To all my readers, “Happy New Year.” This past year has been wild. Many new things have been going on in my life and the lives of my friends, but one thing has remained constant: gaming is still my number one pastime.
What I’ve Been Playing:
Since my last post I did manage to beat Deus Ex: Human Revolution. I liked it a lot, though the boss fights were frustrating. I thought the story was great and I was really interested to uncover some of the secrets of Jensen’s past. Unfortunately, those secrets are never really revealed beyond a bunch of hints. I was also disappointed with the endings. There are 4 different endings, and if you save after the last boss before you chose your ending, you can see them all in one play-through. I was hoping for some nice cinematics and some plot resolution; what I got was a collection of still images, some stock photos and some generated for the game, accompanied by a voice-over explaining what happened after the end of the game. Yawn. Nevertheless I still enjoyed the game and I jumped right back into it to try to get the platinum trophy before Kevin moved away. I didn’t make it, but I did get a few other trophies I’d missed.
A few months ago I mentioned that my group was planning on starting up a Savage Worlds supervillian game. We managed to get that started, but we’ve only had a few sessions so far. Look for more information on how that game is going in the near future.
I also said that we had found a couple who was trying to start a Rifts game. Unfortunately grad school and pregnancy got in the way, but hopefully we’ll be able to get together with them in the future.
Not surprisingly, I’ve been playing Star Wars: The Old Republic since it came out. As I mentioned previously, my laptop isn’t exactly up to running Star Wars. It makes a good effort, but it just can’t handle it. Fortunately my wife’s laptop is a bit newer and manages the game a bit better. The side effect of this is that I have to borrow her computer to play Star Wars, which means that I haven’t been playing as much as I might have under other circumstances. Technical issues aside, I’m loving this game every bit as much as I did during my beta weekend. I managed to get my smuggler out of the bug I ran into in the beta and got to play around some with that class. Normally I’m okay with “glass cannon” classes, but the addition of the cover mechanic really detracts from it for me, so I don’t think I’ll be spending much time as a smuggler for a while.
I also picked up Minecraft which is great if you can make your own fun, but doesn’t really have anything in the way of quests. And I’ve been playing a lot of The Sims 3 since I got the Ambitions and Generations expansions over the holidays. One thing I can definitely say is a technical achievement in The Sims 3 over The Sims 2 is that you can actually install the expansions out of order and they still work properly.
What I Have Planned:
The biggest thing I have planned right now is building a new computer that will be able to run Star Wars and Diablo III. It will be a while before I can actually do that, but I’m still planning on it.
The Playstation Vita is coming out on February 22nd. I’m still looking forward to it, but based on things I’ve heard from the Japanese release, I may wait for a few software patches, and maybe a hardware revision, before I buy it.
A while ago I had an idea for a con game using the Desolation system. I may still try to get that all planned out for Who’s Yer Con in March, but I’m guessing it’s going to get pushed off until later.
What I’m Looking Forward To:
Diablo III is still slated for a first quarter 2012 release, I’m looking forward to that. I’ve already pre-ordered the collector’s edition even though there is a distinct possibility that I won’t be able to play it until I get my new computer.
We have a local tabletop gaming convention here in Indianapolis called Who’s Yer Con (link above) that’s coming up in March. Maria and I are planning on going and are thinking of joining the Pathfinder Society and going to a couple of their games.
That’s pretty much what’s been going on. Lots of exciting stuff has happened and is on the way, so stay tuned.
Until next time,
Good Gaming!
Showing posts with label deus ex. Show all posts
Showing posts with label deus ex. Show all posts
Friday, January 6, 2012
Friday, September 30, 2011
[Insert Generic Title Here]
So, it's been a month. Considering my track record that's not really so bad. In this post I'll talk about what I've been doing recently, what I'm planning in the near future, and what I'm looking forward to in the coming months.
My son is 17 months old, so he doesn't play games with rules yet. He plays a lot, and I love playing with him, but it's so freeform that I'd hesitate to call any of it a "game". Also, since he's so young I can't play any violent video games while he's around. In general I don't like to play video games around him too much because I think it's important that I get down on the floor and play with him.
When I wasn't crawling around mountains of Duplo blocks with my son, I managed to beat Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines for the PSP. I got all of the accomplishments except for the three pertaining to getting combo-kills. I never really figured out how to do combo-kills, and I don't care quite enough about getting those last three acomplishments to go back through a significant portion of the game.
Kevin bought a Koei game called Warriors: Legends of Troy. Man, was that game ever frustrating! I was expecting essentially a Dynasty Warriors game that was set during the Trojan War. To pe perfectly fair, that is what I got. I won't say that there weren't some good parts to it, but the game angered me so much that I put it down and didn't look back. If I were serious about trying to write reviews for games, I'd switch it over to easy mode and slug my way through it, but there are plenty of venues out there for people to get well-informed reviews.
Kevin also bought Deus Ex: Human Revolution. He finished that game and has now loaned it to me. Now I'm not good at shooters. I'm zen with this truth. So, I don't get into competitive shooters very much, but I do enjoy a good RPG/Shooter hybrid. I liked the first Deus Ex even though I never finished it. I'm really enjoying Human Revolution. It feels really good, and I don't mind too much that I get shot in the head a lot. One thing that bothers me, though, is that I can't use my sniper scope from cover. I have yet to find a situation where I can be hidden and shoot someone, rather than just have them looking the other way.
Also, we're getting together with some of our old gaming group that has moved out of town and we're planning an online Savage Worlds game from Pinnacle Entertainment. We'll be playing in a savage setting called Necessary Evil where everyone will be playing a supervillian. It'll probably be a lot of fun. We're going to be getting everone together online over a product called Epic Table that I picked up at Gen Con. Expect more information on that in the future. It's still in beta, but I'm looking forward to giving it a shot.
As far as the blog goes, I'm trying to get a video card that I can take some screenshots of my console games with. I have some plans for a couple of things I want to do with the blog, but they're on hold until I can get this.
Diablo III recently got puched back to 2012, but long-time Blizzard fans have gotten used to the company's "It get's released when it's finished and not a moment sooner" attitude. I'll admit that I'm a touch worried that it will be a monotonous click-fest, but only time will tell.
There was a rumor that the PlayStation Vita will be coming out at the end of February. I'm excited for the system, but part of me is glad I won't have to fit it in with my other holiday season purchases. Also, the closer it gets to the end of my current cell phone contract, the better. If everything goes according to plan, I'll be able to use the PS Vita for all of the functions I have my smartphone for, allowing me to drop to a regular "dumb" cell phone to make way for the Vita data plan.
I'm still upset that Sony decided to make AT&T the exclusive carrier for the Vita data plan, but I'm sure there were plenty of financial reasons for making the commitment. Also, it looks like I can add a wireless hotspot to my cell phone plan for probably the same price as the Vita data plan. Plus I can use it if I get a tablet.
So, that's what I've been up to, what I've got planned, and what I'm looking forward to. If anyone is actually reading this blog, please leave me a comment. So far I'm not really sure there's anybody out there, and it would be pretty cool if I found out somebody actually read this.
Good Gaming!
What I've Been playing:
Being a parent is time consuming. At some time in the future I'll probably say something about how gaming and parenting affect each other, or about how they're similar, or something, but that's not this post. I bring up parenting because I've been doing a lot of that. A lot of parenting and not a lot of gaming.My son is 17 months old, so he doesn't play games with rules yet. He plays a lot, and I love playing with him, but it's so freeform that I'd hesitate to call any of it a "game". Also, since he's so young I can't play any violent video games while he's around. In general I don't like to play video games around him too much because I think it's important that I get down on the floor and play with him.
When I wasn't crawling around mountains of Duplo blocks with my son, I managed to beat Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines for the PSP. I got all of the accomplishments except for the three pertaining to getting combo-kills. I never really figured out how to do combo-kills, and I don't care quite enough about getting those last three acomplishments to go back through a significant portion of the game.
Kevin bought a Koei game called Warriors: Legends of Troy. Man, was that game ever frustrating! I was expecting essentially a Dynasty Warriors game that was set during the Trojan War. To pe perfectly fair, that is what I got. I won't say that there weren't some good parts to it, but the game angered me so much that I put it down and didn't look back. If I were serious about trying to write reviews for games, I'd switch it over to easy mode and slug my way through it, but there are plenty of venues out there for people to get well-informed reviews.
Kevin also bought Deus Ex: Human Revolution. He finished that game and has now loaned it to me. Now I'm not good at shooters. I'm zen with this truth. So, I don't get into competitive shooters very much, but I do enjoy a good RPG/Shooter hybrid. I liked the first Deus Ex even though I never finished it. I'm really enjoying Human Revolution. It feels really good, and I don't mind too much that I get shot in the head a lot. One thing that bothers me, though, is that I can't use my sniper scope from cover. I have yet to find a situation where I can be hidden and shoot someone, rather than just have them looking the other way.
What I Have Planned:
Unfortunately there were problems with the Pathfinder game, so that's not happening anymore. On the plus side, we met a couple that's running a Rifts game from Palladium. Maria and I are really excited about that, and hopefully we'll be able to join in soon.Also, we're getting together with some of our old gaming group that has moved out of town and we're planning an online Savage Worlds game from Pinnacle Entertainment. We'll be playing in a savage setting called Necessary Evil where everyone will be playing a supervillian. It'll probably be a lot of fun. We're going to be getting everone together online over a product called Epic Table that I picked up at Gen Con. Expect more information on that in the future. It's still in beta, but I'm looking forward to giving it a shot.
As far as the blog goes, I'm trying to get a video card that I can take some screenshots of my console games with. I have some plans for a couple of things I want to do with the blog, but they're on hold until I can get this.
What I'm Looking Forward To:
I already preordered Star Wars: The Old Republic. I've been looking forward to that one for a while and now I finally know that it's coming in December.Diablo III recently got puched back to 2012, but long-time Blizzard fans have gotten used to the company's "It get's released when it's finished and not a moment sooner" attitude. I'll admit that I'm a touch worried that it will be a monotonous click-fest, but only time will tell.
There was a rumor that the PlayStation Vita will be coming out at the end of February. I'm excited for the system, but part of me is glad I won't have to fit it in with my other holiday season purchases. Also, the closer it gets to the end of my current cell phone contract, the better. If everything goes according to plan, I'll be able to use the PS Vita for all of the functions I have my smartphone for, allowing me to drop to a regular "dumb" cell phone to make way for the Vita data plan.
I'm still upset that Sony decided to make AT&T the exclusive carrier for the Vita data plan, but I'm sure there were plenty of financial reasons for making the commitment. Also, it looks like I can add a wireless hotspot to my cell phone plan for probably the same price as the Vita data plan. Plus I can use it if I get a tablet.
So, that's what I've been up to, what I've got planned, and what I'm looking forward to. If anyone is actually reading this blog, please leave me a comment. So far I'm not really sure there's anybody out there, and it would be pretty cool if I found out somebody actually read this.
Good Gaming!
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