Been a long time since I posted here, been very busy and trying to get other things done. I still drop in from time to time but not like I used to. I still get a good amount of gaming in, but mostly late at night after everyone has gone to bed so I can't do louder work.

I'm playing Kameo, Guitar Hero: World Tour, and Gears of War at the moment. I get some time in on the Wii, but really only with the kids. I'm waiting for the next must play game to hit.

I do need to drop in more often, galleonk clued me into the Tales site.

Check it out at the Tales Brigade. And if you want to join be sure to use Warfust as your referance!

Here are a few more links to check out fom them:
Tales of Symphonia: DotNW Heroes Trailer at IGN
Tales of Vesperia Video at Gametrailers.com
EXCLUSIVE Tales of Vesperia Screenshots
Hardcore Gamer Magazine Reviews Tales of Vesperia

I still drop by forcertainblogs and news, so of course I have been watching the site changes.

I have to admit I like the look, though it does seem to load a fair amount slower.

Finally hit level26, you level SO much slower when you don't actually DO anything.

Let me start off by saying that I really enjoy the Gamespot Community and the friends I have made here. I don't plan on fully disappearing from Gamespot, but I'm not going to be tossing my opinions, ad views, or other revenue sources at them anymore.

This means that I won't be posting reviews to the site anymore (though I stopped awhile back because I didn't have the time and I'm not that great) and I won't be rating games or running around tagging everything in sight.

I will drop by to read blogs, make comments, and enjoy some of the user created content that I have come to look forward to as much as some of my TV shows (looking at you here NeoJedi).

But the majority of my content time will be on Gametrailers now. I decided to join up there because of the GTD system, if I had started there I would have my 360 by now (not that I would trade my Gamespot time for anything). Getting a reward after (a ton of) time spent making them ad money is nice, and there seems to be a good community as well. Be sure to put me as a reference if you sign up, I'll cut you in on 25% of the GTD if you make level 5.

I have created a profile on 1up as well, and I'll drop in from time to time in case a friend has decided to take up residence there. I'd prefer not to lose track of folks if I can help it.

I'm sure that Cnets treatment of Jeff Gerstman being the reason for my change in content habits is no surprise to anyone that has been following the gaming news recently. As many of you know, I'm not a huge fan of Jeff's reviews. But like it or lump it, he was honest and you could trust him to be straight forward with his opinion.

What really bothers me is how he was let go, and the timing. It was done for minimum financial impact, and seemingly because of ad revenue concerns (specifically Eidos). From what we have heard they waited until all of the major reviews were done by Jeff and the other Gamespot folks and then simply locked his office door and told him to get lost. It is appalling, and the apparent influence of marketing on the entire process casts a bad light on the future of unbiased game reviews.

I am a very "moral" person, and this rubbed me the wrong way. I can't justify giving my ad buying power to Gamespot until this black mark is removed. So while I'll continue to visit Gamespot, I installed the Ad Blocker add-on for Firefox just for them. I know they can't track it so it doesn't help send a message, but it makes me feel better.

I'll be around, but be sure to look me up at Gametrailers also if you're in the area.

Just updating where I am now as far as Gamespot usage.

This is my second to last blog here I'm afraid. I'll post an update tomorrow about the Jeff situation.

Profile views: 7641 (+ 18 new)

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And I am the Tagger King of Tagger Kings. I have 13,433 unique tags, the most of anyone on Gamespot as far as I am aware.

I have profiles on Gametrailers and 1up, I encourage everryone to check those sites out.

I was watching the History Channel at about 1AM EST and saw William Shatner (yes, of Star Trek fame) sitting in a black robe on a white screen talking too softly for me to hear. I didn't really pay attention as a lot of his commercials annoy me.

That stopped as soon as the first bit of Warcraft footage flashed on screen. I grabbed the remote and turned up the volume in time to hear him ask about how to shoot lightning bolts from his hands. The commercial finished with him saying "I'm William Shatner, and I'm a Shaman" followed by the Warcraft website info and an offer to try it for free.

Maybe I'm missing something, but since when did Captain Kirk start selling video games?

***UPDATE***

The Mr. T one is FAR better. And here are the links:

Mr. T WoW Commercial

Shatner WoW Commercial

Seems that it wasn't the power supply. I took the laptop apart and reseated all the cards and boards. It worked for a couple of days but then the same thing started happening. I have been able to narrow it down to either the video card or the motherboard, and this time I can't get it working.

Either way, it's not good. I can't afford a new laptop right now, plus I was planning on giving this one to my oldest son.

In other news, 2 songs left on Hard, Raining Blood and One. (GH3 for those not following along recently) Both are harsh, I need to get those rolling hammer on's and off's down better. Not to mention a stronger wrist for One, my arm is still tired.

I guess saying my laptop died isn't a good way to invite comments, lol

I am down to 2 songs left to 5 star on medium. I just can't seem to nail Knights of Cydona or Raining Blood. I have gotten different parts right different times, I just can't seem to put it all together at once. Frustrating, though I did turn the stereo system way up to get some fun out of it.

I gave up when my youngest had to go to bed, and of course the wife made me turn it down. So I decided what the hell, I'll give hard a shot. I had beaten two of them so far, I decided I could try for a bit. I failed Talk Dirty to Me 3 times in a row, but made it my 4th try. I then surprised myself by beating Story of My Life my first try, followed by every following song up until the battle with Tom Morello.

I got waxed late in the song, so I used an old strategy the next time. I saved up a couple of wammy bars and took him down on a long riff. At that point I was pretty pumped and decided to keep playing despite my fingers getting tired. To my utter shock I didn't fail another song until Same Old Song and Dance in the 5th set. I finished the rest of the set, but still wasn't able to get much past 50% on my next 3 attempts.

I decided to give Hard a rest for the night, but I was curious about Expert. I started with Slow Ride and beat it my second try, then I beat Hit Me With Your Best Shot on my fourth try (I could feel I could get it, so I didn't give up).

I decided that was more that enough for the night when I got destroyed on Talk Dirty to Me so I decided to cool down with a random song on Easy (end up being Holiday In Cambodia going for a Gold 5 star of course). I was actually laughing out loud at how slow motion it was, so of course I totally biffed the song opening while trying not to go too fast.

I can tell 5 starring songs on Hard is going to be really difficult, but at least I can play some of them!

The power supply on my laptop decided to give up the ghost after about 4 years. I'm not happy about it, but it is better than the 2 hard drives I have lost on it. I have ordered a new power supply, but am waiting for a shipping confirmation. Haven't been able to be on much thanks to this, but I have been able to play more Guitar Hero!

I found out that my younger brother is at about the same spot as me, working on 5 starring every song on Medium. He had 17 left to go on Saturday, I had 24 when I counted. Now I have 7, so I need an update from my brother. Last he told me he had just 5 starred "One", I haven't gotten that one yet so I may be losing this race. He was able to make it through TTFAF as well (on medium) and I only just managed that last night.

When my hand gets too tired to fret properly or I have reduced myself to a sort of panic strumming (going too damn fast on paced songs) I go back to easy and work on 5 starring the unlockable songs. I finished that last night, so now I need a new hobby for when my hand (or head) is too tired to play right. Golden 5 stars? The downside would be the intense desire to restart when I miss a note, it may be more frustrating than it's worth.

Thanks to those that have given me advice, I am already much better at my hammer on and offs, and will try adjusting my hand for Hard tonight. I would love to get through the first set on Hard. My brother has only beaten one song on Hard so far. :)

Watched the live preview of BlackSite, I want it but still need to convince the wife that I may die without the aid of an Xbox 360 in the house.

Highly Cl@ssfied.
Users who tuned in to our BlackSite: Area 51 Live Xbox 360 Demo Preview were awarded this snazzy emblem.

I also hit Level 25 a couple days ago, they seem to creep by so slowly. You would think it would seem fast after Level 20.

I have been playing a fair amount of Guitar Hero III, enough that I have not touched Brain Age 2 or Zelda: Phantom Hourglass in days. I 5 starred all of easy, and discovered you get 5 gold stars if you don't miss a single note. Don't think I'll be working towards doing that on every song though.

I have managed to get though 2 songs so far on Hard. I really need to work on my fingering, is there a "method" anyone uses or is it just experience?

Guitar Hero III arrived on Friday. I have spent a fair aount of my time playing it, made easier by my wife being out of town. Without her telling me to get things done, the kids ate mac and cheese for dinner 2 out of 3 nights. (I did make mixed veggies).

I have never owned a GH game before, and have only played it once before. I started on easy, got half way though and decided it was too easy. So I started on the Medium setting and that turned out to be about right. I beat medium yesterday, and have worked on 5 staring all of easy today. I can't seem to 5 star Raining Blood, I always kill the solo.

I suppose I'll have to break down and actually use the practice feature. I am sure I'll need it to 5 star all of Medium, though I have hit at least 4 for all but a couple of the songs already. Knights of Cydonia is the only one on Medium that eludes me completely, another practice session...

My son had a friend over yesterday and they played for about 4 hours themselves. He is pretty good, beat the game earlier today on easy, and was able to get though the ending credits song (in bounus tracks) for fun. (avoiding spoilers....)

I tried my first song on Hard an hour ago, and decided I should touch up my skill in Medium first. Ouch.