Sayings

Dare I? Dare I compose another post? I somehow missed the entire years of 2013 and 2014. I kind of wish I slipped one right in at the end there, right before January. But alas, I had forgotten about this blog yet again. Well, this won't be long, but I thought I'd say something.

Farcry 3 turned out great, as we all know. I enjoyed it, but still haven't beaten the story yet. Mass Effect 3's ending was a trainwreck, apparently. I still loved the game, the ending less so, but I think it was better than 2. The first ME game is probably still my favorite.

Destiny has also received a lot of mixed press. I like it a lot, but I agree that the story makes no sense, the missions are repetitive, and the end-game loot grind is literally punishing, especially with The Dark Below. Why that doesn't bother me is I haven't even finished the story, I prefer the Crucible, Destiny's version of Halo Matchmaking. That is a barrel of monkeys, fun monkeys. And I'm only level 25 because I play so casually that I may never get into that final grind for exotics. Though of course I do want some. It did take me this long just to finally get a rare sniper rifle, even though all the rest of my weapons and armor have been rare for a few levels, just because the loot algorithms or whatchamacallits (that's actually a word?!) are so bad that early on in the game you could decode an engram and actually just get two items of a lower rarity than the engram you turned in, or so I heard. I wasn't paying that much attention. I've been busy with work and boring adult things. Like writing my book (which isn't boring or adult). All that said, with the level advantages supposedly nullified in the Crucible, any advantage given by loot is probably surmountable by having an edge in skill, teamwork, and a little luck. Unfortunately, I am almost always severely lacking in all three categories. Regardless, it remains fun.

I got The Long Dark for Christmas from a wonderful friend. It's an indie survival game on Steam in Early Access (wow a lot has changed since I last posted). In it, you do not fight zombies or other people, but wolves, the cold, and hunger. So far, it is extremely enjoyable. I barely survived one wolf attack, with 14% health and decreasing as I was bleeding out. I limped back into the house I had just proudly stamped out of after having successfully cooked myself a warm breakfast, sat by the fire which was still burning, and bandaged myself and applied antiseptic. I also drank some water as I was thirsty. Unfortunately, I had my inventory categorized by weight, and clicked on "non-potable water" by accident, since the potable kind was usually on top. I contracted dysentery immediately. Luckily, I had picked up some antibiotics (this was day 4), and I had to drink a half gallon of clean water, and sleep for ten hours. After that debacle, I focused on regrouping, repairing clothing, etc. in a nearby gas station I had found. I also found a hatchet hiding under some barrels or something (finally). The next in-game morning, I stepped outside, flare equipped to scare off any wolves, and saw a car not 20 feet from a new house. I saw no wolves, got in the car, searched it, and got out. Between the car and the house, I got killed by a wolf. It was extremely frustrating and I can't wait until I play it again.

Since I last posted I probably also played Dark Souls. I didn't get very far at all, and they have a sequel now, but that was very good as well.

Well, it's 3 am, and I have work tomorrow. Who knows if it will be another 2 or 3 years before I post again? I shudder to think what may happen by then.

Farewell faithful spambots and accidental human visitors, and, what was it I used to say? Oh yeah. Beware the pink mist. Or something. Read Penny Arcade. Watch Interstellar. Play The Long Dark. Go on a hike. See old friends. Eat something delicious. Do something new and uncomfortable. If you're an artist, don't wait for inspiration. Just do it. If you're not an artist, ask yourself why. If it's a lack of talent, know that talent is largely a word used by people too lazy to put in the time to become talented. I know because I'm lazy. But it's worth the effort. Make time. You can. Birds.

Farcry 3

Grrg. I want to start a new blog, but every time I do, I post one post and leave the blog to die. I can't even remember some of the blogs I've started, and so I have scattered them across the great ocean of the internet, each one a ship with only one passenger, and no captain. Lost forever. So I'm here again, with some more thoughts on what has always been the vague theme of this particular blog: video game opinion.

I saw an ad for Farcry 3. I did not search it out, but in fact it came to me, rather rudely, in front of a Mass Effect 3 trailer that I did intentionally look up. But I humored it and watched the whole two and a half some minutes, as I greatly enjoyed its direct predecessor in spite of its flaws, which were occasionally quite frustrating. Seeing another sidebar ad, now, I have assembled a vibe that Ubisoft is putting out with their marketing campaign for the game; a sort of more realistic and therefore darker Borderlands vibe. I think it was the weird colors and the crazed characters and blatant disregard for human life displayed in the trailer combined with the sarcastic slogan "relax and unwind with us" on the ad. However, it somehow feels worn out. I like how Farcry 2 played it straight. No humor. And the trailer dropped one too many f-bombs, as if they were trying to be edgy. Which they most certainly will. But excessive language and violence doesn't cut it anymore, you actually have to try. Borderlands nailed the Borderlands vibe in 2008 (I think), and as an aside, I absolutely loved the Borderlands 2 trailer. Way to go, Gearbox. And having personally spoken with Randy Pitchford and co. at a couple of PAXes, I can testify that they genuinely seem like good people who care about their games, and more importantly, their gamers; this I found out when I was one of the few hundred to receive a free copy of Borderlands 2 at PAX Prime 2011.

But back to Farcry 3. Even though they are trying a bit too hard with their marketing, if the gameplay improves (that's the key word) upon FC2, then I will most likely get this game. FC2 certainly was a lot of fun, I dumped a little over 50 hours into it somehow (more than I put into Mass Effect 2 :O [which I liked better]), but there was something about the openness of the world that made me not care too much about the almost immediately respawning guard posts and the cars and guns that would break down after just a few hours' use. Do something better, Ubisoft! I don't know what, that's why I'm not a game designer.