Hour 40 and change

So everyone has gone home, but I'm still fiddling around in this game. I made it to the very last boss in the game (the last one you can actually lose to anyway) but have not been able to beat him. I actually started to try to find some equipment or powers to better challenge the final boss, but with nobody else here it's not really Final Fantasy Race any more.

Without Sandy, or at a bare minimum someone else who had witnessed the race in part, I am left playing video games alone in my apartment. Normally this is something I quite like doing. Tonight is different. I have now been awake for 42 hours, most of which I have been staring at the same video game, a game which a few years ago I did complete. So why am I still playing this game? I know what the ending is like, no one else is here to see it for their first time, and the race is over. Is it to prove that I can do it in one sitting? Actually that is a very tempting reason to forge ahead. Just not tempting enough.

I have to move to Toronto in just over 72 hours, and I have done precious little to prepare for this. Also, I'm not totally retarded. Just enough to have this race, but not enough to do it by myself. I'm going to bed.

So good night everyone. Thank you to everyone who made this the best Final Fantasy Race of all. Thanks for dropping in, bringing snacks and drinks, Skyping, reading here, and for any other contribution you may have made. I appreciate it, and I'm sure Sandy does too. He also appreciates a warm bottle of milk and a good burping now and again, the stupid baby.

- Alex "Your Champion" Leithead

P.S. Undefeated once again!

Hour 35

I think I'm close now. I just need to get myself a Holy spell and I think I may be set. That's at least what I need to pass the next part anyway. So now it's down to running around in circles while I level up.

I feel like I've run out of things to say. I'm kind of just in a grumpy mood now, what with no sleep and all. What a jerk I am. At least there are plenty of people here hanging out, that's nice.

I'm not sure but I think Sandy has basically given up, but I'm also thinking that this may be a clever ploy to surge past me while my guard is down.

Oh wait he's just running from everything. 

Hour 33

I am in some sort of puzzle dungeon, maybe towards the end of the game. It could also be a false ending. I do not know. Sandy on the other hand is still way behind. This is turning into a pretty standard Final Fantasy Race.

I hope I'm close to the end. I'd like to get a good night's sleep tonight so I can get up early to pack up my life. Why am I doing this now? I haven't really been busy all summer, and yet we are doing this only days before I move to another city.

Stupid stupid stupid.

The good news is Dr. Claw has arrived, bringing the sweet smell of hamburger with him. He also brought an actual hamburger. There may be a connection. We also currently have Sandy's sister Christy visiting again, this time without her friends. She still doesn't seem that impressed. Neither am I.

Hour 31

Thirty hours down in the two-man hell we've created for ourselves.

Hour 29

Fresh from my second FF Racer's bath (a generous application of Old Spice) we enter hour 29 of Final Fantasy Race 2009. The race is close at this point I'd say. If ever Sandy had a day to win it would be today. Whether or not he is prepared only time can tell, but at nearly thirty hours, to be this close is exil... exilher... exciting. 

The Beej departed only minutes ago, half joking that he would return with his 10 month old son. If this happens, he will be the youngest attendee in all the years of racing. That's actually not really that interesting, but babies are cool so... yes.

Gotta go! You guys are great. 

I love you.

Hour 27

It is almost noon the day after we started this stupid race. Every hour that passes seems to take about ten minutes. 

Sandy is close behind, but I suspect he may be a little behind in levels. This could be his ultimate undoing, but only time will tell.

Here's another haiku for you:

Dude, a chocobo

I ride it to victory!

Chambambampion

Hour 25

24 hours complete. I would like to thank all of the guests that we have had so far, and I'd also like to thank in advance all those of you who will be stopping by today. You are my rock.

So I'm not miserable or anything, but I am tired. There is a part of my brain that keeps thinking that I get to go to bed in 15-20 minutes. How wrong it is! We stand to be awake for many hours yet. In some ways, I look forward to those hours, because in one of those hours I will claim victory for the sixth time in a Final Fantasy Race. This we all know.

I am much less giddy than I once was, and in game I am exploring something called the Calm Lands. If there is a part of the game later where I climb Silly Billy Mountain then we may have a problem.

It's morning now. Where are you people?

Hour 23

Well, the sun is indeed pretty much up. I can't believe I don't get to go to bed for another... I don't know. Maybe fifteen to twenty hours. Oooooooooooooooffffff.

I feel confused, and I can't really think of anything except how confused I feel. Now that the sun is up, I'm hoping that my body will start to believe that I actually have gone to sleep, and we can enter daytime mode. I doubt it will do anything for how furry my brain feels.

I just put another one of Andrea's muffins into my body. The mouth part. I'm not that confused.

I think things are funny that are not. This is a true-fact about how I feel.

Important:

Boss fights!

Sphere-Levels!

Destruction Spheres!

Bahamut Power!

Hour 21

Twenty hours complete, so in theory we're halfway finished.

Well the visits have ceased for now. The last of our guests left hours ago. That leaves only Sandy and I and some TVs. Perfect. These are the hours that pass unnoticed. They do however pass quickly. By the time I next write, it should already be starting to get light out, and we will be nearing the 24 hour mark.

Sandy has gained a little ground after his disaster from a couple of hours ago. Good for him.

Currently, I feel funny. My head still feels all weird, and I have absolutely no appetite but cannot stop thinking about the snacks nearby. Scream cheese. I scream, you scream, we all scream for cheese. Cheese Scream!

P.S. I got the airship! Hurr hurr hurr hurr hurr.

Hour 19

Misfortune has fallen upon Sandy.

To be more specific, it is the misfortune of being himself, engaged in Final Fantasy Race. At the entrance to the Macalania Temple he faced a battle against the effeminate but obviously evil character Seymour. He lost that battle thrice. Thrice he lost that battle. Thrice I watched my lead grow, and honestly, thrice I felt pretty bad for the guy.

I may have been four times, or five actually. I don't know.

The point is, he's now at least an hour behind me, although I think he starting to hit the energy/weight-loss pills now, so that should reinvigorate him some. Staving off the one and only enemy who can thwart him so supremely. No, not I, your Champion but the warm embrace of sweet sweet slumber. He knows that if he allows her to take him into her bossom he will never escape. So instead he will set his heart to racing with some expired pills. He is making the right choice.

I on the other hand am doing quite well. The Final Fantasy Fans have been feeding us well, so my tum-tum is full, and while my head feels a little on the full-of-wool side, I have not hit Point Sleepy yet.

I am immortal. There can be only one!

Hour 17

We are entering the silent time.

It is after midnight, and the mood is.. not quite somber, but reserved. Nikki is still here, and Airyn and Gill are on a burger run, but the chatter has stopped. Both of us are still going strong, but I can tell that it's just about time for one or more of us to start making mistakes.

My eyeballs feel funny, and I think I have to pee. I have been consuming liquids, but have expelled none since this afternoon. This is strange, since it's not as though I have been exerting myself, though I suppose my hands are pretty sweaty. Scott can confirm this.

MACALANIA SPHERE.

GUEST BLOGGER: SCOTT

So Andrea and I have been here for about 20 minutes, and these gentlemen are in fine form. I didn't know what to expect as this is my first FF race. Some things of  note:

- The general state of Alex's apartment.

- The smell of feet.

- The two incredibly huge screens.

- The fact that these games are basically terrible movies, but 40 hours long, and with interactive sections with menus and numbers all over the place.

I have never really played any RPGs in my youth and the action on both screens is both mesmerizing and painfully confusing. There are all kinds of menus with sub-menus mixed with some battles with insane looking creatures (a horse with feathers and wings and a metallic horn shooting nuclear bombs out of its head?) along with numbers flying around. When battles and spheres and numbers aren't on the screen it is all of a sudden a movie. A really bad one. 

Doing anything for 40 hours straight can be looked at in many ways. Some would call this race crazy, or nerdy, or really stupid. I choose to look at it as... awesome.

Alex just summoned that horse again, and it is fighting a ball of water and Alex is praising the strength of this horses "bum power". Sandy is apparently ingesting weight-loss/energy pills that we think were manufactured in the 1980's. Airyn Clark is yelling at the TV, and Alex is drinking Bawls. There are three girls in the room. Amazing considering there is also a Dungeons and Dragons Players Handbook sitting right there.

Prediction: Al.

Hour 15

So many many visitors. We are currently at five total guests: Scott and Andrea McLaren, Gilbo, Airyn, and Nikki Lee, all at once! How can this be? I'll tell you. We're awesome guys to be around. So awesome.

Airyn regales with tales of dates gone awry, Nikki comes bearing delicious chips and rooty beer. Scott is taking photos to document this adventure, while Andrea seems to be trapped somewhere between mesmerized awe at the spectacle of Final Fantasy (which she has never seen) and the brink of nervous breakdown ("what is going on?"). Gill remains a peach as always.

This feels like the best Final Fantasy Race so far. All the wonderfulness of FFR 2007, but without the travesty that was Final Fantasy XII. I know that this elation may be fleeting, as the dead of night is approaching. The post-midnight hours are always the loneliest for your Final Fantasy racers as most other folks go to bed. While I realize this is normal behaviour, it is disappointing. Fortunately I know that my adoring fans love me, and so I forgive you all. 

I'd better get back to it. Your Champion returns in two hours.

Hour 13

Sandy's losing strategy now includes taking breaks. Loser!

So many visitors, and they come bearing treats! Big thanks to Gus for the Gatorade, and to Dave and Andrea for the pastries. Final Fantasy Race is all about the visitors. Best part of this thing hands down.

So a nice little break eating treats, but I'm now back in action, writing this entry and ready to race some more. Still in the lead, whoop de doo.

We now have all of the characters in the game under our control. I guess that means progress. I suspect however that real progress is not measured in how far into this game I've played, but maybe how much packing I've done for my impending move, or cleaning of my apartment. Uh oh, who's the loser now? Personal crisis!

All done. Prepare for victory! 

Da da da - da da! Champion!

Hour 11

"On pace" says Colin Drake. Fantastic!

Ten hours complete, and Mr. Drake suggests we are a quarter of the way through, and we were expecting about 40 hours, so this is good. Good being a relative term. Some of you might describe it as bad. Or stupid. Or sad. Shut up!

My lead over Sandy is not immense at this point, but could probably be described in quarters of an hour I would say. Excellent work by your Champion.

I have also been informed of rumors circulating the internet about a certain amount of flatulence. I assure you that these rumors are unfounded, completely. I think I may know where these rumors have originated, and I assure you wholeheartedly that Fuck You Sandy.

Anyway, I'm going to win. Who loves it? Even Sandy does.

EXTRA, EXTRA! Mid-hour coverage by Asian reporter John Chin.

So the grueling race is still going strong. Both contestants are in good form. There has been some chest beating in Sandy's court - waving about of pill bottles and aluminum encased Faerie drinks.  On Alex's side, he's adopted a, rather, large number of familiars. Though mature, it remains to be seen how the hoard of 1/50th gram fruit flies will aid in the struggle. They will certainly add to the ambiance once hour 36 is reached.

If someone can fashion some wire controlled cow tails these young lads can use to swat flies from their faces, that would be appreciated. Once these flies grow enough in their ranks and food begins to run out an uprising, a mutiny will likely ensue.

Interim reporter John Chin signing out.

Hour 9

Hurray! 

Right now I'm having fun playing this stupid game. I feel like everything is going smoothly, totally unlike our effort last time with Final Fantasy XII, which was an atrocity.

We are still around the same place in the game, although I think I have the advantage in terms of levels, or at least what passes for levels in this particular iteration of Final Fantasy. In other words, Sandy is feeble. No surprise.

We are currently enjoying another visitor, the lovely Gillian Oswald, and if my information is correct, the elderly John Chin should be stopping by soon too. This is a good thing. We like visitors. We get lonely. So lonely.

And now, some entries from the Final Fantasy glossary:

Sphere

Maester

Gil

Chocobo

Overdrive

Aeon

Phoenix Down

Potion

Thank you

Hour 7

The pizza has arrived! Tasty treats of feta and pineapple, and of bacon and red pepper. Delicious fuel for our epic first day! We also quaff Pepsi to quench our thirsts and to caffeinate our brains.

Our first visitor has come and gone. Sandy's young sister Christy and two of her friends made an appearance, and were decidedly unimpressed. I cannot think why that would be. We have greasy pizza, sugary beverages, video games played on large screen TVs, and a burgeoning odor problem, for which I will lay the blame entirely at Sandy's feet. His malodorous feet are the stuff of legends. Almost as legendary as your champion!

The race itself goes well. I am a small way ahead of my opponent, but as I blog away here he gains ground. Not to worry of course.

I implore you, my adoring fans to lavish me with the praise that I deserve. And do it in haiku. I'll start:

Deep FF Race skills

No need for phoenix down here

I hate you Sandy 

Hour 5

The main character of this game is one of the stupidest characters in anything I've ever played or read or watched. It's actually kind of a blessing when I don't have sound going.

Other than the obnoxious main character, this game is pretty fun so far. Plenty of fire spells, and summoning stuff is pretty entertaining.

The day's first pee is coming up in the next few minutes. Fear not, I will not waste time. You can time me if you like, but I expect it will seem like two hours until you hear from me again. I assure you all that it will not take that long. I am a very fast urinator. I am also very fast at Final Fantasy! 

I bet my stupid opponent is slow at peeing. What do you think? Slow? Or just stupid? Pretty stupid right? That's right.

Hour 3

Greetings to my fans, young and old.

As I'm sure you all might expect, I am in the lead by some ten to fifteen minutes. This valiant effort on my part has not come without cost. I am very sleepy, as I only slept four hours last night, and I am starting to think about making a strategic visit to the corner store in order to purchase some kind of caffeinated beverage. 

As we enter hour 3, I am again without sound on my television machine, so now would be the most opportune time for things like visits to the store, or bathroom breaks.

Sandy and I are both in good spirits though, as the reality of the hours and hours ahead of us has not yet come crashing down. This feeling cannot possibly last.

I and my delicious water must now return to the fray, and I would demand that you all wish me luck, but we all know that I do not need luck. I am potent. I quiver with anticipation, for sweet victory is never far.

Hour 1

Your Champion speaks!

After a one year hiatus, Final Fantasy Race is back. Fuck yeah! This is great news everyone. Fantastic news.

The battle begins with me blogging away, and Sandy with sound on his television set. Sandy's Playstation 2 seems to be loading the game a little quicker than mine, but fret not my adoring public, for this advantage will not save him. Nothing can save him from his future defeat. He is a stupid baby.

Don't forget to check his stupid baby blog too, which updates in alternating hours from this one.

Prepare for my victory.