jdodson | Cheerful Ghost

Studio Pixel Will Release Kero Blaster May 11th

Kero Blaster is Studio Pixel's latest game that will launch May 11th on PC and iOS. Studio Pixel was the company behind Cave Story and it seems Kero Blaster falls in the same genre. I like the NES aesthetic of Studio Pixel games and appreciate how the main character of Kero Blaster is a frog with a gun.

Kero Blaster is releasing on PC on the Indie Game site http://www.playism-games.com/ It's an interesting service I hadn't heard of that is similar to GOG.com or the Humble Store.

Reviving A Franchise One Reaper At A Time

When Diablo III first launched I was hooked. I enjoyed running through Sanctuary with SnuggyBunny, my Witch Doctor, collecting loot and murdering evil. That said, after I killed Diablo a few times I started having less and less fun. The loot started to suck, I didn't enjoy having to relive the story over and over and the game wasn't that challenging. My interest died off but I would occasionally come back to SnuggyBunny to dispatch evil.

When the loot 2.0 patch hit what little I played I loved. Diablo III was fun again and I was getting some really amazing gear. Many of my friends came back to the game and we were enjoying playing it together. A bit after loot 2.0 hit I decided to stop playing until Reaper of Souls was released so I could bottle up the excitement I had for the game. I am happy I did that because...

Reaper of Souls is an great expansion to Diablo III.

The Tale of Westmarch

Reaper of Souls starts off with Malthael the angel of death stealing the soulstone from Tyrael. Ultimately you are sourced with retrieving it and halting Malthael and his plot. (I am being vague here to avoid spoilers) I really enjoyed the addition of Act V and felt they really upped the ante from the base Diablo III experience. In Act V there are more things to explore, the world they created is deeper and the story isn't as chuckle-worthy.

Act V contains about 8 parts and starts in the battle ravaged town of Westmarch. The level design and art direction really shine and you don't go too long without seeing something totally new to look at. The mini-boss encounters are fun and the final battle with Malthael is much more challenging.

The Music of The Reaper

Some have said the music in Reaper of Souls is better than the music from the base Diablo III experience. I don't agree with that but I will say the music for Reaper of Souls is very different and more immediately memorable. Derek Duke takes the helm to pen a really massive score that reminds me of something from a modern film and less a Diablo game. Not to say the score doesn't seem like it comes from the world of Sanctuary, just that it seems to have evolved much from it's Diablo and Diablo II roots.

Bounties, Rifts and Adventure Mode

One of the strongest elements of Reaper of Souls is Adventure Mode. Adventure Mode allows you to go to whichever Act you fancy to complete Bounties. Bounties are in game goals that upon completion award you experience and rift tokens. Collect enough rift tokens and you can open a rift that is a random dungeon filled with tons of monsters and loot.

I like Adventure Mode because I can head into the game and complete 5 bounties in under an hour. Competing a set of bounties nets you a Horadric Cache which gets you an assortment of rift tokens, gems and loot.

The Crusade Marches On

The first thing I did when Reaper of Souls hit was start a Crusader and head back into Act I.

If you are curious what HammerTime, my current Crusader build is, clicky click.

http://us.battle.net/d3/en/profile/jdodson-1332/hero/43985764

I need to start focusing on socketing diamonds for all resist to make him less brittle. Currently he can hit pretty hard but doesn't fare too well against dense mobs. The Crusader has many skills that increase his block chance and I need to figure out a good build in that regard. Currently HammerTime feels "too glassy" and I want to change that.

Currently my DPS is high enough and when the Crusader starts throwing around his hammers it's insta-death for most mobs. I have heard that Blizzard is planning on patching the Crusader soon and I look forward to it. Some of the Crusader skills are not great and i'd love to have them changed such that they make sense to use.

The Final Verdict

If you love point and click RPG games, Reaper of Souls is well worth a look. If you are nervous about dropping the coin on Reaper of Souls because your were disappointed with Diablo III then just head back in and check out loot 2.0. The game has been changed considerably from when it initially launched two years ago and I think many of the major problems have been addressed. But really, at the end of the day I recommend it because killing things and looting the remains is just a lot of fun.

Angry Video Game Nerd Movie Update

I hope he takes us back to the past and makes a movie that doesn't suck ass(sorry I had to)... I like what I am seeing from it more now that I saw before.

What do you think about the AVGN Movie Update? Will you watch this when it drops?

"It's been 2 years since cameras first rolled on Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie. For the occasion, I've decided to give everyone this special inside look on the making of it.

Last December, we finished shooting the practical effects shots. Since then, we've been working on the VFX shots (any effects done during post-production) which are approximately 3/4 finished. The next step is Sound Design and then Music.

I expect the film to be done by the end of this year."

http://cinemassacre.com/2014/03/23/avgn-movie-timeline-updated-91913/

Age of Mythology Extended Edition Comes To Steam in May

Hot off the re-release awesomery of Age of Empires HD, Age of Mythology Extended Edition is releasing in May. Like many gamers, I have the original and expansion and whereas it's a great game that still works for single player and LAN, online multiplayer has long since been shutdown and the games aspect ratio is 4x3. So hearing that Microsoft is going to polish up the old game, modernize it for bigger monitors and bring Steam online multiplayer, I am pretty excited.

"Use mythological creatures like Minotaurs and Cyclopes to bolster your armies' strength. Call upon the gods for assistance in flattening enemy towns with meteors or scatter opposing troops with lightning storms.

New in the Extended Edition: Steam Workshop, improved rendering engine, Twitch TV integration, enhanced observer mode, native support for Win 7/8 and HD monitors, and more!"

http://www.ageofempires.com/AoM.aspx

FTL: Advanced Edition Releases Today!

FTL: Advanced Edition launched today and the lives of space fairing nerds all around the world got a little better. If you own FTL on Steam the new updates will await you when you sign in or if you want to try FTL on iPad, you can now pick it up for $10.

If you are looking for a list of changes to the game the FTL developers made a fairly complete list available. Because of the popularity of the update the FTL site is getting hammered but the link is below. So far I like that there are many more changes than they advertised. It's great to have a team under promise and over deliver!

http://www.ftlgame.com/FTLChangeLog.html

Ben Prunty has made the new FTL tracks available for download and they are totally free. I listed to them all today and they really add quite a bit to the games tone. The new Lanius tracks and "Lost Ship" are quite good.

http://benprunty.bandcamp.com/album/ftl-advanced-edition-soundtrack

Curious what people think of the new update. Drop your thoughts in the comments or post your FTL: Advanced Edition review on the site.

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 04/04/2014 at 04:52am

Just died, naturally. I'm really enjoying the Advanced Edition. They've put in a lot of polish first of all. It would be a lot to try and list out, but I definitely like how when you hover your mouse over a sector it shows you the next possible jumps from there.

The new systems are interesting. I sold my med bay and bought a clone bay. I think that's going to take some getting used to, but seems pretty cool.

A lot of new quests and instances made for an entirely unique feel again :)

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 04/09/2014 at 07:27pm

It's been a while since I've loaded Steam, since I've been playing StarCraft II. Today, I noticed FTL has an update. I'll have to give it a try sometime. I haven't played FTL in a while.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/10/2014 at 02:27am

Yep, it's the whole "Advanced Edition" business. Speaking of...

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 04/10/2014 at 08:06pm

It's been a while since I've played it. I probably should give the new update a try. I'm interested in what anyone else has to say that's played the new version. What do you think? Is it better? Is it any easier? Hahaha

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 04/11/2014 at 01:56am

I played a few games and plan on posting a review on it in the next week or so.

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April Fools 2014 Video Game Fake Story Roundup

Every year the Internet explodes with fake news on April Fools. Since some of the stories in gaming can be fun, I decided to catalog them here. If you have a particular story that isn't noted, hit up the comments.

Blizzard Outcasts is the new fake brawler by Blizzard. That said, fighting as Deckard Cain sounds pretty rad. http://us.blizzard.com/en-us/games/outcasts/

While not gaming related, Think Geek has a pretty fun Flux Capacitor USB car charger. http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/1ba1/?srp=2

Guild Wars 2 set all the in game players heads to bobble. http://i.imgur.com/m4GmxvB.jpg

Path of Exile just went pay to win. Candy Crush players rejoice. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w19sqGjmNlY

League of Legends Rapid Fire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=misAyNLuoQg

Boogie2988 plays Half-life 3 for 30 minutes. Nearly perfect satire, my personal favorite of the bunch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLq-KmI3VKc

Humble Bundle: PC And Android 9

"Humble Bundle: PC and Android 9 features six brilliant games ready to play on four platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux and Android. Pay what you want to receive the mind-bending puzzle adventure series, Broken Sword 2, the physics-based construction puzzler, Bridge Constructor, the stylistic typographic puzzler, Type:Rider, and the visually stunning action-adventure game, Ravensword: Shadowlands. If you pay more than the average, you'll also get the award-winning tower defense game, Kingdom Rush, and the retro-style pixel-art RPG, Knights of Pen and Paper +1 Edition."

I have been waiting to nab Kingdom Rush & Knights of Pen and Paper on PC for quite some time. Now that they are included as part of the Humble Bundle for PC and Android 9 I pretty stoked to pick them up.

Are you going to pick this up and if so which games will you try out first?

https://www.humblebundle.com/

Final Fantasy Game Lore In a Minute

Like many of you, I grew up on the Final Fantasy games. I found this video pretty interesting as I wasn't aware how the series started. I also knew(from watching it in the theaters) that The Spirits Within wasn't great, but I didn't know that it nearly bankrupted Square!

Game Pricing in The Download Age

One of the coolest parts of being in gaming is how many awesome games we have access to. Steam, GoG, Origin, iOS and Android stores all let you buy a ton of awesome games for much less than the traditional $60 console price point. That said, many triple A games that come out sell digitally and physically for the same price. YouTube gaming sensation Boggie2988 made a video recently that caught my attention I linked above. He asks Microsoft and Sony to change the pricing model for digital content because the digital versions of games don't allow trading and loaning yet are cheaper to distribute.

This is something that's bugged me for quite a long time that doesn't stop at certain kinds of games. Digital movies, music and books are often priced similarly to the physical versions. When you cut out the cost of shipping and retail costs, why can't the pricing of digital content go down too?

Recently I picked up the Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Collectors Edition. All told I love it and the extras it comes with are great and I plan to write more about it soon. That said, it comes with a traditional game install DVD that I decided to check out on a lark. The fact that all the disc contains is a 4 meg install file that simply starts the download process lets me know the digital only direction we are headed. That said, I don't the new digital only world, but I do mind it's strange pricing model alongside it's physical counterparts.

FTL: Advanced Edition Will Release April 3rd

"As a reminder, FTL: Advanced Edition is a free content expansion for FTL. All current (and future) customers will receive this update regardless of where they purchased it. Prior to release, we will post detailed instructions on how to get the update from whatever digital vendor you originally purchased FTL.

The iPad version of FTL will require an iPad version 2 or higher (iPad 1 is not supported) and will cost the same as the PC version, $10. It will be the complete game, including the new Advanced Edition content, and will not have any in-app purchases. We are proud to say that the iPad version is a true equivalent to the PC in the experience it provides, which is why we are price matching to the PC version."

A free FTL update with more music, ships, events, systems and the Lanuis race? Hell yeah. Can't wait to head back into the galaxy and be destroyed by the rebel flagship again!

In another piece of amazing news, Ben Prunty will not only make the new FTL: Advanced Edition music tracks available for download but the whole score will be free forever.

Ben Prunty: "The FTL Advanced Edition soundtrack is all ready to go. You'll be able to get it on Bandcamp on April 3rd. It will be FREE FOREVER."

If you haven't tried FTL or want a great reason to head back to the game, April 3rd is the day. Curious how many Ghosters will be playing FTL on iPad?

https://twitter.com/benprunty/status/449640404762124289
http://www.ftlgame.com/?p=688

scrypt Supporter wrote on 03/30/2014 at 05:04pm

I have it on good authority that the iPad version is a near perfect representation of the PC version, and understand it to be a "new joy" to experience it through touch interaction. :)

Timogorgon Member wrote on 03/30/2014 at 06:19pm

I am beyond excited about this! I don't own an iPad, so I won't be picking up that version. But I will be rockin' the PC version after the kids go to bed on 4/3. :D

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 03/31/2014 at 02:48am

I love how the "introducing the ipad" shows you dying lol

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 03/31/2014 at 07:00pm

GET READY TO DIE ON YOUR IDEVICE. OR SHOULD I SAY iDIEvice?

Orionnoir wrote on 04/03/2014 at 03:37pm

Nice. FTL will port to a touch paradigm very nicely. It almost already works on my windows 8 tablet *almost*. I wish more games (even my own) did the 'full game' thing more more on mobile touch based tablets (i.e., the market would bear the cost of full development) The turning point in my opinion about experiencing 'real/serious gaming' on a mobile device for me was 2k's latest xcom in iPad. It impressed me having been playing the PC version (my only gripe is they washed out some of the lower level micromanagement bits in some of the gear.) My situation has been such give up gaming if its not on a mobile device for a while now. Firing up the PC was too much of a commit. actually it is a dangerous trap as of late... I would never come to bed once I started playing... so this is about self preservation really... maybe... but I digress. But am I alone that I find myself on the PC gaming less and less??? I do miss it, I miss the time to sink into it. Maybe this is a mid-life two jobs married father of two syndrome... o.O One last thought are we past 'gaming on a mobile device' is not gaming arguments?

scrypt Supporter wrote on 04/03/2014 at 07:03pm

@Orionnoir, I have to believe that anyone seriously opposed to the idea of gaming on a mobile device, or considering it a serious gaming platform, has either never really experienced what can be done (uninformed), or just doesn't much care for mobile gaming (i.e. Gameboy, et al.) (biased). It's a way to enjoy games, and a good one at that.

Also, I just want to say, you're doing a noble thing in sacrificing your hobby for your family. I have a good number of friends that struggle with the same thing. Games are fun, but family is so much more important. I take it, by your "even my own" comment, that you are a game developer to some extent? Very cool! I'd love to try your game, if it's available.

I'm relatively new to PC gaming, having been on consoles most of my life, so I'm kinda eating it up. Honestly, it's all Microsoft's fault. I'm disappointed with what they've done with the XBox platform. I'll get an XBox One eventually, because I love games, and exclusives are a stupid reality, but I'm not looking forward to it. I don't know. Of all the systems I have available, I'm the most content when I'm on Steam. That could change, and probably will once Destiny comes out on PS4 :).

Orionnoir wrote on 08/07/2014 at 05:30pm

I concur! I have traded much of my time to be with the family and its been great. They have also stod by while I chased a dream with what little time I had too. So its not all take!

Its been a crazy 5 months, but I quit my day job just over a month ago (July 4th 2014) to make games full time working with a good friend in a partnership at Appsomniacs. We've had more people in the past, I've been slinging code at our problems part time since July 2011. Everyone else involved has pretty much walked away or stopped showing up, mostly because of the work entailed. Specifically how much work. that work can be viewed at http://www.appsomniacs.com (shameless plug!) ;)