Neverwinter Nights 2

I picked up a copy of Neverwinter Nights 2 and have started playing it. I was in the NWN2 multi-player beta test, but the game didn't seem ready to launch. Unfortunately, it launched to a myriad of mixed reviews. There were obvious bugs and technical issues at launch.

Still, as a huge fan of the original NWN, I decided to keep NWN 2 on my radar. Well, the game has gone through a series of patches and for the most part seems to have turned around. I decided it was time for me to jump in and give it a fair shake. So far, I have not been disappointed. Graphics are good, gameplay is better, and most technical issues have been resolved.

The one weak area is with multi-player play. According to the developers this is the next issue they are going to tackle in patch 1.07. That should give me enough time to finish the single-player campaign and play around with the toolset.

Alien Puppy!

It's attack of the ALIEN PUPPY! Actually this is a picture of our wonderful new Doberman puppy, Sadie (say dee), holding her favorite frisbee. Enjoy!

What Happened to eBay?

I was a big fan of eBay six years ago. I enjoyed selling and buying used items, from skateboards to video games. Rarely did a search return with dozens of "NEW" results. There were very few items with a buyout of $0.99 and a shipping total of $19.99. Back in the day, eBay was actually a virtual Auction House.

Currently, eBay is nothing more than a glorified and unfriendly Amazon.com. It amazes me that eBay is still actually in business. Most items are sold for dirt cheap buyouts with an insanely high shipping cost. And if I understand it correctly, eBay makes nothing from the shipping cost. A while ago, eBay posted saying they were going to remove auctions with over-inflated shipping costs, but any search on eBay will tell you a different story.

Another annoying trend is the auction listings themselves. Once upon a time, the listings actually described the item that was up for auction. Now a days, the listings are templated, automated, and filled with garbage. There is two lines mirroring the auctions title, a stolen image from Google, and then two pages of nonsensical legalese stating that God himself has jurisdiction over Canada. Is it too much to ask for eBay to police listings so they actually LIST something about the item being sold?

Honestly, I wish eBay would split the auctions into two categories:

Category 1: Hey, I am too lazy to get a real job, so here is a bunch of garbage I bought on clearance you can bid on. Oh, and I get great deals from my distributer, so I will sell this crap well below retail while fucking the brick and mortar stores of the world. BTW, shipping starts at $19.99.

Category 2: Hey, I have this great item that I have no use for any longer. If it something useful to you, then please feel free to bid and pay a reasonable shipping cost based on it's weight.

In the bid to become the best auction site on the Internet, they have simply become the most bloated.

At Least the Review is Good

Slashdot has a review of Lord of the Rings Online up. Just take a moment and read through a few of the comments. There are gems like this hiding within:

Frankly, I was really disappointed. The combat system sucks - it actually has a window that says things like "You hit the wolf for two points of damage". It felt like going back in time to the 80's.

While the poster does make some valid points about video games vs. realism, I don't really think he bought the game for the right reason. But that comment isn't what really frustrates me about the comments.

Everyone defending MMORPGs is using World of Warcraft. WoW has this. WoW has that. WoW, the most fucking awesome thing to hit planet earth, does it that way too! WoW has somehow become the definition of MMORPG.

WoW has done a lot of things very well and has finally put everything into a polished, complete, and fun game. But for the love of MMORPGs, it is not the only way to do things. I made the mistake once of trying to define MMORPGs. I failed. Raph Koster beat me over the head with a big stick for it. I learned.

My suggestion to everyone. Get out and play a wider variety of games!

Anyways, at least the actual review is worth a read.

EVE, CCP, and Players

This is what happens when a developer lets their players take over a game. It is also a case study for why official forums are a bad idea. In the end though, it is just another day in EVE Online.

Currently Playing.... Nothing?

I haven't touched a video game in nearly two weeks. We have just gotten our first puppy (a Doberman) and she is quite the handful. On top of that I have started my packed summer semester of classes.

So, my gaming time has been owned. But I really haven't been compelled to play anything recently. I thought World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade was in my future, but I just don't think so any longer. I want to play something new.

So, here I sit, eagerly awaiting the release dates for Pirates of the Burning Seas, Warhammer: Age of Reckoning, and several other games I can't think of right now. I may have to take another hiatus from MMORPGs and refresh myself on a good RTS, FPS, or RPG.

Aside from Dreamblade, a collectible miniatures game, I don't see much gaming anytime soon.

No More Battlefield 2 Patches

From DigitalBattle:

According to ex-DICE employees, there are no more patches planned for the bug-filled multiplayer shooter Battlefield 2. The former DICE members, who now formed their own studio, said via a forum release that patch 1.4 (released last November)was the last BF2 patch, and that all forces at DICE are focused on Battlefield 2142, which is, unfortunately, just as bug filled as its predecessor.

EA and DICE hasn’t mentioned anything about a patch ever since the last one, over six months ago. And they will probably never reveal that no further patches are planned, since that’ll take away the last hope BF2 players have. Since there most likely won’t be an announcement, this will technically remain a rumor forever, just as BF2 will technically remain a bug filled game.

Starcraft 2 Must Be Perfect

Blizzard's big announcement was not the shocker everyone had anticipated. It was simply Starcraft 2, as predicted just about everywhere. Starcraft 2 will be an RTS; not an MMO.

I will start this out by saying I was wrong. I didn't make any big prediction posts. Everyone else took care of the predictions just fine, but I did open my mouth in a few places and bet against the odds on favorites. Knowing Blizzard and their un-innovative history, Starcraft 2 or Diablo 3 were very probable. Blizzard does not step outside of familiarity. Factor in that this event was held in Korea and you could of easily bet money on Starcraft 2.

So, I was wrong, and the streets of Korea did not erupt into a fiery cataclysmic pool of rioters. However, I don't really believe any of the hardcore Korean Starcraft fauthful are won over by this announcement. To please them, and the majority of Starcraft faithful, Starcraft 2 will need to be perfect. Perfect is not something that exists in the gaming market, and Starcraft 2 won't be the first.

Don't get me wrong. Starcraft 2 will sell well and knowing Blizzard's approach to game design, Starcraft 2 will be a solid, polished, and complete game. However, it will not be a giant leap in RTS gaming. There is already so much that Starcraft 2 has to deliver, that there is literally no wiggle room. Blizzard has to get it right, or face a very, very angry Starcraft community.

On the other hand, World of Warcraft wasn't a giant leap forward for MMORPGs, but it is now the king of the MMO jungle. Can this happen with Starcraft 2? With the same "easy to learn, hard to master" approach, it could be possible. Sadly, Starcraft 2 comes with strikes against it.

First, it is in a Sci-fi setting. Sci-fi has never been as popular as swords and sorcery fantasy.

Secondly, the original Starcraft is still extremely popular. How many of the current diehards will be willing to move to the new game? How many gaming leagues and professional Starcraft players will be willing to move? How will the fans of these leagues feel about the new game?

Finally, the original Starcraft developers are no longer with the company. Blizzard has a great group of developers, but how good are they compared to the fathers of Starcraft? Starcraft has existed for a long time, and benefited from tons of updates, in order to become the game it is today. Starcraft 2 has to come out of the box nearly perfect or we'll just be back playing the original.

In conclusion, Starcraft 2 must be perfect. Good luck Blizzard, you'll need it.

Told You So

The axe has fallen according to F13.

"The axe finally fell. It was only a matter of time, I suppose. And while many of you may try to spin this to make SOE look bad, apparently this wasn't really their doing. You see, SOE doesn't own Sigil. It doesn't own Sigil now and they won't own them tomorrow. But they do own Vanguard. What fate awaits that game? I don't know. Don't particularly care either."

Red Hat Enterprise Linux: Stage 1 Complete

I have finished my first semester in the Red Hat Academy for Red Hat Enterprise Linux. It was the most demanding class I've taken in my degree program thus far. I was a Linux newb before entering the fray and while I still feel like a newb; I have learned some valuable essentials about Linux. I came out with a 100.28% average for the semester. I am extremely proud of myself, and it makes all the extra hours of work well worth it.

No rest for the weary. I have signed up for the summer semester and the next Linux course: Linux System Administration.