Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Wacky Wednesday Week 31


This trailer played before The Hobbit this weekend, and I was so for sure that I heard Glados voice from Portal.
Well now we have verification that indeed it is.

-Travis

Monday, December 17, 2012

Motivating Monday Week 31




I almost would consider this more of a wacky story, but since it is officially releasing today I was thinking it would make a worthy post.

Street Fighter characters as bosses inside of a old skool style Mega Man game?

Sounds pretty interesting to me!

-Travis

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Wacky Wednesday Week 30





These collection of videos created for Direct TV are great!!!

A great example of storytelling in a marketing video.

-Travis

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

MOTIVATING MONDAY WEEK 30


This video is cooool!


Any Zelda and/or Apple fan should check this piece out.

It's also Wind Waker style which makes it even better!

-Travis

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Wacky Wednesday Week 29


This is crazy! The Bus driver just can't take it anymore...so what does he do?
UPPERCUT!

-TRAVIS

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Wacky Wednesday Week 28


Who is aware of Triforce?


No, not the Zelda Triforce...the actual guy who legally got his named changed to Triforce.

I first heard about this guy a few months ago when I read an article pointing out that he was waiting in line for the WiiU more than a month in advance. 
He also wears a power glove wherever he goes....


Check him out on Twitter....

-Travis

Monday, November 19, 2012

Motivating Monday Week 32


Nintendo unleashed their brand new system on the states yesterday.

Who went out and picked up this new console?

I personally am going to wait on this one...it does seem like it has a lot of potential, but there just isn't enough out for it yet to make me crave it.

I was lucky enough to attend the Wii U Experience over the summer, and if you would like to check out what I had to say about my experience with the games and system then, just jump back a few post.

Till next time...

-Travis

Monday, November 12, 2012

Motivating Monday Week 31




A brand new trailer for World War Z came out last week, and I have to say...this looks more than epic.

Brad Pitt and Zombies...are you ready?

-Travis

Monday, November 5, 2012

Motivating Monday Week 30


Motivating Monday Week 30


The GoPro HERO3 just dropped recently.

Check out their sample video and see some of the cool things possible with this bite sized camera.

I am still not for sure if I want to invest in one of these little guys....the shot options our endless, but I don't think I would have that much use for it yet.
Anyone pick up the new model yet?

If you have...or have one of the older models post a link in the comments of your work.
-Travis


Friday, November 2, 2012

Wacky Wednesday Week 30


These our always fun. =) 



-Travis

Back in the groove.....


Hey everyone!!!

So I got extremely busy for a long bit of time!

Because of this I just could not keep up with my blogging and I apologize for anyone that follows me.

Luckily though I have returned with the same tried and true formula of posting something to get you pumped up on motivation on Mondays, and then something to make you giggle on Wednesdays.

I cannot believe it has been over two months since my last post. =O

Lets not let that happen again. =)

-Travis

Monday, August 20, 2012

Motivating Monday Week 28

Time to get back on track!

Now that I FINALLY got all the WiiU coverage up I am going to return to my previous format of posting something Motivating on Monday and something Wacky one Wednesday.

For this week I am doing a bit of self plugging of myself.

I recently put together a rough edit of a strictly video demo reel.

Check it out! Please don't hesitate to leave some feedback.

Click here!!!











-Travis

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

ZombieU (WiiU) Impressions

From the outside ZombiU could look like just another shooter trying to cash in on the zombie craze. It is when you pick up the controller that you begin to realize that ZombiU is actually doing some new and fresh things to help it stand out from the horde.

ZombiU's single player is less about story and more about survival. The player must stay alive as long as possible through the zombie attack, and once the player is taken down, they will respond as a brand new character. The fun of this comes in the fact that as the new character you can reach the point that you're previous character was at to find out that they are not a zombie. I personally thought this was a great idea to keep the player retrying after every death.

My personal hands on time was with one of the multiplayer modes. The mode I got to try out pitted one player verse the other in a game of capture the flag. Instead of two players fighting against each other on the same screen though, one player (me) was given the pro controller and played on the big screen, while the other player (some random dude) used the WiiU tablet controller.


My goal was pretty simple...stay alive and capture as many flags as possible. I was satisfied with the controls of the game, only problem I ran into is how similar the pro controller is to the Xbox 360 controller, yet the right buttons A,B,X,Y was flipped with the right thumb stick. After some hours of play through I can't see this being much of an issue anymore. So how about the other guy? What was he up to at this time?

Well while I was running around scared out of my mind, the other player was setting up attacks on me with multiple zombies. The gamepad worked similar to an RTS style game, where the user would map out where they want zombies to be at, how to attack, etc... The gamepad player was also trying to capture flags as well, just using this unique style of gameplay.
Things just got serious.

As far as graphics and sound, both were at high quality. The game looked great, and the sound tried to capture great submersion.  The audio is something Ubisoft is really trying to make right, and you can tell this since one of the ZombiU stations could be played with some really nice headphones.

At the end of the day ZombiU will come down to how much content it has in the final game. The core elements of the game seem unique enough to catch a gamer's attention, but without enough content it could fall flat.

We will be finding out how well the final product does soon enough.

-Travis


Friday, August 10, 2012

Rayman Legends (WiiU) Impressions



What a gorgeous looking game!

First off if you didn't get the change to check out Rayman Origins that came out last holiday season, go do that right now! I guarantee you will find it for extremely cheap!

Rayman Legends was more of the same with new levels, new characters, new concepts, and better graphics.

RL was one of the games that I was not able to get any hands on footage of, but I did get some hands on time with it. I took control of Rayman with the new pro controler, while someone else controled a little helper named Murfy. This seemed to work very similar to New Super Mario Bros U, where I would try to run through the stage as fast as I could, and they attempeted to assist me in doing this. In RL this concepted seemed much more important...many times I was not able to make it through a particular section, because the guy with the gamepad did not react soon enough to help me.



If you did not get a chance to check out the first trailer for RL, there were some cool WiiU exclusive features shown off. It looks like the WiiU version will take use of the WiiU gamepad in a crazy way. Check out the video below for more on this.


Rayman Legends felt more like what I would want from a new version of New Super Mario Bros. Great graphics, great gameplay, great coop, and great new additions. Keep an eye out on this beauty releasing later this year.
-Travis

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Pikmin 3 (WiiU) Impressions



This is still the Pikmin you played many years ago, in fact if you played either of the new play control versions of Pikmin, then this should feel very familiar to you.

Pikmin 3 does take advantage of the WiiU game pad, but maybe not as much as you would expect. During the demo I could move around the map and scope out my surroundings with the touch screen. As far as controlling my character I was using a Wiimote and nunchuk combo.

The demo featured two different game modes; a boss battle and a fruit collecting challenge.  I was able to get hands on time with the collecting mode, and watched a guy take on the giant boss. I also got some gameplay footage of this boss battle you can check out below. Pikmin 3 feels extremely similar to the past games...I am actually a bit surprised how little of a change the game series went through. Keep in mind this is only a demo though, and many other surprised could await us at launch.



You may notice that the character being played is not series veterans Olimar or Louie, but instead a nameless character that looks very similar. My guess is the story will develop to later on show these characters from the past.  This nameless character controls just like Olimar from past games, and with the ability to use the Wiimote to point and click, managing your Pikmin is as easy as ever before.

The demo featured two types of Pikmin, the original red guys and a new breed of rock Pikmin. These guys seemed to operate similar to the purple Pikmin introduced in Pikmin 2. With their added rock like weight they can smash through things with much ease.


As far as graphics are concerned Pikmin 3 does not disappoint. The HD really helps with managing all the chaos taking place on screen. Also the "macro" look with all the extra depth of field is a very nice touch.

Pikmin 3 is scheduled to release somewhere in the launch window, and from the little bit of hands on time I got I can say it could very well be a worthwhile purchase as your first WiiU game investment.

-Travis


Monday, July 30, 2012

Nintendo Land (WiiU) Impressions



If memory serves me right...Nintendo only had one surprise at their E3 2012 conference, and it was labeled as Nintendo Land. 

My imagination runs wild at the thought of a Nintendo theme park similar to Disney World. Explorring Princess Peach's Castle, a virtual reality Lylat System Arwing fight, a DK spinning barrel ride....the possibilities our endless. Even a virtual version of something similar would be an awesome endeavor. Sadly Nintendo Land is not the virtual theme park that I was hoping for. 

Nintendo Land is a collection of mini games inspired by Nintendo franchises. Each mini game has it's own rules and gameplay that falls into the world of that particular franchise. These mini games are not controlled by familiar characters such as Mario, Link, and Samus, but instead you will be controlling your Mii dressed up in an outfit that is fitting for that world. 

I got the chance to try out two of the twelve attractions: Animal Crossing: Sweet Day and The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest.

Sweet Day was a five player mini game that has four players working together to collect candy from trees while one person with the tablet attempts to take down the team by controlling two guards simultaneously with the tablet's two sticks. 

I am pretty sure the guy with the tablet was a developer, or was cheating.

I got to play on the team of four...and well...we did not do very well. I never felt like I got to fully appreciate the game since the guy with the tablet was so good. I guess it also didn't help that my teammates were not very talkative...but we will blame that on the loud atmosphere of the WiiU Experience. 

I am positive that this game could be a riot if you got together with four of your peeps. 

Next up was Battle Quest which put three players dressed as Link together for a co-op adventure. Two players have Wii-motes which act as swords, while one player with the tablet takes on the role of archer. 

I was one of the sword wielders, and found the controls to be responsive and something like a blend of Wii Sports Resort's sword game and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Even some of the enemies reminded me of Skyward Sword, since specific angled slashes were required to defeat them. 

All three members of the team share a heart pool. We sadly did not make it to the end of the stage, but it was fun non the less. 

I also had the chance to watch some players try out Luigi's Ghost Mansion. 

Similar to Sweet Day, four players work together, while one player on the tablet attempts to take them down. 
The player with the tablet plays as a ghost, while the four other players explorer the mansion interior with their flashlights. 

I was able to get a small amount of footage of Ghost Mansion. Check it out below!


The representatives at the event kept describing Nintendo Land as an example of what Nintendo is calling Asymmetrical multiplayer. I think Nintendo Land does a great job of this, but what worries me about the game is the possibility of an extreme lack of depth.

Nintendo Land seems to be the answer to the success of Wii Sports. Though Wii Sports was not incredibly deep, it had additive gameplay that kept players of all ages coming back for more. For Nintendo Land  to reach the caliber of Wii Sports it is going to either need depth or addictive gameplay...lets see if Nintendo can deliever this.

-Travis

Thursday, July 26, 2012

New Super Mario Bros U WiiU Impressions.

Ready for more 2D platforming?
New Super Mario Bros U was one of the games I got to play but was not able to get gameplay footage of.

The fun things about NSMBU is the fact that a small speed run tournament was hosted at the WiiU experience....and well...My partner and I took home first place! =)

Now when I say I played with a teammate you are probably thinking one of us was Mario and the other was Luigi or some generic Toad...not exactly....

That's right folks. We BEAT Mario and Luigi.


During the tournament I took control of Mario with the classic sideways Wii-mote controller scheme. Mario controlled the same as always...I did not notice any differences in controls. While I was sprinting through the course as fast as possible my teammate assistance me in my run with the WiiU game pad. He could add stepping blocks, stun enemies, and help me gather useful items. In one scenery I was running through the stage without enough time to jump on a Koopa shell... luckily my partner came to the last minute rescue by tapping the Koopa as it appears real time on his game pad. Doing this popped the Koopa shell into Mario's hands allowing me to take out some Goombas off in the distance.



The demo at the WiiU Experience featured 3 playable levels. For a Super Mario veteran like myself I found these stages very simple, but fun non the less.  The stages looked very colorful and vibrant in its widescreen HD showing.

The full game can also be played on the gamepad at any time without the need of the television which is another great addition. Want to check the weather or how a sports team is doing? Just switch to the gamepad mode and keep playing while you check up on your favorite team.

New Super Mario Bros U is nothing groundbreaking, but it is more of the same fun you would come to expect from the New series. New levels, new power-ups, new graphics, and new features, and the ability to bring your Mii into the platforming action.

-Travis


Batman: Arkham City (WiiU) Impressions.


I did not get the chance to take control of Batman in the port to the amazing game that first launched last year for other current gen consoles.



With that said...I did get some honest feedback from people who did experience Arkham through the tablet as we as the chance to watch a play through of the demo. (You can check out some of the gameplay yourself by clicking the link above.)

From what I could tell the game looked identical to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 counterparts. This is a very good thing, since Arkham City is a gorgeous looking game. 
What does this version do that is different though?

The big thing is the fact that the tablet now allows as control of gadgets and your menu. The tablet also gives you control of the new Battle Armored Tech (B.A.T.) which is an upgrade of the normal armor for Batman and Catwoman.
The WiiU version has the subname "Armored Edition" I was not given much information on what all will be included in this version to make it stand out other than the new tablet features and added DLC.
I feel like this version may suffer from finding an audience with so many people already diving into the experience this past year. Without enough new features there may not be enough incenteve for Arkham vets to jump back into the city. 
I am interested to see if the legacy of Nintendo fans that missed Batman's adventure last year will be enough for this game to gain high sales.

-Travis

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Wii Fit U Impressions


On July 19th I got to try out some of the games coming very soon for the WiiU system.

The first game I got to put not just my hand on, but my whole body was Wii Fit U.



I got the chance to try out two of the new mini games that will be on the final release later this year: bob sledding and paddle boat.
Click here for a Bob Sled Video

Both games were very fun to play, espically with people around comentating. Both mini games also made me feel like I was working out, more so the bob sledding...I could really feel it working my hidden six pack.
Click here for a Paddle Boat Video

The issue I could see with Wii Fit U judging from the demo is it is just Wii Fit Plus Plus. The demo did not do much to utilies the tablet. You could chose workouts on the tablet, as well as have an extra camera that featured extra shots of what was going on. I am really hoping that the final game will have much more acnoligment of the tablet...and I am sure it will.

One thing you may also notice about this game as well as all other WiiU games is they look great! The Mii characters really cant go much farther in terms of depth, but you will notice right a way how much clearer everything becomes in HD.

I am extremely happy to see Nintendo catching up to the HD world!

-Travis

Monday, July 23, 2012

Something Different...


Hey Everyone!!!
Last Thursday I was given the chance to try out Nintendo’s new console coming out later this year.
I was not able to get a ton of footage….They gave us a limit…Regardless I did get some off screen footage of the WiiU in use. 
This week I decided that instead of sticking to the normal routen I will be posting impressions, photos, and videos of the WiiU experience I had. 
Check back later this week for more!
-Travis

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Mario Party 9 Review


        Mario Party 9 Review

  •         Published by: Nintendo
  •         Developed by: NDCube
  •         Genre:Party
  •         Number of Players: 1-4
  •         Release Date US: March 11, 2012
  •         System: Nintendo Wii



The Party Veteran is back, but does he still has what it takes to be the party master?


    Mario has been away from the party scene for almost 5 years. In that time Nintendo made the party host the Wii brand. If you wanted a mini game collection created by Nintendo you were stuck playing something with “Wii” in the title. With a 5 year break has Mario been able to come up with some new party favors, or is he still stuck in his old ways?
     There was a time when Mario Party was similar to EA Sport’s Madden series in terms of release dates. A new year always would mean a new Mario Party. This trend carried on for 8 main installments, 2 portable games, and 1 card game. Quantity doesn’t always mean quality, and this showed greatly with the Mario Party Series. The longer the series went on, the more the innovation went down. Little tweaks to the formula was not enough to keep fans interested forever. By the time Mario Party reached its ninth instalment on the Wii in 2007, people were ready to move on to the next big thing the Wii had to offer. Fast forward 5 years to the present and Nintendo is ready to bring back it’s lost party series with a brand new coat of paint.
   Wario…you have always been stuck in your old ways.
     For anyone not familiar with the Party format. Up to 4 players move around a virtual board by hitting a block dice. While traveling around the board players collect stars in varies of different ways that including fun mini games and landing on special spaces. This is all done to become the superstar of Mushroom Kingdom. For the first time since the start of the franchise, this formula of gameplay has been changed up drastically. You still move around a large game board, collecting stars, and playing in mini games, but this time everyone is moving in one vehicle along a linear path. Also instead of collecting those large golden stars and coins, the player is now trying to collect a large amount of mini stars. Mario Party 9 also changes up many of the spaces, as well as the mini games being activated by spaces and events, instead of happening once every one has their turn. Each board now features two boss battles with Bowser’s minions. These battles are basically larger mini games where everyone must work together to take down the foe, while still competing against each other.
 The boss battles are a great addition to the experience.
     What I just described is the core of Mario Party, also known as Party Mode. What if though, you want to just play some of those entertaining mini games without the board game aspect? Well just like the Mario Parties of the past, a separate Mini Game Mode is available to play. The player can freely chose which games they want to play, or can do a few competition modes that require you to win a set number of mini games to win the whole game. A single player option is also available to play, but this is nothing more than going through the board games with CPU’s while following a story of Bowser up to no good. As any veteran Mario Party player should know these games are meant to be played with a room full of friends. To round out the package The game offers a handful of unlockables including new stages, and new characters. All 7 game boards are diverse enough to keep things fresh. You will be traveling from Toad Road which is very basic and a great place to start, to Boo’s Horror Castle which has multiple boos following you around the board to try to steal your mini stars. The roster is a well rounded bunch, but like previous Mario Parties the characters all have the same traits. Mario Party 9 also features “larger” mini games ranging from goomba bowling to a game of soccer. Some mini games also give 1 player the option to view the mini game from their point of view. I thought this was a very cool idea, but I think it would have did more justice if the view was from 1st person instead of the chosen right behind 3rd person view. Most of the time this mode just feels way to crowded instead of interesting.
     All you will need to bring to this party is your wiimote. The game does not take advantage of the nunchuck or have support for the classic or Gamecube controller. This reason makes Mario Party 9 very accessible and easy to pick up and play for anyone. Players will switch back in forth between the standard pointer positions to the horizontal “NES” style. The motion control mini games are by no means perfect though. Many times I felt like the controllers were unresponsive to what I wanted to do. The sideways traditional style mini games work fabulously though.
Goomba bowling….its fun, but deferentially wont replace Wii Bowling for anyone.
    Presentation value has been raised drastically from previous Mario Party games. Graphically I always felt that the Mario Party games felt a little off from the standard Nintendo mark. The whole game has that Mario charm that a player would expect from a core Mario game. The environments look great and feature familiar characters and locations from the Mario series.Anything from the Delphino people to the Galaxy feel of the opening really looks nice. All the characters also feature great animations that are entertaining to watch. The sound on the other hand is nothing to write home about. It is not bad, but doesn't really do anything special. A majority of the music is repetitive and all the character howls and grunts are what you expect them to be. Also to mention our favorite, Waluigi has made his return since his strange absence in Mario Kart 7.
     Like always luck is a crucial part to the party series. I believe this is one of the factors really holding Mario Party 9 back from truly shining. The fact that you could be on a winning streak in the mini games, and end up getting flipped to last place by the luck of the draw just does not seem fair. I know luck is normally needed in some form for any type of board game, but the amount of drastic changes that luck make is just too much.
     Mario Party 9 is a great addition to this long running series of games. Though the game suffers from many flaws, mostly from its old tech and reliant on luck. It still shines as a great game to play with a group of buddies on a Friday night. The new changes to the core formula is a step in the right direction, and it makes me excited to see where the party series could go with these new changes. Here is to hoping that Nintendo continues to approve on this update to the formula and not go back into their rut of milking the series for all its worth.
See you in Mario Party 10!
7/10

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Super Mario 3D Land Review



Super Mario 3D Land
System: Nintendo 3DS
Release date in North America: 11/13/2011
Now Presenting the Offspring of 2D and 3D Mario Platforming.

Leave it to Mario to show us what a new system is truly capable of. Like the past few Nintendo systems before it. The true potential of the system is not realized till Mario comes in and saves the day. Super Mario 3D Land is the first 3DS title that has made me say…”Wow 3D can add something to gameplay.” For whatever reason, if you are still not able to jump on the 3D bandwagon, Super Mario 3D Land is still as appealing in the secondary dimension.
Boo?

Super Mario 3D Land brings a new concept to the table for Mario platforming. The game manages to combined the 3D look and feel of previous Mario games, particularly the Galaxy series, and combines it with classic 2D Mario elements that was experienced long ago. What I mean by this is that the basic formulas from a side scrolling Mario game are here. Gone is a life meter and in return is the growing and shrinking of Mario from mushrooms. All the levels are pretty linear and short, requiring the player to reach the significant flag pole at the end of the stage before the clock hits 0 seconds. Like many other Nintendo games of recent, SM3DL plays it safe, but still keeps things fresh enough, that you will keep coming back for more.
SM3DL starts you off with 8 worlds, each of these worlds contains three hidden star coins to collect, that later will unlock new worlds. These first 8 worlds may seem like a bit of a push off for veterans of the platforming genre. Regardless all the stages remain interesting and fun till you get to the final boss battle. The real fun kicks in after this though when a whole extra 8 worlds open up to be played. All of these stages feature a nice ramp in difficulty, by adding new hazards and trials, such as less time or a clone that follows your every move. Getting to the final 8 worlds also gives you the opportunity to unlock *Spoilers* Luigi *Spoilers*. Sadly there are not a lot of power ups to go around this time. SM3DL keeps the items on the low amount, but the items that can be found are a blast to use. The new Bommerang item, causes Mario to take on a look similar to the boomerang bros and throw their projectile at foes. You will also see the return of the classic fire flower, as well as the MIA Tanooki tail from Super Mario Bros 3. Mario isn’t the only one with this item; prepare to see goombas, bullet bills, and even big ol’ Bowswer sporting this power up.  SM3DL also takes use of the streetpass feature. Anytime you pass by another 3DS owner, their Mii and time of level completion will appear next to each level. Streetpassing also gives you the ability to find more free power ups from Toad houses.
Wiggle Wiggle


At first Mario’s controls may seem off. This is completely understandable, since it seems that the developers went for a slower and “sluggish” feel to Mario. This will seem even stranger to previous fans of past 3D Mario games, since Mario had always been so flexible and quick before. Once  you get over this small claim you will come to realize that this style to Mario’s controls work well and keep a nice balance between side scrolling and 3D world Mario.
Super Mario 3D Land is one of the best looking 3DS titles to date. The game is very reminiscent to the Galaxy series. Think of SM3DL’s look as a smaller Super Mario Galaxy. Expect to see the vibrant colors and nicely animated characters and environments you come to expect from a Mario game. SM3L also sounds great. The small details in sound effects really keep you involved with the game. The music can be a bit lackluster, featuring a few new tunes as well as some revisits. The music is solid, but not much more than you will probably expect from a Mario game.  So the game looks and sounds great, but what about all this fantastic 3D I was mentioning earlier? As to date SM3DL is the greatest example of how 3D can bring new experiences into the world of gaming. The 3D that this game brings to the table is less of a distraction and more of a way to engage the player into Mario’s world. If you still are not sold on the whole 3D thing, don’t worry, SM3DL is still a great experience minus the 3D.
Its kind of like this...but in 3D! 

It took almost a full year to prove itself, but the 3DS is finally showing gamers why it is a worthwhile investment.  Mario is leading the way for 3D gaming, and it makes me very excited to see what else Nintendo has up its sleeves. Even though Mario’s new adventure isn’t extremely revolutionary, or a fully deep. It is still a blast to play, and a great example of handheld gaming for the era we live in.

9/10

Wacky Wednesday Week 12

Limbo with a Flashlight


This is worth a watch for any one that has played or is at least familiar with the game Limbo.

The game deferentially changes once you explorer it with a flashlight.

-Travis

Monday, February 20, 2012

Motivating Monday Week #11

So if you have not seen this ballin’ video yet, you owe it to yourself to check it out right now!

Vimeo user  Paul Clements submitted this piece a few months ago, and I thought it was worth while to bring back up for anyone who has not been able to take in the glory of this awesome video. 
After you complete your viewing session make sure to check out a breakdown of how this video came to be right here: BREAKDOWN VIDEO

Monday, February 13, 2012

Motivating Monday Week 10

HEY EVERYONE!

It is great to get back to the whole blogging thing. If you didn't know I got caught with a very bad cough and some computer failures.

Luckily my health and technology is all back up running at full speed once again...just in time to figure out my tax return for 2011.

Dealing with tax returns can be a big deal, especially if you are self employed like myself.
For this week's post I found a few links that can help out freelancers in getting on the right track with filling out their tax return information.
Regardless if you are a first time freelancer, or a veteran that has been going strong for years. I believe you can find some good information to help you out.
Tax Tips for a Part-Time Photographer
This is a great post, that not only is good for Photographers, but any artist in general.

Tax Write-Off for Unpaid Work

Tax Deductions that Freelancers can Take

The next two links can be found over at the site Freelance Switch.
The first link will take you to a discussion on information regarding the need to write off taxes on work that you have not been paid for yet.

The second link is a great post on 10 things that freelancers have the right to write off on their taxes.

The tax season can be a crazy mess!
Try not to get too stress out and just look forward to what will hopefully be a nice check from the Government. =)

Till next time....

-Travis