A few days ago I was clearing out my old files. I try to do this every year or so to keep my disk drives free of crap, and it also gives me a chance to re-evaluate things. I have dozens of DVDs in a cupboard burned with pictures, videos and such of times that I don’t need to find on a day-to-day basis. This year I’d found a load of USB drives that I just copied all the files from to keep safe, and look through later.

I went through them today and found that this was back when my main machine was Lakota, a big beige box that had a Celeron 500Mhz processor in it; my first ever computer made from scratch. Two CRT monitors, with two printers; one for B&W printing and the other for colour. This was back when I was still in secondary school. 2005, nearly eight years ago now. I was still fixated on getting into the IT Support business, and my friends were all in the same area. I missed those times, and went back to my del.icio.us bookmarks back then and found all but a time-capsule. My old web addresses (limoure.servebeer.com), a link to my first hosted site (kaecyus-drake.net), my Myspace (pre-Timberlake), and even my old VampireFreaks Profile! It had been deleted of course, but the memories were still there.

And then I came across a picture that made stop. I had pictures of all my old friends, but then I found one of me. One of me way back when.

The last day of school before I stayed on for Sixth Form College

All of us have changed since then. Some have moved away, some have aspirations and some, like myself, have lost them. But what caught my eye wasn’t the stupidly overgrown hairstyle, the scrawl from Steph on the front of my shirt saying that I was an ‘inspiration’, the MP3 Player around my neck that ran out of battery power twice a week, or the cross pendant around my neck when I had my ‘alternative’ phase. It was the shirt I’m wearing. I still have that shirt, and it fits. Just, and I mean stretches-around-my-torso just. I’m envious of myself from eight years ago.

The secret to staying slim back then? Cycling. I had a paper-round that had me cycling half an hour a day and two hours on Sundays. I ate terribly, and did less physical activity then than I do now, but none of it works my core. So, I’m going to dig out my bicycle. I bought a new one a year ago just at the tail-end of summer for the sales, and put it under a blanket when my old one was beyond saving from rust. So, this summer I’m going to get back into it. Even if it’s just for the summer, it’ll be enough to point me in the right direction.

I think half an hour per day, four days a week is a good target to start. Gotta dig the bike out and get it working first though. But compared to a motorcycle, a bicycle should be a piece of cake.

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NOTE: There will be some Mass Effect 3 Single Player and Citadel DLC spoilers in this entry. I wanted to wait until everyone had the chance to play it before posting. Consider yourself informed. :]

Citadel was re-opening a wound for me. I had already tasted the Humble Pie that was the Mass Effect 3 ending, then the Humble Pie with Added Sugar that was the Extended Cut DLC. I still lacked closure, and obviously the Citadel DLC was meant to be the answer to that. The whole sense of Citadel was the post-ending send off for the characters, and it really showed. There were a few moments where I liked the back-and-forth banter that was obviously there as a set up or continuing an in-joke or fan favourite discussion, but the majority just felt like over the top fan service. The Mako and Hammerhead discussion was used in the squad names, while the Clone Shepard was used as a prop for jokes that involve Shepard (I specifically remember “I should go.”). Don’t get me wrong, the plot behind the DLC was fascinating and ultimately believable. But it begs further questions. Why would The Illusive Man not use the Clone Shepard at all, even to the point of letting it get out to wreak havoc, as an example?

There were a few good moments though; moments that truly hit home. I remember looking down at my controller when I listened to the diary entries of Mordin, realising that I had done that to him. I had allowed him to go to his death and cure the genophage as atonement for creating it. Should I have convinced him to stay, at the cost of the Krogan people? That is what the Citadel DLC should have been; remembering your past decisions, and reflecting on them. And it, without a doubt, should have been in the game from the beginning. Same for Leviathan and Omega. But instead it got turned into cheesy fan service, something that oddly enough left a bad taste in my mouth. It hit the right notes at points, but once again, I found myself being lied to by Bioware. I can play with all my squad mates from previous games; but only in one single-player Horde-lite. Those that aren’t selectable in the main game simply support you throughout the plot DLC. I could go on, but this has been flogged to death.

The last Mass Effect 3 MP Infographic.

But now I’d like to give my final thoughts on the Multiplayer. I’d like to proudly state before I go any further that I have played 230hrs 53mins of Mass Effect 3′s Multiplayer, ranking in the top 2% of N7 Ranks, and the top 7% of Challenge Ranks. In perspective, I played for nine and a half days of my life on Firebases killing Geth, Collectors, Reapers and Cerberus over the last year and a bit. I loved the multiplayer, but I hated the reason for it’s existence. This was to supplement the campaign by increasing your ‘Galactic Readiness’ multiplier (which started at 50%), to make your War Assets more effective. And they sold the packs that let you increase your weapons arsenal and character library. In short, they shoe-horned, via a Horde mode, micro-transactions into a single-player RPG. I bought these; I’m as much to blame as anyone. But I loved the game itself. I have played countless rounds and the addition DLC was free; something that Activision should think about with Call of Duty Map Packs. Balances were worked out with new weapons, and most of the weapons that appeared in the campaign also moved over to the multiplayer.

All good things must come to an end, and I’m writing this as an ending to the Multiplayer in the sense that while it will continue to be supported, it won’t be updated with fresh content. I want every person who reads this to go out and buy the Trilogy, at least. You owe it to yourself to play the campaigns of all three games at least, if not all the DLC. Consider it an exercise in how publishers exert control over a flagship franchise if you are that cynical (because the evidence is there if you know where to look), but play it, and love it. Garrus, Tali, Ashley, Miranda, Jack, Joker, and the rest of the crew of the Normandy are worth meeting and bonding with. Just do it.

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Ace Combat is a game series that I follow quite strongly on the home consoles, but not so much on the portable side of things. I’m on the verge of completing my Ace Combat collection after getting Ace Combat 2 (despite the original title being named Air Combat in the UK), missing only Electrosphere and The Belkan War to complete it. Ace Combat is a series that has the basics sharpened down to a fine point, and adds new features to it, like Dogfight Mode in Assault Horizon or the Allied Attacks from Fires of Liberation.

But this game stayed uncompleted despite being, having played six of the series’ eight titles, the best of the bunch. I had gotten down to just after the Stadium flyby (I can’t say more than that because of spoilers), and after that I just lost the knack of playing the game. We were taking over a fortress and I kept getting overwhelmed in an A-10 Thunderbolt on a ground attack mission! I put the disc back into the case and forgot about it. Only recently when I had an urge to crack open the PS2 again did I put in Squadron Leader (also known as The Unsung War or just Ace Combat 5).

The game can be condensed down to a carefully prepared and executed plan leading from the events in Ace Combat Zero, the prequel to Squadron Leader. It can also be condensed down to the physical retelling of a story one of the lead characters, Kei Nagase, is trying to remember from her childhood. “A Blue Dove for the Princess”, while not totally relevant at first glance, is the main source of the legend of Razgriz;

Amidst the eternal waves of time
From a ripple of change shall the storm rise
Out of the Abyss peer the eyes of a demon
Behold the Razgriz, it’s wings a black sheath

The demon soars through dark skies
Fear and death trail it’s shadow
Until men united wield a hallowed sabre
In the final reckoning the beast is slain

As the Demon sleeps man turns on man
His own blood and madness spread throughout the earth
From the depths of despair awaken the Razgriz
It’s raven wings ablaze with majestic light

If you look in the game there are many tie-ins to this legend, some obvious and some not so. One didn’t hit me until I had completed the game and realised.

For me, the most difficult mission was easily the SOLG control room mission. Those that have played AC6 and remember the final part of the Chandelier mission should imagine that for what felt like a good five minutes. I kept crashing into the tunnel walls or barricades that were to force me to slow down to get around them while a door was closing just ahead. The time I got it right, I honestly had to remember the breathe once I got out of that tunnel. Also to pull up to avoid the hill in front of me.

I started the Pile of Shame a long time ago, and I’m glad it’s finally got a title being taken away from it. I’m also glad that it’s AC5, a game that bugged me for a long time. While I don’t think it has as good a soundtrack as Fires of Liberation, the cutscenes are a mile ahead of the anime-esque scenes from AC4, and with the story on so many levels, it’s the strongest plot out of the series so far.

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NOTE: I know this is a touchy subject, so before I begin, I’m defining piracy in this Post as downloading something for free when it could be found elsewhere, digital or otherwise, for a fee. This pairing of Copyright and Piracy will be concluded in a future entry.

Piracy is a subject that gets peoples’ hackles up on both sides of the argument. Those defending the act as exercising their right to Freedom from a ‘creaking business model [becoming] obsolete‘ in swift fashion, and those attacking the act saying that it is taking the money out of the pockets of those that need it most; the people that make it. Everyone believes parts of each argument. I believe that in certain circumstances, the artists are effected but from what I’ve seen those that would be effected don’t seem to mind.

People like Dan Bull who actively offers his music up for free and makes money off donations and other income revenue. Those that want to pay front their money, and those that don’t front their views. Fact is I’m more than happy to pay for Dan Bull’s music, because he makes it worth your while. He tried to game the music charts (and succeeded in the World and Reggae charts), and everyone that helped him got thanked in a song. Thanking us for investing in what we love by making more of what we love. The irony, right?

Another artist that I found on Youtube is Jayme Gutierrez. His DIY MySpam song got picked up by ThePirateBay and they ran with it, generating 200,000 views by my estimation to give this guy more exposure. The reason I like this guy? He charges $5 for his CD. He charges more on shipping in order to not be out of pocket. This guy, in my opinion, is a poster child for artists that want to make a living off doing what they love to do. Give it free, sell it cheap and let the Pareto Principle take it’s course.

What does the other side do? It relies on an equally creaking business model; law. We have the DMCA, in favour of the claimant (as in a counter-claim defaults into a court case, so Youtube tells people ‘if you can’t go to court, don’t file a counter-claim’). This DMCA is effective for all visitors to a website that resides in the US, regardless of where the visitor is. I’m in the UK, where the DMCA should not be able to be used, yet it is because the data is based in the US, stopping me from watching videos. The US Government tried PIPA and SOPA. The UK Government, to my shame, has the Digital Economy Act; a Bill that was rushed through in two hours, where 20 people debated, 170 more filed in to vote, in a place where 650 votes are available, but that’s a rant gone by. And then there was ACTA; a Trade Agreement, thus something that could be kept secret from everyone who it affected, until someone with a conscience leaked a draft copy. The EU as a whole voted against it, leaving it dead in the water for us. Chalk one up for democracy, I guess.

Dan Bull, just a citizen that’s teaching you a lesson for restricting his freedom of expression.

But here is where the lines get blurred; re-releases. I will be using the example of the videogame industry. Nintendo has the Virtual Console, Microsoft has the Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA), and Sony has the Playstation Network (PSN). There are other outlets like Steam and GOG for the PC. All of these (GOG made their name out of it, originally) re-release old games for new platforms. Nintendo has NES/SNES titles, XBLA has a mixture of everything but mostly old games that are owned by current publishers, and the PSN obviously has PSX and PS2 games. Now, let’s take a game of mine I bought recently, Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain for the original Playstation. This was released in 1996, and then re-released on the PSN in 2011 (in the EU). What does that mean? Two things: One, you have a brand-bound piece of software, as a licence granted to you and not the product (buy hey, at least you get to play it now, right?). The second is where this paragraph is leading to: they just extended the Copyright on that game, the ideas, mythos within and programming, excluding changes in Copyright law in the meantime, by FIFTEEN YEARS. This means that under copyright law that Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain will remain under copyright at least until 2106. That’s excluding the mythos, idealogies and the characters themselves which will no doubt get renews in another way further down the line (all I want to see of LoK is the final act, as Defiance left a lot of unanswered questions).

But this is to protect commercial interests. Joe Bloggs downloading a Mega Drive emulator and playing the hell out of every Mega Drive/Genesis game in existence is really of no concern to Sega. But if a commercial product comes out with those games on, even the stupidly obscure ones, you have to license that stuff. And all that money goes to the companies that developed/published the content, not the people. People can make music with a sample of someone else’s music, but don’t dare let them use it to make money (Case in point, courtesy once again of Dan Bull, ‘Copyright law is being used to silence criticism of Copyright Law’). You have a film playing in the background on a TV behind you while you’re vlogging? Best pony up to the movie labels because you didn’t have permission to accidentally record a spontaneous thought with their blurred, overly bright images and their tinny, barely audible music in the background.

This, in my opinion, is where copyright breaks down and breaks down hard. Previously only big companies with oodles of cash and supercomputers that these days can fit into a server or two could make music, film or games. Now anyone with an idea and a coding book can write a game, anyone with a decent sense of music can make the next big seller, and anyone with a camcorder and a decent computer could make a film that makes waves. Justin Bieber was found on Youtube, and the labels were quick to sweep him up. Why? Because big companies are afraid of losing the business they spent years dominating. Minecraft was the biggest selling XBLA game of 2012, and 4th most played in the same year, but on a platform owned by a big company. The same company that Notch (from Mojang, the group that made Minecraft) derided the latest OS product, claiming it would ruin the PC as an open platform

Got an email from microsoft, wanting to help “certify” minecraft for win 8. I told them to stop trying to ruin the pc as an open platform.

— Markus Persson (@notch) September 27, 2012

The Internet is no longer the global directory, the global resource or the global village. It is the Global Equaliser for everyone with an idea. And as such, it’s now a threat so the big companies and governments want to control it so the Record, TV, Film and Game industries (essentially anything with a big fat cheque to write) can continue their monopolising practices by locking it down and refusing to let anyone in the metaphorical playground, much less play with their equally-metaphorical ball.

Watch when the GameStick or Ouya, or even Project Shield comes out. Android will be a fully fledged games console (twice) and a handheld. Android is a Free OS, with no cost to write, compile, install or advertise. Outside of Google taking their cut for keeping the Play Marketplace open, or perhaps the device manufacturers for keeping their own marketplace, the maker keeps every penny (as it stands; this could change with access to drivers/platform specific SDKs, which I hope won’t happen). It’s not the end result, but it’s a start.

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It’s been a while since I’ve been to an event. We’re probably talking years at this point. But when TNA was hosting it’s Road to Lockdown Tour (aka Maximum Impact V) and was bringing it to Nottingham I couldn’t resist. The ticket was £45, but it turns out the tiered seats could’ve been £22.50. But being that close to the ring was worth it. Apparently they won’t be coming back to Nottingham next year, so it was worth spending the extra cash.

I would like to apologise beforehand for my photos. I was meant to be getting a Nexus 4 the previous week but I ended up getting it the morning after the event. Typical, and I made my feelings known. Anyway.

There was no promo faff like there is on Impact! itself. This was just match after match and it was great. The matches were (winners in bold):

• Tag Team Championship: Bad Influence (Christopher Daniels and Kazarian) vs. Chavo Guerrero & Hernandez (c)
• British Boot Camp Rematch: Rockstar Spud vs. Party Marty Scurll
• Knockouts (Velvet Sky as Referee): Gail Kim & Tara vs. The Blossom Twins
  
• X Division Championship: Zema Ion vs. Rob Van Dam (c)
• Tag Match: Austin Aries & Bobby Roode vs. James Storm & Magnus
• Cage Match: Devon & DOC vs. Sting & Kurt Angle (intervention by A&8s and Bully Ray)

 I can’t remember it all (I’m writing this a few days after like an idiot) so I will try and recall 10 highlights.

1. Velvet let the Pigeons Loose for ONE side of the audience. How disappointing was that?
2. Zema Ion got “Carlito!” chants and shouts of “That’s Not Cool!” and “Where’s your apple?!” through his match. Yes, the crowd was ribbing him. Props to Ion for not taking it badly.
3. Rockstar Spud didn’t sit well with me. I hadn’t watched British Boot Camp so I didn’t have the opportunity to get used to his mannerisms and ways of speaking, but still. He’s good, but he’s got just enough weirdness to stand out. Maybe that’s the point of it.
4. “Beer!” “Money!” chants went for way longer than Roode anticipated by the looks of it. They are the two highest ranking TNA-made main eventers at the moment, so I’m hoping the crowds get TNA to realise that wrestling fans was a ‘One Time Only’ reunion of Beer Money.
5. Magnus got the second biggest pop of the night, in my opinion. It was close between him and Sting, but that’s because he’s a hometown favourite.
6. Bobby Roode got the spittle knocked out of him in his match. Twice. And he did a Flair Flop. “Whoo!” resounded after he did it.
7. The Blossom Twins are worthy of being on the Knockouts Roster. They would being legitimacy to the Knockouts Tag Team Championship like no other.
8. No Samoa Joe. And I wore my Submission Machine t-shirt. Also not a single chop. So one “Whoo!” courtesy of Bobby Roode was that it other than just the Whoo-off between sections of the crowd.
9. Aces and Eights had no place touring with the rest of the TNA roster. The biggest break in Kayfabe would be them and the roster on the same plane. They even came down the ramp; they should’ve come in through the Arena entrance and demanded a match.
10. Jeremy Borash was awesome. You don’t see him so often on the main show aside from announcing the Main Events, but having him interact with the crowd while in with the crowd was awesome.

Watch February 10th after Impact! to see the special on the Nottingham show. Only half an hour, but that they’re doing this at all has to be appreciated.

All in all, I thought it was a great show. A lot of people who went to the Fan Interaction disagreed with the aspect they had paid extra for. No programme despite it being advertised as a £10′s worth freebie, a conveyor-belt-esque style of meeting with a barrier and tables separating the stars and the fans, and more. Apparently that was TNA’s decision, but I have no idea and since I couldn’t get the Fan Interaction Tickets in time, I feel like I might have dodged a bullet a bit.

But like I said, great show. Glad to see no Promos taking up time, got a solid card with representation from big stars considering the venue. Am I glad my first house show was a TNA one? Hell yes. WWE would have less respect for the UK when TNA is the most popular wrestling brand over here. Not to mention we apparently treat the Impact! roster better here than in the US. No canned heat required, which the Impact Zone must envy.

Without further ado, these are the best pictures I could get. Like I said, camera on Desire HD is bad compared to what I had in the post. Despite it being in stock, it disappeared from stock for nearly two weeks. I had to get that out there.

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With Impact! Wrestling’s Road to Lockdown UK tour happening this week I thought it would finally be time to write an entry on what I have so far. I plan on buying more though, and not only because it turns out a colleague’s son is a big wrestling fan and it would be cruel not to bring something back.

UPS really tried to do me over with this parcel. They tried to charge me £51 for £40 worth of merchandise, not once but twice. The second time happened just recently, a month after I got the package delivered. They filled in paperwork incorrectly, making the package a ‘Complex Entry’ since it apparently had two countries of origin or something like that. Life lesson for you: always double-check charges. What made it even more insulting was that they tried to make me pay cash on delivery. No way in hell was I paying it.

Anyway, enough moaning, here’s the haul.

The T-Shirts I ordered; Winged Warrior, Submission Machine, There Can Only Be One, A-Double Pink, Impact Ice

The rest: Best of X-Division Vol. 1&2, Best of AJ Styles Vol. 2, Fandaemonium: Beer Money & MCMG, Cross the Line Triple Pack 3, and the Limited Edition Coin

I bought this lot during the Black November sale. Every t-shirt was $5 or less, and each DVD was equally good value. The coin I bought because it is a piece of memorabilia. I regret it a little because they’re putting Jeff Hardy on the front of it when it should be AJ, MMG, Beer Money or anyone else that is synonymous with the brand and not someone who bounces between the two companies because of the infamous example of him unable to stay clean at Victory Road ’11.

Having only watched one of the DVDs up until now (Phenomenal Vol 2.), I can only say that what I have watched so far has been stellar. I can’t wait to watch Fandimonium as TNA was famous for two things up until recently: Tag Teams and the X-Division. The Cross the Line DVD was because it featured the Motorcity Machineguns, Kurt Angle, AJ Styles and (the only wrestler I like watching in WWE) Christian Cage.

Writing this is just getting me more psyched for Thursday. From what I can see A-Double, Roode, James Storm, Sting and Kurt Angle are down for the event in Nottingham. I hope I get to see AJ Styles and Samoa Joe too. #JGKY

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I’m bringing back the Five Minute Rants as a way to get things written that would normally just get lost in my head later in the day. I don’t keep a notebook with me (something I really should do), so I’ll just throw five minutes into an entry and see how it is. Then either develop it into a full entry or correct the spelling and grammar, put an image on and post it as a 5MR. Five Minute Rants are literally that, and should be seen as raw presentation of an abruptly formed opinion.

I believe that a support character should at least attempt to support. I played Priest in Ragnarok Online, a Cleric, Chanter and a support based Spiritmaster in Aion Online, Volus in Mass Effect, even down to support builds in Call of Duty and Chromehounds, yet there are people who still think it is best to go it alone. You know that I like Awesomenauts, right? Well Voltar is the support specialist. There are people who will say that Yuri is also a support character given that he can use his powers to heal people, but Voltar is the only support character that has no offensive weapon by default. This means that he can only support at the start of the game. He heals, he gets Solar and only then can get upgrades to defend himself.

So why is it that with archetypes like this do I see people playing Voltar that aren’t even willing to hit the left mouse button to heal me just so I don’t die, even if they have no interest in healing me to full health?! I used to get this all the time in MMOs where the support characters would save themselves and not save others. I used to play a very team-based Spiritmaster with the ability to heal people, buff people and give people more Mana. I used this last skill on my Clerics as it allowed them to heal without worrying about running out of magic and when fighting Padmarashka in Aion me using this skill became a key part of the strategy. But in PvP I constantly heard about Clerics that were bad to group up with, or Chanters that had offensive-centric mantras that were for soloing when they were definitely in a team. It just didn’t make any sense.

I don’t play a lot of those types of games anymore, I’ll admit. But when I do play them and see people not supporting others when I do, it just drives me insane. I’m putting myself on the line to try to get people out a mess. Hell, even when I’m not playing support I’ll support other people. Denying the enemy a kill can be seen as more productive than getting a kill yourself. Facerolling without support is possible but it’s only when you see a group of people who actually help each other that they really excel. There were legions in Aion specifically designed for those that would support each other, like The Cube on Perento.

So forgive me when I see a Voltar that doesn’t buy into anything but offensive, or a Yuri that flies away to save his own skin and start swearing. Save me, for God’s sake, and I’ll help you get your damn kill.

The post Five Minute Rant: Y U NO SUPPORT?! appeared first on KAECYUS - KAECY/dot/US.

“It’s Sale time! No Steam! No!” “Shut up and take my money!” ”Buy ALL the games!” “Brace yourself. The Steam Sale is coming.” “Buy game during sale. Never play it.” “Keep Calm and Add to Cart.”

There is a reason all these Steam Sale memes exist, especially on Youtube.

So for the last sixteen days we’ve been at the mercy of Steam probing our wallets for any loose change, bank notes, debit cards and anything else that can hold any kind of currency. Normally I’m pretty good at avoiding these sales as I’m extremely picky about what I play. Not to mention until April I didn’t really have a good machine to play anything on and was restricted to things like Torchlight, Aion on lower settings and pretty much anything Source-ran. I missed the Autumn Sale by point-blank ignoring it because I was not wanting to fall for the trap, and to be honest I regretted it a little. The Summer Sale was a different story, but I actually got a few deals on series I was already interested in.

This Winter I wasn’t so resilient. Without further ado, let me reveal the additions to my Pile of Shame.

• Rainbow Six 3: Gold – Always been a fan of R6. I played the demo I had of the first from Ultimate PC until the disc was unreadable, and I had the console version of Rainbow Six 3 (the one with the cool voice commands) on the Xbox with the bundle my parents bought me for christmas one year.
• Mirror’s Edge – I already own this on the 360 after buying it on release day. I tried it out at the Eurogamer Expo in 2008 and loved it. I also loved how unique it was, and buying it for the PC was purely for the extra graphical power my PC has. The game is about visuals, so to deny the best visual experience would be a disservice to DICE and to EA when they (for once) had a brand new genre, let alone IP.
• Tom Clancy’s EndWar – I have it, once again, already on the 360. This is my guilty pleasure game. I will say no more.
• SimCity 4 Deluxe – Bought it on TotalBiscuit’s recommendation. I liked SimCity 2000 and 3000, plus I have no interest in persistent online DRM, so SimCity 4 is the latest one I can play.
• Awesomenauts – You already know I like this game. A Saturday-Morning-Cartoon-esque take on the MOBA genre with enough depth to keep me playing. I like this game so much I also bought it for a friend to play with me. Expect a few videos of me playing this.
• Castle Crashers – This is a curiosity. I never bought it on XBLA (I have very little interest in console-bound downloadable titles. Steam is about as DRM-like as I will accept), and I wanted to try it out. So seeing it on sale for cheap was a no-brainer.
• Hotline Miami – Another curiosity. Hotline Miami has been raved about like Retro City Rampage. I missed that one, so this was my redemption. Still not played it yet.
• L.A. Noire Complete Edition – This is a game I’ve always wanted to play. The technology aspect of the lip-syncing had me on its own. It’s a Rockstar PC port which isn’t necessarily a good thing but in the same breath it’s a statement purchase. Like Mirror’s Edge, I bought it to make a statement that I find this interesting and want more of it. But not enough to buy it at full price.
• Deus Ex: Human Revolution & DLC – Another recommendation by TotalBiscuit, and for the price it was a steal. The only thing I keep hearing about are the outsourced Bosses. But I can live with that.
• Fable The Lost Chapters – I honestly bought this because I wanted to play Fable on the original Xbox, when Molyneux had his total auteur control. But I was young, broke, and in the early stages of Train2Game on a third less wage than I am now.
• Awesomenauts (again) – I told you I bought it for a friend. I also bought three skins for Lonestar, Voltar and Raelynn so I have bought a bit more in support of Ronimo.

I doubt I will be buying anything during the Encore sale, where the most popular deals return. Borderlands 2 doesn’t interest me at it’s discounted price. I might get Ace of Spades, though. It looks like Minecraft with guns and I won’t lie. Minecraft with guns sounds awesome. If you’re quick, the Encore sale is still on until Monday.

On the whole though, this sale just didn’t seem as varied as ones before it and the amount of repeated Daily Deals, Flash Sales and Community Choice was high enough for me to note and question. But money off is money off, so I won’t complain. I wouldn’t mind another dark horse game or two, but that’s just me.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to climb my Pile of Shame and select a game from its multiplying-like-Tribbles mass of titles.

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Yes, I’m late to the party. I’m used to that already. Honestly though, to anyone and everyone that visits this blog I wish a Happy New Year, and I hope the hard work you put in this year is rewarded in kind.

I wanted to write something last night but the fact was that I couldn’t get it down properly. It’s about my New Year’s Resolutions. I’ve not written them down in a public format like this before so I figured I’d get it right. I’m going to do three. One for me, one for other people, and a goal.

• For me, it’s Procrastinate Less. I’m not saying don’t procrastinate at all, because that’s impossible for someone like me. The irony in writing an article mentioning New Year, Resolutions and Procrastination in an entry on January 2nd isn’t lost on me either. I’m going to make a promise to post something here at least once every two weeks. If I can do it weekly then that’s great but 26 blog posts in a year is nowhere near as outlandish as doing one a day like a lot of people do. Even if it’s just posting a video I uploaded or something similar, it’s worth noting.
• For others, it’s Appreciate More. This is more in the sense of my attitude. I’m a perfectionist but I won’t say that during a job interview. I will tell the truth and say that I worry about the little things too much to notice the big things going wrong. Wood for the trees, glass for the windows, that sort of thing. I need to see the general picture more and encourage myself to act on that, rather than the little things that get on my nerves. And work shouldn’t be that place full of little things going wrong. I need to put a bottleneck on my criticism and appreciate what people do more.
• And for a goal, I want to Lose my Remaining L-Plates. The red ‘L’ emblazoned on the front and back of Ezzy are a target for drivers who think they can push me around on the road because they’re bigger. Fact is I got my full car licence last year. This year I want to get my full bike licence.

2013, without trying to sound cliche, is going to be a reboot for what I want to do online. I still need to get my motorcycle off it’s loan, and to fulfil my resolution that’s a sum of £600. While I can’t spread my wings and get my own place (I’m one of those considered under-employed, I assume), I can restore some of my identity online that I’ve since lost. I’m going to start uploading videos to Youtube soon, and hopefully get more enjoyment out of it than I did previously. I had so much to show at that point but no drive to do so. Now it is the other way around, but in my opinion is an equal challenge.

Let’s talk about this month, while we’re at it. I’ve got the TNA Road to Lock Down in Nottingham coming up near the end of the month. It’s my first live event and I’m glad it’s a TNA one. WWE felt a lot more like a spectacle since I last watched it. That was almost six months ago now, because the product got so stale that I couldn’t deal with it, and that was with Punk and Danielson at the top of their games. I’ll show off my ShopTNA order soon as well, I promise. Since this doesn’t count towards my fortnightly post, I’ve got a reason to finally take pictures of it all.

Now, because it’s New Year time, watch the Oban fireworks ‘problem’ from 2011. All the fireworks going off at once.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

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It takes a lot to hold my interest in an online game for more than a week or two. Black Ops 2 failed miserably, and stands as this years big flop. But I want to talk about a game that I was genuinely surprised at loving so much.

Awesomenauts is something that should, in theory, turn me off it in record time. It’s a MOBA, and when I think of MOBAs I think of either DOTA (a game that I am still really unable to get into simply from the barrier to entry and elitist community) or League of Legends. The latter held my interest for a while before I started to feel that it was too slow and deliberate. Awesomenauts makes MOBA fun for me again, and I have to congratulate it on that.

Simply put, you get to the enemies’ Drill Core (Nexus) by going through Turrets (Towers) with Drones (Minions) as a renewable source of offensive power. Same as LoL, right? Take out Jungling altogether; a big chore for me. Next, make all the characters free and available within about six hours of play; charging only for skins that might change the characters’ signature theme music. Oh, did I mention each character has a Killstreak theme, and the soundtrack is, indeed, Awesome? The big plus for the game is that it is fast but still tactical. Making it a 2D game was a stroke of genius, as is the Saturday morning cartoon feel of the graphics and the Awesomenauts themselves.

The game is currently on sale for $5 or £3.50, but you can get a three player pack for double that on Steam.

I play a lot as Voltar the Omniscient and Raelynn, specialising in healing and PvP respectively, but even Voltar can be nasty in ‘Naut warfare. Raelynn even manages to squeeze in a Full Metal Jacket reference! I’m on Steam as kaecyus, and I don’t hide my presence so invite me to a game! I’m still in League 9, but I’m more than happy to support as Voltar.

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