I rarely post "news" type things... particularly when comepletely unrelated to games, but I saw this on Fark, and I just had to share it with you guys since the article may as well have been written by one of us.

"Wang Arrested for Panty Theft"

It's short. (giggle)

Also, pay close attention to the last line :D

A carefully worded opinion. I've been informed by my lawyers that anyone who disagrees must choke on green jellybeans. :evil:

Well with the drop of Mass Effect yesterday came the biggest hit to my gaming ego yet. To curb the pain and suffering, I grabbed up FFXII to get my epic RPG fix - and I'm having some fun with it, I'm definitely a fan of the reworked combat system, as I'm not a fan of the random encounters, part of the reason I'm having such a hard time working my way through FFX and DQ8. They annoy me. I may do some impressions over the holiday... even though it's last gen, and probably not worth the bother given the next gen goodness flowing like water around here.

Alas, the game I have drooled over for the last year is now available, and through some cruel twisted joke, or perhaps the wrath of an angry god, I do not have the means to play it. This is a first for me in my gaming life. I'm used to seeing a game, grabbing it and playing it. There is no middle man.... Just me, my wallet, my new game and my console...oh and my TV... and some sparkly electricity... and a controller... you get the idea. This sucks.

On that note, I guess I'll go ahead and make a running jab of my own, an 'homage to GG', if you will...I will not be breaking down any reviews point by point, as I just don't have the patience, and frankly, I'm off for the rest of the week after today, and to be honest I've more or less checked out already. I'll try not to get myself modded, or my post deleted although it seems almost an inevitability nowadays. So here we go...

.......:shock:

This is like manning up to take one of those really disgusting shots... like a 4 horsemen or a mind eraser... or some really cheap tequila...(which, by the way, you shouldn't do - Patron or better, fellas - a bit of wisdom from me to you. That rhymes! SCORE!!:D) ...although I do like the mind erasers... you know it's gonna hurt, you're going to regret it in the morning, and you're definitely going to need a chaser - but the buzz is totally worth it. Also you look really awesome, and the girls think you're hot, and they come and make out with you and touch you... places.

Or they punch you in the face. Let's face it... sometimes... you're GMode... and no, I will never let you live it down.

Okay, okay, I'll stop stalling... let's do this. (BWAHAHAHAHA... strippers)

*AHEM* ...moving right along : *snicker* :D

As I've only followed Mass Effect in its development, and know only what this, and several other gaming sites say about it, both before and after its release. I have to say I'm a bit confused has to how GS arrived at an 8.5... Leading up to it, everything is peachy; it's a possible GOTY title, and "oooh, so shiny!" (I'm paraphrasing, duh) Then the review hits, and it gets what essentially is a B-. Now, I've never agreed with the change of how the scoring is done. I think that it's better to have the increments of .1 instead of .5, because this only causes rounding up or down, and you get a score that is too high or too low in the end.

Halo 3 got a 9.5 - I don't agree with that score, Mass Effect got an 8.5 - I definitely don't agree with that score. I'll be the first to tell you I've played neither. Going only by what my peers have said, I'd say those scores are completely reversed.... Before I get into that though, I should say that I feel that the games by themselves merit both lower and higher scores respectively. Halo 3, throughout even GS' own review says essentially that it's [Halo 2 with a couple of new toys and spruced up graphics] (behold, paraphrasing), nothing new. So why would a game with no predecessor, that has nothing to fall back on, save it's own, arguably justified hype, with no built in fan base, that ends up scoring so high with everyone, AND coming from a renown developer ranked as highly if not higher than Bungie, score a full point less? It is even pointed out that some of the environments would not be out of place in the oh-so-beloved Halo 3. Nearly every peer review disagrees with this score... and for me, who pays much closer attention to those than official reviews from any magazine, site, or other professional medium - that says a lot. A few are posting a second altered review since their first ones have been getting deleted.

So here I am, disagreeing with the mighty wizard behind the curtain. Out loud, in a blog, in front of everybody.

*closes eyes and awaits Altair and his stabby wrist thing* :cry:

Oh fate, ye be a harsh mistress...

So tomorrow, our official "busy season" kicks off. Kane & Lynch, and Assassins Creed are first up... and while K&L doesn't interest me much... for reasons you ALL should be aware of by now - I can appreciate the new spin it's throwing on the multiplayer aspect, "Fragile Alliance" that is a pretty cool setup, and I for one will not deny it.

HOWEVER - There are bigger, and way more awesome fish to fry.. or bat anii for some of you... *looks at GME* The only person we have to find a way to pluralize the word 'anus' for. (street Cred to Steel for his made-up-word-skillz)

Assassins Creed, people. I haven't been this excited for a game in a LONG time; it is second only to Mass Effect. Of course the joke is on ol' Valek, whom no longer has a 360, and I can't spare any cash until probably after the holidays. The gas light is on in my car, and since my paychecks literally VANISH as soon as I get them, there is just no hope for me..

So go on without me... go.... Save yourselves!

PLAY ASS CREED.

Since I have no recurring segments other than me b***hing about this or that.. this is what you get.


www.tiltedkilt.com

This is where I had my *WAY* too many Crown & Coke lunch today, followed by a $40 shot of Crown XR - which I havn't had in awhile... my boss bought the round and I was greatful...it is where I intend to have my dinner tonight... right after I leave my office. I'll probably have breakfast there too. The pictures on that site are all from the Houston location. :D



I don't expect to be alive for much longer since I'll be completely wasted within the next... I'd say hour and a half.


BOOZE
FOOD
BREASTS
TINY SKIRTS

I defy you to resist. You can't.

If you can, then you sir, are no friend of mine. :evil:

GMode and Steel : I expect both of you to be there in like an hour, tops.

KIDDING. :D

It has been decided!

I mentioned a couple months ago in a blog that I had been feeling the RTS itch.... a strong desire to grab up either Command & Conquer for a nice throwback to one of my all-time favorite RTS series, or begin anew with Supreme Commander.

I then got distracted by something shiny and the itch faded.

Only to return last weekend with a Vengence! Atleast I think that's what it is.

I mean... I hope thats what it is.

STD jokes aside, I picked up Supreme Commander on a whim at my local Best Buy, and honestly didn't expect my system to be able to handle it. I've got the mobo completely maxed, it still bottlenecks my graphics card. Nonetheless, it runs beautifully at medium, which is more than enough for me. This game has a new concept for me. Instead of being an omnipotent being controlling things from the heavens with a pointer... The player is represented by a giant Mech on the field. Which gives you a sense of mortality, and a little something extra to think about when you're worrying about 30 other things going on. I didn't get it at first, but in a retrospective comparison it definitely adds a little something, and I now can't see how this wasn't done years ago. I like it. Besides, it's a giant mech. What's not to like? You begin the game after an opening video explaining the backstory of "The Infinite War" going on between three seperate factions. Choose your campaign side, and have at it. I'm only playing the UEF (United Earth Federation) campaign right now, finally getting it down enough to figure out what strategies work and flat out don't work. (LOTS of trial and error on my part) Another interesting gameplay mechanic is that failing a mission doesn't, or hasn't yet hindered me from moving on. If you fail, you're given a debriefing, and you can either replay the mission and attempt to get it right, or you can skip it and move on. Not sure what the implications are, as I'm a perfectionist, and will submit myself to hours of punishment over and over again until it's flawless. Incidentally, missions the first time through for me have been clocking in at a minimum of 45 minutes per go. Last night, I played through one that took almost 3 hours. I had to pause and go sit in my living room and get a grasp on reality. It seems my penchant for hours and hours of nonstop gaming has waned in the interest of pretending to be a responsible adult.

Or maybe I'm just ADD...


*spots something shiny and runs off*

Well, atleast we're getting Mass Effect.

So Bioware/Pandemic are now on their way to be absorbed into the evil blob that is EA. Where not only do they take that game you like and break off chunks of it to sell you later on, but they're going to turn it into a franchise.... but not before delaying it several times in a row. I would think MS will retain their stake in the Mass Effect License in a similar fashion as they have with Halo, now that Bungie is off on it's own again. Probably just a matter of time before EA hunts them down and devours their souls as well.

This purchase isn't a cheap one, they're throwing down something like 860 million I think I read for this little gem. I imagine that includes the Bioware team, and they'll likely work on any further installments of Mass Effect and any other properties they bring with them.... but the pockets they've gotta go to are now EA's - and thats where the mutilation may come in. They love patches and microtransactions. Downloadable Content? pssh. I don't appreciate my gaming console being turned into a $1.25 a play arcade machine, thankyou. I know thats an exaggeration, patches are all good and well, and to an extent, the DLC is okay too. Some of it may even be purchase worthy... but I'm not a fan of paying 5 dollars so mycharacter can wear a silly hat.

I suppose there is a *chance* this could turn out to be a good thing.... god knows I'm looking foward to Spore, and the game probably couldn't be made if Maxis hadn't been eaten by EA.... but Bioware is by far my favorite developer, and I hate EA almost as much as I hate FPS... almost. Mostly because they turn good games into crappy advertisements, and turn crap games into even crappier advertisements.

If my math is right, that is a whole bunch of crap.

Not to say that all games put out by EA are "crap" They can usually do it right once. (because they had nothing to do with it)The current flagship game of a company they buy is what they will usually milk to the end of time. It's the inevitable downward spiral that comes with the infinite number of expansions and sequels that slowly drain the life out of it. Let me put it to you this way:

Picture John Riccitiello. (Current CEO, EA)

got it?

Now picture him snuggling an adorable kitten. Isn't that great? (This would be the ONE good one.)

Now picture him holding a basket of kittens. Meowing away. (expansions)

Okay. Now he's drowning them all in gasoline and setting them on fire.

Behind him is a marketing team making signs that say "Kittens '08: $60 bucks, suckers" (this version has better bloom effects on the whiskers)

Of course they have to have everything Mutiplatform, so multiply those kittens by 4.

It just occured to me that Assassins Creed releases all of a week before Mass Effect...

These two games are the driving force behind my efforts to regain my 360 owning status.... As I've said I feel like I'm missing out on a few titles, but nothing I can't live without, my PS2 and PC have both picked up the slack there. That said, it ALSOoccurs to methat THAT much gaming badass'edness within a week of each other may just kill me. I'll surely starve to death in a dark roomilluminated only by thewarm glow of a TV... and with my luck.... a flashing red light.

The worst part is, despite forseeing my own death and the direct cause of it - I'll get both games anyways.... because these are also the games that pushed me to buy the 360 in the first place! X06, I saw Assassins Creed, and Mass Effect. I then promptly went out and bought my 360. Now they're on the verge of release and I MUST HAVE THEM. Also last night, as I sat at my desk, staring into the abyss... I looked over my now dust covered 360 game collection - and I desperately wanted to play Crackdown for some reason. I think it had something to do with watching the 'Infamous' trailer. A possible system seller for me on the PS3 atlast.

Obviously in reality, I'm still not going to spend 560 bucks and then some to play one game... but should I end up with a PS3 at some point at no cost to me, i.e. gift, mugging, or retail store robbery, I'd have a game to look forward to. Otherwise I finally have a starting point for potential PS3 games that will begin to entice me to buying the thing.

In the same vein of gameplay, Prototype is finally on Gamespot, and was promptly added to my tracked games and wishlist where it belongs. It seems my tastes are beginning to sway in favorof these open, "sandbox" styIe games. Particularly ones where my character becomes a total badass and can rip the city apart with his little toe should he choose to do such a thing. 8)

"OMG |ts |-|470 3! |-|4xX0R 733t! 10 !!!!11one!!1shift1"

I realize this is probably going to get me killed, or at least beaten with a wooden spoon, but tradition usually dictates that I rant and rave upon the release of every over hyped FPS game that gets excreted from these developers. However, since I completely forgot about Bioshock - I'll have to make up for it with Halo 3.

I don't know anything about this game. What's to know really? Run. Jump. Shoot. Repeat. I realize everyone is changing their pants all over the country right now because of this game - but as usual, I don't get it. I played the other two because I unfortunately have a slightly older cousin who can't seem to get enough of mindless running and gunning. So he came over to my house 2 days in a row to play through the game he bought ME for xmas. Hooray. Will he do the same thing to me this year? NOPE. He can't - because I no longer have a 360. An unforeseen benefit... but finally a plus to losing my precious.... I can't be forced to partake in Halo action! So here we have it though. The reviews are pouring in, 9's and 9.5's abound. Yet a lot of these reviews say in so many words that it's basically Halo 2 in HD and some extra weapons. This leads me to believe that this game could have been a moldy cheeseburger crammed into a box, and because it says Halo on it, fanboy reviews would have still rated it as highly as it is. I can't say whether or not it's scores are legitimate or not, as I've obviously never touched the game... it just seems to me that since Halo 3 was destined to be this $60 orgasm from the start, maybe they should have found a few skeptics to review the game. I don't mean me. I'm not a skeptic... I passed my judgment on the entire genre as a whole many years ago. I mean people who like FPS, play them, but could care less about the game they review going into it. That way, if it has a few legitimate surprises, they will be noted as such, and the score will be tallied accordingly, and invariably, any shortcomings won't be ignored either in the interest of keeping the score up for their much anticipated pixilated prostitute. I think any game should be reviewed by an unbiased party; otherwise you get these inflated reviews over a game that really does nothing special. I mean that across the board for professional reviewers; just as I shouldn't be allowed to review FPS games because my hatred of them knows no bounds, nor should I be allowed to review RPGs, because I always find something to love about them, even the ones that are outright crap, I'd score it a bit higher because of one or two features I like, or make myself like. Racing, fighting, puzzles, platformers, sandboxes, RTS, sure I can cover those... I play them, and I enjoy them, but in the end I stay in the grey area, I can appreciate what they do, point out what they don't do, and I'll score them fairly, instead of me playing Halo and going: "Well.... Run. Jump. Shoot. Repeat. -9 points... Halo 3 gets a 1.... HEY! *Super Mystic Quest IV! Attack. -> Magic. -> Fire. Repeat. +9.5 points! Hooray!" ....a slight exaggeration, but you get the point.

*Disclaimer : I have no idea if there is such thing as a Super Mystic Quest IV... let alone I-III. I sincerely hope not. I think there was a 'Mystic Quest' by Squinix (then SquareSoft?**) though on the SNES that supposedly sucked pretty badly.

**Square Enix is the P. Diddly-Dog-Doo of video games... always changing their name. I can't keep up.

bastards.

No. I have not started playing WoW. Fear not fellow delinquents.

However I HAVE been dealing with some kind of illness over the last week. My symptom : Fever. Ridiculously high fever. No stomach ache, no runny nose, just a controlled fire when my hair ignites. During the day it's a mild mannered 99.5 to 101.2... but at night, in the presence of evil, I'm a bad Nick Cage movie sans motorcycle and chain whips. Which I never saw by the way.

Eventually I'll make a real post.... well, this is a post, but you know what I mean. The kind filled with the ranting and raving and uninhibited stupidity for which I am known and, arguably, loved.