New Template Is Here

I hope everyone enjoys the new template. I am still working out the bugs and would appreciate feedback from anyone having problems.

Known Bug List:
-[Fixed]To read comments you must click on Post Comment. Working to make # Comments clickable.
-[Fixed]While using IE, the columns of text overwrite each other.
-[Fixed]If your resolution is set below 1024x768, the background picture interferes with reading the text. --> Even though the problem is fixed, it is strongly recommended to view this site at 1024x768 resolution.

Update: 8 Jul, 2007 - Edited post and applied label.

New World of Warcraft race speculation... Draenei

Gaming Steve seems to have "the" scoop on the new Alliance race for World of Warcraft. Unfortunately it is also the most plausible and dare I say most boring race possible... the Draenei.

Gaming Steve quotes a leaked Computer Gaming Magazine scan;

"*Alliance players will enjoy playing as Draenei, and the new Blood Elf race gives the Horde faction its first exercise in what humans perceive as sex appeal (even though those Troll females are pretty cute)."

Update: 29 Nov, 2009 - Removed broken links and pictures. Applied label.

I'm an e-celebrity... featured at GU Comics

It seems my /. article about how MTV is offering better gaming TV than G4 is the center of a GU Comic. The comic features "a guy at Gamergod" which just so happens to be me.

To be kind I stopped in on their forums and offered my opinion on some things their posters seemed to be missing. Here is my post...

"I think most of the people hating on MTV here have not honestly seen any of their gaming shows. It is heads and tales above anything G4 produces. Most obviously because there is more money being spent on production, but a few key areas they hit make gamers watch... and we're not just talking teenagers.

1. If they don't have the content they don't have a show for it. G4 thinks just because its part of gaming they need to have a show on it. I think that speaks for itself.

2. They produce quality over quantity. G4 is exactly the opposite because they are still trying to fill in all that time between Man Show reruns and infomercials.

3. They focus on gamers of ALL variety. MTV is well known for selling sex to teenagers, but oddly enough when it comes to gaming they sell it without believing their audience is a bunch of teenage boys. Find one thing on G4 that isn't trying to sell their programming to a bunch of teenage boys.

The great thing about MTV is you can grab a TV guide and watch what you want. You can TIVO quality shows without having to worry if your TIVOing another rerun off of G4.

To each his own."

Update: 6 Nov, 2006 - Updated post and applied labels. Removed link to now defunct Gamergod.com article.

Slashdot - MTV making better gaming TV than G4TV?

My article from GamerGod.com (now defunct, removed link), MTV making better gaming TV than G4TV?, is featured on Slashdot this afternoon.

Enjoy!

Update: 29 Nov, 2009 - Removed broken link and applied label.

Unfortunately, no copy of this article exists.

I hath returned!

The week long raid concluded with the following pile of loot:

Star Wars Episode 3 DVD
War of the Worlds DVD

Books:







Two heavy duty frying pans. Afterall, working on that oh-so-important cooking skill!

Long sleeved Green Bay Packers shirt with +5 Fanboi enchant!

Air Force plaque with medallion and US flag stamp.

Mini-nativity set.

Update: 25 July, 2008 - Edited post and applied labels.

Gone the 20th - 26th... Wisconsin here I come!

I will be home for the holidays so I hope everyone has a good holiday season!

Update: 8 Nov, 2006 - Removed broken links, consolidated post, and applied labels.

Reposted Book Review : Smart Bomb

Title: Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution
Authors: Heather Chaplin, Aaron Ruby
Genre: Gaming
Publisher: Algonquin Books (October 12, 2006)
Quick-Hit Thought: Great read for those interested.

I'm just a gamer. I don't develop games. I have no grand dreams of magically breaking into the industry. However, there are many developers in the industry who have done just that. This is a review of the book, Smartbomb : The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Video game Revolution. This is a review from the side of a gamer, of a book about the rock star developers that make my world go.

At the heart of Smartbomb is a collection of stories about the rock star developers of the video game industry. The pacing of the book is defined by the first developer we meet, Cliff Blezinski. "CliffyB", as he is known around the offices at Epic Games, is known for his once flashy pimp-like attire, back when he burst onto the scene with the Unreal and Unreal Tournament series.

CliffyB is a recurring character in the book. He is considered to be one of the last home-grown programmers who has truly broken into the industry. In a day where developers arrive with college degrees built upon game development, CliffyB is a throwback to such legends as Will Wright of The Sims fame and John Carmack of Doom fame. Wright and Carmack don't have game design degrees, but they have some of the most influential video games in history under their belts. They developed games, because there was no other outlet for their creative talents.

However, CliffyB has gone from flashy pimp to laid back front man for Epic. There is a tantalizing connection where we see him at the same parties and conferences as Wright and Carmack. While CliffyB catches the audience's eyes with a new dazzling hair color, Will Wright drops a bomb as he displays his latest effort known, Spore. Wright's presentation ends in a standing ovation. Smartbomb shows us where these visionaries came from.

The husband-and-wife team of Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby connect many dots amongst a varied background of gaming history. Reading through the book will have you hitting Google for more information on such subjects as the Tech Model Railroad Club of MIT, and the Stupid Fun Club. Their writing style has a dramatic flare that drives the book, and readers will find themselves wanting to know more about the topics covered.

While there are many eye-opening insights into several facets of the gaming industry, there are also several reproductions of well known gaming history tidbits, such as Nolan Bushnell and the early days of Atari. For the seasoned video game historian, this is all information covered in other books, such as Steven Kent's "The Ultimate History of Video Games'', and Dean Takahashi’s "Opening the Xbox: Inside Microsoft's Plan to Unleash an Entertainment Revolution.''

However, there are enough new connections and flavors amongst the entwined stories that the reiteration of information is not overwhelming. Also, being a relatively newer book in a growing industry, it serves as a great starting point for the new-age video game historian. The driving point, the reader will know more about gaming and where gaming is headed after reading this book.

It is very interesting that most of the gaming scene was covered. At one point, you're in the “gaming room” of an Anarchy Online addict before you are whisked away to the sweltering hotel basement in Dallas, where the latest Cyberathlete Professional League tournament is underway.

Smartbomb drags you into the rock star life of the game development industry and then firmly plants you back with the core of the industry: the gamers themselves.

Update: 7 Nov, 2006 - Reposted from old Heartless Gamer Reviews section and applied labels.

Update: 2 Apr, 2007 - Edited labels and article.

Update: 28 July, 2008 - Added info section.

Update: 15 Dec, 2009 - Reposted to new Heartless_ Gamer Reviews.

What I learned building my new PC so far...

Here is what I've learned so far building my new PC.

First issue was that the damn BIOS wouldn't recognize the hard drive. Well I stopped here thinking it was pointless to go any further without troubleshooting this down. Long story short...

1. Configure single SATA HD into a JBOD RAID setup via RAID controller setup.
2. Set CDROM to be first boot device.
3. Use mobo setup CD to create a SATA RAID driver disk.
4. Install Windows and press F6 to install additional drivers.
5. Install SATA RAID driver.
6. Windows now recognizes the drive for the install!

Two hours to figure those simple steps out. Had a friend from that lives in England that is a tech rep by day and he did all the research for me. Great guy! I looked at the same FAQ and troubleshooting guides he did and I would have never came up with the same solution.

Next problem... and current problem (didn't fix because I had to come to work).

Net connection works fine without a router.

Connection doesn't work with router.

Lots of crap going on here... will have to dig into it.

Update: 8 Nov, 2006 - Edited post and applied labels.

MO5 - The SOE effect... part II... MMORPG madness

Mouthing Off 5

If you play Everquest 2 currently, I would quit. Why? Because the SOE effect is going full tilt and the ole’ captain over at SOE, John Smedley, has lost the lock to his spigot: err, mouth. Read the clown’s: err John Smedley’s new interview over at Gamespot.

To quote the clown:

"One thing that I love about our company is that there is no 'quit' in this company. It's about making sure that we have pride in what we do. People within the company feel so much pride in this game that they want it to beat the crap out of World of Warcraft. That's something we feel very passionate about. We know we are capable of making the best stuff out there, and I'm proud to say that with the changes we're making in Galaxies, I think we're headed in the right direction."

They love your company so much that the Star Wars Galaxies team has lost numerous leads, developers, and technicians?

They are so dedicated that they somehow are going to rebuild a 2.5 year old game into a World of Warcraft killer? You can “want to beat the crap out of World of Warcraft”, but I would think it a bit silly to actually believe you can. It is said though, confidence is a key to success.

Enough about Star Wars Galaxies, let us get back to Everquest 2. As I have previously defined the SOE effect I will connect some dots. In April ’05 Star Wars Galaxies underwent the Combat Upgrade to mixed reviews and a slight murmur in the crowd. Players stayed and lived with the changes because it was not GAME ALTERING or DRAMATIC. Fast forward to November and the BOMBSHELL known as the NGE was dropped inside a two week period.

The numbers are not in or they are very closely guarded, but the word around the Internet is that the NGE has killed Star Wars Galaxies. Actually, effectively killed would be a better statement. No amount of marketing or positive PR spin will sway a large group of new players to pick up Star Wars Galaxies sans a complete re-launch under a new name.

Now, back to Everquest 2. EQ2 already had a major revision to it's combat system and class balance. Once again, there are some murmurs in the player base about the changes. People are still playing though. However, what will happen when SOE decides that the game isn’t Everquesty enough?

Smedley claimed that their sandbox approach didn’t work with Star Wars because it wasn’t Star Warsy enough. Everquest 2 isn’t a sandbox game, but it’s no Everquest either. SOE so far has swayed from making a better Everquest all the way to making change after change to open the game up towards what I like to call “the World of Warcraft player”. Not just casual gamers, but gamers that like to solo MORE than group. Obviously World of Warcraft has found A LOT of gamers that fit this mold.

If SOE is so CONFIDENT that they can turn Star Wars Galaxies into a World of Warcraft killer then what do you think they will believe they can do with Everquest 2, which is still rumored to be short of pulling a profit due to high development costs. Is Everquest 2 in for a major shake up because it somehow doesn’t fit the mold that SOE believes it should?

If 300,000+ accounts at SWG’s peak wasn't good enough then what is the threshold for Everquest 2 before SOE mandates it be torn down and rebuilt from the ground up? Did SOE learn with Everquest 2 that sequels don’t work in the MMO market and did that scare away the idea of a Star Wars Galaxies 2 implementing their new features? I don’t know about everyone else, but it seems like the SOE effect is getting worse.

With SOE’s parent company, Sony, already hurting in the public relations department with the DRM fiasco, will they be willing to take any more negative press as the story of the Star Wars Galaxies NGE debacle starts crossing into the New York Times?

Everquest 2 players: get while the getting is good. Don't say "It will never happen", because it already has. As much as you may hate the idea, you can't deny the obvious trend that SOE has set. How many more games do they need to kill to prove it?

Update: 3 May, 2009 - Edited post and applied labels.

Nintendo Revolution... new possibilities explored

I was reading this article over at CNN Money and it dawned on me: the Nintendo Revolution, and the way the controller works, will reinvent the way we play games. This is the perfect chance for Nintendo to produce sequels in the series we already love without summoning that sick feeling of sequelitis. Star Fox, Mario, Zelda, Metroid, and other classic Nintendo series will have new, exciting games to play on the Nintendo Revolution.

Unlike other sequels, where the control schemes are unlikely to change from game to game, Nintendo Revolution sequels will have an exciting new twist. The new control mechanism is exactly what sequels need. Cross platform games such as the Madden series will most likely use the "old" controller style for their Revolution ports (Nintendo has stated there will be some sort of "classic" styled controller that ships with the revolution).

This is a chance for enterprising developers to revitalize some of their boring and "dead due to sequels" titles. Series like Tomb Raider, that have become the laughing stock of sequelitis, could potentially be brought back to life. Even if the game isn't perfect; playing it with a Revolution controller may bring back just enough interest to revitalize the series. This could sway more developers to publish exclusively for Nintendo. Developers love to use their big name properties to move boxes.

The Nintendo Revolution looks better everyday.

Update: 6 Apr, 2007 - Updated labels and edited post.