That's what my monitor has shown me. Levels of radness that I had no idea were even possible. Untapped potential radness. Radness that, until now, had been unreachable. Well, I've seen the mountain-top, folks. And it is rad.
First off, no dead pixels. Or at least, no dead pixels that I can see. And on a screen with over 2.3 million pixels, I'm not sure I would even notice if one or two were dead.
The first thing I did with it, believe it or not, was surf the web. And guess what: it's too big to surf the web in fullscreen, I've gotta go windowed. Not that that's a bad thing. Hell, I could have two browser windows open side by side with no overlap. That's some hot shit.
Then I popped in some Oblivion and rocked it 1080i style for a bit. Gaming in widescreen is totally not disappointing, I must say. Especially when I can play from across the room with my wireless controller.
I followed that up with a DVD of Forbidden Planet, which I'd never seen. Good flick, and surprisingly well done special effects, especially for 1956. Plus, Leslie Nielson in the type of dramatic part that he used to do all the time until Airplane! and Robby the Robot in his very first role. Robby had the funniest line I've ever heard a robot deliver: "Sorry miss, I was giving myself an oil-job."
I've since played my other X360 games, which all look great, and a handful of other DVDs (movies, TV, porn). This monitor gets two big thumbs up from me. Best thousand bucks I ever spent.
Monday, May 01, 2006
Thursday, April 27, 2006
You say you want a revolution, well you know...
Wii all want to change the world! (with apologies to the Beatles)
Or rather, Nintendo does with it's brilliant marketing team who managed to convince them that "Wii" is a good name for a console. I just read about this, and my first thought was "How the fuck do you even pronounce that?" Is it like "Why" as in "Why the hell is Nintendo changing the name of it's new console from something great like Revolution to something shitty like Wii?" Or is it like "Whee" as in "Look at us, we're Nintendo, we make great games but know exactly fuck-all about marketing hardware, wheeeeeeee!"
According to their website, it's like "We" as in "We like to play games" or some shit. Frankly, Nintendo, I had some high hopes for you this round of console wars, but after this shitty name change, and some of the other decisions you've made recently, I think you're done. Nintendo will go the way of Sega, and personally, that's fine with me. Nintendo's really all about the games anyway, so I don't care if I have to play them on my next-gen Xbox or Playstation, as long as I get to play them. Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!
Or rather, Nintendo does with it's brilliant marketing team who managed to convince them that "Wii" is a good name for a console. I just read about this, and my first thought was "How the fuck do you even pronounce that?" Is it like "Why" as in "Why the hell is Nintendo changing the name of it's new console from something great like Revolution to something shitty like Wii?" Or is it like "Whee" as in "Look at us, we're Nintendo, we make great games but know exactly fuck-all about marketing hardware, wheeeeeeee!"
According to their website, it's like "We" as in "We like to play games" or some shit. Frankly, Nintendo, I had some high hopes for you this round of console wars, but after this shitty name change, and some of the other decisions you've made recently, I think you're done. Nintendo will go the way of Sega, and personally, that's fine with me. Nintendo's really all about the games anyway, so I don't care if I have to play them on my next-gen Xbox or Playstation, as long as I get to play them. Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!
Monday, April 24, 2006
I love new stuff
Remember those speakers I posted about a while ago? And how I couldn't wait to hook up my 360 with them, and now that I have, I'm friggin' loving it? Well, I've been saving up to get a new PC at the end of the year/beginning of next year, and I was already half way there. I had been waffling on whether or not I should get a cinema display to go along with the new PC and of course, the 360 (since I hooked that up to my PC monitor, along with the speakers).
So I was perusing Newegg, just to see what was out there, and I saw this. The first thing I noticed is that it was a good 350 bucks cheaper than the 23" Apple cinema display, which is obviously top of the line and very stylish. But the 100% positive reviews for the HP model blew me away. I knew then I had to have one.
It should arrive on Friday. I'll be sure to let you know how awesome 360 games, PC games, and DVDs look on it. Shit, man, once I get my new PC with a TV tuner card, I'm not even gonna use my TV anymore.
Of course, this means I have to start saving for my new PC all over again, but no biggie. I'm got my Xbox to keep me company this winter.
EDIT: Almost forgot. I rented Fight Night. For all the problems, it's still a lot of fun. It looks great, too. Justin and I were trading off with our created boxers in career mode, until he got to an UnderArmor sponsored title fight that he claimed was fixed. I didn't really believe him until I tried that fight in my career, and I couldn't win either. Bullshit! Maybe the fight was fixed, maybe it's just that fight that the game decides to change the rules so we should have changed our strategies. I doesn't matter what the reason is, after I lost, I turned the Xbox off and said I was done with the game. I haven't picked it back up since, and I probably won't before it goes back to the video store. Bill Harris just wrote a post today about his lack of patience with bullshit like that, and I agree with him. Anytime I stop having fun with a game, I stop playing it. There are too damn many other choices out there to choose to wade through bullshit.
So I was perusing Newegg, just to see what was out there, and I saw this. The first thing I noticed is that it was a good 350 bucks cheaper than the 23" Apple cinema display, which is obviously top of the line and very stylish. But the 100% positive reviews for the HP model blew me away. I knew then I had to have one.
It should arrive on Friday. I'll be sure to let you know how awesome 360 games, PC games, and DVDs look on it. Shit, man, once I get my new PC with a TV tuner card, I'm not even gonna use my TV anymore.
Of course, this means I have to start saving for my new PC all over again, but no biggie. I'm got my Xbox to keep me company this winter.
EDIT: Almost forgot. I rented Fight Night. For all the problems, it's still a lot of fun. It looks great, too. Justin and I were trading off with our created boxers in career mode, until he got to an UnderArmor sponsored title fight that he claimed was fixed. I didn't really believe him until I tried that fight in my career, and I couldn't win either. Bullshit! Maybe the fight was fixed, maybe it's just that fight that the game decides to change the rules so we should have changed our strategies. I doesn't matter what the reason is, after I lost, I turned the Xbox off and said I was done with the game. I haven't picked it back up since, and I probably won't before it goes back to the video store. Bill Harris just wrote a post today about his lack of patience with bullshit like that, and I agree with him. Anytime I stop having fun with a game, I stop playing it. There are too damn many other choices out there to choose to wade through bullshit.
Friday, April 14, 2006
Tomb Raider: Legend
You might notice another icon over there on my gamer card. Ms. Croft and I were just recently formally introduced. Unlike the hoardes of other red-blooded American males, I never found the buxom heroine enticing enough to pick up one of the Tomb Raider games and play it before. But then the 360 came along, with it's downloadable demos, so I figured I'd give the latest Tomb Raider offering a try.
As it turns out, the demo was half of the first level in the game, and damn was it bad-ass. Puzzle-solving, platform-jumping, and blowing people away in style. Plus, the environment was gorgeous.
So I rented the full game from Blockbuster today, and after playing for a few hours and finishing three levels, I think it's safe to say that this game is awesome. Probably not worth a purchase, since it looks like there are only 7 levels, so I should be able to finish it by tomorrow. Then there's a time-trial mode, which might be fun, but other than that, once I'm done with a game, I'm done with it. I'm not going to play back through it to collect all the hidden shit, unless it's something like GTA, where doing the side missions actually enhance the gameplay experience. I'll have to check a walkthrough once I'm done and see if any of the hidden stuff unlocks anything cool, or if it's just concept art and 3D models.
As I said, I won't be buying Tomb Raider: Legend, but it was definitely worth the rental. It really is a great game, it just doesn't seem like there's enough of it. I'll certainly be waiting for the next entry into the franchise.
As it turns out, the demo was half of the first level in the game, and damn was it bad-ass. Puzzle-solving, platform-jumping, and blowing people away in style. Plus, the environment was gorgeous.
So I rented the full game from Blockbuster today, and after playing for a few hours and finishing three levels, I think it's safe to say that this game is awesome. Probably not worth a purchase, since it looks like there are only 7 levels, so I should be able to finish it by tomorrow. Then there's a time-trial mode, which might be fun, but other than that, once I'm done with a game, I'm done with it. I'm not going to play back through it to collect all the hidden shit, unless it's something like GTA, where doing the side missions actually enhance the gameplay experience. I'll have to check a walkthrough once I'm done and see if any of the hidden stuff unlocks anything cool, or if it's just concept art and 3D models.
As I said, I won't be buying Tomb Raider: Legend, but it was definitely worth the rental. It really is a great game, it just doesn't seem like there's enough of it. I'll certainly be waiting for the next entry into the franchise.
Two More Things
I discovered this a few days ago, and it's hi-larious. Let's Ask a Ninja!
And Virtual Firefly is back with the start of Season 2. Awesomeness all around!
On a personal note, I lost my voice today. This is the first time this has ever happened to me, and I'll be damned if it isn't one of the strangest things I've ever experienced. I'd like to say something, but my vocal cords won't allow it. Whee!
And Virtual Firefly is back with the start of Season 2. Awesomeness all around!
On a personal note, I lost my voice today. This is the first time this has ever happened to me, and I'll be damned if it isn't one of the strangest things I've ever experienced. I'd like to say something, but my vocal cords won't allow it. Whee!
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Various Things
It's been awhile since I've made a post, and a couple of things have happened worth blogging about.
First, you may notice I put up my Xbox Live Gamer Card over there. It's pretty self-explanatory, except for the game icons. The "pi" looking symbol there is for Oblivion, which I've already talked about. Not a bad RPG, and worth the money, I'd say.
The "PGR" is for Project Gotham Racing 3, which I didn't think about buying until I noticed it was on sale for 38 bucks. I enjoyed PGR 2, so I decided to pick it up. Not dissappointing. The single player tournaments are a blink and you'll miss them kind of deal, but I think the real draw of the game is the online racing. When you go online, you're given a "TrueSkill" rating that is based on how many races you've had, how many wins you have, and how those wins stack up against the TrueSkill of your opponents. Beat someone with a higher rating, your rating rises quickly. Beat someone of the same or lesser rating, your rating goes up just a little. So far, I've participated in about 10 online races, and have either 3 or 4 overall wins (first-place finishes). I'm number 7 hundred something in Rank 96, which means of all the PGR3 players online, I'm behind the 96,700th guy, but ahead of the 96,800th guy. So I've got some work to do.
The skull icon is for Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter. Of all the games, I've logged the least time with this one, but man is it awesome. The single player campaign is virtually seamless. Even though there are specific missions, the game leads you through them one after the other, so unless something changes later on, the whole campaign takes place in one day. If I had no self control, I could have easily kept on playing from when I first booted it up until I finished it. I haven't checked it out online yet, but I bet that's sweet, too.
Oh, and if anyone reading this has a 360 and PGR3 or GRAW, hit me with a friend request, cause I don't have any yet. :sad panda:
It was my birthday last Wednesday, so that was cool, but I had to work, and I'm still recovering from the flu I caught last weekend, so that sucks ass.
I heard talk (and that's all it is for another three weeks, talk) today that the Raiders could end up in a position to take Vince Young with the number 7 pick, or they could move up to take him. If that happens, and I surely hope it does, the Raiders are going to be a serious contender next year.
Finished watching the first season of Justice League on DVD. What a great show. I can't wait for the second season set, which is coming out later this year, I think. There's also going to be Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain, The Tick, and Darkwing Duck this year. Hot shit!
Finally, I spotted a link to this story on Bill's blog. Wow.
First, you may notice I put up my Xbox Live Gamer Card over there. It's pretty self-explanatory, except for the game icons. The "pi" looking symbol there is for Oblivion, which I've already talked about. Not a bad RPG, and worth the money, I'd say.
The "PGR" is for Project Gotham Racing 3, which I didn't think about buying until I noticed it was on sale for 38 bucks. I enjoyed PGR 2, so I decided to pick it up. Not dissappointing. The single player tournaments are a blink and you'll miss them kind of deal, but I think the real draw of the game is the online racing. When you go online, you're given a "TrueSkill" rating that is based on how many races you've had, how many wins you have, and how those wins stack up against the TrueSkill of your opponents. Beat someone with a higher rating, your rating rises quickly. Beat someone of the same or lesser rating, your rating goes up just a little. So far, I've participated in about 10 online races, and have either 3 or 4 overall wins (first-place finishes). I'm number 7 hundred something in Rank 96, which means of all the PGR3 players online, I'm behind the 96,700th guy, but ahead of the 96,800th guy. So I've got some work to do.
The skull icon is for Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter. Of all the games, I've logged the least time with this one, but man is it awesome. The single player campaign is virtually seamless. Even though there are specific missions, the game leads you through them one after the other, so unless something changes later on, the whole campaign takes place in one day. If I had no self control, I could have easily kept on playing from when I first booted it up until I finished it. I haven't checked it out online yet, but I bet that's sweet, too.
Oh, and if anyone reading this has a 360 and PGR3 or GRAW, hit me with a friend request, cause I don't have any yet. :sad panda:
It was my birthday last Wednesday, so that was cool, but I had to work, and I'm still recovering from the flu I caught last weekend, so that sucks ass.
I heard talk (and that's all it is for another three weeks, talk) today that the Raiders could end up in a position to take Vince Young with the number 7 pick, or they could move up to take him. If that happens, and I surely hope it does, the Raiders are going to be a serious contender next year.
Finished watching the first season of Justice League on DVD. What a great show. I can't wait for the second season set, which is coming out later this year, I think. There's also going to be Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain, The Tick, and Darkwing Duck this year. Hot shit!
Finally, I spotted a link to this story on Bill's blog. Wow.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Sweet
Guess what arrived today? My X360, that's what. It was waiting for me when I got off work, so I set that badboy up and got to playing some Oblivion (that had been sitting on my shelf for 2 weeks, waiting to be played). It's so much more fun playing Oblivion with no lag due to an aging video card.
Ghost Recon hasn't arrived yet, in fact, it just shipped today. I can't wait for that, though, especially online. I activated my free one month Xbox Live Gold subscription today, so once I get GR, it's time to own people online in the face. I also need to pick up a copy of Fight Night Round 3, so Justin and I can beat the shit out of each other in stunning HD. That should be fun.
Oh, and the wireless controller? Kick ass. I thought the S controller was one of the best controller designs ever, but the 360 controller has it beat. It's got the same design as far as the analog sticks, D-pad, and four buttons go, but the back and start buttons are moved up to the center (where any old school gamer know they should be. Remember Select and Start on the old NES pad? Of course you do), and the black and white buttons have been eliminated. Instead, there are two additional shoulder buttons (called "bumpers") in addition to the standard triggers. The size is perfect, it fits nicely in my hands, and it isn't too heavy or too light (even with two AA batteries). Kudos, Microsoft.
Ghost Recon hasn't arrived yet, in fact, it just shipped today. I can't wait for that, though, especially online. I activated my free one month Xbox Live Gold subscription today, so once I get GR, it's time to own people online in the face. I also need to pick up a copy of Fight Night Round 3, so Justin and I can beat the shit out of each other in stunning HD. That should be fun.
Oh, and the wireless controller? Kick ass. I thought the S controller was one of the best controller designs ever, but the 360 controller has it beat. It's got the same design as far as the analog sticks, D-pad, and four buttons go, but the back and start buttons are moved up to the center (where any old school gamer know they should be. Remember Select and Start on the old NES pad? Of course you do), and the black and white buttons have been eliminated. Instead, there are two additional shoulder buttons (called "bumpers") in addition to the standard triggers. The size is perfect, it fits nicely in my hands, and it isn't too heavy or too light (even with two AA batteries). Kudos, Microsoft.
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
This just in: Barry Bonds is a douchebag
Ok, so maybe this news isn't exactly hot off the presses, but Barry Bonds finally decided to sue the authors of Game of Shadows. That's right, lay the legal smackdown with that big-ass libel suit, Barry.
Oh wait, he's not suing for libel. He's suing because he claims the authors "illegally obtained grand jury testimony."
In other words, Barry's not denying shit. Instead, he's trying to make the book go away on a technicality. Way to prove your innocence, Barry.
And now Bud Selig has promised a full investigation into Bonds and others. I call bullshit on that, for the reasons I stated in my earlier post about this steroid fiasco. The only thing Bud would even consider doing is putting asterisks next to everyone's records during the "Steroid Era" but letting the records stand. And that, frankly, is insulting. It's insulting to the memories of baseball greats like Roger Maris and Babe Ruth, and a slap in the face to Willie Mays, and the greatest slugger of all time, Hammerin' Hank Aaron. As a fan, scratch that, former fan, of baseball, it fucking disgusts me.
Oh wait, he's not suing for libel. He's suing because he claims the authors "illegally obtained grand jury testimony."
In other words, Barry's not denying shit. Instead, he's trying to make the book go away on a technicality. Way to prove your innocence, Barry.
And now Bud Selig has promised a full investigation into Bonds and others. I call bullshit on that, for the reasons I stated in my earlier post about this steroid fiasco. The only thing Bud would even consider doing is putting asterisks next to everyone's records during the "Steroid Era" but letting the records stand. And that, frankly, is insulting. It's insulting to the memories of baseball greats like Roger Maris and Babe Ruth, and a slap in the face to Willie Mays, and the greatest slugger of all time, Hammerin' Hank Aaron. As a fan, scratch that, former fan, of baseball, it fucking disgusts me.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
More Oblivion Impressions
Played some more Oblivion over the weekend, and here's what I've discovered, both good and bad.
The good:
The world is huge. I'm really not the explorer type, as I'd rather be doing something than wandering around, but when I do get the chance to wander around, it's very cool. The developers could have taken the easy way out and populated the world with flat terrain, boring landmarks, and a few bits of foliage reused again and again. But they didn't. The terrain is incredibly varied from area to area, there are different types of trees and plants (the latter of which you can harvest and create all sorts of different potions with), and wild deer, boar, and other animals. The architecture inside cities is just amazing, too. The capital is the most spectacular, because it's obviously the richest city, but there are wonders to marvel at in other cities, too.
Quests are fun. Especially the guild quests. I'm a member of both the thieves guild and the assassin's guild, and both have provided me with excellent opportunities to wreak havoc. Stealing stuff? Killing people? And getting away with it? Brilliant.
It's an old school RPG. Epic. Spell-slinging and sword-slashing. Save the kingdom, all that good stuff.
The bad:
When you play within the game's rules, you can have a lot of fun. But those rules don't necessarily make sense. For example, I get a mission from the thieves guild to steal some wizard's staff. I do the deed, and realize that's one damn expensive staff. The guild just wanted it stolen to teach the guards a lesson, though, so I figure they don't need it, I'll just fence it and walk away with the cash. But wait: "You cannot remove quest items from your inventory." Who says? The game? I'm not playing a game, my name is Victor Jarvis, and I'm a no-good, filthy thief who looks out for number one. If I can steal it, I should be able to sell it, period.
The leveling system sucks ass. I don't even know why they have a level system, really. It's skill-based, levels are just unnecessarily tacked on. Whenever your skills increase so many times, you gain a level. And rather than have the NPCs and enemies in the game have a set level, they scale to you. The trouble with that is that if you have a skill you use a lot, but doesn't necessarily make you a better fighter (like sneaking), you'll gain levels too quickly and get your ass kicked in most fights. There's an arena in the capital city where you can fight, but due to the level scaling, I'm stuck at the second tier of fighters. I'm level 4, but my combat skills are still around level 1, and I'm fighting combatants who are level 3, 4 or higher with combat skills to match. Can't be done.
Psychic guards. This is part of the "radiant AI" that was so hyped, but really turned out to be bullshit. The guards are so sensitive as to know if you attack or kill someone inside their own house, with no one else around. Apparently, the mark "calls out" and the guards hear it from more than 100 feet away, and come running to arrest you. And god help you if you have stolen property on your person, because the guards always know what you've stolen, whether anyone saw you take it or not. Merchants can somehow sense hot property, too, and they won't buy it. You can only sell stolen goods to a fence, if you're a member of the thieves guild. How do the merchants and guards know what's stolen and what isn't? How the hell should I know? Maybe everyone in Oblivion writes their full name, date of birth, and address on every single piece of their property in indelible ink. Or maybe the developers decided radiant AI was too hard to code, and just made it cheating AI.
So there you have it. Is Oblivion fun? Definitely. Is it a good game? Yes. Does it belong on my Top 10 RPGs list? Possibly. Is it one of the best games of all time? I don't think so.
From what I've seen, the modding community is already hard at work on fixing shit that's severely broken, like the psychic guards and merchants, and the leveling system. And that's great. I just wish Bethesda had fixed that shit before they released the game.
The good:
The world is huge. I'm really not the explorer type, as I'd rather be doing something than wandering around, but when I do get the chance to wander around, it's very cool. The developers could have taken the easy way out and populated the world with flat terrain, boring landmarks, and a few bits of foliage reused again and again. But they didn't. The terrain is incredibly varied from area to area, there are different types of trees and plants (the latter of which you can harvest and create all sorts of different potions with), and wild deer, boar, and other animals. The architecture inside cities is just amazing, too. The capital is the most spectacular, because it's obviously the richest city, but there are wonders to marvel at in other cities, too.
Quests are fun. Especially the guild quests. I'm a member of both the thieves guild and the assassin's guild, and both have provided me with excellent opportunities to wreak havoc. Stealing stuff? Killing people? And getting away with it? Brilliant.
It's an old school RPG. Epic. Spell-slinging and sword-slashing. Save the kingdom, all that good stuff.
The bad:
When you play within the game's rules, you can have a lot of fun. But those rules don't necessarily make sense. For example, I get a mission from the thieves guild to steal some wizard's staff. I do the deed, and realize that's one damn expensive staff. The guild just wanted it stolen to teach the guards a lesson, though, so I figure they don't need it, I'll just fence it and walk away with the cash. But wait: "You cannot remove quest items from your inventory." Who says? The game? I'm not playing a game, my name is Victor Jarvis, and I'm a no-good, filthy thief who looks out for number one. If I can steal it, I should be able to sell it, period.
The leveling system sucks ass. I don't even know why they have a level system, really. It's skill-based, levels are just unnecessarily tacked on. Whenever your skills increase so many times, you gain a level. And rather than have the NPCs and enemies in the game have a set level, they scale to you. The trouble with that is that if you have a skill you use a lot, but doesn't necessarily make you a better fighter (like sneaking), you'll gain levels too quickly and get your ass kicked in most fights. There's an arena in the capital city where you can fight, but due to the level scaling, I'm stuck at the second tier of fighters. I'm level 4, but my combat skills are still around level 1, and I'm fighting combatants who are level 3, 4 or higher with combat skills to match. Can't be done.
Psychic guards. This is part of the "radiant AI" that was so hyped, but really turned out to be bullshit. The guards are so sensitive as to know if you attack or kill someone inside their own house, with no one else around. Apparently, the mark "calls out" and the guards hear it from more than 100 feet away, and come running to arrest you. And god help you if you have stolen property on your person, because the guards always know what you've stolen, whether anyone saw you take it or not. Merchants can somehow sense hot property, too, and they won't buy it. You can only sell stolen goods to a fence, if you're a member of the thieves guild. How do the merchants and guards know what's stolen and what isn't? How the hell should I know? Maybe everyone in Oblivion writes their full name, date of birth, and address on every single piece of their property in indelible ink. Or maybe the developers decided radiant AI was too hard to code, and just made it cheating AI.
So there you have it. Is Oblivion fun? Definitely. Is it a good game? Yes. Does it belong on my Top 10 RPGs list? Possibly. Is it one of the best games of all time? I don't think so.
From what I've seen, the modding community is already hard at work on fixing shit that's severely broken, like the psychic guards and merchants, and the leveling system. And that's great. I just wish Bethesda had fixed that shit before they released the game.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Geek Heaven
Oh my god, I might go into a coma with so much good stuff today.
First, DVDs. South Park Season 7, Batman Beyond Season 1, Justice League Season 1, and Mind of Mencia Season 1. I'm not that into South Park anymore, but a lot of people are, so that's just icing. I picked up JLA and Mind of Mencia, thought seriously about Batman Beyond, but decided against it for now. I'm still only partway through the four sets of Batman: TAS I've got.
Second, games. Or rather, The game. The game that fanboys have been waiting for, since, oh, since the last one came out. I'm talking about Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion for X360 and PC. I preordered the X360 version last week, but since I won't have an X360 to play it on until at least April 7, I'm unable to give you any info about that.
But, since Justin was so kind enough to drop by with a newly purchased copy of Oblivion for the PC, I got to check it out. And hot damn. The intro dungeon/sewer level was not that impressive, just rats and goblins and annoying NPC guards. It's basically the tutorial for how to play the game, and allows you to make decisions about what you want your character to be. Once I stepped outside, though, holy shit.
This is one of only a handful of games where you can look out at the world, and actually see the world. See that mountain over there? It's not just background, you can climb it. Over to your right, see those guard towers? They're in a city that you can go to, and sneak up into the towers and look out of them. Off the edge of that cliff, were you to survive the fall (or just carefully pick your way down), you could walk around in the valley below.
Having played for about 4 hours, and screwing around for 2 and a half of them (playing hunter with my bow on some deer, breaking into people's homes, taking their expensive wine and drinking their beer, knocking stuff off of important NPC's tables and shelves, stealing a horse and riding it to death, and killing innocent people when no one's looking), I haven't seen much of the actual game, and I'm still first level.
I'll have more on Oblivion when I get to play it again. For now, I think it's time to kick back and watch some Justice League.
First, DVDs. South Park Season 7, Batman Beyond Season 1, Justice League Season 1, and Mind of Mencia Season 1. I'm not that into South Park anymore, but a lot of people are, so that's just icing. I picked up JLA and Mind of Mencia, thought seriously about Batman Beyond, but decided against it for now. I'm still only partway through the four sets of Batman: TAS I've got.
Second, games. Or rather, The game. The game that fanboys have been waiting for, since, oh, since the last one came out. I'm talking about Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion for X360 and PC. I preordered the X360 version last week, but since I won't have an X360 to play it on until at least April 7, I'm unable to give you any info about that.
But, since Justin was so kind enough to drop by with a newly purchased copy of Oblivion for the PC, I got to check it out. And hot damn. The intro dungeon/sewer level was not that impressive, just rats and goblins and annoying NPC guards. It's basically the tutorial for how to play the game, and allows you to make decisions about what you want your character to be. Once I stepped outside, though, holy shit.
This is one of only a handful of games where you can look out at the world, and actually see the world. See that mountain over there? It's not just background, you can climb it. Over to your right, see those guard towers? They're in a city that you can go to, and sneak up into the towers and look out of them. Off the edge of that cliff, were you to survive the fall (or just carefully pick your way down), you could walk around in the valley below.
Having played for about 4 hours, and screwing around for 2 and a half of them (playing hunter with my bow on some deer, breaking into people's homes, taking their expensive wine and drinking their beer, knocking stuff off of important NPC's tables and shelves, stealing a horse and riding it to death, and killing innocent people when no one's looking), I haven't seen much of the actual game, and I'm still first level.
I'll have more on Oblivion when I get to play it again. For now, I think it's time to kick back and watch some Justice League.
Saturday, March 18, 2006
Wish I'd known about this 3 weeks ago
After all the bullshit looking for an Xbox I talked about in the last post, I decided to check in with the Xbox 360 tracker one more time. There's a whole shitload of online stores there, and most of them are out of stock at any given point in time. But I thought perhaps one of them might be taking orders, and then shipping them as they got them in.
And whaddya know? CompUSA was accepting orders, for bundles. But this was no shitty bundle, no, you can customize your bundle. First, you pick the base console. Well, no choice there, Premium all the way. Then, you choose a second controller. Again, no real choice there, gotta go with wireless. Then, you choose a game. I thought this was going to be the dealbreaker. But no, they list games other than the shitty launch titles. Specifically, they list Ghost Recon and Fight Night Round 3. So I chose Ghost Recon, because everyone's raving about it, and I figure I can pick up Fight Night used at Blockbuster in a few weeks. They suggest you take a Live accessory, too, and I almost threw in the 12 month Gold card, but that can wait. Finally, you choose an accessory. Since the Premium system comes complete with a wireless controller and play and charge kit, and I had already chosen a second wireless controller, I threw in a second play and charge kit.
I filled out my info, and got to the subtotal page. Free shipping, that's a plus. And it says "Your order will ship no later than Friday, April 7." Well hot shit! So not only do I get me a Premium system, complete with all the accessories I wanted and a quality game, but I get it only a week later than EBGameStopWare Etc. was going to get them, and I don't even have to put any money down or pay for shipping. Fucking A. I love the internet.
And whaddya know? CompUSA was accepting orders, for bundles. But this was no shitty bundle, no, you can customize your bundle. First, you pick the base console. Well, no choice there, Premium all the way. Then, you choose a second controller. Again, no real choice there, gotta go with wireless. Then, you choose a game. I thought this was going to be the dealbreaker. But no, they list games other than the shitty launch titles. Specifically, they list Ghost Recon and Fight Night Round 3. So I chose Ghost Recon, because everyone's raving about it, and I figure I can pick up Fight Night used at Blockbuster in a few weeks. They suggest you take a Live accessory, too, and I almost threw in the 12 month Gold card, but that can wait. Finally, you choose an accessory. Since the Premium system comes complete with a wireless controller and play and charge kit, and I had already chosen a second wireless controller, I threw in a second play and charge kit.
I filled out my info, and got to the subtotal page. Free shipping, that's a plus. And it says "Your order will ship no later than Friday, April 7." Well hot shit! So not only do I get me a Premium system, complete with all the accessories I wanted and a quality game, but I get it only a week later than EBGameStopWare Etc. was going to get them, and I don't even have to put any money down or pay for shipping. Fucking A. I love the internet.
Monday, March 13, 2006
Xbox Update
So I went to the bank today, cause I got paid on Friday, and with my fat wad of cash, went happily off to Gamestop to reserve my Xbox for April 1.
Just one problem.
"We're not taking reservations anymore, it was just a small shipment."
Ok, we'll try Software Etc.
Same story.
What the fuck? Here I am, with my $400 and some dollars in hand (gotta figure for tax), ready to buy Microsoft's fucking product, and nowhere to spend it. They've got retailers online jacking the shit out of the price (sure, I can get a 360 Premium system from a reputable retailer...for $600), bundling it with shitty games no one wants, and resellers on eBay charging premiums of $100 or more, and ripping off buyers even more with inflated shipping prices. Plus, on eBay, you have to use Paypal, which sucks fat cock. I cancelled my Paypal account because I hate those Paypal fuckers.
So what are you going to do about folks like me, Microsoft? I want your product, and you have no way to get it to me. I doubt I'm alone in this. I refuse to believe there are that many people out there willing to pay outrageous premiums or settle for a Core system when the only real choice is Premium. More importantly, how the hell are the resellers on eBay getting their hands on systems? Who's fucking cock do I have to suck to get a goddamn Xbox?
You know what? Fuck it. Fuck the eBay gougers, fuck the online bundle-bastards, fuck the reserve list cock-smokers, and fuck the 360. I'm done. When there's a shitload of consoles on every single electronics store shelf across the country, and I don't have to play "find the X360" online or over the phone, then I might pick one up. Until then, I've got better things to spend my hard earned gaming dollars on. Shit I can actually see and buy today, not this smoke and mirror bullshit.
Just one problem.
"We're not taking reservations anymore, it was just a small shipment."
Ok, we'll try Software Etc.
Same story.
What the fuck? Here I am, with my $400 and some dollars in hand (gotta figure for tax), ready to buy Microsoft's fucking product, and nowhere to spend it. They've got retailers online jacking the shit out of the price (sure, I can get a 360 Premium system from a reputable retailer...for $600), bundling it with shitty games no one wants, and resellers on eBay charging premiums of $100 or more, and ripping off buyers even more with inflated shipping prices. Plus, on eBay, you have to use Paypal, which sucks fat cock. I cancelled my Paypal account because I hate those Paypal fuckers.
So what are you going to do about folks like me, Microsoft? I want your product, and you have no way to get it to me. I doubt I'm alone in this. I refuse to believe there are that many people out there willing to pay outrageous premiums or settle for a Core system when the only real choice is Premium. More importantly, how the hell are the resellers on eBay getting their hands on systems? Who's fucking cock do I have to suck to get a goddamn Xbox?
You know what? Fuck it. Fuck the eBay gougers, fuck the online bundle-bastards, fuck the reserve list cock-smokers, and fuck the 360. I'm done. When there's a shitload of consoles on every single electronics store shelf across the country, and I don't have to play "find the X360" online or over the phone, then I might pick one up. Until then, I've got better things to spend my hard earned gaming dollars on. Shit I can actually see and buy today, not this smoke and mirror bullshit.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
What's wrong with this picture?
Take a visit to this site. Notice anything out of the ordinary? I sure as hell do.
It's not that only a handful of stores have X360s in stock. That's actually a big jump from only 2 months ago, when none of the stores ever had X360s in stock.
It's that all the stock is bundles, and mostly core systems. Look, the core system is useless. I understand that Microsoft wanted to hit the $300 price point, that was important. A lot of parents are buying consoles for their children, and they don't bother to look at the real differences between the Core and the Premium system, they just know the Core is more affordable, so they get that one. It's a brilliant marketing move. But why is Microsoft shipping more Cores than Premium systems?
Out of 9 systems in stock at that site as of this writing, only 4 of them are premium systems. Looking at the history at the bottom of the page, 15 systems are listed, only 5 are premium.
Hasn't the demand for Core systems been satisfied? Or at least lessened to the point where you would obviously be satisfying more customers if you shipped a few more Premium systems?
Case in point, I called all of my local area stores this morning (even the ones in surrounding cities), and after a half-hour of phone calls, only one store had exactly one X360 in stock. And it was a Core.
Nobody wants the fucking Core, Microsoft! Your quality apps are finally starting to hit, and you're still shipping bullshit! And why are you allowing these stores to force customers into buying bundles with shitty launch title games? You'd move a lot more systems if the stores were actually selling systems, and not fucking overpriced bundles with shit people don't want, and don't need. It's a good damn thing the PS3 isn't hitting this Spring, because you're making a fucking mess of the X360 launch, Microsoft.
On the bright side, my local Gamestop/EB Games/Software Etc. monopoly store is taking reservations for an April 1 shipment of Premium systems. I'm going to reserve me an X360, and have my copy of Oblivion ready and waiting (March 21, glee).
It's not that only a handful of stores have X360s in stock. That's actually a big jump from only 2 months ago, when none of the stores ever had X360s in stock.
It's that all the stock is bundles, and mostly core systems. Look, the core system is useless. I understand that Microsoft wanted to hit the $300 price point, that was important. A lot of parents are buying consoles for their children, and they don't bother to look at the real differences between the Core and the Premium system, they just know the Core is more affordable, so they get that one. It's a brilliant marketing move. But why is Microsoft shipping more Cores than Premium systems?
Out of 9 systems in stock at that site as of this writing, only 4 of them are premium systems. Looking at the history at the bottom of the page, 15 systems are listed, only 5 are premium.
Hasn't the demand for Core systems been satisfied? Or at least lessened to the point where you would obviously be satisfying more customers if you shipped a few more Premium systems?
Case in point, I called all of my local area stores this morning (even the ones in surrounding cities), and after a half-hour of phone calls, only one store had exactly one X360 in stock. And it was a Core.
Nobody wants the fucking Core, Microsoft! Your quality apps are finally starting to hit, and you're still shipping bullshit! And why are you allowing these stores to force customers into buying bundles with shitty launch title games? You'd move a lot more systems if the stores were actually selling systems, and not fucking overpriced bundles with shit people don't want, and don't need. It's a good damn thing the PS3 isn't hitting this Spring, because you're making a fucking mess of the X360 launch, Microsoft.
On the bright side, my local Gamestop/EB Games/Software Etc. monopoly store is taking reservations for an April 1 shipment of Premium systems. I'm going to reserve me an X360, and have my copy of Oblivion ready and waiting (March 21, glee).
Game of Shadows
If you follow sports at all (or even if you don't, if you happened to glance at ESPN, or Yahoo Sports, or the front page of the newspaper, or really any media outlet) you'd know that a book called "Game of Shadows" was recently announced that has some pretty damning allegations about Barry Bonds' steroid use. Here's what Barry had to say.
"I won't even look at it. For what? There's no need to. Everything they say in it is true."
Ok, so I added that last sentence. But come on, Barry. If it isn't true, wouldn't you at least want to look at it? Wouldn't you want to know what they said before leveling a huge libel suit at them? Wouldn't you want to be able to pick apart every allegation in detail, going through the list and denying each charge under media scrutiny? We know you don't like the media, but you've gotta protect yourself from this bullshit, right?
Unless every word of it is true. Then you can't deny it, because you'd be a liar. You can't sue, because you'd lose. You can't do anything but ignore it with a flippant remark as if it didn't exist, and refuse further comment. You can't do anything because you're already ruined in the court of public opinion. You cheated, Barry. And cheaters don't deserve their own reality show. They don't deserve to play Major League Baseball. They don't deserve to be the all-time season home run leader. They don't deserve to be #3 on the all-time career home runs list. And they sure as hell don't deserve to be considered for the Hall of Fame.
Roger Maris' single season home run record should be reinstated (because McGwire and Sosa cheated, too). Bonds should be removed from the all-time career home run list (as should McGwire, Sosa, and Rafael Palmeiro). And Bonds should not only be benched for the rest of his career, he should be banned from entry into the Hall of Fame forever. That's what the MLB Commissioner should do.
But he won't. No, Bud Selig cares too much about the future of baseball (that is, the financial future of baseball) to lay down such a judgement. Hell, the home run race between McGwire and Sosa, and then Bonds' run brought the people back to the parks. They forgot about that silly strike because the players were hitting the long ball! Who gives a shit if they cheated?
I give a shit. Bonds used to be my favorite player; I'd squeal with glee whenever he bashed another one out of the park. No more. Bonds? The Giants? Baseball? Who gives a shit.
"I won't even look at it. For what? There's no need to. Everything they say in it is true."
Ok, so I added that last sentence. But come on, Barry. If it isn't true, wouldn't you at least want to look at it? Wouldn't you want to know what they said before leveling a huge libel suit at them? Wouldn't you want to be able to pick apart every allegation in detail, going through the list and denying each charge under media scrutiny? We know you don't like the media, but you've gotta protect yourself from this bullshit, right?
Unless every word of it is true. Then you can't deny it, because you'd be a liar. You can't sue, because you'd lose. You can't do anything but ignore it with a flippant remark as if it didn't exist, and refuse further comment. You can't do anything because you're already ruined in the court of public opinion. You cheated, Barry. And cheaters don't deserve their own reality show. They don't deserve to play Major League Baseball. They don't deserve to be the all-time season home run leader. They don't deserve to be #3 on the all-time career home runs list. And they sure as hell don't deserve to be considered for the Hall of Fame.
Roger Maris' single season home run record should be reinstated (because McGwire and Sosa cheated, too). Bonds should be removed from the all-time career home run list (as should McGwire, Sosa, and Rafael Palmeiro). And Bonds should not only be benched for the rest of his career, he should be banned from entry into the Hall of Fame forever. That's what the MLB Commissioner should do.
But he won't. No, Bud Selig cares too much about the future of baseball (that is, the financial future of baseball) to lay down such a judgement. Hell, the home run race between McGwire and Sosa, and then Bonds' run brought the people back to the parks. They forgot about that silly strike because the players were hitting the long ball! Who gives a shit if they cheated?
I give a shit. Bonds used to be my favorite player; I'd squeal with glee whenever he bashed another one out of the park. No more. Bonds? The Giants? Baseball? Who gives a shit.
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Geek Shelves
Inspired by a thread on SDN, I decided to bust out my digicam and snap some pics of my geek shelves. I couldn't get closeups that showed the full shelf, so I did some quick editing/combining in Photoshop. You can click on each pic for the full size version.
This is the main shelf on the wall above my computer desk. Here's a rundown from left to right. Top shelf: cheesy sword bookend, Die Hard Trilogy, The Last Boyscout, Striking Distance, Last Man Standing, The Fifth Element, The Sixth Sense, The Whole Nine Yards, Pulp Fiction, Clerks and Clerks X, Mallrats and Mallrats 10th Anniversary, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Drawing Flies, A Better Place, Stealing Harvard, Kissing a Fool, A Guy Thing, Batman Begins, Spider-Man 1 and 2, The Incredibles, X-Men 1 and 2, The Hulk, Daredevil, Hellboy, Punisher, The Matrix, Showgirls, Gia, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, Happy Gilmore, Spaceballs, and my A.A. Stagg High Delta Kings commemorative stein, Class of 2000.
Middle shelf: tassel from University of the Pacific, Class of 2004, Clerks/Chasing Amy - Two Screenplays by Kevin Smith, Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 1-7, Angel Season 1-5, Playboy Playmate DVD Calendar Collection - The 90's, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Vol. 1 and 2, South Park Bigger, Longer, and Uncut, South Park Season 1-3, Family Guy Vol. 1 and 2, Greg the Bunny, Reno 911! Season 1, and Spike, Mike, Slackers and Dykes by John Pierson.
Bottom shelf: big binder filled with PC games, little binders filled with porn, PC games Space Rangers 2 (I wrote Space Empires 2 the first time, hehe) and Battlefield 2, backup copies of Firefly (ho man, if I didn't have these I'd go crazy, tell you why later), Rambo Collector's Pack, Chappelle's Show Season 1 and 2, Starsky and Hutch, The Big Lebowski, The Terminator, T2, Terminator 3, Ronin, A Fistful of Dollars, Dirty Harry, The Wild Bunch, and El Mariachi/Desperado Collector's Box.
Then we have the media shelf I got recently because my wall shelves were overflowing. The shelves are staggered, but I'll treat each set of shelves as one continuous shelf. Top shelf: Lego Star Destroyer, Lego Millenium Falcon, Lego Y-wing, PS2 games Onimusha, SSX, Maximo, Metal Gear Solid 2, Devil May Cry, Midnight Club, Gran Turismo 3, Kengo Master of Bushido, Grand Theft Auto 3, GTA Vice City, GTA San Andreas, WWE Smackdown Just Bring It, Smackdown Shut Your Mouth, and Smackdown Here Comes the Pain.
Second shelf: PS2 games Mark of Kri, Jak and Daxter, Jak II, Jak 3, Kingdom Hearts, and Guitar Hero, Xbox games Halo, MGS2 Substance, Dead to Rights, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb, Max Payne, Max Payne 2, Hitman 2, Manhunt, Sega GT 2002/Jet Set Radio Future, Blitz the League, and Crimson Skies, Gamecube games Resident Evil, WWE Wrestlemania X8, Madden 2002, Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes, Star Fox Adventures, Pikmin, Super Smash Bros Melee, Metroid Prime, Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, and Legend of Zelda Wind Waker.
Third shelf: Batman the Animated Series Vol 1-4, Superman the Animated Series Vol 1 and 2, Teen Titans Season 1, bootlegged Spider-Man the Animated Series Complete, bootlegged The Tick Complete Animated Series, bootlegged X-Men Complete Animated Series, Spawn the Ultimate Collection, Gargoyles Season 1, Star Wars Clone Wars Vol. 1 and 2, Star Wars Episode 1-3, shitty bootleg Star Wars Episode 4-6, and high-quality bootleg Star Wars Episode 4-6 in white sleeves.
Fourth shelf: Harry Potter 1-3, Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Escape from New York, Pitch Black, Serenity (joy!), War of the Worlds (1953 version), Heavy Metal/Heavy Metal 2000 Box set, space for my Firefly Complete Series Box (currently on loan to my sister, who is taking for fucking ever to watch it), deodorant, case for my bling, and my alarm clock.
You can see a little bit of what's on the fifth shelf in this pic, but it's clearer in the next one.
Fifth shelf: Lego AT-AT, Lego Troop Carrier or some shit from Episode 3, Lego Droid Carrier or some shit from Episode 1, The Light Fantastic, Equal Rites, Mort, Sourcery, Reaper Man, Small Gods, Lords and Ladies, Men at Arms, Soul Music, and Feet of Clay all by Terry Pratchett.
Sixth shelf: Harry Potter 1-5 by J.K. Rowling, Irrational Exuberance by Robert J. Schiller, I, Robot by Isaac Asimov, Interesting Times, Maskerade, and Hogfather all by Terry Pratchett, and the Lord of the Rings Collection by J.R.R. Tolkien.
Seventh shelf: V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd, Fray by Joss Whedon, Tales of the Slayers and Tales of the Vampires by Joss Whedon et al, Seven Seasons of Buffy and Five Seasons of Angel edited by Glenn Yeffeth, Finding Serenity edited by Jane Espenson, The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, a spot for The Colour of Magic (which I'm currently re-reading), Wyrd Sisters, and Moving Pictures all by Terry Pratchett, The Sin City Collection 1-7 2nd Edition by Frank Miller, Jingo, The Last Continent, and Carpe Jugulum all by Terry Pratchett.
There you have it. I've got a drawer with porn in it, too, but that's not so much geeky as it is disconcerting to Christians, fundies, and repressed people everywhere.
This is the main shelf on the wall above my computer desk. Here's a rundown from left to right. Top shelf: cheesy sword bookend, Die Hard Trilogy, The Last Boyscout, Striking Distance, Last Man Standing, The Fifth Element, The Sixth Sense, The Whole Nine Yards, Pulp Fiction, Clerks and Clerks X, Mallrats and Mallrats 10th Anniversary, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Drawing Flies, A Better Place, Stealing Harvard, Kissing a Fool, A Guy Thing, Batman Begins, Spider-Man 1 and 2, The Incredibles, X-Men 1 and 2, The Hulk, Daredevil, Hellboy, Punisher, The Matrix, Showgirls, Gia, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, Happy Gilmore, Spaceballs, and my A.A. Stagg High Delta Kings commemorative stein, Class of 2000.
Middle shelf: tassel from University of the Pacific, Class of 2004, Clerks/Chasing Amy - Two Screenplays by Kevin Smith, Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 1-7, Angel Season 1-5, Playboy Playmate DVD Calendar Collection - The 90's, Aqua Teen Hunger Force Vol. 1 and 2, South Park Bigger, Longer, and Uncut, South Park Season 1-3, Family Guy Vol. 1 and 2, Greg the Bunny, Reno 911! Season 1, and Spike, Mike, Slackers and Dykes by John Pierson.
Bottom shelf: big binder filled with PC games, little binders filled with porn, PC games Space Rangers 2 (I wrote Space Empires 2 the first time, hehe) and Battlefield 2, backup copies of Firefly (ho man, if I didn't have these I'd go crazy, tell you why later), Rambo Collector's Pack, Chappelle's Show Season 1 and 2, Starsky and Hutch, The Big Lebowski, The Terminator, T2, Terminator 3, Ronin, A Fistful of Dollars, Dirty Harry, The Wild Bunch, and El Mariachi/Desperado Collector's Box.
Then we have the media shelf I got recently because my wall shelves were overflowing. The shelves are staggered, but I'll treat each set of shelves as one continuous shelf. Top shelf: Lego Star Destroyer, Lego Millenium Falcon, Lego Y-wing, PS2 games Onimusha, SSX, Maximo, Metal Gear Solid 2, Devil May Cry, Midnight Club, Gran Turismo 3, Kengo Master of Bushido, Grand Theft Auto 3, GTA Vice City, GTA San Andreas, WWE Smackdown Just Bring It, Smackdown Shut Your Mouth, and Smackdown Here Comes the Pain.
Second shelf: PS2 games Mark of Kri, Jak and Daxter, Jak II, Jak 3, Kingdom Hearts, and Guitar Hero, Xbox games Halo, MGS2 Substance, Dead to Rights, Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb, Max Payne, Max Payne 2, Hitman 2, Manhunt, Sega GT 2002/Jet Set Radio Future, Blitz the League, and Crimson Skies, Gamecube games Resident Evil, WWE Wrestlemania X8, Madden 2002, Metal Gear Solid Twin Snakes, Star Fox Adventures, Pikmin, Super Smash Bros Melee, Metroid Prime, Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time, and Legend of Zelda Wind Waker.
Third shelf: Batman the Animated Series Vol 1-4, Superman the Animated Series Vol 1 and 2, Teen Titans Season 1, bootlegged Spider-Man the Animated Series Complete, bootlegged The Tick Complete Animated Series, bootlegged X-Men Complete Animated Series, Spawn the Ultimate Collection, Gargoyles Season 1, Star Wars Clone Wars Vol. 1 and 2, Star Wars Episode 1-3, shitty bootleg Star Wars Episode 4-6, and high-quality bootleg Star Wars Episode 4-6 in white sleeves.
Fourth shelf: Harry Potter 1-3, Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Escape from New York, Pitch Black, Serenity (joy!), War of the Worlds (1953 version), Heavy Metal/Heavy Metal 2000 Box set, space for my Firefly Complete Series Box (currently on loan to my sister, who is taking for fucking ever to watch it), deodorant, case for my bling, and my alarm clock.
You can see a little bit of what's on the fifth shelf in this pic, but it's clearer in the next one.
Fifth shelf: Lego AT-AT, Lego Troop Carrier or some shit from Episode 3, Lego Droid Carrier or some shit from Episode 1, The Light Fantastic, Equal Rites, Mort, Sourcery, Reaper Man, Small Gods, Lords and Ladies, Men at Arms, Soul Music, and Feet of Clay all by Terry Pratchett.
Sixth shelf: Harry Potter 1-5 by J.K. Rowling, Irrational Exuberance by Robert J. Schiller, I, Robot by Isaac Asimov, Interesting Times, Maskerade, and Hogfather all by Terry Pratchett, and the Lord of the Rings Collection by J.R.R. Tolkien.
Seventh shelf: V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd, Fray by Joss Whedon, Tales of the Slayers and Tales of the Vampires by Joss Whedon et al, Seven Seasons of Buffy and Five Seasons of Angel edited by Glenn Yeffeth, Finding Serenity edited by Jane Espenson, The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, a spot for The Colour of Magic (which I'm currently re-reading), Wyrd Sisters, and Moving Pictures all by Terry Pratchett, The Sin City Collection 1-7 2nd Edition by Frank Miller, Jingo, The Last Continent, and Carpe Jugulum all by Terry Pratchett.
There you have it. I've got a drawer with porn in it, too, but that's not so much geeky as it is disconcerting to Christians, fundies, and repressed people everywhere.
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Online gaming: Niche Market?
I'm not talking about MMOs, here, that's obviously not a niche market, but regular, run of the mill, online PC games. Whether it be a shooter, strategy, or RPG, isn't it usually more fun online, with other people? Maybe not with random people, who are usually dicks, but playing strategy games like Civ 4, or RPGs like NWN are way more fun with friends than with the single player game. Even non-online multiplayer, like over LAN, is more fun than single player in a lot of games.
But apparently, I'm in the minority of PC gamers. I've been having so much fun with Civ 4, I thought I might give Galactic Civilations II a try. Until I noticed that there's no multiplayer. Not even hotseat. WTF? So I checked a thread on the main site's board titled "Multiplayer in expansion." It was a user created poll asking if people wanted multiplayer to be added in an expansion. Out of 33 replies, about 3 people wanted online multiplayer, and 10 or 12 wanted LAN or hotseat multiplayer. The rest were adamantly against any sort of multiplayer.
What? Why? That doesn't make any sense to me. How can playing against the AI be more fun (after a certain point) than playing with other humans? And why would you prefer hotseat/LAN play when you could have internet play? Then you can play with your friends no matter where they are, and you don't have to lug your rig anywhere. How bad of a shut-in do you have to be where even online human interaction is a bit too invasive for you? Christ.
But apparently, I'm in the minority of PC gamers. I've been having so much fun with Civ 4, I thought I might give Galactic Civilations II a try. Until I noticed that there's no multiplayer. Not even hotseat. WTF? So I checked a thread on the main site's board titled "Multiplayer in expansion." It was a user created poll asking if people wanted multiplayer to be added in an expansion. Out of 33 replies, about 3 people wanted online multiplayer, and 10 or 12 wanted LAN or hotseat multiplayer. The rest were adamantly against any sort of multiplayer.
What? Why? That doesn't make any sense to me. How can playing against the AI be more fun (after a certain point) than playing with other humans? And why would you prefer hotseat/LAN play when you could have internet play? Then you can play with your friends no matter where they are, and you don't have to lug your rig anywhere. How bad of a shut-in do you have to be where even online human interaction is a bit too invasive for you? Christ.
Sunday, February 26, 2006
Sunday Night Already?
Damn, and it seemed like my weekend just got started. Oh well.
Something damn cool happened this weekend. I got to catch up a little via phone and IM with Josh Richardson, who I haven't seen in probably 5 years. What's more, I can now say I know someone who works in the comics industry. How many people can say that, huh?
So Josh has a blog of his own called In the Trenches, "A wartime journal from the frontlines of the comic industry." He's been writing this column since December of 2004. Unfortunately, it seems this incarnation of the blog only goes back to December of 2005. I wish I knew where the archives were hosted, because I got a look at the very first column and it's a damn interesting read.
Also, I love my speakers. I can't wait to get a 360 hooked up to these things and bust some faces in Knockout Kings...I mean Fight Night.
Something damn cool happened this weekend. I got to catch up a little via phone and IM with Josh Richardson, who I haven't seen in probably 5 years. What's more, I can now say I know someone who works in the comics industry. How many people can say that, huh?
So Josh has a blog of his own called In the Trenches, "A wartime journal from the frontlines of the comic industry." He's been writing this column since December of 2004. Unfortunately, it seems this incarnation of the blog only goes back to December of 2005. I wish I knew where the archives were hosted, because I got a look at the very first column and it's a damn interesting read.
Also, I love my speakers. I can't wait to get a 360 hooked up to these things and bust some faces in Knockout Kings...I mean Fight Night.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
And Now...
It's time for a post where I pimp rad stuff because it rocks the house.
I recently purchased a set of these bad boys. Hot damn, these are some awesome speakers. I'd been subsisting on a shitty set of $30 Logitech speakers, that had been popping and cracking as of late. But THX certified? With a subwoofer that's bigger than my whole damn case? That's friggin sweet.
If you're interested in picking up a set, you can get them cheaper than $180, of course.
Also, Bill posted his first impressions of Fight Night, and now I want a copy. So as soon as my tax refund is transferred into my checking account, it's 360 time, bitches.
I recently purchased a set of these bad boys. Hot damn, these are some awesome speakers. I'd been subsisting on a shitty set of $30 Logitech speakers, that had been popping and cracking as of late. But THX certified? With a subwoofer that's bigger than my whole damn case? That's friggin sweet.
If you're interested in picking up a set, you can get them cheaper than $180, of course.
Also, Bill posted his first impressions of Fight Night, and now I want a copy. So as soon as my tax refund is transferred into my checking account, it's 360 time, bitches.
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Fight Night
So the first reviews have hit for Fight Night Round 3, the only X360 game so far that I felt could actually be worth buying. Unfortunately, IGN says the AI is retarded, but it's a great game nonetheless. I find that hard to believe. The game could be stellar in every regard, but if the AI is broken, it's not a great game. It's not even a good game, and it certainly wouldn't be worthy of a purchase.
However, since I trust the word of, say, Bill Harris much more than I do any of the standard gaming sites, I'm waiting on his review. That will tell me if I should begin my search for a 360 in earnest, or wait until we're closer to the release of Oblivion.
However, since I trust the word of, say, Bill Harris much more than I do any of the standard gaming sites, I'm waiting on his review. That will tell me if I should begin my search for a 360 in earnest, or wait until we're closer to the release of Oblivion.
Friday, February 17, 2006
Note to Self
Stick to the plan. Don't be gullible. Don't be persuaded by empty promises. Have a clear goal in mind. Carry through. Stick to the fucking plan.
It was supposed to be simple. Call up the credit card company, close the line of credit. After all, you have two other major credit cards (the only two that matter), who needs a third? Sure, you're carrying balances on those cards, but it's a low, fixed APR for the life of the balance. And the new purchase APR is also fixed, and quite low compared to what some people pay (especially those with bad credit, poor bastards). Call up, close the credit line.
But wait. I can't do that, sir, I have to transfer you to an account manager.
Translation: I need to transfer you to our pressure people who are only paid because they can convince people to stay.
Dammit. All I wanted to do was close the fucking credit line. So let's do it. But wait.
Are you carrying balances on other cards? Is it a lot of money? I can do a balance transfer for you. I can give you a great APR. Not good enough? How's 0% sound? We have to lock it in now. Oh, your existing credit line isn't big enough for the whole balance, but we can increase it. Too bad the system that does that is down for the night. How about we transfer part of it, request the increase tomorrow, and then transfer the rest?
Oh, great! I suppose that would work. I wouldn't be getting rid of a card I didn't need and don't use, ever, but I'd be saving money, and would have one less bill to pay every month. Go ahead and do it.
Thank you, sir, check back tomorrow for the credit line increase.
I check back the next day.
Ok, we'll just go through this application for a credit line increase, submit it, and have the results in 24 hours. Call back tomorrow.
I call back tonight.
I'm sorry, sir, it looks like the request was denied. But you have until April 25 to transfer balances at that low 0% rate.
FUCK! What the fuck happened to: We'll increase the credit line and get the rest of your balance transferred over? What happened to: If you submit the full application, we'll do a credit check and get your line increased? Did you check my credit? I doubt it, cause if you had, you'd have found out I've got a credit score of 822. My credit report is fucking rock solid, so you obviously didn't look at it. I haven't missed a goddamn payment on any fucking card in over 4 years. Four years. I've held your worthless card for 4 years, and haven't even used it in the past 2. Who the fuck are you to deny anything that I ask for?
We're glad you decided to stay with us, sir, we're actually one of the harder cards to get approved for.
Oh, really? So fucking what? I wipe my ass with your holier-than-thou attitude. I don't need your bullshit. As soon as one of my other, low-brow cards offers me a good rate on a balance transfer, you can go suck it. Then I'm cancelling your card, and will not be persuaded otherwise. Good day, sir.
EDIT: After not much thought, I decided to call up one of my less-cultured credit card companies and see what sort of balance transfer rate they'd offer me. What do you know? They'll do a 2% APR for life, with no credit line increase necessary, and no other catches, clauses, or hidden bullshit. You know what 2% APR is? That's jack shit, and close enough to 0 for me. Fuck you, you credit card snob assholes. I'm getting my balance back on the card that actually gives a shit about me, the customer, and not solely about their bottom line.
EDIT2: I had another line of credit (a simple charge account) that I wanted to close, so I called up their customer service line. Went through the IVR system, and got to: If you would like to close your account, press 1. I pressed 1. You have requested to close your account. To continue, press 1. I pressed 1. Your account has been closed. For written confirmation that your account has been closed, press 7. I pressed 7. Your confirmation letter will be sent within 7 days. Thank you, goodbye. Wam, bam, thank you, ma'am. How fucking hard is that? Jesus Christ, you don't have to make people jump through fucking hoops, and pressure them into balance transfers when they want to close their accounts, because you're just going to piss them off.
It was supposed to be simple. Call up the credit card company, close the line of credit. After all, you have two other major credit cards (the only two that matter), who needs a third? Sure, you're carrying balances on those cards, but it's a low, fixed APR for the life of the balance. And the new purchase APR is also fixed, and quite low compared to what some people pay (especially those with bad credit, poor bastards). Call up, close the credit line.
But wait. I can't do that, sir, I have to transfer you to an account manager.
Translation: I need to transfer you to our pressure people who are only paid because they can convince people to stay.
Dammit. All I wanted to do was close the fucking credit line. So let's do it. But wait.
Are you carrying balances on other cards? Is it a lot of money? I can do a balance transfer for you. I can give you a great APR. Not good enough? How's 0% sound? We have to lock it in now. Oh, your existing credit line isn't big enough for the whole balance, but we can increase it. Too bad the system that does that is down for the night. How about we transfer part of it, request the increase tomorrow, and then transfer the rest?
Oh, great! I suppose that would work. I wouldn't be getting rid of a card I didn't need and don't use, ever, but I'd be saving money, and would have one less bill to pay every month. Go ahead and do it.
Thank you, sir, check back tomorrow for the credit line increase.
I check back the next day.
Ok, we'll just go through this application for a credit line increase, submit it, and have the results in 24 hours. Call back tomorrow.
I call back tonight.
I'm sorry, sir, it looks like the request was denied. But you have until April 25 to transfer balances at that low 0% rate.
FUCK! What the fuck happened to: We'll increase the credit line and get the rest of your balance transferred over? What happened to: If you submit the full application, we'll do a credit check and get your line increased? Did you check my credit? I doubt it, cause if you had, you'd have found out I've got a credit score of 822. My credit report is fucking rock solid, so you obviously didn't look at it. I haven't missed a goddamn payment on any fucking card in over 4 years. Four years. I've held your worthless card for 4 years, and haven't even used it in the past 2. Who the fuck are you to deny anything that I ask for?
We're glad you decided to stay with us, sir, we're actually one of the harder cards to get approved for.
Oh, really? So fucking what? I wipe my ass with your holier-than-thou attitude. I don't need your bullshit. As soon as one of my other, low-brow cards offers me a good rate on a balance transfer, you can go suck it. Then I'm cancelling your card, and will not be persuaded otherwise. Good day, sir.
EDIT: After not much thought, I decided to call up one of my less-cultured credit card companies and see what sort of balance transfer rate they'd offer me. What do you know? They'll do a 2% APR for life, with no credit line increase necessary, and no other catches, clauses, or hidden bullshit. You know what 2% APR is? That's jack shit, and close enough to 0 for me. Fuck you, you credit card snob assholes. I'm getting my balance back on the card that actually gives a shit about me, the customer, and not solely about their bottom line.
EDIT2: I had another line of credit (a simple charge account) that I wanted to close, so I called up their customer service line. Went through the IVR system, and got to: If you would like to close your account, press 1. I pressed 1. You have requested to close your account. To continue, press 1. I pressed 1. Your account has been closed. For written confirmation that your account has been closed, press 7. I pressed 7. Your confirmation letter will be sent within 7 days. Thank you, goodbye. Wam, bam, thank you, ma'am. How fucking hard is that? Jesus Christ, you don't have to make people jump through fucking hoops, and pressure them into balance transfers when they want to close their accounts, because you're just going to piss them off.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
Who's in charge of these Nielsen boxes?
And why don't they give them to people who have brains? Or at least can tell the difference between good TV and shitty TV? Seriously.
Take a look at this.
From the top down, we've got reality show bullshit (I admit it, I used to watch American Idol. But after watching my favorite contestant get the shaft 3 years in a row, I'm done), crime drama bullshit, medical drama bullshit, horny housewife bullshit (I'd watch it if it was on cable), more medical drama bullshit, Olympic bullshit (seriously, who gives a fuck about the winter Olympics? Curling is not a sport, goddammit), more crime drama bullshit, more reality show bullshit (Dancing with the Stars? Who the hell is watching Dancing with the Stars and how did their brains even learn human speech?), more crime drama bullshit, and then Lost. Then there's just more bullshit to round out the top 20.
1 out of 20 is some bad odds. And I bet if that list was expanded to the top 50, or top 100, I don't think it would get better. So we come back to my original question. Why are these Nielsen media researchers handing out their boxes to fucking morons who can't tell their ass from a hole in the ground?
Take a look at this.
From the top down, we've got reality show bullshit (I admit it, I used to watch American Idol. But after watching my favorite contestant get the shaft 3 years in a row, I'm done), crime drama bullshit, medical drama bullshit, horny housewife bullshit (I'd watch it if it was on cable), more medical drama bullshit, Olympic bullshit (seriously, who gives a fuck about the winter Olympics? Curling is not a sport, goddammit), more crime drama bullshit, more reality show bullshit (Dancing with the Stars? Who the hell is watching Dancing with the Stars and how did their brains even learn human speech?), more crime drama bullshit, and then Lost. Then there's just more bullshit to round out the top 20.
1 out of 20 is some bad odds. And I bet if that list was expanded to the top 50, or top 100, I don't think it would get better. So we come back to my original question. Why are these Nielsen media researchers handing out their boxes to fucking morons who can't tell their ass from a hole in the ground?
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
More Stuff
If you haven't been reading the Virtual Firefly episodes over at StillFlying.net, you're missing out. They're up to episode 1x20, with two more to go to finish off the first season. They'll be back in early Spring with Season 2. I, personally, can't wait, cause this stuff isn't run-of-the-mill shitty fanfiction, it's pretty damn good.
I've also got an update on the 360 release calendar. Those games I'd never heard of (The Darkness, Demonik, Dead Rising) all slipped to who knows where. Saint's Row slipped, too, to 6/1, but I think it will slip again, since that's clearly a "we don't know when this game's coming out" date. Splinter Cell Double Agent also slipped to the middle of the year. I don't know when exactly it will come out, but 2nd or 3rd quarter sounds right.
Surprisingly, there are many games that haven't slipped. Full Auto is still slated for Valentine's Day, with Fight Night Round 3 the next week. Burnout Revenge the first week of March, Oblivion on 3/20, it's looking good (finally) for the X360. I've also noticed that consoles are becoming much more available online and in stores, but I'm still waiting for the day when I can walk into Best Buy and grab one off the shelf, because that's how I plan to buy mine.
And in football news, I read today that for Monday Night Football on ESPN next year, the broadcast team will consist of Joe Theismann, Tony Kornheiser, and Mike Tirico. I think it's safe to assume that Tirico will be handling the play by play, Theismann is the analyst, and Kornheiser will be color. Sounds like a great team to me, and I'm already looking forward to next season (psst, I think the Raiders will finish a bit better than 4-12, especially if they have The Whiz at the helm).
I've also got an update on the 360 release calendar. Those games I'd never heard of (The Darkness, Demonik, Dead Rising) all slipped to who knows where. Saint's Row slipped, too, to 6/1, but I think it will slip again, since that's clearly a "we don't know when this game's coming out" date. Splinter Cell Double Agent also slipped to the middle of the year. I don't know when exactly it will come out, but 2nd or 3rd quarter sounds right.
Surprisingly, there are many games that haven't slipped. Full Auto is still slated for Valentine's Day, with Fight Night Round 3 the next week. Burnout Revenge the first week of March, Oblivion on 3/20, it's looking good (finally) for the X360. I've also noticed that consoles are becoming much more available online and in stores, but I'm still waiting for the day when I can walk into Best Buy and grab one off the shelf, because that's how I plan to buy mine.
And in football news, I read today that for Monday Night Football on ESPN next year, the broadcast team will consist of Joe Theismann, Tony Kornheiser, and Mike Tirico. I think it's safe to assume that Tirico will be handling the play by play, Theismann is the analyst, and Kornheiser will be color. Sounds like a great team to me, and I'm already looking forward to next season (psst, I think the Raiders will finish a bit better than 4-12, especially if they have The Whiz at the helm).
Monday, February 06, 2006
Stuff
I picked the Super Bowl winner correctly, and that's something. I didn't even really watch it, just the second half. I think that's the first Super Bowl in a long time that I haven't watched. I mean, really watched, as a rabid fan. I just didn't care about the teams that were in it, positively or negatively. There's been a lot of talk about officiating, though. Alls I can say to that is: welcome to the club, Seattle.
The other reason I didn't catch the big game until the first half was over is because Civilization 4 had me held hostage. Damn, that's like the most addictive game ever. I didn't get into computing early enough to experience Civ 2 binges, but I hear that they were epic in scale. If you've got 40 bucks and a desire, nay, a need, to waste all your free time researching technology, settling new cities, and waging war, you should pick up Civ 4.
Finally, I just finished reading Fray, a damn fine graphic novel from the mind of Joss Whedon. Holy shit if it wasn't awesome. I want more, just like I want more Buffy, more Angel, more Firefly, and more everything Joss has ever done. Except for Alien 4. Did you know he also wrote the screenplay for Titan A.E.? I knew there was a reason that movie was more than just crappy, non-Disney animated shlock.
The other reason I didn't catch the big game until the first half was over is because Civilization 4 had me held hostage. Damn, that's like the most addictive game ever. I didn't get into computing early enough to experience Civ 2 binges, but I hear that they were epic in scale. If you've got 40 bucks and a desire, nay, a need, to waste all your free time researching technology, settling new cities, and waging war, you should pick up Civ 4.
Finally, I just finished reading Fray, a damn fine graphic novel from the mind of Joss Whedon. Holy shit if it wasn't awesome. I want more, just like I want more Buffy, more Angel, more Firefly, and more everything Joss has ever done. Except for Alien 4. Did you know he also wrote the screenplay for Titan A.E.? I knew there was a reason that movie was more than just crappy, non-Disney animated shlock.
Sunday, January 22, 2006
I hope the Super Bowl is actually a competition
Because the Conference Championship games were over in the 2nd quarter. I couldn't have picked the winners more wrongly (0 for 2), but I'm going to make my prediction for the Super Bowl right now, before I've heard anything from the analysts, or the coaches, or the players, or any armchair quarterbacks. The Steelers will lift the Lombardi Trophy for Super Bowl XL.
Here's why: The Steelers (who were the 6th seed) beat the #3 seed (the Bengals), the #1 seed (the Colts), and the #2 seed (the Broncos) to get to the Super Bowl. All they have to do now is beat the #1 seed in the NFC, the Seahawks. And the NFC teams just aren't the same caliber of the AFC teams.
I just checked the analysts on Yahoo Sports, and they're saying Pittsburgh is the favorite. Good to know I'm not totally off base with my reasoning.
Here's why: The Steelers (who were the 6th seed) beat the #3 seed (the Bengals), the #1 seed (the Colts), and the #2 seed (the Broncos) to get to the Super Bowl. All they have to do now is beat the #1 seed in the NFC, the Seahawks. And the NFC teams just aren't the same caliber of the AFC teams.
I just checked the analysts on Yahoo Sports, and they're saying Pittsburgh is the favorite. Good to know I'm not totally off base with my reasoning.
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
X360 Update
So the holiday rush is over, and Microsoft's supply of Xboxes is still short. But the ridiculously overinflated prices on eBay are coming down, which means one of two things: either the folks that were willing to pay ridiculous prices already have their Xboxes, and what's left are normal people willing to pay normal prices, or people are losing interest all together and exiting the market.
I don't think it's the latter. After all, the 360 was the "hot" toy for Christmas, and now that it's January, no one in their right mind would be willing to pay in excess of a grand for a gaming console and 3 or 4 games.
So what does this mean? It means two things. One, there's not much of a premium for buying a system at retail price and reselling it on eBay, which means Xboxes sold at retail are being sold to the end user. In other words, the demand isn't artificially inflated by folks just looking to make an arbitrage profit. This leads to two, which is that I should be able to get my hands on an Xbox when I want it, when the good apps finally hit.
Which brings me to the release calendar. There are a million of them, and you can't trust any one source. I'm looking at EBGames, Gamefly, and IGN.
First off, EBGames has a handful of titles I've never even heard of (The Darkness, Demonik, Dead Rising) listed as releasing on 1/31/06. Bullshit. The first date that seems credible on their list is Full Auto, 2/14/06, because it's the same (or similar) on the other two sites. EB also lists Fight Night Round 3 as 2/14/06, but the others have it down for 2/23/06.
The next game on EB's list is one I'm looking forward to with much anticipation, Saint's Row. They have 3/1/06. I'm no expert, but games usually come out on Tuesday. March 1 is a Wednesday, and there's no way in hell Saint's Row is hitting in March. IGN also has 3/1, but Gamefly lists TBD. As much as I wish it was March, it's not gonna happen.
All three lists have The Outfit and Burnout: Revenge around the middle of March. The next biggie is Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, which all 3 lists have at 3/20. I haven't heard anything about it being pushed back, so if this is the case, March 20 may be when I get a 360.
And right around the corner (supposedly) is Splinter Cell 4: Double Agent. Hot shit, I loves me some Splinter Cell. EB has it at 4/1, Gamefly is 3/31, and IGN lists Q2 2006. That says to me, it'll release sometime between the first day of April and the last day of June, so don't hold your breath.
After that, it gets too far out to tell with any certainty, and it's clear the lists are grasping at straws. Prey is slated for sometime in June, The Godfather and Gears of War maybe July, Scarface is...sometime, and Halo 3 is in there somewhere, probably around November (or whenever the PS3 launch date is, assuming it's sometime in 2006).
I don't think it's the latter. After all, the 360 was the "hot" toy for Christmas, and now that it's January, no one in their right mind would be willing to pay in excess of a grand for a gaming console and 3 or 4 games.
So what does this mean? It means two things. One, there's not much of a premium for buying a system at retail price and reselling it on eBay, which means Xboxes sold at retail are being sold to the end user. In other words, the demand isn't artificially inflated by folks just looking to make an arbitrage profit. This leads to two, which is that I should be able to get my hands on an Xbox when I want it, when the good apps finally hit.
Which brings me to the release calendar. There are a million of them, and you can't trust any one source. I'm looking at EBGames, Gamefly, and IGN.
First off, EBGames has a handful of titles I've never even heard of (The Darkness, Demonik, Dead Rising) listed as releasing on 1/31/06. Bullshit. The first date that seems credible on their list is Full Auto, 2/14/06, because it's the same (or similar) on the other two sites. EB also lists Fight Night Round 3 as 2/14/06, but the others have it down for 2/23/06.
The next game on EB's list is one I'm looking forward to with much anticipation, Saint's Row. They have 3/1/06. I'm no expert, but games usually come out on Tuesday. March 1 is a Wednesday, and there's no way in hell Saint's Row is hitting in March. IGN also has 3/1, but Gamefly lists TBD. As much as I wish it was March, it's not gonna happen.
All three lists have The Outfit and Burnout: Revenge around the middle of March. The next biggie is Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, which all 3 lists have at 3/20. I haven't heard anything about it being pushed back, so if this is the case, March 20 may be when I get a 360.
And right around the corner (supposedly) is Splinter Cell 4: Double Agent. Hot shit, I loves me some Splinter Cell. EB has it at 4/1, Gamefly is 3/31, and IGN lists Q2 2006. That says to me, it'll release sometime between the first day of April and the last day of June, so don't hold your breath.
After that, it gets too far out to tell with any certainty, and it's clear the lists are grasping at straws. Prey is slated for sometime in June, The Godfather and Gears of War maybe July, Scarface is...sometime, and Halo 3 is in there somewhere, probably around November (or whenever the PS3 launch date is, assuming it's sometime in 2006).
A Point of Correction
I've referred to Bones as "the best crime drama I've ever seen" in this blog (twice, actually), but I'd like to correct that statement.
You see, I forgot about the critically-acclaimed, scarcely-watched, and ultimately short-lived Boomtown. It starred Donnie Wahlberg (of Band of Brothers and New Kids fame), and is, by far, the best crime drama I've ever seen. There were about 7 or 8 main characters, and we got to know them all over the course of the show. The most interesting thing about it was that each episode looked at one crime from a number of different points of view (the beat cops, the paramedics, the detectives, the D.A., the journalist, etc.), so that by the end of the episode, you figured out what happened just when everyone on the show did. Unfortunately, test audiences or something didn't like that setup, so they ditched if for a more traditional flow, and the show's second season bombed 2 episodes in. They've released the first season on DVD, and it's definitely worth picking up.
To recap: Bones is the second best crime drama I've ever seen.
You see, I forgot about the critically-acclaimed, scarcely-watched, and ultimately short-lived Boomtown. It starred Donnie Wahlberg (of Band of Brothers and New Kids fame), and is, by far, the best crime drama I've ever seen. There were about 7 or 8 main characters, and we got to know them all over the course of the show. The most interesting thing about it was that each episode looked at one crime from a number of different points of view (the beat cops, the paramedics, the detectives, the D.A., the journalist, etc.), so that by the end of the episode, you figured out what happened just when everyone on the show did. Unfortunately, test audiences or something didn't like that setup, so they ditched if for a more traditional flow, and the show's second season bombed 2 episodes in. They've released the first season on DVD, and it's definitely worth picking up.
To recap: Bones is the second best crime drama I've ever seen.
Sunday, January 15, 2006
What?
Fuck.
Dammit all to hell.
Son of a bitch.
FUCK!
I just got taken on a roller coaster ride, and ended up with the mental equivalent of vomit all over myself. Why is it that I'm always disappointed at the end of the football season? Why does a game I love so much have to kick me in the balls every single year? Let me give you a rundown of the past few seasons.
2001-2: After years of lounging around in mediocrity, the Raiders are finally in the playoffs and looking to go all the way, only to be knocked out in New England on a bullshit "tuck-rule" call that is, was, and will always be a goddamn fumble.
2002-3: This time, there are no Patriots to fuck things up, but Tampa Bay and Coach Gruden manage to fuck it up anyway, and take a Super Bowl victory away from my team.
2003-4: With no shot at the Raiders making the playoffs, I jump on the Colts bandwagon (they're my Dad's team). But they meet those bastard Patriots in the Conference Championship game and go home losers.
2004-5: Once again, the Raiders miss the playoffs by a mile, and the Colts are riding high with a record setting Peyton Manning, an incredible offense, but no defense to speak of. They meet the Patriots again, this time in a Divisional game, and go home losers for the second time in as many years.
2005-6: The "What the hell's wrong with the Raiders" question can wait until later. The Colts got off to a stellar 13-0 start, and their defense was one of the main reasons. They ended up with a first round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs, only to...lose a heartbreaker to the Pittsburg Steelers, who are the number 6 seed. That's not supposed to happen, goddammit. I thought all the talk about Peyton Manning not being able to win a big game was bullshit until now. I think he's a fantastic regular season QB, probably the best in the league. But come playoff time, he can't get it done. The circumstances were pretty much perfect, and now he has to sit at home until next season.
P.S. Turns out I was 2-2 for my picks this weekend. After the Colts travesty, I didn't even bother watching the Panthers-Bears game, but the Panthers won by 8 or something. Picks for next weekend? Not that I really care, but I'll take the Broncos over the Steelers, and the Panthers over the Seahawks. If Shawn Alexander plays, the Seahawks may win, but if he doesn't, the 'Hawks are done.
Dammit all to hell.
Son of a bitch.
FUCK!
I just got taken on a roller coaster ride, and ended up with the mental equivalent of vomit all over myself. Why is it that I'm always disappointed at the end of the football season? Why does a game I love so much have to kick me in the balls every single year? Let me give you a rundown of the past few seasons.
2001-2: After years of lounging around in mediocrity, the Raiders are finally in the playoffs and looking to go all the way, only to be knocked out in New England on a bullshit "tuck-rule" call that is, was, and will always be a goddamn fumble.
2002-3: This time, there are no Patriots to fuck things up, but Tampa Bay and Coach Gruden manage to fuck it up anyway, and take a Super Bowl victory away from my team.
2003-4: With no shot at the Raiders making the playoffs, I jump on the Colts bandwagon (they're my Dad's team). But they meet those bastard Patriots in the Conference Championship game and go home losers.
2004-5: Once again, the Raiders miss the playoffs by a mile, and the Colts are riding high with a record setting Peyton Manning, an incredible offense, but no defense to speak of. They meet the Patriots again, this time in a Divisional game, and go home losers for the second time in as many years.
2005-6: The "What the hell's wrong with the Raiders" question can wait until later. The Colts got off to a stellar 13-0 start, and their defense was one of the main reasons. They ended up with a first round bye and home field advantage throughout the playoffs, only to...lose a heartbreaker to the Pittsburg Steelers, who are the number 6 seed. That's not supposed to happen, goddammit. I thought all the talk about Peyton Manning not being able to win a big game was bullshit until now. I think he's a fantastic regular season QB, probably the best in the league. But come playoff time, he can't get it done. The circumstances were pretty much perfect, and now he has to sit at home until next season.
P.S. Turns out I was 2-2 for my picks this weekend. After the Colts travesty, I didn't even bother watching the Panthers-Bears game, but the Panthers won by 8 or something. Picks for next weekend? Not that I really care, but I'll take the Broncos over the Steelers, and the Panthers over the Seahawks. If Shawn Alexander plays, the Seahawks may win, but if he doesn't, the 'Hawks are done.
Saturday, January 14, 2006
...And Justice For All
I was going to wait until tomorrow to make this post, but I can't help it. The Patriots are loooooooo-sers! Loooooooo-sers! Looooo-sers! Losersayswhat? Take that, assholes. Fuck New England, fuck Tom Brady, fuck Corey Dillon, fuck Adam Vinatieri, fuck Tedy Bruschi, fuck Willie McGinest, and fuck Deion Branch.
There's going to be a whole lot of talk about the pass interference call that gave Denver the ball on the 1-yard line, but they still won by 14. And even if that call was different, even if Champ Bailey did fumble into the end-zone on his interception return, so what? You know what that is? That's fucking justice, baby. That's justice for that bullshit "tuck-rule" call four years ago, Brady. That's fucking karma coming back around to bite you in your stupid ass. Suck on that, Patriots. You've got the whole off season to bitch and whine now. And here's a big middle finger to all the sports writers and analysts that didn't give Denver a chance in hell to beat the beloved New England Patriots. I bet that crow tastes real nice.
For those of you keeping score, I'm 2 and 0 so far this weekend, because the Seahawks beat the Redskins in the early game.
There's going to be a whole lot of talk about the pass interference call that gave Denver the ball on the 1-yard line, but they still won by 14. And even if that call was different, even if Champ Bailey did fumble into the end-zone on his interception return, so what? You know what that is? That's fucking justice, baby. That's justice for that bullshit "tuck-rule" call four years ago, Brady. That's fucking karma coming back around to bite you in your stupid ass. Suck on that, Patriots. You've got the whole off season to bitch and whine now. And here's a big middle finger to all the sports writers and analysts that didn't give Denver a chance in hell to beat the beloved New England Patriots. I bet that crow tastes real nice.
For those of you keeping score, I'm 2 and 0 so far this weekend, because the Seahawks beat the Redskins in the early game.
Thursday, January 12, 2006
More Virtual Firefly
In what appears to be a weekly (every Thursday night) update, episode 1x18 of the Virtual Firefly series is up. There's also the "official" website that has the episodes in .pdf format, real purty like. I don't see the latest episode there yet, so be sure to read it off the blog if you can't wait.
Me, I'm so damn tired I've gotta wait, even though I really don't want to.
Me, I'm so damn tired I've gotta wait, even though I really don't want to.
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
People's Choice Awards
Normally, I hate awards shows. In fact, scratch that, I always hate awards shows. Nothing but pompous, spoiled, and overpaid actors, directors, and producers having a circle jerk. The only awards show that I can remotely tolerate is the People's Choice Awards, because it's the fans voting for their favorites. You know, the fans that actually pay the money and spend the time to watch the "stars" do their thing? The people who are the very reason that celebrities are famous?
Anyway, the People's Choice Awards were last night. The only award I gave a damn about was Favorite New TV Comedy, because My Name Is Earl was nominated. Those who know me know that my favorite actor, by far, is Jason Lee. He's known primarily for comedy, but he's more than capable of doing drama as well. When I first heard that he was going to star in his own TV show, I knew that it would be his chance to show people (and when I say people, I mean big-time movie producers and directors) that he had serious chops. He hasn't disappointed, and by snagging the award, I think it's fair to say that the fans love him.
So big ups to Jason Lee. He's ten times the actor that other, much more famous Scientologist is.
Anyway, the People's Choice Awards were last night. The only award I gave a damn about was Favorite New TV Comedy, because My Name Is Earl was nominated. Those who know me know that my favorite actor, by far, is Jason Lee. He's known primarily for comedy, but he's more than capable of doing drama as well. When I first heard that he was going to star in his own TV show, I knew that it would be his chance to show people (and when I say people, I mean big-time movie producers and directors) that he had serious chops. He hasn't disappointed, and by snagging the award, I think it's fair to say that the fans love him.
So big ups to Jason Lee. He's ten times the actor that other, much more famous Scientologist is.
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
PSP: WTF?
First of all, let me say that I considered buying a PSP just to play GTA: Liberty City Stories. Until I looked at the price, and realized I didn't feel like plunking down 300+ bucks just to play the new GTA game.
And don't even think about pulling that shit about how you can do so much more with a PSP than play games on it. I can wait until I get home to watch a movie or surf the internet.
But enough about the PSP itself. This post is actually about the new ads for the PSP. I'm sure you've seen at least one of them. Black and white, pencil drawn animation, with talking rats, squirrels, dustballs, or fucking turds, who knows. Let me give you the basic formula.
Animal/Inanimate Object 1: What are you doing?
Animal/Inanimate Object 2: What does it look like I'm doing? I'm watching/listening/playing/jizzing to/with/on nut/cheese/carpet/your mom!
Animal/Inanimate Object 1: Don't you know they have portable nut/cheese/carpet/my mom?
Animal/Inanimate Object 2: No way! Really?
Animal/Inanimate Object 1: Yeah. It's like nut/cheese/carpet/my mom you can watch/listen/play/jizz to/with/on...outside!
Announcer: PSP. It's like nut/cheese/carpet/somebody's mom you can watch/listen/play/jizz to/with/on...outside.
So WTF? Does Sony really think that shit's going to move PSP's? I'll tell you what would move PSP's. Lowering the fucking price. Can't do that because the components involved are too expensive? Too fucking bad, you're the dickholes who thought people wanted another NGage. Remember the NGage, Sony? Nobody bought it because it sucked ass. And it was actually affordable, unlike the PSP. Fuck, if I wanted to pay 300+ bucks to play games, I'd buy a fucking console. Jesus.
And don't even think about pulling that shit about how you can do so much more with a PSP than play games on it. I can wait until I get home to watch a movie or surf the internet.
But enough about the PSP itself. This post is actually about the new ads for the PSP. I'm sure you've seen at least one of them. Black and white, pencil drawn animation, with talking rats, squirrels, dustballs, or fucking turds, who knows. Let me give you the basic formula.
Animal/Inanimate Object 1: What are you doing?
Animal/Inanimate Object 2: What does it look like I'm doing? I'm watching/listening/playing/jizzing to/with/on nut/cheese/carpet/your mom!
Animal/Inanimate Object 1: Don't you know they have portable nut/cheese/carpet/my mom?
Animal/Inanimate Object 2: No way! Really?
Animal/Inanimate Object 1: Yeah. It's like nut/cheese/carpet/my mom you can watch/listen/play/jizz to/with/on...outside!
Announcer: PSP. It's like nut/cheese/carpet/somebody's mom you can watch/listen/play/jizz to/with/on...outside.
So WTF? Does Sony really think that shit's going to move PSP's? I'll tell you what would move PSP's. Lowering the fucking price. Can't do that because the components involved are too expensive? Too fucking bad, you're the dickholes who thought people wanted another NGage. Remember the NGage, Sony? Nobody bought it because it sucked ass. And it was actually affordable, unlike the PSP. Fuck, if I wanted to pay 300+ bucks to play games, I'd buy a fucking console. Jesus.
Sunday, January 08, 2006
Ready for some football?
Wild Card Weekend is over, and while I correctly predicted there would be 3 upsets, I was mistaken about which teams would be involved in those upsets. I was confident that the Washington Redskins would prevail over the Tampa Bay "Yuks," and the Pittsburg Steelers would beat the Cincinnati "Bungles," but I also figured that there would be no way the NY Giants would let the Carolina Panthers blank them at home, and that the Jacksonville Jaguars would manage to beat the New England Patriots at Foxborough.
Of course, since I didn't get around to posting those predictions on this blog, you'll have to take my word that I correctly predicted the outcomes of 2 of the 4 games, and that there would be 3 total upsets.
Now, let's look forward to the Divisional games next weekend.
Redskins at Seattle Seahawks. Sorry, Coach Gibbs, you're not going any farther this year. It'll be close, but the Seahawks will come away with the victory.
Patriots at Denver Broncos. So the Pats squeaked into the playoffs, came away with a win against a team that is a shadow of it's former self, and now everyone's lining up to suck Tom Brady's cock again? No thanks. The Patriots haven't beaten a good team yet, and they're not going to start now. Broncos FTW (for teh win).
Steelers at Indianapolis Colts. The Colts started the season 13 and 0, and they're still the best team in the NFL. They've also got Peyton Manning running the offense. Enough said. Colts win a barn burner.
Panthers at Chicago Bears. Sure, the Panthers have Steve Smith, but he's going up against the Bear's D. Just like earlier this season, the Bears will beat the Panthers.
So there you have it. No upsets, which is why you play for that first round bye. Tune in next week to see how accurate these predictions were.
Of course, since I didn't get around to posting those predictions on this blog, you'll have to take my word that I correctly predicted the outcomes of 2 of the 4 games, and that there would be 3 total upsets.
Now, let's look forward to the Divisional games next weekend.
Redskins at Seattle Seahawks. Sorry, Coach Gibbs, you're not going any farther this year. It'll be close, but the Seahawks will come away with the victory.
Patriots at Denver Broncos. So the Pats squeaked into the playoffs, came away with a win against a team that is a shadow of it's former self, and now everyone's lining up to suck Tom Brady's cock again? No thanks. The Patriots haven't beaten a good team yet, and they're not going to start now. Broncos FTW (for teh win).
Steelers at Indianapolis Colts. The Colts started the season 13 and 0, and they're still the best team in the NFL. They've also got Peyton Manning running the offense. Enough said. Colts win a barn burner.
Panthers at Chicago Bears. Sure, the Panthers have Steve Smith, but he's going up against the Bear's D. Just like earlier this season, the Bears will beat the Panthers.
So there you have it. No upsets, which is why you play for that first round bye. Tune in next week to see how accurate these predictions were.
Thursday, January 05, 2006
Still Flyin'...Sort of
It's time for a Firefly/Serenity update. First off, were you aware there's a porn star named Serenity? She's fucking hot, too. I'd be her captain anyday.
Secondly, I checked up on the fanfic virtual seasons I posted about earlier this week, and to my chagrin, one of them's disappeared. And I never did get around to reading it. Oh well, the other one's still going, and they recently posted Episode 17.
Finally, I heard tell that FUX (you like that? See, it's a jab at FOX where I change a letter and it sounds like "fucks." I think it's hilarious) is going to bring back Futurama. They cite DVD sales and repeat airings as reasons it's gained new fans, and hence, a new life.
Wait, what? I don't know official numbers here, but have the Futurama DVDs sold as well as Firefly has? Because if they haven't, what the fuck? Has there been a Futurama feature film, along with a DVD of said film that's been at the top of Amazon's sales rankings since it came out? I don't think so. Futurama licks donkey balls, and it's going to slime it's way back onto television? Fuck that. Fuck you, FUX. That's bullshit.
Secondly, I checked up on the fanfic virtual seasons I posted about earlier this week, and to my chagrin, one of them's disappeared. And I never did get around to reading it. Oh well, the other one's still going, and they recently posted Episode 17.
Finally, I heard tell that FUX (you like that? See, it's a jab at FOX where I change a letter and it sounds like "fucks." I think it's hilarious) is going to bring back Futurama. They cite DVD sales and repeat airings as reasons it's gained new fans, and hence, a new life.
Wait, what? I don't know official numbers here, but have the Futurama DVDs sold as well as Firefly has? Because if they haven't, what the fuck? Has there been a Futurama feature film, along with a DVD of said film that's been at the top of Amazon's sales rankings since it came out? I don't think so. Futurama licks donkey balls, and it's going to slime it's way back onto television? Fuck that. Fuck you, FUX. That's bullshit.
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
Just Win, Baby
Time for some impressions on a game I picked up today with a gift card.
Blitz: The League for Xbox is the first time in about four years I've actually had fun playing a football video game. Blasphemy among gamers, I know, as Madden is the best of the best. But I just haven't seen it from Madden recently. The last Madden game I played for more than a half hour was the 2002 offering for Gamecube, and even that was a far cry from the best of the best (for the record, Super Tecmo Bowl for the NES is the best pure football game ever, with Joe Montana Sports Talk Football for the Genesis a very close second).
I've only played two complete games in B:TL, so let me run down some of the things I've noticed so far.
Calling and running plays is quick, easy, and painless. Select a formation, scroll through the available plays, pick one, and get ready for the snap. Simple, intuitive controls on both sides of the ball = no broken plays because you accidentally called an audible. Did I mention there are no audibles? You pick a play and you run it. Done.
Custom teams that I can have fun creating without spending a month of Sunday's. Pick your location, team name, logo, and colors, then hire coaching staff (head coach, offensive and defensive coordinator) and one star player each on offense and defense, and you're in the game.
Football. Seems so simple, doesn't it? Too bad modern football games have become more like coaching simulators than fucking football games. I want to get my team on the field, throw the long ball, break some tackles, and bust some heads. Is that so hard?
Hard hits are so much more fun in this game than other football games. Lay down a particularly nasty slam on the ball carrier, and you'll get a nice cutaway shot of the guy's bones breaking or cartilage snapping. And since we're not dealing with the NFL here, your trainers can treat the injury, or "juice" the player up to get him back in the game. Sweet. Get the opposing team all riled up with a succession of dirty hits, and you'll spark a full on brawl, where you can cause some serious damage. It's like hockey without all the Canadians!
Like I said, I've only played two complete games, so these opinions are subject to change. But I'm having way too damn much fun laying the smackdown.
Oh, and I mentioned earlier about the best pure football game ever. What's the best arcade style football game ever? Mutant League Football for the Genesis. B:TL reminds me so much of Mutant League it makes me giddy.
Blitz: The League for Xbox is the first time in about four years I've actually had fun playing a football video game. Blasphemy among gamers, I know, as Madden is the best of the best. But I just haven't seen it from Madden recently. The last Madden game I played for more than a half hour was the 2002 offering for Gamecube, and even that was a far cry from the best of the best (for the record, Super Tecmo Bowl for the NES is the best pure football game ever, with Joe Montana Sports Talk Football for the Genesis a very close second).
I've only played two complete games in B:TL, so let me run down some of the things I've noticed so far.
Calling and running plays is quick, easy, and painless. Select a formation, scroll through the available plays, pick one, and get ready for the snap. Simple, intuitive controls on both sides of the ball = no broken plays because you accidentally called an audible. Did I mention there are no audibles? You pick a play and you run it. Done.
Custom teams that I can have fun creating without spending a month of Sunday's. Pick your location, team name, logo, and colors, then hire coaching staff (head coach, offensive and defensive coordinator) and one star player each on offense and defense, and you're in the game.
Football. Seems so simple, doesn't it? Too bad modern football games have become more like coaching simulators than fucking football games. I want to get my team on the field, throw the long ball, break some tackles, and bust some heads. Is that so hard?
Hard hits are so much more fun in this game than other football games. Lay down a particularly nasty slam on the ball carrier, and you'll get a nice cutaway shot of the guy's bones breaking or cartilage snapping. And since we're not dealing with the NFL here, your trainers can treat the injury, or "juice" the player up to get him back in the game. Sweet. Get the opposing team all riled up with a succession of dirty hits, and you'll spark a full on brawl, where you can cause some serious damage. It's like hockey without all the Canadians!
Like I said, I've only played two complete games, so these opinions are subject to change. But I'm having way too damn much fun laying the smackdown.
Oh, and I mentioned earlier about the best pure football game ever. What's the best arcade style football game ever? Mutant League Football for the Genesis. B:TL reminds me so much of Mutant League it makes me giddy.
Monday, January 02, 2006
Mid-Season Roundup
We're halfway through this year's broadcast television season, and I feel like running through the shows that I started watching at the beginning of this season, and those that I'm no longer watching (mostly because they were cancelled).
Monday night:
How I Met Your Mother, 7:30 pm, CBS - Despite my early prediction that this show would get a quick axe (it really doesn't strike me as the type of show the over-50 set would watch, which is what CBS's audience is primarily made of), it's been picked up for a full season. Thumbs up.
Arrested Development, 8:00 pm, FOX - I jumped on this show's bandwagon very late. The previews always made it look like shit, but once I actually watched an episode, I was a convert. Of course, I got to watch about 3 episodes before FOX cancelled it. Great job, FOX. Thumbs up for the show, thumbs down for the decision to can it.
Kitchen Confidential, 8:30 pm, FOX - Ok, call me a fan boy if you will, but the only reason I checked out this show is because it co-starred Nic Brendon (of Buffy: TVS fame). But it was actually not a bad show. It didn't get the ratings, however, and that doesn't sit well with FOX executives, who axed it. Thumbs down, FOX.
Prison Break, 9:00 pm, FOX - Yet another innovative show on the FOX network, and this time, the people watched, so it was picked up for a full season. However, in their infinite wisdom, they've decided to put it on "winter hiatus" until late March. Jesus Christ, I don't know how many viewers are going to return after 3 months with no new episodes, but if FOX cancels it because of poor ratings, heads are going to fucking roll. Thumbs up for the show, and a sideways thumb for FOX's handling.
Tuesday night:
Bones, 8:00 pm, FOX - I've called it the best crime drama I've ever seen. FOX picked it up for a full season, but is proceeding to throw it under a bus later this month, when it moves to Wednesdays at 9:00 pm, up against two sophomore behemoths, Lost and Veronica Mars. Look for it to be cancelled 3 weeks later for poor ratings. Middle finger up, FOX.
My Name Is Earl, 9:00 pm, NBC - The best new comedy on TV, and perhaps the best comedy of the year. NBC is moving it to Thursday's this week as part of the new "Must See" Thursday comedy lineup. This would have upset me, as it would have fucked up my viewing schedule for Thursday nights, if it weren't for another boneheaded decision by FOX (you'll see below). Two big thumbs up for Jason Lee.
The Office, 9:30 pm, NBC - Last year's best new comedy, and the second best comedy of the year, in my opinion. This one's moving along with Earl to Thursday. Thumbs up.
Supernatural, 9:00 pm, WB - Interesting new show that I was taping until I discovered it replayed on Sunday nights. I'm pretty sure this has been picked up for a full season, no doubt because of adolescent girls getting wet over Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles. Thumbs up.
Wednesday night:
Lost, 9:00 pm, ABC - I discovered this show on DVD. As with AD, the only reason I wasn't converted earlier is because the previews made it look like shit. Great show, but the best drama on TV title belongs to the next show on this list.
Veronica Mars, 9:00 pm, UPN - Holy fucking shit. Why was I not told about this show earlier? I discovered it on DVD, and then devoured reruns to get caught up to date. I can't wait until the 18th, when I actually get to watch a brand new episode for the first time on TV. Two thumbs up.
Head Cases, 9:00 pm, FOX - Seriously, why do I even start watching shows on FOX? They're just going to get cancelled, like this one did, after 2 episodes. That's right, 2 episodes. Why even bother, FOX?
Invasion, 10:00 pm, ABC - This is what's called a "Lost clone." It's also what's called a lousy TV show. Lost grabbed me during the first episode. This piece of shit dragged on and made me question why I was wasting my time. I actually watched the entire first episode, and didn't bother after that.
Thursday night:
Smallville, 8:00 pm, WB - Yet another show I discovered on DVD, and devoured the first four seasons over the summer to get ready for the new season. I'm so glad I did, because none other than James Marsters guest starred as Brainiac. Plus, it's Superman. Who doesn't like Supes?
Reunion, 9:00 pm, FOX - The story of six friends from high school, one of whom was recently murdered mysteriously. We're taken back 20 years to graduation day, and told the story in flashbacks, covering one year in each episode. But we're never going to solve the mystery, because it's been cancelled. Why, oh why, did the producers pitch it to FOX? I was looking forward to finding out who killed Samantha. Now we know FOX did. Fuck you, FOX. Fuck you in your stupid asses.
Friday night:
Threshold, 9:00 pm, CBS - I think this is another one of those Lost clones. It's also another one of those shitty TV shows. I watched the first episode, which was sort of interesting, but I just don't have time to watch TV on Friday night. And from what I've heard, the show went on to have all sorts of stupid pseudo-science and just plain non-science, brain bugs, and Treknobabble (what else would you expect from Brannon Braga?). And now it's cancelled. Good riddance to bad rubbish.
So there you have it. Four months ago, I was watching six shows on FOX. Now I'll be watching one of two remaining, which will get axed, and I'll have to wait until March to watch the other. *deep sigh*
Monday night:
How I Met Your Mother, 7:30 pm, CBS - Despite my early prediction that this show would get a quick axe (it really doesn't strike me as the type of show the over-50 set would watch, which is what CBS's audience is primarily made of), it's been picked up for a full season. Thumbs up.
Arrested Development, 8:00 pm, FOX - I jumped on this show's bandwagon very late. The previews always made it look like shit, but once I actually watched an episode, I was a convert. Of course, I got to watch about 3 episodes before FOX cancelled it. Great job, FOX. Thumbs up for the show, thumbs down for the decision to can it.
Kitchen Confidential, 8:30 pm, FOX - Ok, call me a fan boy if you will, but the only reason I checked out this show is because it co-starred Nic Brendon (of Buffy: TVS fame). But it was actually not a bad show. It didn't get the ratings, however, and that doesn't sit well with FOX executives, who axed it. Thumbs down, FOX.
Prison Break, 9:00 pm, FOX - Yet another innovative show on the FOX network, and this time, the people watched, so it was picked up for a full season. However, in their infinite wisdom, they've decided to put it on "winter hiatus" until late March. Jesus Christ, I don't know how many viewers are going to return after 3 months with no new episodes, but if FOX cancels it because of poor ratings, heads are going to fucking roll. Thumbs up for the show, and a sideways thumb for FOX's handling.
Tuesday night:
Bones, 8:00 pm, FOX - I've called it the best crime drama I've ever seen. FOX picked it up for a full season, but is proceeding to throw it under a bus later this month, when it moves to Wednesdays at 9:00 pm, up against two sophomore behemoths, Lost and Veronica Mars. Look for it to be cancelled 3 weeks later for poor ratings. Middle finger up, FOX.
My Name Is Earl, 9:00 pm, NBC - The best new comedy on TV, and perhaps the best comedy of the year. NBC is moving it to Thursday's this week as part of the new "Must See" Thursday comedy lineup. This would have upset me, as it would have fucked up my viewing schedule for Thursday nights, if it weren't for another boneheaded decision by FOX (you'll see below). Two big thumbs up for Jason Lee.
The Office, 9:30 pm, NBC - Last year's best new comedy, and the second best comedy of the year, in my opinion. This one's moving along with Earl to Thursday. Thumbs up.
Supernatural, 9:00 pm, WB - Interesting new show that I was taping until I discovered it replayed on Sunday nights. I'm pretty sure this has been picked up for a full season, no doubt because of adolescent girls getting wet over Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles. Thumbs up.
Wednesday night:
Lost, 9:00 pm, ABC - I discovered this show on DVD. As with AD, the only reason I wasn't converted earlier is because the previews made it look like shit. Great show, but the best drama on TV title belongs to the next show on this list.
Veronica Mars, 9:00 pm, UPN - Holy fucking shit. Why was I not told about this show earlier? I discovered it on DVD, and then devoured reruns to get caught up to date. I can't wait until the 18th, when I actually get to watch a brand new episode for the first time on TV. Two thumbs up.
Head Cases, 9:00 pm, FOX - Seriously, why do I even start watching shows on FOX? They're just going to get cancelled, like this one did, after 2 episodes. That's right, 2 episodes. Why even bother, FOX?
Invasion, 10:00 pm, ABC - This is what's called a "Lost clone." It's also what's called a lousy TV show. Lost grabbed me during the first episode. This piece of shit dragged on and made me question why I was wasting my time. I actually watched the entire first episode, and didn't bother after that.
Thursday night:
Smallville, 8:00 pm, WB - Yet another show I discovered on DVD, and devoured the first four seasons over the summer to get ready for the new season. I'm so glad I did, because none other than James Marsters guest starred as Brainiac. Plus, it's Superman. Who doesn't like Supes?
Reunion, 9:00 pm, FOX - The story of six friends from high school, one of whom was recently murdered mysteriously. We're taken back 20 years to graduation day, and told the story in flashbacks, covering one year in each episode. But we're never going to solve the mystery, because it's been cancelled. Why, oh why, did the producers pitch it to FOX? I was looking forward to finding out who killed Samantha. Now we know FOX did. Fuck you, FOX. Fuck you in your stupid asses.
Friday night:
Threshold, 9:00 pm, CBS - I think this is another one of those Lost clones. It's also another one of those shitty TV shows. I watched the first episode, which was sort of interesting, but I just don't have time to watch TV on Friday night. And from what I've heard, the show went on to have all sorts of stupid pseudo-science and just plain non-science, brain bugs, and Treknobabble (what else would you expect from Brannon Braga?). And now it's cancelled. Good riddance to bad rubbish.
So there you have it. Four months ago, I was watching six shows on FOX. Now I'll be watching one of two remaining, which will get axed, and I'll have to wait until March to watch the other. *deep sigh*
Virtual Firefly
First off, Happy New Year! I hope your New Year's Eve was as good as mine, because mine rocked. Also, I hope you didn't have to participate in the annual Holiday Death Bowl on the freeways and made it home safe no matter how much or little you had to travel.
Now, on to the business for today.
I've never been big on fan fiction, mostly because I've never been a big enough fan to care about crappy, fan-made garbage.
But then I was browsing FireflyFans.net, and ran across a thread about a "Virtual Firefly" season. The idea was to finish off the first season (starting with episode 16), and then do an entire second season, in order to bridge the gap between the end of the TV show and the beginning of the movie. To my surprise, an entire episode had already been written and posted. Go here if you'd like to check it out. Scroll down, and click on "Teaser" then "Chapter 1" then "Act 2" and so on.
I think it's awesome. With any project this ambitious, I really want to see it come to fruition, but it may very well fizzle out. We'll see, but for right now, I'm looking forward to Episode 17.
P.S. There's another Virtual Firefly project on the FireflyFans.net board that I haven't read yet. It's also the second season of Firefly, but it continues the story after the events of Serenity. The website for that project is here, and they already have the first episode posted.
Now, on to the business for today.
I've never been big on fan fiction, mostly because I've never been a big enough fan to care about crappy, fan-made garbage.
But then I was browsing FireflyFans.net, and ran across a thread about a "Virtual Firefly" season. The idea was to finish off the first season (starting with episode 16), and then do an entire second season, in order to bridge the gap between the end of the TV show and the beginning of the movie. To my surprise, an entire episode had already been written and posted. Go here if you'd like to check it out. Scroll down, and click on "Teaser" then "Chapter 1" then "Act 2" and so on.
I think it's awesome. With any project this ambitious, I really want to see it come to fruition, but it may very well fizzle out. We'll see, but for right now, I'm looking forward to Episode 17.
P.S. There's another Virtual Firefly project on the FireflyFans.net board that I haven't read yet. It's also the second season of Firefly, but it continues the story after the events of Serenity. The website for that project is here, and they already have the first episode posted.
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Pic-a-ture
Yep, new avatar picture. That's me. It's highly stylized (oh how I love thee, Photoshop), but I think it looks badass. Very Marv-ish.
That's all for today, just the pic. For New Year's Eve I'm heading down to the Bob Hope Theatre (formerly the Fox) with Justin to rock out with some Van Halen and AC/DC cover bands. Should be awesome. Have a safe one, folks, see you in 2006.
That's all for today, just the pic. For New Year's Eve I'm heading down to the Bob Hope Theatre (formerly the Fox) with Justin to rock out with some Van Halen and AC/DC cover bands. Should be awesome. Have a safe one, folks, see you in 2006.
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
This is your life
Ran across a link to a "Life Rating" quiz today, right here. Of course, I had to take it.
My results look like this.
First off, don't cry for my love life. Sure, a .8 looks bad, but that's because the questions were loaded. Yes, I'm single and don't have prospects on the horizon, but that doesn't mean I'm unhappy with my situation. Far from it, actually.
I also have to take issue with the Friends and Family score. I love my immediate family, don't need my extended family (bunch of redneck, racist, bible-thumping assholes anyway), and I have a great core group of friends.
Now that I look at it, most of these scores are a bit off. The Body score could actually be a bit lower. I suffer from FBS (fat bastard syndrome), although I don't necessarily care who knows it, and it doesn't have an effect on my self esteem. And the Finance score shouldn't be that high. I have a steady, decent paying job, but I'm working on a mountain of college debt (not as big a mountain as some people have, granted, but it's a mountain to me).
So my life, rated, isn't very accurate. But it was a fun time waster.
My results look like this.
| This Is My Life, Rated | |
| Life: |  6.7 |
| Mind: | 6.5 |
| Body: |  5.5 |
| Spirit: |  6 |
| Friends/Family: | 4.7 |
| Love: |  0.8 |
| Finance: | 6.8 |
| Take the Rate My Life Quiz | |
First off, don't cry for my love life. Sure, a .8 looks bad, but that's because the questions were loaded. Yes, I'm single and don't have prospects on the horizon, but that doesn't mean I'm unhappy with my situation. Far from it, actually.
I also have to take issue with the Friends and Family score. I love my immediate family, don't need my extended family (bunch of redneck, racist, bible-thumping assholes anyway), and I have a great core group of friends.
Now that I look at it, most of these scores are a bit off. The Body score could actually be a bit lower. I suffer from FBS (fat bastard syndrome), although I don't necessarily care who knows it, and it doesn't have an effect on my self esteem. And the Finance score shouldn't be that high. I have a steady, decent paying job, but I'm working on a mountain of college debt (not as big a mountain as some people have, granted, but it's a mountain to me).
So my life, rated, isn't very accurate. But it was a fun time waster.
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Guitar players: Heroes of our modern age
I have a newfound respect for guitar players. I always knew, on some level, that the skill necessary to play a guitar was one worthy of reverence. That became more evident when I got my first "real" guitar and began the long journey of learning to play (one which I have stalled on, but that's another tale). But today, I look upon guitarists with sheer awe.
For I have attempted to play "Bark at the Moon" on Medium difficulty in Guitar Hero. I know what you're thinking. Medium? You're a chump who doesn't deserve to call himself a gamer. But I ask you to pause in your verbal bashing of my gaming skills. Bark at the Moon on Medium is incredibly hard, almost impossible. The speed and precision required to even get halfway through the song is incredible. And this is with a guitar shaped controller with 5 fret buttons (of which only 4 are used on the song) and a strum bar that replaces the 6 strings commonly found on a guitar.
Zakk Wylde, the lead guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne on Bark at the Moon, is a god among men. If you've heard the song before, you have an idea of the flurry of notes he plays, particulary in the solo. For a better idea of what playing the song is actually like, check out this tablature. A quick primer on guitar tabs: The table is laid out where each row represents one of the 6 strings, and each column is a note or chord that's played. The numbers represent the fret the guitarist places his finger on the string in order to produce that note or chord. A 0 is an open string. The lower the number, the lower the note (higher on the fret board), and frets are numbered from 1 to 20-something.
The tab doesn't give you any idea of the tempo, but it's fast. Just looking at that tab gives me the shivers. It's a bit hard to visualize if you've never practiced fingering on the fretboard of a guitar, but take it from me: Bark at the Moon is a finger-melter as much as it is a face-melter.
For I have attempted to play "Bark at the Moon" on Medium difficulty in Guitar Hero. I know what you're thinking. Medium? You're a chump who doesn't deserve to call himself a gamer. But I ask you to pause in your verbal bashing of my gaming skills. Bark at the Moon on Medium is incredibly hard, almost impossible. The speed and precision required to even get halfway through the song is incredible. And this is with a guitar shaped controller with 5 fret buttons (of which only 4 are used on the song) and a strum bar that replaces the 6 strings commonly found on a guitar.
Zakk Wylde, the lead guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne on Bark at the Moon, is a god among men. If you've heard the song before, you have an idea of the flurry of notes he plays, particulary in the solo. For a better idea of what playing the song is actually like, check out this tablature. A quick primer on guitar tabs: The table is laid out where each row represents one of the 6 strings, and each column is a note or chord that's played. The numbers represent the fret the guitarist places his finger on the string in order to produce that note or chord. A 0 is an open string. The lower the number, the lower the note (higher on the fret board), and frets are numbered from 1 to 20-something.
The tab doesn't give you any idea of the tempo, but it's fast. Just looking at that tab gives me the shivers. It's a bit hard to visualize if you've never practiced fingering on the fretboard of a guitar, but take it from me: Bark at the Moon is a finger-melter as much as it is a face-melter.
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
There's no place I can be, since I found Serenity
For any of you who have been living under a damn rock, Serenity hit the streets today (actually yesterday according to the post time, but WTF) on DVD. I haven't gotten my copy yet, as I heard tell it's something of a Christmas present, but I did purchase 3 copies to give others as gifts. So what are you waiting for? Go forth, and buy.
Monday, December 19, 2005
Just one of them days...
I promise I'm not going to whine and bitch about work like I used to on this blog, and most people do every day on their blogs, but allow me this one tiny complaint. Is it too much to ask that we be nice to each other? I'm not requesting we blow smoke up each others asses, but at least be civil, and polite.
After all, it's the holiday season. If we can't be nice to each other now, when can we? There's no need to yell, or be rude. For the record, I have no problem with cursing (is that obvious? Fuckin A it is). But if you're going to get all worked up over something, why not tell someone who can actually do something about it? I just work here, buddy. You got problems with the man? So do I. Take it up with him, but don't get all pissy with me about it, and threaten to sue, or cancel your membership, or hang up on me because you don't like the truth. Fuck you.
Now I know why postal workers are notorious for going crazy and shooting a bunch of people. Dealing with the dregs of society day after day can really get on your fucking nerves.
After all, it's the holiday season. If we can't be nice to each other now, when can we? There's no need to yell, or be rude. For the record, I have no problem with cursing (is that obvious? Fuckin A it is). But if you're going to get all worked up over something, why not tell someone who can actually do something about it? I just work here, buddy. You got problems with the man? So do I. Take it up with him, but don't get all pissy with me about it, and threaten to sue, or cancel your membership, or hang up on me because you don't like the truth. Fuck you.
Now I know why postal workers are notorious for going crazy and shooting a bunch of people. Dealing with the dregs of society day after day can really get on your fucking nerves.
Sunday, December 18, 2005
Miscellaneous Stuff
Here's a couple of things that have been on my mind this weekend, that are important enough to write about, but not important enough to merit their own post.
I saw Syriana on Saturday. Good flick, closest compared with Traffic. I liked Traffic, but for some reason, found it harder to follow than Syriana, which many people have complained about. I didn't find Syriana hard to follow at all. The trick is paying attention. A lot of American theatre-goers like to shut their brains off when the lights go down, but Syriana's not that kind of movie, and it can't be faulted for that.
Even so, I can't complain too much about the American theatre-goers, as enough of them went to see Syriana in it's opening weekend that it opened at #2, up against the Christian behemoth that is Narnia. Good on you, folks, although you're still not off the hook for passing on Serenity (which is still the best movie of 2005, in my book).
I also got Guitar Hero delivered to my door on Saturday. If I didn't already own a PS2, I'd seriously consider buying one just for this game. It comes with a guitar, for chrissakes. Sure, it's a guitar controller, but damn if it isn't badass. And you get to rock the house with it. It's extremely satisfying to nail a complicated riff, then tilt the guitar vertically and melt the audience's faces with a solo. If only playing a real guitar was this easy to pick up and start rocking out with.
Finally, I recently discovered Farscape. Let me rephrase that. I actually watched the first few episodes of Farscape, as I'd never seen a single one before. I had heard about it, sure, and had even gone so far as to look up the boxed sets on Amazon. It was then that I took a step back, as the price was outrageous (something like 120 bucks a season). But I finally rented the first disc from Netflix, and it's pretty good. It hasn't blown me away, but it's certainly got my attention. Now the only problem is juggling all the TV shows I'm in the middle of watching on DVD and on broadcast TV.
I saw Syriana on Saturday. Good flick, closest compared with Traffic. I liked Traffic, but for some reason, found it harder to follow than Syriana, which many people have complained about. I didn't find Syriana hard to follow at all. The trick is paying attention. A lot of American theatre-goers like to shut their brains off when the lights go down, but Syriana's not that kind of movie, and it can't be faulted for that.
Even so, I can't complain too much about the American theatre-goers, as enough of them went to see Syriana in it's opening weekend that it opened at #2, up against the Christian behemoth that is Narnia. Good on you, folks, although you're still not off the hook for passing on Serenity (which is still the best movie of 2005, in my book).
I also got Guitar Hero delivered to my door on Saturday. If I didn't already own a PS2, I'd seriously consider buying one just for this game. It comes with a guitar, for chrissakes. Sure, it's a guitar controller, but damn if it isn't badass. And you get to rock the house with it. It's extremely satisfying to nail a complicated riff, then tilt the guitar vertically and melt the audience's faces with a solo. If only playing a real guitar was this easy to pick up and start rocking out with.
Finally, I recently discovered Farscape. Let me rephrase that. I actually watched the first few episodes of Farscape, as I'd never seen a single one before. I had heard about it, sure, and had even gone so far as to look up the boxed sets on Amazon. It was then that I took a step back, as the price was outrageous (something like 120 bucks a season). But I finally rented the first disc from Netflix, and it's pretty good. It hasn't blown me away, but it's certainly got my attention. Now the only problem is juggling all the TV shows I'm in the middle of watching on DVD and on broadcast TV.
Friday, December 09, 2005
Number 2 isn't as bad as you think
Rumors continue to swirl around Nintendo's next-gen console, code-named Revolution. We know what the controller and the unit itself will look like, but not much else. It might be twice as powerful as the Gamecube; it might use standard DVD5's and DVD9's as its medium; it might have free downloadable first party retro titles and pay-for-play third party retro titles; it might sell for $150 or less at launch; it might have free, wireless online play; it might have new games that sell for $50; it might come out in time for Christmas in 2006.
We just don't know for sure. Even if half those rumors are true, or have some bit of truth to them (especially the launch price), I think Nintendo stands a very good chance of coming in at a solid #2 in the console wars this time around. And #2 is not a bad place to be, especially for Nintendo right now.
I've said this before, but if Nintendo is in last place this time around, they're done as a hardware developer. It happened to Sega, and it'll happen to Nintendo. I really don't want to see that happen, since I think Nintendo has some truely interesting ideas, and I've been a fan or theirs since I was 5. But the console market only has room for two consoles, not 3.
I think Microsoft will come out on top, regardless of what I consider a very poor launch (though the general consensus seems to be "best launch ever"), for a number of reasons. They launched the 360 at least 6 months (probably closer to a year) before anyone else will launch their next-gen offerings, they've got (I believe) the most powerful console, they've got a solid list of upcoming titles, and they have a strong, consistent vision for the direction and purpose of their console. That last bit is something Sony is sorely lacking.
Which is why I think Sony is dead last. It takes balls to predict a turnaround from first to worst, but I got balls like you wouldn't believe. Sony would like us to think the PS3 will hit Spring 2006, but from what I've read, they're not even close to Spring 2006, and I would be surprised if they managed to launch next year at all. Scratch that, I think they'll bust their asses to launch at Christmas 2006, but it will be a huge mistake. There were manufacturing shortages of the 360, and it was actually ready to launch. If Sony tries to bring out the PS3 next winter, not only will there be shortages, the first generation of hardware will have serious issues (anyone remember the first generation of the PS1 having a heatsink that didn't work? I do). Not only that, but what compelling reasons are there to buy a PS3? Blu-ray? I can buy a standalone player if Blu-ray actually becomes the dominant format. Games? Sony has an exclusive with MGS4, but I stopped caring about the MGS games after the travesty that was MGS2. Sony also has Gran Turismo, which Forza Motorsport put to shame. And the Grand Theft Auto games eventually came to Xbox. Controller design? I don't need a fucking Batarang, thanks.
The way I see it, there's no reason for Nintendo not to end up in second place.
We just don't know for sure. Even if half those rumors are true, or have some bit of truth to them (especially the launch price), I think Nintendo stands a very good chance of coming in at a solid #2 in the console wars this time around. And #2 is not a bad place to be, especially for Nintendo right now.
I've said this before, but if Nintendo is in last place this time around, they're done as a hardware developer. It happened to Sega, and it'll happen to Nintendo. I really don't want to see that happen, since I think Nintendo has some truely interesting ideas, and I've been a fan or theirs since I was 5. But the console market only has room for two consoles, not 3.
I think Microsoft will come out on top, regardless of what I consider a very poor launch (though the general consensus seems to be "best launch ever"), for a number of reasons. They launched the 360 at least 6 months (probably closer to a year) before anyone else will launch their next-gen offerings, they've got (I believe) the most powerful console, they've got a solid list of upcoming titles, and they have a strong, consistent vision for the direction and purpose of their console. That last bit is something Sony is sorely lacking.
Which is why I think Sony is dead last. It takes balls to predict a turnaround from first to worst, but I got balls like you wouldn't believe. Sony would like us to think the PS3 will hit Spring 2006, but from what I've read, they're not even close to Spring 2006, and I would be surprised if they managed to launch next year at all. Scratch that, I think they'll bust their asses to launch at Christmas 2006, but it will be a huge mistake. There were manufacturing shortages of the 360, and it was actually ready to launch. If Sony tries to bring out the PS3 next winter, not only will there be shortages, the first generation of hardware will have serious issues (anyone remember the first generation of the PS1 having a heatsink that didn't work? I do). Not only that, but what compelling reasons are there to buy a PS3? Blu-ray? I can buy a standalone player if Blu-ray actually becomes the dominant format. Games? Sony has an exclusive with MGS4, but I stopped caring about the MGS games after the travesty that was MGS2. Sony also has Gran Turismo, which Forza Motorsport put to shame. And the Grand Theft Auto games eventually came to Xbox. Controller design? I don't need a fucking Batarang, thanks.
The way I see it, there's no reason for Nintendo not to end up in second place.
Monday, December 05, 2005
Backwards compatibility, my ass
Backwards compatibility, for me anyway, has never been a strong selling point on a console. I don't get rid of my old systems, so if I ever felt the urge to boot up the original cartridge of TMNT: the Arcade game, I could; assuming I wanted to go to the trouble of hooking up my NES and cleaning both it and the game first. The point is, it's there, should I want to.
Like I said, I never really gave backwards compatibility a second thought until this weekend. Justin came over, and wanted to play some Bushido Blade 2 (which is, arguably, the best fighting game ever. I mean, ninjas and swords and one hit kills? Badass, man) for the PS1. Hey, whaddya know, my PS2 is backwards compatible, so I don't have to pull my PS1 out and hook it up.
So we were playing, trading off against the CPU, and unlocked some secret characters. At the end of the story mission, it asked if we wanted to save. Of course. The PS2 looked for the memory card, and then popped up with, "Memory card was removed." No, it wasn't. It had been there the whole time. I thought maybe it didn't like the PS2 memory card, so I dug out one of my old PS1 cards and tried again. "Memory card was removed." Bullshit, mother fucker. So I didn't save, and went to the memory card manager, thinking there might not be enough space on the card. Nope, that wasn't the problem, either.
So, even though Sony hyped the shit out of the PS2 being backwards compatible (the first console to do so, if I remember correctly, although I believe Nintendo might have beat them to the punch in the overall market with their handheld Game Boy something or other), it's really not. Why should I bother playing a PS1 game on my PS2 if I can't save my fucking progress?
Here's what really pisses me off, though: there are PS1 emulators for the PC that are capable of saving my progress just fine. Emulators, that, might I add, a group of folks coded in their spare time, for no money. Why did Sony bother paying their employees to emulate their PS1 poorly when they could have payed people that would have done the job right?
Like I said, I never really gave backwards compatibility a second thought until this weekend. Justin came over, and wanted to play some Bushido Blade 2 (which is, arguably, the best fighting game ever. I mean, ninjas and swords and one hit kills? Badass, man) for the PS1. Hey, whaddya know, my PS2 is backwards compatible, so I don't have to pull my PS1 out and hook it up.
So we were playing, trading off against the CPU, and unlocked some secret characters. At the end of the story mission, it asked if we wanted to save. Of course. The PS2 looked for the memory card, and then popped up with, "Memory card was removed." No, it wasn't. It had been there the whole time. I thought maybe it didn't like the PS2 memory card, so I dug out one of my old PS1 cards and tried again. "Memory card was removed." Bullshit, mother fucker. So I didn't save, and went to the memory card manager, thinking there might not be enough space on the card. Nope, that wasn't the problem, either.
So, even though Sony hyped the shit out of the PS2 being backwards compatible (the first console to do so, if I remember correctly, although I believe Nintendo might have beat them to the punch in the overall market with their handheld Game Boy something or other), it's really not. Why should I bother playing a PS1 game on my PS2 if I can't save my fucking progress?
Here's what really pisses me off, though: there are PS1 emulators for the PC that are capable of saving my progress just fine. Emulators, that, might I add, a group of folks coded in their spare time, for no money. Why did Sony bother paying their employees to emulate their PS1 poorly when they could have payed people that would have done the job right?
Sunday, December 04, 2005
I love it, but TV sucks
It really does. For each one of the handful of shows that I watch on a regular basis, there's a vast wasteland of bullshit out there on the dial. For every Smallville, there's a 7th Heaven. For every Veronica Mars, there's an OC. For every Bones, there's a CSI: Hoboken. For every Lost, there's a Survivor 47: Guam. And for every one of the handful of shows that I enjoy that have played out their run in its entirety, there's a fuck-ton of great shows that have been mercilessly cut down in their prime.
I could run down the list of fantastic shows that Fox alone has cancelled, but we could be here a while. Instead, I'll talk a bit about two of Fox's newest shows that I really like, but probably aren't going to make it into their sophomore years.
1. Prison Break. Sure, the plot holes are big enough to drive a truck through, but who gives a shit? It's fucking entertaining, as long as you don't think about it logically. And it was doing real well for Fox on Monday nights. So what do they do? 13 episodes in, it's done until March. That's 4 months with no new episodes. 4 months? Americans would forget about their own kids if they didn't see them in 4 months, they're damn sure going to forget about a TV show. Why does Prison Break have to go on a 4 month long hiatus? So Fox can make room for "Ice Skating with the Stars."
2. Bones. Certainly the best crime drama I've seen, and that's not just because David Boreanaz is in it. Fox recognizes that they've got a hit with this show, but what are they doing? After a month long "winter hiatus" coming up at the end of this month, they're moving it from a prime spot Tuesdays at 8 to a murderous slot on Wednesdays at 9. Why is Wednesdays at 9 murderous? Because that's Lost's timeslot, not to mention Veronica Mars, who's no lightweight. And why, pray tell, would Fox do this? To make room for American Idol, that's why. American Idol has to take up two, count em, two prime slots: Tuesday and Wednesday at 8, one hour for performances, and one hour for results. I'll give you one guess why they're not putting the results show on Wednesday at 9, like they used to. That's right, so it doesn't go up against Lost. As if enough people didn't already get the results straight from the internet, they want to give everybody the opportunity to watch it on TV for a whole fucking hour, and let Bones deal with Lost.
Fan-fucking-tastic, Fox. Let me get this straight: you're intentionally killing (or at least, throwing to the dogs) two breakout hit shows so you can....put on more reality TV? People love the American Idol, they gotta have their Idol. But what the fuck is Ice Skating with the Stars? Who the hell watches this horseshit? I certainly don't. And why the hell is Survivor still on? I don't fucking care if it's not a Fox show. Did you know that piece of excrement is in its 11th season? It premiered in 2000, and has never not been on TV since for more than a 5 month stretch of time. That's enough proof for me that there is no god.
I could run down the list of fantastic shows that Fox alone has cancelled, but we could be here a while. Instead, I'll talk a bit about two of Fox's newest shows that I really like, but probably aren't going to make it into their sophomore years.
1. Prison Break. Sure, the plot holes are big enough to drive a truck through, but who gives a shit? It's fucking entertaining, as long as you don't think about it logically. And it was doing real well for Fox on Monday nights. So what do they do? 13 episodes in, it's done until March. That's 4 months with no new episodes. 4 months? Americans would forget about their own kids if they didn't see them in 4 months, they're damn sure going to forget about a TV show. Why does Prison Break have to go on a 4 month long hiatus? So Fox can make room for "Ice Skating with the Stars."
2. Bones. Certainly the best crime drama I've seen, and that's not just because David Boreanaz is in it. Fox recognizes that they've got a hit with this show, but what are they doing? After a month long "winter hiatus" coming up at the end of this month, they're moving it from a prime spot Tuesdays at 8 to a murderous slot on Wednesdays at 9. Why is Wednesdays at 9 murderous? Because that's Lost's timeslot, not to mention Veronica Mars, who's no lightweight. And why, pray tell, would Fox do this? To make room for American Idol, that's why. American Idol has to take up two, count em, two prime slots: Tuesday and Wednesday at 8, one hour for performances, and one hour for results. I'll give you one guess why they're not putting the results show on Wednesday at 9, like they used to. That's right, so it doesn't go up against Lost. As if enough people didn't already get the results straight from the internet, they want to give everybody the opportunity to watch it on TV for a whole fucking hour, and let Bones deal with Lost.
Fan-fucking-tastic, Fox. Let me get this straight: you're intentionally killing (or at least, throwing to the dogs) two breakout hit shows so you can....put on more reality TV? People love the American Idol, they gotta have their Idol. But what the fuck is Ice Skating with the Stars? Who the hell watches this horseshit? I certainly don't. And why the hell is Survivor still on? I don't fucking care if it's not a Fox show. Did you know that piece of excrement is in its 11th season? It premiered in 2000, and has never not been on TV since for more than a 5 month stretch of time. That's enough proof for me that there is no god.
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