General Discussion [ Page 70 ]

PAX Prime 2013 - Tickets on Sale (Going Fast!)

http://blog.bioware.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/paxlogo.jpg

Tickets are going fast. Four-day passes are gone, but individual days are still available. Get in line, virtually, on their site, but be prepared to wait. It's a process...

http://prime.paxsite.com/

Nintendo's Plans for the Year

Nintendo Direct has revealed a lot of new information. Some of it quite interesting. To be honest, I was pretty uninterested in the Wii U and 3DS until hearing some of this news, and now I'm pretty excited. I think based on these announcements I may make the jump on at least a 3DS.

First, most importantly to me, a direct sequel to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is coming to the 3DS this year! A Link to the Past is my favorite entry in the series, though that may be pure nostalgia. I haven't played it since the SNES was still considered current-gen. Still, this sequel looks interesting and I hope to get my hands on it.

A new Yoshi's Island will also be coming to... Read All

Bethesda Is Teasing Us Via Vine

Some barbed wire, an old document, a spinning record, some geiger-counter or record scratching sounds. What does it all mean?

This is probably the first time a game has been teased via a 6-second video loop on a hip new social network.

https://vine.co/v/bFPjjheVnau

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/16/2013 at 08:08pm

The record is Bach's Air on G String. What does it mean?!

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/16/2013 at 08:20pm

Two records, apparently...

The first is The Moonbeam Trio : http://www.worldcat.org/title/moonbeam-trio-program-no-506/oclc/047738845

The second is a close-up of Bach's Air on G String.

BR Supporter wrote on 04/16/2013 at 09:31pm

what could it mean? WHAT COULD IT MEAN?!?! D:

jdodson Admin wrote on 04/16/2013 at 10:13pm

https://twitter.com/DCDeacon/status/324192731721265153

Apparently not Fallout 4.

BR Supporter wrote on 04/17/2013 at 02:16am

Why did you provide me with this dreadful information? I'm just going to act like I never saw it and be excited for a new fallout...

jdodson Admin wrote on 04/17/2013 at 03:05am

Hahaha, yeah... sorry.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 04/17/2013 at 03:46am

Well BR, you can be happy with the knowledge that they've apparently scouted MIT. Remember all the stuff from Fallout 3 about "The Institute" with the android?

BR Supporter wrote on 04/17/2013 at 12:39pm

Uh kinda...it's been awhile since I've played but it sounds familiar.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 04/17/2013 at 12:45pm

Yeah that's the rumor, that Fallout 4 will take place in and around MIT. Boston would be awesome.

jdodson Admin wrote on 04/17/2013 at 04:23pm

I really wish it was a Fallout game though. I wonder if its a new Elder Scrolls game? Might not make sense considering Elder Scrolls Online is coming out this year.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 04/17/2013 at 04:54pm

I would highly doubt they're ready to announce a new Elder Scrolls. There's been around five years between each one since Daggerfall. They definitely take their time.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/18/2013 at 03:30pm

Should have updated my earlier post, as the correct link for the recording of The Moonbeam Trio shown in the video is:

http://www.worldcat.org/title/planned-program-service-program-no-416/oclc/49738276&referer=brief_results

Still have no clue what this is, but I'm curious why the loop begins and ends with the barbed wire. Why not just end the clip at the shots of Bach, then let it loop?

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/18/2013 at 03:42pm

We're behind!! (or, I'm behind!)

Two new Vine videos have been release by Bethesda, with promise of a reveal tomorrow:

https://vine.co/v/bFldAQgTIr6
https://vine.co/v/bUqveJ2uFeZ

Freaky!

Most people are thinking it's Zwei, new survival horror game from Tango Gameworks & Bethesda:

http://www.tangogameworks.com/project/index_en.html

I guess we'll know tomorrow :)

jdodson Admin wrote on 04/18/2013 at 03:45pm

Thanks for updating us scrypt. The sunflower video is pretty awesome.

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Nintendo to Discontinue Some Wii Online Services

"We at Nintendo sincerely thank you for your continued patronage of our company’s products. We would like to inform you that a portion of the online services offered through the Wii console will be discontinued from 28th June 2013. We apologise to those of you currently using these services."

Specifically they are discontinuing:

- Nintendo Channel
- News Channel
- Forecast Channel
- Everybody Votes Channel
- Mii Contest Channel
- Data exchange with Wii Friends via WiiConnect24*

I view modern consoles in the same way I view computers, but it doesn't seem console makers do. The Internet Channel is still available so you can get news and the forecast from that, but its still... Read All

CapnCurry Supporter wrote on 04/15/2013 at 05:27am

Ugh. I hate decisions like this. Either it's a feature that people are still using in large numbers, in which case: continue the damn product. Or it's a feature that people are *not* still using in large numbers, in which case: throw the damn thing on a shared hosting service and downgrade the support to "best effort".

I'm less inspired to upgrade to the Wii U to keep my precious Everybody Votes Channel, and more worried about what I'll *actually* fall in love with on the Wii U that they'll decide isn't worth their time.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/15/2013 at 04:04pm

The Mii Contest and Everybody Votes channels were the only ones I found interesting, and even then it was only for a short time. This is a little more disturbing, and I'm not sure why it was left off the above list:

- Data exchange with Wii Friends via WiiConnect24*

* Exchange of Wii messages on the Wii Message Board, exchange of Mii characters on the Mii Channel and message/data exchange within some games will be disabled.

I still play Animal Crossing City Folk from time to time, and its sad to think that a big dynamic of the game (having friends send you items or messages in the mail, or even come to visit your town) could be eliminated. I know it happens, and it's happened to much more popular games. It would be awesome if there were shared hosting services, or P2P options for this dilemma. Unlikely a solution we will be offered soon...

The problem is the consumer. We make statements with our money, and our money says that we will buy just about anything that falls within a very wide netted parameter. Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo... they aren't in any real way convinced that we want anything less than what we are already getting, just dressed in a newer outfit. They'll do what they do, because it makes them happy. Don't like the way things are going? They're response is trending toward (or explicitly stated, in the case of Microsoft) "deal with it". "Uhhh, the future we are planning is out of control, you guys! This is the nature of the thing! We're just trying to do the best we can (i.e. profit) on this crazy ride!"

The other side of that is "stop giving them money."

They pretty much know that isn't going to happen. Consumers aren't that convicted.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/15/2013 at 07:03pm

I think people will handle pain to a certain point. But maybe its a bit more deeply psychological or philosophical in a way. Well economic philosophy :D

If after a few years my console services shut down, my console has little value left then people will value the next round of consoles less(I do). I think it might be less apparent in peoples minds, but they will do things where the value prospect is stronger. And frankly with everyone shutting down console servies (PS3 removing the Linux options, now Wii with this) the idea of a "traditional" console, to me is lessened. I mean, compare it to my XP EeeBox I bought well before my Wii. Can still do everything I did with it the day I bought it today. Console manufacturers don't really see stuff in the same way and its a shame because I believe peoples dollars follow that pattern.

I think this might creep a bit into all the next gen consoles, or at least I think it might. Wii U isn't the only console that will suffer from this generation upgrade apathy. Or at least, thats my guess based on my thoughts now.

Really suck when they turn off the Mario Kart online play.

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Improvements to Our Game Database

One task on my list for this month was to add in new Game Platforms to Cheerful Ghost in Linux, Mac and more. I also added the Platform sections so you can get a breakdown on the most popular games for those platforms.

Since the site's launch we imported our games list from various un-awesome sources. It required a ton of manual cleaning and pruning of bad games in the list. We also had to add a __TON__ of games by hand. So I retired the old game importing routines and started afresh. I also decided to ditch our old game list sources and go primary so we now import direct from Steam, Android Store, iOS Store and the Wii U. As new consoles are released ill add support... Read All

Gamers jobs being taken by machines!

This guy has developed a program that can play games. It analyzes a memory snapshot each second and decides what qualifies as progress, and then tries things until it figures it out. That's a very simplistic way to put it, but he explains it all in the video.

I was personally most amused by Tetris. It didn't *technically* fail.

Not a fan of this week's Humble Bundle

It's hard for me to gripe about a "pay what you want" game package, but I kinda feel like Blendo is playing fast & loose with what constitutes a game here.

The premium title of the bundle (the one you have to beat the average donation to get) is Thirty Flights of Loving. Now, I went into this knowing it wasn't a game, so much as it was an "artfully told story." Mm-hm. Nope. Nope, it's just that between the story and the gameplay, the story *almost* exists and the gameplay does not at all. If you'd like a story-told-in-game-format, I'd like to recommend To The Moon, Portal 2, Final Fantasy 6, Myst... gee, it's almost like we had the story-told-as-game thing down for... Read All It's hard for me to gripe about a "pay what you want" game package, but I kinda feel like Blendo is playing fast & loose with what constitutes a game here.

The premium title of the bundle (the one you have to beat the average donation to get) is Thirty Flights of Loving. Now, I went into this knowing it wasn't a game, so much as it was an "artfully told story." Mm-hm. Nope. Nope, it's just that between the story and the gameplay, the story *almost* exists and the gameplay does not at all. If you'd like a story-told-in-game-format, I'd like to recommend To The Moon, Portal 2, Final Fantasy 6, Myst... gee, it's almost like we had the story-told-as-game thing down for a couple decades before this was released, isn't it?

Next up, Air Forte. This is actually a kids' game. Seeing this lined up next to Flotilla, I thought I'd be in for an aerial combat romp. Nope, I'm in for practicing my basic multiplication and geography skills. Now, I'm not meaning to complain about kids games or edutainment, but there's a context here that's simply being ignored. When I was very young, I found a copy of "Tax Planner" sitting in the games caddy for the family's Atari 2600. I *thought* was in for a sim game. To my credit, I only "played" it for about fifteen minutes before I realized I was trying to beat a utility program. This time around, it only took me a minute and a half to figure out that characters asking me to find their "multiples of 2" was not some cutesy way of telling me their twin siblings had been kidnapped. So personal growth +1, videogame funtimes - 100.

Atom Zombie Smasher is a reasonably interesting idea. Now that I'm out of nice things to say I'll proceed with the review. In software development, we have a mantra: "What is the dumbest thing that could possibly X", where X is either "work", "be recognized as a feature", or something similar. It's basically how we decide where to draw milestones and how to divide work into manageable chunks. Atom Zombie Smasher feels like someone reached the Dumbest Thing that could Possibly Be a Zombie Game, then published it. It's playable. There's even a little bit of strategy involved. But it feels like this one got published long before it got polished. Most of your flash games on Kongregate (Rebuild comes to mind) will outpace this for depth, easily.

I'd love to review Flotilla for you. I really would. But I can't get the damn thing to run on my system. I've followed all of the three-year-old troubleshooting tips, uninstalled, reinstalled, did the usual Windows mamba. It simply does not run. Perhaps not surprising; there are no maintenance patches newer than 2010.

So, there you have it. One story that would fit on a pamphlet, one "game" for your eight-year-old nephew, one zombie game released before its prime, and one thing that purports to be a game but is actually a shrug and a fart noise. Honestly, I can't recommend the Humble Bundle purchase even at name-your-own prices. If you're really curious about one or two of these, go for it - it's not your dollar, but your gaming hour that I'm afraid will be wasted.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/10/2013 at 04:30am

Harsh!

Travis Admin wrote on 04/10/2013 at 01:34pm

So what's the bottom line Capn? Should we buy this one? :D

jdodson Admin wrote on 04/10/2013 at 02:12pm

This weeks Bundle is interesting for sure. I decided to skip it because it didn't look interesting to me and now because of Cap's review.

The Humble Bundle is now moving to selling all the time. So they go from weekly bundles -> bundles -> weekly bundles now. When it was spread over months you could always count on something being awesome in a bundle. I think that's mostly true now anyway but not always.

Like Cap, I look forward to the next bundle with some text file choose your own adventure stories and some Microsoft Paint bitmaps and directions on how to program in C. /rimshot

Too soon? :D

jdodson Admin wrote on 04/10/2013 at 02:12pm

PS I love everyone.

jdodson Admin wrote on 04/10/2013 at 02:13pm

Except the Spider Planet in FTL.

BR Supporter wrote on 04/11/2013 at 04:25pm

I personally really enjoyed atom zombie smasher. It could be a flash, I'll give you that, but that doesn't mean its not fun. Specially if you are only paying $1 for it. Not saying you should only pay $1 but its your choice if you want to pay more. I personally payed, I think, around $5 for it when it was on a Steam sale and I think it was worth it.

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Giving an Interview: A Few Steps To Rad

Since launching the site I realize the stuff I do might seem a bit out of reach to some. Over the last bit I have improved as a write and I am getting better at sharing content that people want to read. One thing that I started doing over the course of the site was to send interviews to people in gaming I respected. I was really nervous giving the first couple, but after that it got easier.

If you have been considering sending out a gaming related interview, I recommend you do so and as such want to help the process for you. I have a few thoughts that might things a bit easier so you can publish your first interview.

whom to talk to?

First off you might have an idea of... Read All

Travis Admin wrote on 04/10/2013 at 01:38pm

You've done more of these than I have, but one thing I would recommend is-- know what you want to ask before you ask for an interview. For example, I'd absolutely love to talk to Todd Howard, but I have no clue what I'd actually ask him in an interview that he hasn't already answered a thousand times.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/10/2013 at 01:47pm

jdodson: Bbbb buuut why are you SO Awesome? Might sound great in your head but... Yeah I agree Travis, start with an idea for sure! :D

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 04/10/2013 at 07:19pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpHVOSYlOv0

The proper way to interview.

Travis Admin wrote on 04/10/2013 at 09:10pm

Adym, I knew what that was going to be before clicking on it. I was never a fan of Chris Farley really, but those interviews were incredible.

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 04/10/2013 at 09:24pm

@Travis +1

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My Card Game, Cool Cats Battle.

http://imgur.com/5I6g6Yd

Well... I have been making my own card game. Its kinda like rock paper scissors but you have limited cards. I don't know how to explain it but basically you say one...2...3 and then you and your friend slap down your cards and see who wins. Its fast action which = fun.

Above is a picture of the first card in my basic set.

Thx for responses and ideas!

What Are You Playing Right Now?

Just curious what everyone is playing right now?

What I have been playing over the last few days:

Spaceward Ho on my iPhone

Age of Empires Online

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/09/2013 at 07:33am

In the past week or so it's been a little of this and that, with primary focus on:

- Bioshock Infinite (currently in 2nd play through)
- Vanquish
- Tomb Raider (just getting started)

I've recently started keeping a game journal, in an attempt to better analyze game design structure. As such, I've been playing a lot of games more for work than just entertainment, so I won't count those. Interesting challenge, though!

jaelte wrote on 04/09/2013 at 07:34am

I've been back on Skyrim lately. I'd stopped playing when other games came out and distracted me. Anyway, I've played it 135 hours so far and I don't think I'm anywhere close to beating the game, but I'm still enjoying it for the time being.

Travis Admin wrote on 04/09/2013 at 01:21pm

Awesome gif :)

I'm revisiting Dishonored. It came out at the wrong time and got overshadowed by Borderlands 2.

BR Supporter wrote on 04/09/2013 at 02:35pm

Recently I've been into World of tanks and war thunder. I am looking for something new to play though.

krcDeuce Supporter wrote on 04/09/2013 at 06:32pm

I downloaded the Starcraft: Wings of Liberty demo a few weeks ago, but I've been doing more game development than I have been game playing.

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 04/09/2013 at 07:55pm

I too have been busy (with @krcDeuce) with development more than playing lately. But I did take an evening last week to play Age of Empires online, and I've gone through Solar 2 a few times.

Oh, and I've been killing random free time with Eufloria, which I definitely recommend as a very unique RTS (on my Android phone)

AutoCat1000 wrote on 04/09/2013 at 11:17pm

i play MINECRAFT, Garry's mod, and a tiny little bit of nothing.

AutoCat1000 wrote on 04/09/2013 at 11:18pm

and i little bit of programming

Nick_Donahoo wrote on 04/10/2013 at 06:15pm

I'm still slogging through my Bioshock Infinite 1999 play through. I am getting my wife to try Tomb Raider though.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/10/2013 at 07:17pm

Awesome. How is 1999 mode compared to normal?

Nick_Donahoo wrote on 04/10/2013 at 10:30pm

merciless. A lot of hiding and cheap tactics on my part. and expensive. 100 bucks per continue? ouch.

Still, a worthy challenge, and a lot of fun.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/11/2013 at 01:27am

Awesome. Good that the game is fun on the second play though!

BR Supporter wrote on 04/11/2013 at 02:49am

Just picked up prison architect on steam and I got to say, having a lot of fun with it. Even though its in alpha still. Great game with great potential.

Blue_Element wrote on 04/11/2013 at 03:36am

I've been playing: a lot of Realm of the Mad God, Minecraft (specifically this fun CTF server), Overgrowth, and Black Ops 2 Zombie Mode. All of which games that you can play virtually forever, which in my opinion are the best types of games!

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/11/2013 at 03:35pm

Prison Architect looks great, ill have to check that out!

Game I want to be playing right now: Starbound :D

BR Supporter wrote on 04/11/2013 at 04:15pm

Little tip for those if you that may have or will be getting prison architect: don't block your delivery zone from the street. I had a truck load of prisoners that just drove right past my prison. Not sure where they went but I'm pretty sure they aren't in a prison which can't be safe considering they were all in for assault or burglary.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/11/2013 at 05:14pm

Hahaha, good point, thanks BR! Maybe they made a detour to Taco Bell or something...

BR Supporter wrote on 04/11/2013 at 06:41pm

Its been about two days since they left. Maybe they were really hungry...

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 04/11/2013 at 06:47pm

A run for the border?

BR Supporter wrote on 04/11/2013 at 07:06pm

I did have 2 prisoners who escaped...its actually kinda funny. I got 8 prisoners and they all tried to escape soon as they were put into cells. So now I have 4 unconscious prisoners who try to escape every time they wake up.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/11/2013 at 08:11pm

Do you have to keep them happy so they don't riot or try to escape or something? :D

BR Supporter wrote on 04/11/2013 at 08:57pm

I'm not sure...a bunch more just escaped a few seconds ago. They have happiness but they never seem to be happy, even though I give them everything.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/11/2013 at 09:16pm

WHY ARE YOU NO HAPPY IN PRISON I GIVE U TV AND FOODS?

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