Ace of Spades HQ

November 18, 2012

Wii U Drops...Will anyone care? Gaming Thread!
— Gang of Gaming Morons!

Afternoon Morons and Ettes! Zakn back this week at the helm. Big thanks to The Dude for filling in. He'll be doing more of that in the future. So big ups.

On the Gaming front, I think the big Story of the week is the release of Nintendo's follow up to the Wii, the Wii U. The question I have for Moronland is if you bought a Wii, is this new system even on your Radar?

More Below the fold. So Giant Bomb posted their Quick look of Super Mario Brothers U. Link Here. I would embed it, but their embed code blows the margins. I'm already a pro at doing that myself, I don't need their help. The game looks interesting and typically a little goofy, but I'm not running out to buy a new system. I didn't buy the original Wii either. They have a bunch of other videos up from the Wii U, so check them out if you are in the market for a new system.

JavaJoe Shot me This link about WarGaming at the Command and General Staff College. Pretty interesting stuff.

As for me and my Gaming. I really have been slacking. I am almost done with Episode 4 of The Walking Dead (I know, slacking) and really need to finish that up as the Final Episode drops next week. Really enjoyed the game. If you haven't picked it up, keep an eye out for it to go on sale Holiday time, or on Steam's Black Friday sale. They want my money, all of it.

On the Eve front, something pretty cool is going on right now. The New Eden Open is going on as this posts. They are doing the losers brackets fights today, and the replays are on their Own3d Page. Pretty cool to see them try to make an E-Sport out of Eve. It really doesn't cater to it specifically, but been pretty cool to watch. It will probably be live from Noon-3pmish Central time, but like I said, they do a pretty good job getting the replays up. If you don't know crap about the game, it's ok! They have been doing a really good job explaining what is going on in the matches.

Other than that, It's musical chairs in the North (Full Disclosure, Kesper is my Alliance Leader). The War is mostly over, just some mop up ops going on to get the rest done-done. People are moving to new space, others are moving to where they lived, etc etc. Moving can be a real pain, but this has actually ran fairly smoothly. Props to the hard work by Diplos all around. Personally, I am ecstatic about the move. Branch is in the middle of no-where, and while I do appreciate what it did for the Alliance (Cash Money!), I am really happy to be back on the Front Lines.

Down in the South Test and their Friends are doing things. I don't know what they are totally up to, but those Nerds are tearing up something down there, that's for sure.

See New Eden Sov Map for North and South references.

If you play, or start playing Eve, be sure and join the moron chat channel. It's AoSHQ

If you have something you'd like to write get posted in the gaming thread, or a link you'd like posted on the gaming thread shoot me an email. AoSHQGaming at gmail dot com. Or you can hit me up on Twitter

That's All I have this week. Have a Safe and Fun Thanksgiving Holiday!

Posted by: Gang of Gaming Morons! at 09:30 AM | Comments (101)
Post contains 609 words, total size 4 kb.

1 XCOM: Enemy Unknown is awesome. That is all.

Posted by: hobbes at November 18, 2012 09:35 AM (OEQY9)

2 I am still playing NCAA 13 football. My kids are enjoying pirate 101 which is a step above most free to play MMOs directed at kids. Full voice acting, And an interesting combat system which mixes turn-based and real-time elements. Still not adult grade entertainment but good for kids.

Posted by: Truman North, last of the famous international playboys at November 18, 2012 09:36 AM (q6NYV)

3 The Wii U looks interesting but not interesting enough to pay more than $199 for sometime next year. It's good that its backwards compatible because Nintendo has shitty launches and hit and miss quality games overall. Mario and Zelda will be great, and the rest of it will be good to abysmal.

Posted by: Truman North, last of the famous international playboys at November 18, 2012 09:40 AM (q6NYV)

4 I'm just waiting for the Perfect Storm of PC releases on Mon.-Tues. AC3, PlanetSide 2, Scribblenauts, Little Inferno, Hitman - and that's just the ones on Steam.

Posted by: Zoe M. at November 18, 2012 09:40 AM (BNa5i)

5 This killed the boobie thread? Booooooooo

Posted by: BCochran1981 at November 18, 2012 09:42 AM (GEICT)

6 XCOM: Enemy Unknown is awesome. That is all.

I need to pick up that and Dishonored.

Posted by: alexthechick - SMOD. Our only hope. Literally. at November 18, 2012 09:42 AM (Gk3SS)

7 Black Ops II doesn't disappoint.

Posted by: Jordan at November 18, 2012 09:42 AM (jRfn3)

8 Wii U seems pretty pointless. People are calling it a next gen console but it has slightly less power then a PS3 or a Xbox 360. I assume by next gen, most people are referring to the price $300-$350. This is why I don't console game anymore. Also wanted to point out that GTA V looks pretty good so far, I hope they do a PC port soon after its console release.

Posted by: Drew in MO at November 18, 2012 09:43 AM (RteAT)

9 >>>1 XCOM: Enemy Unknown is awesome. That is all. Damn right. As for the Wii U. Uh...it's a tablet. There ya go. Oh and you get a lot of awesome games for it...that came out on the 360 and PS3 last year.

Posted by: El Kabong, RINOINO at November 18, 2012 09:43 AM (pzmYs)

10 Gonna wait till the price comes down on XCOM...looks like a cool game though.

Posted by: canadave at November 18, 2012 09:44 AM (voRpZ)

11 You guys obviously don't have kids of a certain age

Posted by: Truman North, last of the famous international playboys at November 18, 2012 09:45 AM (q6NYV)

12 >>>5 This killed the boobie thread? Booooooooo Get better boobehs. Might I suggest Kat Dennings?

Posted by: El Kabong, RINOINO at November 18, 2012 09:52 AM (pzmYs)

13 Have the Wii. Will not be buying Wii U. As others have said, it seems pointless. At this point both my Wii and Xbox 360 have been gathering dust for years. Sony was smart to make the PS3 a hub, right out of the box, with literally everything you need. Apple will destroy them, if their TV ever comes out, for the same reason. The future is in content, not hardware. 2 billion smart phones within 5 years, vs. 400 million consoles. You do the math.

Posted by: fwiw at November 18, 2012 09:57 AM (+5R2D)

14 13 There is also talk of Valve making a console and with steam behind it it would probably be quite a nice thing. There is also the open source crowd funded Ouya, which should be coming out next year.

Posted by: Drew in MO at November 18, 2012 10:02 AM (RteAT)

15 The Wii U is more interesting if you never had a Wii. On that basis it has more of a library to draw you in. All of those first party Nintendo title you knew you'd like to play if you didn't have to buy into the whole platform to get access to them.

I actually have a small collection of Wii games waiting for the day when the hardware is offered at a price I can no longer resist. All of them are Nintendo franchise entries and in all cases I paid no more than $10.

But the same can be said for the Playstation 3 if you never had a PS2. The price on the machine is much lower now and a bunch of the best PS2 games have been redone in HD and released in collections on a single disc. Thus the long-term payoff of Blu-ray. Very few games really needed the capacity but getting several on one disc makes it possible for Sony to do it profitably with a low price. For example, the three main games of the Jak & Daxter series, on one disc, in HD, for $19.99. Or remastered versions of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus on one disc for the same price.

There is much to be said for waiting for a platform's waning day to make a purchase. The price is lower, there is a big library of hits at low prices, and you know exactly what you're getting.

Posted by: epobirs at November 18, 2012 10:02 AM (kcfmt)

16 I didn't put this in the post for personal reasons. I am not excited by the Wii U mostly because I am strait up Nintendod out.

I "beat" Mario 3d Land on my 3ds and then I heard that there was another level if you got all the Gold Stars and went through and did all the levels with Luigi. I have all the Gold Stars (You have to be close to even unlock the last few levels), so now I'm just going through all the levels again with Luigi. I am into the Special levels now....but man. I'm just kinda sick of the schtick. The music, the colors, goofy dancing turtles...

Maybe i'll change my mind, but I'm a PC gamer. I literally haven't even looked at my 360 in years.

Posted by: Zakn at November 18, 2012 10:16 AM (zyaZ1)

17 My kids ar splaying Assasins Creed 3. Just watched them finish the game. CrAppy ending IMO. Of course the game looks ok for gameplay, but I hate games - and books and movies which leave things open and kind of anti-climatic just to sell more shit. But that's just me.

Posted by: Catmman at November 18, 2012 10:19 AM (C8XlI)

18 Wii U sounds like a waste of money... I'd rather buy a new Playstation 3 super slim

Posted by: skinnydipinacid at November 18, 2012 10:21 AM (WuCLB)

19 I am done with Angry Birds, Done I say.

Posted by: sTevo at November 18, 2012 10:24 AM (VMcEw)

20 The only game that sounds remotely interesting on the WiiU is the Monster Hunter 3 Hi-Def texture pack. There isn't any new content for the single player mode, though, and the only new MP content is at a punishingly high level.

So...yeah..when my current Wii finally dies (and it will, that console is crap hardware) I will get a Wii U, but that will be a while.

Posted by: mrshad at November 18, 2012 10:24 AM (0yAqu)

21 No mention of Halo 4. My kids literally drug me from my bed on election day. I knew how many days exactly. Election night after looking at the results, I just got on and recorded the 100 ways to die.

Posted by: Picric at November 18, 2012 10:31 AM (ndX7g)

22 The appeal of the Wii, if I may be so bold, was the physicality of it. My last console was the Channel F (google it, beetchez) but the Wii was intriguing because it's accessible and physical. I don't need another reason to sit on my ass. I've had it for nearly six years and it still gets used, but it didn't develop the way I'd like. I would game more if it weren't button-mashing. The Wii demonstrates that even stupid-simple concepts can be fun if they involve moving around. I was hoping for more uses of that technology, but the Wii U just seems to be...well, NOT that. The K-nect looks promising. But I'll shove a hot poker up my ass before buying a Microsoft gaming console.

Posted by: moviegique at November 18, 2012 10:31 AM (Cepxj)

23 1 XCOM: Enemy Unknown is awesome. That is all. Posted by: hobbes at November 18, 2012 01:35 PM (OEQY9) +1 xcom is a lot of fun Also, assasin's creed is pretty good, but lot of bugs

Posted by: Sdavis at November 18, 2012 10:33 AM (njVMI)

24 No mention of Halo 4 I didn't care much for halo4, I'm in into the mp, and the SP was boring and very short, IMO. Also, no firefight mode is fail

Posted by: Sdavis at November 18, 2012 10:36 AM (njVMI)

25 I care, sorta.

I am actually at odds about the future of gaming and my future vis a vis gaming.

I do wish Koei would get back to strategy game making.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 10:36 AM (LRFds)

26 13 FWIW,

I have that is why I fret over the future of serious gaming.

The phones and androids just don't have the horsepower to do grand strategy level processing as well as a OC or even a console.

"Oh well who needs/wants to be able to run a macroeconomy towards strategic goals anyway?"

As long as we can convince the opfor to live in the imaginary realm our domestic policies and oversight of leadership's actions therein get we'll just beat them with Chuck Todd and Chris Matthews wishing our problems away.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 10:39 AM (LRFds)

27 I can only write what I know about. Feel free to send stuff you want posted to that email address

Posted by: Zakn at November 18, 2012 10:41 AM (zyaZ1)

28 I like Atari ping pong the best.

Posted by: a strategery at November 18, 2012 10:42 AM (Kflw4)

29 27 Zakn,

I am wondering if a modders weekend for say the Fallout games and Skyrim might be worthwhile?

I know a little about using FNVEdit and FO3Edit to integrate mods and pull patches through/around conflicts.

Anyway I do appreciate your threads.

Thanks.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 10:43 AM (LRFds)

Have a Wii and not interested in Wii U. Eldest Kidlet is playing DDO. She wanted to do LoTR but has had a terrible time getting an account set up both through Steam and a straight Turbine set-up.

Speaking of Steam. I was interested in an old game called Loom that is an RPG based on weaving and music to make magic and I almost ended up punting my computer out the window because Steam wouldn't let me use PayPal to pay for the game without using a credit card first. Is this new? I don't remember having such an annoying time when I got Portal for Eldest Kidlet.

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 10:45 AM (NYki8)

31 @28 My wife bought me an Atari Flashback a few months ago. You will not believe how surreal it was to play those old Atari games from 30 years ago. Still fun, too!

Posted by: Catmman at November 18, 2012 10:47 AM (C8XlI)

32 On the WoW front, Welcome Cowboy to ValU Rite Pudding. We are now level 4.25 and I usually play every day, unless sick or super busy. Son keeps wanting to play his Dwarf and sometimes we run together as Alliance Pandarans but I am trying very hard to do what I can to increase the level.

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 10:50 AM (NYki8)

33 "Wii U Drops...Will anyone care?" Did it break?

Posted by: Parking Lot Bozo at November 18, 2012 10:58 AM (DC1tz)

34 http://www.rockstargames.com/V/

GTA V newish trailer (from the last week or two, I think)

Also, I'm pissed because I just had to wait in line for one of the employees at wallmart to unlock the display rack for razor blades (Quattro 4-pack) and then put it an another giant locked container. Because were all potential thieves.

Fuck.

Americans are better than this.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 11:00 AM (hO9ad)

35 She wanted to do LoTR but has had a terrible time getting an account set up both through Steam and a straight Turbine set-up.
Speaking of Steam. I was interested in an old game called Loom that is an RPG based on weaving and music to make magic and I almost ended up punting my computer out the window because Steam wouldn't let me use PayPal to pay for the game without using a credit card first. Is this new? I don't remember having such an annoying time when I got Portal for Eldest Kidlet. Posted by: Polliwogette,

Hmm, that's weird. Did you check the PayPal note on Steam? (Link in name)

LoTRO: There's a trick to it. If you have the Turbine account open and program already installed, start the in install again through on Steam. Stop the Steam-install download after a minute or so.

Next go to your Library in Steam, right-click on the Lotro game, select "View CD Key", copy the CD Key.

Open up your LoTRO Turbine game, click the middle button on top "ACCOUNT." This will bring up a web-browser link to Turbine. The first option is "Have a Product Key?" Enter the Key, submit.

It should link up the purchases from Steam into the Turbine Lotro game. From then on, I just used the Turbine game portal/shortcut.

Lemme know if that doesn't make sense.

Posted by: weft cut-loop [/i] [/b] at November 18, 2012 11:01 AM (ON54M)

36 34 Methos,

No, no we're not.

I was just as stunned when I dealt with South Columbia SC's Wal-Mart treating us all like thieves.

Welcome to the USSA where we can't profile but buddy we can blame you all.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 11:02 AM (LRFds)

37 I downloaded Journey onto my PS3 this week and played it. At $14 it seemed ok, and I'm not disappointed, but I don't know yet how many times I'm going to play it. Played all the way through with some random other player the first night. With another player, it goes pretty fast. Music and visuals are very good. Needs a weapon pack DLC though... heh

Posted by: Yip at November 18, 2012 11:03 AM (Mrdk1)

Posted by: weft cut-loop at November 18, 2012 03:01 PM (ON54M)

Sadly, I'm nearly computer illiterate so no that doesn't make any sense to me. It's a wonder that I'm actually able to play computer games at all and I live in dread of the day that something happens to the computer because I won't be able to do anything about it.

Eldest and Middlest Kidlets have both chosen a simple programming course as one of their electives though, so I guess there's some hope.

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 11:05 AM (NYki8)

39 33 "Wii U Drops...Will anyone care?" Did it break? I work in a printing shop, and there is one customer who always says things like, "This job is about to drop" and "I have a job dropping next week". Drives me up the frickin' wall. I hate jargon.

Posted by: rickl at November 18, 2012 11:06 AM (sdi6R)

Posted by: weft cut-loop at November 18, 2012 03:01 PM (ON54M)

Thanks for the Steam PayPal note, looks like not keeping a balance on PayPal probably is indeed the problem. I've pretty much decided I just don't care enough after all, although it said Merovign owns it and if he said it was fantastic I might rethink.

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 11:09 AM (NYki8)

41 Welcome to the USSA where we can't profile but buddy we can blame you all.

Fuck that noise. I made a point of berating the clerk over how insulting it was and I will continue to do so every time customer "service" treats me like that.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 11:11 AM (hO9ad)

42 #37

I'm holding out for the disc with Journey, Flow, and Flower to turn up for $10. I'm betting this will happen with the next three months.

Not having the inclination for drink or drugs, my biggest temptation on most days is not buying games when they're only somewhat discounted rather than holding out for the really big markdowns. This last week Best Buy had Buy 2 Get 1 Free on 3DS games but there was nothing desirable I didn't already have that wasn't still full price. So even with the promotion it wouldn't work out cheap enough for my standards.

The other big urge is building new PCs. I very nearly succumbed yesterday to a nice package deal of a microATX case and 700w PSU for $35. The case didn't have front USB 3.0 ports. If it did I would have been helpless and forced to buy. (The ports can be added for about $15 but that was enough to break the temptation.)

Posted by: epobirs at November 18, 2012 11:14 AM (kcfmt)

43 Card game called "Boss Monster" on Kickstarter that finishes up in a couple hours is tempting me. Inexpensive and looks fun. "a standalone card game that challenges 2-4 players to become videogame-style villains and build deadly side-scrolling dungeons. Players compete to see who can lure and destroy the most adventurers. But beware! You must make your dungeon as deadly as it is attractive, or the puny adventurers might kill you first! Are you a bad enough dude to become the ultimate Boss Monster?"

Posted by: BornLib at November 18, 2012 11:15 AM (zpNwC)

44 Detroit is the best dumb team I've seen since the 2002 Raiders. They have all the pieces and yet none of their players has a lock of football sense.

Posted by: Truman North, last of the famous international playboys at November 18, 2012 11:17 AM (I2LwF)

45 Erah, a lick

Posted by: Truman North, last of the famous international playboys at November 18, 2012 11:21 AM (I2LwF)

46 Not having the inclination for drink or drugs, my biggest temptation on most days is not buying games when they're only somewhat discounted rather than holding out for the really big markdowns.

I'm kind of disappointed Saint's Row 3 had only dropped to $39.99 after a year (with a "complete" verion for $10 more floating around), but I guess that means it was nearly as good as it looked. So I'll wait.

My problem is even when I maintain the discipline to wait for the $19.99 tag, I still get sucked in by DLC. I played five hours of Final Fantasy 13-2, decided I liked it enough to get a bunch of the DLC bosses and scenarios, and then lost interest about halfway through the game because I couldn't figure out what I was looking for.

If I ever get back to Disgaea 4, I know there's another $20 of story stuff I want to get.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 11:25 AM (hO9ad)

We bought a Wii some time ago. It hasn't scaled well with our children as they grew into teenagers. The U is not on our radar scope in any way.

We neither want to spend the money on the console treadmill nor encourage even more TV time. Our oldest just went to college, and our youngest is an honors student as a HS Sophomore.

Encouraging them to learn to be HALO wizards is also not on our radar. A useful college degree is.

Posted by: Advo at November 18, 2012 11:25 AM (1+jq5)

48 If anyone ever enjoyed the Wing Commander series or Freespace, the guy that produced those games is back and working on a new game called Star Citizen. It's already passed the initial funding goal on kickstarter with 22 hours left to get in on the early action.

Best part of the game so far is people will be able to craft and submit their ship designs and if approved, will be added to the game.

Posted by: Johnnytightlips at November 18, 2012 11:29 AM (4YJFV)

Posted by: BornLib at November 18, 2012 03:15 PM (zpNwC)

That game sounds very interesting

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 11:30 AM (NYki8)

50 Side note question for the gaming morons? I need to get a upgraded hard drive for an X-box. And size recomendations and where to get it would be appreciated. Thanks

Posted by: Picric at November 18, 2012 11:31 AM (ndX7g)

51 From what I'm seeing anecdotally, it's selling out like mad.

Posted by: Kramer at November 18, 2012 11:33 AM (kiwMG)

52 I got the second edition of a game called Sentinels of the Multiverse about a month ago and it has been a real hit with my friends and I. It is a superhero themed cooperative card game that plays with up to five people. Gameplay is easy to learn, fun, and thematic.

Posted by: BornLib at November 18, 2012 11:36 AM (zpNwC)

53 Sigh. Finally upgraded my trusty Mac Mini to Snow Leopard, which means that I can play WoW on it again (instead of firing up either my trusty HP netbook or the desktop Linux/Windows machine).

Except that it's an older Mini, so I get the lava ground effects and blinding white distant mountains. There's a workaround for the lava ground effects, but it doesn't fix the blinding white distant mountains.

Since Apple has dropped the video chipset in this machine, the blinding white distant mountains aren't going to get fixed.

And the upgrade has been a disaster in other ways as well. Had to upgrade to iTunes 10.7 to sync with the new iPhone 5, which is why I had to upgrade the mini to Snow Leopard, but syncing is dodgy. It doesn't copy all of the files, so I have to sync several times to get all the videos and movies copied over. And since this machine can't go to Mountain Lion (unsupported video chip, remember?), I don't think that's going to get better, either.

Also picked up a Playstation 2 control + USB dongle for use on the desktop Windows box with Kerbal Space Program. Works fine, now I have to come up with a control mapping that I like.

Posted by: Citizen Anachronda at November 18, 2012 11:37 AM (1c58W)

54 #46

That is what GOTY (Game of the Year) editions are for. I'm holding out for the GOTY version of Arkham City, even though the original edition will be going for as little as $10 in some promotions this week. There is actually very little I'm interested in from the Black Friday ads because I manage to get those kind of prices all of the time. The Sly Cooper Collection for PS3 at $10 is the only one that comes to mind.

But then, the DLC in that game is pretty major. There are some other good games where it is of no value to me. I have zero interest in online multi-player. My schedule is too erratic to schedule gaming with friends and trying to play with random strangers has been a poor experience. So when I discovered that nearly all of the DLC in the Uncharted games is for multi-player, that meant the now heavily discounted original editions were a lot more interesting.

Beyond that, I hold out for the sales on XBLA or PSN. Anything good will turn up for half price or less. They haven't had GOTY versions of the Bioshock games but the DLC is discounted so often it works out the same.

The most important thing is to resist the new releases. Let them age a bit. Not being big on online multi-player makes that a lot easier for me.

Posted by: epobirs at November 18, 2012 11:38 AM (kcfmt)

Posted by: BornLib at November 18, 2012 03:36 PM (zpNwC)

Where are you purchasing these card games? My kids might like the Sentinels one (and I'd like their playing heroes better than villians).

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 11:39 AM (NYki8)

56 Posted by: Johnnytightlips at November 18, 2012 03:29 PM (4YJFV) Holy smokes! Thanks for mentioning this!

Posted by: BornLib at November 18, 2012 11:39 AM (zpNwC)

Posted by: Citizen Anachronda at November 18, 2012 03:37 PM (1c58W)

I know what you mean about the weird visual effects. Fortunately my in-laws Mac rendered so badly that it just didn't show the mountains for teh most part. I hadn't realized I should probably be grateful not to be blinded.

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 11:41 AM (NYki8)

58 Between GTA IV's transition to a "gritty, realistic" environment and its "satire" being seemingly written by Daily Kos and DU bloggers, I'm passing on GTA V.

Posted by: Sandra Fluke's solid gold diaphragm at November 18, 2012 11:43 AM (9SwFX)

59 Going out in 20 minutes to pick up my reserved Wii U. Long time Nintendo loyalist. It's got one of the best launch lineups I've ever seen. Nintendoland will go on to be a classic. Whoever said its only Xbox 360 technology is wrong. It costs over $300 to manufacture, so it's got modern chips in there. It will be much closer to Xbox 720/PS4 than people realize. Plus that controller is brilliant. You can actually take the system to a tailgate party or Starbucks and play many of the games without a TV set. That's a cool feature.

Posted by: Serious Cat at November 18, 2012 11:48 AM (opMWG)

60 Too bad about Allen West, morons. He tried to steal that election but came up just short.

Posted by: Herbert Hymenhopper at November 18, 2012 11:49 AM (UKXMx)

61 The most important thing is to resist the new releases. Let them age a bit.

Absolutely. I got Skyrim new because it was a Christmas present. Older games are cheaper, and will have more thorough bugfixes available in the updates.

The new Castlevania looks pretty awesome. Which is a good reason to pick up the first one. When I get around to it.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 11:49 AM (hO9ad)

62 Nothing about Black Ops II......weak ass game thread...........

Posted by: ina_ginalship at November 18, 2012 11:52 AM (pBdSH)

63 #50

Get the biggest one you can find for a decent price. I upgraded a 4 GB Slim model to 250 GB with a sale on Daily Steals. It was a refurb for $50, IIRC.

The easiest place to look is your local GameStop, which should have used models of every size. The highest capacity will be 320 GB.

Do to there being models with no hard drive, to allow a lower cost of entry to be advertised, Microsoft has to structure things so that the retailers will carry the hard drive upgrades. This mean giving them a high margin and that makes the price ridiculous to those who deal with hard drives a lot.

Two other things to consider. If it is an older Xbox, you may want to consider finding a good deal on the current model with a larger drive. The new design is a lot smaller, quieter, has WiFi built-in, and they've resolved the disappearing house pets problem. For the right price it may be the way to go. You can migrate the stuff off your old Xbox and sell it or keep it in reserve.

The second consideration is that the latest firmware has raised the size for encrypted flash drives to 32 GB. Because it is an encrypted volume that cannot be read anywhere except an Xbox 360 running your XBL account, the drive can store anything you'd put on the internal hard drive. Since flash drives are pretty cheap these days it can be an effective alternative to upgrading the internal drive.

Posted by: epobirs at November 18, 2012 11:53 AM (kcfmt)

64 @60 nice try dillweed

Posted by: Yip at November 18, 2012 11:54 AM (Mrdk1)

65 Black Ops 2 is out for Wii U. The controller lets you play local 2-player death matches.

Posted by: Serious Cat at November 18, 2012 11:54 AM (opMWG)

66 Between GTA IV's transition to a "gritty, realistic" environment and its "satire" being seemingly written by Daily Kos and DU bloggers, I'm passing on GTA V.

Fair enough. I just chalked it up to the fact that you'd need a world run by liberals to be sufficiently shitty ('Just like the old country') to justify Niko Bellic's lifestyle.

I very much doubt a GTA set in, say, Texas, would work.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 11:55 AM (hO9ad)

67 66 Methos,

The city of Houston would like to have a talk with you....

heh

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 12:04 PM (LRFds)

68 #59

Numerous developers have spoken on the issue. There will be as huge a gap between the Wii U and next gen consoles as there was between the Wii and competing current consoles.

Get over it. Sheer power is not a reason to buy it. You either desire what is exclusive to Nintendo platforms or you don't. There is no shame in not having bleeding edge gear if the software is the selling point. A big part of that price tag is due to the tablet controller, so don't be fooled into thinking there must be so much more in the box itself. The CPU is a bit slower than the Xbox/PS3 and the GPU a bit faster and more up to date on the OpenGL functions.

What will matter more to developers porting existing games is the full 1 GB of RAM for them to work with, with another 1 GB reserved for system functions, including a lot of stuff that used a chunk of the 512 MB in the Xbox and PS3. RAM really matters and is often neglected in such discussions. Kicking either the Xbox or PS3 to 1 GB would allow a lot more to be done with them but that would also make them new platforms requiring separate software and not worth the trouble for upgrading just that one aspect.

The part that matters is that it lets Nintendo achieve its goals and please its customer base. Any console is a collection of compromises factoring cost against what can be delivered at a given date. When maintaining a low price point is important, and it unquestionably is to Nintendo, especially after the 3DS stumble, it means you aren't going to breaking new ground on the hardware technology side. That is better left to the guys building $3000 PC rigs. The Xbox 720/PS4 won't be state of the art either. Just more expensive and therefore able to use a higher spec. None of that will matter if you're in the market for a new Zelda or Mario.

Posted by: epobirs at November 18, 2012 12:09 PM (kcfmt)

69 The city of Houston would like to have a talk with you....

I've lived there. The weather modeling would be brutal.

Mainly what I mean is that you jack so many cars in the game, it's silly. The character would get shot in the face more often than he got anywhere in Texas, I think.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 12:10 PM (hO9ad)

70 66

Fair enough. I just chalked it up to the fact that you'd need a world run by liberals to be sufficiently shitty ('Just like the old country') to justify Niko Bellic's lifestyle.

I very much doubt a GTA set in, say, Texas, would work.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 03:55 PM (hO9ad)

Heh. Interesting way to frame it. I just miss the good old days of GTA III where the game didn't come off as a really long episode of "The Daily Show". Also, while all of the protagonists within the GTA series are consistently lacking in moral fiber, Niko was the most difficult to empathize with given that he whined like a little bitch during the entire game.

On a side note, I'd certainly play "Grand Theft Arlen."

Posted by: Sandra Fluke's solid gold diaphragm at November 18, 2012 12:10 PM (9SwFX)

71 Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 03:39 PM (NYki

At the moment Boss Monster can only be had via Kickstarter. It should become more widely available in a couple months. You can order Sentinels of the Multiverse directly from the company that makes it here: http://preview.tinyurl.com/a7g8j89 IMHO it's worth the extra money to get the "Sentinels of the Multiverse: Enhanced Edition" rather than the first edition. It's a much higher quality production. You can get it cheaper through 3rd party vendors like Funagain Games or Boards and Bits. It's selling really well so it's out of stock most places right now, including those above. They'll be restocked by December I think. Amazon has copies in stock at the moment, but they are more expensive. Someone on Ebay going by "miniaturemarket" is selling copies at a more reasonable price.

Posted by: BornLib at November 18, 2012 12:12 PM (zpNwC)

72 #60

How does requiring an accurate count constitute attempted theft? It isn't like he was campaigning at cemeteries, which seems to be a significant source of DNC votes in that state. Nor was he suggesting to those who still live in New York part of the year that it was perfectly OK to vote in both states, something the DNC has been caught doing repeatedly.

Posted by: epobirs at November 18, 2012 12:14 PM (kcfmt)

73 #68 -- How are we gonna start a good gaming console war if you're around posting sensible things like that? Killjoy.

Posted by: moviegique at November 18, 2012 12:26 PM (Cepxj)

74 XBOX is teh suxor

Posted by: Methos, PS3 owner at November 18, 2012 12:32 PM (hO9ad)

75 41 Welcome to the USSA where we can't profile but buddy we can blame you all. Fuck that noise. I made a point of berating the clerk over how insulting it was and I will continue to do so every time customer "service" treats me like that. Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 03:11 PM (hO9ad) Congratulations on beating up on a guy who can't a thing about it except do the job as he is directed to by the people who pay his salary. Rather than bitching at the poor clerk and feeling like a 'big man' Dick

Posted by: sdavis at November 18, 2012 12:47 PM (njVMI)

76 meant to add 'try contacting the store management and bitch at them.

Posted by: sdavis at November 18, 2012 12:48 PM (njVMI)

77 In other news, a fun, free to play game that morons who like tanks might want to check out: http://worldoftanks.com/ despite the cheesy title, its actually a lot of fun.

Posted by: sdavis at November 18, 2012 12:49 PM (njVMI)

78 Thanks for the Steam PayPal note, looks like not keeping a balance on PayPal probably is indeed the problem. I've pretty much decided I just don't care enough after all, although it said Merovign owns it and if he said it was fantastic I might rethink. Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 03:09 PM (NYki Well, firstly, PayPal does some funky things sometimes, there are sites that default to asking for credit card info - but for me Steam is not one of them. I don't keep a Steam balance, but I don't have that problem either. If keeping a PP balance works, however... then it works. Secondly: Loom is an awfully old game. I ain't sayin there's anything wrong with that, if you have a fancy for early Sierra or LucasArts adventure games, it's a decent one, and the magic/music interface is interesting. It's a little less goofy-LA style and a little more Actual Fantasy Storyline style. When I have a doubt about a game, I always look for YouTube gameplay videos. Don't want to watch too far into an Adventure game or you'll give it all away, but you can get a feel for it.

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at November 18, 2012 12:59 PM (bxiXv)

79 Can't wait for Wii U. Nintendo first party games are always the best in the business.

Posted by: What's a Seawolf at November 18, 2012 01:12 PM (jxFq5)

80 Seconding Merovign here. Watching a bit of a Let's Play is a great way to get a feel for how a game is. The only caution for adventure games is that generally the person playing knows what they're doing ahead of time so puzzles that are quite obtuse often look more manageable. This is more of a problem in non-LucasArts games though.

Posted by: Ian S. at November 18, 2012 01:12 PM (OevbG)

81 Posted by: sdavis at November 18, 2012 04:47 PM (njVMI)

There can be no mercy give to collaborators. They can pass the complaint up to someone who can do something about it. Or just be miserable for going along to get along.

Also, I emailed walmart's "help" folks to give them a piece of my mind. If they choose to treat Americans like urbanites, they can live without our business.

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 01:14 PM (hO9ad)

82 you know I forgot I had a six month sub to SWTOR, I have not logged in in 73 days.

"Yay"

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 01:15 PM (LRFds)

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at November 18, 2012 04:59 PM (bxiXv)

Thanks Merovign. I was interested mostly because I'm a weaver (among other fiber arts). It sounds like I'm probably better off just not bothering about it, especially since I don't really need or even want another game.

Posted by: Polliwogette, disappointed hobbit at November 18, 2012 01:18 PM (NYki8)

84 This is more of a problem in non-LucasArts games though. Posted by: Ian S. at November 18, 2012 05:12 PM (OevbG) The Big Thing about LucasArts adventure games, *in theory* (because it's only 98% true), is that you can't "get stuck." They're designed to avoid the frustration of going back to an earlier game and losing a lot of time, or finding out you only used the one save slot and your whole game is boned. Also, Sierra adventure games were pretty lethal. A lot of dying in those KQ games. That gave the perception that LA games were "easy," which was not always true, they just involved less "reload and try again" challenges. I was always a big LA fan back in the day. The new Sam & Max and Monkey Island games by Telltale are pretty worthy on that front, especially on sale. I hear their non-LA-derived games are less so, haven't played them.

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at November 18, 2012 01:20 PM (bxiXv)

85 "Wii U Drops...Will anyone care?"

It's all my nephew talks about.

Posted by: Kevin at November 18, 2012 01:24 PM (ufexm)

86 So I guess SWTOR has gone FTP to whatever degree.

Have a guild would be happy to have some of you onboard perhaps.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 01:55 PM (LRFds)

87 So I guess SWTOR has gone FTP to whatever degree.

What degree are we talking? FTP less clothing enhancements, or less actual content?

Posted by: Methos at November 18, 2012 01:59 PM (hO9ad)

88 87 Methos,

I think a combination I'l read the documentation...I got in at late alpha and have been paid up.

I know it is FTP to lvl 15 no restrictions so far as was normal last time I played.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 02:16 PM (LRFds)

89 I haven't bought a new platform at launch in a very long time. The last one would be the PSP. The backlog of unplayed games made it ridiculous to jump on new machines when it would be months before any decent portion of the games had seen any markdown to my normal buy level. Also, I don't have the sort of jobs that used to compensate me for staying up to date, such as magazine writing.

OTOH, I already have several Wii games with np hardware to play them on. And I have a pile of TRU store credit that will expire with the month and due to the huge amount of well compensated driving I've been doing for my current contract job, with the gas being purchased on my TRU credit card, I'll likely have a bunch more within a few days. So I may go for it if there is a deluxe model available at my local store toward my deadline on the credit.

Posted by: epobirs at November 18, 2012 02:22 PM (kcfmt)

So fun to whistle in the dark as the Republic burns. Under the new ways "gamers" will be shunned and laughed at. Nit wits who waste thier lives living in a pretend reality. Silly amateurs.

Posted by: jacke at November 18, 2012 02:22 PM (5Cwv4)

91 SWTOR still requires Origin, which still has the "we can take any file on your hard disk" in its EULA. Fuck. That. Horse. Shit. That's part of the reason Bioware / EA are dead to me.

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at November 18, 2012 02:22 PM (bxiXv)

92 90 Jacke,

Maybe...I think it's gonna be pretty funny watching the enforcement of laws unequally become silently codified norm.

That *is* coming.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 02:25 PM (LRFds)

93 91 Mero,

Oh that's darling I did not know that was the norm.

Charming I really had fallen out of the loop I got rather pissed off at the lack of customization.

I have lifetimes to STO, CO, and DCUO IIRC

Dabbled in Secret World but that was when the election cycle was getting sporty and I was in a rage no need to learn new angst.

Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 02:27 PM (LRFds)

94 91 SWTOR still requires Origin, which still has the "we can take any file on your hard disk" in its EULA.

Wait, it does? You sure about that? The SWTOR client never required me to use the Origin store client to play.

On the XCOM stuff, friend linked me a hilarious series of Let's Play videos that make me eager to play it a bit. (After it price drops some more though. Cheapskate gamer here)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9zJE9GodMQ

Posted by: ConservativeMonster at November 18, 2012 03:00 PM (xHaTb)

95 I have lifetimes to STO, CO, and DCUO IIRC Posted by: sven10077 at November 18, 2012 06:27 PM (LRFds) I kind of want to play CO and STO more, but I'm kind of burned out. Burned out on DCUO much faster. Wait, it does? You sure about that? The SWTOR client never required me to use the Origin store client to play. Posted by: ConservativeMonster at November 18, 2012 07:00 PM (xHaTb) Well, I know it requires an account. If it doesn't require you to run the client that limits your exposure, but you still have to sign off on the EULA and I don't trust them not to do something hinky through the game client. So, just no.

Posted by: Merovign, Dark Lord of the Sith at November 18, 2012 03:11 PM (bxiXv)

96 Thanks for the gaming thread Zakn!

Posted by: canadave at November 18, 2012 03:13 PM (voRpZ)

97 What degree are we talking? FTP less clothing enhancements, or less actual content?

AFAIK, you can play up to L50, but you get reduced number of character slots (2), inability to equip epic gear, limited number (3) of ops (dungeons) per week, lesser ability for character look customization (can't hide headslot), less quickslots bars, and some other stuff.

Not entirely sure on what all the restrictions are, myself. I just finished re-downloading the client after quitting several months ago.

Posted by: ConservativeMonster at November 18, 2012 03:17 PM (xHaTb)

98 So I have a half played copy of Black Ops 2 for sale. Anyone want it? A piece of me died when I was forced to assist the USS Barack Obama. The most ironic part is thanks to Obamacare we will never even build another aircraft carrier to be named after the Big Sleazy.

Posted by: Exasperated Expat at November 18, 2012 03:42 PM (gkfSV)

99 Anybody had any experience with a PS3 game: "Journey"? Blew my mind. Gives me hope for humanity.

Posted by: nip at November 18, 2012 03:45 PM (11Tdq)

100 I picked one up last night along with the new Mario and Assassin's Creed 3. I'm loving it. It essentially turns your HD TV into a giant DS which is great. Nice having your HUD on the gamepad instead of in the TV screen.

Posted by: Jawknee at November 18, 2012 05:37 PM (wSd4f)

101 100 Nice having your HUD on the gamepad instead of in the TV screen.

-----------

So.... your head's up display is on the display for which you need to put your head down?

Posted by: Citizen Anachronda at November 18, 2012 08:11 PM (1c58W)

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