Peruse with a View

Consolidation....

2010-10-08T02:51:00.000-05:00

Looks like I will be moving my attentions to to my DJ Blog. Consolidating seems to be the wise choice and will save doing the "cut and paste" shuffle. This will allow my feeble brain to concentrate on one project at a time.

Art's Closet, that's where all the cool kids are now anyway.

Welcome to the Jungle

2010-10-06T14:40:00.002-05:00

“Welcome to the Jungle” - This is Jungle. It's the first portable gaming console designed exclusively for online gaming and MMORPGs.

“At the core is a new mobile device concept designed specifically for online gamers. We’re also working with leading online game developers to create some exciting new content.”

Panasonic is throwing their hat into the gaming device arena again. The last time was the 3DO which had healthy competition, carried a hefty price tag and was left sitting on the shelf in most cases.

There are no details on specs and the only info we are getting is what we can see from the device. Micro USB, HDMI, headphone jack and maybe an aux jack.

This is a great concept that has been hit and miss for the last few years. Simple graphics, stand alone gameplay, co-op gameplay, Browser based but with extras. Videos, Camera, Web Browsing, E-mail, Music....Phone!

Panasonic's target is On-line gaming and MMORPG's. Is it just me or is it all in the wording.

On-line gaming and MMORPG are not essentially the same thing. Zynga products are on-line gaming, Lord of the Rings Online is an MMORPG, see the difference?

I'm not trying to bury this before it actually dies but I do have my doubts. Do people really want to play Age of Conan on the bus? Oh wait, is Age of Conan going to be Jungle friendly?

True mobile MMO? What is it going to need?

Great screen resolution: If not, then whats the buzz. Other handheld's already have a start. In order to hit the mainstream Kick Ass MMO crowd, I would imagine that it would need to run existing MMO's. If we are going to have to wait for specific MMOS to be developed then this Jungle is doomed.

Great Processing power: Along with kick ass video, one would need kick ass processing power. Okay, maybe kick butt processing power. Mid Range processor, Intel Core i5 perhaps. As an MMO gamer, to give this a second glance means running my present gaming addictions. This needs to be a Laptop that has been splashed with the latest shrinking potion, otherwise..I will just use my Laptop for any mobile gaming needed. Of course if its running Linux as an OS maybe the processing power isn't needed, but the 3G needed may. This is truly a Jungle.

Apple and Oranges: The big player right now is the Nintendo 3DS. This little powerhouse has been given great reviews from E3. Imagine 3D without the need for glasses. Given the competition is still Handheld Gaming, the 3DS offers more, of course the Jungle is On-line MMORPG games only, On-line MMORPG games only, On-line MMORPG games only. Thats how the features will be listed.

No life in the Jungle?

Without having the full details it's difficult to say where this will end up. There are several that have already sent flowers and expect a DOA device. A keyboard is what makes this an MMO device. Due to the fact that the trend is "Touch Screen" this was the only thing, so far that made sense. A keyboard and/or controller is not something that is "touch screenable" for this lifetime.

The ability to play my fav MMO's, on a hand held device, with the resolution that we have

achieved in gaming, at my family reunion or dinner at the in-laws, makes me break out in a cold sweat. We would have arrived at the next evolution of mobile gaming., but as I try to picture my day to day MMO life in the Jungle, I cant see the Jungle for the trees.

Hail to the King Baby....

2010-09-03T21:56:00.005-05:00

Duke Nukem Forever,” a video game synonymous with never being released, is finally being released.

Image via Wikipedia

God Bless the boys from iD Software for Sharing.

I remember the shareware version of their games back in the day. Wolfenstein 3D, Commander Keen, through Apogee Software/3D Realms. What a great idea...Shareware.

Image via Wikipedia

The shareware distribution method was initially employed by id Software through Apogee Software to sell their products, such as the Commander Keen, Wolfenstein and Doom games. They would release the first part of their trilogy as shareware, then sell the other two installments by mail order.

Duke trying to break through to his final stand, or forever stand, seemed to end with the closing of 3D Realms in 2009. Despite the hurdles for Duke Nukem Forever I am glad to see some promising news. Announced in 1997,10 years in development by 2009, a possible release in 2011, this may be the game of the century. No matter if it ends up being a crap game or same 'ole Duke just in High Def, I will be getting this game.

This was a game that brought hours of enjoyment, inspired countless players to become game designers and offered cut scenes that were “award” worthy. This was my first first...my introduction to a noteworthy First Person Shooter.

Patiently waiting the return of the king....

Image via Wikipedia

Back to School...Let the games begin!

2010-08-27T14:27:00.005-05:00

I read an article awhile back and was amused at that point where we are in entertainment. Back to school still carries a certain “Blech” feeling when I hear it. Now that we are at that point or past it and school has changed the summer schedules and activities, there is always that helpful advice we get on helping our “mini-me's” survive the transition. The past few weeks, day time TV has been riddled with the helpful hints from snacks to homework, too rest and recreation. It was always a struggle for everyone to balance what's needed.

"We're going to make this short and sweet, parents: You probably shouldn't try to dodge a back-to-school gaming tuneup. Sure, talking about responsibilities and setting screen time limits is no fun. Kids hate rules, and parents hate having to play traffic cop. But back-to-school time means re-balancing languid, lazy summer schedules -- and if you're going to help your kids develop time management skills and a head for how to balance their own activities and schedules, this is the perfect teaching moment."

MMO Family is your resource for leveling a gaming-specced family, from tips on balancing gaming with family life to finding age-appropriate online games for everyone in the family.

Gaming has grown over the years and has taken its place among the “R&R” portions of our life. This is evident in several ways, but really gives notice when your local TV news mentions gaming along with other entertainment outlets, when offering the helpful hints entering the school year. For me, in the dark ages, it was a black and white TV with three channels. No real competition there, it was three channels.

I don’t have to worry about battle plans for a back to school tune up, I'm just waiting on grand kids. Those of you that do, I wish you the best, do right by your mini-me, because children are cool and deserve our best. Of course this means that Mom and Dad have to set the example and make sure they are showing restraint for the school season, it's only fair. Since I don’t have to worry about setting any examples, when asked “you played games for 6 hours?”, my retort is “I'm grown, I can do what I want”.

I remember family nights when “Alone in the Dark”, a survival horror game developed by Infogames was played.

Image via Wikipedia

"In 1925, Jeremy Hartwood, a noted artist and the owner of the Louisiana mansion Derceto, has committed suicide by hanging himself. His death appears suspicious yet seems to surprise no-one, for Derceto is widely reputed to be haunted by an evil power. The case is quickly dealt with by the police and soon forgotten by the public. The player assumes the role of either Edward Carnby – a private investigator who is sent to find a piano in the loft for an antique dealer - or Emily Hartwood, Jeremy's niece, who is also interested in finding the piano because she believes a secret drawer in it has a note in which Jeremy explains his suicide. The player, either as Carnby or Hartwood, goes to the mansion to investigate. As the player enters the house, the doors mysteriously slam shut behind him or her. Reluctantly, he or she continues up to the attic. In that room, the action begins."

With the lights off and the sound turned up, everyone would take their turn playing either character. Hours were spent working through puzzles, getting scared and generally laughing ourselves to tears. We played the game through to the end and when asked what shall we do on family night, “Lets play the Dark game dad.”, so we visited mansion Derceto on several occasions.

Our family night wasn’t the norm, gaming was the majority vote. Through Monkey Island, Indian Jones to Willy Beamish and Quest for Glory, we were gamers before gaming was cool. So naturally, these days, getting ready for the new school year has to include game time adjustments. No more playing games with dad until 1am.

MMO Radio "Where Gamers Rock!

2010-08-18T00:44:00.004-05:00

Taking a few steps back, say back about late 2004 I would guess, City of Heroes was a few months new and Paragon Radio was rocking the new world. This is where it began for me and continued through the Gameamp, and TMS Broadcasting changes. Gaming radio for MMO's was the “live on the scene play by play” that added an extra element to Online gaming. Contests, Party's, live commentary for quests or missions and the chance that your character may get a "shout out" on air. If you were listening on-air but not in game, it made you want to be in game and join in. If you were in game and not on-air...that was just odd. There was a good variety of music for everyone. The news was informative and up to date. It was our very own private radio station geared toward the MMO gamer, it was harmony. Sadly, MMO Radio is no longer kicking out the jams but it's legacy lives on.

The last 6 years we have seen a collection of Internet radio stations come and go, almost as much as some games. I still believe that Gaming Radio is a solid viable form of media information/entertainment. If you are one of the lucky ones who have a Net Radio station with the call letters of your fav MMO, you have your own private media outlet. There are others that are a “Collective” or group of Podcasters that will enlighten, instruct and entertain on everyday life of a gamer, as well as the latest news. There is a plethora of these on several MMO's and always worth a listen.

This is also a business. We have major players in the arena with the backing capital and clout to present for us Game Developers, CEO's and the brightest talents of our time. We are always with updates, guides, interviews and industry news so we can all keep track of this industry that we love so well. We have even advanced into streaming video and a TV format. The inter-webs are alive with the sound of gaming. With all of the polish and fine tuning, the voice talents and notable persona’s, my heart still goes back to the early days. With a cheap headset, impromptu shows, because who in the hell would write a format, we made our way to internet radio.

I remember having to practice keeping the interview running smoothly. Working to keep the silence, the pauses in a conversation and the “Um..Uh...Um” to a minimum. If you were the one editing you found out very quickly that 90 minutes of raw audio could take over 5 hours to edit. If you were lucky enough to have all of your guests in one room, it was easier to control Darth Vader breathing into the mic. No matter how many sound checks you do before, there is always Capt Munchy who decides to unwrap his twinkie, live on air. Live or prerecorded there was always something moving it off center. Just a bunch of gamers doing a show, along with Darth Vader and the Twinkie we had one hell of a good time.

My latest adventure in Internet Broadcasting Tom Foolery was a couple of years ago with Gamer Network Radio or GNET Radio. We had gone through a few transitions ourselves, Vanguard Radio, Uberguilds Radio, and GNET Radio is where it has finally settled. I had so much fun during this time and met so many fantastic people. We were lucky enough to even get a few gaming celebs to help with radio ads, like Chris "Binky" Launius, Community Manager, Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising, April “Cuppa Joe” Burba who was the Community Manager for Tabula Rasa, Jeremy Dale Lead Animator for Warhammer Online. I know two of these games fell short and are no longer operating but the people we met were wonderful and supportive.

Shameless plug incoming....

Vanguard Radio ad for Vanguard Roleplayers

DJ Artagus "Art's Closet" intro

For the adult gaming crowd GNET Radio offers a variety of information for the gamer, PC, Console, FPS, MMO and more. They offer an IRC chat room, live call in capability during some shows and encourages participation from all their listeners. The podcasts and live shows do an excellent job at keeping me entertained. They are a large part of my listening library. If you stop by, tell them Art sent ya and you might get a some pie or visit The ESCape Show and get a coupon for Popeye's Chicken, or not.

...end shameless plug.

Either way, the gaming media we have within reach offer so much in support of our favorite hobby. Bloggers, Podcasts, Game Radio, Game TV, Video Blogs, it's a wealth of entertainment and information. Professional or your buddy with a 5 dollar headset, if they share some interesting tidbit, play your favorite tune, make you laugh once or twice a week it's worth the time spent.

Everquest Smorgasboard...and there is Pie

2010-08-17T01:58:00.003-05:00

The inter-webs have been busy on the SOE announcements concerning Everquest and Everquest II. It's a feast, a SOE feast of goodies to sink your whatever into. Everquests 17th expansion , Everquest 2 expansion Destiny of Velious, EQNext. All the beefy tidbits that I could grab from my fav reading spots about Fan Faire 2010, had me begging for more. It appears that some great content is coming for EQ and EQ2 Fans.

Even if Everquests “House of Thule” sucks, just having 17 expansions is epic. Revisiting Velious and seeing the landmarks I remember including Velks Lab has me looking forward to Destiny of Velious. The crowning jewel though, the Pièce de résistance, is EQNext. Mark my words, this will be the most followed development since Brad McQuaid announced Vanguard: Saga of Heroes.

Everquest had the Love/Hate relationship, the Bitter/Sweet of Gaming. Traveling time sinks, the corpse runs, it was the elitists true and only real game. My move from EQ into EQ2 wasn’t due to boredom or because EQ was to hard and had too many time sinks. It was because the graphics in EQ2 was breath taking. As I've said before the cosmetics of a game is important to me.

The in game screen shots are promising and the bitter sweet of EQ will migrate to EQNext. My only hope at this point would be open zones like Vanguard, continue that feel of a vast open world and shelve the days of running along the zone walls. If SOE will truly build off the original EQ concept and salt and pepper the fine points from their other games, crafting, trades, diplomacy, flying mounts, even extending Bard abilities similar to the musician trades in Star Wars Galaxies. Okay, yeah I am reaching here but this really has some fantastic possibilities. This will be the one to watch.

Please snag the following links for more info..

Shipwrecked into another MMO.....Final

2010-08-17T00:10:00.003-05:00

My first introduction to “instancing” in a game was Everquest, Lost Dungeons of Norrath. The LDoN quests were unique, challenging and a nice addition to the, then present content. Instancing has become an expected feature in may games these days including DDO. Clicking on the entrance to one of these instanced areas, a window will pop up that allows you to set the difficulty level. There is also an explanation for each setting to give you an idea just what you are getting yourself into. Casual, Normal, Hard, Elite and Epic, I chose normal because it's not casual and it makes me feel like I'm not taking the easiest route. I'm not casual, I'm normal.

My normal cleric finds out there is an abnormal sound coming from the Heyton Family Crypt. Get out the recipe for Spooky and see what is needed. The ingredients were here but it lacked the flavor I was hoping for. I understand that this is still “noob adventuring” at this level, and school was still in session as the tutorials continued with new content, but it still seemed bland.

Sarcophagus smashing skill is maxed, no there is no such skill but if there was I would have been maxed out. The Crypt, appropriately so, is lined with Sarcophagi along the walls, one right after another. I suppose in order to find out where the strange sound was coming from one would indeed smash them. Process of elimination, two steps “Wack”, two steps “Wack”. Sometimes you would yield coin and other times a ticked off dead family member. There was enough Sarcophagi to Sarcopha-gag-me.

One appealing aspect that was introduced in this dungeon was the puzzle. I personally like the puzzle as long as it's done well. This puzzle was not difficult, it was...normal. Certain artifacts found in the Crypt, not in any of the 275 Sarcophacrap along the walls, but found in rooms is what allowed you to advance. Finding a way to get past the magic doorway, which was locating the items to place in the Sockets, added that little bit of mystery. This is much better than just entering the room for your final encounter.

The puzzle and the ambiance of the final room was the best parts of the this dungeon. I guess after I had to destroy crates and boxes for money when I first entered the game, I should have expected that all my coin drops would be similar.

Pillaging the Crypt made sense by busting up the Sarcophagi but I think a few would suffice. This was the part that seemed to outplay or overwhelm the reason for the adventure. It sadly dwarfed the cool puzzle and became very mundane. Speaking of Dwarf, my Cleric will be off to other adventures when time permits and hopefully as we progress, so will the puzzles and I am sure plenty of random stuff to break, smash and crush.

Trivial as it may sound, the ability to keymap movement is critical to me. A player should not be limited to how they can move their avatar. Having the left mouse button preset and unchangeable is unnecessary. The Free to Play option doesn't make me feel obligated or committed and makes it worth the space on my hard drive.

Shipwrecked into another MMO.....part 2

2010-08-12T23:05:00.002-05:00

Where I ended my last post, my Cleric made it into Korthos and of course a Tavern would've been the appropriate first stop, at least that’s what my Cleric was thinking, really..he told me. Entering into Korthos, and I mean just as soon as you zone in, it's Randall.

Good 'ole Randall standing cross-legged and waiting for all of those newly shipwrecked adventurers to guide them on their way. This is usually where I get in trouble for not following the path that is given. I am sure that Randall had some important and very informative things to tell me, but being the overzealous noob that I am I just clicked through the dialog so I could explore the village.

Korthos was familiar. The usual starting area I have seen in other games, Merchants, Trainers, quests to continue the story line and a mob of other noobs just like me. I was running around checking out all of the buildings and characters to interact with when I noticed something amusing. Every player running around, was swinging their weapon like it was a battle for their soul. It got to the point I kept turning around to see who was fighting. I ran to a merchant and a player was there hacking at the air just before he left. I came up on a trainer and another player was swinging at the wind.

When I first entered the game and began to get the feel of the controls, it was awkward. I am not used to the W-A-S-D to move my avatar. I'm not sure when the change took place because my early days of gaming, the WASD keys were the key, so to speak. These days I use or configure both mouse buttons to move forward and control the camera, it's much easier for me to navigate. Unfortunately with DDO, a player can't map the mouse buttons this way. I was able to use the scroll wheel to help create my perfect mode of movement, which brings me to my point.

So far, everyplace or person I have approached, I was swinging my mace. I run up to an NPC and turn to look at a quest, “Swiff Swiff”. I run up a ramp and adjust my camera angle “Swiff Swiff”. I wanted to make sure to get this corrected before I entered an open zone. It's embarrassing to be milling about doing your odds and ends in town, and the whole time you're swinging your weapon like someone swatting flies. It's like that Jumper syndrome that some have. You know the ones, they jump all the time, jump, jump, jump. You are at a merchant selling your wares and the whole time some Pally is jumping non-stop, It's just annoying. But if everyone is jumping....? With everyone running around me swinging their weapons wildly in the air I felt right at home, I guess there's a lot of people not used to the WASD keys.

Even with all of the running, “whooshing” and “swiffing” going on, we all paused in silence when we saw it.

Yes there it is....a Tavern.

“Onward Lads we can do some “whooshing” in here.”

Shipwrecked into another MMO - Part 1

2010-08-11T00:18:00.000-05:00

You wake up on a beach in ragged clothes and no belongings. The beach is littered with whats left of the ship and it's cargo, and some spry individual calls you by name. You are either in the never ending re-run of Gilligan’s Island or started a new MMO.

The spry individual is Jeets Shimis and the game is Dungeons and Dragons Online: Eberron Unlimited. When DDO was launched I spent the first few weeks looking around but nothing held my attention enough to yield adequate game play. I remember that there were some interesting factors in DDO and since it's now a free to play model I thought I would “adventure” back in.

We all know Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I try to be fair when it comes to graphics as much as possible. It's the graphics, the “eye candy”, the detail that is somewhat important to me and why not. The gaming industry, art and development, has advanced to far not to delivery highly detailed worlds and characters.

Looking around after entering I was not disappointed. The area was crisp and detailed from the water to the trees right down to the falling snow. Snow? On a tropical island? I bet that Dragon that is flying over has something to do with it, after all it was the reason I am shipwrecked.

The opening dialogue that moves the new player into the game, scenario or story line was rather intrusive. Jeets Shimis a rogue who stands a few feet away, relentlessly calls to you. Due to the fact that I wanted to look around first before jumping right in, poor Jeets just got on my nerves. It's almost like the developers were afraid that Jeets wouldn’t get anyone’s attention, every 3 seconds Jeets was speaking to me. I am sure it wasn’t every 3 seconds but it was annoying.

After talking to Jeets we begin riding the MMO rail. This is where you get led around to certain points and people in the game so you can perform your daring deeds of do. This is needed of course to establish the new player with the game mechanics. Tutorial/introduction on how to talk, walk, run and if you are brand new to a game like this, its your best friend.

After breaking a few boxes for coin and getting my new weapon from Motormouth Jeets he sends you to find Cellimas Villuhne, this of course is you first real adventure type quest that further teaches you the game mechanics. There really wasn’t anything new in DDO's starting area compared to others. The only improvement, as a whole, has been making these starting areas more informative.

My little Tutorial quest introduced me to swimming, pulling levers to open doors and “Search” for searching traps. I will have to admit that this added animation when searching for a trap in a room is cool. It gives everyone that “pause” as if you were actually looking for something out of place, instead of a random behind the scenes number check that amounts to a click on an icon.

Another noticeable thing for me was the armor reward. We had bested our foes in battle, thwarted the evil Sahuagin High Priestess, and Jeets walked us to our reward. “Oh Look...a Chest.” the universal iconic graphic for reward, the proverbial pirates chest. Okay the chest wasn’t the cool thing here it was the armor. I always give a nod of acceptance to any game that can give me a variance in apparel and not only that, it isn’t painted on so 2 nods.

Got my game on, looking good like a Cleric should and our next stop is Korthos Village. Hope thay have a Tavern, getting a little thirsty.

Doing my part..

2010-08-05T02:26:00.002-05:00

I was perusing, as that's what I do, and came across this article. Nielsen has researched and found that gaming accounts for 10% of all US internet time.

Now at first, 10% didn't sound like news, more like a passing thought or observation. It was the 407 million hours per month that sounded news worthy. I wonder how much of that is me, I'll have to check into that. I would much rather interact with my entertainment instead of digesting whatever it may be spewing out, TV comes to mind. Don't get me wrong, I like my share of Movies but very soon I get bored and want to play with my food. In other words I want to be more involved, decision making, hand an eye coordination, which I find waning these days.

Creative expression on a daily basis, your own Journal of the mundane is far more beneficial than 407 million hours of the Tube.

*I saunter off singing Frank Zappa's "I am the slime from your video"
in reference to: Nielsen: Gaming Accounts For 10% Of US Internet Time | Edge Magazine (view on Google Sidewiki)

Full Flavored MMO

2010-08-04T03:26:00.016-05:00

Whatever happened to the days of grabbing your sword and shield for a good old killing spree.

It was bumped for a job.

I have killed 20 Bugbears, completed 15 Quests for the Mayor, saved a small village from certain doom all before noon. I'm bored, guess I'll go stand around in the center of town. It's like the game developers thought there just wasn’t enough. In fact, they thought about it to the point of creating jobs.

Image via Wikipedia

For me it all started with a box, or crate in Everquest. I would combine certain components to make Fish Rolls. It's not good enough that I had to quest all day to buy rancid water and bread, now I have a trade, I have a job. I made......fish rolls.

If that wasn’t humiliating enough.

Not only did I have to craft things I could use,

I eventually had to go get the resources myself?

“You mean I need a pick, a shovel and an Axe?”

And what happened to my clicky crate? Now I have to slave over a hot stove and watch closely so that it doesn’t get to hot, or I fail. I remember people in EQ2 getting dead working at a forge. Too many reactions that didn’t get counteracted and you end up taking a dirt nap, that was harsh but the Forge got a "Ding".

The endeavor to make games bigger and better, more immersible and bring that “something new” to the masses, have really put the Mass in Massive.

“I am a Cleric of 50 seasons and a candle stick maker.” ..and I thinks it's cool.

It's opened up alternatives for all gamers. I've known several that spent more time harvesting and crafting than adventuring, because its what they liked to do. Of course those are the people to be friends with if you don't have a job. They have 6 character slots and each one has a trade, that person is their own store.

I know there are many debates on the need or if there is a true benefit, but in the circles I've traveled over the years craftsmen were always needed. Its just another facet of the MMO that can be enjoyed. I know myself that after a hard or long day, harvesting can be relaxing. All is good in the world. We have adventuring, crafting and harvesting. One could almost be self sufficient making their own food, armor or weapons. It seem to be a healthy balance, until someone wanted to parley,

“Parley what?”

Image via Wikipedia

When Vanguard Saga of Heroes shared their “Spheres” with the public, Diplomacy was their new, never before attempted without a safety net, show for the gaming world, one more Job for the player. I don't believe that diplomacy achieved all the goals that were set, of course there were a lot of goals for Vanguard that fell short.

On a side note here, Vanguard was just short of perfection for what I wanted in an MMO, performance issues shortened my time there, it has so much potential.

Image via Wikipedia

The beginning concept of diplomacy was unique, and for me, very enjoyable. This was just another road to travel for the gamer along with everything else, crafting, harvesting and adventuring. We have the perfect world now, complete with work and recreation.

Friday night I am going to run a Dungeon with the guys and Saturday I am going fishing, but first a little diplomacy with the Missus.

What more can a gamer want in their fantasy world.
I know...how about some personality.

Image via Wikipedia

Curtis Johnson, one of the designers on Guild Wars 2, gives us a little insight.

In Guild Wars 2, we’re going even further to make the out-of-combat experience a role playing experience by introducing “personality” as a player character role. How you respond to other characters develops and changes your personality over time, letting you affect how the game treats you. Personality is your character’s attitude toward others; it grows and changes as you play through your personal story and as you adventure in the persistent world

"Thanks for playing you've been a real pant load"

2010-07-31T03:36:00.017-05:00

It's amazing to me how many times I will see something and compare it to something I have seen in a game I've played. Okay, yeah that seems a little odd and I really need to get out more, but all that does is allow me to continue to see things and hear voices. I was having a few cocktails at a favorite establishment, yes I do socialize without a keyboard. Someone in the group was referring to a funny event and said, "...yeah that was a real pant load." Immediately I went nostalgic,
"Thank you for playing Space Quest 4 and as usual you've been a real pant load."

*Sigh* those were the days.....

Image by timmarshall via Flickr

Image via Wikipedia

What an era in video games. The 80's and early 90's opened up a whole new world for me in entertainment. Names like Ken and Roberta Williams, Lori and Corey Cole, Scott Murphy, Mark Crowe and good 'ole Al Lowe.

These were my heroes, my celebrity's, I think I played almost everything Sierra On-Line produced and what a ride it was. Kings Quest, Police Quest, Space Quest and many more titles made their way into my new found obsession.

Image via Wikipedia

As Gamers we have all had our "first time". That magic moment when you felt funny inside and your knees went weak, wait...that was another first time, but this was kinda of like that.

Image via Wikipedia

It was the time of CGA, the Color Graphics Adapter and a true 2d gaming environment. It was pixels the size of your thumb and very grainy but it had the same impact going from a black and white TV to Color. CGA lead to EGA "Enhanced Graphics Adapter" and then to VGA.

We had it all, at least we thought. How can this get any better. We had the Roland MT-32, well I didn't, my rich neighbor did, but I had an Ad Lib sound card for my IBM and my immersion was complete. I never left my PC for the next 10 years. The soundtracks for these games began to be recognizable as if they were the top ten tunes on the radio.

After my little nostalgic flashback and upon returning home somewhat inebriated, yes it's the voices, I started digging through the old shoe box of games to see what had survived. Have you ever had a tune stuck in your head to the point that you need to listen to it or start chewing on the couch? I wanted to stroll down memory lane to see Daventry, the planet Phleebhut, Help Laura Bow solve a mystery, yeah I have to admit I enjoyed the Laura Bow Mystery series as well, don't make fun of me, talk to the voices.

The humor was slapstick and one liners at it's best. Space Quest 6 was probably one of my favorites but the rest of the series is very well written as well. Gary Owens who was the announcer for Rowen and Martins Laugh in, the voice of Space Ghost and several other noted persona's, was also the announcer for Space Quest 6. The developers choosing Gary was a perfect match for the way it was written and designed.

Image via Wikipedia

There were so many hours spent in the stories and worlds that
the Sierra On-Line team created, almost 20 years of great entertainment. I have some great memories of puzzles that had stumped me for days, the satire, the drama and fear.....yes my precious, fear. Gabriel Knight and Phantasmagoria were games to play with the lights out...if you dare.

Image by Michael Heilemann via Flickr

I am going to run off, grab Roger Wilco and play me some Astro Chicken, meanwhile mouse over to these links and check out some memorable moments and ground breaking gaming history.

Space Quest 4: Memorable Moments

Sierra Games On-Line

Pan and Games?

2010-07-29T20:09:00.020-05:00

Move over George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, here comes Mr G. According to a an interview at MTV's Multiplayer Blog. The writer, director and producer of Pan's Labyrinth is heading into the gaming world. Guillermo del Toro who is probably most noted for directing the “Hell Boy” franchise, is going to share his movie/writing/directing talent with the gaming industry.

MTV's Multiplayer blog

"One of the things we're announcing in the next few weeks is a big deal with a big company. We're going to do games that are going to be technically and narratively very interesting. It's not a development deal. We're going to do it. We're doing them. And we're going to announce it soon enough." ...Guillermo del Toro

I will be interested to see who this “big company” is and what “technically and narratively very interesting” plays like. I like this Celebrity/Hollywood trend and the more attention given to the gaming industry means more excitement to come, and Gamers continue to move into mainstream society. Okay, it's not like gamers are second rate citizens or anything but gamer acceptance has changed over the years.

Over the last 6 years or so we have seen more of Hollywood courting the video game industry. Names like Peter Jackson, "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, John Woo “Face Off”, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg(though Lucas and Spielberg have been active longer), and lastly Paul WS Anderson “Mortal Kombat” and the first “Resident Evil” have expanded their creative experiences. Whether its because of new opportunities or a recession (Alex Wiltshire article, good read), its really hard to speculate.

When I first heard of a celebrity playing my fav MMO it made me feel less “geeky”, of course these days it's cool to be a “geek”. Back in the day, the idea of a superstar playing video games gave me my much needed retort. “Curt Schilling plays Everquest” was my enervated mythical. These days gaming is not only a major industry but an honorable pass time along with every other form of entertainment or recreation. The collaboration announcement of Curt Schilling; former MLB pitcher, RA Salvatore; Best selling American author and Todd McFarlane; Artist and writer best known for his Spawn comic book character, was exciting, of course the rest is yet to be told.

Game designer, movie director, extraordinary talents stepping into a new medium weaving that voodoo they do so well. This creates the “that was a great movie” conversation right with “That’s an awesome game.” It kinda of brings the whole thing together, sort of like a home coming.

Games made into movies or movies made into games are not as appealing to me, as a Game industry talent making a movie or Hollywood talent making a game, but more on that another time. Right now....C'mon Brad McQuaid, makes us a movie.

"FTP" it could have saved them all

2010-07-28T14:31:00.008-05:00

If you haven’t heard by now then you are just not paying attention. Of course this would be true if you are an avid gamer, a follower of the “Whats New”, one who has their pulse on the industry or simply a player of Everquest II. The inter-webs were flowing with the Free to play announcement by SOE. Yes it's true...cows do fly...

Click here for announcement

Now I don’t have a real strong opinion on a FTP service. For that type of debate, rant, zerg, you would need to head over to the EQII forums for a solid serving from both camps. However I do have one small thought just from the many people I have met over the years. Through many adventures in the on line gaming world, in a pay to play MMO environment, I have seen the extremes of how people play the game.

I know there are many levels but there are only 2 ends of the spectrum. The 60 hour a week energy boosted, king of all that he surveys and the Saturday night 3 hour lifer, who is still level 26. Of course the bottom line is, regardless of how a gamer games, “is it fun”.. .this brings me to my point. This would be for all those people I've met who gave up the game, because the 3 hours a week didn’t make sense at $15.00 a month. I don’t know anything that is worth doing for $5 an hour.....and be legal.

Free to Play is a great option for those with limited time and what I have seen so far, there is enough to keep “Mr 3 hours a week” busy gaming for a long time.

I give this latest endeavor of SOE 3.5 stars, 4 stars if they would move that damn “Upgrade Pop-Up” from the center of the screen.

"If it Ain't Broke Don't Fix it" if it is broke, welcome to Hell

2010-07-27T01:49:00.012-05:00

Agreed, There are so many variables with a PC and so many complications and solutions sound the same, and the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" is always great advice. Symptoms can branch out into several more problems and before you know it, you have a dozen things not working and then trial and error for the novice begins.Yep, one day it's all cake and pie and the next days its a poop sandwich.

"The PC was just fine, really, it was running fine just 3 seconds ago...."

Upon purchase I added a Hard Drive, PSU and Vid Card (Radeon HD 4670 PCI-E) this has been over a year ago. Some time ago the Vid Card would just stop sending a signal, Pc would stay on but no video. This would happen in a certain game that was played and would happen once every 5 times playing.

Recently the PC was powered up, but no video signal. The on-board video worked fine, I unplugged the cable from the video card to the integrated video. Re-booting, results were the same. BIOS shows PCI-E as primary, all drivers up to date. No heat issues, no PSU trouble. I have 3 PC's with Antec 650w PSU's and PCI-E video, I have done a lot of swapping. This led me to the conclusion the the MB or the PCI-E slot was bad. Actually, it led me to the million Tech forums and the billion people that post on these forums that are smarter than I.

It was suggested on one of these forums that other driver updates, PC, Vid Card, etc, etc, that the Video Bios and/or BIOS might need to be updated. There was a newer version of the Video BOIS. I read it as a newer or updated BIOS and flashed it. Flashing your BIOS is a really cool technical term that makes you sound like a real professional Geek, but if you don't know what you are doing you are just a geek wannabe and I am.

BSOD(Blue Screen of Death)after re-boot, that would flash the blue screen and then re-boot. System restore was suggested by several tech boards. Opinions and advice. One would try so hard to save money and fix something that isn't working right, he would listen to his dog for advice. Yes, grabbing at straws begins here.

System Restore, Rollback, Restore Point, Recovery Console, System Recovery, a smorgasbord of sounding the same but being slightly different. NO recovery Disks, there are restore files on a partition and of course there were no restore disks made when prompted upon purchase that would just make too much sense. After all, nothing bad has ever happened to me.

Okay, Restore point sounds safe, executed and time for re-boot...."Code Purple"..wonderful. No real reason here just frustration, pulled the Vid card and rebooted PC, "Code Purple". Between the Blue screen and the Purple error you would think a Smurf got caught in my PC. Next step, remove extra Hard Drive and that allowed me to boot up. PCI-E card and any PCI-E card I tried was not working, just the integrated. PCI-E card was never recognized, it's like it did not exist.

Next step which was a few steps actually and not in any order, but repeated for luck with abusive verbiage. Unplug PC, hold power button in for a few seconds, clear CMOS, Set BIOS to default, set PC upside down..okay that was the dogs idea, nothing changed. PC works fine with integrated video but will not recognize any card in the PCI-E slot.

I re-installed the extra Hard drive to try and figure out why "Code Purple" shows up with it only, and attempt the workarounds found here http://www.billoblog.com/billoblog/?p=152#comments. Who would have thought Tattoo's were that popular, and how crazy is that. The link is worth the read.

Nothing changed until I removed the HD and rebooted, the PCI-E slot worked. If I reboot the PC, the PCI-E slot does not work until I attach the extra HD and attempt to boot up, get the "Code Purple" error and reboot with out the extra HD. I have repeated this several times and its consistent.

So, at this point the fix is..keep the extra HD handy and if the PC powers down, jump through some hoops to get it operating.

After all I have been through, the workaround is like walking the dog.

In the belly of the Whale called work.

2008-10-11T16:57:00.002-05:00

Okay, short and sweet. 72+ hours a week at work. Eat, sleep, work.

...waiting for the storm to pass, until then will somebody keep the dust of my PC?

Tickets for the Big Show.

2008-09-18T20:36:00.004-05:00

It goes something like this.

Your favorite Band is coming to town and you know its going to be a sell out. You have known this for several months and have moved your entire life to prepare. You have spent hours listening to their music and imagining yourself in the front row. At some point during this time you became a walking tribute to this band because that's all you talk about.

You follow the bands tour and know every night where they are. You read everything you can about each stop of the way. They are getting closer. The week has arrived and you find yourself driving by the place they will be playing. A few times a day as you drive by you see the signs, they are coming. You have worked yourself up to where food is an afterthought and sleep escapes you. The day has finally arrived and in one breath real life steps in and says “no”.

Okay, it's not the end of the world but it sometimes can feel like it.

I was so ready to enjoy the launch of Warhammer On-line and begin my new game life with a new guild, when it melted away. The Boss Mob called “Real Life” who we all know well, decided to give me something else to do. “Work sucks” is a branded phrase you see everywhere, T-shirts, Bumper stickers, even refrigerator magnets. “That's Life”, “Work Sucks”, hell I could probably right a wall of text about these alone.

The point? I am glad you asked.

My job is camping my corpse (72 hour's a week ).This won't last long but enough to get in the way for War's launch. There will be time to play and catch up but I was hoping to start with everyone else.

Yeah I know, “work sucks and that's life”. I'm just all dressed up with no place to go.

Spore: Single cell organism to Digital Rights Management? (DRM)

2008-09-14T10:21:00.004-05:00

Okay it's a rainy Sunday morning and Warhammer Online is soon to open the “Head Start” for CE pre-orders. Which of course leaves me out since I fall into the “SE pre-order Wait until Monday” category, of course launch date is the 18th and for some War is further still.

In any event this gives me a few moments to “Peruse”.

Did 'Spore' copy protections backfire on EA? ( article by Jennifer Guevin )

What's the fuss about? Electronic Arts imposed copyright protections that limited the number of times a user can install the game to three.

Such digital rights management technology is intended to keep piracy to a minimum. But in this case, it seems to have had the opposite effect, angering would-be buyers and DRM opponents to such a degree that they are illegally downloading it en masse, apparently to make a statement as much as to get their hands on the game.

DRM is something of a conundrum- a riddle, the answer to which involves a pun or play on words, as What is black and white and read all over? In this case it seems everywhere you deal with a product and their DRM, the more it seems to get pirated.

On Saturday, TorrentFreak wrote that the game had already been downloaded more than 500,000 times on BitTorrent sites. Though it didn't appear to have broken any overall download records at the time this story was published, peer-to-peer research company Big Champagne told Forbes on Friday that the rate at which it was being downloaded was "extraordinary."

I believe in the rights of ownership especially when it comes to paying for a product, but until they come up with something that doesn't choke the consumer it's hard to swallow.

...besides, for the last couple of years every time I turn around it's "Pirate" something, Sparrow, Disney, Burning Seas, it's the cool thing now "Yar!"

Running down hill with baby Jesus.

2008-09-10T22:11:00.007-05:00

Okay, the title may be extreme and I am sure I'll pay for it later but I stumbled across something today that made me just shake my head. There is an Anti Spore Blog. I have read many articles and blogs in the past that have been very brash and opinionated but none as amusing as this. Anti Spore

Apparently this blogger Mom has taken up a crusade against the new game Spore, EA and the designer Will Wright. Spore is a "massively single-player online game" that allows a player to control the evolution of a species from its beginnings as a single cell organism to interstellar exploration. If you have not heard or read anything about Spore, then please leave your cave now and look here Spore.

I agree that everyone has the right to an opinion and especially the freedom to voice it in whatever medium they see fit. Of course I also reserve the right to grab a bag of pretzels, a cold beer and watch the fun.

Religion and personal conviction is a powerful state of heart and mind that can lead one to do great things, but without wisdom it may do more harm than good. This blogger believes that Spore teaches evolution and evolution is “Bad Mmmkay”!

The object of the game is to evolve from a “spore” into demon-like intelligent space creatures that violently take over the galaxy. I decided that Electronic Arts needs to hear from concerned people such as myself that this sort of game is not acceptable, and created this blog to find support and share information and progress with anyone who feels the same as I do.

Yes, the game allows the player to choose how the character looks. But the game guides you through the evolutionary theory.
If you create a character that functions badly, and you can not eat, or fight, or move fast. You have difficulty surviving. Thus you must through trial and error select a design that works. Which is the fundamental “survival of the fittest” theory behind evolution.

God did not create us through trial and error. He did not make millions of mistakes until deciding on the final concept. Each of his concepts were perfect on the first try.

I do believe every parent needs to take responsibility for what their child may or may not take part in. We can't remove what may “appear” to be evil, only instruct, teach and prepare. A crusade against publishers, developers and designers is not going to make these demons go away.

/puts soapbox away.

The read is an interesting point of view, (One post and 'nuff said) but the responses were the most entertaining. It did remind me of some forums that I tend to lurk around. I really liked the post about getting Jack Thompson to represent her and then the "strikethrough" after she realized 'ole Jack was the Real Slim Shady.
It makes me wonder of this is a gimmick or stunt, well played out for hits and attention.

With the advertisement “COMBAT ARMS; online FPS action, FRAG FOR FREE” attached to her blog, the Crusade falters. I feel like there are more important things a person can make a stand against, but a poor single cell organism trying to make a way, isn't one of them.

Let the games begin.

2008-09-07T14:18:00.004-05:00

Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning entered Open Beta today and those that have only been able to read others views, can now taste War for themselves. The “roller coaster” ride that everyone gets when reading game info on the NDA lifted, up and coming, is similar to every one I have experienced. The good the bad and the ugly are described on every thread, repeatedly. Of course I am referring to the state of game play rather than what's broke, after all it is beta. I can only comment on the beta & release of games I have experienced and so far they've all followed the same criteria, a work in progress. A continuation of polish, fixes and content.

So what's next? Open Beta To See If I Like It, testing.

Open beta is synonymous to “Whats the game like?” for the majority of those that have been reading and waiting on the sidelines. After all, how much testing can we do 10 days before release. What's fun is relative and no matter what we have heard, in game is where our decisions are made. OB testers can now see if they like it as much as they thought they would. I haven't been in the testing stages long enough to appreciate the progress so my assessment is the “Open Beta To See If I Like It” review.

Verse of Verses: PvE and PvP/RvR.

Personally in an MMO I desire to be immersed. I want to be enthralled by the plights of those poor NPC's I encounter. I want to get lost in the story line as if reading a good fantasy novel. In many of the games past my desire has been fairly well satisfied, at least palatable. At first I let myself slip into the “Ho Hum, kill ten crap,” but soon realized for anyone that has never played this type of game before it's their tutorial. My eyes were opened to this when I fired my first cannon or crossbow. I am sure glad they showed me how to do that, it may come in handy. Putting my haughtiness aside, because I am an expert in MMO's, (choked on that one) I moved on.

The immersion that I look for was not overwhelming but enough to keep my attention. However; Public Quests are just the flavoring needed to make PvE, the soup de jour. I personally don't like spoilers so stumbling is what I do best. When I stumbled upon a bunch of people on a PQ, I jumped in to help and had a blast. I had no idea what was going on at first, failed to notice the “pop up” description of what I stepped into. I didn't help enough to get a roll on the loot but the “drive by” break in my present quest was a nice touch.

I also enjoy, not so much as a desire but a “put the novel down” break in the action change of pace. The camaraderie of group PVP and all the action surrounding it is excellent fun but it's a seasoning, not the main ingredient for me. In Warhammer, it's all about War and RvR so what in the hell am I doing here? Well I'll tell ya'.

Caught up in the moment.

My first experience of what War had to offer in RvR was the “Khaines Embrace” scenario. 5 minutes of this scenario is not enough for any useful verbiage but first impression was “capture the flag”. Exit and look for more PvE. ( these are actually somewhat better. “Never judge a book by it's cover” comes into play here).Working my little PvE heart out in Nordland I came across an area that, if I stayed, would flag me for PvP. A town called New Emskrank was crawling with those who follow the way of Chaos. I stayed and for the next 5 hours I was lost in RvR. Battlefield objectives which seem like “capture the flag” didn't have that stale mundane feel to me.

I spent time solo as well as grouped and both were exciting. Solo, I felt more mobile. Hit and run tactics that didn't necessarily turn the tide of battle but enough to be a pest. Of course the cannons on the hill came in handy once in awhile (I knew that cheesy kill so many whatever, canon/crossbow quest would come in handy). Now the flip side to this was after you make yourself enough of a pest, the more organized of the opposing masses put you on top of their hit list.

Grouped PvP offered the same as others I have experienced as long as the pick up group was in tune. “Do this, do that” team tactics that was satisfying if you helped save someones butt or yours was just pulled from the fire. What seemed to be different for me here was “the moment”. Overall the objective is to win your area back but it was the “moment”, that skirmish, group or solo that was the juice for me.

The early levels of PvE doesn't feel like climbing a ladder to max level but more of a feeling that its preparing me, preparing me for War.

...and this has my attention.

When your character comes to life

2008-09-05T00:06:00.004-05:00

We grow very fond of some of our creations in MMO's. It is an odd thing that we grow so attached to an in-game avatar that it borders on the “unstable”, especially when it comes to losing them.

In times past I have added certain elements to the game itself by writing story lines on a guild forum and playing out parts of those stories in-game. I would tell a tale of woe complete with detailed descriptions of areas in the game. I would then give clues to an on going puzzle that would be played out in character.

This would be on a set day and if you could discern from the story where I would be found you would see another clue play out before you, in character. This would continue from written story too in character play and everyone seemed to enjoy the added element.

I had an opportunity some time ago with a Radio Station I was volunteering for to bring my characters back in play, but this time it was audio more than in game role playing.

Mapus and Hegwin have been with me for several years, being created over and over depending on what fantasy MMO I was enjoying at the time. Halfling twins that I have grown very fond of just because I am unstable that way, came to life once again and it sure was fun listening to the trouble they got into.

Hegwin and the Bow.mp3

The Next Chapter?

2008-09-04T21:53:00.008-05:00

With Warhammer Online getting ready for launch and open beta just hours away I find myself going through the same 'ole routine. I am clearing out the weekend for game time, doing some preventive maintenance on the old PC and lurking around my favorite game forums.

Since my introduction to this addiction, the anticipation for the new expansion, game or even the monumental game update has never changed.

It's always presents, wrapped and ready to open.

The several MMO's that I have had the pleasure to spend time in were beautifully wrapped and like any adolescent, I madly tore my way inside. As with most presents they all get some use even if it's for a short time but eventually some get shelved.

Everquest had its moments.

The fond memories of traveling form Qeynos to Freeport and in the early days that meant running. Seeing Highpass for the first time with the faces carved in the canyon walls was nothing short of breathtaking.

Everquest didn't get stale it just gave way to better graphics and the “New and Improved” Everquest II.

Like many other gamers I like to see whats new. I may be having a great time where I am but it seems dabbling with something new is always tempting.

It's that unopened present that haunts me.

I envy those gamers that have stayed with that one “main” game for it's duration. They have created for themselves a reputation a legacy and home. Maybe Warhammer will be that home for me, only time will tell.

...patching for open beta now.

What are we looking for?

2008-09-03T21:49:00.004-05:00

As one who loves the MMO universe I often ask myself what do the game gods ask themselves before creating an MMO. Getting the obvious out of the way, genre, what do they look at next? We know there are a million things that go into making a decent MMO.

I wonder at the little things that we sometimes pass over like in-game dialog, quests or story line. The hours upon hours of written text, “Hi I am Boomba and I sell pickles” or the idle chatter of NPC's as you pass by. It's hard to fathom that at 70+ levels we have read a few novels worth of written hints direction and lore.

How about the textures, lighting, shading and colors that bring an MMO to life. How many games have we played that we have stopped at some overlook and it actually took our breath away. The sunsets, the clouds, the rain, is it just fluff? Is it really needed? One would have to think that the “powers that be” would ask themselves, what are gamers wanting, what are they looking for.

I have seen concerns across the boards covering, Combat, death, questing, instancing, class balance, PVP, PVE, RVR all the way to “Does this armor make me look fat?” All of these are important but of course it depends on ones point of view.

Perplexing isn't it.

How do you serve the masses? I am glad that's not a hurdle I have to clear, its a high standard we place on the industry.

My expectations are almost impossible to meet I suppose, after a dozen MMO's I can glean from each to make the perfect game. I love the open world concept, the “wherever I can see, I can get to”. No boxed in zones except the game world itself. The ability to travel, at my discretion, and traverse mountains, plains, the oceans and stumble across that “easter egg” some developer left for me to find. This open world actually gives me the feeling I could really get lost. Time sink for some but immersive for others.

What a conundrum.

How about aesthetics or cosmetics, the eye candy that some crave from a game. You know the ones. Those robust games that need a Quadracore Gigamoose with a multimondo threaded taxibus type of PC that draws enough juice to dim the lights in your neighborhood. New game, new computer scenario because the new graphic engine is two bytes short of a hologram.

Okay, I'm guilty.

I love detailed graphics. Spin my character around to see even his nose hairs kind of detail. But at what cost, stability, gameplay? Would I play a perfect balanced game with great mechanics if my avatar was a stick figure? That would be a no, but there are others though that would run their stick figure to the level cap.

They bring us all together like some social club with the hopes of finding that niche for the masses. Success in some areas and failing in others but they try, over and over again they try. No game may be perfect but I still love the experience and am glad they keep trying.

Have I found what I am looking for?

Sing it Bono, just sing it...

“I have climbed the highest mountains

I have run through the fields Only to be with you, only to be with you

I have run I have crawled I have scaled these city walls, these city walls Only to be with you

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for”

Going back to the old?

2008-08-27T01:07:00.002-05:00

Traveling down the path of the “What’s New” in today and tomorrow’s MMO’s reminds me of the consumer market that is constantly giving us our “New and Improved”. I fall victim with the flash of improved products like most people. Hell, after all it’s “Improved”. Whatever it was doing for me before, must be doing more for me now.

I would never think of going back to the old . Why would anyone go back to the old, when the “New and Improved” is available? The shampoo commercial comes to mind. You know the one, where they act like they are having an orgasm in the shower. Who wouldn’t want that shampoo? It’s a poor analogy using the new Orgasmic Shampoo versus the old and dull but in our gaming history we always look for the new things that will shake our tree.

10 years of losing our selves in the latest and greatest, is there any time to reflect? Look back at what made those early games hold our attention? Can we go back even for nostalgic reasons to taste that early magic that made us a core MMO player?

I fired up EQ1 and actually re-subscribed, in an attempt to see if the old would still be palatable for my gaming tastes. Upon arriving at the character creation screen I was met by the “Family”, the old characters and names that have traveled with me for several years. I wasn’t sure if it was the nostalgic moment that helped me overlook the old style graphics or that graphics just don’t mean that much to me anymore. Cycling through my guys, still fully equipped in all their grandeur, it didn’t take long to be flooded with great memories of days gone by.

In those days it wasn’t too hard to be in game 5 hours through the week and 30 hours on the weekends. Damn, how things change. I entered the game with my main character mostly to see if everything was as I left it. After a 4 year absence I didn’t expect too much but was pleasingly surprised that everything was in place. A quick tour in the Planes of Knowledge revealed that this was still a live and busy community.

When my tour of PoK was over I wanted to find something to kill. I logged onto my level 37 Barbarian Warrior, who was conveniently parked in the Overthere and preceded to find something to beat up. With the Zone to Sky Fire Mountains at my back I was ready to rumble. A clean bow shot to the closest un-expecting Sarnak and the fight was on. The bad thing about coming back after 4 years is that you are used to how some of the “New and Improved” games are more forgiving. I had no fear that a Blue-conned MOB was a semi-safe first kill.

As I watched my enemies life line, as well as my own, race dot for dot. I realized that this damn thing just might kick my ass. Where in the hell was my list of abilities, my superb fighting skills that I have trained for all of these 37 levels? Auto combat, bash and kick, is this all I got? Of course this is what I pictured the Sarnak telling me, “That all you got”? In what seemed like hours I finally finished off my quarry with about 5% life to spare.

I was basking in my victory along with reminding myself this wasn’t the “New and Improved”, it was the “Old” game. I remembered what death meant in this game along with all of the challenges a player would face. It was at this time, my moment of reflection, when this damn Cockatrice decided he wanted some. Well I didn’t so I ran. (Noob after thought, I ran the wrong way. The Damn zone was at my back, figures don't it.) One dose of Blood of the Wolf and off I went. After covering sufficient ground, keeping yardage between me and this pissed off chicken was best I thought. I stopped, turned to take a look just to find this damn chicken still hot on my ass. Damn, if this bird catches me I’ll have to make a freaking corpse run.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Shortest is not always the wisest. Heading for that good ‘ole Book on a pedestal, the one that would port me to safety, I never looked back one time. I knew that I had not only that damn chicken on my ass but I was sure he had company. I pictured a train of ugly behind me anywhere from the Chicken brotherhood all the way to those damn Dragoon’s and a few stray cats. Book tag, I know you have seen them off in a distance running for their very lives with the whole zone in pursuit. Tag the Book and “poof”, you make it. Well I made the tag and was safe.

Yeah this wasn’t the “New and Improved” but once again it got my attention. The graphics aren’t next generation and the level is a grind but I did remember just how fun this game was. I don’t think I’ll ever go back to my old shampoo but I do think I will hang around Old EQ for awhile, it just feels right for now.

Out of the corner of your eye

2008-08-27T01:02:00.003-05:00

Peripheral Vision, which is vision that occurs outside the very center of gaze is a prime example of “Game” Forums or Sites. This is not a derogatory statement but simply an observation on my part.

There are an abundance of “Communities” that are dedicated to a game or MMO's in general, that can house the most obnoxious persona's that surf the 3 dub's (WWW).

Pick a game, pick a community and watch the “Battle of the Boards”. Not all communities harbor the insane, pro-zac smoking, retina fried, flotsam and jetsam that happens to wash up on the shore, but even those quiet “Mr Rogers Neighborhood” communities along with the “Back Alley” type serve the greater good.

The pure gold that I find in any community and I mean ANY, is the unlimited resources that the gaming industry has at their fingertips. If I was in control of a major gaming company the first thing I would do is hire, full time, to do nothing else, than to read and monitor every gaming forum as possible. Every week a full report would be submitted concerning the “State of the Gamer”.

Everywhere you look there a “State of the Game” posts and announcements. These are important and are needed. They come in several flavors, Devs explaining whats going on, where we want to be, etc, etc. Community sites reiterating to those gamers that play, but are clueless whats going on in their favorite playground. True story coming --> A player in Vanguard, never has the Chat Windows active and has played since launch did not have a clue about SOE/Sigil current events. These people need a “State of the Game” address.

11 years with MMO entertainment I have always believed the game companies were locked on to that “center gaze”, and all of a sudden, at times, something came flying at them from the corner of their eye and smacked them in the head. I would imagine hindsight was revelation to things they might have seen from the Gaming community but was lost in their straight forward gaze.

The mass of gamers that camp various Gaming sites, regardless of the Barroom or granny's house atmosphere have a role. An important calling for the present and future of all games.

Listen up gaming companies, keep your eyes on the prize and fixed on your goal, but listen to your public, we will let you know if something is going to smack you upside your head.

Peruse with a View

Consolidation....

Welcome to the Jungle

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