Oh... How I miss you HD gaming

I didn't misplace my system or, or have my TV die or anything. I just plugged my PS3 into a SD tv for the first time last night, and WOW! I missed HD something firece. The PS3 still looked good, but... something, like resolution was missing. I was playing dirt, and the import version of hot shots golf 5, and there was a difference, mostly in the colors.

Looking forward to getting GTAIV. Still not 100% sure which system I am going to get it on. I guess it depends on what the DLC would be. Oh how I wish I had a lead on that because WHAT the DLC will be for the 360 is the deal breaker. At this point it looks like I am going with the PS3 version.

what the hell happened to me?

Are the rules different for your boss than they are for you?

Let's go back in time for a moment. Has there been a family event, lunch in, game release, or something else where you have needed just a little extra reprieve from work to get something done? Have they ever (and most likely) told you to buzz off? And then they excuse them selves for an overly long lunch? Like 2 hours? When was the last time you were able to do that? Have you ever been able to do that?

I, cannot. I can't take an extra hour on my lunch to go pickup my brother from the airport when he comes into town. I can't show up to work 2 hours late because I want to wait in line to pick up MGS4 when the game comes out. But I bet the people above you can. Is it because shit rolls downhill? Is it because there is some kind of unwritten code that means your job really IS more important then theirs and you cannot flex that time around?

Are these the same kind of rules that are common but no one ever stops to question them? What kind of business politics roll over in video games that we are not aware of? Deadlines of course. Pressure to over preform? Probably. Are there any games that SHOULD have been good that could have been turned into piles of steaming ass because of these kinds of internal politics? I would love to see the difference between the launch candidate for MGS 4 when they thought it was going to come out date and time with the PS3 and the final version that we are going to get. Would we still have a monkey drinking soda? And on a different note what would happen to the Madden franchise if we could only purchase the game once every two years and could update roster with injuries, trades, free agency, and retirement through seasonly weekly patches, and then ever two months during the off season? Would that make the game “better”?

Does having the yearly deadline on a game like that become problematic? I would think so. Even stuff they work on for a whole year can become irrelevant or overdone with a new idea if they can't polish it up enough to get it into the game. Would a bi-yearly release schedule work for something like that? Maybe charge a fee for the top of the year roster update for $20, and then two bucks a week for the weekly update? That would be the same cost of the game, year in and year out, and then it would save you a shit load of money printing the games every year.

I don't know if I have the correct answers for this question, but I know there would be a way to do it without pretty much everyone feeling like they have been playing the same game with .... TA DA .... a roster update. Because then they CAN play the same game, for two years running have more time to include features and to polish the game. This would work well across the whole board. And if people strayed away from the Top of the year update, I guess you could retail a smaller amount of the game for the same $20 bucks, and then not piss off the retail locations either. Because fuck knows you can't do that.

Are there other games this idea could work for? Sure, games as it is right now already to some degree DO have this feature. Rock Band being the big one that comes to mind. The amount of DLC out for that game is getting very close to the same amount of content that came on the disc. No other game can make that claim. Hell I have pretty much hung up Guitar Hero 3 at this point because of that fact. Some download games in and of themselves are making a pretty big increase in content just adding to the core game out right. PAIN on the PS3 is a perfect example. One level to start out with and 3 characters. Good game all around, but not a lot of replay value. As it is right now they could get 3 more dollars from you for just new people to abuse, not to mention I believe there is a new level that is out or is coming out soon.

Sure there are some games that find a way to get some DLC out to add to the experience of playing the game and adding to it's shelf life. Gears of War with the free maps made a huge impact on how long that game wasn't just GOOD fun online, but how fresh the experience was still online. And then making the maps free even when they claim MS were making them charge for them is a big step as to where they we're going to take the sequel. Forza and Mass Effect both have DLC up for grabs that increase what you can and will do with the game. Resistance on the PS3 to be sure. If done right even SSBB could have some good DLC. But let's not hold our breath huh Mega Man fans.

There are games too, that have DLC on the disc itself just waiting for you to buy it. ON THE FUCKING DISC! The reason R* got sued over the hot coffee thing and lost is because if the code was on the disc, it was there. And yes, your Holy Shitfulness, we have games now shipping with stuff that we were going to get anyway. But just needed to be unlocked. Well let me tell you something, unlock my zipper fuck heads, the chances of me buying your game is about slim to none.

But again was the cause something where they could have included it and just didn't have time and the DLC you bought patched the information? Hey that I might be able to live with. But I don't believe I really want to pay for that.

I'd like to back track for a minute and make this about the parallel with the work place again. What about all the fucking Final Fantasy re-releases? If I came into work and just handed my boss the same shit that I had done two years ago, but did it on a new system or program, I think he would flip his fucking top. “Here sir. Here's the new scripting you requested. I know its the same thing I did a year ago, but I did it this time on Open Office, not MS Office, you'll notice it's all better.” I think he'd bite his desk and throw things while firing me. But why does this work for video game companies? Yes SquareEnix, I am looking solely at you.

It's not bad enough that they are rehashing the same old stuff over and over. They are charging more money for it. If they wanted to sell me FF6 for the 4^th time, on the DS, and they made it .... 10 bucks? I might be more inclined to pick it up. Because I don't have to own it on the SNES, PS1, PSP, and the DS. So then why continue to sell it? Should your time not be spent or making FFXI suck less. Or maybe actually telling us what the fuck is going on with FF13?

Last I think there should be some full disclosure with what the hell is going on with video games that get canned. Duke Nukem might finally come out, and then I'll lose a bet no one (gulp) remembers. But really, let us know... what the hell took so long? Other games like this Marvel MMO that might have came out that really had my interest, disappeared. I'll probably never know, and that makes me sad, because I would have went back to paying a monthly fee for games because of that one. I'd like to know what really happened to the planned Twisted Metal : Black sequel. Where the hell did all the code go that was written for Star Fox 2 on the 64?

I would like to think that maybe these great games, and shitty ones alike, are hiding somewhere waiting for someone either to release them or for us to buy them. How about it anyone... would you pay for your favorite games that were never finished? Or maybe just like the chance to actually play them. Or maybe just an update on sequels that are “in the works” but haven't head about forever? Shenmue 3... is that you?

Vacation

So I am going on Vacation starting in March. For a whole week. Going to be gone from March 9th - 18th. It's going to be.... SWEET!

Crabs, clams, Ladybug, Laptop! Seabreeze! Oh, the idea of actually being able to relax for a whole day with nothing to do what so ever.

I am offically excited.

I'm going to get so spoiled.

So tomorrow is V-day. And I think I'm going to get spoiled. But I am getting a wedge of sleep removed from this fantastic day. And it's going to be totally worth it. Also I need to reprogram my phone. Because it broke and... oh yea.

They have removed my coverage. I have used the service twice in the last year so I am now high risk and can no longer be covered.

Well fuck them. At least it's 6 bucks I'm saving every month.

I tired to go to See's Candies, and the line was INSANE! I had to have seen about 60 people in line. So that didn't go so well.

I 'm going to video game theme my phone.

I'm not dead

I'm just waiting for respawn.

More on this soon.

brains, and mints

Ok, so heres the deal, a 38-year-old man who had been in a near-coma for six years was recently awakened via the use of a pacemaker and two electrodes which were shoved into his brain. The electrical device, manufactured by a company called Medtronic, was used to send impulses to the area of the brain regulating consciousness, and researchers believe that the stimulation may be enhancing brain circuits that are still capable of functioning. The man, the first of 12 to undergo the procedure, has gone from a vegetative state to being able to play cards, speak with family members, and take trips outside. While this isn't exactly a new technology -- as doctors have been experimenting with deep-brain stimulation in the treatment of Parkinson's, epilepsy, and brain injuries for some time -- it is a clear sign that there's hope for patients whom the medical community has been, heretofore, unable to treat.

I love stuff like this, seriously. I think there's some help for most the people I went to highschool with.

Its also been way to long sence I've posted, but nothing in the world has really caught my eye. There was plenty of interesting news and what have you, but to be fair, nothing worth posting about. Umm GTAIV was delayed. So was Lair. Which leaved me with nothing to play except GoW, GoW2, and NG:S.

Life is rough, to be sure.

Harry Potter, 1.9, and when is 50 bucks to much?

So Harry potter was really good. REALLY good. I'm not going to talk about the plot at all, or give anything away. My single complaint was that the last "bonus" chapter, could have been omitted completely. Other than that I finished in 2 good days of reading and was "Totally Satisfied" with the experience I got. GREAT book. It fits the series nicely. Blah blah blah, I enjoyed it.

The PS3 upped its firmware to 1.9 tonight, and it added something that should have been in the box with the system. WALLPAPER! Very nice stuff. Upconverts music on CD now, which is pretty damn cool. Through firmware updates alone the PS3 has doubled it's functionality as a piece of AV equipment.

Quoted from the PS3 forums....

Finally, on the more technical side, you can now play AVCHD videos saved on a Memory Stick or digital video camera, and we’ve added the ability to upscale audio CD output from your PS3. Now, there are two requirements for this feature: the device you’re outputting to must support a sampling frequency of 88.2 kHz or 176.4 kHz, and your PS3 must be connected to that device with an HDMI cable or digital optical cable.

How nice.

Now for something a little bit more, stupid. I got a copy for Guitar Hero - 80's on Sunday. And I must say, for 50 bucks MSRP, it's a piece of shit. Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE the other Guitar hero games, so much so that I rebought Guitar hero 2 for my 360 even after having bought it for the ps2. because it had 10 GOOD new songs, online leader boards, DLC, and other goodies. To be fair that was 80 dollars. And now I'm bitch about 50 bucks of entirely new content. I made a comment on a set of boards once, that was complaining about the pricing of the DLC for the 360, stating that the price, while I can understand how it got that high, *think itunes plus development costs* was retardedly high and not worth the cash investment. At roughtly the same $1.66 a song for the expansion pack, I don;t feel inclinded to buy it.

Even if I take the $5 bucks I put towards it at work, and take the money to Best Buy where it's $39.99, I still think $34.99 is to damn much. At least when I get Rock Band &/or Guitar Hero 3, I'm going to be getting a new Guitar, *that will I hope work on the PS3, and therefor work on the older games* and all that new stuff. New game modes, new songs, new online. Nothing new here, hell they took the same loading screens and CHANGED THE FUCKING COLORS!

This is 50 bucks where talking about... I mean even the
ferret can't steal stuff like that and not feel guilty about it. I could get God of War 2 new, for that price. I could get Odin Sphere and a burger for that price. I could get any number of FANTASTIC must own games for any of my systems for that price tag. I have to admit that there is a long way for me to go to be ok with getting this game. Do I want to buy it, HELL YES I DO. I just feel that my gaming needs could be much more easily filled somewhere else. For that same 50 bucks, I could get Shadow of the Colossus, and a used copy of Okami.



This is something that could have been easily fixed if someone would make a fucking guitar that would work on the PS3. I have use an entirely defunct system to play this game being that I own a PS3. And that adapter from Pelican, works GREAT for the first guitar hero. But as soon as you throw it into "2" mode, watch out. It sucks. I can't play the damn songs on hard with the adapter, but as soon as I throw it into the Ps2, I'm back to shredding on Expert, not very well, but I can get it done none the less. I prey that either of the new Guitars work for the new wave of games are backwards compatible. That will sway my wallet to be sure.

Goddamn, some decisions are tough.

ARSE FACE LIVES!

Ok, I havent mentioned much about comics. I dont know why. Maybe its not what take up most of my time anymore. Anyway, I love the comic series "Preacher". And this guy is a spitting image of someone inside the comics. I'd would just share the news with everone else.

This just goes to prove what I was talking about the other day with teh Wii's. They will never outsell the PS2, because Sony is now giving away MONEY with their systems. Well in this case, its not the dollars, its the all mighty Pound. But still, when the kid gets money inside the box with the system its, pretty good way to spend the night.

A young man in the UK got a serious shock when the PS2 that he'd won on eBay arrived at his home in Aylsham, Norfolk. The game system -- which he'd paid £95 for -- arrived without the two games promised by the seller, but with £44,000, or about $90,378. The boy and his family turned the money over to police, who are holding it until late September under the UK's "Proceeds of Crime Act" while they investigate the case. A spokesman for eBay described the situation as "somewhat unusual."

I would like to partake in something "somewhat unusual". Especially if it means a cash monies payout. And, well, I dont know if I would turn the money in. But, mom and dad don't look over my shoulder anymore either.

Game-Boy... No More

Well it looks like the game boy name is going to go bye- bye for WIIWARE! Seriously, nintendo is going to do everything they can to *and I can't believe I'm going to make this joke* stick their Wii stuff down our throat. To be fair its a kinda good idea, cause it seems that anything that IS tired in with the Wii is selling like mad. But come-on EVERYONE knows what a Game Boy is. Hell, my parents bought me a PSP over the Holidays, and they called it a Game Boy. It's like changing the name of Nintendo, to, The Wii Company.

Hmm, I might be on to something.