Cheerful Ghost: An Awesome Community For Gamers

Half-Life 20 Years Later: A Retrospective

Half-life is a classic PC game that I bought to play Counter-Strike. I knew it was a fun game, but discovered that later after playing a ton of Counter-Strike. Truth be told I was never really good at LAN Counter-Strike but I was pretty good at Half-life as it was one of the first first person shooter games to blend puzzle solving with a first class sci-fi story.

"Few games have made an immediate impact quite like Half-Life. From the narrative, to the level design, to the numerous spin-offs and mods! The original 1998 PC gaming classic is well worth revisiting."

No Man's Sky: Visions Update Released

Wow, Hello Games doesn't know how to stop pushing out massive updates.

Watch the video above for info about the next major update, just a month after the last one.

In brief, Visions brings...

New biomes

New creature types

Different grass, sky, and water options

Different looks for different atmospheres (including rainbows)

New secret treasures to find including exotic trophies and ancient skeletons

Salvageable tech

New and varied hazardous plants

Sentient minerals(!?)

New community missions

More variance to crashed freighters

And tons of bug fixes.

It's only been about a month since Abyss, the underwater-focused update, and already we have a new major update. With the... Read All

Valve Discontinues The Steam Link

Looks like Valve isn't making any more of it's Steam Linux streaming mini boxes you can use to play your PC games on your TV. It's currently marked down to $2.50 on Steam right now and it looks like when they sell out you won't be able to buy them any more. Valve continues to be committed to it's Steam Link Android App but hasn't been able to release it on the Apple app store after they initially submitted it due to a violation of the App store policy. Hopefully Valve can work out something with Apple because I've recently replaced my Steam Linux under my TV with my Wii U. I always thought the Steam Link was a cool device but now that Steam streaming comes installed... Read All

GDQ Express Wrap Up II - When Zelda Meets Metroid

Super Metroid/ALttP Combo Randomizer by Andy and Oatsngoats in 3:16:22 One of the coolest parts of this years GDQ Express was Andy and Oatsngoats playing the Super Metroid and Link the Past Randomizer co-op. The Super Metroid & Link to the Past randomizer run is a super new speedrun and it was really fun to watch two of the best players in Zelda and Metroid play such an incredible co-op run. The randomizer seed isn't particularly kind to them and when one of the worst item spawns happens it's a very fun moment but Oats and Andy pull it out for a very fun run to experience.

Earthbound by Ultimoice in 2:15: 57 Earthbound is a classic SNES RPG that can be completed... Read All

Cheerful Ghost Radio Episode 41: Metroid Review

In this episode of Cheerful Ghost Radio, we're continuing our NES Classic reviews with Metroid! Released in 1986, Metroid puts you in control of Samus, fighting through aliens on the planet Zebes, and taking on Mother Brain. Metroid has spawned numerous sequels, and along with Castlevania started the "Metroidvania" subgenre of action-adventure games.

Fallout 76: First Impressions After a Few Hours

I've played about 6ish hours of Fallout 76 so far, so I think I have a decent handle on how things are shaping up, though I'm far from comfortable in the game yet. Whether you enjoy the game or not, there's a lot of depth to uncover.

First and foremost, this is not the Fallout you're used to. Don't go into it expecting that, or you're bound for disappointment. It's an online survival game more akin to something like Rust than Fallout, but it does have that Fallout feel and setting.

Speaking of the setting, it's interesting jumping into a Fallout setting that I'm more familiar with than the previous entries. The first city you visit is Morgantown, which I've visited a... Read All

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 11/17/2018 at 07:04am

The game kind of had the opposite effect on me pre-launch. At first, I wasn't interested, thinking it'd be more like GTA Online, plenty of PVP. Overtime, I watched people on YouTube play and I became more interested in it. Now I've played enough of it, I've generated a mostly positive opinion on it. I've never encountered a PVP problem or instance. Once I think someone shot at me, but I don't know if they meant to or what, but I didn't retaliate and that's all there was to that encounter. I don't often run into people, most of them don't seem to have a mic set up, some do. With the "auto" voice chat setting, I've noticed I can hear and talk to people that are within the area around me and I've done that. I noticed the talking icon over people's heads and thought something was wrong on my side, but now I'm sure they were just using the "team" voice chat setting.

Now for my disappointment, the bugs. I've run into plenty of them and I'm disappointed that some of them haven't been patched yet. You cannot complete the Bureau of Tourism quest as part of it is repairing a dispenser. Once you go to the dispenser you'll see the diamond on it showing you that's your quest piece, but it does not allow you to interact with it. This was an issue during the beta that has not yet been fixed. In fact, I feel like we're playing the beta version. I could probably remark about other bugs I've run into, but at least I got the voice chat one figured out ("it's not a bug, it's a feature").

I'm looking forward to seeing you online so I can play with you. I've been playing alone since it went live (which it did early, too). It's a bit lonely actually, but it's ok.

I haven't done much w/ my C.A.M.P. but I did set it up near the airport. I have started with a stash box and cooking pot, but I have since gathered enough materials to create a tinkerer's workshop, too. I want to make the weapon and armor workshops as well.

But yes, this is a bit like Fallout 4. The area looks different, obviously, but some of the mechanics from Fallout 4 are there, like crafting, etc. I'm also used to the area as I live about 150 miles from Charleston, WV. I've seen the golden dome IRL and in-game. WV is only half an hour away from me and I've been there. Looking around my area of VA during fall really does look very similar to the game. I think that's neat.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/17/2018 at 02:42pm

Yeah I confirmed those chat settings:
Area is clear, everyone in the area can hear you.
Team is clear as well, everyone on your team can here you.
Auto sets it to team if you're in a team, or area if you aren't.

It's odd since this is a game that doesn't seem to encourage team v team so I don't know why you wouldn't want it to area all the time. If someone walks up to you, you can't even talk to them.

So I set mine to area even though I still haven't bothered with a headset.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/17/2018 at 02:57pm

I updated the post with a couple things I should have put in last night.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 11/17/2018 at 11:52pm

Wow! I'm surprised you're done w/ RDR2. Was it a short game or did you just play the hell out of it?

I bought the digital version of Fallout 76 from Bethesda.net. Therefore, I got the pre-order bonus of the classic Fallout games (Fallout, Fallout 2, and Fallout Tactics). I have Fallout on Steam. I've tried to play it, but didn't really get into it.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/18/2018 at 02:41am

Haha, no, it was not a short game. I don’t have a way to track how long I’ve played but I estimate near 100 hours and I’m not exactly done with it, just finished the missions. There’s still a lot to find!

And yeah the original Fallout games are very different. I played the first game back near when it was released and had some issues getting into it. I loved the idea but the gameplay wasn’t doing it for me. I love what Bethesda has done with it.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/18/2018 at 06:57am

I updated the end of the post with some more thoughts after playing more tonight with Greg. I wouldn't put on a headset for just anyone, Greg! :D

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/18/2018 at 09:22pm

Something happened with Greg last night and it happened with me today. My camp just entirely disappeared! I think in my case it's because I joined a server where someone had their camp right across the road from me, so it kinda bumped me out. Good news is that it's easy as pie to just pop it down somewhere else.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 11/18/2018 at 10:01pm

:) I'm glad you did put on a headset. I use mine all the time. I don't really expect to talk to people, but it can happen.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/19/2018 at 04:26am

If I lived alone and they had push-to-talk I would probably keep mine on too

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 11/19/2018 at 10:13am

BTW How did you make your door? I see the door and can craft one, but I don't see a door frame.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/19/2018 at 01:33pm

It’s an alternate wall. Select your wall then press left or right. I kinda stumbled upon it by accident.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 11/19/2018 at 09:34pm

So the patch is out and seems to fix the Bureau of Tourism bugs and some other things. But... it looks like for consoles it requires redownloading the whole damn game!

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2018-11-19-fallout-76s-first-major-patch-is-a-whopping-47gb

It’s 15gb on PC so yay for us but WTF. There’s no reason you should have to redownload assets and such.

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 11/19/2018 at 11:34pm

Good for the fixes!

jdodson Admin wrote on 12/03/2018 at 12:25am

After sitting on the game a bit are both of you still glad you got it?

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 12/03/2018 at 12:50am

Yeah. It's kind of frustrating at times, because it takes me to places I feel like I have no business being. That's because there are some really nasty creatures there that kill me. I die a lot, but I also don't always run around in power armor and I stick to using two or three guns mostly. But yeah, I don't regret getting it. It's been fun playing with Travis.

jdodson Admin wrote on 12/03/2018 at 12:56am

Great. It's a game that I expect to get a ton of updates so when people are upset with what it is now, it's odd because it seems to be what people said it might be. Which is to say, not done at all but available to play if people want.

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 12/03/2018 at 03:52am

Honestly I think a large majority of the complaints are way unfounded at best, absolutely ridiculous at worst. Which is a pity because it drowns out the discussion of the *real* problems of the game, of which there are many.

But my biggest problem with the game is how I don't want to stop playing it.

I'm getting toward the end of the main quest. My next (and really, only) step for the main quest is to launch a nuke. Not sure what endgame is like. If it was a singleplayer game, that wouldn't really matter. You hit the end and you're done, right? Go explore if you want but otherwise you're all set! But the endgame could make or break it.

But for what I've played, it's not a perfect Fallout game or a perfect survival game but the elements of each make it something compelling and a lot of fun, especially when you have a buddy (hi Greg!)

jdodson Admin wrote on 12/03/2018 at 04:45am

> But my biggest problem with the game is how I don't want to stop playing it.

Awesome problem to have. So how many hours have you played so far? PC right?

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 12/03/2018 at 12:48pm

PC and I have no way to tell how many hours as far as I know. A lot. Too many. 😂

Azurephile Super Member wrote on 12/09/2018 at 01:04am

I just got an in-game achievement for exploring the game for 76 hours. I'm I'm still only level 43 or so.

jdodson Admin wrote on 12/09/2018 at 05:12am

Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 12/09/2018 at 07:07am

I got that achievement yesterday I think. Just tipped over level 59 tonight, the nuke zones are really fun. I still have yet to launch my own.

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My First Impressions Of The Wii U

A couple months back I found a good deal on a Wii U and decided to buy it. I've wanted to buy one for a while now and felt the time was right with the Switch being very popular it seems people are looking to get rid of their old Nintendo hardware. The Wii U deal I found had the base system, extra Wii controller, Skylanders pack and a couple extra games included such as Nintendoland, Mass Effect 3 and Ninja Gaiden. All told not the best of games on the system but it did come with Breath of the Wild as a digital download. The unfortunate part of digital downloads is they only work as long as you keep the old owners account on the Wii U, something I wanted to change in... Read All

Cheerful Ghost Radio Episode 40: Solo Blu-ray Review Special

Solo: A Star Wars Story recently released on Blu-ray, so we dove back in to talk about it because we can't resist a good Star Wars Discussion. We reflected on the film and how our thoughts might have changed since we saw it in theaters, talked about the special features, and gave it a final Ghost Scale rating!

Metal Jesus Reviews The C64 Mini And It Looks Incredible!

My family owned a Commodore 64 and as such I remember playing a ton of awesome games on it as well as learning how to program by reading code from included software and magazines. Some of the games I played on it were pretty fun such as Gauntlet, California Games and Nosferatu and remember playing Nosferatu for hours even though I never could kill Dracula. Recently the C64 Mini was released and I didn't pick it up because I wasn't sure how it would turn out but it was recently reviewed by Metal Jesus and seems to be fantastic. The C64 Mini includes a lot of games and some I remember playing but the coolest part is that it includes the ability to program it using C64... Read All

Grim Fandango Remastered Is Now On The Switch - 8 Inspirations for Grim Fandango

Grim Fandango Remastered is available now on the Switch and Double Fine has a fun video out to celebrate that goes over 8 inspirations for the game. A couple of these were fun to learn, like The Beastie Boys inspired the game but i'll let you click play to find out how.

Grim Fandango is available on every platform such as PC, Mac, Linux, PS4, XBox and now the Nintendo Switch.