top Niche Games of 2014, so now it is time to share my list of top AAA or mainstream games of 2014.

My niche list heavily favored the Playstation 3 and Vita, which both have a wonderful selection of Japanese games, but this list heavily favors the Wii U.  As I get older, I find that I am playing more and more Nintendo games.  Whether, this is due to nostalgia (I have owned all of the Nintendo consoles since the NES), or just tiring of the AAA games that the other consoles have to offer, I do not know.

Here are the 10 games that I enjoyed the most this year:

Top 'Niche' Video Games of 2014

When most people think of video games, titles such as Call of Duty,  Halo, and Assassin's Creed come to mind.  While I can agree those games are commercial hits, they are not the type of game that appeal to me.

When people find out that I'm a gamer, they immediately start talking about the newest big game such as Destiny, Battlefield, Call of Duty, etc... and they look at me like I'm crazy when I tell them I've never played any of those.  Their looks get even more incredulous when I list the games that I do play, as most have never heard of them before, because  I love quirky, low budget games that often go unnoticed by the majority of people. 

If you are like me, and enjoy niche games, check out the following list of the top niche games of 2014.  (Please note, this list is only made up of games that I own and have played, there are many games missing from this list simply because I haven't had a chance to play them yet)

Around the Web: 10 Outrageous 'Zero Tolerance' Follies of 2014

So often people feel the need to pass legislation or policies for the 'good' of us all.  And all too often these policies have unexpected consequences that defy all logic.

Reason.com has a list of 10 'Zero Tolerance' Follies of 2014 that will make you pull your hair out.  How have people become this stupid!?

Check out the list here:

Here Are 10 Outrageous 'Zero Tolerance' Follies of 2014

Anime: 10 Catchy Anime Songs

Most American television shows open with either a corny theme song or just a quick instrumental song over the credits and some don't have an opening song at all!  In most anime, it seems that great care is taken while choosing the songs for the opening and closing credits, along with the accompanying animation.  It is not unusual for me to get an anime song stuck in my head and then have to go out and buy that song!

Here is a list of 10 catchy anime opening and ending songs that may or may not get stuck in your head:

Television: Season Finale of 'The Birthday Boys' airs after 'Comedy Bang Bang' on IFC Tonight

The season two finale of 'The Birthday Boys' will air tonight at 10:30pm CST tonight following 'Comedy Bang Bang.'  This has been a great season for the Birthday Boys and I hope there will be a season three!  'Comedy Bang Bang' will resume in three weeks.  If you like offbeat humor, be sure to check these shows out!

Above is my favorite sketch from last weeks episode of 'The Birthday Boys.'
Edit:  The previous video that I had above is no longer available so I added another video from season one.

Around the Web: A Beginner's Guide to Austrian Economics

Here is a good article outlining the basics of Austrian economics and how it differs from Keynesian economics:

http://www.voicesofliberty.com/article/a-beginners-guide-to-austrian-economics/

Listen: New Modest Mouse Single "Lampshades on Fire"

Modest Mouse have announced a new album that will be releasing on March 3, 2015!  Listen to the single "Lampshades on Fire" above.

Pre-order the album on Amazon here:  http://smarturl.it/Strangers2Orslvs

Amiibo Fever!

There is no doubt that Nintendo's new Amiibo figures are a hit this holiday season.  Look at the displays at your nearest retailer and you are likely to find many empty slots with only the most well known characters in stock.

I was lucky to have been able to purchase the complete first wave at retail value, except for Marth (which I had to buy at twice the cost).

Seeing how some figures were going to be rare and possibly discontinued after their initial shipment, I quickly pre-ordered all the available figures for waves two and three.  This required ordering through various sites (Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, Gamestop) since some were retailer exclusives and some had already been sold out on Amazon.  Luckily, I was able to order all of them except Rosalina and Lucario, which are exclusive to Target and Toys R' Us, respectively.  However, I did find a site that allowed me to pre-order the Japanese versions of those two.

With the rarity of many of these figures, the usual scalpers have appeared online selling them for two to five times the cost.  Debates are flaring up on message boards around the internet on whether this is an ethical practice or not, and of course, capitalism becomes the rallying cry for those that do this or the curse for those unable to find a reasonably priced figure for their collection.  But is this really capitalism at its finest?