Iota

I've been turning my hand to making some videos just recently, some with me blabbering over the top of them, some without. Exploring what feels good for me to do, experimenting, playing the field, spreading my bets(?). I'm sure I'll find something among the hours upon hours I intend to devote to my new worthy goals of talking about video games, that sits well with me as a player and as someone talking over the top of footage of people playing them sexy video games.

Theta

Ahhh, the joys of PC game modifications! Some 14 years after the original release on its home format, a small group of clever guys have finally unleashed version 1.0 of the DREAMCAST version of this seminal game, 'Dreamcast version? What're you talking about, there was that weird PS2 one but I ain't ever seen a Dreamcast copy!'. And you would be well within your rights to say that, because it never made it to market, a lot of the work done for that game found its way into the PS2 version as I understand it. Either way, through the power of personal computing, you can now experiencing this long lost iteration of Half Life!

If you'd rather not do that, you can of course just watch me play it instead. You'll find information in the video description on how to try this out for yourself.

They're waiting for you Gordon...in the test chamber...

Eta

The above is a test of the stripped down YouTube player (which only allows play and pause functionality), which is also the first video in my series of Long Looks! For the next several episodes I'll be playing through Anno 2070.

I'm also very, very glad to hear of the news regarding the release window for Guild Wars 2...

"In February we’ll invite select press to participate in beta testing, and in March and April we’ll aggressively ramp up the size of our beta test events so that many of you will have a chance to participate. And of course, this all leads to the release of Guild Wars 2 later this year."

This might be the first MMO I sink some real time into, ever since Anarchy Online back in 2001.

Zeta

Missed my post for the yesterday, whoops. I've been spending that time mucking around with recording game footage, video upload solutions and learning more about CSS.

Also, my website will be called heightofthegame.com.

To that end, here is my footage from The Darkness II PC demo, it seems like a cool continuation from the original. Although I've yet to fully adjust to the new art style, Digital Extremes are throwing down dark and gory with their vision of the game.

Digamma

All these games and more can be YOURS!

With reports that Battlefield 3 on the PC has gone right down the shitter recently, and the mass outcry from legitimate gamers getting banned by the nefarious hand of the hacker elite, it seems like everything is conspiring against our plucky band of brave PC gamers.

But fear not!

There are other ways to play!

If near-future murder simulators/tea plantation management are your thing, then Anno 2070 is the game for you! To that end, I am pleased to announce that I will be playing through and recording Anno 2070 for all. Also, the name for my website has been chosen, now I just have to learn web design for about a year in order to get something worth posting onto the widest of world wide webs.

Epsilon

To Freely Play Where No One Has Freely Played Before...except...for all those other free to play MMOs.

After putting in around a dozen hours into this game, I feel I can come away saying that I mostly enjoyed myself with this space-based travelling simulator. As I had briefly mentioned before, the space-based combat is really the most enjoyable part of the whole game, the combat mechanics have you managing multi-directional shield strength, buffs and powers from your multiple bridge consoles (these are denoted by the Bridge Officers that you have manning particular subsystems, a science officer in command of a science console will give you access to the Tachyon Beam power, which will help drain enemy shields), your Captain skills to help boost damage or speed, the 3D positioning of your ship in relation to your opponent/s. And all of things are accompanied by above average sights and sounds, the sense of space and scope in these battles is impressive and works well with the naval-style engagements. For example, you are letting loose with your phaser arrays at distances of around 10km or so, before closing in for barrages of photon or quantum torpedoes, all the while engaging small fighter style craft as well as bigger frigate and cruiser style ships.

The other parts of the game are mostly just average, utilitarian, they serve their purpose just fine, but nothing in the plot is grabbing me to the degree of a finely crafted Bioware RPG, for example. That is, of course, not exactly a fair criticism to level at a large scale server-side focussed game (except Bioware have just come out with this other Dreams into Old Knights Republic MMO thingy). The gear in this game is also great for those wanting to get all up in the differences between Mk II and Mk III twin phaser arrays, the techno-babble side of Star Trek fits in perfectly with the specifics of the loot.

It takes a loooooong time to fly around the environments, but in many cases it's a pleasure to do so!

Delta

I put up a test YouTube video on my video page for Star Trek Online yesterday, I wanted to see how my recording and compression settings worked out on a 720p video. It seems all okay at the other end, I just need to figure out the best way to record my voice over the top of it as well, should I record live audio through a separate program (to allow me to balance levels), use the external source option in FRAPS, or put down an audio track whilst watching the playback of the footage? Hmm...

Guild Wars 2 is looming large in my mind, with confirmation that they are now in the planning stages for the open beta. That seems the perfect game to do a long form video series on, no monthly charges, looks and sounds gorgeous, has utterly masterful changes to the standard class/role structure inherent to the style of gameplay and balance found in the vast majority of MMOs. I really fancy writing up more about the subject, I think I'll save that for a new, meatier post in the future.

The sleeper will awaken...sometime in 2012...I hope!

Gamma

Wow, Rayman Origins really is just a stunning gaming experience from top to bottom, it fills your ear holes with delicious and exciting sounds and your retinas with vivid fun visuals. And just like the first Rayman game it handles very nicely too, a tricky thing to nail in a 2D platformer; and I think Ubisoft have pulled it off here. A rare occurrence if you consider the style of game that they have been attaching to the more recent Rayman games, namely those involving the pesky little Rabbids.

This is what can happen when you let one of your older game designers (a one Michel Ancel in this case) take the reigns back on a somewhat tired and beaten up franchise, one that had been previously taken away from him for quite some time. The whole Raving Rabbids era of games, whilst they never really interested or entertained me personally, obviously sold well enough to allow Ubisoft to keep on making them. I do however think it's plainly clear as to the level of quality that shines through on the 2D platforming iterations of the Rayman franchise. And Origins certainly ranks up there alongside the written-in-stone classics of the genre, a dash of nostalgia mixed in with modern gaming technology and design, creates a games that just feels yummy to play.

Beta

I'm going to start a real, big boy website, I don’t have a name for it quite yet, but it’ll all fall into place soon enough. I think an array of video content (in the form of game-long reviews, similar to a Let’s Play but with in-depth critique along the way, as well as segments of video games to just show off particularly awesome things), brilliant images taken from brilliant games, some kind of audio recording extravaganza, along with just plain ol’ words voicing my opinions of various electronical games.

What has been taking up a fair chunk of time just recently, and no one is more surprised by this than me, is Star Trek Online (which went free to play for the general public on the 17th of January). Even before the move to this price point, the thing to come to this game was the space combat, and that doesn’t seem to have changed in the two years since its initial release. The ship-to-ship combat is what I’m finding most enjoyable about the game thus far, probably enjoyable enough to record some video of me yelling 'Fire! Fire! Fire!'.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Saints Row the Third have been kind to me over the festive period, I hear people like those games too.

Alpha

I am going to start writing about the video games that I love and hate, I don't know why it's never occurred to me to have not started doing this before now, very strange. The internet (at large) and gaming (in general) have both been a huge part of my life, having poured more hours into savouring the sweet and sour sides of these pastimes for so many years I have a swirling nexus of thoughts and feelings on gaming that I just feel like putting down on crisp white black internet paper. So, here we go...join me won't you?

Where are we heading to? Let's try the second star to the right, and straight on till morning.