Erkki

Interesting take

Haha! Brilliant link!

This game is probably the best Gothic / Risen game! The fact that it's separated into islands helps -- instead of one huge world, there are distinct smaller areas, each with its own theme, and they are still packed with lots of things to do. You can travel between them at will later in the game. Too bad it takes about 20 hours to get to the point where it Rises that high. [edit] I don't want to keep bumping this thread so I'll just edit. Just finished it! I think it is the best Risen / Gothic yet, but it still has the same problems. And the ones I mentioned about dialogues and animations -- I don't remember how bad it was in previous games but this time it was pretty bad, although I got used to it enough that it didn't distract much. The quests are mostly boring or lacking inventiveness. There were at least 3 separate quest where you collected lost cargo crates or flotsam from the beach. Apparently nobody else was qualified to do that, including the merchants/storehouse keepers who desperately needed those crates and the soldiers with them. But otherwise, the game did a nice job of matching the pirate theme to an RPG, with the monkeys and ships and treasure maps and crews and rum and voodoo and so on. Although voodoo was something I only used where the story or quest required it. Oh, and some of the Gnome characters are pretty cool! For my playthrough the game actually seemed balanced (I started with putting most points to cunning, later upgraded blades and toughness). Sure, there's that huge boring part in the beginning where you are weak and can't improve quickly enough, but it actually makes sense! Only by the very end did I become so tough that I could take on almost everything, and even then fights drained me of resources (though I had some cash left over for selling final loot) -- and considering the story that makes sense. So it really gives you a feeling of moving from being a relative wimp to an epic hero. But on the other hand, didn't that exact story already happen to this character when he killed the titan in Risen 1? How did he become a wimp again? Anyway, it was still good just for old times sake, but I'm not sure I would play another of these games (this one took 50 hours!) if they won't make any substantial improvements -- it's still pretty similar to the first Gothics in many ways.

Seems they have workstation graphics cards, which are not meant for gaming (or maybe there'll be an option with gaming cards).

The what now? I wonder if Apple's new cylindrically-shaped Mac Pros could function as Steam Machines... Not that I could afford one for that purpose, but they look really cool.

Finally I get to play Minerva's Den! Not that interested in the main game itself.

The projector even works somewhat during midday (I don't have any darkening curtains yet)! Of course the contrast disappears, especially with darker colors, but for surfing the internet it is fine. For gaming, probably not.

Ah, so digital-only DVI was the problem. I would use HDMI except I already used the inputs for the PS3 and TV box. Maybe it's better to get some kind of HDMI switcher box, though, instead of trying to come up with creative ways to fill all the inputs.

PS Does anyone know if DVI-to-VGA adapters are supposed to work just like that? My PC only outputs DVI and the projector takes VGA. I only had DVi-to-DVI and VGA-to-VGA cables, bought an adapter, but got "no signal". Laptop with VGA-VGA worked fine.

Wow, this thing is great so far! I tried Limbo as I thought that might show the rainbow effects, but didn't see anything. The only thing I noticed was when the screen went from dark to bright the black parts got a lot lighter. But I didn't expect this thing to be able to do real black on a white screen anyway, it seems the eye interprets unlit things as quite black, though, when juxtaposed with brighter things. I set up a 92" screen borrowed from work and in a completely dark room the picture was really good. Tried watching TV (for that the screen was even a bit too big, maybe), Django Unchained (not HD), YouTube on PS3 (sadly 720p), Diablo 3 demo. The 92" screen seems big enough, and with Diablo the UI elements were nicely in peripheral vision so they didn't bother much, but I only needed to move my eyes a bit to see them. Pretty happy after the first tests! I'm thinking about maybe getting a permanent screen, not one that is pulled down, since the Elite Screens seem to be pretty wavy (I tried a tripod one that you pull up).

It arrived! Even with some ambient light (sun is close to setting) it puts a great picture even just on the wall, without a screen! So far I don't see any rainbow effect, but I've only seen the PS3 menus and tried Journey (not 1080p I believe) for a bit. It makes a bit of noise but I think with the final setup I'll be sitting far enough from it.

I remember the bow being one of my favourite things (from closer range). I don't remember any animal repellent.

Yup! One of the walls in my apartment just got flooded by an accident in someone else's apartment.

The game gets better when you get to the Sword Coast. Fights are still hard, but now I've learned the parry skill, which at least makes fights with humans a bit easier. I've put most of my glory points into Cunning to make better use of thievery and silver tongue, so I imagine someone who upgraded differently could be a decent fighter at the same point in the game.

Wow that's awesome! So the police was actually tracking the vehicle, and not you.

I think Ultima Underworld might even be better to start with than System Shock 1. I just started SS1 recently and it's totally overwhelming in the beginning.

The ergonomics aren't bad, actually -- I've used one at work for about a year or so. I really like the mouse, but I still prefer a big, more ergonomically-shaped mouse at home. I wouldn't use the Arc Touch mouse for gaming.

Couldn't get a demo anywhere, but decided to order the BenQ W1070 anyway! What the hell, if the rainbow effect is really bad for me I can sell it at a bit of a loss or perhaps exchange it for a different (LCD) projector from work.

There are stores with walls of TVs, sure, but I don't know any that have projectors. The projectors are mainly sold for offices here. I just found a few companies quite near me that have the BenQ W1070 in stock, though, e-mailed and asked if I could get a demo (they advertised personal approach to customer relations ).

I just saw a site bring out "optimal" viewing distances for each screen size, and they separated distances for "HD signal" and "Full HD signal". Even for 65" the distance for Full HD was only 2.1 - 2.4 m (HD 4.3 - 5 m) For 50": Full HD 1.6 - 1.9m (HD 3.3 - 3.8 m) That's damn close, IMHO. Also, wikipedia lists similar numbers: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optimum_HDTV_viewing_distance This convinces me even more that a projector might be a better idea.

Hmm, they don't seem to sell them locally much. I see ST60 42" 55" and 65". The 55" already costs more than I'd pay for a TV (lowest 1225€). TX-P50XT50E seems more affordable (725€)

Hmm... yeah, maybe I should make a ranking of qualities I'm looking for. Size is important, because I really want to be able to play games and even use a computer without needing glasses (my eyes are -1.0 or so, and as I said with a 32" TV I needed glasses even from 1 meter away). I don't know, the 50" seems kind of small from 3.5 meters, but I should (and will) test this in the office where we have a similar sized TV and about the same viewing distance. I could of course also get closer to the TV for gaming (I have bean bags), but I'd prefer the couch. Image quality is also important and I don't really have experience to understand the difference between the quality of a 50" plasma TV and 100" image from a projector. There seem to be so many aspects to image quality (contrast, black levels or whatever, color temperature, brightness, image retention, input lag, etc.) that some things seem impossible to compare. It should also be flexible and good for gaming, movies, computer usage etc. Also, it would be fun and profitable to actually spend some time designing and building a proper theater system. With a projector there are more tinkering opportunities, I'll have a feeling that I "built it myself" not just "bought this". I'm not sure if I'm going to live in this apartment for long, so if I decide to sell it in a few years, a good built-in home theater system could only increase the value (by more than its cost), I think. So the system should also look good/impressive. And I also already mentioned the price ranges I can afford, so keeping to the price range is important as well as I don't have a lot of liquidity now. If I buy stuff locally, though, I could pay in installments and go for some pricier components if I really find a good justification.

So far two models have caught my eye: The BenQ W1070 seems excellent for the price (~1000$), but I'm really afraid of the Rainbow Effect of DLP-s. I don't know how to test myself for it -- I doubt I could get a demo anywhere in Tallinn. Or maybe I could, it seems to be a popular model here judging by one price comparison site. But even if I'm not susceptible, that doesn't mean any of my guests wouldn't be. The Epson HC8530 is a bit more expensive (~1300$), but it has very low input lag (17ms vs 24ms of W1070, both are good) and way better lens shift so placement should be really flexible. On the other hand, it is quite old by now and seems people have been receiving defective units with misaligned color panels or something. It also doesn't do 3D, which I thought I didn't care about, but as soon as I'm thinking about not having the option, I suddenly want the option to be there. Seems like both of these may be risky. The Epson is not sold locally, though, which almost makes it out of the question (I don't want any hassle with overseas seller if it turns out I get a defective unit). So at the moment I'm seriously considering the W1070 or similar, and might take a risk with the rainbow effect... However, even at the relatively low price for a projector, it's still a fucking lot of money to risk on buying something crap -- we don't have very good return policies here AFAIK.

I've read (or skimmed) quite a few reviews now and there seem to be a few non-obvious things worth noting with the kind of use I want it for: * some projectors have high input lag, which may be unsuitable for gaming (I believe 30-40 ms would be ok, but above that maybe not?) * some projectors have no or limited lens shift, which limits the placement opportunities (if you don't want to resort to digital keystone correction which produces for non-pixel-perfect image). I want to ceiling-mount it pretty high, maybe even so that the projected image is vertically fully below the lens, but not all projectors allow that. This might be almost as important as good brightness and constrast and image quality. The Wirecutter's step down pick (Epson 3020) has input lag of around 100 ms (6 frames), and the top pick has relatively high input lag as well, I think. I might have to be more flexible with the placement and put the projector lower, since it seems many around the $1000-$1500 price don't have a large lens shift.

Yeah, I got really exited about the projector idea yesterday, and read reviews until 5 in the morning. Seems that sub-$3000 each projector has some problem. The BenQ W1070 is well rated, but it's DLP and might have rainbow effects. I'm not sure if those effects are noticeable to me, bother me or not. I'm not going to spend over $3000 right now, no way. So if I will not find a projector that satisfies me at around $1000-$1500 now, I will likely just get a TV and think about a projector in the future. I'm planning to build this stuff at the end of the year, so I still have plenty of time for research.