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Star Wars: KotOR II updated with new features, Mac, Linux

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In a MASSIVE update today, Aspyr has brought Knights of the Old Republic II to Mac and Linux, along with giving all versions a slew of features. It will support Steam Cloud, Achievements, and Steam Workshop mods, and the Restored Content mod will be available day 1; It comes with native widescreen support in resolutions up to 5k; and the big one... CONTROLLER SUPPORT. The keyboard/mouse controls really turned me off of these games, so it's good to see controller support, and from what I've heard the Restored Content mod makes the game infinitely better.

The game is 25% off in celebration of the new stuff.

Info here: http://store.steampowered.com/app/208580/

Tips & Strategies for New Hearthstone Players

Recently I've been seeing more people starting out in Hearthstone and wanted to write up some tips and starting ideas that helped me out. The in-game tutorials are good but they don't give you a direction or help you make choices about how to spend your time and gold. As you read this you might have something you have that helped you, drop it in the comments. This post is for new players to Hearthstone or people that are thinking about jumping in.

First thing is to keep in mind that you are new to the game and will lose a bunch until you figure out the games mechanics. It's OK, you don't know everything and you don't lose anything in game when you don't win a match. I... Read All Recently I've been seeing more people starting out in Hearthstone and wanted to write up some tips and starting ideas that helped me out. The in-game tutorials are good but they don't give you a direction or help you make choices about how to spend your time and gold. As you read this you might have something you have that helped you, drop it in the comments. This post is for new players to Hearthstone or people that are thinking about jumping in.

First thing is to keep in mind that you are new to the game and will lose a bunch until you figure out the games mechanics. It's OK, you don't know everything and you don't lose anything in game when you don't win a match. I am also writing this from the perspective of someone that wants to play the game without spending money, to date I haven't and that has worked out well to this point.

Start out by playing all the heroes in Single Player mode and unlock them all to achieve all the basic cards. Don't build a deck, just play as the starting heroes and unlock all the cards in Single Player against the computer. Over time you will understand the basic flow of the game and by the time you level all the heroes you should be able to beat the computer most of the time.

As you continue to unlock the basic cards in Single Player all the gold you acquire should be spent on card packs. You might not know if you pull anything good yet(one my first packs got me a Harrison Jones) but adding more cards to your game is important and you might pull something great.

When you are done unlocking all the basic cards start playing with people online in unranked matches. When I got to this point I didn't even have a deck built yet. I didn't win much but I started to understand how real people played VS a computer. At this point you should be favoring a few classes over the others, stick to a couple and focus on learning them well.

When you get tired of losing and understand your focused classes better, build a deck. Hearthstone has a great deck builder so just use that and then play with the deck you build. Based on how the matches go drop cards that don't work and replace them with cards you like. As you play against people you will see them do some cool stuff with cards you might have. Would that strategy work for you? If you see something someone does you like, steal it and make it your own.

Every week play Tavern Brawl to at least win a match and get the free pack. Tavern Brawl is fun but the free pack each week is incredible, get it.

Once you get some decks you like start saving in game gold up to unlock the first Hearthstone adventure, Naxxramas. Hearthstone adventures are great in that if you beat the adventure bosses you are assured certain cards. Naxxramas has some epically amazing cards you NEED to have for your decks. Sludge Belcher, Haunted Creeper, Maexxena & Kel'Thuzad are all incredible and will make your decks stronger. Each Naxxrama wing costs 700 gold to unlock so it will take you some doing to accomplish but the cards are well worth it.

Understand how to reroll your daily quests to get the most gold possible. I outlined the steps I learned in a post here http://cheerfulghost.com/jdodson/posts/2508/heartstone-roundup-the-grim-patron-is-good-gold-stats

Once you feel ready, each month you should play ranked matches and get to level 20. It's not too hard and if you do it you unlock a monthly unique card back for doing it. Personally I use the standard card back but it's nice to have options and it's something else to do in game.

Understand all the in game basic quests because doing them rewards you with a ton of gold. http://www.reddit.com/r/hearthstone/comments/1ua5c9/hearthstone_for_beginners_guide_and_resource/

If you are losing with a particular deck consider what cards you don't use and think about replacing them. Does your deck not have a good starting temp? Maybe you need more cards that cost less. Are you getting slammed by big creatures you can't match? Maybe you need more cards to help you later in the game.

Be comfortable with experimentation. If you have an idea, build a deck and try it out. Playing against a computer is a good way to see if a deck has a minimum viability and playing against people is even better. Don't be afraid to try something new but it's also OK to have a mainstay deck you can't help but come back to.

If I forgot something let me know in the comments and i'll update this guide over time accordingly.

Far Cry 3 - An Open World Dark Shootageddon

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Last year in June I picked up the Far Cry franchise pack for about $15. I had picked up Far Cry 2 on PS3 from a discount bin a few years earlier and really enjoyed that and decided that picking up the original Far Cry, Far Cry 2, Far Cry 3 + all DLC & Far Cry Blood Dragon for $15 was a good idea. I recently completed Far Cry 3(yeah yeah, I took my time) and wanted to talk a bit about my experience with the game.

Largely I enjoyed the game and if you are looking for a fun open world shooter with tons of stuff to do, you need to pickup Far Cry 3. One nice thing about getting it now on PC is the rock bottom price and the fact that it comes with all the DLC out of the... Read All Last year in June I picked up the Far Cry franchise pack for about $15. I had picked up Far Cry 2 on PS3 from a discount bin a few years earlier and really enjoyed that and decided that picking up the original Far Cry, Far Cry 2, Far Cry 3 + all DLC & Far Cry Blood Dragon for $15 was a good idea. I recently completed Far Cry 3(yeah yeah, I took my time) and wanted to talk a bit about my experience with the game.

Largely I enjoyed the game and if you are looking for a fun open world shooter with tons of stuff to do, you need to pickup Far Cry 3. One nice thing about getting it now on PC is the rock bottom price and the fact that it comes with all the DLC out of the gate. That said, I had a rough start with Far Cry 3 and you can read about that below.

http://cheerfulghost.com/jdodson/posts/2130/great-rpg-shooter-cliched-narrative

I stand behind my first experience with the game and note that I think my reaction was somewhat intended by the designers. I didn't realize it at the time but Far Cry 3 is an interesting game that mixes in satire and a meta story that puts a light on gamers and gaming culture that really didn't work on me to start. I thought the game was simply rolling with tired "white man saves the natives" tropes because it would sell to it's primarily white gamer dude audience. Whereas I am sure the game did well with white guys because the main character was a white guy if you pay attention to what is happening Far Cry 3 writes a compelling story about a protagonist that actually changes over the course of the game. Often we play shooters that have us do things that have absolutely no lasting world or character impact. Far Cry 3 differs in that your actions change how the characters you are trying to save feel about you. You actions also change the world you inhabit in very interesting ways.

The core gameplay is fun when you are not thinking too much about what you are being led to do. I sort of look at Far Cry 3 as Skyrim with guns but that's not a perfect analogy. You need to explore new areas to reach your objectives and to do that you need to unlock cell towers and bases. This can get tedious but since the game took me a year to complete, I didn't feel that as much as someone that may have played it straight through. The gun unlock and upgrade system is fun and I enjoyed sinking skill points into my character and see him progress.

Overall I had fun playing Far Cry 3 but when the ending credits rolled I didn't feel like I had accomplished much. By the end of the game your friends and family seem to be fearful of you and what I accomplished I didn't really enjoy doing. I kind of wish there was the "leave the Island and call the authorities" button but if you did that, many of your friends and family would have died. That said, Far Cry 3 has you reflect on your actions so does it make sense morally to kill thousands of people to save 5 or 6? If this were real life then i'd say hell no but then again, it's just a video game so it doesn't matter. Far Cry 3 is a solid shooter Island romp that might leave you a bit uneasy with what you are led to do but it has more life than the protagonists soul by the end of the game.

Fallout 4 Gameplay - Walk Around The Beautiful Wasteland

Some new Fallout 4 gameplay surfaced and it looks great. Is anyone else going to pick this up in November when it launches? The footage is a mixture of scenes we already saw at E3 and some new stuff featuring power armor. Spoiler alert, you get into power armor as if it were some kind of mech robo-suit.

Todd Howard has been talking to press lately and I found this Telegraph article interesting on the games voice acting.

"A lot of games have voiced characters, but what they don’t want to give up is all the dialogue options. So for us a lot of it was logistical. The voice actors have been recording for 2 years, they’ve each done over 13,000 lines of dialogue. So to be... Read All

Starship Rubicon Drops On Steam -w Linux Port & Huge Update

Following in the vapor trails of our early 2015 release Starship Rubicon is now on Steam! It’s pretty exciting to be part of a game that is now available for people to play on Steam. Tick one off that bucket list!

This update is pretty massive in that it features an all new gravity gun, ship and level editor, mod tools and freshly baked Linux port. So you know, this seems like a great time to buy the game and everything so… why don’t you head over to Steam and get it?

http://store.steampowered.com/app/372030

If you bought Starship Rubicon through Cheerful Ghost/the Humble Widget, Itch.io or Desura we have already dropped a key on that site and it should be available very... Read All

Sad day in gaming: Satoru Iwata has passed away

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Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has sadly passed away today at age 55 due to bile duct complications. He's had heath issues over the past few years, but his death was still a surprise, as it didn't seem this bad to anyone.

Iwata gave Nintendo some of its best years, with the Wii and DS lines, and also some rocky ones with the Game Cube and Wii U, but his dedication to the company and his contribution to the industry is obvious.

Iwata started at Nintendo in the 80s, developing games like Earthbound, before becoming the fourth president of Nintendo in 2002.

A sad day indeed.

Nintendo press release: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2015/150713e.pdf

Will A PC Live In Your Living Room? The Corsair Bulldog May.

Valve's SteamOS and Steam Machine Train is heading out of the station this November alongside their Steam Controller and lots of PC manufacturers are jumping on board. Corsair, makers of memory and other hardware has a new living room PC chassis called Bulldog that might be something worth checking out. It's a DIY kit that comes with a case, 600 watt power supply, hydro series liquid cooler & next gen motherboard featuring an Intel chipset starting at $399. This is aimed at people that want Steam in the living room but want the ability to upgrade the system over time. You'd need to add the RAM, hard drive and video card but after that you'd have a pretty slick... Read All

This Is No Trap - The Force Awakens Comic-Con Panel

Star Wars VII is coming this December and it may be one of the most anticipated films in recent memory. Many fans are wondering if JJ Abrams magic will infuse the films with life again. I remain fairly hopeful as I try and consume every bit of non-spoiler information I can get my hands on. JJ and crew were at San Diego Comic-Con a few days ago talking about the new film and there were more than a few surprises to learn. Watch the entire presentation above and then check out the Force Awakens behind the scenes clip they release right afterward.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTNJ51ghzdY

It was amazing seeing the new principle cast along with the dark side additions.... Read All

Hearthstone Expansion "Argent Tournament" Drops July 22nd

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Blizzard sent a package to a few popular video game websites (not us, booo) teasing a new Hearthstone expansion coming July 22nd called "Agent Tournament." In the image linked above from Polygon the scroll reads:

"Well met, hero!

Champions are gathering from around the world to witness the next exciting thing Hearthstone has in store. News travels far and wide in search of brave new faces ready to answer the call to arms — are you one of them?

Muster for battle and mark July 22 on your calendar. The next bit of news won't come by carrier pigeon — thankfully, we have much better ways of communication now.

Victory awaits!"

So what are you most excited for? A full new... Read All

Like the Yoyos in Terraria? You can buy them.

OneDrop Yoyos, a high-end yoyo company out of Eugene, Oregon, is making a yoyo called The Terrarian, and it will match the look of the in-game yoyo by the same name. The Terrarian is the most badass of all the yoyos in the game, dropping from the final boss, and you can have it on your desk soon, or learn to do tricks with it. :)

https://instagram.com/p/447yvnnmb0/?taken-by=onedropyoyos

If that wasn't cool enough, check out the catalog: http://onedropyoyos.com/yoyos/

So many of the yoyos in game are OneDrop yoyos. Greg asked me in-game the other day what the little icon on most of the yoyos' tooltips was, and I had no idea, but I do now. It's the OneDrop logo!

For... Read All