Life has been a little hectic since I’ve returned from my trip to the World Cyber Games in Chengdu, China.  I’ll spare you my touristy run-down of airport delays (Beijing rockets silver iodide into clouds to make rain, but ended up blanketing Beijing in an unseasonable blizzard), sleep deprivation (left a forehead print on the glass revolving door, poured noodles on my partner’s laptop trying to show my mom my breakfast over webcam), internet restrictions (no Wikipedia, no Facebook, no blogs, no Youtube, and a very sensitive IP blocker), and personal excursions to different corners of Chengdu (the mountain where Daoism was founded, tons of street market haggling, and harrowing cab rides).  I will, however, name-drop it like it’s hot.

TorcH and I sat across the aisle from SirScoots, a well-known personality in eSports, and MoB Shift, one of the two Guitar Hero players for USA.  The flight was uneventful save for my sudden and unparalleled achievement in Pokemon Pinball: access to the Mewtwo Bonus Level and an all-time high score of 1,517,277,700 on the Blue level (which after some research I’ve discovered is not a very impressive score… let down).

Waiting in the Beijing airport, I lost track of TorcH and glommed onto the group surrounding the US WCG managers, Paul, Aaron, and Natalie.  Also in that group were Jamal, an Ultimate Gamer contestant, and one of my new friends, Sean “Wraith” Snack.  Paul ended up saving the day and getting us to Chengdu that night whereupon we were greeted by… a gaggle of uniformed volunteers speaking English, offering bottles of water, and encouraging us to relax in a special seating area while we awaited our shuttle!  It was our first taste of celebrity, and it was pretty neat.

At the hotel, the lobby was set up with tables dedicated to registering teams.  There were uniforms and meal cards and room keys for the players who all shuffled off to bed by 2am China time (all of China is one time zone). I had been awake for 25 hours and most other for much longer than that, so I was determined to sleep as long as possible.  Fortunately I didn’t because then I would have missed the players’ tour of the Panda Research Base the next morning!

Ah, the day of the police escort…  For the 30 minute ride to the panda base, we had a cop leading our bus the whole way (as a note, the banners for WCG still lined the road two full miles from the venue) and other cops along our route blocking intersection traffic so we could pass.  We were rushed around the base by our volunteers/herders and tour guide, but the pandas were epically adorable.  On the ride home, I sat with a group of referees in panda (excuse me, pander, as the Chinese pronounce it) hats and got to know Nicholas White, an Australian ref who has attended several WCG final events.

Upon returning to Century City, the combination hotel/event hall, we got our passes and entered the venue for the first time.  And here, we come to our agreement from my last post.  These aren’t the original “scantily-clad ladies” I was promising, but readers, feast your eyes on the lovely booth girls of Samsung!

These beautiful girls (and several very attractive guys) populated every exhibitor booth in various teams of costumes.

There were futuristic soldiers, elves, school girls, deal-or-no-deal types, space aliens, airline stewardesses, and even some cat-girls… whatever best related to the individual products (however tenuously).

What’s more, they all spoke at least some English, and were always eager to help me understand or get me to participate.

So suck on it, boys… I got to be around tons of hot Chinese girls and you didn’t.

Coming next installment… how Team USA fared and who owned the most face! (hint: it wasn’t us)

Ciekawa konwersja klasycznego pinballa. Zróżnicowane plansze i, o zgrozo!, możliwość łapania pokemonów. Jak to możliwe? Sprawdźcie sami.

Rating: 6 Out of 10

Pokemon Pinball is a great pinball game, but it lacks key pinball features and you need AAA battery for a rumble pack. This game does have great music and graphics. It also has 150 creatures to capture along with that it is a pinball game. Unfortunately, this is just a cheap rip off of the game.

Pros:

+ A Pokemon Pinball Game

+ 150 Creatures

Cons:

- Have to use AAA for rumble pack

- Lack of key pinball features

Extras:

# Pokemon Pinball Cheat Codes

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By: Krooze L-Roy

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#5 – Pokemon Pinball: Ruby and Sapphire

I’ve played Pokemon. Matter of fact, I was downright into Pokemon for a spell. I was 15 when Pokemon Red and Blue came out, which was just young enough to be self-conscious about doing things that I felt I was “too old” to do. Thus, my friend and I played covertly, trading pocket monsters with a discreetness that a serial killer would find over the top. Well aware of the fact that our reputations in middle school would determine the rest of our lives, we weren’t nearly as shameless as the other nerds; playing right in the middle of class for anyone and God to see.

Thus it is with a vague yet lingering sense of shame that I, as an adult, play Pokemon Pinball Ruby and Sapphire. The awareness that I should not feel thus serves only to fortify and enhance to this feeling.

In my emotionally fragile state, you’ll have to forgive me if I babble somewhat. And if I suddenly start to cry, don’t try to comfort me; it’ll just make me cry harder. But don’t worry about me, I’m alright. So on with the review.

*Clears throat* The combination of Pokemon with pinball is a marriage made in my darkest, most guilt-laden dreams. The concept of collecting and evolving Pokemon is a great hook, and really gives you reason to keep coming back these two otherwise run-of-the-mill tables. With most pinball games, if you luck out and do too well, it sort of kills your drive to keep playing, since you know you’ll never be able to beat that high score. With Pokemon Pinball, you don’t even have to play well to enjoy it; you’ll still have a tangible feeling of progression. Thus this is the perfect game for those who feel that pinball is too aimless.

It’s also good for those who suck. Much like Kirby’s Pinball Land, this game is a bit on the easy-as-fucking-hell side. Now, your ball will actually go down the drain quite often; so it’s not the table designs themselves that are easy. It’s that the game is so generous with the ball-save feature. Anytime you’re in the process of trying to catch or evolve one of the little shits, the ball save feature is there to save you some frustration. Other times it’s just on for the hell of it. Pinball purists might scoff at this lack of difficulty, but piss on ‘em. The game is fun and addictive, so who cares if you might be able to play for a day or two on a single credit, as ridiculous as that sounds. The fact that you won’t mind playing for that long is a testement to the game’s greatness.

There are two tables available; Ruby and Sapphire. And much like the game’s predecessor, one of them is more difficult than the other (though the difference isn’t nearly as pronounced this time around). The tables are also a lot more complex now with tons of clever little touches.

They certainly have added a lot of monsters since my in-the-closet days of collect-em-alling abandon. I haven’t seen many of my old favorites; just a bunch of imposters with crappy names like Wynaut and Torobiusu. Where’s Bulbasaur, damnit?! They kept Magikarp’s worthless ass!

This minor grievance aside, I should also add that there are a number of boss fights. Some of them are rather irritating too, but luckily you can opt not to fight if you’re get sick of them, or are just a pacifistic coward. And I’m not positive, but I’d swear that the big dinosaur pokemon actually ended my ball once by stomping it. That’s either awesome or total bullshit; I haven’t decided.

Best Table: Tough call, but I’d have to go with Ruby

Also check out: The original Pokemon Pinball, for the Gameboy Color. The tables are a lot simpler, but it’s still fun, and the characters are more nostalgic (for me, at least). The rumble feature is a nice touch; unfortunately the added size of the cart enables anyone to see that you’re playing a Pokemon game. And that’s the kind of humiliation a young man might never recover from.

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By: Krooze L-Roy

Click for Full Reviews

#10 – The Gottlieb Collection

#9 – Pinball Fx

#8 – Kirby’s Pinball Land

#7 – Sonic Pinball Party

#6 – Metroid Prime Pinball

#5 – Pokemon Pinball: Ruby and Sapphire

#4 – Rollerball

#3 – Ultimate Pro Pinball

#2 – Devil’s Crush

#1 – Digital Pinball: Necronomicon