Monday, November 30, 2009

Day One Hundred-twenty: evening of November 30th 2009

So after preparing tea for my family, I can sit down and describe how created a null point in Borderlands earlier in the day.
I was playing the second Arena scenario, and had move through the first two challenges without serious gladiatorial mishaps ( I was killed off only once). But the third event proved to be much more of a challenge. I mean much more of a challenge, multiple bruisers, badass bruisers, thugs, pygmy warriors, and psychos - the whole nine yards.
I think I was on my sixth or seventh try, experimenting with weapon combinations to see what worked best. I noticed that the badass bruisers were the pincer of the envelopment strategy. It took me a while to see this with all the digital lead flying about. The strategy that I put together was hold the center with my temporary machine gun and quickly lob grenades into the lesser powers located there. Once that was done, I attacked the less powerful of the badass bruisers based on the armament carried. It didn’t work the first two times. I needed to work on the weapon balance. I think that I settled on my side arms consisting of shock producing weapons, a potent shotgun, and, finally, a flame producing round delivered by an RPG and MIRV grenades
To make a long story short, it looked like it was working. The machine’s artificial intelligence was tough, but I had stalled or eliminated the central force, and turned to face the badass bruiser with a machinegun. The other badass bruiser is armed with an accurate explosive RPG. I had to make sure that I sought out some cover as I attacked. I notice that I wasn’t drawing any other fire, so the central force had been neutralized. It was at this point I began to sense something was off. Normally, there was always a stream of reinforcements, but there were none. I finished off the first badass bruiser and turned my attentions on the second. I couldn’t see any other ‘tangos’ so I concentrated my fire on the other bruiser. I started with the fire producing RPG at a distance and shifted to the submachine gun (SMG) as it got closer. The life points flowed off the character, it went down. Silence. No other tangos were evident, but the arena gate didn’t open and the waypoint marker remained in the center of the arena. I spent the next five to ten minutes running around seeing if I could trigger the continuation of the game. I did not succeed, so I had to quit. I’ll see what happens when I return and pick up where I left off.
In after action thought, I realized that the final round was an example of a pincer attack-infantry in the center to pin the enemy, and armor to swing wide and smashing the flanks cutting off the possible retreat.
Signing off.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Day One Hundred-nineteen: evening of November 29th 2009

I managed to squeeze in a little Borderlands this morning, and managed to level up. I didn’t know that I was that close when I started the scenario. Now I’ve reached the 30th level of my character’s development. As you advance, you get to choose attributes to improve on. I decided to increase the size my magazines this time. Now they are 60% larger. This comes in handy when you get surprised by some ‘tangos’ when they pop out of the ground or drop out of the sky, and you need to pump flaming slugs into them.
Another thing that I noticed about Borderlands’ quest, as you review them, the description state the level of difficulty (trivial, normal, tough). This level changes as you advance. So, what was tough when you started playing will become normal, and then trivial as you level is upgraded.
When I return to the game, I’ll see if I can clean up more quests, paralleling the main quest, “What’s in the Vault.” I’m sure that that disclosure will result in further plot involvement.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Day One Hundred-eighteen: evening of November 28th 2009

It felt a bit strange as I played Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on the PlayStation 3 for five hours. It was, for all intents and purposes, the same game as the one for the Xbox 360. The controller for the PS3 is smaller and lighter, but it was the switch of the trigger and grenade buttons that caused me the most grief. I would aim down the sight (also flipped) begin to pull the trigger, and watch as the grenade would arch in the direction of the target. If the target was close, I might score a hit or the ‘tango’ would flip it back at me. If the target was in the distance, most of the grenades would fall short. This action, if it occurred in a building would result, and I missed the door or window, in the grenade bouncing back, killing you-know-who. This minor switch caused me to get killed so many times that I lost count.
In the end, even though the result of this minor switch proved disastrous, I played through the whole game faster by about an hour and met my character’s electronic maker, whose perverse sense of humor, placed me in the same spot when I respawned. I think the principle at work here is the famous ‘sink or swim’ course of action. The few seconds before reanimation requires some thought to an effective change in strategy. In the long run I could live with that thought provoking pause.

Friday, November 27, 2009

Day One Hundred-seventeen: evening of November 27th 2009

I broke down and went to get Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for the PlayStation 3. I don’t have too many duplicate games for the two systems, but I wanted to try hooking up with some of my old students for some multiplayer games. Maybe they’ll clue me in to how it is done effectively.
I hooked up the Xbox Vision Live camera in the morning today, and it really was easy to set up. In fact the actual directions that came with the product were easy to follow. I was up and running in about fifteen minutes - start to finish. I let my sister know that we could link up as soon as she stabilized her online situation with DSL by I sending her a message with a photo that I took with the camera.
Before I went the GameStop in the afternoon to purchase CoD: MW2, I loaded up Fallout 3 on the PS3 just to see where I left off. I am really out of practice. I think I bit off more than I could chew playing the Mothership scenario. I didn’t bring enough health packs to support my errors. I might restart the scenario just after the abduction to see if I can play it smarter.
Now I’m going to try out MW2 on the PS3 to get used to handling the controller.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Day One Hundred-sixteen: evening of November 26th 2009

Another example of brevity. Regarding today’s action in Borderlands’ Reaver scenario (Two Wrongs Make A Right): “Veni, Vidi, Vici (Julius Caesar).” Underestimating my opponent was not an option today. Thanksgiving dinner was coming up, but I needed to take some Advil for my ankle and rest it a bit. This had to be done in less than an hour, give or take fifteen minutes.
A draw back to saving in Borderlands is the fact that you end up at the start of the scenario. But in this case it was fortuitous, I had completed the Krom’s canyon scenario, and the Reaver scenario shares the same starting point. I studied the map a bit, trying figure out what I did wrong the day before, leaving that activity still confused.
I have to remember, in this game, don’t relinquish ground gained. Going back to hunt for supplies usually allows re-spawning of the bad guys. Then I had to defeat them again at the cost of the supplies gathered and med kits which may not be available that deep into the scenario. So, after the first repulse, I remembered, and keep pushing forward. I reached the point of confusion, looked around and saw a large corrugated wall with what appeared to be a lever. Huzzah! My next action became crystal clear, activate the lever, use my shield gun, clear out the Reaver’s henchmen, and take down the Reaver - I came, I saw, I conquered.
So much for “Another example of brevity.”

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Day One Hundred-fifteen: evening of November 25th 2009
An example of brevity. The trophy error cleared up when I checked it after 1am. It re-occurred this afternoon around 6 pm. The theory of heavy network usage seems to be the leading contender for this issue. I will try again tonight.
I played Borderlands for about five hours and had a lot of fun. I’m glad that we had five or six packages delivered today. I’ll try to play a bit more this evening. Currently, I’m in a bit of a pickle. I underestimated , what I thought was, a lesser boss. I can’t get past his body guard. I wonder what this battle will be like.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Day One Hundred-fourteen: evening of November 24th 2009

“I can not sync my trophies for the life of me! (Error 80022A07)” was the third listing on a Google search that actually addressed the issue that I was having. The solutions presented by the forum members matched my attempts to solve the syncing issue that had materialized on my PS3. One member mentioned traffic conflicts with the Sony servers handling the heavy demands place on it by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer games. I tried downloading a couple of files from the PlayStation store with out a problem. Of course they might have more than one server to handle different tasks. The forum visitor remarked that, he had a similar problem that cleared up when he logged in during “off peak hours.” I’ll try that later. Another forum responder ask what the network connection speed was, stating that anything below 5mbp was doomed to failure on his machine. When I finish this entry, that will be another step that I’ll take repair the issue.
It’s nice to know that there are clues online to assist in solving the more PS3 problems.

Monday, November 23, 2009

Day One Hundred-thirteen: evening of November 23rd 2009

I tried playing as an Elf mage in Dragon Ages: Origins in the afternoon. I must have learned something in my previous incarnation. Better group control and, hopefully, smarter spell use. It paid off in the Ogre boss battle in the tower scenario. I died twice as an elf mage as opposed to about ten times in the first adventure as a Dalish Elf.
As a point of information, when I shift from game to game, and platform to platform, It takes some time to get used to the new button schemes. Most of the time the shoot, interact, jump, run, and other basic action button are relatively similar. The significant change is the specialty selection. The designers have tried, successfully most of the time, to be intuitive. Every player will have to realize that there might be a certain amount of frustration attached to the shift. That wrong button press and associated death (what a royal pain), but it will pass quickly, and it won’t be long before you’re back in the groove.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Day One Hundred-twelve: evening of November 22nd 2009

Yesterday, I was describing a problem with the quest to recover T.K. Baha’s limb in Borderlands (PS3). As I played the game prior to that quest, I noticed that after a certain period of time, the creatures reset in their original locations. So after completing a tough mission, I decided to go back and attempt to recover the missing limb. It worked, the Skag boss was there, and this time I fought him in its area of control. When the battle was done, the limb and some neat booty was left on the ground where the Skag boss had been. I fought my way back to T.K. Baha and received my experience points, cash, and a new weapon.
I played my way through a number of missions this afternoon, and I think I’m going to try and clear the Bounty Board of missions. I wonder if there is a trophy for that? I’m sure I’ll need the experience points, cash and additional enhance weaponry for the future adventures in the Borderlands.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Day One Hundred-eleven: evening of November 21st 2009

The problem that I was working on today makes its appearance in Borderlands (PS3). I was trying to recover a lost limb for a character named T.K. Baja. It’s really a two part mission, retrieve four packs of food from various skag dens, and then T.K.’s limb from a very old and tough skag (a minor boss?). When you‘ve collected all the items, you return to T.K. to get your reward (cash and experience).
Skags are pack creatures that inhabit small caves along the mountain walls. Five seems to be the normal number in a pack, but once engaged with one pack, their screams can draw other packs in the area into the fray. The older the skag the tougher they are to destroy. And there is also a mutated skag called a spitter. It launches a ball of toxic phlegm that does damage from a distance, and that ball of phlegm seems to home in on a moving target.
So off I go to get the objects for T.K. As you retrieve each item a new waypoint lights up on the map showing the approximate area of the next item. After getting the food packs, I checkout the location of the final item, T.K.’s limb, and return to one of the dens and locate the pack. I realize that I can’t take on the whole pack with the leader, so I thin out the pack from a distance with a sniper rifle. This strategy is a partial success. The shots draw the attention of the pack of skags and they begin an attack. As I pick off the lesser skags, I move back, accidentally activating other packs. Now I have an immediate problem with the new, but younger skags, to deal with. Out comes the two shell shotgun for some close quarter combat. Back pedaling give me time to reload, but be careful you don’t reload off a cliff (you have to start over from the last save). I do this a couple of times and, finally, its me and the old, mean, skag leader. I make sure everything is loaded, and, shotgun in hand, go after the skag. The battle is intense, but the shotgun is powerful enough to damage and ultimately kills the creature. There is a lot of loot carried by this beast, all of which is taken, but no limb. I check the map and the way point is in the center of the old skag’s den. I go there and wonder all over the area. Nothing! I position over the waypoint and circle around the waypoint expanding the circle as I move. Nothing! I check all the supply boxes. Nothing! I examine the smoldering refuse piles. Nothing! I’ve lost track of the time I’ve spent searching for the limb.
I give up. I go back to T.K.’s home and give him the food and am rewarded with cash and experience points. I check the map and the waypoint is still there, but I decide to forget going back for another look see.
Now, I’m checking the internet to see if anyone else has had a similar problem. Five pages into the Google search and nothing. I’ve found that there are other glitches. One very serious for multiplayer action - vanishing experience points. Anyway, I guess I’ll pass on this quest for the time being. I’ll check once more through Google, and maybe I’ll post an inquiry about this glitch/bug.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Day One Hundred-ten: evening of November 20th 2009

This morning I was bushed, just extremely tired. I was going to load up The Transformer sequel, and watch it. I got everything set up, Xbox on, DVD ready, channel controller ready, and at the last moment I decided to watch the end of the news before I started the movie. I was sitting in THE recliner. True to form, within minutes I was asleep. I didn’t wake until two and a half hours after touch down. Walk the dog, and return to THE recliner. I’m still feeling tired so I settle in and scan the channels. Vince Vaughn’s Wild West Comedy Tour is on and it becomes my choice for the next hour and fifteen minutes. I didn’t fall asleep. The thirty day/thirty cities proved to be very engaging program. When it was over, Borderlands was loaded and I picked up where I left off.
Now for the Borderlands tip of the day, “Don’t go back. Patch yourself up and push forward. I wasted to much time, health kits and money before I moved on to the next waypoint. Every time I returned I had to fight most of the battles over again, wasting valuable time cash and supplies. Keep moving forward. Somewhere, on the way, you’ll run into supply vending machines.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Day One Hundred-nine: evening of November 19th 2009

Right now I making some backup copies of Snow Leopard for my wife’s graphics lab. The school system has contracted a software update program from Apple that keeps her classroom machines up to date for any Apple software product. It is pretty effective, but time consuming to install using the single disk or single set of disks. That is why I’m making the copies, so that she can cut down to the install processing in her classroom lab.
During the day, I played Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Assassin’s Creed 2. I accidentally loaded Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Modern Warfare 2 was in my hand, but I opened COD4 and put it into the computer - very strange, but I discovered that I was at level 3 when I stopped playing that game. There were individuals still playing multiplayer COD4, but I passed. I wanted to go back to see if I could advance any more.
By the time I finished playing, I had advanced a couple of levels in COD: MW2. Started just shy of level 8 and when I ended the session I was just a bit over level 12. I noticed, that I was still having problems in the urban setting, close quarter fighting. I decided to try a change of armament a submachine gun (MP5) and a military shotgun. It helped a bit, but the lose of range, came back a number of time when I spotted enemy players outside the active range of either of the weapons. I experimented with the snipes’ weapons without much success. Part of it is my ignoring the situational heads up display (HUD) that might let me know of any approaching enemy. When the map opened up, I did a bit better. I also recognized the fact that if I was familiar with the terrain, I knew some of the spots that would be used by an enemy sniper and use that knowledge to my advantage. As long as I keep the kills/killed total on the positive side, I’m helping my team. I like the team player approach, even though I don’t know any of my teammates.
Assassin’s Creed 2 is still in the pre-assassin stage. My imprisoned father has sent me on an errand to a secret room in the house to retrieve papers that should prove his innocence, hidden with the documents are the clothes of the assassin I am to become. Little do I realize at the time that this will be my future occupation, or the person that I am delivering the papers to will betray my family.
So, I’ve just seen the male members of my family, betrayed and murdered. My mother and sister are safe, and I find out, hiding in a local brothel, whose madam will ultimately introduce me to the skills necessary to become an assassin. That is the current state of my character this evening. This is the setup for my quest for revenge, and more.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Day One Hundred-eight: evening of November 18th 2009

Not going to cover too much today. Most of the morning was spent on the usual housework-laundry, dishes, kitten maintenance, et al. I worked on splicing together the video clips of Olivia. Overall it worked out well. My biggest error occurred when I shot the clips in the first place. I held the iPhone the long axis up, or portrait. The whole video format is set up on the horizontal. When I imported it into iMovie, it became the center action strip in a black horizontal HD rectangle. I thought I could pull a Photoshop and crop it out in Final Cut Pro, but I was wrong. Now I wonder what will happen if I import it straight into FCP - the next experiment. Maybe I’ll try it tomorrow.
The afternoon was spent getting ‘pwned’ (basically, a gamer term for being totally dominated). Last night, I played Modern Warfare 2 from about one am until just a little after 2 am in the morning. I advanced four levels, not to bad for me. It was better than my first attempt in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. It took me about two hours to advance foul levels. I guess I learned something. But this afternoon, I seemed to revert back to my first adventure, in two and a half hours I advanced just three levels. In urban warfare I was downed three times as much as I dealt death to the enemy. I was not a help to my team. In more open country, or a mix of buildings and open space, I was about fifty/fifty, deaths to kills. Now I wonder how I will fare the next time out.
I finished off the afternoon, with a few missions in Borderland. I’m not sure I always understand the assignments. The structure seems to be similar to quests in Oblivion or Fallout 3. I’m going to pay more attention to what I accept as a mission and thoroughly understand what needs to be done before I start that assignment.
I’m going to get ready to watch some television with my family. Flat screen TVs and High Definition programming are wonderful to behold.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Day One Hundred-seven: evening of November 17th 2009

Well after today, I’ve got enough ‘game’ to keep me busy until January or February of next year. The list of games available for play are: Dragon Age: Origins and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for the Xbox 360, and Borderlands, Assassins Creed 2 for the PlayStation 3. Oh, I almost forgot, there is Dead Space: Extraction for the Wii. With those as the line up, it was easy to place a deposit on Mass Effect 2 which is scheduled for a release towards the end of January 2010-plenty of time,
After storing the pet supplies and removing the plastic wrappers, I loaded up Assassin’s Creed 2 and got into the opening scenarios of that game. The tutorial is worked into the initial scenario, and I quickly get lost after I completing some basic tasks. I have to familiarize myself with the menu structure and master the act of scaling the façades of building. The cityscape is remarkable. Whenever you climb certain viewpoints, you scan and open the map to the areas that you espy. It is magnificent. In front of you is spread the terra cotta tiled roof tops of the city, while below the human component of the environment move about the streets of that city. I finally find home, meet my family, and begin running errands for my father, my mother, my sister, and my younger brother (feather search). At this point in time, my character is an irresponsible, carousing, firebrand, spoiling for a fight. The nature of my errand changes to some suspicious packet delivery and pick up. When I start my mission, my family is a respected in the city of Florence, when I return from a pick-up my father, and brothers are in prison and I send my mother and sister into hide. The city fathers have the guards looking for me, and I wonder if this has anything to do with my father’s work for the Medici family. They are our powerful benefactors, but out of the city at this time.
Like a good novel, the plot thickens, but a dinner break is required, so I quit the game, eject the disk, and shut down the PS3. Maybe I’ll get back to the game, but then again there are three other games that can be considered worthy of my attention.
Again, maybe I’ll get back to the game this evening.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Day One Hundred-six: evening of November 16th 2009

Had to wait for some packages, so I just settled in for about three hours of Borderland (PS3) with a smattering of the Spec Ops component of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (360).
It was a fun afternoon, if by fun I meant getting ripped apart by a four legged creature that a cross between a large dog and the two legged screaming monster in Tremors 2 (letting one of my guilty pleasure movies surface), shot at by characters ripped from any post apocalyptic survival movie (ala Road Warrior), or crawling through the snow, trying to sneak through a heavily guarded creek bed without giving away my position to either the guards or their dogs. Seven unsuccessful tries in the later, and achieving the seventh level in the former. Like I said at the beginning, a fun afternoon.
Tomorrow, I go out to pick up Assassin Creed 2 (PS3). I thought it was due out next week, and was pleasantly surprised to receive a text message from GameStop letting me know that if I wanted to pick up the midnight release of the game, to show up early to handle any trade-ins or purchases prior to the distribution of the game. Chances of another fun afternoon are good, provided Murphy’s Law doesn’t kick in at some time between now and then.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Day One Hundred-five: evening of November 15th 2009

I upgraded Parallels 4.0 to version 5.0 this afternoon. No Bears today, the fait accompli occurred Thursday, so there was plenty of time to install and check out the upgrade without a hint of distraction. After inserting the upgrade disk, clicking on the install icon, filling the activation code along with the 5.0 registration, and then I let the application do the rest. When it was done, version 4.0 was gone and Parallel 5.0 was ready to go. It had located the existing Windows XP hard drive, accessed it when I activated the emulator, and bam. Windows XP loaded up and looked like it should. Next, I checked out the system by running some games. Most worked well, but one had mouse issues. I’m not sure if it is the upgrade, because it exhibited a similar problem with the older Parallels. This I'll have to check out.
I had to stop, my wife had started a project that required the application of muscles power, and we went to the Salvation Army donation center with about a dozen bags and boxes of slightly used and new apparel. After the drop off, my wife went to Kohl’s outlet and I went into Best Buy. After spending twenty minutes of flip-flopping between Demon Soul (PS3), Borderlands (360, PS3), and Dragon Age: Origins (PC), I opted out for Borderlands (PS3). I was interested in the game play, weapon mods, and graphics of the game. The game has better than average reviews, so I think it’s a decent purchase. I was thinking about getting Dragon Age for the PC as a testing device for the upgrade that I had just applied to my Mac. The mouse problem with the one game became a concern so I decided against that game.
I haven’t had a chance to play anything since yesterday, and probably won’t be able to game tonight either. Such is life.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Day One Hundred-four: evening of November 14th 2009

This Saturday was an almost no tech day. Using this computer, now, is the most advanced technology that I have used. But there are days like that.
I received the upgrade for my Parallels 4.0 to version 5.0, today, and am looking forward to installing it tomorrow. I'll see if its ads claim to a significant speed improvement are actually present.
Last night before I went bed, I played some of the Spec Ops scenarios in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. They are very challenging. I don't think I've run across scenarios designed like these. The missions can be played solo, cooperative split screen, or multiplayer with three difficulty modes. Maybe I'll try the stealth mission again this evening.

Friday, November 13, 2009

Day One Hundred-three: evening of November 13th 2009

Today we celebrated a birthday, so there was a different focus to todays activities. That doesn't mean that no video games were played. Part of the day was devoted to waiting for more packages to be delivered, so after some horizontal surface dust removal, I hit the Xbox 360 and some more Dragon Age: Origins to be played.
At this stage of my RPG development, most of the heavy action requires heavy 'trial and error' work. I had to go into the tactical mapping to select stance and reaction. Light weight action could be handled by bait and ambush, or picking off one or two of the enemy before the remainder of the group reacted. This has proved to be very successful. But it failed when confronted with superior numbers combined with one or two stronger characters. For a while, I was having trouble with the 'hold' and 'move freely' commands. Once I sorted out those commands and tweaked the tactics of the characters in my group, things fell into place.
All gaming activities ceased when the birthday activities began. Now I'll fire up my Xbox 360 an put in COD: MW2 and try a higher difficulty level.
The birthday activities were a success.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Day One Hundred-two: evening of November 12th 2009

I had to wait for deliveries today, and I had to make sure that I could hear the doorbell. So after the morning chores, I settled in for an afternoon of Dragon Age: Origins. I started trying out some the tips from the Xbox Live video. I used the group ‘Hold’ command to set up and ambush. . .well sort of an ambush. I tried to guess the range of the mage in the enemy group, which had destroyed my group a number of times as I experimented with . different approaches, and issued the hold command. I approached the bounty hunters slowly, trying to trigger one or two of the villains. As soon as one broke towards me (the bait), I retreated toward my group (the ambush) where the rogue was vanquished. Another trip triggered two blaggards, which the four in our group could handle, and they were dispatched. Now there were only two of the original five left - a mage and an archer. I released the band of adventurers and we charged. I took on the archer and the group went after the more powerful mage. Victory allowed us to move through the pass and toward the dwarfen gate.
The strategy here was different because the group facing us were all heavily armored. The ambush strategy wouldn’t work. It couldn’t be set up. So I had to change the make up of the group to all heavy weights, or ‘tanks’ as they are called in role playing games (RPGs).
To clarify the situation, I tried a number of attacks that all failed. So, what is the old adage, “Fight fire with fire.” They have ‘tanks’ in their group and now we have ‘tanks’ in our group. My group went from a balance team, rogue, mage, golem (tank), and warrior (me) to golem, attack dog, and me (three tanks and a warrior). The fight was free form, and it was over in about thirty seconds. After spending about fifteen minutes battling with my balanced team, I’m glad that I decided to flip the team after I found out that I could do that kind of thing at that time. Up until that time, I thought that I could only change my group in camp, but I was checking out using potions when I noticed that the change members was active. What I had was a ‘happy accident’ and I put that experience to use in this current situation.
So that was how I spent the afternoon. Now, I have to experiment with other formations and tactics. Hopefully, I’ll have another ‘happy accident’ but in case I don’t I’ll continue to try to tailor the group and their behavior to the situation.

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Day One Hundred-one: evening of November 11th 2009

While walking the dog, I had the some thoughts about the controversial scenario in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. We, the players, are ‘ordered’ by our commanding officer to infiltrate a ultra-nationalist military organization, with the understanding that we might have to commit acts that would go against our moral beliefs in order to get next to the group’s leader.
The scenario begins with you in this group with the leader of the organization on an elevator. We are all carrying heavy weapons. I’m holding a light machinegun with 900 hundred rounds and some grenades. The elevator doors open and we enter an airport. With the information given you can probably figure out what is going to happen next. If you follow your orders, it does unfold that way. Here is where my thoughts while walking dogs kicked in. The idea of this mission was to get into the inner circle of the group, apparently it has worked. So what happens if the agent pulls a Jason Bourne, I think as my pet pulls me back to the house. The beauty of any video game, the ‘what if’ factor can be played.
Well that is what I wanted to try. Usually after walking the dog, I get a ‘second wind’ and I didn’t feel that tired, so I fired up the Xbox 360, loaded the scenario and played the ‘Bourne Intervention’ out of the elevator. I open fire on the ‘bad guys’ especially targeting the leader. They turn around, open fire on me as I duck back into the elevator. They kill me in the elevator-scenario over. Next attempt, more destructive power against my foes. This time open with a grenade, then the LMG. I hang back as the group enters the metal detectors, not many civilians around them there. I place the grenade at the feet of the leader and open fire on his co-conspirators. I can see one of the ‘tangos’ begin to crumble., but the others turn and fire on me. I duck back into the elevator, knowing what the outcome will be. One more try, three grenades and a spray of bullets, all for naught-the same results. At that point I give up, knowing that this path is not allowed.
I wonder if there would have been a way to have permitted this approach, and maintain most of the flow afterward. I mean what occurred in the ‘what if’ scenario seemed truncated, it lived up to the primary reason of the covert operation. Once the leader was dead, the local police could have turned the agent over to the foreign country’s national security police, who in turn sent our agent to a high security gulag for interrogation. So instead of rescuing Capt. Price they rescue our agent. The story would be pointed in the right direction.
After my attempts at changing history, I was wide awake and decided to see how long it would take me to finish the game. I played through the evening, into the pre-dawn hours and finished just before 5 am. Checking the stats and I find that I completed the game in just under seven hours and forty-five minutes. I was “wow” happy. I thought that that was a good time for me in the regular difficulty setting. That was until I heard the Xplay review stating that the although the game was great, the single player game was over a bit to quick. Oh, well. . .

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Day One Hundred: evening of November 10th 2009

I’m exhausted.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 does not disappoint. The controversial part, where the gamer plays the part of terrorist, can be an issue. Infinity Ward has made it optional. In other words, you can opt out of playing this part of the game without any penalty. If you don’t choose the high road, you are in for a potentially disturbed mind set. I’m not going to describe it. I’m not going to set up a spoiler situation - you decide.
I’m really sorry but I’m really tired. I’ve fallen asleep four times while I’m typing this. I’m going to take the dawg out and then “hit the sack.”
I was thinking, as I walked the dog, that if the I had read a passage in a novel that created the same nefarious act, I would have considered it a plot device. As you shifting from the passive observer as the reader and becoming an active participant in the horrendous deed, does it then strip the act of the label of plot device? What does it change it to if you do strip away label? I mean you are set up to do commit the crime by a government official. You act in good faith, but should you? I'm going to try an experiment and will let you know in the next post.

Monday, November 9, 2009

Day Ninety-nine: evening of November 9th 2009

The other day, I mentioned the fact that I have problem managing my group in RPGs (role playing games). As I was preparing the dog’s evening meal, I happened to be playing one of Xbox Live information videos on the Xbox 360 about Dragon Age: Origins covering exactly that topic. I wasn’t able to hear all the information because I was concentrating on preparing our pet’s food, but that’s not a problem because these video spots are available all the time.
Both the Xbox and PlayStation have information networks access through the consoles, provided you have internet access. Both are obviously self-promoting, but Xbox Live has more nuts and bolts spots devoted to specific games, like the strategy one I just mentioned for Dragon Age. I know that I bypassed a lot of basic information about setting up and using the Xbox 360 when I first used it because I was ‘knowledgeable’ and ‘tech savvy.’ It was made clear to me that I could pull up even older informational video clips whenever I needed them. That’s a nice safety net to have at your finger tips.
Well Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will be out shortly, or out if you live on the East Coast. I’ve got a package coming tomorrow for my wife, but UPS usually delivers in the afternoon, so I’ll go out in the morning to pick the video games. Then, I’ll spend the afternoon not playing Dragon Age.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Day Ninety-eight: evening of November 8th 2009

I ran into the same problem that I wrote about last night as I played Dragon Age: Origins. I could not pass a certain door after I had been defeated. Locked out and my only hope of success was success. I restarted the game from a different save point and tried again, two more tries and I had defeated all the creatures in the room and could move on. The game forces you to evaluate the weakness of your enemy and change strategy to play that weakness as you move through an area. I find that very challenging in a game. After completing that level and receiving a character update, I had to shut down for breakfast. I didn’t fire up the machine after that. It felt good, solving the level, using a nice mix of fire control and trait exploitation. I hope to go back to the game before I sleep tonight.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Day Ninety-seven: evening of November 7th 2009

I managed to play about four hours of Dragon Age: Origin this afternoon. I actually triggered a bug when I died at the same times as I completed one part of the level in my quest to defeat the Sloth Demon. When the level reloaded my character was locked out of the area. I tried a work around, but it failed so I had to go back to my last major save and restart that part of the quest.
Prior to this solo adventure, I noticed I was having the usual trouble that I have with role playing games (RPG). It centers around my inability to correctly handle the talents of my group in combat. Right now, as I get used to working with my character, I have my group members set to the programs default actions. I’m not sure if this will be the optimum way to move through the game, but that is the way I intent to go for now.
As I was shutting down the game for supper, and I started to think that I should really be playing Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare on its toughest settings to get ready for the release of COD 4: MW2 (or COD4 2, whatever). I’m still debating if I should go out and pick up my preordered game at a midnight release at a nearby GameStop. Ultimately, I’ll let my ankles tell me if it is alright to go out that late (of course I won’t be write in this blog).

Friday, November 6, 2009

Day Ninety-six: evening of November 6th 2009

Mostly a low tech adventure today. I assembled some hard drive racks, so that my wife can daisy chain some 500 gigabyte hard drives. spent the rest of the day was showing some of her student workers how to work with the silk screen system. We pulled about thirty tee shirts for her classes to wear, and then cured them to make the design waterproof. The three student were very self directed. Once we set the production flow up, they handled the rest. That is one of the things that I enjoyed about working with my students when they were engaged in a project that enjoyed working on.
Of course, generating assignment that rose to this level was my challenge. I learned a saying in the Coast Guard, “Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes the bear eats you.” Over a period of time , through trial and error, I ended up with a set of assignments that got the students involved and engaged.
Now, I’m sitting in front of my netbook, reminiscing about today, Yesterdays, and I’m glad that I have all in mind.
Maybe, I'll sneak in some Dragon Age later this evening.

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Day Ninety-five: evening of November 5th 2009

I pulled an all-niter playing Dragon Age: Origins and can see how my character is getting in over his head. I’m not sure about what to pick as I level up. I’ve selected skills that relate to close order combat and archery-the near and the far-but have hardly used the later as I engage in combat. I haven’t gotten a handle on shifting from bow to two bladed combat and back. In other words, I’m having problems with ranging.
Another area of apparent failure, is interpersonal relation. The decisions that I make impact my compatriots in positive and negative ways. What happens when one character has accumulated a lot of negative opinions about my chooses of action? I don’t want to lose a character because of to excessive negative vibes. I shall see.
The balance of the day flipped between naps, burning backup DVDs for my wife, and answering questions about installing Windows XP on her Boot Camped Mac. It just wouldn’t load. When she returned home, I checked and found that the back surface of the DVD was pretty scuffed-up. I buffed up the DVD and made a backup copy. I’ll see if it works tomorrow. If it doesn’t work I’ll try finding an online disk image of the XP install disk and download it. The original disk is ours, along with the key, so I don’t think it will be a problem. The reason behind all of the PC frenzy is the arrival of an engraver that is run through a PC, and she is trying to set up her iMac to emulate a PC. Thus the need for Boot Camp and Windows XP. If all else fails, I’ll dust off the old Sony Viao.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Day Ninety-four: evening of November 4th 2009

There were a lot of things going on today, but after playing Dragon Age: Origins for about five hours I can’t remember what the articles in Kotaku and Gismodo were. I guess that you can consider that statement a review of the game. It is a very engaging game, from the creation of your character to your existence in your RPG world. As you move further into the game, You discover the importance of saving, and saving often. As you move into the adventure, more exposure to potential quests impacts decision making and the ability to change your mind would be aided by resorting to a return to a decision making point through a previous. I know that I have added on a lot of unintentional side quests. I’m concerned that I might lose sight of the main quest or select a side quest that is beyond the capabilities of my group. In other words trading time for choice becomes a viable option. I intend to play the game as it unfolds without relying on this approach, but it could be a big help if serious situations arose for another player.
One thing that I remember from a Kotaku was an article about Dragon Age on the PlayStation 3. It mentioned a frame rate decrease if a large number of characters appear in an actions scene, placing a heavy load on the graphics processor. I’m waiting to see if it occurs on the Xbox 360. If it doesn’t happen, that would be any interesting situation, considering Sony’s advertising approach of stating how superior the graphics handling of its PS3 were over the competition (of course it could be issues with the port by the programmers).
Later on, as I was eating a late dinner with my family, I wanted to do a score check of what would eventually be a Yankee title victory in the World Series. The television was in use by my wife and daughter, who were engrossed in Law and Order: SVU. I did not want to break into their program, so I pulled out my iPhone and activated the MLB.com app. It cost about ten dollars, and offered a variety of features, one of which was to ability to watch a couple of baseball games, other than the locally broadcast game. I did take advantage of this feature during the regular season, but tonight, I wondered if it was covering the World Series. I was surprised to see that not only did it have it on, but you could select the camera feed you would like to use to watch the game. I selected the quad screen. The center field camera, the home and visiting dugout cameras, and the press box behind the plate camera appeared simultaneously on the iPhone screen, tiny but visible and intriguing. I was getting the total picture, other than the fans, of the baseball happening. I think that I would like that type of presentation on my regular television. I would be able to choose the focal point by interest without missing the supporting activities. I wonder how well it would work on the large wide screen and on a regular basis? The network could have a commercial rotating around the screen the whole time. I’ve never been that interested in the fan shots, so this format appeals to me. I wonder how other fans of the game would feel about this format?

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Day Ninety-three: evening of November 3rd 2009

It was a choice between Demon Soul for the PS3 and Dragon Age: Origins, a multiplatform game. After watching a few of the trailers/teasers for Dragon Age, I decided on it over the PS3 offering. The next decision was which platform I would be purchasing. That thought was presented to the two clerks in the local GameStop, one of whom informed me that the PS3 version wouldn’t be arriving until tomorrow. Decision made, Dragon Age: Origin for the Xbox 360 it was.
Before I started this entry, I wanted to play a while to get a feel for the game. I knew that in the evening I would be beat, and would have trouble staying focused. It’s happening as I write this, now. I fired up the game shortly after arriving home. I checked out a promo on Xbox Live on the game, which reinforced the good feeling that I was having about purchasing the game. I was watching the setup video when the phone range, one of my relative who had been having problems with their computer. I tried to stop the lead-in, but I couldn’t, so I muted the sound until I was finished. Well by the time we finished our conversation, the character generation phase was on the monitor. Time to start the game over again. The phone rings, again, as the lead-in plays, it’s my wife and another conversation ensues. Ah third time is a charm, I think, and begin watching as the phone rings, it’s my daughter and I watch as the muted video plays out for the third time. “Yes pick up a plain coffee,” she’s about three blocks away and I was now in a hurry. I started creating my character. How close could I come to a bow wielding elf ala Orlando Bloom (Legolas Greenleaf) in Lord of the Rings. There were a number of choices, some to define the body type, and others the nature of the character: clan, strengths, skills. All establishing the potential for the growth of my character. I hope I chose well. We shall see.
The character is ready, the game begins, and the phone rings, “Yes, I’ll be down in a few minutes for my coffee.” I power down and hope to be able to continue after everyone is asleep - no phone calls, I hope.

Monday, November 2, 2009

Day Ninety-two: evening of November 2nd 2009

No video gaming, so far, maybe I’ll sneak in a little bit of Uncharted 2, after the family is a sleep.
I did get a new mouse today. I had been using a Microsoft Bluetooth portable. It was more reliable compared to the touch pad, but still quirky at times. The select of sections was very difficult with the touch pad, a bit less so with the Bluetooth mouse, and almost no problem at all with the new mouse. Another issue was jumpy text insertion. I’ll be typing along and all of a sudden the text will begin appearing elsewhere on the page. I’m not touch typist, so I’m looking at the keyboard all the time. So when I looked up and saw the words that were expected appearing somewhere else, I was confused, and after awhile angry. I played around with the touch pad and mouse settings (note: it happened again as I was entering the ‘ing’ of setting). I’m wondered if it is the location of my thumb hovering over the touch pad that just caused that. It doesn’t occur with my Mac (now or ever). But I decided to get another mouse to see I could see if it was about the older mouse (apparently not).
I decided to get a gaming mouse, not that I play that many games on the netbook, but the response of the gaming mouse I have is significantly better that the Bluetooth mouse. The drawbacks are personal: it’s large and the programmable nature of the mouse takes time to adjust to each application. Another plus is related to the response and that is accuracy, which I appreciate in the graphics programs that I do use. So that was why I was happy to find a dual mode portable mouse from Razer - the Orochi. Dual mode means it can operate as a Bluetooth mouse and as a USB device (wired or wireless). Although, I didn’t notice that at the time I purchased it. I also didn’t know that there were Mac drivers for it. Installation for both modes, Bluetooth and USB, went smoothly following the directions in the included manual. Using the Razer control panel requires an understanding of the application/game that you plan to use it with, but the default setting is fine. It was a bit pricey ($79.99), but after using it a bit, I feel very comfortable with it.

Sunday, November 1, 2009

Day Ninety-one: evening of November 1st 2009

Experimented a bit with Scribblenaut, but quit when I started watching the Bears (defense was better today, but the offense scares me - it can be “good guys, bad guys” rolled into one).
60 Minutes had an interesting show on piracy in the movie industry. I came in at the end, so I missed the statistics, but the part of the issue that I would always emphasize, to my students, was being elaborated on. I would tell my students, that although the corporation and stock holders were making millions in profit, it was the workers that would ultimately suffer from the decrease in profits. I would try to communicate that if you had to work for hours programming a game and knew that profits determined your success, would you want to have anyone getting a copy of your work for free?
My wife informed me that ‘the Mob’ was involved in the pirating of movie DVD’s. That is a scary thought. And then she said, BitTorrent was involved - extremely disappointing.