Cheerful Ghost: An Awesome Community For Gamers

What if there was no meme?

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/149845_547402005275829_1334101876_n.jpg

I think I heard about "I used to be an adventurer..." before I had a clue what Skyrim was. But now... what if?

A historical and (still) enjoyable game.

I have been playing Ultima 4 for my blog at www.backlogkiller.com and was shocked to see no entry for the PC version here! It is a free game that is available on GoG for free and set a new standard for RPGs that continues to this day. By getting rid of traditional story and encouraging the player to win by simply being a good person was a brave experiment and deserves all the praise it gets. Despite being 25 years old, it holds up and I am enjoying every minute of it. (Aside from the time spent flying the hot air balloon.)

Gary_Butterfield wrote on 10/23/2012 at 05:05pm

Hi Will! My main experience with Ultima 4 was the NES port. The Ultima games are my biggest classic rpg blindspot.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/24/2012 at 01:18am

I just nabbed this game on my Mac off GoG. Doesn't seem to work too well so I will give it a swing on the PC.

I like your blog, thanks for sharing! Feel free to keep the updates flowin'!

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 10/24/2012 at 05:01am

I'm almost finished and had a good time with it, but it certainly helped that I had a good idea of objectives from previous attempts. It's taking me about 10-15 hours to finish, but if you don't know what to do I would double that. Some stuff is a little esoteric and maybe impossible if you don't take note of EVERYTHING. Definitely worth a play, though.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/25/2012 at 12:40am

For sure. I think with many old games there is that "if people didn't know this would be nearly impossible to figure out" kind of elements. Like in Monkey Island or whatever, prob would have just hit a brick wall without a walkthrough for some of it.

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 10/25/2012 at 03:18am

I actually did pretty well Monkey Island. It was certainly more 'fair' than this one. Ultima 4 gives you everything you need, but many of the solutions are a little obtuse. The biggest culprit is the word needed to enter the final dungeon is represented in rune form after ascending each virtue. What look like simple vertical lines or nonsense have to be written down, translated, then rearranged like an anagram to get the word. Most of the other stuff is pretty easy, though.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/25/2012 at 04:02am

That's awesome. Now I understand more about why Lord British gets SO much love for this game. I have a ton of love for Retro Games and one I am itching to play and will do so next month...

The Red Wings are calling me back and I am really looking forward to playing Final Fantasy 2/6 again! It has been WAY too long!

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 10/28/2012 at 02:26am

Lost all my progress I made. Turns out I had two copies on my computer: one on the HD and one on a flash drive I was using to test moving save games around. The desktop link was attached to the flash and not the HD meaning that when I deleted its contents to give a friend some files... *POOF*. No more party. Need to restart and cry.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/28/2012 at 03:48am

Holy shit that's horrible. Sorry for the loss man!

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 10/28/2012 at 04:05am

I'm convinced I can finish it in under 10 hours with all my notes. Already about 25% complete in an hour or so. We're doing this.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/28/2012 at 04:18am

Awesome you want to see this finished.

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 10/28/2012 at 04:35am

I normally don't get this serious about games, but this one holds a more symbolic meaning for me w/r/t my past. Gotta see it through.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/28/2012 at 05:00am

I hear you. One year I set a goal to complete Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past no matter what. The story and feel, for me hold a ton of symbolic and "feeling" that I had to experience. I am starting to feel the same way about Final Fantasy 2(US). Its kind of like I need to do it to re-learn something I had forgotten.

So yeah Will, I totally get that. I think its a sign of something really meaningful when you have that kind of connection to a game or whatever.

Need to return to the Hobbit every few years, nothing brings me to that magical zone quite like reading that book.

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 11/01/2012 at 03:57pm

Well, less than five hours into the restart and I am almost back to the point where I lost my data. I would guess maybe 2 or 3 solid hours to finish. Definitely can be done in under 10 hours.

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 11/13/2012 at 03:39pm

I finally finished the doggone thing. A piece of my past finally left behind. What a good game, too.

jdodson Admin wrote on 11/13/2012 at 05:21pm

Awesome. How many hours did it take you to finally complete it?

Gary_Butterfield wrote on 11/13/2012 at 07:14pm

Congrats, Will!

Will_Owens Post Author wrote on 11/14/2012 at 01:34am

The first part of the game (getting virtues, stones, and dungeon diving) took about six to eight hours. Then, the abyss took two play sessions for a total of one and a half or two hours, so I would estimate it to be a ten hour game. As I posted, though, that's if you know exactly what to do. A clean run with no prior knowledge could easily take twenty hours or much longer depending on how quickly you grasp the objectives. The game is really amazing, though, and still comes through as innovative and something special after almost 30 years. It would be tough to get it to appeal to younger people, but if you can get past the graphics, it's super fun.

jdodson Admin wrote on 11/14/2012 at 03:33am

It seems like a great game. I grew up cutting my teeth on MUD's and ZZT so games like this don't bother me much :D

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Borderlands Legends coming to Mobile

Rumors have surfaced on the web of a new Borderlands game to be released soon on mobile. A screenshot found by someone on the Gearbox forums. Borderlands on mobile sounds awesome and I will pick this up when it comes out.

Hopefully it will be an awesome slice of one of the best games released this year! Will you pick up Borderlands mobile?

http://forums.gearboxsoftware.com/showthread.php?p=3001117#post3001117
http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/22/3537580/borderlands-legends-ios-october-gearbox-ad
http://www.joystiq.com/2012/10/12/analyst-borderlands-2-sold-1-4-million-in-us/

In other Borderlands news, looks like Borderlands 2 shipped 1.4 million units since its launch to date.... Read All

Halloween Horror Nights: Silent Hill maze

Over the weekend I got to experience Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood. This year one of the mazes was themed on Silent Hill so I thought I'd share my experiences with you guys. While I unfortunately wasn't able to take any pictures at the event I found the above video on Youtube that takes you through the whole maze.

The video doesn't quite do the maze justice but if you're unable to see this in person, it'll give you a pretty good idea of what it was like. For one thing, the video uses night vision so you don't get a sense of just how dark and creepy the maze really is. In the little hallways between rooms it's especially dark and there are thin... Read All

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/23/2012 at 03:34am

One of these years I need to come down and hang with you for the Halloween Horror Nights! I loved this kind of Halloween themed event and this one particularly looks like some of the best around!

I have experienced some good haunted houses in Portland but nothing video game themed!

Gary_Butterfield wrote on 10/23/2012 at 05:05pm

I would maze the shit out of this thing. Jon, have you done Frighttown?

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/24/2012 at 01:13am

I haven't done Fighttown yet. Only hit up Scream at the Beach a few years and the Haunted House at Disney Land and Enchanted Forest :D

Gary_Butterfield wrote on 10/25/2012 at 04:39pm

Frighttown is great. I recommend it. I've also done The 13th Door here, which was B+

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/25/2012 at 04:42pm

Sounds great, recently I haven't been too impressed with Scream at the Beach so checking out a new one sounds radsome.

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Interview with Board Game Designer Kevin Wilson

After getting into table top gaming a few years ago I started following Fantasy Flight Games and the work of Kevin Wilson in particular. For me, Kevin's games stand above others in their creativity and gameplay. It was a joy to be able to ask him questions and I hope you find it as interesting to read as it was to take part in.

Interview:

jdodson: I want to thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. I am wondering if you could give a quick rundown of your history with gaming and what you currently do for Fantasy Flight Games?

Kevin Wilson: No problem. I've been gaming for about 30 years now, getting my start as a D&D roleplayer way back in the day. After... Read All

SWToR Free to Play Details

For quite some time EA has been saying Star Wars: The Old Republic will go free to play. They recently dropped some details on how that will work.

http://www.swtor.com/free/features

I think the big take away from this list is that everything will be limited for free to play users with the story being one exception. The limitations don't seem to restrictive, but we will know more when free to play is available.

If you make any purchase at all the game unlocks:

The ability to run faster (Sprint) starting at Level 1.

Cargo Hold access (Bank Slots) and higher login queue priority.

Increased access to Chat and Secure Trading.

The ability to run faster has me wondering if we... Read All

BR Supporter wrote on 10/21/2012 at 02:49am

I feel like having to pay to run is a little ridiculous. I mean, maybe if you couldn't have mounts or something, but running? That is stupid. Might as well take away other basic things such as attacking and wearing armor if your going to start taking away stuff like that.

Anyways, I do think the game will do better free to play. I most likely will not try it, but I think more people who are on the fence will at least give it a try.

jaelte wrote on 10/21/2012 at 05:54am

The referenced Sprint ability is normally available at level 14 (or 15, I don't remember). It appears that paying just makes that ability available at level 1 instead.

jaelte wrote on 10/21/2012 at 05:56am

Erm. Or I could be wrong about that; looking at some patch notes from a couple months ago, it looks like the ability is now at level 1 normally. Hrmph.

Move along. Nothing to see here.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 10/21/2012 at 05:56pm

Yeah paying to run faster is a bit odd. But, it looks like just buying anything unlocks that set of things so hopefully you can buy a lightsabre or something for .99 cents.

The other MMO I play at times is Lord of the Rings Online and the only reason I picked it up because it was F2P. I haven't sunk any money into it but a few friends I have did as a results of us all playing together.

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Yes Virgina, Doom: The Board Game is Fantastic

If you have been reading my posts over the last few days I have been posting a lot about Doom because of the release of Doom 3: BFG Edition. I decided to write a few of my thoughts down about the board game that brought the love I have for board games back, Doom: The Board Game.

Also check the site tomorrow as I will post an interview I gave with Kevin Wilson. Kevin Wilson is the designer of such amazing board games such as Doom: The Board Game, Android, Descent: Journies into the Dark, Arkham Horror and Civilization: The Board Game! Yep, that Kevin Wilson! Incredible.

I was going through a Doom craze about 5 years ago and in a off the cuff moment I decided to purchase a... Read All If you have been reading my posts over the last few days I have been posting a lot about Doom because of the release of Doom 3: BFG Edition. I decided to write a few of my thoughts down about the board game that brought the love I have for board games back, Doom: The Board Game.

Also check the site tomorrow as I will post an interview I gave with Kevin Wilson. Kevin Wilson is the designer of such amazing board games such as Doom: The Board Game, Android, Descent: Journies into the Dark, Arkham Horror and Civilization: The Board Game! Yep, that Kevin Wilson! Incredible.

I was going through a Doom craze about 5 years ago and in a off the cuff moment I decided to purchase a game I wasn't sure about. I mean, Doom as a board game? Honestly I wasn't into board games but at the time I wanted to try it out. After the game shipped and I opened it immediately I realized this was going to be better than I expected. The plastic game pieces are really great quality, the tokens looked great and the rule book and scenarios were compelling.

My wife even got into helping me baggy up the pieces and organize things to put back in the box. I think that helped me get her to play with me the first few times as she wasn't to keen to play the game at first. I really wanted to play the Marines so she took the duty of playing the invaders. After reading the rules and playing the first mission I was in love.

The game play was deep, interesting and the thing I never expected was the board game felt like the video game. The way the game was built allowed it to come alive on the board and over the next few months my wife and I would play it "cat and mouse" against each other. It was a really fun time.

That said, the game is hard as hell. Literally, it is very hard for the Marines. So if you are expecting an easy time or to always win, this isn't your game. I'll admit we got into more than a few arguments over some aspect of the rules(they later issued some clarification online about many of the problems) or difficulty.

Doom: The Board Game allowed me a window into how awesome board games can be. I even got into Magic: The Gathering around that time as well. Now I have many board games in my closet and look forward to getting awesome new ones. That said, Doom: The Board Game got me back into table top and for that it will always have that special place in my heart.

Check the site tomorrow for my interview with game designer Kevin Wilson!

Nerf Gun Challenge Continues

Parody of my own game play? What do you do when you don't have enough money for weapons? You kill other players for money. Hooray! Give me 20 dollars.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/21/2012 at 05:58pm

Killing others for money? YOU PLAY APB LIKE AN ASSASSIN!

Speaking of, how much money do you make per kill?

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/21/2012 at 05:59pm

Thats cool you can hang out of the car and shoot, I haven't seen that in a game before.

Missile_Drop_Kick Post Author wrote on 10/22/2012 at 03:04am

Haha, well, not much, it's like 15 per criminal (for me at least, it goes up if your threat level is higher for killing and completing missions. 15 is near enough for the twenty dollars song.) However, if you arrest them I think it's anywhere between 15 to 1000. I guess you get about 1000 for killing one or arresting one with a threat level of 5 (which means the player has killed at least 5 in a row without dying once).

Missile_Drop_Kick Post Author wrote on 10/22/2012 at 03:07am

I love shooting out the windows, it is good stuff.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/23/2012 at 12:35am

Thanks for the details, look forward to checking it out. And shooting out the windows!

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The first mission.. A bad failure.

Here I am trying to get enough money for the lethal weapons and play with the keyboard instead of a controller. I don't think this mission went well. You can really tell I have limited mobility with the keyboard.

Missile_Drop_Kick Post Author wrote on 10/20/2012 at 06:37pm

Huh, video won't load. - http://www.twitch.tv/themissiledropkick/c/1707143

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/20/2012 at 06:38pm

For me it's the other way around, I can totally do better w a keyboard and mouse than a controller. You can plug in the USB Xbox controller into a PC if you find that easier for some games.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/20/2012 at 06:40pm

Yeah, I am going to fix the twitch embed as it only works in Firefox the right way.

In the next few days all should be better but I don't know when I'll do the embed in a way that will work on all platforms until twitch supports that. Hopefully soon!

Missile_Drop_Kick Post Author wrote on 10/20/2012 at 06:41pm

Haha, I"m getting better at it. But, it is sucking out the joy from my gaming. Although, I did hit people more often. I guess I'm mostly a controller guy.

BR Supporter wrote on 10/20/2012 at 10:07pm

Keyboard really has a much higher skill curve than a controller. Once you get better it offers a lot more possibilities than a controller does, at least in my opinion. Keep practicing and you'll get a lot better.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/20/2012 at 11:30pm

Ok so I changed the twich embed to have the logo be a bit smaller and less whitespace under it.

When Twitch supports embed on all platforms, ill update it. Still nice to see the logo and a straight click through at the top.

jdodson Admin wrote on 10/20/2012 at 11:30pm

Oh and I agree with BR, keep up the keyboard+mouse, its a whole new awesome world. I can understand it feeling really different though, it totally does at first.

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Going Live with the Nerf Gun Challenge

I'm streaming APB with a brand new character. Trying to use keyboard and non lethal. This will probably go badly.