Cheerful Ghost: An Awesome Community For Gamers

A.N.N.E. Update: Minecon, SNES Controller + Epic Boss Fight

A.N.N.E. is a great 2D retro project I backed on Kickstarter. The game seriously reminds me of the magical nature of NES greats such as Blaster Master, Little Nemo The Dream Master and Metroid. Recently Mo, the games creator, posted a pretty awesome update about the games progress.

A few interesting bits of note: the video showcases a pretty bad ass looking boss fight and also talks a bit about how the games score has taken shape.

A.N.N.E. will ship on Mac, PC and Linux.

Read our interview with Mo about A.N.N.E here:

http://cheerfulghost.com/jdodson/posts/1272

Our 3rd Terraria Server Comes to a Close

Our 3rd Cheerful Ghost Terraria server just came to a close and I was a bit sad to see it go. I had a great time spelunking through the new 1.2 content with Travis, WhiteboySlim and jaelte! This server was different in that it went much longer than any we'd had previously as we spent much more time in hardmode and exploring all of the 1.2 content. One thing the 1.2 update did well was make hardmode much more interesting and gave us lots of reasons to keep advancing and work together.

It's no secret one thing I loved in the 1.2 update were the new bee hives & queen bee fight. I also really appreciate the new Crimson and increased usefulness of the Jungle, Dungeon... Read All

The Last Generation Is Over: Looking Back at the PS3

Now that the Playstation 4 has been released I have been grappling with the fact that my PS3 is no longer current gen. It would be a stretch to say its a retro system, but yeah, the ps3 is a last gen system now. I want to talk a bit about the PS3 and why I think it has been one of the best video game consoles i've ever owned.

Originally I picked up my PS3 to upscale DVD's, play BluRay and occasionally play games. I tried a few upscaling DVD players and nothing looked as good to me as the PS3. I realized at some point I would make the jump to BluRay and that having a system that had the ability to self update would be a good thing with the newness of the BluRay format.... Read All Now that the Playstation 4 has been released I have been grappling with the fact that my PS3 is no longer current gen. It would be a stretch to say its a retro system, but yeah, the ps3 is a last gen system now. I want to talk a bit about the PS3 and why I think it has been one of the best video game consoles i've ever owned.

Originally I picked up my PS3 to upscale DVD's, play BluRay and occasionally play games. I tried a few upscaling DVD players and nothing looked as good to me as the PS3. I realized at some point I would make the jump to BluRay and that having a system that had the ability to self update would be a good thing with the newness of the BluRay format. I got my PS3 at BestBuy as part of a bundle that contained Guitar Hero 3 and a $50 gift card. Guitar Hero was quite a bit of fun but my first game purchase I was seriously looking forward to was The Orange Box. At the time, I didn't have a great PC but wanted to jump into Half-Life 2 and the episodes. I had heard amazing things about Portal as well and The Orange Box lived up the the hype. The Orange Box on PS3 had a few glitches but overall it was a pleasant experience and a hell of a lot of fun.

Over the lifespan of the PS3 I picked up The Orange Box, Fallout 3 Game of the Year Edition, Borderlands, Wolfenstein, Civilization Revolution, RAGE, Unreal Tournament III, Street Fighter IV, Portal 2, FarCry 2, Borderlands 2 and my final PS3 purchase Doom 3: BFG Edition. I never really liked buying digital games on the PS3 as you couldn't share them and the price never seemed right. That said, I picked up Age of Booty, Zuma and Wolfenstein 3D. Whereas the games themselves are fun, one problem I have with digital PS3 game purchases is they don't carry the value over compared to other digital stores like Steam.

The game experiences I had the most fun with on the PS3 were Civilization Revolution, Fallout 3, Half-Life 2, Portal 2 & Borderlands. Civilization Revolution is a seriously under-rated game and made to work very well on consoles. It's funny as none of the games in the rest of my "most beloved PS3 games" list are exclusives or console only. I had a hard time getting games I couldn't later play on PC if I wanted.

The Playstation 3 is a great system and it still works awesomely in the original capacity I bought it, to play media. I don't play too many games with it these days as I find gaming from my Mac or PC to be superior in nearly every way that matters but when friends come over, you can't beat split-screen game play.

As I look forward to Sony's next offering I don't see myself buying one any time soon, but that could change if the Playstation 4 gets more compelling. That said, I would consider the PS3 one of the best systems i've ever owned and I hope it has a very long life under my TV.

rettisawesome wrote on 11/20/2013 at 07:05pm

Bought mine for backwards compatability. Seems like I'm one of the few that plays all three generations games on their ps3. That said. I love the ps3. But for crying out loud. Those updates! And installs! Ive never updated my 360. I put games in it. The end. But that i like it more. But it's enough for me to lose it sometimes

rettisawesome wrote on 11/20/2013 at 07:05pm

Not that i like it more***

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 11/21/2013 at 02:22am

Right, the PS3 really does have a ton more system updates than i'd like too. Perhaps now that Sony's focus is the PS4 we won't get as many? I don't mind the app updates, but yeah wow for one year in particular it seemed like every week there was a new update.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 11/21/2013 at 08:04pm

I can (and do) play PS1 games on my PS3, but sadly it cannot play PS2. :\ I would definitely be playing all three generations of games on one machine if I could though. This is regarding disc based games obviously, since if i wanted to I could buy PS2 games through PSN and play them that way. But I don't really want to rebuy a game I already own if I don't have to.

The PS3 is a great system. Although it is the first gaming console I've used more for other purposes than gaming. I've used the PS3 for movies and netflix far more than I have for playing games.

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Black Mesa releasing a paid version and a new free update

Black Mesa, the remake of Half-Life in the Source engine with all new textures, has been out on Steam for a while for free. Currently it's only about the first half of the game, but there's more coming! They'll be sprucing up the whole game and selling it via Steam, and updating the free version as well.

There's no specific info about the differences between the two, but I'm just glad to see this getting off the ground. What's available right now is quite good, and I can't wait to see more.

http://forums.blackmesasource.com/showthread.php?t=17088

The Ms. Male Character Phenomenon

"In this episode we examine the Ms. Male Character trope and briefly discuss a related pattern called the Smurfette Principle. We’ve defined the Ms. Male Character Trope as: The female version of an already established or default male character. Ms. Male Characters are defined primarily by their relationship to their male counterparts via visual properties, narrative connection or occasionally through promotional materials."

Anita Sarkeesian continues her tropes series this time focusing on the "Ms. Male Character" video game trope. Interesting history of some popular Ms. Male Characters as well as gender representation in games.

Organ Trail is A Zombie Filled Retro Paradise Explosion

Organ Trail is a really great retro remake of the old Oregon Trail game from the Apple II era. As a kid I played The Oregon trail a ton and loved speed-running the game as the Banker from Boston. That said, Organ Trail is a nearly spot on remake that reminds me of the original while doing something very unique.

the goal

The goal of Organ Trail is to escape from Washington DC during the Zombie Apocalypse with your party and travel to the safe haven that is free of Zombies. You start the game with 4 people in your party and a station wagon. The game allows you to outfit your party with supplies and this is the first chance you have to drop your strategy into the game. Do... Read All

Plan Your Next Prison Break in The Escapists

Back this on Kickstarter!

The Escapists is an interesting game on Kickstarter right now. Made by the same author of Spuds Quest, The Escapists is setting out to be the ultimate prison break RPG.

"* Schedules: To escape you'll have to work around the strict prison schedule as best you can to avoid any unwanted attention from the guards.

* Crafting: Weapons and tools can be crafted together using everyday things you find or steal around the prison. Just beware of cell shakedowns. Read more about crafting

* Reputation: The way you interact with fellow cons and guards affect how they treat you. Those on your side could help you out in a fight, overlook if they catch you doing anything unusual, or... Read All

Know Your Enemy: A Great Video History of The Goomba

"How well do you know your enemies? That's the question we set out to answer in our premiere episode of Know Your Enemy. Join us as we take a look at one of our favorites: The Goomba, from the Super Mario Bros. series."

Awesome new YouTube series "Know Your Enemy" debuts with a classic Mario enemy, the Goomba. Providing some really great history to the character as well as it's many cultural and game appearances. Whenever I see one of those little guys I just want to stomp on it. Good thing they are not modeled after an actual thing in real life.

Resolutiongate: Xbox One games only running 720p.

Uh-oh…

Microsoft just can’t seem to catch a break. First there was its underwhelming E3 unveiling, then a massive backlash from fans over its restrictive DRM and used game policies, privacy concerns over its always-on kinect camera, and its price tag coming in $100 (in the US) higher than its rival Playstation.

Now reports are coming in from various sites indicating that some key mutli-platform titles are looking considerably worse on the Xbox. Eurogamer reports that “Our Battlefield 4 Face-Off preview reveals a 50 per cent resolution boost on PlayStation 4 with no appreciable compromise in effects or performance in single-player gameplay, while Infinity Ward's Mark... Read All

PC Gaming Master Price

One meme in gaming that makes me chuckle whenever I read it is "PC gaming master race." Beyond the fact that it is somewhat juvenile, it isn't too far from the truth. Not that consoles aren't awesome or even better than the PC in some ways(any game on the PS3 will always work on the PS3, no upgrades needed) but as PC gamers we have it pretty darn good. One area where the PC shines above and beyond our console sisters and brothers is amount of games available and price. Because the PC is an open platform and digital distribution being as popular as it is, the PC is exploding with games selling for cheap.

The Humble Store

Most of us know and love The Humble Indie Bundle... Read All

jaelte wrote on 11/17/2013 at 08:38am

Green Man Gaming (http://www.greenmangaming.com/) is a pretty decent site as well. They almost always have a 20% off coupon code available, and they sometimes throw out a 25% code (and/or sales on select games) that stacks with it. I've been able to purchase XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Dishonored, and the new Tomb Raider from the site for less than I could find anywhere else (including Steam sales) at the times I bought them.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 11/17/2013 at 06:35pm

Awesome, thanks for the tip. Checking them out now.

hardeyez wrote on 11/21/2013 at 11:19pm

Also http://www.indiegamebundles.com/ will show you all the active bundles across a bunch of sites. I've bought several off http://www.indieroyale.com/ and http://groupees.com/

Deals aren't strictly limited to PC though... I've picked up great console titles at Target on clearance for silly pricing (not quite bundle by definitely < $10). You just have to check the clearance each time you drop by. Also, the selection is weird, so are just overstock so it's surprisingly new stuff, and some is much older... But it's fun to find a gem :)

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