miffy495

Yeah, I went right in that room because I saw a hidden treasure thingy shining in the fountain. Turned out that was the right way to go to get through the room on my first try. Also, because I was all distraught over the end of the cast, I forgot to mention my favorite manual. It is, surprisingly enough given the number of times it was mentioned this week, Crimson Skies for the PC. The manual was a full-on aviation tabloid from the universe of the game, with interviews and news stories about various pilots and American territories having their political skirmishes. Really well done, and even printed on a non-glossy thick news-standy paper that has still held up to today. Have it on my shelf over my PC. Just really well done and really got me into the feel of the world. In case I didn't get it across right the first time, thanks so much for casting your pod for this past year. Would you believe it was the first thing I ever bothered to subscribe to on iTunes? Really sorry to see it go, but at least I'll have nothing but good memories of it.

Oh god, are we trying to stave off insanity here? I was working under the assumption I would never be rescued. If I spent 3 years with nothing but Lumines and a ship showed up, I can only imagine the state I'd be in. Rescuers: "Sir! We found a survivor of the crash from '09. Amazing he lasted this long with nothing but a PSP..." Me (towel draped over my shoulders, really huge beard. Otherwise, likely naked): "Shine and shine and shine and shine and shine and shine and shine and shine..."

That's actually a really great idea. I for one loved the bonus poop-cast, and would really appreciate hearing the rest of the deleted chapters of thumbs. If you still have them, it would be fantastic to hear it. What have you got to lose now that it's ending anyway?

Damn man. Well, happy birthday I guess? Good luck on the 6th. I'm sure you'll be less nervous this time around.

Well, as you can see by the join dates, a lot of the really active thumbs have been around since long before the podcast began. There were like two years there where the main site did almost nothing, but the forum community has always been strong. At least I can rely on that as something fairly constant on the internet.

Well shit. Congratulations Nick, in all seriousness. As long as the forums stick around (no reason to stop them now, I guess) I should be able to cope, but goddamn not having this podcast every week is going to suck. First thing I do every Wednesday morning is go on itunes and click on refresh until something awesome happens. The weeks where it didn't this past year were really dull slogs. Now weeks will return to tedium. Even periods where I've been far too busy to game, I still feel in touch with the community, almost more like a gamer, through the forums and the 'cast. Does kinda sting that the news comes after the promise of Jake talking about all the games he's been playing in 4 or 5 weeks. There only being two more means we may never actually hear about Jake playing/liking a game. Best of luck to all of you, and I hope you can come up with some way to reinvent the thumb once more. It always seems to come back more awesome than before in each incarnation. PS: Chris, does this mean you'll be doing more episodes of Played? I really dug that 'cast, but it hasn't updated since goddamn March. Or is doing 50 episodes of a podcast and then quitting just a thing with you?

BALLISTICS!!! That's been driving me crazy! With all the talk last month over Grin shutting down I was trying really hard to remember the racing game they made back in 2001-ish. That and Rearmed are the only two games of theirs I played, but I really liked both. Thanks for that, man. It's a weird thing to have been tormenting me, but you've taken it off my mind now.

You mock, but I have actually completed several songs on guitar, bass, and vocals at the same time. Guitar and Bass were on medium with the guitar hung twice as long on the strap with the bass above it, vocals on hard. Don't mix drinking with rhythm games, kids.

Favorite: Zelda Link's Awakening Aside from being the first game I ever beat, it has just never gotten old for me. I replay it every couple of years and still love it as much as I did when I was 8. Best: Half Life 2 Less revolutionary than its older brother perhaps, but it managed to top it in every way. It's brilliantly paced, just challenging enough, and balances story and gameplay perfectly. Desert Island: Rock Band 2 w/DLC (internet), Lumines (no internet) Give me a full instrument set with a bunch of DLC for Rock Band and I will simply never get tired of that game. If I feel like I'm playing too much guitar, I'll switch to drums. Too much of that? Vocals. It's the DLC really that would keep this alive. After a year of the same songs I'm ready for more, but with weekly releases I'll never want to kill myself from repetition. If I don't have an internet connection, Lumines feels like the natural choice for me. I already keep playing that game endlessly whenever I turn it on, so I don't see why I wouldn't just do that forever.

Yeah, PS3 and 360. I guess it was too much to hope that Future Shop would carry a PC game that doesn't have "Sim" in the title. Oh well. Waiting for a Steam sale: go!

That's pretty much how I got my job. Gotta love connections. Sorry to hear about that, signor. I hope it wasn't as bad as all that. Best of luck getting back on the employment train.

Fair enough then. My apologies for assuming things about you. And yeah, I pirated like hell in Junior High School. Haven't downloaded since getting a job when I was 16 though. It was lack of means (and the fact that all my friends were pirating too, making it seem normal) mostly. I consider it a phase I grew out of. Amazing to me how many people just didn't.

Exactly. I don't think English is your first language, Tanukitsune, (your first is Spanish, I assume?) so I was merely trying to point out that the usage in this case wasn't literally "luxurious." I totally get how it could be confusing though. Was only trying to explain what n0wak was saying. And now I back out of this piracy conversation, as I've frustrated myself arguing the issue far too many times already...

It may just be the colloquialism, but that's the way that I read n0wak's statements and it's also the way in which I use the term. Food, shelter, clothing, and other things you need for everyday life are considered essentials. Things which you are expected to buy with a "living wage," to use the governmental term. If you bought a PS3 with welfare money on the other hand, there are quite a few people who would be angry with you. It's not an essential. As such, it is a luxury item, something which goes beyond the minimum. It may not actually be luxurious, but that is what the term means when used in this context. Haagen-Dazs and Ferraris are luxury items because they also go beyond the minimum. People need transportation. Public transportation or other basic services are required. Ferraris are not. They are a luxury. Food is necessary for life. High-class, expensive ice cream is not. Haagen-Dazs is a luxury. Games are a luxury item in terms of modes of entertainment. It can be argued (and I would agree, although I wouldn't have to) that some form of entertainment is necessary for people. Mental stimulation to keep the brain working at somewhere nearer to its potential. If you need to be entertained, board games (well, some board games...) are cheap. Libraries are plentiful. Games are expensive and go beyond what is required to entertain oneself. They are certainly a luxury item, even if you wish to claim that entertainment is necessary.

Well, you win the name competition.

Luxury items don't need to actually be luxurious, man. All it means is something which is not necessary to get by. Any entertainment product can be classified as a luxury item.

Watching the final credits roll right now. Whoever said that the final boss fight was a let down is spot on. So few games get the boss right, it always feels different from the main game to the point of needless irritation. Ugh. Oh well. Everything up to that point was plenty awesome. Well done, game. Well done.

Wrong. Jake "video games" Rodkin is the actual man himself.

They had a game before this? What was it? I thought they were a new studio...

Yeah, I guess playing it on a 360 would be even more affecting. For me,

I wound up just exploiting the system a bit for that one. I brought down one titan for riding fairly quickly, then pounded on the other until he collapsed. About then, the titan I was on threw me and I hopped on the other. Repeat until only one titan is left alive, with very little health left. Then take out the henchmen with a bit of flair once both titans are out.

Just going to throw this out there: I love that you can unlock a "next-gen" graphics filter that turns the whole world brown. I activated it right after the train wreck in the snow, and all the snow started looking like mud. I got a good laugh out of that.

Sweet. Go karma.

Goddamn that game is good. Played it some more last week. I do enjoy heading to games night when I don't have to work. Also played a new one (new to me) that was about Space Truckers. Can't remember the name, exactly, but it was really awesome. Highly recommended if you can find it.

Damn, really? I was probably going to give this one a miss, honestly. It looked fun but forgettable. Is the demo publicly available anywhere? I now feel compelled to try it.