Cheerful Ghost: An Awesome Community For Gamers

I first heard about Kingdom Rush in an episode of the

I first heard about Kingdom Rush in an episode of the Totally Rad Show about games they were playing on the iPad. They mentioned that Kingdom Rush started as a Flash based browser game and I kind of shrugged it off as I don't typically play browser games. A week ago I decided to give it a try and I was blown away with how good of a game it was.

We have mostly all played Tower Defense games like Plants VS Zombies or DoTA. Kingdom Rush is a game similar in nature but has its own spin on the genre. One thing I really latched on to was the unique art style of the game. Another rad thing it does is allow you to upgrade the kinds of towers you want to use. Many bad guys... Read All

Some arranged Radioheads OK Computer and Kid A as 8 bit

Some arranged Radiohead's "OK Computer" and "Kid A" as 8 bit recordings and released the entire albums on YouTube and download. YouTuber QuintonSung has them available for YouTube streaming:

OK Computer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxLnu4PhQNQ
http://www.mediafire.com/?k19e847uw1wb5wl [MP3 download]

Kid A:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFUIeDjo2dA
http://www.mediafire.com/?i1fjgryo63czhhg [MP3 download]

Listened to it today and they are both really cool. Like how he puts in Zelda and Mario sound effects from time to time.

So, apparently there have been a lot of user accounts

http://www.pcgamer.com/2012/05/22/diablo-3-accounts-hacked-items-stolen-real-money-auction-house-due-next-week/

So, apparently there have been a lot of user accounts hacked. Is everyone here safe?

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/22/2012 at 04:01pm

So far so good. At some point I may do the mobile authenticator entirely but thus far I have a pretty good password.

Ben_Dodson wrote on 05/22/2012 at 04:30pm

I have my Mobile Authenticator. Easy to setup, easy to use. Make it that more secure

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 05/22/2012 at 06:02pm

I'm considering a physical authenticator, myself. Something about a mobile app seems less secure.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/23/2012 at 01:42am

Same RSA mechanism, different delivery.

Ben_Dodson wrote on 05/23/2012 at 04:49pm

I have both and since I know 1. my phone is with me always and locks it self. 2. I have the restore and original serial numbers. I am ok.? I did test this and it took about 20min on hold but less than a minute with all the right information to remove it. I do have both but my phone is deffinatly easier cause it is with me

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 05/23/2012 at 09:48pm

Yeah, under ideal circumstances I would go with the phone app too. I only ever play in one place, I have my RSA token from FFXI on a lanyard in a container on the coffee table, so it's simple enough to grab. I have my phone with me everywhere, and that's exactly why I don't want it on my phone. 1. My smartphone belongs to my employer, 2. I could lose or break the smartphone, 3. Someone could steal my smartphone, and 4. The token looks pretty cool. :)

The app is convenient as hell, but for my purposes the $6 token is totally worth it.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/23/2012 at 09:59pm

Right. Totally go token. I wouldn't rely on that if I didn't own my smartphone either. $6 is cheap too.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 05/25/2012 at 09:15pm

The unfortunate thing is that their shipping is apparently stupid. Next day shipping apparently means nothing. I ordered it like 4 days ago now and there hasn't been any kind of update. Perhaps they're getting a lot of orders due to the recent account hackage.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/26/2012 at 02:54am

I bet they are. Id tell them because if you pay for next day shipping and you dont get it you need a refund.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 05/26/2012 at 03:15am

I have submitted a ticket and haven't heard back, but with the authenticators, next day shipping is free anyway.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/26/2012 at 02:56pm

That makes sense.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/26/2012 at 02:57pm

Hope you get it soon. Is you account locked down yet or do you turn it on when it arrives?

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 05/28/2012 at 01:44am

You just assign it when it arrives. I finally got a response from Blizz. They mail them out once a week, and the next day option was there in error.

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I love Borderlands and as such am very excited about

http://cdn.ientry.com/sites/webpronews/pictures/borderlands2collectors_616.jpg

I love Borderlands and as such am very excited about Borderlands 2. More gun collecting RPG shooter mayhem? More guns? Going more places than just the desert? Uhm.... Totally in. So totally in.

When I love a game++ I am drawn to pre-order it. Often times I buy the collectors edition. What can I say? I am sucker when people say "game, art book and soundtrack." I just have to pay more because I love that kind of stuff. Borderlands 2 seems willing to indulge me with pre-ordering and they upped the ante with TWO collectors editions.

I am going to pre-order the game I am just not sure what version of the game I will actually buy. To my eye there are actually 4 different... Read All I love Borderlands and as such am very excited about Borderlands 2. More gun collecting RPG shooter mayhem? More guns? Going more places than just the desert? Uhm.... Totally in. So totally in.

When I love a game++ I am drawn to pre-order it. Often times I buy the collectors edition. What can I say? I am sucker when people say "game, art book and soundtrack." I just have to pay more because I love that kind of stuff. Borderlands 2 seems willing to indulge me with pre-ordering and they upped the ante with TWO collectors editions.

I am going to pre-order the game I am just not sure what version of the game I will actually buy. To my eye there are actually 4 different versions you need to discern between. Ill drop you to the site so you can check it out:

http://www.borderlands2.com/preorder/

So basically, you have the pre-order game that comes with a crap load-o-dlc. I think rewarding your biggest fans is a great thing. I got a few special bits with my Diablo 3 Collectors Edition(ill post about that in the future). Thing is, its not quite that simple.

Every pre-order gets the same DLC except Game Stop. Game Stop's pre-order nabs you all the DLC goodness AND the "Creature Slaughter Dome" and a special rocket launcher. Honestly that sounds like a really great pre-order bonus that everyone should get. I don't dislike Game Stop, I just don't like special retailer only pre-order bonuses. I also don't like special console only DLC. That said, you know about it now so plan accordingly.

The other two versions of the game are the collectors edition and they seem fun save one critical thing I would love. A soundtrack. I LOVE GAME SOUNDTRACKS! I may very well be in the minority here, but when a collectors edition includes the soundtrack I get much more interested in purchasing it. Toss in a making of or behind the scenes DVD and you have my money in your hand. Both Borderlands 2 collectors editions seem to omit both. That said, they are both pretty hefty and the $150 collectors edition includes a loot chest that looks pretty epic.

I am leaning to the pre-order at Game Stop on the PS3 for the "plain Jane" game itself as the collectors editions are not really compelling me right this minute. Are you going to pre-order Borderlands 2? Do you buy collectors editions? Do you like retailer specific DLC? Did you enjoy SkiFree on Windows 3.1?

Let me know in the comments.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/22/2012 at 02:48am

Retailer specific DLC is pretty dumb in my book, but whatever. There's worse ways to handle DLC. Of course if Gamestop is offering all that stuff for preordering with them, it looks like I'll be preordering it through them. My only beef with Gamestop is that sometimes their employees are a little too pushy, but really that can happen at any store. And you're not the only one who enjoys video game music. As I type this I'm actually listening to Distant Worlds II, which is a collection of music from the various Final Fantasy games. :)

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/22/2012 at 02:18pm

Where did you gt Distant Worlds from? Is it free?

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/22/2012 at 06:02pm

It's on Spotify. Search for Nobuo Uematsu.

Travis Admin wrote on 05/22/2012 at 07:50pm

Retailer specific DLC is one of the banes of the industry. But you aren't going to buy the collectors edition? This is the collectors edition I have wanted the most. That loot chest. I know it costs way too much, but just look at the loot chest!

SkiFree was amazing, by the way. It was terrible, if we're being honest, but it was fun when we played it back then.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/22/2012 at 09:19pm

I rarely buy the collectors edition of anything, although that loot chest is pretty epic looking... I think the last time I bought a collectors edition was one of the Lord of the Rings movies. I got a really cool Gollum statue that I hide in my house for guests to discover. :P

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/23/2012 at 01:44am

The loot chest does look cool but everything else doesn't look that exciting to me right now. I could change my mind though and ill think about it for a bit before pre-ordering through Game Stop.

Travis Admin wrote on 05/23/2012 at 09:49pm

Dude, hiding the Gollum statue is brilliant. Unfortunately I don't have any creepy things to hide.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/24/2012 at 12:10am

lol. It started because I had no where else to really put him. Currently he's in the kitchen cabinet waiting for someone to go get a glass. :P

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/24/2012 at 02:03am

Apparently you find your cups WAY too precious..... :)

Travis Admin wrote on 05/25/2012 at 09:17pm

I would hide him in opportune places where a Gollum quote might be useful in conversation. In the kitchen, for instance, whenever someone makes potatoes, bring him out and say "What's taters, precious?"

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/26/2012 at 02:55am

Hahaha, awesome. Or he could go next to your fish tank.

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The thought of a new MMO to any MMO player takes a lot of

The thought of a new MMO to any MMO player takes a lot of work. You vest time into a game and starting over can be tough. Since the original World of Warcraft game I have been investing my time. I have killed limitless mobs and bosses. I have laid siege to The Undercity and helped Thrall prevent a Cataclysm to end all. This game has been a part of me as much as I have been a part of it. Ask someone why they play and MMO and you will get a verity of answers. With that said the new prospects of any new MMO you do your research. One that caught my interest is the new MMO by Bioware and Lucas Arts, Start Wars: The Old Republic.

For years I had read about its development. I... Read All The thought of a new MMO to any MMO player takes a lot of work. You vest time into a game and starting over can be tough. Since the original World of Warcraft game I have been investing my time. I have killed limitless mobs and bosses. I have laid siege to The Undercity and helped Thrall prevent a Cataclysm to end all. This game has been a part of me as much as I have been a part of it. Ask someone why they play and MMO and you will get a verity of answers. With that said the new prospects of any new MMO you do your research. One that caught my interest is the new MMO by Bioware and Lucas Arts, Start Wars: The Old Republic.

For years I had read about its development. I watched the screen shots, videos, interviews and playable demos at the Con’s. I was impressed and with great excitement read almost every review. Was this going to be a game that replaced WoW for me? I wasn’t sure but from what I saw this game had everything and more.

The build up to launch in 2011 was massive. I was looking forward to each Con with great eagerness to see the new aspects of the game that no one had see. There was an NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement) with the beta but I trolled YouTube often to see if someone was brave enough to post anything new. I was ready. I purchased the Digital Collectors Edition. The in game items I have used in the past with other MMOs were fun to have. Not everyone had them and they were just plain cool to any geek. With this purchase was the registration for Beta Access. I checked my email every time I heard beta invite emails were sent.

A few month before launch Bioware setup Beta weekends, dropped the NDA and for those who PreOrdered everyone was invited. 5:AM the morning of the first round of beta weekend invites I was up and ready to go. Then it happened. I was in. I knew I was going to play a Trooper for the Republic so I played a Bounty Hunter to not ruin what I wanted to play. The game was not perfect and some things were broken but it played like any other MMO I had tried before. I was sold. This was great. By the time the weekend was over I had a level 18 Bounty Hunter that I wanted to keep playing. I could not wait until the next Beta Weekend. The next weekend came and went so did the 3rd and 4th. I cut off my play time so I did not ruin the experience when the game launched.

Yes I did the unthinkable to most people. For launch I took three days off work. Why you ask. Well unless you play games I do not think I can explain it to you. The game launched and I was off to the races. Part of the PRE-Launch Bioware offered was to build your guild with people you know. Attach yourself to that guild and on release you will be on a server with all of your friends. We all were in and we all were republic. I started my trooper and was having a blast. I was questing in and out of hubs. Running flash points with guild mates, we were having a great time. Then the servers began to fill. People could not login at the same time. Server lag was terrible. The Launch was upon us and it was hard to enjoy the game.

So I was playing when I could. I logged when the servers we online and put my time in. One thing Bioware does well is RPG games and it started to feel that way. After awhile and into several planets I started to feel the grindy-ness of the game. I was not having fun. The passive talents were not working for me. I wanted to feel a reason to level. Not a 1% increase to a stat. I leveled the Trooper to level 30. Then one day more of my WoW buddies showed up. These people I have played with for a long time. However they wanted to play Empire. Not something I did not want to do but I had already invested my time into this Trooper. Yes I decided. It was getting grindy so I changed factions and servers with hopes to get out of the grind.

We choose a lower population server to avoid ques. I created the guild and invited everyone and we were going for it. The newness of the MMO was recaptured for me. The main reason for any MMO is to play with friends. Around the mid 20’s the World Boss on Droman Kass was up and we got the guild and took him down a level. This was a great accomplishment for us. We were proud of ourselves. However over the next month people started to loose interest. Dragon Soul in WoW, the final chapter to the expansion was out. They were making progress and it was hard to justify the time spent in SWTOR for most of them.

I was on Hoth and I hit level 40 on my Bounty Hunter. Two other people in the guild hit 50 and I was just not feeling it. “Oh Help Us”, “Only You” “You are the Best”, “We Cant Do It” were the constant drolling themes to the planet quests. Each quest hub was the same. I know it is questing and what more can you do. But I am sorry the underlying story in each zone in WoW is not this grindy and the same style. So I put down my Blaster and traded it for a Lightsaber and started playing a Sith Inquisitor Assassin.

I was taken by the class mele with minor range abilities. So I started over again. I knew the planet quests were the same so I “spacebar’d” over the quest talking and just paid attention to my class storyline. It was good, had its good and bad parts. Then around 35 I was noticing I was completing planets 1-2 levels behind. I was not sure what was going on. I level the Bounty Hunter the same way running Planets and Flashpoints. Going to a planet 1-2 levels before you should be there can be tough. Mobs hit harder and take longer to die. So I went to my ship and flew space quests and caught up. I went to my next planet at level and when I left again I was 2 levels behind. What was going on? So I logged onto my Bounty Hunter and played him the same places and I was 1 level higher this made no since to me. I was starting to feel pull back from myself to want to play.

BREAK: I will post the rest of this later. Don’t want to make it too long.

Enjoy reading
-Ben

Tungsten wrote on 05/21/2012 at 10:34pm

Ya, every time I hear about a new MMO, I have that thrill that the genre can finally be something more than a grind fest.
LOTR
Warhammer
Conan
Rift
Eve (To be fair, this was a bit different)
Guild Wars 2
SWTOR

None shattered the genre. Still waiting.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/22/2012 at 01:43am

A few threads I hear from MMO people.

1. Playing with friends
2. Accomplishing things in game that are fun

I think the socialization of games show you don't need an MMO to accomplish that. Co-op games are pretty popular and can get you some of the playing with friends and accomplishment.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/22/2012 at 02:53am

I took part in the Beta for SWTOR and was very impressed with the game. It ran like mud on my desktop though, and i didn't want to have to steal the laptop (which is primarily used by my wife) everytime i wanted to play, so I passed on buying it. It's a shame it sounds like the later parts of the game turn into another grindy MMO.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/22/2012 at 02:19pm

That's kind of what I hard too. People said it was awesome then stopped playing.

Ben_Dodson Post Author wrote on 05/22/2012 at 04:31pm

The build up as to why I stopped playing should be out some time this week. I want to make sure I get it right

Travis Admin wrote on 05/22/2012 at 07:52pm

I had so much fun with Final Fantasy XI up to about level 50, then it started getting old. Grinding another job up to 50 was always an option, but meh. I think I'm done with MMO's. I could be wrong, but they just don't hold much appeal for me anymore.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/22/2012 at 08:12pm

I played FFXI for 4 years. The grind in that game is pretty bad. If I didn't have a good group of people I was playing with I would have given up on it a lot sooner. MMO's were great when I could actually dedicate entire nights to playing and it didn't matter that it took an hour to get the group together for a dynamis or something, but I just don't have that kind of time anymore and neither do most of my friends, so I doubt I'll ever pick up another MMO.

Travis Admin wrote on 05/22/2012 at 08:46pm

That reminds me, I think I've been paying for FFXI for a year now without playing it. I just kinda stopped playing and forgot it was taking money out.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/22/2012 at 09:14pm

lol both my wife and I kept paying for it for a few months before we finally pulled the plug. We had been playing it for so long it was kind of hard to give it up.

jdodson Admin wrote on 05/23/2012 at 04:11am

Pretty glad I haven't started into the MMO craze. Played but of LOTRO and that was fun. Cool it was free.

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A View Point of the Diablo Noob Being a seasoned MMO player

A View Point of the Diablo Noob

Being a seasoned MMO player and new to the Diablo style of Action RPG I was not sure how I would like this game. From a player who has enjoyed many MMO’s and with limited amount of time to invest each week to play each week I am very selective on what games I play. I grew up knowing of the Diablo franchise but because of rules I was not able to play that game.

The avid WoW player that I am I signed up for the World of Warcraft Annual Pass. I mainly got it because there was a mount and a guaranteed Mist of Panderia beta access. Also this game Diablo 3 came with it. That was nice, I wasn’t sure if I would even play it. I was still investing... Read All A View Point of the Diablo Noob

Being a seasoned MMO player and new to the Diablo style of Action RPG I was not sure how I would like this game. From a player who has enjoyed many MMO’s and with limited amount of time to invest each week to play each week I am very selective on what games I play. I grew up knowing of the Diablo franchise but because of rules I was not able to play that game.

The avid WoW player that I am I signed up for the World of Warcraft Annual Pass. I mainly got it because there was a mount and a guaranteed Mist of Panderia beta access. Also this game Diablo 3 came with it. That was nice, I wasn’t sure if I would even play it. I was still investing time into WoW and the new MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic. The Secret World was on the horizon of beta soon so my time was filling up.

Since I received the annual pass several things have happened. WoW content is continuing to be nerf’d and my guild is in “Let See Who Shows” mode. SW:TOR isn’t holding for me. It is becoming very stale and I am not going to re-subscribe to it. So with the two games I am playing falling off for me I gave this “Open Beta Weekend for Diablo 3” a try.

I downloaded and installed the game. It did so in typical Blizzard fashion. First I have to say I was blown away by the graphics. I did not know a game could look so clean. Then it came to character selection. When I play MMO’s I am a mele player by heart. I love charging in and beating the crap out of anything. My first character in WoW was a warrior and I still play him from time to time. But I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy the game as a Barbarian. I did see a video of the Monk class and the abilities he had I was very curious.

So I made a Monk and started playing. First off I am a W,A,S,D player. MMO’s have gotten my use to that. So the whole point and click movement was defiantly different for me. Then my main ability is tied to my click button and it took me some reading to find out about holding the “Shift” key. My second ability it tied to my right click and then more are tied to the 1-4 keys. Odd but I wanted to see this game that looked amazing. So I ran off down the road killing as I went.

I noticed a yellow ! above a guys head. Immediately I knew what it was. “OK, they have quests” I thought. So he asked me to kill a few things but I noticed I could still move as I was auto accepting the quest. I did not have to read unless I wanted to and the voices could be heard and I was in my quest and obtaining the objectives before the dialogue was complete. This was great! The guys who make WoW should take notes…………Wait………Oh Yeah.

So I was off questing and killing the dead and finding I was getting pulled into a story that was very deep. It was simple to understand and you did not have to know about the other two titles to follow along.

BREAK and NOTE: I am going to keep this up. I don’t want to write a book yet. One page as I write in Word is enough. I will post more over the next several days. If you have any questions please post back.

Thanks for reading

-Ben
BattleTag: Brutaliz#1333

Alright, here we go. Namwen#1800 if youre interested in

Alright, here we go. Namwen#1800 if you're interested in playing with me :) (stupid character limit wouldn't take panickedthumb).

This post isnt really a D3 review, I just want to share my

This post isn't really a D3 review, I just want to share my current character as he sits today.

I typically like the summons classes so the Witch Doctor seemed like a no brainer to me. The above image is "SnuggyBunny" as he sits right this second. My current skills for SnuggyBunny are: darts, zombie arms, spider queen, poison zombie dogs and horrify. The slowdown that occurs when you zombie arm/eel an area is the basis of how I play the Witch Doctor. Basically I try to get the enemies into a choke-point or slow them such that I can pick them off from a distance. When they are slowed, I toss in the Spider Queen and then start to use the poison darts. My zombie dogs train... Read All

Travis Admin wrote on 05/19/2012 at 07:30pm

There is no name more apt for a Witch Doctor than SnuggyBunny.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/19/2012 at 09:31pm

:) I like it. He is a cool character.

MoonWyrd Supporter wrote on 05/20/2012 at 12:33am

I've only just gotten started due to time contraints, but I went for the Witch Doctor for my first char. Blizzard has learned a lot about creating a engrossing environment.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 05/20/2012 at 01:45am

Very much! The game is one of most polished I've ever played.

Timogorgon Member wrote on 05/20/2012 at 01:54am

For a second I thought he was holding a rubber chicken. I'm kind of sad that's not what it is. :P

Tungsten wrote on 05/20/2012 at 01:18pm

I just rolled a hardcore character, and it's a different game. Well, its the exact same game, but with the added perma-death, I play it completely differently. It's much more methodical and slow, but in a way that I enjoy.