Zeusthecat

This game sounds like my kind of thing, I love it. I'm curious if you guys ever tried out the platypus. I imagine a platypus would say it's name in Remo's elitist fanboy gamer voice.

No problem, I just finished playing my matches tonight and as I was on the verge of winning I fucking scratched on the 8 and lost since my opponent was also on the hill. Oh well, I got a point for our team and had some delicious dos equis so I consider that a win. You are quickly becoming my secret bff on these forums btw. Not in a creepy stalkery way but more in a "whoa, this dude also rewrites his sentences 1000 times, loves pummeling pikachu in smash bros, loves playing pool, and shoots lasers out of his eyes" kind of way. Man what I just said was awkward. Feel free to be totally creeped out. I probably would...

A couple years ago I joined an APA amateur pool league because I love shooting pool. It improved my life. If you also love pool I recommend checking to see if there is an APA league where you live (I think it might only be in the US). It is super laid back and we all just drink and have a good time as we play our league matches.

Was I the only one that would set up matches where all of the opponents were Pikachus and I was Captain Falcon just punching the fuck out of them hearing an endless string of "Piiiikaaaa! Piiiiiikaaaa! Chu! Piiiikaaa! Pikaaaa!"? My sense of humor is so weird, I don't know why hearing pokemon saying their own names in their little voices over and over and over was so funny. And then having a dude punching them off the screen repeatedly was icing on the cake. Emergent gameplay at its best.

I just had a random memory from high school. I went to a friend's house for the weekend and we stayed up all night playing Pokemon Stadium minigames on the N64. Sometime in the middle of the night we reached that point where we were both so tired that everything started getting really funny and we were laughing at the dumbest shit. Then we started playing the Clefairy minigame where you had to memorize a sequence of stuff the Clefairies were doing and repeat it. Whenever they did their sequence that we were supposed to memorize, they would just say "Clefaaaairy, Clefaaairy, Clefaaairy, Clefaaaairy" in various intonations as they did it. It was the funniest goddamn thing I had ever seen in my life because it was so absurd that some weird group of pink puff creatures was up there dancing and just repeating one word over and over to a song. We watched the Clefairy game for 2 fucking hours straight, didn't even try to play it, just watched it over and over and over to bask in the comedic brilliance that is a singing Clefairy.

Mington, I love your posts. Even the drunk ones. Keep up the good work sir and keep me laughing.

It just feels a little deceptive to me. Like a little carrot on a stick to tease that primitive part of the brain and trick people into playing absolute shit for some arbitrary and superficial reason. Kind of like how McDonalds commercials show someone eating a chicken wrap and next thing you know there is a beautiful woman that has sat down at the table next to him and they fall in love. Yeah, intelligent people see through it but it obviously works on a lot of people and subconsciously gets them to go to McDonalds. I just prefer companies to be honest and straightforward and I am skeptical about the intentions behind this. Wow, I am a paranoid nut and sound like a psycho. It's so bad that I envision most companies marketing deparments plotting in their underground volcano lairs about how they can deceive people into buying terrible things and stuff that is detrimental to human life. I will post this anyways so you can all laugh at my inane babble. Mwahahaha!

I actually really like the concept of achievements in general. I think good games are enhanced by good achievements. This, however, sickens me for some reason. Play games to collect cards, use cards to craft badges, use badges to "level up" (whatever the hell that means), eventually level up high enough to become a wizaaaaaaard, then once you reach max level you have officially completed video games and have to find a new hobby so you can start leveling up again for that hobby. Then wish you took the blue pill. I also worry that a system like this might end up forcing people to play really shitty games to collect the cards they need to increase their XP if they really want to participate in the system and show off their score. With regular achievements I like that I can increase my score by just playing a lot of really good games and only going after good achievements.

Oh man, couldn't agree with you more on the computer interface. I absolutely hate it and will be sticking with Windows 7 for a long time. As far as the phone goes though I feel like they did a really good job with the live tile UI and it runs silky smooth. I have yet to plug it into my computer so I may end up sharing your gripes with the desktop transfer software. Thanks for the recommends, I cracked up when I created this thread and then immediately saw your post in the other thread. That was some amazing timing!

I will say this much, I'm not black and I'm not a talking cat. I'm tempted to reveal my true identity but instead I might try to fuck with everyone's heads even more and change my avatar to Gary Coleman. I'm just a dude that lives in a state that has the cryptkeeper from Tales From the Crypt as governor (hint: it says where I'm from right below my avatar because I'm an asshole who doesn't mind revealing all sorts of personal information, except my race apparently). One of these days I'll get around to posting my horribly disfigured face on these forums but I don't know if the time is right. Also, I will forever think that Toblix is really Tom Selleck because the dude in his old avatar had a sweet stache. To think that Tom Selleck posts on these forums, maybe one day he'll respond to one of my posts and make me all giddy.

I still have every last video game and console I have ever purchased from the Atari 2600 up to the current consoles. I even still pull out my Virtual Boy from time to time to play Mario Tennis and Wario Land. When I turned 16 and started working I would blow every single paycheck scouring pawn shops and Bookman's for every old console and game I could find and amassed a nice hoard of video game goodness. There is only one game I have ever traded in: Super Adventure Island. Fuck that stupid game and that goddamn retarded skateboarding caveman. Sorry for boasting but my collection is my pride and joy and I am like a psychotic hoarding grandmother who won't admit she has a hoarding problem even though there are dead cats under her piles of junk. I sometimes sit on my couch staring at my 70 NES games daring myself to try to beat Ninja Gaiden and wishing I still had a cathode ray tv so I could play Hogan's Alley with the zapper. Maybe I'll post a picture of my hoard on the gaming setup picture posting thread thingy sometime. God you guys must hate me...

I agree. I think many people from various 'reality' shows have come out and talked about how they were approached by producers between shots and were basically coached or encouraged to act a certain way or say certain things. I really think it is not much different than shows with actors, they just pay the people a lot less and still generally guide how they want the show to go. I mean, it's hard not to notice their furtive glances towards the camera as they go through these ridiculous scenes that most 'real' people rarely experience. Whenever I've watched 'reality' tv and there is some kind of intimate scene (like in the Bachelor or something) I can't help but picture those people surrounded by a full camera crew and a big fuzzy microphone hanging just off camera. I imagine even if these people weren't being coached that they automatically act differently because of this. I think the closest approximation of people acting real on reality tv would be something like Big Brother because at least there isn't a camera crew present.

Yes! There are certain people that I work with that have basically said "Oh, you're a gamer" in a super snarky, condescending tone. Then I ask them what they do for fun and they say they go hiking and biking and running and never watch tv. Then they levitate off the ground and float away with their godlike powers because they haven't been corrupted by modern technology and I feel inadequate because video games. Then I convince myself that my hobby is developing my cognitive skills to a degree that their hobbies don't and I convince myself that they are stupid for refusing to experience what the 21st century has to offer. So... yes, I obviously have some issues coming to terms with identifying as a 'gamer'.

So I don't see much going on here in the way of Xbox 360 multiplayer networking. I also don't see any threads for Assassin's Creed multiplayer so I expect this will get 0 replies and vanish into thread purgatory. Regardless, I will throw this one out there. I tried a few matches of Assassin's Creed Brotherhood multiplayer and it was fantastic. The basic concept is that there are 6 people in a fairly small area with a shitload of npc's. Each person picks from a limited number of avatars and each avatar is also used for the npc's that populate the area. Shortly after the match starts each person is assigned a target to assassinate so you will typically have a target while simultaneously being targeted by someone else and you are only able to kill your current target, the person targeting you, or an npc. If you kill your target, you get points, they respawn, and you are given a new target. If you kill an npc, you get no points and are given a new target. I think you also get points for killing the person targeting you but I've only played a little bit so I'm not sure. So the way this plays out is that you try to act like an npc if you are being hunted to throw off your attacker while simultaneously trying to track down your target. There is a rudimentary compass that leads you to the area your target is in but you won't know exactly which person they are (unless there are no other npcs nearby that have their same skin, then you can be pretty sure it is them and kill the fuck out of them) unless they blow their cover by running, climbing, or doing other high profile/non-npc type things at which point it marks them and you chase them down. But it also informs them that their cover is blown so they will typically start running or try to counter you at that point. You can also hide in hay bales and strategically try to assassinate your target from your hiding spot if they walk close enough. Long story short, it is fun and quite a unique multiplayer experience on xbox live. However, I think this would reach a whole new level of awesome with a full group of 6 thumbs on voice chat. I have Brotherhood and Revelations so I'm up for either game although I'd prefer to do some of Brotherhood's multiplayer first just because. My gamertag is xXZeusthecatXx Edit: Boy, it sure is lonely in here Edit 2: Really lonely.

Finally saw Cabin in the Woods. Absolutely loved it. My wife absolutely hated it. I love how it is both a love letter and a giant middle finger to the horror movie genre.

I don't think you should have to assign a label to yourself. You are a person with many different qualities and I think it is unfair that you even have to make that consideration. Hopefully society will soon get to the point that you being who you are is not viewed any differently than anyone else being who they are.

Right, that is the part I did a really shitty job of explaining, I live inside my own head and I sometimes forget that other people have different heads and hear what I say differently than I do. I absolutely do not use most of these terms myself (I do say retarded and midget because more people generally find those funny rather than offensive) because to live in a society with other people we all have to agree on a certain code of conduct in order to live harmoniously. I do think it is very important to treat everyone with respect and part of that is understanding that others do get offended by certain terms. I am just interested in what it all means and why people have the reactions they do, not saying how things should be. So let's escape from that thorny subject and talk about balls or something. Did you know that you can tuck your penis into your nutsack if it is loose enough and glue it shut with hairspray so that it looks like you have a bullfrog hanging off your pelvis? (That one was for you Ben X )

I think you misunderstood my post. 1. I am only talking about my personal choice to not be offended by things I hear other people say. And I only said "I find it interesting". I never once implied that my logic is universal or that I am deciding whether other people should be offended. 2. I did qualify that I only get offended if something is intended to be derogatory (or discriminatory as you put it). 3. I also did not say that I go around using these words. I was simply observing how they are perceived from a philosophical perspective. I apparently did not make my point clear enough and I am sorry Tegan. I understand everyone has different experiences in life and we view the world through different lens. I hope you don't see me in a negative light because of my light-hearted view of the world.

The only famous people I've met have been under 5' tall. Kerri Strug did a book signing in Tucson (since that's where she was from) when she still had her fucked up leg from the olympics and I was like "oh, Kerri Strug, she's pretty fucking short". Then years later when I worked as a waiter at Applebee's I waited on a midget from one of our local radio stations. He was an asshole and gave a shitty tip just like any other Applebee's customer. Now if I ever meet any true celebrities like The Thumbs my strategy would be as follows. First, I would make sure to be wearing my David Caruso sunglasses. Then I would walk up and say "Hello, you guys are the greatest thing ever spawned by the internet". Next, I would pull down my pants, take a shit on the ground, light it on fire, and walk away slowly with my pants still down while saying "Burn baby, burn" in a gravely voice as the flaming shit reflects in my sunglasses. I think this would guarantee that they would never forget me as long as they live. Also, if you have any social awkwardness I suggest working as a waiter/waitress in a restaurant for a couple years. That causes every bit of social awkwardness to evaporate and forces you to learn how to make interesting conversation with complete strangers.

I find it hilarious that the NAACP has not changed their name to remove the word "colored" and replace it with something else. Another example of a term that used to be considered opinionated in a way that is different from me but is now deemed offensive. I find the concept of being "offended" very interesting and I wonder how that process works. As a rule of thumb, I never get offended by anything unless it is intended to be derogatory because I cannot come to a logical conclusion as to why I should feel offended. For example, if I hear someone say something is retarded my first instinct is to laugh (perhaps because I can't help but try to look at the world as a hilarious place full of hilarious things happening all the time if you look at them a certain way) because I see zero connection between the way they are using the term "retarded" and them actually degrading retarded people (er, mentally challenged? I guess that term was euphemized too). I guess what I'm saying makes me sound like a total asshole but I just prefer to live life in a way where I can laugh at everything and not waste any energy being offended if I can't justify feeling that way. Either that or I just watched way too much Dave Chappelle in the early 2000s.

Regarding collectibles, if it's a game I really enjoyed playing I do tend to go after them. In open world games I find that when going through the critical path and side missions there can still be decent portions of the world that I never really touch, and I tend to not notice a lot of the details in the world even in the areas that are well traversed because I am too distracted with the missions at hand. Once the missions are done, however, collectibles give me a reason to go back through every corner of the world and see all of those little details and notice more of the random npc interactions and whatnot. This more intimate look at the world also gives me a greater appreciation for all of the effort that the developers went through to populate their world with things that go unnoticed by the majority of players. I would also reflect what some other posts have mentioned about being a completionist. If a game is good, playing it to 100% completion can be very rewarding because, again, it gives me a reason to experience all of these extra things that developers spent time and effort to put in their games. Although I guess it's worth mentioning that I mainly test software for a living and tend to enjoy poking around at things so maybe my viewpoint is a little skewed. Some games I've completed to 100% or gathered all of the collectibles: Skyrim, every GTA since GTA 3 (loved hunting those pigeons), Assassin's Creed 2, Oblivion, Fallout 3, Saint's Row, Halo 3, Halo 4, Super Mario 64, and a bunch of others I can't think of right now.

Why was my text so small?

Yeah, I just discovered this in the last week and decided to have a little fun with it. Sorry if it offended anyone. I find it quite silly that this word was euphemized to begin with and now we are only allowed to use the term "Asian", which will most likely be deemed offensive in the next 20 years and have to be changed again. Where I live "Hispanic" is the euphemism that is replacing "Mexican" because apparently some people have determined that it is offensive to call someone Mexican. But I still stand by my claim that Oriental Ramen should be considered racist by people who are super sensitive to this shit. Isn't the implication that Oriental Ramen has the general taste of Asia despite the fact that Asian countries all have varying cuisines? Some number of years in the future I will be offended by what you called me but society hasn't told me I should be offended yet so we're cool for now.

I jump straight past that and instead find myself wondering why oriental ramen isn't considered one of the most racist foods on the market.