miffy495

Happy Birthday, Wrestle. May as well live it up now before your birthday gets combined with baby T's to save on party expenses.

Ok, just beat Virmire and holy shit this game is good. I didn't expect to have to make the decision that I did, and how much impact it had on me when I made it. No spoilers for anybody, I'm just saying. Damn. I will be replaying this game again as a male renegade (currently female paragon) if only to make the other choice when this point in the game comes up to see what happens. Yay for Bioware keeping the tradition of making the only RPGs I ever really get into going! EDIT: 4 hours later OK, so same sitting as I played Virmire, I decided to just power through and see if I could watch whatever ending I earned. Just finished watching the credits roll by. Holy hell that was good. To hell with all the little criticisms, watching the end of that game brought the whole thing together in an amazing way. Definitely one of those "wholistic gaming experience" things you hear about, where the awesome of the final product overcomes all the myriad problems with design. So bloody impressed. Oh yeah, and it's a very cool nod to Sci-Fi fans having Marina Sirtis voice Matriarch Benezia. No way I could have placed it before seeing the credits, but yeah, that was definitely her.

Uhhh... hi? Getting your coat pretty quick there, aren't you? Well, feel free to make an introduction any time.

Totally serious. If you check my Gamertag you'll see that pretty much all I've played since Rock Band came out in Canada has been it, Mass Effect when I don't feel like playing anything music-based, and Rez because it's amazing. I had Guitar Hero in one of it's variants in my Now Playing since the first game launched. It's gone now, replaced by Rock Band. I just don't see what the series can do now to differentiate itself apart from having a ton of instrumentals like Cliffs Of Dover. If that's what GHIV is all about, count me in. Right now though, it just seems like they're being left in the dust. The new songs every week definitely help to cure the samey-ness. This week, the prime selection is Faith No More's We Care A Lot, last week was the Smashing Pumpkins' Siva (Though an argument can always be made for Rush. Working Man is one of my favorite Rush Songs. Siva is one of my favorite Pumpkins songs. So hard to choose...). Of course, this may have something to do with the fact that of all the songs released to date, the only one I haven't bought has been Blink 182's All The Small Things (got my fill of that one in ninth grade, thanks) so I've had a magnificent drip-feed of new music for two months now. It's $5 or $6 each week and I have yet to be disappointed. With rumours of a European delay to September, I don't know if I'd bother waiting until then and just import the damn thing, provided shipping isn't too expensive. (On the other hand, it'd be kinda cool if it did come out on the 31st. Canadian release: My birthday, European release: My sister's birthday. Not that that matters to any of you, but I find it a bit funny.)

In the case of Psychobilly I can understand why. I think I know the part you're talking about, and on Expert those are all chords so you do need to strum every one. Probably just the game trying to keep you from making yourself unprepared for the next jump in difficulty.

Level one Tera isn't so bad. The one that murdered me about 20 times before I could finally take it was the level two Tera. That one is a bugger of a fight.

It does. I think I'm pretty much done with Guitar Hero now.

Ok, game beaten. The boss battle was surprisingly cool. Far more gritty and visceral than I'm used to from games like this. Regarding the last three chapters of the game: On the other hand, chapters 19, 20, and 21 being really stupid doesn't take away from the fact that chapters 1-18 and 22 were all incredible and a huge amount of fun to play. Just be warned, those interested in Uncharted. The game is, overall, very fun. The combat happens a bit more than I'd hoped but it's done well so it doesn't matter too much. The final 7th-ish of the game is a bit of a let down, and the plot goes all screwy, but it's saved by a really well designed final boss fight. Oh well, on to Ratchet and Clank...

Maybe it is just pandering to try and get a bigger demographic, but it seems to me that whenever an issue I feel strongly about comes up, she is either on the other side or firmly planted on the fence. Also, as you alluded to, I'm a little concerned with the prospect of America turning into a rotating Oligarchy. McCain on the other hand, while conservative, (and seemingly a bit moreso now than 8 years ago) is conservative in the more traditional sense, and has always seemed to me like the type who would do his best to keep the government out of people's lives more, which is something I'm very much in favor of. I don't see the sort of "We're making these laws to protect you from yourselves" attitude I fear that Clinton would bring.

Only song I can't get more than 3 stars on. Not counting Psychobilly, I only have three songs that are still at four stars, everything else is 5. Psychobilly just murders me though.

Hey, I wasn't knocking the rail shooter sections. Action games have had that for much longer than they've had mandatory vehicle sections. I've always liked the rail shooter parts. I made sure to keep a separate save at the start of that chapter just so I can go back and replay it. I only really count a vehicle section as such if you're at the controls of the vehicle.

Pretty much. Between Obama, McCain, and Clinton I see Clinton as the most conservative and really the most potentially bad for the country. Course, being Canadian it's not like my opinion matters all that much, but oh well.

Ok, don't get me wrong here. I really do love this game, but still. I need to vent on this one. I love the atmosphere, I love the puzzles, I love the platforming. The combat is solid, but really I've never been that big on combat. I'm all about the adventure aspects. I like my combat fairly compelling, but not the focus of the experience. Drake's Fortune has more combat than I'd usually want in a game of it's type, but I love everything else to death so I'll tolerate it. That said, why is it that when I use all of Drake's mental acuity to discover an ancient buried city of tombs under a giant library building and cutscenes are showing that the enemy still doesn't have any idea where I am or even that I'm anywhere near their position, there are still guys in commando suits waiting there to shoot me in the fucking face? I got there and thought "Oh good. Giant caverns and precarious ledges. This is exactly what I wanted out of this game. Probably only a couple of cursory bad guys, too. This chapter is going to beat everything else I've seen up to this point." And then I get a bullet placed very carefully up my left nostril by some dude with a laser sight. How the hell did they find me down there? More importantly, if they've found me why haven't they told their commanders? It's not like it's hard to yell "CAVERNS!" into a two-way radio. Sigh. Still an awesome chapter, by the way. Just wish there wasn't so much combat. Oh, and as a final note, nobody ever seems to mention this in the reviews, but the sections where you ride on a jetski (I've played three so far, and am a little less than three quarters of the way through the game) are very poor compared to the rest of the game. It's handled competently, but compared to the crazy quality of everything else it only serves to make you heave out a heavy sigh and say "Oh boy, only 10 minutes until the game gets good again." Why does every game on the planet have to have some crappy vehicle section now?

I've got to say, if it comes down to Obama vs McCain, I don't think I can be really unhappy either way with the election. Should we come out of today with that standing, I'll be much more optimistic about the US's future.

Well, technically only in the sense that the orchestral music was composed by the same guy. The similarities between the main characters are simply that. Similarities. Nathan Drake has pretty much aped every mannerism Mal has, but he does it so well it's hard to find any fault with the character even when you're aware of it.

I downloaded it and played for an hour or so. Wasn't really impressed. Seemed like a 2D version of Unreal Tournament's Onslaught mode with scuba gear. Didn't think to highly of it, but at least it was free.

I don't quite think you're giving it the credit it deserves. Playing Uncharted tonight I found myself wishing to god they'd decided to put a roadie run in while they were busy aping all the rest of the combat from Gears. Both are great games, of course, but something about not being able to barrel headlong from one piece of cover to another while I'm advancing on the enemy just feels weird now.

Well, after the other thread got derailed, I have to say, a review is probably the best replacement I could possibly hope for. Well put on all accounts. I'm only about 3 hours in myself, but I'm in complete agreement. Hadn't noticed the similarity between Nathan Drake and Mal Reynolds before you pointed it out, but damn are they ever close. Oh yeah, obligatory "YAY!" for new content.

But the evil sun doesn't show up until Mario 3!!! Yeah, that is actually pretty cool. Although I'm a little weirded out by it, I do enjoy learning things like that occasionally. From the reaction though, might I suggest using spoiler tags and linking to the picture in the future?

Wrestle, the reason the bosses are getting harder is that you're getting better. Bosses have three forms. For example, on the first stage, depending on your percentage on the level up to that point, you will fight Earth[Mega], Earth[Giga], or Earth[Tera]. I'm at a level of play where I will usually fight the [Tera] versions of the first two bosses and the [Giga] versions of the second two. First time I fought Mars[Tera] was on my first play through HD, and it was a major jump in difficulty from what I was used to. I adapted though, and so will you. It's the game's way of active difficulty adjustment.

I know. After reading that post I can't look away.

Well, I'm impressed.

No. Those don't occur until toddler-hood.

Sorry to upset those of you who may be expecting a laugh after that thread title, but it's actually an accurate description of what I'm writing about. I never title a thread until I know it's contents. Anyway: So today in the mail I received a cheque from Ipswitch, Queensland, Australia. My uncle passed away last summer and had not left a will, so the Public Trustee of Queensland has been running around tracking down my family members to divide up the estate. He was my father's only brother and had no children of his own, and given that my father passed away about 10 years ago, my sister and I were each due for a decent portion of the estate. Thing is, he also had Down Syndrome and had spent most of his adult life in a group home. Needless to say, I was expecting about $200 maximum. Well, surprise surprise, today I discovered a cheque that is actually around $1500. What to do? Well, I happen to know that the EB Games near my house had about 3 60 gigabyte PS3s left two weeks ago. A month before that, they had 4, so I'm hoping there's still at least one left. They are selling these for about $400. I also have about a hundred dollars in gift certificates. Tomorrow, I believe I will be getting a PS3, and one that is backwards compatible, at that. The rest of the money goes into my savings account, of course, but there you have it. Not sure how PS3's online works, but any thumbs with a system feel free to add me to whatever friends list there is provided that I'm successful in getting one. Just a wild guess, but my screen name will probably be something like, I don't know, "Miffy495". Anything people are thinking I should definitely be getting with the PS3, or in the several weeks following as cheques from work and so forth come in? I'm leaning towards Everyday Shooter, Fl0w, Uncharted, and Ratchet & Clank. If someone has something really strong to dissuade me from getting these, speak up. I don't think I'll get any full on games when I buy the system, rather wait until after my next paycheque so I make sure to save the rest of that estate money for school. Recommendations? Warnings? Let's hear something about the PS3 essentials here. Not sure exactly how I feel about the money. It's nice to have, given that I'll be totally free of debts and getting a PS3. But then there's the whole business with my uncle. At least he had a long life. 65 is damned impressive for someone with Down Syndrome. I'll be toasting him tomorrow at dinner with the girl, and thinking of him every time I play. Cheers, uncle Neil. Wish we weren't on opposite ends of the planet so I could have made the journey to meet you more than I did.

Well, it's hooked up and updating right now. I gotta say, in 1080i, even the navigation bar looks pretty. Only setback is that I didn't buy any extra controllers as I've decided to wait a couple months for the one with rumble, so my roommates will have to live with trading around single player for a bit. Turns out that the system was $50 less than I expected, so I picked up a used copy of Uncharted as well. Won't have a chance to actually play anything for more than an hour or so until Sunday though, so I'll wait til then to give it a spin. I'll be signing up for a PSN account as soon as the update is done. Name: Miffy495 (of course). Hope to see some of you online. EDIT: and Wrestle, I wasn't saying Warhawk wasn't good. Just that games in that genre have always had a hard time attracting my interests. Speaks more to my tastes as a gamer than anything about the game. I'll still give the trial a shot though, as people do seem to like it.