Quick Post

So I was going to write a review for Silent Hill: Shattered Memories for the Wii.

I can't. I don't want to review a product without having completed at least 80% of it.

I'm going to sum this up quick:

The creators of this product don't "get" what made Silent Hill good, nor how to "reboot" a series, because I don't WANT anything that follows this game. I loved some of the ideas in theory. Normal guy can't fight off the strange monsters, but instead has to run away while they chase them? Nice concept, but turns into crap game play that is more frustrating than suspenseful. The game psychologically profiles me to help make it scarier? Cool... except that I wasn't find that to be the case.

I'll be blunt; I was playing the other night, got through a nightmare sequence, completed several puzzles, and then entered a new nightmare sequence. I saved and told Lisa "Yeah, I'm just not in the mood for another chase tonight." and then each time I thought about starting the game up I thought "Yeah, but I'll have to do a nightmare sequence right away... and that just sucks." So here's the point: If there is an element to your game that makes me not want to pick back up the Wii remote... YOU FAILED. If I would rather go back to a game from my ORIGINAL XBOX and play that, YOU FAILED. Games are for entertainment.

Me no entertained, YOU FAIL!!! Small words make sense?

Not to be entirely negative, I've recently remembered how much Deus Ex from Eidos (yeah, they do more than Tomb Raider!) and the sequel, Deus Ex: Invisible War ROCKS (though Deus Ex was better than the sequel, but what can you do?). I can't wait for Deus Ex: Human Resistance. Something about these games just work for me.

Oh, and there's a new Spider-Man game coming out that apparently features Spider-Man 2099. This makes me happy. Very happy. Here's a link: http://spidermandimensions.marvel.com/ I may be in a minority for people who really enjoyed the 2099 lines, but I don't care. They were fun (favorite: Ghost Rider 2099).

End of Demented Rambling.

Dear Bioware, My Wishlist For Dragon Age 2...

I've been playing through Dragon Age Origins with all the downloaded content and Awakenings recently. This new session of playing a game that I really should be tired of (but somehow I'm not) has affirmed a few of my beliefs regarding what I would (and would not) want to see in Dragon Age 2. I'd write Bioware a letter, but since it's possible we're getting the game in February, I kind of doubt that there's much point. Still, here's what I'd ask for:

Please Keep:

• Conversations among the party members; many of these were hilarious.
• Customizable tactics for my characters so I can just play my character if I want.
• Rich and detailed origins stories for the main character. In fact, give me more of these!
• Specializations to let my characters of the same class feel different from one another.
• The inventory system (but you can do away with the "junk" category; it's purpose could be accomplished with a simple "Do you really want to destroy this item?" confirmation box).
• The HUGE number of Codex entries.
• Stamina droughts. WHY WEREN'T THOSE IN THE MAIN GAME?!?!?!?

Please Add:

• The ability for me to sort the order of my Codex entries (make newest entries on top, all unread entries on top, whatever) OR make it so I need to "mark" an entry as read by pressing a button or something, rather than marking it read as soon as I scroll over it. I like the Codex, and I'd like to be able to find my new entries.
• Different skill lists for each class. Make the lists bigger, let classes have unique skills to help make this part of the game feel like more than an afterthought. Rogues can keep things like Stealing, Poison Making, and Trap Making (oh, and change the lockpicking and stealth Talents into skills). Warriors could have skills that help them aggro their foes (move those Taunt abilities to skills, rather than Talents), and maybe armor or weapon crafting skills. Mages can have Herbalism, Rune-Making and the like. You can keep some skills generic (survival & coercion for instance). Just do SOMETHING so I feel like I have a place to put skill points for my warriors once I've maxed out combat training!
• More enemy types, either enemies who look different (all shades are exactly the same), or just a greater variety of creatures so I don't run the risk of feeling like I'm fighting the same Qunari Mercenary over and over again.
• More download content that provides either new characters or greater background on existing characters. Alternatively, new Specializations from DLC. 
• More consistency between the storyline elements and the codex (why is the Sloth Demon ruling over two Desire Demons, when the Desire Demons are considered higher ranked?).
• Download content that actually works with your goddamn expansion pack!!!! Seriously, if it came out ON RELEASE, then there is NO REASON that my items should vanish when I import my character to your next expansion. Telling me that the items were only intended for Origins is bullshit.

Please Get Rid Of:

• Not being able to access my companion's crafting skills while I'm camping. I don't like needing to leave camp to make a Health Poultice or Vigil Keep just to work on making that Paragon Flame Rune. Sure, you could say "but if the main character has those crafting skills you're set!" However, if I want to maintain consistency with your background for the world, only a dwarf should be able to take Rune Crafting... and maybe I don't think Herbalism fits with my warrior. It's an RPG, don't make me take skills for a character that I don't feel fit just to make crafting them convenient!
• Stamina/Mana and Health increases as skills. Just... no. This was silly. Could you seriously not come up with better skills?
• Buying additional Tactic Slots with my skill points. Sure, I needed somewhere to dump all those skill points, but if you'd actually concentrated on your skill system to begin with I would have HAD somewhere. If you think I'll want more slots, just increase how many I get from leveling up!
• Specializations from an expansion not updating the original game to let me use them all the time. This last play through had me not leveling my main character after a certain point because I wanted to save my Talent slots for either Awakening Specialization Talents, the new weapon skill path, or the extra class paths... If I could have used the new specializations earlier, I could have saved myself the hassle.
• Everything coming from the Fade. Look, if the Fade is so bad, why wouldn't the Chantry just wipe out the mages? They become Abominations, possibly created the Darkspawn, and help thin the veil so all these damn spirits can escape into our world (and apparently it happens ALL THE TIME in Ferelden).

Does anyone agree with me?

End of Demented Rambling.

Ugh, Ugh, and (guess what) Ugh...

Still in my bad habit of not updating this as often as I would like. Sorry about that folks!

My migraines continue, though most days I'm perfectly fine. Most days. Not today, but most days. Sucks to be me today. On the plus side, my doctor has had me taking high blood pressure medication as a preventative... so hopefully my naturally-high blood pressure has been coming back into the "normal" range. I keep meaning to stop by the machines at Wal-Mart or Kroger and find out, but never remember when I'm at either location.

One week till my birthday (and Cassandra's by default). And by some odd luck, our tax return money should be hitting around the 12th... just in time for me to run out and buy my birthday present... Mass Effect 2 (for the Xbox 360)! I'm excited to get it. Just replayed the first one so I'd have a save game from recent memory to import over. Eric already got the game and has been making me jealous by telling me things about it (I don't think he's purposefully making me jealous... but that doesn't help). MUST HAVE GAME!!!!

We also went ahead and told Gamefly we wanted to keep Dragon Age: Origins... good thing too, because I'd had it since before Thanksgiving! I got the codes that come with retail purchases as well, so I have the special armor available in that game and Mass Effect 2 as well as the free DLC for Dragon Age. Yay!!!

Playing so much Mass Effect has gotten me wanting to write up the setting for the Savage Worlds RPG. Why Savage Worlds? No idea, really, but I keep wanting to do it SPECIFICALLY for SW, so I think there must be a reason (seriously, I've considered GURPS, Alternity, HERO, Trinity/Aeon, etc. and nothing else appeals to me).Maybe I should post some thoughts on the blog as I actually work on it. I'll think about it.

I've also been wanting to play a game of Trail of Cthulhu (powered by GUMSHOE). I'm going to be writing my first adventure for it soon... I'm just still trying to figure out how many scenes I want, and consider a line of clues to use to help the players reach the climax. I really like the ideas behind GUMSHOE, and I think it can create an awesome game. I still want to read "Fear Itself" and "The Essoterrorists" to see some other points of view on GUMSHOE. Add to that list "Realms of Cthulhu" and "Hellfrost" for Savage Worlds... they look like great campaigns!

(y'know, there's too much RPG-goodness out there... I'd need three of me to read EVERYTHING I want to check out, much less run the games.)

That's enough for right now. Talk to you all next year (ok, hopefully not, right?)

End of Demented Rambling.

Week Two Begins!

So my second week of Jury Duty begins today. As usual, I'm already up in the 5th floor Jury Assembly Room, waiting for 9:00 AM to roll around. I have no idea if they'll even call me this week. At this point my odds are slightly lower than they were last week, depending on how many things go to trial. Whatever, I've actually somewhat enjoyed my time here. It's been great creatively, and while I miss the family I don't mind the break in scenery (if Lisa reads this her jaw is probably on the floor and she's likely thinking "then why don't we go somewhere and get out of the house!").

The weekend was, overall, a good one. It started on Friday for me since I didn't need to report to the court house. Lisa's mother and grandmother (the Marys) came to stay the night Friday, so the kids were really excited. Lisa's mother (we'll call her "young Mary") bought the kids a small swimming pool, and they loved it. It looks like a whale and can spray them as they're in it if the water is hooked up. Lex loved it too, walking around like he owned the thing, trying to swim, etc. It was a good visit. They left at about 5:00 PM Sunday, and we were kind of at a loss for what to do next. We had planned ribs for dinner, but both Lisa and myself had forgotten to get them out of the freezer, so there wasn't an opportunity to thaw them and let the rub get in. Slight change of plans, and dinner was leftovers, which were still good since Lisa had made a double batch of her awesome Kicking Cajun Alfredo (courtesy of Guy Fieri) Friday night, plus some homemade garlic bread that was just as good cold as it was warm (despite what Cassandra thought).

Sunday was Father's Day, and it was a little bittersweet. I met my parents at their house and went to see my grandfather. After a couple of strokes right after each other at the end of February/beginning of March his mind has finally gone. Some days are good, some... well, some aren't. I hadn't been over to see him since getting the news. I've gone through one family member not knowing who I am, I don't long to experience it again. But this might have been the last Father's Day, and I know it was important to Dad even if he didn't say so (important to me too). My Aunt Sally and Uncle John were there, so we got to see them. Grandpa wasn't really with things however. They've upped his dosage on one medication and he fell asleep. I suppose that's ok... it avoided a potentially difficult situation. It was good to see him.

By the time I got home I was feeling ill. I don't know if it was from the visit, the heat, a drop in my blood sugar, or what. All I know is I was naseus and not feeling good in general. Lisa wasn't feeling well either. The kids made me Father's Day cards while I was gone, so that was a welcome treat (I had prepared my self for the Marys' visit to overshadow Father's Day). Lisa had helped Lex make me a card that had his very first hand prints on it, so that was great (not to take away from Cassandra & Caleb's cards... I just wasn't expecting one from Lex). Apparently Lisa had to stop him from trying to stick paint-covered hands in his mouth! That boy wants to eat everything in sight! What do they say about Cancers, they're ruled by their stomachs? Lex proves that one!

We were supposed to go to a Summer Solstice ceremony my friend Joe's Druid Grove was putting on. It started at 3 and by 2 I was still feeling ill. I looked at the temperature and realized it was supposed to reach 85 with a 52% humidity, and we decided that it just wasn't a good idea to go. Even if I handled the heat ok, Lex probably wouldn't, and the ceremony would take place right during his feeding time when he'd be guaranteed to be cranky. I was disappointed, but I think it was the right decision. Of course our dinner plans had been the potluck after the ceremony so we kind of messed up with that... but fortunately Pizza Hut is very forgiving. Lisa was thrilled when I suggested we order mediums instead of our usual larges... hey, every little bit to help lose weight, right?

I got a present for Father's Day. Sims 3, something I'd been looking forward to but Lisa was iffy about it. I had reservations about whether it would even run on the laptop (the processer isn't technically up to specs), but my fears were unfounded. The only issue I had was that my video driver was VERY out of date (it was an '05 driver!) so I had some .dll issues that forced me to restart the laptop a couple of times. Fortunately Intel had an updated '07 driver on their website that fixed the issues, and the game runs quite nicely now. I'll review it sometime after I've played some more, but in short I like it better than Sims 2 (which is Lisa's baby). It fixes a lot of the things that made me get bored with the previous versions... plus my first Sim is an Evil Insane Bookworm who is trying to become a professional author and now has 3 books to his name while he works part time at a bookstore!

(No, I didn't pattern him after myself... I just wanted to try the traits out and I had enjoyed writing books in Sims 2 instead of getting a career.)

I also got in touch with an old buddy from college through Facebook. I haven't seen him in years; he joined the Army as a Combat Documentation and Production Specialist, and he lives in Bavaria now (he says it makes Athens, OH look like LA). He's here for the week to attend Origins, so I think I'll try to find a time to go to dinner with him or have him over or something, depending on what his schedule will allow.

End of Demented Rambling.