Axel is pissed.

Not that tw2 has a poor story. I remember back in the day when tw2 hadawesome endings. Actually… that makes me wonder if that was because there was an ending for each character, and each character would suffer a cruel fate. Good re-playability and a technique of multiple endings made for some cool experiences back then.

Regardless, my point is that I can quickly pick up this old game for a few matches just for the hell of it – and this is great.

I spent about 110% less money on tw2 than uncharted 2 and I get about the same playtime out of it. The major diffrence here is that I’m playing uncharted 2 for 8 hours straight and playing tw2 many times a night during short breaks between other things.

I suppose it is a bit different play style too. But hey, still guns!

Anyway, I thought that was kind of interesting.  I’ll try to write a more detailed post about it later.

Almost as good as buffalo wings.

I even considered buying this system that I thought about the Blu-ray option and the fact that Red Dead Revolver comes out in May… Quickly I was sold.

So if you have stuck around to get through that poorly written paragraph above, then you might be interested in what I

Dat controller got grips

think about buying such a console.  Well, I must premise such narratives with my history of owning consoles.  When I was a wee lad, I owned a Sega Genesis.  I loved that console and so many games on it.  While I loved the SNES as well, the Genesis came to me via Santa Claus, and I was ecstatic.  The Sonic series alone were enough for me, but that didn’t stop me from trying new games every weekend.

And this brings me to a small digression:  Renting games back then, when Genesis and SNES were the new consoles, I usually rented two games.  Interesting I know, but necessary to this narration I’m sure.  See, back then, I’m pretty sure that it was about 5 to 6 bucks to rent two games for these next gen consoles.  Keep that in mind.

Then fast forward a few years and I have a Playstation.  Not that small version, but the OG: PSX.  So many great games were played on that machine: Twisted Metal (all games, 2 the best, son), Cool Boarders (same deal, 2 the best), Jet Moto (2 again… seriously wtf?  The first sequels were the best), FF7 and FF8, Oddworld, Bandicoot, Rayman, et fricken cetera.

So at the time the PSX was dying out and PS2 and XBOX were coming in, I was more interested in PC games.  I believe CounterStrike and Team Fortress Classic always pulled me off PSX rentals, as I figured I knew I would just play CS or TFC all night anyway.  While a few games pulled me in on the XBOX since my brother owned it, I didn’t get much play time on these new “next-gen” consoles.  XBOX, because of my brother, was most familiar, and PS2, well, I probably logged about 2 hours total on that.

So here I am, 23 and about 7 years into only PC Gaming.  And those were great years, but I saw the end of PC Gaming, and played PC Games through to the horrible, suffering end.  I made it to Assassin’s Creed 2.  I made it to the day developers said FUCK IT and constantly checked single player PC games against an online server.  HEY! If you don’t realize what I just mentioned, then here we go: a regular PC game buyer goes out and purchases a single player game.  He has no ability to play this game online.  There may be future updates/patches/downloadable content, but he can also attain these via PC Gamer DVDs.  He gets home, installs the game, and then his Comcast fucks up and he can’t watch TV or check his email.  What should he do?  Shit, play some AC2!

Oh right.  It has to authenticate against a server constantly in order to just play the game.  A game that has no intentions of online interaction.

Seriously.  WHAT THE FUCK!?

you really have to love the 90's clip art.

So here I am.  I have not even truly considered these aspects of PC Gaming and now I want a console.  I work on a PC all day now, and coming home, I just wanna relax.  Unfortunately, this means watching TV or surfing the net or using my PC for games.  This became old.  I needed a difference, needed to shake this shit up, so now I finally, after this whole damn intro, get to the point: PS3.

Awesome.

I have played 2 games and 2 demos.

Awesome.

GTA4 makes me giddy and want to avoid contact with anyone else.  I just want to finish these missions and in between try to not become a major criminal (getting away with things don’t count right?).  When I took Little Jacob to the bar was one of the greatest experiences for me in video games.  Walking out of the bar watching LJ stumble and fall while I shout in a deep accent TAXI! was just fucking amazing.  I won’t even get into the enjoyment of these missions.

I hear that GTA3 versions were better, but I missed these, and my first experience of these games after loving GTA and GTA2 on PSX is just brilliant.

God of War 3 is pretty sweet.  The new gameplay style is intriguing.  It makes me think minor puzzle with Spider-Man:

This game was so badass

Maximum Carnage 3.  The puzzles are easy enough to not get me frustrated and walk away, the graphics are beautiful, and the story is engaging… I guess.  Well, the violence is spectacular.  Ripping off heads and shredding torsos have never been more fun.

I played some demos too so far.  The Show is pretty sweet but hard.  It’ll take me a while to get that down, but I imagine once I do, it will be very rewarding.  Sonic Racers or whatever that game is pretty cool, only because it is intuitive because it’s just like Mario Kart Wii (amazing game).

Like I said, I heavily look forward to Red Dead Redemption.  GTA3 + Good, Bad, Ugly + Graphics sounds delicious and fan-fucking-tastic.  Sonic 4 if developed right will be a nostalgic godsend, Move will be my redemption for not buying  a Wii, and I am loving the ability to use PS3 to watch all my videos and dvds.

Now I just need a flat screen tv…

Oh and btw, I waited inline on a Sunday like a fanboy to buy this bitch.  And it is 2010!

If you liked either Gorillaz or Demon Days, or just the difference between the two, then you owe it to yourself to pick this album up.

Top 3 tracks:

Empire Ants – The switch from Albarn to the buildup of the second half with Nagano’s beautiful voice is powerful, and ends wonderfully
White Flag – Like the new Dirty Harry – awesomely mixed symphony backed rap.
Superfast Jellyfish - The evolution of 19-2000 and Feel Good Inc.  De La Soul’s appearance is just as strong as before.  That uniquely fun Gorillaz sound.

Notably New Sound:

On Melancholy Hill – If mellow and poppy mix, it’s this, and in a great way.

Badass Contributor:

Lou Reed - Dude, it’s Lou Reed.

afghanistan better replace their fields with software startups soon

Just so you know, the latest big budget hardcore game to come out was Modern Warfare 2, which sold 7 million copies in one day (note: I’ve seen other stats that are less, but whatever, the point is made).  That’s the largest single day sale amount for console games.  A year ago, World of Warcraft hit the 11 million user mark for active users.  World of Warcraft pretty much resembles opium, so what does that say about Farmville?

Facebook is capturing an insane amount of new gamers.  There are people who probably play Farmville, Mafia Wars, and Farkle daily, yet do not consider themselves as gamers.  I don’t know what they see themselves as, but they certainly aren’t non-gamers.  That alone I could blow into a huge topic, but I won’t today.  The point is if a person is using Facebook, they are eventually going to get dragged into gaming, whether they like it or not.  And dammit, that is a gateway drug if I’ve ever seen one.  Oh, and did I mention that Facebook has over 100 million US active users?

This capturing of new gamers will prove interesting to the style of games to come.  One click interfaces that rely on waiting seems to be a very large percentage of these Facebook games.  Mafia Wars basically utilizes this mode of play, through just clicking through an interface and waiting until you can do it again.  Is this style of play a regression of gaming, or just stripping it down close to a game’s core: number crunching.  I mean, Farmville is just time and money management with cute animals.

Then there is the combination of horribly addictive games with social media, such as Bejeweled.  Originally a time wasting single-player game, Bejeweled has become the de-facto competition in my circle of Facebook friends and family.  A major difference here is that time is a pressure cooker and waiting is only for seeing your friend’s new weekly scores.  This is definitely on the immediate gratification side of games, including Farkle (same concept), that Facebook is not really pushing as a form of gaming, but enhancing.

This crosses us over to the games on other platforms that use Facebook as a medium.  Really, Bejeweled can take place anywhere and utilize Facebook in the same way it does while being played on Facebook.  Recently the iPod app of Bejeweled added in Facebook sync for the newly added Blitz mode (for the iPod app).  New games on major consoles utilize this same approach of comparing your gaming ability with your friends as well as sharing the fact that you are playing a game.  The latter part of that statement alone could be a term paper in itself…

Well, I certainly did not intend on writing this much and so broadly.  I would like to revisit this and narrow down the topics within it and present my thoughts better, but I guess that’s what you get when I’ve been tired all week.  So, Facebook is a new gaming platform and if you’re on Facebook, chances are if you’re not already playing one of the games, you’ll eventually become a gamer, whether you realize it or not.

]]> http://clippedpixel.wordpress.com/2009/12/17/facebook-as-a-gaming-platform/feed/ 0 corymcdaniel http://clippedpixel.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/annie-dont-stop/ http://clippedpixel.wordpress.com/2009/12/12/annie-dont-stop/#comments Sat, 12 Dec 2009 05:38:45 +0000 CapnJackson http://clippedpixel.wordpress.com/?p=30 ]]> Annie has really outdone herself in her latest album, Don’t Stop.  Her 80′s influenced pop music from her last album was good, but what was transitioned into her new release has been polished and given more soul, creating an album that really feels full and developed.  I feel as though you can really hear and sense the growth, and it is quite stunning.

Annie’s debut album was pretty glamorous and pop-tastic.  Chewing Gum’s bouncy, punctual, lyrical storytelling is fun, but it still never felt fully developed.  What we have here in Don’t Stop is an album that actually has depth layered with the pop synth love that Annie is good at.  While she revisits her 80′s influence, it is in a beautiful way.  She has certainly done her homework, to say the least.

I guess my addiction really started with an unofficial video on youtube, claiming to be from a photoshoot that turned into a video for Songs Remind Me of You.  Its simple yet effective quick-clip, overlaying style, haunted with Annie’s backup vocals and melodic lyrics draws me in with such a force that I am only left with the ability to watch again.  And everytime I hit the play button, I wonder, am I supposed to have lived through the 80s?  I mean, I love this.

Nah, Annie just perfected her influences, if you will.  Stylish, enveloping, and emotional.  Semi-pop now.  But my first draw was her first song on the album, Hey Annie.  It is quite melodic and enchanting, with again, that fun, poppiness that keeps me entertained and ready to listen to more.  However, you should know that when you continue through the album, it quickly matures into more than just a poppy sound.

Check the album out.  I bet you’ll find a song you like, and you’ll be able to say that you like Annie, no, not that damned red-headed girl from the 40s, that woman that is the 2010′s Madonna.

Now with my NAS external, I just have to have my laptop on and just hit play from the mapped network drive.  It’s much faster which helps fix that video catchup problem, plus I keep my iTunes library there, so I can access it from both my PC and my laptop.  Perfect for when I gotta quick do something with my iTouch.

I haven’t tried it out yet, but I can supposedly access the drive remotely using a web browser.  This will be perfect for when I travel. I can easily change up my songs, access movies and shows, and get folders.  Good for work related stuff too I’m sure.

This thing is pretty sweet, and I realize that I’m coming off as a salesman right now, and I don’t really mean to.  I’m just excited about finally having something as useful as this, and, well you know what, I’m not even going to really say the brand because this isn’t about telling you to go buy this.

because I was able to alleviate my main hard drive on my pc of all my music and extra docs, I was feeling good about upgrading to Windows 7.  Man, 7 is what Vista meant to be in so many ways.  I mean, it’s really just a polished version with a few nice, comfortable extras.  I still am surprised with how many people are using XP, and I’m hoping 7 will bring them to upgrade, because not only is XP old, but it perpetuates the use of old applications, like IE6 and Word 93 or whatever non-2007 version it is XP comes with.

Well, I’m going to go watch Sunny.