I’ve been playing 4th edition Dungeons and Dragons for more than six months now, but I’ve largely ignored Wizard of the Coast’s flagship website, D&D Insider. The company now electronically publishes its Dragon and Dungeon magazines and a subscription to D&Di grants unlimited access to them, the Character Builder, and the Compendium, a database of the entire game.
On a whim, I visited the site and discovered that it was in the midst of previewing a huge chunk of content for the upcoming print release of Player’s Handbook 2. Among the previews, the barbarian class, levels 1-30, and the bard, druid, and sorcerer classes, levels 1-3. Even better, the company’s Character Builder is basically a front interface for their compendium database. The builder updates as the game does, which means that yesterday I had the option of creating a barbarian character even though the class has yet to appear in print form. Intrigued, I went ahead and ponied up $8 for a month’s worth of access.
I’ve already recreated Queequeg using the builder and absolutely love it. Leveling my dragonborn warlord to level 7 was just as easy as if I was creating a lowbie character. Powers and feats and magic items all provide descriptions straight out of their respective books. And as mentioned earlier, every book is tapped, everything from the core set to Martial Power and the Adventurer’s Vault to various articles from Dragon magazine.
Even module specific magic items are included! Aecris, the longsword Queequeg acquired while adventuring in Shadowfell Keep, is right alongside an entire host of other enchanted blades.
As good as all this is there is a problem: cost. Right now, WoTC charges $7.95 a month for access to the bounty of D&Di. They’ve threatened that the monthly cost will significantly rise upon the full release of the Character Builder. I’ve heard rumors they want to charge $15 per month, the same as most MMOs, but nothing official has been released yet.
I can understand Wizard’s urge to cash in on the monthly revenue model of a MMO. I just don’t know if it’s going to fly. Lots of people complain about $15 a month for World of Warcraft, even after they’ve averaged hours of playtime per day. D&Di is not a game itself, but instead a well-designed database. I have my doubts that a majority of 4th edition gamers are going to shell out $15 a month on a consistent basis. I can see them subscribing occasionally, a month here, a month there. But not month after month, for years at a time. If Wizards anticipates sporadic subscriptions as well, and has built their revenue expectations around that, than all is well. But if they’re expecting World of Warcraft-esque subscription behavior, then I despair for the game’s future, or at least the fate of D&Di over the long haul.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Sarah Palin Is My Operation: Anchorage
I bought Operation: Anchorage, the new downloadable content for one of the best games of 2008, Fallout 3. Tycho from Penny Arcade does a great job of complaining about the Games for Windows interface needed to buy and download the add-on, so I won’t dwell on how counter-intuitive that mechanism is. Except to say I find it unbelievable that Microsoft couldn’t come with something better FOR THEIR OWN OPERATING SYSTEM.
It’s also pretty lame that Operation: Anchorage costs 800 Microsoft points, but Games for Windows only sells the points in 500 point blocks. In other words, if you’ve got a zero bank of points, you’ll have to spend $12.50 for 1000 points rather than $10.00 for 800. $2.50 isn’t a deal breaker, but it’s pretty clear that Microsoft’s marketing scheme is to get people to buy excess points they don’t need or want. That doesn’t do much to improve my opinion of Microsoft; I’m sure the company is wringing its hands with guilt and worry over my displeasure and drying their tears with wads of cash.
But the add-on itself is hella fun. Not long after you resume your game, you start to receive a radio distress call that summons you to the southwestern DC metro area. There, you meet some Outcasts battling super mutants and defending a curious military installation. Inside the base, a pod hooked up to a super computer shines brightly. You climb inside the egg and the computer runs a simulation of the battle for Anchorage, the major offensive to push the Chinese out of Alaska.
The simulation plops you down in the middle of an Alaskan mountain range. You have a partner that abandons you in favor of climbing the side of a mountain. He promises to meet up with you later and I have to admit I enjoyed watching him scale the cliff face. Like watching Stallone in Cliffhanger, without the melodrama.
The goal is to take out some artillery guns the Chinese have strewn throughout a mountain base complex they’ve built. The graphics are stunning, mostly because the sky is blue and the complex appears relatively shiny and new. It’s a stark contrast from the usual devastation of Fallout 3.
As a simulation, you still take damage and you can still die—something about going into cardiac arrest, blah blah blah. But your Chinese enemies fade to a blue glow when you kill them and metal dispensers instantly replenish your ammo. It’s a computer game within a computer game, so you can backtrack and hit health and ammo replenishers as often and as much as you like.
I don’t know how far I’m in yet, having just rendezvoused with my fellow soldier. I can say I love the new Gauss rifle. Ammo for it is scarce, but for good reason, as I one-shot just about everything I aim at. However it ends, I’d really like to see an appearance by my favorite Alaskan hottie, Sarah Palin. I know it’s set 77 years in the future, but it’s also a simulation; Bethesda could go hog wild and plop her in there no problem. Like maybe on a frozen mountain peak, clad in nothing but a bikini and a smile.
Oh yeah, that’s the stuff.
It’s also pretty lame that Operation: Anchorage costs 800 Microsoft points, but Games for Windows only sells the points in 500 point blocks. In other words, if you’ve got a zero bank of points, you’ll have to spend $12.50 for 1000 points rather than $10.00 for 800. $2.50 isn’t a deal breaker, but it’s pretty clear that Microsoft’s marketing scheme is to get people to buy excess points they don’t need or want. That doesn’t do much to improve my opinion of Microsoft; I’m sure the company is wringing its hands with guilt and worry over my displeasure and drying their tears with wads of cash.
But the add-on itself is hella fun. Not long after you resume your game, you start to receive a radio distress call that summons you to the southwestern DC metro area. There, you meet some Outcasts battling super mutants and defending a curious military installation. Inside the base, a pod hooked up to a super computer shines brightly. You climb inside the egg and the computer runs a simulation of the battle for Anchorage, the major offensive to push the Chinese out of Alaska.
The simulation plops you down in the middle of an Alaskan mountain range. You have a partner that abandons you in favor of climbing the side of a mountain. He promises to meet up with you later and I have to admit I enjoyed watching him scale the cliff face. Like watching Stallone in Cliffhanger, without the melodrama.
The goal is to take out some artillery guns the Chinese have strewn throughout a mountain base complex they’ve built. The graphics are stunning, mostly because the sky is blue and the complex appears relatively shiny and new. It’s a stark contrast from the usual devastation of Fallout 3.
As a simulation, you still take damage and you can still die—something about going into cardiac arrest, blah blah blah. But your Chinese enemies fade to a blue glow when you kill them and metal dispensers instantly replenish your ammo. It’s a computer game within a computer game, so you can backtrack and hit health and ammo replenishers as often and as much as you like.
I don’t know how far I’m in yet, having just rendezvoused with my fellow soldier. I can say I love the new Gauss rifle. Ammo for it is scarce, but for good reason, as I one-shot just about everything I aim at. However it ends, I’d really like to see an appearance by my favorite Alaskan hottie, Sarah Palin. I know it’s set 77 years in the future, but it’s also a simulation; Bethesda could go hog wild and plop her in there no problem. Like maybe on a frozen mountain peak, clad in nothing but a bikini and a smile.
Oh yeah, that’s the stuff.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Pork Product
Wifezilla made pork sandwiches last night. They were good, though chewy as pork bites would cling stubbornly to the main sandwich by narrow strands of sinew. I hate when my bite pulls the whole slab out of the bun and onto my plate, or worse, lap.
Midway through the meal, Hallie asked what pork was. I told her pork came from pigs. Five minutes later, she took the final bite from her sandwich and proclaimed, “I’m all out of pig!”
Wifezilla shuddered conspicuously.
Midway through the meal, Hallie asked what pork was. I told her pork came from pigs. Five minutes later, she took the final bite from her sandwich and proclaimed, “I’m all out of pig!”
Wifezilla shuddered conspicuously.
Hard Ain't So Hard
As promised, I played a Rock Band 2 song on Hard this past weekend. The experience was a lesson in mindset. Just a few weeks ago, I exclusively played songs on Easy; I had convinced myself that Medium was too hard. But after some experimentation with seating and foot positioning, I started rolling through Medium songs. Motorhead’s Ace of Spades reared its ugly head once again and I managed to plow through it on Medium, though with a low score.
On a whim, I fired up Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger on Hard and five starred it with a score in the 90 percentile. Clearly, song difficulty eclipses game difficulty in terms of required skill parameters. Rock Band 2 lists song difficulty via a five star award system for each of the instruments. Especially difficult songs receive five devil heads instead of the stars, like Ace of Spades on drums.
I’m going to practice a bit more on Medium, but plan to play more and more on Hard. Depending on the song and the speed, Expert may just be a drum beat away.
On a whim, I fired up Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger on Hard and five starred it with a score in the 90 percentile. Clearly, song difficulty eclipses game difficulty in terms of required skill parameters. Rock Band 2 lists song difficulty via a five star award system for each of the instruments. Especially difficult songs receive five devil heads instead of the stars, like Ace of Spades on drums.
I’m going to practice a bit more on Medium, but plan to play more and more on Hard. Depending on the song and the speed, Expert may just be a drum beat away.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Fonzie Schemes
Remember Jack Abramoff? He’s the dude who allegedly defrauded American Indian tribes of millions of dollars, something to do with campaign contributions I recall.
Remember Bernie Madoff? He’s the dude who squandered/stole some $50 billion from various investors, charities, and financial institutions via a Ponzi scheme, the illegal act of using newly recruited investor money to pay investment dividends rather than good, old fashioned profits.
Does it crack anyone else up that both men’s names end in “off?” It does me! In fact, I’ve even gone so far as to coin Jack as “Abra the Moff,” after my favorite space smuggler, Jabba the Hutt. It doesn’t work as well with Bernie. God knows I’ve tried. “Madoff” begs for a third or fourth syllable to effectively pull off the Hutt transformation.
And speaking of Ponzi schemes, does anyone else think of Fonzie? As in Arthur Fonzarelli? I do! I picture that a Fonzie scheme closely resembles its cousin Ponzi, except that in a Fonzie scheme, after you bilk your investors of all their money, you jerk your thumb out at them and declare, “Aaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy.”
It warms my heart that in the midst of such financial treachery, I can stretch it all right back to Star Wars and Happy Days. It’s a gift.
Remember Bernie Madoff? He’s the dude who squandered/stole some $50 billion from various investors, charities, and financial institutions via a Ponzi scheme, the illegal act of using newly recruited investor money to pay investment dividends rather than good, old fashioned profits.
Does it crack anyone else up that both men’s names end in “off?” It does me! In fact, I’ve even gone so far as to coin Jack as “Abra the Moff,” after my favorite space smuggler, Jabba the Hutt. It doesn’t work as well with Bernie. God knows I’ve tried. “Madoff” begs for a third or fourth syllable to effectively pull off the Hutt transformation.
And speaking of Ponzi schemes, does anyone else think of Fonzie? As in Arthur Fonzarelli? I do! I picture that a Fonzie scheme closely resembles its cousin Ponzi, except that in a Fonzie scheme, after you bilk your investors of all their money, you jerk your thumb out at them and declare, “Aaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy.”
It warms my heart that in the midst of such financial treachery, I can stretch it all right back to Star Wars and Happy Days. It’s a gift.
TELL ME WHERE TONY IS! I SAID TELL ME WHERE TONY IS!
Last night Wifezilla and I finished the fourth hour of the new 24 season premiere. On its seventh “day,” I really can’t complain about the series anymore. It’s like going to an Adam Sandler movie, you know what you’re getting the moment you sit down and start to watch. When it sucks and you look about you for someone to blame, find the nearest mirror and glare longingly until your angst subsides because no one else wants to listen to you bitch about that which is empirically bad.
As many have already pointed out, the latest season of 24 plugs into its usual formula of international terrorists, hijacked American technology, and intel-leaky U.S. government agencies. There are some small twists, of course, like the return of the once-dead Tony Almeda or the complete absence of CTU, the fictional Counter-Terrorist Unit. And then there are some things that remain the same, like Jack yelling commands twice and than applying lethal force before uttering the third. I did enjoy the fact that Jack wasted little time in commandeering a Bic pen and lowering it within inches of a suspect’s eyeballs to withdraw some reluctant information. That dude is hardcore.
Wait, I just got done writing that you can’t complain about 24. Looks like I’m doing just that. Never fear though, Lost on ABC and Flight of the Conchords on HBO premiere next Sunday. And if you don’t like watching good TV, you can join the petite and lumpen proletariat and watch The Biggest Loser or the new season of American Idol.
When I get tired of observing Jack waterboarding various international criminals in the name of U.S. national security, I just know Jemaine and Bret’s wacky antics won’t fail to entertain.
As many have already pointed out, the latest season of 24 plugs into its usual formula of international terrorists, hijacked American technology, and intel-leaky U.S. government agencies. There are some small twists, of course, like the return of the once-dead Tony Almeda or the complete absence of CTU, the fictional Counter-Terrorist Unit. And then there are some things that remain the same, like Jack yelling commands twice and than applying lethal force before uttering the third. I did enjoy the fact that Jack wasted little time in commandeering a Bic pen and lowering it within inches of a suspect’s eyeballs to withdraw some reluctant information. That dude is hardcore.
Wait, I just got done writing that you can’t complain about 24. Looks like I’m doing just that. Never fear though, Lost on ABC and Flight of the Conchords on HBO premiere next Sunday. And if you don’t like watching good TV, you can join the petite and lumpen proletariat and watch The Biggest Loser or the new season of American Idol.
When I get tired of observing Jack waterboarding various international criminals in the name of U.S. national security, I just know Jemaine and Bret’s wacky antics won’t fail to entertain.
Fourth and Inches
I’ve been tearing through Medium level songs on Rock Band 2 these last few nights. One day, I can’t get through Medium, the next I five star nearly every song I play, with 95% ratings to boot.
The difference? I scooted back half a foot from the kit.
The bass drum has long been my Achilles’ Heel (bahaha). I had my foot at a constant 45 degree angle with the floor and the strain of maintaining that position tired my foot and ankle muscles, making it almost impossible to play difficult bass drum parts. I could roll through Easy levels songs because the bass drum is almost non-existent. But Medium adds the bass drum liberally, often pairing it with a red or blue beat. The beat patterns also get more difficult, so much so that hitting the bass drum requires instinctual timing and reaction.
So the other night, I thought about my foot getting tired and scooted my chair half a foot from the kit. At first, I didn’t like this position because the drums felt like they were too far away. But when I placed my foot on the drum pedal, I knew I was in flavor country. To test my new footing, I went back and started playing early songs on Medium. I tore through them just like I do Easy. Less than a foot back and Medium becomes the new Easy. Who knew?
This weekend, I’m going to fire up Hard and see how I fare.
Oh, and before you opine me as some kind of drumming genius, Motorhead’s Ace of Spades came up the other night and I failed it miserably on Medium. It wasn’t even close. Even more embarrassing, I failed the song while Wifezilla kept strumming along. I swear there’s a metal heart lurking deep within the ribcage of my wife. I played the song later on Easy and barely survived at 67%, a three star rating.
God I loath that song.
The difference? I scooted back half a foot from the kit.
The bass drum has long been my Achilles’ Heel (bahaha). I had my foot at a constant 45 degree angle with the floor and the strain of maintaining that position tired my foot and ankle muscles, making it almost impossible to play difficult bass drum parts. I could roll through Easy levels songs because the bass drum is almost non-existent. But Medium adds the bass drum liberally, often pairing it with a red or blue beat. The beat patterns also get more difficult, so much so that hitting the bass drum requires instinctual timing and reaction.
So the other night, I thought about my foot getting tired and scooted my chair half a foot from the kit. At first, I didn’t like this position because the drums felt like they were too far away. But when I placed my foot on the drum pedal, I knew I was in flavor country. To test my new footing, I went back and started playing early songs on Medium. I tore through them just like I do Easy. Less than a foot back and Medium becomes the new Easy. Who knew?
This weekend, I’m going to fire up Hard and see how I fare.
Oh, and before you opine me as some kind of drumming genius, Motorhead’s Ace of Spades came up the other night and I failed it miserably on Medium. It wasn’t even close. Even more embarrassing, I failed the song while Wifezilla kept strumming along. I swear there’s a metal heart lurking deep within the ribcage of my wife. I played the song later on Easy and barely survived at 67%, a three star rating.
God I loath that song.
Slash and Burn
Coming off the news that Funcom is consolidating its Age of Conan servers from 40 some down to 18, I pondered the status of the few people I personally know who still play a MMO. Two friends strike me in particular, a (now) married couple whom I met back when I played Everquest II. Around the time I quit EQII, they did too. Whilst I wandered back to World of Warcraft, they cranked up the then recently released Lord of the Rings Online. Some months later, I read of their heroic antics on the old EQII guild board and got inspired to try the game. At that time, both had toons in the low 40s, some ten levels shy of the cap. I ran with them and their tiny guild for a couple of weeks, but it turned out their interest was waning just as mine waxed. One day I noticed neither had logged in for a days. Days turned to weeks. Weeks to months. They never did return.
I kept following their exploits though. They continued posting on the same forum board, this time under the then newly released MMO Tabulas Rosa. They chewed through that Sci-Fi game pretty quickly, moving on to Pirates of the Burning Sea. And then Age of Conan. And then Warhammer. They threw in some WoW somewhere in the middle of that mix, I couldn't honestly tell you when. Or how. And with each new MMO, they created a matching guild or clan.
I kept following their exploits though. They continued posting on the same forum board, this time under the then newly released MMO Tabulas Rosa. They chewed through that Sci-Fi game pretty quickly, moving on to Pirates of the Burning Sea. And then Age of Conan. And then Warhammer. They threw in some WoW somewhere in the middle of that mix, I couldn't honestly tell you when. Or how. And with each new MMO, they created a matching guild or clan.
I'm not sure what my point is here. I'm not criticising them for playing multiple MMOs because I do the same thing. The difference, I guess, is I don't continually form and reform guilds. Guild management, everything from formation to maintenance, smacks too closely to that of a real world job. It puzzles me to no end that the couple never seems weary of the chore.
Scratch that.
They do weary of it, but then turn around and start the whole process anew with a brand new shiny MMO. I'm guessing they crave character creation and early leveling over end-game content; they have a blast at early to mid levels, but then grow jaded with the game (or MMO gameplay in general) toward the cap. Which is fine in and of itself. It's perfectly natural, even healthy, to play a variety of games. But constantly hammering together guilds with each flavor of the month MMO? That's not so good.
As often as they've created and abandoned guilds, I guess my advice to couple would be to continue trying the latest and greatest of the MMO genre, but forgo founding their own guilds and instead join something already established. There are plenty of casual guilds across all MMOs and most don't mind adding anonymous folk to their ranks. A fan of early to midland MMO content could play to their heart's content and then walk away when the experience sours, all without one single drop of sweat devoted to guild creation. It could be they get satisfaction from creating and running guilds, but I'll bet my highest level WoW toon that their membership likely tires of their inevitable abandonment.
Which makes MMOs some of the strangest, most frustrating social experiments of the last decade. I'd advise a budding sociologist biding to make a name for themselves to tackle this topic; I think it's ripe with critical analysis.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
A Fall Worth Regretting
Last Friday, I found out that a former colleague of mine resigned his position in the district for personal circumstances that made it “difficult for him to continue his leadership position.” The details of his fall from grace aren’t as important as the consequences: potential career ending job loss.
To say nothing of his family. My friend was married with two little kids. At the very least, the marriage is now strained. It might even be broken.
I find this revelation tremendously stressful and disappoining because Scott (not his real name) was an outstanding school administer. He was the best assistant principal I ever worked with. To this day, I haven’t encountered his equal. Scott was one of those people who possessed a rare combination of professional abilities; he exuded leadership qualities, possessed outstanding interpersonal skills, and worked tirelessly to advance the causes of the students under his care. Everyone liked Scott, staff and students alike. He was the kind of person that made everyone around him feel at ease, relaxed, appreciated.
I’m just stunned at the speed of his fall and the circumstances surrounding it. If someone had told me to predict the most likely candidate for an on-the-job extra-marital affair, Scott would have literally been the last person I would have thought of.
And now he’s essentially ended his educational career, at least in the immediate surrounding area. He and his wife will likely split. Two innocent children will now have to endure the pain of divorce. I bet Scott is wringing his hands right now, regretting everything that led up to this point. I bet he wishes he could do it all over again, erase the affair and rewind back to the point where he was a beloved father, respected community member, and admired principal. He sacrificed nearly everything for the excitement and allure and heat of something new. I’m sure he found the price steep.
So I regret this loss of a man as good and fine as any of us, withhold judgment of what he did, and wish him the best for whatever comes next.
To say nothing of his family. My friend was married with two little kids. At the very least, the marriage is now strained. It might even be broken.
I find this revelation tremendously stressful and disappoining because Scott (not his real name) was an outstanding school administer. He was the best assistant principal I ever worked with. To this day, I haven’t encountered his equal. Scott was one of those people who possessed a rare combination of professional abilities; he exuded leadership qualities, possessed outstanding interpersonal skills, and worked tirelessly to advance the causes of the students under his care. Everyone liked Scott, staff and students alike. He was the kind of person that made everyone around him feel at ease, relaxed, appreciated.
I’m just stunned at the speed of his fall and the circumstances surrounding it. If someone had told me to predict the most likely candidate for an on-the-job extra-marital affair, Scott would have literally been the last person I would have thought of.
And now he’s essentially ended his educational career, at least in the immediate surrounding area. He and his wife will likely split. Two innocent children will now have to endure the pain of divorce. I bet Scott is wringing his hands right now, regretting everything that led up to this point. I bet he wishes he could do it all over again, erase the affair and rewind back to the point where he was a beloved father, respected community member, and admired principal. He sacrificed nearly everything for the excitement and allure and heat of something new. I’m sure he found the price steep.
So I regret this loss of a man as good and fine as any of us, withhold judgment of what he did, and wish him the best for whatever comes next.
Monday, January 12, 2009
The Great Outdoors
Coming off the worst summer break in recent memory, Wifezilla and I planned and booked for a week stay in Rocky Mountain National Park. Our camping skills are too rusty to dare rough it. Instead, we’re shacking up in a cabin, complete with cable TV, full bath, and an actual bed. Perchance when the girls are older we might shoot for the tent and backpack thing. Until then, we wuss out.
Wifezilla and I haven’t been to the Rocky Mountains since before Hallie was born. That was more than eight years ago. So my heart filled with boyish glee when I booked the cabin last night. Unlike last January, I have a summer vacation to not just look forward to, but actually daydream about. I can’t wait to hit the trails again. I’m realistic about the girls’ hiking abilities, especially their stamina. But Rocky Mountain National Park offers short and long hikes alike and if we take it slow and include a lot of resting breaks, I’m confident we can hike up my favorite glaciers.
Summer break can’t come soon enough.
Wifezilla and I haven’t been to the Rocky Mountains since before Hallie was born. That was more than eight years ago. So my heart filled with boyish glee when I booked the cabin last night. Unlike last January, I have a summer vacation to not just look forward to, but actually daydream about. I can’t wait to hit the trails again. I’m realistic about the girls’ hiking abilities, especially their stamina. But Rocky Mountain National Park offers short and long hikes alike and if we take it slow and include a lot of resting breaks, I’m confident we can hike up my favorite glaciers.
Summer break can’t come soon enough.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Carjacking and then Bedtime Stories
It’s more than a bit jarring to swing from carjacking innocent Liberty City citizens to reading Hallie Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. One minute I’m pulling some slack-jawed yokel out of his sports car, the next I’m narrating Hermione chewing out Harry and Ron. My girls yell and scream and wrestle as much as a citizen being robbed of their automobile, so some similarities prevail.
It rings hallow to read me gush about Grand Theft Auto IV, especially after recently heaping praise after praise upon Fallout 3. My only defense is that 2008 saw an especially exceptional string of PC titles. That, and GTA IV exemplifies the pinnacle of art and design in gaming today. I can’t say I like the console saving system that prohibits hedging your bets immediately after starting a mission. But the gameplay more than makes up for any gamebox design flaws.
What I like most about GTA IV is the feel of the game, even more so between missions. I can’t describe the immersion of barreling down the streets of Liberty City, Independence Radio FM blasting some of my favorite bands like Interpol, Vast, and The Killers. It might seem a chore to drive halfway across town to pick up Roman for darts or to see Brucie about assassinating a drug dealer. But I haven’t gotten tired of it yet, and going in, I thought car driving was going to be the game’s Achilles’ heel. There’s just something liberating about driving like a total maniac without consequence; LCPD will squawk their lights at your traffic violations, but they only pursue you when you jack someone’s car, shoot someone (including a cop), or blow through a toll lane. Other than that, I drive with a reckless abandon I can only dream about in real life.
Not to mention GTA IV has the finest acting and voice acting of any game I’ve played. That’s saying quite a lot, since I’ve dated quite a few games. Brucie tops my list for funniest, most interesting character not just of GTA IV, but of any game. I go out of my way to do Brucie missions because the cutscenes entertain like nothing else. And Brucie excels at his stereotype.
But Nico is nearest and dearest to my heart. He’s a cold-blooded killer, mostly remorseless for his past acts, and more than willing to engage in a variety of nefarious acts. Sometimes for the money, other times for revenge. Even so, Nico comes across as a real person in the game’s myriad cutscenes. He’s not as funny as Brucie, but he often brings a smile to my face with his rash bluntness and thick Eastern European accent.
I know X-Play awarded Fable 2 as their game of the year choice. Gamespot picked Metal Gear Solid IV. As much fun as I had playing Fallout 3 these last few months, I have to admit that GTA IV narrowly wins my personal game of the year selection. It’s just that good.
It rings hallow to read me gush about Grand Theft Auto IV, especially after recently heaping praise after praise upon Fallout 3. My only defense is that 2008 saw an especially exceptional string of PC titles. That, and GTA IV exemplifies the pinnacle of art and design in gaming today. I can’t say I like the console saving system that prohibits hedging your bets immediately after starting a mission. But the gameplay more than makes up for any gamebox design flaws.
What I like most about GTA IV is the feel of the game, even more so between missions. I can’t describe the immersion of barreling down the streets of Liberty City, Independence Radio FM blasting some of my favorite bands like Interpol, Vast, and The Killers. It might seem a chore to drive halfway across town to pick up Roman for darts or to see Brucie about assassinating a drug dealer. But I haven’t gotten tired of it yet, and going in, I thought car driving was going to be the game’s Achilles’ heel. There’s just something liberating about driving like a total maniac without consequence; LCPD will squawk their lights at your traffic violations, but they only pursue you when you jack someone’s car, shoot someone (including a cop), or blow through a toll lane. Other than that, I drive with a reckless abandon I can only dream about in real life.
Not to mention GTA IV has the finest acting and voice acting of any game I’ve played. That’s saying quite a lot, since I’ve dated quite a few games. Brucie tops my list for funniest, most interesting character not just of GTA IV, but of any game. I go out of my way to do Brucie missions because the cutscenes entertain like nothing else. And Brucie excels at his stereotype.
But Nico is nearest and dearest to my heart. He’s a cold-blooded killer, mostly remorseless for his past acts, and more than willing to engage in a variety of nefarious acts. Sometimes for the money, other times for revenge. Even so, Nico comes across as a real person in the game’s myriad cutscenes. He’s not as funny as Brucie, but he often brings a smile to my face with his rash bluntness and thick Eastern European accent.
I know X-Play awarded Fable 2 as their game of the year choice. Gamespot picked Metal Gear Solid IV. As much fun as I had playing Fallout 3 these last few months, I have to admit that GTA IV narrowly wins my personal game of the year selection. It’s just that good.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Super Battle Droids
I was watching the Clone Wars cartoon with Hallie today on the Cartoon Network. Yoda was singlehandedly fighting an army of Trade Federation droids when Hallie remarked, "They need to send Super Battle Droids if they want to beat Yoda."
I bet you can practically feel me swell with pride, can't you?
I bet you can practically feel me swell with pride, can't you?
Friday, January 2, 2009
Happy Birthday Hallie!
And with the new year comes my oldest daughter's eight birthday. I used to take these annual milestones for granted, but as time passes, I grow more and more amazed at her. She's an eight year old, sweet little girl, and a part of me wishes she'd stop getting older for my own selfish parental reasons.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
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