tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62310093937495588272024-03-19T03:22:30.773-07:00NonCasualGamerNot your typical video game reviews.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-53588746803491598852011-06-07T08:24:00.000-07:002011-06-07T08:24:56.612-07:00Ragnarok Online<div style="text-align: left;">This is a very old MMORPG made by the Korean company Gravity. It was released in 2002 and is still played by people worldwide although its popularity is decreasing due to various reasons. It also became pretty much free to play, except the VIP servers. This is an MMO that I spent the most time on and will probably spend more since I never get bored of it. That's why I just couldn't resist but writing a review of it :]</div><br />
<b>Setting</b><br />
The world of Ragnarok takes place in a medieval world with a lot of futuristic elements and mainly borrows from Norse mythology. There are many interesting quests that will keep you occupied. Either defreezing a wizard in an ice dungeon, freeing a girl in Thor's volcano or even unraveling the mysteries of a village full of ghosts, are only some of the quests available to you. However, since it is an old game there are still bugs in some quests and you'll find yourself at a loss since you don't get an explicit quest to-do list like in most MMO's, but instead you have to talk to NPCs (non-player characters) to get more information every time. For the lazy people, there are plenty of guides and walkthroughs out there for RO quests so don't let this discourage you.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.nickyee.com/daedalus/archives/05_01_screens/image001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="http://www.nickyee.com/daedalus/archives/05_01_screens/image001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">You can see the choppy graphics and the fake 3D easily here.</div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"><b>Gameplay</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Since this is a MMORPG, the main goal is to increase your character's level by killing monsters and acquire new equipment. Every RO player wants to perfect his character "build" to use the full potential of his skills. The gameplay can be divided into two main branches: Player vs Monster and Player vs Player. The former is somewhat necessary to be good at the latter, but many players prefer one over the other. PvM is all about killing monsters and organizing "parties" for hard dungeons. Partying is also necessary to kill some of the hard Boss monsters, so teamwork is essential.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">PvP consists of many parts as well. There are PvP arenas, where players can test their skills against other players in a typically small room. There is also something called BattleGrounds, a recent update that added a special location where players join teams and play against each other in various game modes. Finally, there is the War of Emperium, an event that usually takes place twice a week when guilds confront each other in order to secure a castle. The guilds that successfully protected and kept a castle by the end of WoE will receive many reward items throughout the week and will have access to the respective guild dungeons, which have unique and rare monsters.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Unfortunately, this game is very vulnerable to hacking and "bots," programs that play instead of a player, allowing him to leave his computer and go to school, for example, while his character automatically levels up. Various exploits have already been fixed, but people always find new ways to cheat and it can be quite frustrating to honest players.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Visuals and Sound</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">It is an old game and its graphics are not even comparable to some of the newer MMOs, but there are captivating sights, although you don't come across those very often. The game isn't even fully 3D, since rotating the view around your character only shows around 10 different angle views (you'd understand if you played the game) and some movement/skill animations are often primitive and choppy. However, the game offers some great background music, which changes depending on your location. Even if you don't like it, you can always turn it off.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Another thing to mention is all the art and fanart that comes with Ragnarok Online. Just do a google image search and you'll see plenty of awesome character drawings (for example hot anime chicks dressed up as a priest or gypsy). Ragnarok Online is probably the MMO that inspires the most real life dress-ups during anime or video game conventions, but this is a rather controversial issue since some people love it and many people find it weird and childish.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://img1.lln.crunchyroll.com/i/spire3/02222008/9/9/b/8/99b810c7505840_full.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://img1.lln.crunchyroll.com/i/spire3/02222008/9/9/b/8/99b810c7505840_full.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">From left to right the classes are: Champion, Lord Knight, Whitesmith, Creator and Assassin Cross.</div><div style="text-align: center;">Isn't that hot?</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><b>Servers</b></div><div style="text-align: left;">Another thing I want to discuss is the multitude of servers there are running RO. The official servers have the latest updates (not necessarily a good thing), the most reliable hardware and sometimes a lot of players, but lately many people have been considering playing on private servers, which often include various customizations, improvements and higher "rates" for experience gain and item drop chance. Hence, depending on what kind of gamer you are, you'll need to decide on which server to play since you will get a different game experience depending on the choice you make.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Lastly, I'd like to warn some people that this game is dying and gets very few new players. I do encourage you to start playing it but you'll be a newbie among thousands of veterans, so it might be a little too competitive for some. The server communities often have a lot of nice people who are willing to help newbies though, so don't give up. The best way to start playing this game is on a friend's server. Join his guild and get all the help you can get, and you will then get a great game experience :]</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-41246817431826446012011-05-30T16:06:00.000-07:002011-06-01T19:56:56.403-07:00Improve Your GamingAlthough this is a game review blog, I think that any gamer needs to keep their computer in top notch shape to get the best out of their games and avoid lag which reduces gaming time :] By this I'm talking about software maintenance and hardware maintenance. Some of these tips may be pretty obvious but some may be new and really helpful even to veteran gamers, so let me know what you think in the comments below.<br />
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<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Hardware</span></b><br />
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1. <b>Remove the dust accumulated in your computer</b>. It traps heat and prevents air circulation. And it is very important to keep things <i>cool</i> in your computer. You can use an air spraycan (sold in most computer component stores) or just blow it off (close your eyes when you do it). It's not as complicated as it sounds. In the worst case, you'll need to unscrew some screws to open the case, but some more advanced cases have fine nets that trap the dust, which can be easily removed without unscrewing anything (like my case). I recommend doing this once a month but it can vary from one PC to another.<br />
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2. <b>Clean your CDs.</b> If you play games from a CD (which is rather uncommon nowadays) or actively use CDs/DVDs/BluRay for burning/movies/etc, you might get corrupted files and your movies might skip if your CD is dirty. The best way is to clean with tissue paper and alcohol by rubbing OUTWARDS (radially) from the center to the edges of the CD. This way, there is less chance of damaging the CD. If you're planning to buy a CD cleaner device, do your research as some of them are less effective than others. Clean your CDs when they are noticeably dirty or have fingerprints on them.<br />
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3. <b>Upgrade your computer components.</b> Now this is a little advanced and might require some reading and research, but there are other alternatives if you're scared of touching anything inside your computer. First of all, if you have an old computer (pentium III and older) it is not really worth upgrading it since it's equivalent to buying a new engine for your 1990 Honda Civic, or in other words not worth it. The best and probably easiest upgrade you can do is upgrade your RAM. It can cost you easily under 80 dollars and allow you to run more programs at the same time before your computer slows down considerably. It can also be as simple as opening your computer and plugging the RAM stick into the appropriate place. However, you have to consider compatibility so don't just go and buy the first RAM stick you see! Consult a professional or do some research first.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">This is what a RAM stick looks like.</div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Software</span></b><br />
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4. <b>Defragment your hard drives.</b> This operation "organizes" the data in your hard drives and makes it easier to access files. This will generally improve responsiveness and reduce the time it takes to open certain programs and access certain files. The simplest way is to use the defragmenter included with your operating system, which does almost the same thing as any other software. I recommend doing it once in two months, since it's a lengthy operation. WARNING: if you have a solid state drive, DO NOT defragment it since it shortens its life span. If you don't know what a solid state drive is, you probably don't have one.<br />
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5. <b>CCleaner</b> is a nifty free software that cleans your registry and does a good general "housekeeping" in your computer. Google it up and download it. To use it, all you need to do is right click on your garbage bin and choose "run CCleaner" and it will do everything without any other intervention from your part. The best registry tool for lazy people! It works in the background and doesn't take many computer resources. It can also free up a considerable amount of disk space so use it often, preferably at least once a week.<br />
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6. <b>GameBooster</b> is another free program, but it's designed to "give priority" to a video game and shut down unnecessary processes temporarily. It's very useful if you have an older computer and the new version is very user-friendly. Activate it every time you want to play a graphic-intensive game but don't leave it on at all times, since you won't be able to use basic services such as printing!<br />
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7. <b>Keep your computer clean from Malware and Viruses.</b> My personal combination is Microsoft Security Essentials (for viruses) alongside the basic windows firewall (against hackers) since it's a good balance of protection, ease of use and computer resources. I also periodically use Spybot, a software that's been around for centuries and that's really effective at removing malware. It's also free so definitely worth a shot. Lastly, I discourage the use of P2P programs such as Limewire or Kazaa (not sure it still exists) as those are filled with viruses and malware and the files that seem safe are often deceiving! In general, be smart and careful with internet and think before clicking anything.<br />
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8. <b>Disable and shut down unnecessary processes.</b> Learn to check your traybar! Yes, the one that's in the bottom right of your screen. Look at every little icon and decide if you really need that application to be running or not. Applications that you need to use <i>sometimes</i> (such as nero) can be removed from the startup list without any harm (meaning they won't start every time you turn on your PC). Some programs can turn them off for you but Google is your friend for these kinds of tutorials if you don't know how to do it yourself.<br />
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I really hope this helps! I might have missed out some details but it's meant to be a really basic guide anyway. Feel free to tell me what I should add in the comments.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-78713860492937678972011-05-27T16:54:00.000-07:002011-06-01T19:58:51.477-07:00StepManiaSince I'm still not finished with SC2, I will do a quick review of a small PC game I'm quite fond of, StepMania. This a free rhythm game available for download <a href="http://www.stepmania.com/">here</a>. If you're not familiar, it's pretty much Dance Dance Revolution for your computer, and if you're not familiar with DDR, shame on you.<br />
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This is ironically a good game for casual gamers. There are many difficulty levels so new players can get the hang of it. It is also easy to acquire and start playing. Since there is no "game progress" or "endgame" like in most video games, people usually only play it for fun and/or to waste some time. It does not mean you can't get addicted to it though :]<br />
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<b>Set up</b><br />
Downloading the game alone is not enough to play. You also need to get some songs for it. There are various places where you can find them and you can even buy a CD from the website if you're interested. You can play with your keyboard or, for the advanced players, you can buy and install an actual pad and play it like real DDR. It is recommended to have a PC with decent specs, since lag will definitely make you lose in this game. WARNING: If you DO get a pad, do not drink and play this game. For some reason these two really don't go well together. I've witnessed some incidents where people seemed at least two times more drunk than they should because they played DDR while drinking. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: xx-small;">It was freaking hilarious though.</span><br />
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<b>Menu</b><br />
As you can see, this game has very flashy colors and many songs are pretty girly. HOWEVER, it does not make you gay if you're a guy and you love this game. Don't let our society's standards get into the way of your gaming! Moving on, from the menu you can see songs, difficulty level, and a timer to hurry the indecisive ones. Before even getting to the menu though, the game will need to load up all the songs you have and that can be pretty annoying on a slow PC.<br />
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<b>Features and Gameplay</b><br />
There are various options you can activate to spice up your games. These include: lyrics, custom themes and a dancing character, among other things. You can also play online against other people (recent update) or with a friend on the same keyboard. Since this is a free game and depends on support from volunteering contributors, the songs are mostly made by other players and some of them can be pretty badly done (bad arrow sync with the actual music) so make sure to check out ratings of songs before you download them.<br />
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There is also something called Flash Flash Revolution (which has been down for a long time but is now back) which is an alternative DDR-Wannabe game available online and requires no download or setup. However, it functions differently and doesn't offer as many features as StepMania. Nonetheless, it is almost as good and you can check it out <a href="http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/">here</a>.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-17230917700159388812011-05-23T21:03:00.000-07:002011-05-23T21:03:48.045-07:00StuffSorry that I haven't posted any reviews lately, but that's because I've been playing and doing lots of IRL stuff too. But if you're interested, here's the progress I made lately:<div>-18 finished missions in SC2 on normal difficulty, fun so far, didn't try multiplayer though.</div><div>-Started Crysis 2 on hard before the end of polls and now kind of stopped somewhere halfway through the game. I was sure it was going to be one of the top voted games but now I kind of feel bad playing it if I'm not reviewing it :S</div><div>-Barely started The Witcher 2 on normal difficulty and damn it's easy to die in this game. Well, better than being too easy :]</div><div>-Been playing Tetris Battle on Facebook since it's just so addicting.</div><div>-Watched second season of The Big Bang Theory and half of Samurai Champloo (really funny anime, I recommend).</div><div><br />
</div><div>Also, please note that I won't be able to post reviews as often as when I started, since I'm going to be more busy IRL and I've run out of reviewable games I finished lately. Don't worry, I'll still be around and let you guys know what's happening. Cheers.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-10519769056721569022011-05-19T18:01:00.000-07:002011-06-01T19:59:21.227-07:00League of LegendsLeague of Legends is a free to play multiplayer game brought to you by Riot. It is one of few games that belong to a genre that is very new to the world of video games: DotA style.<br />
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For those of you who are unfamiliar, DotA (long for Defense of the Ancients) is a special scenario from the real time strategy game Warcraft III, where the player's goal is to defeat the enemy's "ancient" in the other corner of the map with the help of his champion and AI-controlled small helpers. So what happened is that avid DotA players realized how fun this scenario is and many of them decided to branch out and make new similar games, and eventually this movement evolved into something more than just a sub-genre of RTS games.<br />
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Now I'm not a pro DotA or LoL player, but I believe that I played enough of LoL to get a good image and understanding of this game, but by no means is this an in-depth review. Also, due to the nature of the game, I will divide my review into two parts: In-game and Summoner Menu.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/league-of-legends-screenshot-03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="199" src="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/league-of-legends-screenshot-03.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Things get really hot when you reach the enemy's camp<br />
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</div><b>In-game</b><br />
You have the choice to play against players or AI. In either case, it's 3vs3 or 5vs5. Similarly to DotA, your goal is to control your champion, level it up, get new items, and with the help of your teammates, destroy the enemy's most important building, the nexus. Sounds simple, right? Well it's not. The whole reason why this genre became popular is because of all the necessary skill involved in controlling your champion. Moving it in the wrong direction or using the wrong skill will often cost you your life, and teamwork is essential. Advanced players talk about tactic elements such as jungling, area control, feeding, ganking, etc. This shows how complex and professional LoL can get.<br />
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There is not much to say about visuals and sound. It's decent looking for an online game although some champion drawings seem awkward at times and some menu colors make me wonder of which sexual orientation that developer was. Obviously this game does not require a strong video card, but on the other hand a good internet connection is very important, since nobody likes players who disconnect all the time or who complain about dying due to "lag."<br />
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Personally, the game is pretty fun and addicting but there are some things I dislike. First, it gets repetitive and boring. Due to lack of game modes and maps, you often end up playing the same exact game but with different people. Most new players will get turned off by this, but the ones that keep going are motivated to play to increase their summoner level, to get new stuff at the store and most importantly, to increase their ranking. Secondly, the community is mostly made up of snobs, assholes and mutes. Some say that the European server has nicer people, but it's still arguable.<br />
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<b>Summoner Menu</b><br />
When you're not actually playing in a match, there are many other things you can do. These include:<br />
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<ul><li>A store where you can purchase runes (that give bonuses to your champion), new champions, cash items (such as exp boosts and champion skins) and new spells, among other things.</li>
<li>Acquire new passive abilities as your summoner level increases.</li>
<li>View your personal stats, ranking, etc.</li>
<li>Check out the LoL lore, which includes champion backgrounds and various "news articles" straight from the world of LoL.</li>
</ul><div>As you might have noticed, there are some RPG elements which give some players an advantage over others simply because they played longer, BUT it is not all that significant compared to how much actual SKILL counts. So if you consider yourself a CASUAL player and you don't want to be at a disadvantage against kids who have no lives, you can STILL have fun and win.</div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One last thing: this is a very <b>elitist</b> and <b>competitive</b> game so if you have an abundance of testosterone and the speed comparable to a pro Star Craft player, you will most likely love this game and won't mind its flaws.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com32tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-62138260786481211212011-05-17T15:01:00.000-07:002011-05-17T20:32:32.126-07:00Small UpdateThe vote results are in! I decided to keep the three leading games and review them in the following weeks and in the following order:<br />
Starcraft 2<br />
The Witcher 2<br />
Fable 3<br />
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Note that the last two are coming out TODAY on PC and so it will take some time before I get my hands on them and finish them, and only then do my review.<br />
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Also, unfortunately I won't be able to do a review of either NDS Zelda game, which I promised I'd do in my Intro post. My DS was broken by my brother and I'm rather short on funds to buy a new one.<br />
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"But then, what will you review, Vav?"<br />
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Luckily for you, I prepared a little list of old/recent games of various genres that I'm interested in reviewing. Just as there are some old classic books that are worth reading, I believe that some older games are also a must-play and should not be ignored simply because they're old and choppy! (don't worry I won't start reviewing Commodore 64 and Windows 95 games)<br />
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Here's the list:<br />
Ragnarok Online<br />
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance<br />
Borderlands<br />
Stepmania<br />
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Notice how these are all very different and not part of a conventional gamer's review list. That's because I'm not a typical gamer :] You might not even have heard of the first and last, but they all hold a special place in my heart and I will show you why.<br />
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<b>I'd like to hear what you guys want me to review, so please let me know in the comments! I will put up another voting poll and the most voted games will be reviewed, whether I played them before or not. Just remember, it has to be a PC game!</b><br />
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On a side note, let me express my feelings on Apple in this little picture.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3lCRmtmFW5gtEAUyS044tbtl5lYWbCr4GeywWYRAZb8V-0UH0UC2ygHN0VJWFRhe9eG-Am1g6drxivlV0CT03dnACt0jeR2fgFKdVcnDxC64XoyHOpvds6dW9slEt6oZOcIgoSha-Kso/s1600/apple+store.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3lCRmtmFW5gtEAUyS044tbtl5lYWbCr4GeywWYRAZb8V-0UH0UC2ygHN0VJWFRhe9eG-Am1g6drxivlV0CT03dnACt0jeR2fgFKdVcnDxC64XoyHOpvds6dW9slEt6oZOcIgoSha-Kso/s320/apple+store.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-1441335594696424802011-05-14T20:08:00.000-07:002011-06-01T19:59:34.232-07:00Dragon Age IIThis is an RPG game developed by Bioware that's set in the same universe as Dragon Age: Origins and if you have a savefile from Origins you can load it and you will start off at the same level and the same equipment! That was a lie. But it <i>does</i> influence the story in certain ways. Playing Dragon Age II is a very similar experience to the Origins, plus various additions and changes (mostly improvements) so if you liked the previous title of these series, you'll most likely love this one.<br />
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<b>Plot</b><br />
You start off as a human rogue/warrior/mage and you cannot choose another race unfortunately. Now if you played Origins, you will notice a bunch of recurring characters and you will also understand things a little bit more, but it is not necessary to play the prequel to enjoy this game in my opinion. You will always get dialogue choices, which will usually add friendliness or rivalry between you and your comrades, or sometimes will change the outcome of events. There are often some funny options (although they can lead to unexpected results) and you are free to experiment and be a real asshole if you want to - you'll still be the "champion" at the end :]<br />
WARNING: the game might confuse the shit out of you at the beginning, since it's hard to understand the relationship between the separate events and the role of each character in the storyline. Eventually, though, the puzzle pieces come together and you should understand what's happening, so HAVE PATIENCE.<br />
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One thing that slightly annoyed me was that most of the themes are the same as in Origins: the Darkspawn threat, Paladins VS Mages, political unrest, some more Paladins VS Mages stuff, betrayal, etc. At some point you just feel like saying "Oh great, another quest about paladins and their eternal enemies mages, sigh." Oh and if you actually read every single history related thing you come across (also called codex entry) then you've officially reached the highest level of geekness: those are often really long but if you're <b>really</b> into the whole mythology of these series, by all means go ahead. As for me, I wanted to play a game and not read a book.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.rpgfan.com/pics/Dragon_Age_II/ss-010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="183" src="http://www.rpgfan.com/pics/Dragon_Age_II/ss-010.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Clicky</div><b>Visuals</b><br />
This was probably the most successful part. First of all, many races and faces were completely redesigned (the Qunari, a very manly and stoic race<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">,</span> l</span>ook much cooler now) and animation in general is smoother. There is a good amount of cutscenes and the battles have a much higher variety of moves and effects in general. I loved how blood splashes everywhere during battles, especially for rogue moves. And after the battle, if there is a dialogue, you see the camera zoomed on your characters' faces covered with blood and talking to each other with a completely normal expression as if nothing was wrong (made me lol several times).<br />
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<b>Gameplay</b><br />
Battles are very fun. The geography and the positioning of allies and enemies will often yield interesting situations. You'll want to pause as often as you can and figure out where to move, which abilities to use<strike> and alt-tab to take a break and watch some porn</strike>. In other words: if you're an avid RPG player, you'll love it. The new inventory classification of items is very useful as well, as it prevents you from selling important items to merchants. Another nice addition is that depending on your relationship with your allies (a lot of friendliness or a lot of rivalry), you will get a different passive skill, so I don't recommend always using neutral or alternating dialogue choices as it won't give you any bonus at all. On the other hand, the menus felt a little unintuitive, but that's probably because of how I was used to them in Origins. A couple little bugs here and there, but it's core RPG feeling, the one you get in the Origins, is still there.<br />
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<b>Final Words</b><br />
It brings us a bit less than we'd expect from a sequel, but is nonetheless a great epic and if you loved Dragon Age: Origins, you'll love Dragon Age II.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-37952805037881743052011-05-14T18:18:00.000-07:002011-06-01T19:59:44.597-07:00My BabyToday I decided to do something different and show you my computer. This is my creation and the source of all my enjoyment in this world (my girlfriend is not going to like this statement).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx_WGC3fo2HR8FtEbmVFYNPrLrYQFFslRY36jYNz4heXhvDOq6M9zW_zMpjXmyZpN1VuQJrXvmuc3uzFSgvh_XILoseidPaVazDHFH4NIT6ShM0wy00ASIsGhGZIdwsUmuEcmKPHc0XVU/s1600/P1050042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx_WGC3fo2HR8FtEbmVFYNPrLrYQFFslRY36jYNz4heXhvDOq6M9zW_zMpjXmyZpN1VuQJrXvmuc3uzFSgvh_XILoseidPaVazDHFH4NIT6ShM0wy00ASIsGhGZIdwsUmuEcmKPHc0XVU/s320/P1050042.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sorry for the messy table and the blurry picture. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I was shaking out of excitement.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><a name='more'></a><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Starting with the exterior, you can notice that the theme is black and blue. In the dark it looks even better and I can change my keyboard backlight to only work on the WASD keys (how awesome is that?). A shout-out to my fellow blogger SirJohnBear and my favorite game developer Valve for the wallpaper.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here's what the inside of this bad boy looks like. The metal spiky box in the top left is my Venomous X CPU cooler. Right below you can see my video card Radeon HD 5850 by XFX (that thing is so big and heavy that you can probably beat someone to death with it). The hard drive along with the DVD burner and the SSD are hidden behind the metal in the top and and bottom right corners. The motherboard is in the back and the 2 Ripjaw RAM sticks are kind of in the shadow to the right of the cooler. Finally, you can see the fat black box which is my 850W Antec power supply in the bottom left.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2p4V7yQf99Ssmjyp4q6SRmwwlGBmR44N_pSIWwUY_RF3expVbsMTJobIchZZ7OEYa6iqAI4k0PvRvsDwvQJ_MllXJtEur8fVRHNluyJ6flxxpGLtrnQLGS0qKCmtGsxJPaxxilCWCCMI/s1600/P1050041.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2p4V7yQf99Ssmjyp4q6SRmwwlGBmR44N_pSIWwUY_RF3expVbsMTJobIchZZ7OEYa6iqAI4k0PvRvsDwvQJ_MllXJtEur8fVRHNluyJ6flxxpGLtrnQLGS0qKCmtGsxJPaxxilCWCCMI/s320/P1050041.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Sorry for the blinding lights but that's just how awesome and shiny my baby is.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">If anyone is interested in the specs here they are shown in the form of a shopping list. One thing that's missing is my i5 processor which is not sold on that website anymore. If you care, it was the first version of it to come out and it was the 750 model for platform 1156. Also, I used Arctic Silver thermal paste and ArctiClean cleaning solution. The price came out to around 2,000 Canadian dollars, with price matches and rebates and all.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoKZHpWycQebmklWRma58f2sW9Y7fEu3kxRrgzGx6daXvib3MiIDPSzf6egAl0BDCAX2K014FNbzmXoKB3qtAZjY339J-t4MwNPAd2c89a5QsYuVQH70_8mx_6i8lx2BFOUNUcrD_lBoY/s1600/pc.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoKZHpWycQebmklWRma58f2sW9Y7fEu3kxRrgzGx6daXvib3MiIDPSzf6egAl0BDCAX2K014FNbzmXoKB3qtAZjY339J-t4MwNPAd2c89a5QsYuVQH70_8mx_6i8lx2BFOUNUcrD_lBoY/s320/pc.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Click to enlarge.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-10404646884103486192011-05-13T20:26:00.000-07:002011-05-13T20:27:36.797-07:00New BannerHey now my website doesn't look like <u>total</u> crap anymore. What do you guys think? Props go to Spartan094 for making the banner. Check out his website with lots of other cool stuff here:<br />
<a href="http://iyqstudios.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">http://iyqstudios.blogspot.com/</span></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-54081143362959794002011-05-10T11:41:00.000-07:002011-05-10T11:41:46.031-07:00Woot 50 FollowersI am glad to announce that I've accumulated my first 50 followers. It took a lot of work but it's already paying off. If you have any questions or suggestions concerning my reviews or the website design, please let me know in the comments :]<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">DJ7WZYUN5WQN</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-47201912951624637852011-05-10T03:16:00.000-07:002011-05-14T18:19:16.534-07:00Mafia II (VS GTA 4)If I wanted to summarize this game in one sentence, I'd say "fifties GTA" but I really should get into more detail, otherwise I wouldn't be much of a game critic. It was developed (surprisingly) by the Czech developer 2K Czech and is an action-adventure game with A TON of resemblances to the GTA series.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/Mafia-II-PhysX-Hotelbar-1024x572.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="178" src="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/Mafia-II-PhysX-Hotelbar-1024x572.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">How many similarities with GTA can you count in this screenshot?</div><div><br />
</div><div>The story is about an Italian guy Vito who gets involved in all kinds of dirty mafia business with his buddy Joe and eventually it leads to all kinds of trouble. Ever played some GTA games? Well he's exactly your typical GTA main character! A quiet tough guy with big dreams who doesn't mind getting his hands dirty and does any job as long as it pays. The game is somewhat linear, meaning that you only ever have one mission available but you can do some random stuff in between, like collecting old playboy magazines (WARNING: their breast standards were much lower at the time) and collect some nice vintage fancy cars for your garage.</div><div><br />
</div><div>The fifties setting was pretty impressive in this game: the radio played some weird old tunes as well as cigarette commercials about their beneficial effects on health, some guards were talking about TVs as some kind of rich man's dream before I killed them and everybody wore a fancy gentleman's hat. Honestly, this game made me reminisce about Scarface and The Godfather trilogy since the gangster storyline and the fifties setting fit so well together.</div><div><br />
</div><div>On the other hand, the gameplay somewhat lacks. The fighting and action mechanics are kind of awkward and the NPC interaction is very limited, at least in comparison to GTA IV (which I played way too much so I felt the difference right away). I like the fact that this game is much more realistic than GTA IV when it comes to survival. You can't jump off a 50 feet building on your car and survive, nor can you handle more than one shot of a shotgun, which made it quite challenging at times, but all for the better of course. NPC AI is also rather lacking, since I could jack a car right in front of a policeman and he would just pass by. I could also rob a store, kill everyone, get out and a policeman standing outside would say "Good day to you sir."</div><div><br />
</div><div>So there are good things and bad things about this game. But if you want a simple decision, ask yourself: Do you want to play another GTA game (assuming you played one) but fifty years back in time with inferior gameplay? If the answer is yes, then go ahead, but remember I warned you.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-57171652220289406522011-05-09T01:19:00.000-07:002011-05-14T18:19:59.008-07:00Portal 2Now if you've played Portal 1, you'll know what to expect from this one. It is once again a first person puzzle game from my favorite video game developer Valve. The character you play is the same girl who unfortunately didn't quite escape Aperture Science, which is what we were lead to believe at the end of Portal 1 (forgive me but it's impossible not to include a spoiler here).<br />
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Just like in Portal 1, there's an interesting twist in the storyline and I'm sure you guys will enjoy it, but I find that it wasn't as surprising as what happened in Portal 1. Nonetheless, the characters are amazing and I found myself laughing many times during the game because of Wheatley's funny comments (the thing that will follow you for a good half of the game).<br />
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From a visual aspect, the game has been greatly improved in comparison to the prequel and if you have a nice video card you will definitely take advantage of it (not to mention that the main character has <i>smoother</i> curves ;D).<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/Portal2-chamber-comparison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/Portal2-chamber-comparison.jpg" width="284" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As far as gameplay and puzzle-solving goes, you'll be surprised at all the additions Valve has prepared for us. If you think you got pretty good at Portal 1 and that Portal 2 will be a piece of cake? Well you're wrong! There are different kinds of new physics to consider (spoiler: gravity beams and catapults) and you'll need to do some serious 3D thinking for some of the puzzles. You're probably familiar with the typical situation when a good game/movie is made and later its sequel just takes advantage of its success but gives you almost nothing new. Rest assured, Portal 2 is NOT that kind of game.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div>Here are some other good points about the game. If you buy a PS3 version, you'll get access to its steam copy for free. That means that you'll be able to download it on your mac or pc! Also, the new coop multiplayer mode will be super fun if you have friends who are willing to participate (I suggest buying a headset for this if you don't have one already). Oh and it's much much longer than Portal 1. Single player alone took me over 5 days of on and off playing to complete so your hard-earned money from flipping burgers at McDonalds will definitely be worth investing into this and you'll get over 20 solid hours of gaming pleasure :]<br />
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In summary, this is an amazing game and it has almost no flaws. Moreover, whether you prefer RPGs, FPS or RTS, it doesn't matter: you'll like it anyway!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com42tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-8962610231435787212011-05-07T17:14:00.000-07:002011-05-14T18:20:11.181-07:00Portal 1This is a first person puzzle game from the same creators that made the Half-Life series. It's pretty short and can be finished in one sitting but there is a lot of replay value and I believe that it's a good change to play an intellectually challenging game once in a while.<br />
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I really don't want to spoil it for you, but there is a very interesting and unexpected turn of events as far as story goes and I simply loved it. This is definitely not the typical dystopian future Half-Life storyline where you're a hero scientist trying to save humanity, but it IS in fact very dystopian and we can see the developers' sense of humor reflected in it.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/Portal-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee515/vavaxman/Portal-1.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br />
The only thing left to say is that at the moment the game costs 9.99$ on steam and if you haven't played other Half-Life games, you might as well get the Orange Box which contains all the goodies Valve produced in the recent years at a really good price (I am kind of a Half-Life fan so you might want to get someone else's non-biased opinion on this).<br />
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Oh and one more thing. If you're planning to get Portal 2, I strongly urge you to play Portal 1 first, since it makes the story much more enjoyable and you'll understand lots of references and jokes if you do. But more on Portal 2 later.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6231009393749558827.post-15590077660504996072011-05-05T00:59:00.000-07:002011-05-05T00:59:50.668-07:00IntroHello Internet,<br />
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I will try to make this introduction simple and <strike>short </strike>(well that didn't work, I got carried away a little). A question and answer format seems like a good idea for this purpose :]<br />
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<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><b>What can you tell us about you, Vav?</b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">My real name is Vasily and a friend's baby brother used to call me Vava, so I adopted various versions of this funny nickname for my e-self on various websites and forums, hence Vav. I'm a 20 year old Russian male living in Canada and I am in my first year of engineering at McGill university. My hobbies include video games (no sh*t), playing around with computer's insides and playing Dungeons and Dragons with my friends (if I were also a Star Trek fan I'd really be 100% geek). I listen to electronic music of all kinds, old school gangsta rap and some alternative rock.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><br />
<b>What is this blog for?</b><br />
I will review PC (and occasionally NDS) games that I recently played in a concise, straightforward manner and give some of my personal opinions on them. I will usually play games that pick my interest but I am open to requests if someone asks politely :p<br />
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<b>How did you get inspired to do this?</b><br />
I am a picky person for video games and like to see reviews and critics' opinions on a certain game before I play it, thus avoiding getting bored and/or disappointed after spending possibly a double digit amount of hours on it and realizing that it was all a waste. Although it might sound contradictory, I like being practical in my gaming: I am aware that every minute I spend playing video games could have spent taking care of mentally challenged children, feeding old people with something that looks like vomit or helping my community otherwise so I at least want to make my sacrifice an enjoyable one.<br />
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In my own research for game reviews I stumble upon overwhelming 5-page reviews on major gaming websites, a full reading of which might take as much time as actually playing the damn game. Of course, there are youtube trailers, video reviews and gameplay videos, that some gamers prefer but they have their own disadvantages as well. Trailers are usually biased and only show the goodies, thus often leading the viewer into mistaking a shitty game for a good one (just like they do for movies). Gameplay and review videos are sometimes good enough, but I often feel that they don't give enough details to help me make a decision whether to play the game or not.<br />
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My blogs are meant to be something in between: I'll give you a good amount of details about various games in a condensed format, and I'll add some personal opinion. This will save you from either reading and watching a thousand reviews before deciding you don't want to play it or save a good amount of time playing the actual game and throwing it into the garbage, resulting in an "f my life" feeling for the rest of the day.<br />
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<b>In other words, if you're a lazy and bored person who wants to play some quality games, and your friends keep suggesting shitty games for you to play, you're at the right place! </b>Sure, you might still dislike a game I loved or vice-versa but... well... too bad!<br />
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<b>What games are you planning to review soon?</b><br />
Since I've have an abundance of free time lately, I have accumulated quite a few games I wish to review. In the following weeks, I will review Portal 1 and 2, Mafia 2, Dragon Age 2, League of Legends and Zelda: Phantom Hourglass.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7