Casting the Demons out of my iPad

I've never understood or appreciated the direction that Apple went with their user interface for their operating system or their programs. That was, in general, not a big problem, I didn't use Apple PCs, so it didn't affect me so much.

When I got The Croods for review via iTunes, however, I suddenly had to actually find my way around the program. The iTunes interface is, in my opinion, one of the most unintuitive wandering garden mazes I've ever had the displeasure of being lost in. It. Makes. No. Sense.

If I were merely going to rant about the UI, however, I would probably not write anything. That's old news. However, the UI was the annoying icing on a nearly lethal cake.

The first problem I had was with the download. I had used a remote access client to log into my machine remotely, then redeemed the code on my computer and started the download. I received a message (almost instantly... that should have been a clue) that it completed successfully. So, I ended the session and expected to start watching The Croods as soon as I got home.

However, when I got home, the movie wouldn't play. I found that it had errored out when attempting to download and still had over ninety percent yet to download. I clicked the button to restart the download. Several times. It seemed to get about one thirtieth of a megabyte each time I clicked the restart button, the failed. I did this several times, getting a popup every couple of times or so, but could never really tell if it was actually downloading anything or was simply advancing the counter a tenth of a megabyte every third time I pushed the button. Fun.

I rebooted iTunes and tried again and it actually downloaded. Yay. Then, I tried to watch the movie on my PC. The app started acting like the movie was playing, with the play position bar advancing at the bottom, but there was no sound and the screen remained black. After closing and reopening iTunes a couple of times, I was able to watch the movie. (No idea what fixed it, mind you.)

I still had yet to put it on my iPad, however. So, I plugged in my iPad and synced, something I hadn't done in quite some time. Then, when that was done, I told it to put the movie on my iPad. I got a warning saying there wasn't enough room on the iPad, so I started deleting things. Lots of things. Old apps, documents, lots of stuff. Eventually, the meter at the bottom indicated that I would have some free space after removing everything I wanted to remove and putting the movie onto the iPad... but it still said there wasn't enough space. I turned the problem over to JR Nip for a bit. He resolved it, but had to reboot the iPad before it would work. Great.

So, after watching the entire movie, some on my computer and some on my iPad, and after watching all the special features and writing most of my review, I go back to get some information from the movie (language options, subtitles, that sort of thing) and the picture is black again. I'm not sure what the problem is that causes this, but I eventually determined that I can fix it by changing my monitor's resolution to 1920x1080. That restores the picture and audio and, once I've done that, I can then go back to my monitors native resolution of 1680x1050 and it works, but if I try to view it on my second (smaller) monitor (1280x1024), it complains and says it will have to load the SD version and then, generally stops showing video until I put it on my primary monitor and switch the resolution again.

If you use iTunes and you're happy with it - great... good luck with that. Personally, I loathe having to open up the iTunes application and can only imagine that there wasn't nearly enough testing effort on Windows machines with multiple monitors.

The Benefits of Low Tech...

If you're not aware of it, most computer games use advanced features on graphics cards and, since these graphics processes occur in between the main board and the monitor, all you see if you try to remote into your computer and play them is a black screen. Sure you could loop the video output back into a video capture board and look at that remotely, but then you introduce an intolerable amount of lag. Trust me... not worth the effort.

I just got done writing my review of Game Dev Tycoon for the PC and, while there's not a way to play Steam games on iPhones or iPads, the graphics requirements are low enough that you can remote into a computer and play it remotely, using LogMeIn, for example.

I actually made use of this while reviewing it. I played it on my gaming rig, primarily, but I also used LogMeIn to play it on my iPad and even my iPhone. Up until the very late stages of the game, the pacing isn't too frantic and there aren't a lot of things going on at once, so it's reasonable enough to play on touch screen devices.

And Another Thing - Striiv: Beware the Treasure Chests...

No idea what I'm talking about? You should probably take a minute to first read my review of the Striiv - more than just your average pedometer, it's like a personal trainer in your pocket... a personal trainer who likes videogames...

I've warned people about them, before, but those treasure chests can bring misfortune just as easily as fortune. For example, you may find out that a Uniclops has captured all your animals and won't return them until you've generated some large amount of energy. Now, a challenge with an eight-hour time limit can be fun, but this is not what you want to hear right before you go to bed. (You know, for the next eight hours.)

I guess the moral of my story is this: 

If you use the treasure chests, use them early in the day 

and when you can do some exercise if need be.

Ready or Not - The Future is Now...

How many times have you pondered what things might be like in the future? Do you envision space travel? Robots in the home? How about libraries without a single physical book?

In Robot and Frank, we are given a glimpse of a near future where a library is getting just such an upgrade: some rich, slick young guy is taking over the town library and is moving all of the books out and making the library a place more about "the library experience," about community, rather than about the books themselves, since you can now get books on a wireless device from the comfort of your home... or the beach. How far are we from such a "near future"? Will libraries ever actually do away with books?

Well, maybe not all libraries, but, for some libraries, that time has already come... and, for some, passed.

New library, called "BiblioTech," being built in Bexar County, Texas will provide special e-readers to patrons. The electronic version of the books to be loaned will be loaded onto these e-readers, which will become unusable after the loan period if not returned to the library. The look of the library will be fairly reminiscent of an Apple store.

Others have similarly abandoned print, as well. The University of Texas at San Antonio offered a bookless library in 2012. The Tucson-Pima Public Library System had a bookless library in 2002, but ended up adding actual books - at the community's request.

As for the robot side of things, the robot in Robot and Frank appears to be modeled after Honda's robot, Asimo. See some amazing footage of Asimo, as well as HPR-4 and NAO, two other amazing, real-world humanoid robots, in the YouTube video, below.

World's Top3 Humanoid Robots - Asimo vs HPR-4 vs NAO! - SupernovaAnnie

For more details:

• San Antonio to open first bookless public Library (Gizmag.com)
• Bexar set to turn the page on idea of books in libraries (My San Antonio.com)
• Official Asimo Website
• Official NAO Website

PLYR2 Unleashed - or - How a 3.5mm Gave Me Super Powers

Okay, well maybe not super powers, but a lot more to play with. While reviewing the Skullcandy PLYR 2, I noticed that the manual (actually, tri-fold quick setup guide) indicates that, in order to connect the PLYR 2 to a PC, you needed a 3.5mm audio cord, which was not included. This annoyed me quite a bit, at first; why would it list that it works with a PC on the front of the box, but then require an audio cable that you have to supply, yourself?

As it turns out, there is a quite decent built-in audio card in the PLYR 2, so all you truly have to do is plug it up to an available USB port and change your default audio playback and recording settings. For PS3 and 360, there's an included RCA piggyback pass-thru adapter.

However, with the addition of a 3.5mm cord, you can use the PLYR 2 to listen to music from your iPad, smart phone or Android device or even hold phone conversations on them. True, they're wireless, so you need to have a USB port to supply power for the transmitter wherever you put the device and you'd have to start and end calls at the device, but the wireless aspect will let you hold that call while walking around your house.

Or, if you're on-the-go, you could combine the PLYR 2 with the PowerBag to power the transmitter and you can use the PLYR 2 for your phone conversations while carrying your iPhone in the bag. I realize it's not intended for that and is a bit awkward to start and end calls, but I tested the PLYR 2 at a range of up to 100 feet; I could start a playlist or a podcast through the headphones and mow the front yard with that distance.

Check out my Review of the PLYR 2 Headset from Skullcandy

Testing Einstein's Brain... Sorta...

So, one of the things I've got in-house for review is the 8GB Einstein Mimobot USB Memory Stick. In the process of testing it, I thought I'd try using it as a ReadyBoost device for Windows 7. A little research showed me that the minimum speed for a device to be used as a ReadyBoost device is 2.5 MB/s read for 4 KB random reads and 1.75 MB/s write speeds for 512 KB random writes. (Thanks, Wikipedia.)

Also, Wikipedia listed the commands to run to test a flash drive to see what its speed was to determine fitness to being pressed into service as a ReadyBoost drive.

I tested ol' Einstein, and I'm pleased as punch to say he passed with flying colors...

8GB Einstein Mimobot Read / Write Speeds, as tested:

Read: 4.64 MB/s
Write: 2.57 MB/s

Learning disability, indeed...

Black Ops II Review Event

Ashley and I attended the Black Ops II Review Event last month. We couldn't speak about any of it until the embargo lifted, so all we could do is anxiously await the Black Ops II launch date. Now it has been released, so I am free to discuss it a bit.

Thanks to the review event, we were prepared to publish our review of the Xbox 360 version of Call of Duty: Black Ops II on launch day. As the required disclaimer states,"this review reflects the opinions of two Game Vortex reviewers (Psibabe and Geck0) who attended the Call of Duty: Black Ops II Review Event in Carlsbad, California. Travel, accomodations and food for this event were arranged and funded by Activision. Additionally, Call of Duty: Black Ops II licensed products were provided at the event. We have reviewed (or are in process of reviewing) these items and their reviews may be read on this website."

Review events such as these allow Activision to maintain better security over the product (to prevent piracy) and allow reviewers to interact with each other, which helped to reveal the multiple paths in the Campaign mode. Our review is based on our game-testing experience at the event, but we strive to remain as objective as possible.

I assure you that, along with the many COD fans out there, we anxiously awaited the launch date to get our own copy in-house and, when it arrived, shot zombies, yelling and cursing, into the wee hours of the night - in Split-Screen mode, no less.

Hello, Little Rock! Wanna Win A Prize?

We just ran an outdoor ad campaign on some billboards in Little Rock, Arkansas with the Lamar Postr digital billboard program. It was an "A-Z" campaign, where we pointed out a few of the many reasons to love Game Vortex, from Anime to Zombie Flicks. We skipped over a couple of letters, but got most of them along the way.

For our readers in the Little Rock and surrounding area (okay, heck... anywhere in Arkansas is fine with us) - we're running a contest. Simply enter with your email address and we'll select entries at random, then - as long as you can tell us what at least one of our billboards said - and can provide a shipping address in Arkansas, you could win a copy of The Splatters on XBLA for the Xbox 360. SpikySnail Games was generous enough to provide these prizes for our contest.

To enter, simply go to LoveGameVortex.com and fill out the form. Hurry though - we're only running the contest through 8/12!

A is for Anime and Action / Adventure

Today is the start of Game Vortex's A-Z ad campaign in Little Rock, Arkansas. Today, we're highlighting things that start with "A", in three different ads across the city:

"Like Anime? Love GameVortex.com"
"Like Action? Love GameVortex.com"
"Like Adventure? Love GameVortex.com"

Using Lamar Advertising's new Postr digital boards, we are posting these messages on four different digital billboards in Central Little Rock.

If you live in the area, you might want to pay close attention to what we do with the boards... or, perhaps, what we don't do. There will be a pop quiz at the end, with a chance to win prizes.

What prizes? Dunno - we're still putting something together. More to come...

T500 RS Setups... In Detail

T500 RS Gaming Setups

The T500 RS racing system (wheel and pedals) is obviously aimed at racing enthusiasts and not the mainstream and casual gamers who may occasionally play a racing game.

Casual Gamer Setups?

Even so, given that a non-enthusiast (or budding enthusiast?) may pick up the T500 RS before investing in other hardware, such as a virtual racing chassis to mount it on, I tested the T500 RS with a few different possible configurations that could be available to the average mainstream PS3 / PC gamer.

Lap-Mounted

First, the idea of lap-mounted play is right out. At over 32 pounds, the steering wheel is not the kind of thing you want to hold in your lap for any length of time. Besides, the steering wheel would rest in your lap and when the force-feedback or initialization centering starts up, it could roll on out of your lap. This would not be comfortable... and, no, I didn't try this configuration at all; it's simply not a good idea.

Gaming Ottoman

I did attempt using the T500 RS on a LevelUp gaming ottoman, by clamping it down onto the top of the ottoman, and playing with the steering wheel on top of the ottoman and the pedal cluster in front of it. There were two primary issues with this setup: the weight of the steering wheel made it really easy to topple forward, requiring me to have to push it back about three or four inches to make it more stable, and the fact that I had to lean forward in a strange and uncomfortable posture to accommodate this setup. The posture problem was caused by the fact that the pedals need to be under (and possibly further back than) the steering wheel, which requires that there be open area under the steering wheel, for your legs to be able to stretch out to reach the pedals.

Another Bright IKEA

Next, I tried the T500 RS on a small wooden stackable chair, with the chair facing me as I sat on the couch. The pedal cluster fit under the chair, the steering wheel clamped down onto the seat of the chair fairly snugly and I was able to see the television over the chair without it blocking my vision. This setup worked well, in general, but, again, the weight of the wheel placed on the edge of the chair made it want to tip forward, much like the ottoman setup. I was able to get a little more legroom and make the setup more sturdy by turning the chair sideways, which might be a good option for anyone who picks up a T500 RS without something to set it up on. I actually played a good bit while set up on the chair; this setup was quite workable.

Let me take this opportunity to make something clear; with the heft of the T500 RS, it should not, under any circumstance, be used with a folding chair or television tray. That would be reckless and it would be just a matter of time before the unit came crashing down on someone's legs or feet. This would likely injure both person and device. Only use a sturdy stacking chair, at that.

PC Gaming Setup

For the PC-compatible side of things, I tested the T500 RS on my computer desk by taking my keyboard off of my keyboard tray and mounting the RS in its place. It clamped down nicely and held tight, and the pedal cluster fit nicely right in front of my desk, after slightly moving my PC out of the way. I tested it out with the Ignite! demo and it worked quite nicely. To use the T500 RS on the PC, I had go to the Thrustmaster website and download the Windows driver, first, but it installed without incident and the Properties Section in the device interface (in Control Panel: Device Management) includes the ability to tweak the steering wheel's lock-to-lock range and feedback motor strength, among other things. Changing the steering wheel's turning range can be a necessary step in making the T500 RS usable with various games on the PC; for Ignite!, I found a lock-to-lock range of around 300 degrees made it most playable. Overall, using the T500 RS on my standard computer desk worked nicely, but I should offer one warning: Carefully evaluate your desk for things that might shake loose as you play - especially if your desk, like mine, has a hutch and you have various items stacked precariously on its shelves. I was drifting around a hair-pin curve and bouncing off a wall when a stack of blank CDs lept down upon me unexpectedly from above. It was enough to get my attention, but could have been a lot worse.

Enthusiast Setup

The VR-1 Virtual Racing Chassis

My most "blinged-out" setup that I tested the T500 RS with (and the setup most likely to be similar to the average purchaser of the T500 RS) was setting it up on a Bob Earl Racing VRC-1 virtual racing chassis. Personally, I found the T500 RS steering wheel unit mounted securely on the wheel podium and stayed put just fine, likely due, in part, to the rubber pad on the top of the podium that gave the clamp something to "bite" into, but I did notice that on the Bob Earl Racing website, they suggest bolting the steering wheel to the podium, but that instructions are forthcoming. They also mention that the pedals should be bolted in place and, although I haven't done so yet, I agree that it would probably be a good idea. The VRC-1 has an angled mount for the pedals which, for run-of-the-mill pedals, puts them in a more realistic orientation. However, since the pedals on the T500 RS are already at a more realistic angle, this built-in angle makes mounting the pedals more complex than simply using velcro. Well, the weight of the pedal cluster doesn't make it easier, either. I found that I could use the pedals in the floor-mounted orientation without much extra work; it would be best to mount them in a more stable, permanent fashion, but for the purposes of testing, the pedals stayed put, as the very edge of the cluster just sort of lips around the VRC-1's pedal cluster support, keeping it from shifting laterally, while the heavy-duty Velcro kept it from scooting around. Using the pedal cluster in back-mounted orientation, on the other hand, would require mounting to the VRC-1 and, perhaps, some additional fitting. When I attempted this orientation, I found that the pedal cluster would slip up and over the end of the VRC-1's pedal support, due to the gap between the diamond plate footrest and the pedals, themselves in this orientation. Again, instructions on use with the VRC-1 is forthcoming on the Bob Earl Racing website.

Over-the-Top Custom Setup

Yes, you can take the T500 RS even further, if you wish. Here, for example, is a video showing a custom racing simulation cockpit which utilizes a T500 RS and the optional TH8 RS shifter (sold separately).

Dubstep my games, please!

I just got done with my review of Ridge Racer Unbounded, and one of the things I pointed out in the Graphics and Sound section was that the game included several Dubstep tracks, including some Skrillex. I mentioned in a recent blog post on my persona blog that I had recently discovered - and love - Dubstep. In fact, I've been playing some of my PC games with the music turned down and some Dubstep streaming on Youtube in the background.

That's difficult to do for console games, so I was quite pleased with the fact that Dubstep was already in the game.

It's definitely not for all games, but there's just something about the Electronica-edge and the Sub-base drops that make it perfect for racing games, war games, mech games... basically any games where you're playing around with heavy machinery. Or is it just me?

Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures versus Media Center PC - Fight!

Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures versus Media Center

So, my current gaming machine is using the motherboard (and Win7 OS) from my Media Center PC. Essentially, I upgraded the Media Center PC with the graphics card from my old gaming rig. When I first installed Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures, It wouldn't launch. I didn't even get the Activision animation video. Just a blank screen that said, "NGL" in the top-left corner, and an immediate crash upon trying to play the game. I resolved this problem, but it was quite a pain to figure it out.

As it turns out, the Media Center computer had been set up with large icons, to make it easy to see from across the room. The "Make it easier to read what's on your screen" setting apparently wreaks havoc on the Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure, however, and it will not launch when the icon size value is set to 150%. When I changed the icon size settings down to 100% (down from 150%), the game ran fine. I found that I was able to play with the settings on 100% or 125%, but not 150%.

How to solve the Win7 Media Center / Skylanders: Spyro's Adventures problem:

1. In Win7, go to Control Panel > Appearance and Personalization > Display
2. Under "Make it easier to read what's on your screen", my computer was set to "Larger - 150%". It worked when I changed the value to "Smaller - 100% (default)" or the 125% percent option.

Note: to those who find the description above to be a bit clunky, my apologies. It uses the words Skylanders, Spyro, Adventures, Win7, Windows 7, NGL, Activision, Media Center, Crash and Not Launch repetitively in hopes of making this solution easier to find.

Gaemstrom is dead... Long live Gaemstrom!

My gaming rig died on me several weeks back. That can be really inconvenient for those who play PC game, write, surf the web or develop software. Sadly, I do all of this and had deadlines to worry about, but wasn't in a position to throw a large wad of money at the problem...

Introducing, Gaemstrom 2.0:

I did a good bit of research into gaming rigs... buying vs. building, boxed PC vs. spec'ing one from a boutique gaming PC company, online vs. brick-n-mortar stores... and that will probably result in an article or two, at least. However, for the moment, I chose to cannibalize a non-gaming PC that I had in the house already... the family Media Center.

First off, it would be more accurate to say that I cannibalized my gaming rig to upgrade Media Center so it could play games, but, since there was more room in my gaming rig's PC case, everything was moved into the gaming rig case, so it looks like my old gaming rig, even though its insides are more Media Center than Gaemstrom 1.0.

Something Old...

I kept the old case, since it had more room and easily could accommodate the 850 watt power supply that my gaming rig had. The 850 watt may have fit in the Asus Media Center case, but I would have had to move the optical drive down a slot, at the very least. In the Asus Essentia case, this wasn't a small ordeal.

Also coming along for the upgrade was the XFX ATI Radeon HD 5750 graphics card. It's dated, now, of course, but I'm biding my time for an upgrade soon.

I also brought over my old hard drive, not merely as an extra drive, but as a dual boot drive. I can still summon my XP gaming rig from within this new Win7 Media Center PC, when needed. The trick, here, though, is that if I'm in XP when a TV show is supposed to start recording, the Win7 Media Center has no way to know - or do anything about it, since it's turned off. That means that I generally stay in Win7 and, when I need to venture back into XP, I check the recording schedule to make sure it's clear before going back into XP. Also, I have to make sure that I don't leave the machine in XP when I'm done.

Something New...

Since the motherboard had fried on my old machine, using the motherboard from the Media Center was essential. And, along with the motherboard came the CPU and memory.

Something Borrowed...

Well, I would have borrowed a power supply tester, had I been able to find someone who had one (and knew where it was). Since I couldn't borrow one, I picked up a power supply tester from a local PC shop for about twenty dollars or so. However, now that I've used it, I can put it into my tool chest for the next time I use  it, so it was still "borrowed" as far as the gaming PC is concerned; it's not like I installed the power supply tester in the machine.

...and Something Blue?

Um... I guess Media Center. The button is green, but the interface is OH-so-blue. Future upgrades include the addition of a Blu-ray player, but since this is intended to be a zero-dollar upgrade, that's something for later.

So, the stats of my new-ish test rig are:

• Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) II X2 220 Processor 2.80 GHz
• RAM: 4 GB dual-channel DDR3
• Motherboard: ASUS
• Power Supply: CoolerMaster 850watt
• OS (dual boot):
  • Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
  • Windows XP Home Edition
• Graphics:
  • ATI Radeon 3000 (on motherboard)
  • XFX ATI Radeon HD 5750 1GB graphics card
• Monitors (dual monitor setup):
  • Gateway HD2201 21" HDMI Monitor
  • Sony SDM-HS73 Monitor
• Hard Drives (dual hard drives - not RAIDed):
  • 1.5 TB Western Digital Caviar Green SATA Hard Drive
  • 750 GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 SATA 3Gb/sHard Drive
• Gaming Mouse (swap back and forth):
  • Logitech Wireless Gaming Mouse G700
  • Logitech Gaming Mouse G300
• Speakers:
  • Logitech Z313 2.1-CH PC multimedia speaker system
  • A30 Gaming Headset
• Network Connectivity: Cable Modem

I'll try to get some benchmarks off the machine in the (near?) future, but for now, my Windows Experience score is a 5.9, and is indicating that my RAM's memory operations per second and my primary hard disk's data transfer rate are holding me back:

Component	What is rated	Subscore
Processor	Calculations per second	6.3
Memory (RAM)	Memory operations per second	5.9
Graphics	Desktop performance for Windows Aero	7.3
Gaming Graphics	3D business and gaming graphics performance	7.3
Primary Hard Disk	Disk data transfer rate	5.9

So what's in an MMORPG?

I recently had the agonizing pleasure of reviewing Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising. I love the game; it's almost like it was made specifically for me... but, I'm not everyone, and there were some features that people tend to expect from an MMORPG that it doesn't have out the box. Mind you some of these are specifically mentioned as upcoming features in the FAQ on the game's official website, but they're not in the game at launch.

Specifically, Gods & Heroes currently has no PVP gameplay. You can't attack other players, period. You can play alone or you can work with friends (or strangers, for that matter) to go up against more powerful enemies and to conquer the dungeon areas, but you can't attack other players. In most MMORPGs, there are generally two sides (factions) and you select which side you are on when you create your character, then there is generally some provision for attacking other players from the other faction, and often even a "duel" option that allows players to challenge other players to a fight, on an "opt-in" basis. Some games have specific servers set up for PVP gameplay, which essentially means that you've opted in by creating a character on that server. Gods & Heroes doesn't offer any sort of PVP gameplay, even though one of the character classes in the game is Gladiator. Since the "bad guys" faction are NPCs and all players are Romans, I don't see how Faction PVP could be easily worked into the game, but I can imagine the gladiator arenas being brought into play, which could be a nice way to handle duels.

Also missing from Gods & Heroes is any crafting or harvesting, although both are planned post-launch features, and Magnolia bushes can already be found and the act of harvesting them can be performed (although I don't think you actually gain anything from it, just yet). When I play games that have crafting and harvesting, I will do a decent amount of it, but I don't typically make it my focus, so I can't say I missed it much.

So, the question comes down to what exactly is needed for an MMORPG these days? IS PVP gameplay a must-have? Does a game HAVE to have factions? Are crafting and harvesting important MMORPG activities or just ways to keep easily bored players busy? If I can get new items and armor from enemy drops and/or by buying it from vendors, how important is it that someone in Colorado can make a tunic for me, when it comes down to it?

This is just questions, without any real answers, but it seems to me that a lot of "neat" features that have sprouted in MMORPGS have gotten swept up into the common recipe, without necessarily deserving a permanent place as a staple of the genre.

As for Gods & Heroes: Rome Rising, what has been delivered so far (at launch) seems like it has very little focus on the online aspects. It seems like it could have been a perfectly good RPG, without being an MMO. As it is, the value of the game for a player who likes Gods & Heroes with just its current features is reduced by the fact that you have to pay a monthly fee and the fact that, should the game not prove to be popular enough and the servers get turned off, then you can't continue to play the PVE parts, because the game requires a backend server to run.

So, thoughts? Is PVP a must-have for an MMORPG? And what of crafting? harvesting / mining? auctions?

LittleBigPlanet: To Infinity and Beyond...

So, I just got done writing my review of LittleBigPlanet 2.

It is truly an amazing game...

LBP2 allows you to tweak gameplay enough that you can now make levels of a variety of types of genres. Want to make a side-scroller? Go ahead. An old school Space Invaders type game? It's not only possible, but part of one of the levels in "Cosmos" (in the main storyline) actually features this game mechanic at one point. You can ride on things, manipulate gravity, make set pieces invisible, make your own music... and make it interactive... all without having to know anything about programming.

The Community is coming out with some cool things. I am impressed with some of the things I'm seeing and hope to make some levels, myself, and do an article on the experience at some point in the future.

LittleBigPlanet 2 could really be a "game changer" (pardon the pun). How can a "tweaker" be satisfied with a typical tweaker game when a precedent has been made for a game that lets you make your own whole games with in-game editing tools without downloading anything extra... and all on a console? I won't be surprised to see the next wave of game designers referencing LittleBigPlanet 2 in some future interviews, when asked where they got their start.

There's a lot of creative power in LBP 2, and it's made as accessible as one could possibly hope. The game also allows you to use DLC from LittleBigPlanet. And, to top it all off, it includes Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves on the disc. All these, combined with the fact that I can't see anything wrong with the game at all... and the fact that LBP2 is a major improvement over LittleBigPlanet, which, itself, received a 100% has lead me to award LittleBigPlanet 2 an unprecedented 101%. I don't know if my editor will let that stay, or if it will get 'normalized' down to 100%, but, just in case, I wanted to state, for the record, that LittleBigPlanet 2 is nothing less than stellar and should be a must-buy for anyone with an Internet connection and a PS3 who thinks they might be interested in making games.

R2-GV is on the way...

Some of you may have noticed that we have an astromech on staff... R2-G5 (or R2-GV... the name may have been lost in translation...) Well, until now, he was actually a program running on some present day hardware, waiting until we rediscovered the needed technology to produce an appropriate body for him.

I'm happy to say that last night my COM-8B frame came in and, an hour or two later, I had a full-sized frame ready for me to build R2-G5's body around. I have included pictures here some pictures of the frame itself, as well as one with the dome and radar eye propped in place to give a better idea of what it will look like when it all comes together...

A Collector's Dilemma...

I like TRON. I really, really like TRON. I loved the original movie, with its interesting visuals and its pioneering use of computer graphics. I like its original marketing ploy of releasing a videogame (arcade) and a movie simultaneously. I also enjoyed the game itself. I even played "TRON Discs" for "real" with friends back in high school, in a game I made up that involves a tennis court and Frisbee...

And, anyone who knows me knows that I'm a bit of a collector, as well. I was started early, with Hot Wheels, stamps and rocks. I then went on to collect comic books (primarily Spider-Man), up until the point in history where Marvel and DC had what I like to call "The Clone Wars" and the public was "blessed" with more versions of Spider-Man and Superman than, well, anyone wanted.

For all of these reasons and more, I was quite excited to review PDP's TRON Collector's Edition Wireless Controller when it came in for review. I had seen these controllers at E3 2010 and was anxiously awaiting a review unit. What I hadn't realized, at the time, was that these controllers are limited to 20,000 units per console... and that they bear a metal plate on the back which shows their number. This makes it that much more collectible. And, as collectors know, everything that's collectible is more valuable if it's unopened... and I have to review it.

I only paused for a brief moment, mind you, but I had to stare at the box for a bit before I opened it, considering the value that I would be instantly diminishing. It was, however, only after I opened it that I found out that it is actually numbered. Which is an interesting (and unfortunate) thing... if you actually want to add this to a collection, you can either have it in unopened condition... OR you can know what number you have.

My TRON Collector's Edition Wireless Controller is numbered 00111 of 20000... which I was especially tickled over, since 00111 could also be a valid binary number and it is TRON, after all. Which led me to an interesting realization: There are only 31 such units out there (well, possibly 32, if they zero-index the collection and stop at 19999).... which is pretty cool, in my opinion.

And to anyone out there who plans to pick one of these up purely as a still-in-the-box collector's item... I put mine through the paces to review it, so I just made yours slightly more valuable. You're welcome. Mine will probably come to rest in the GameVorplex display cases... lit-up, if I can manage it.

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree...

Rock Band 3 is out, I've completed my review and... I'm still playing. That actually says a lot for a video game reviewer in the Christmas season; I typically don't get much of a chance to go back and play games after they've been reviewed... especially at a busy time like Christmas.

I don't have a lot of time to play, but I've been squeezing in a song before work, one when I get home, one before I go to bed... that sort of thing. What's mainly got me coming back for more, at this point, is the leaderboards. They provide a way to be relevant to other players without being overtly social. I'm not the type of person who like to chat a lot when I'm playing videogames. I also am not fond of waiting for other players to be ready, having other players drop out of a game I'm playing or feeling reluctant to simply restart a song because other unseen players would be inconvenienced. So, for me, the leaderboards are awesome.

You don't "opt in" to the leaderboards. You're simply there. You rank wherever you rank, if you have an Internet connection. If you feel intimidated by the rest of the world's rankings, you can choose to view your ranking among just your friends. Personally, I am viewing the world rankings as a challenge.

As of this writing (well, as of last night, on my last attempt at these songs), I had rankings on two songs which- added together - were just under 100:
Pro Keys Expert:

• Everybody Wants to Rule The World (Tears for Fears): 62


• Blue Monday (New Order): 36

...and Queen's got Rock Band 3 versions of their songs available, which include Pro Keys parts. That and the Billy Joel pack make for lots more Pro Keys goodness to challenge yourself with...

...see you on the leaderboards...

Blast from the Past...

Wow. 1988. In the Heyday of the Commodore 64. Back when I was still in West Feliciana High School, I submitted some tips to a popular Commodore magazine, aptly titled, "Commodore Magazine". I submitted a few and two of them were selected to be printed. Each tip selected receives a $5 check... well, except for the fact that I put them in the same envelope and, somehow, they found that as enough reason to just give me $5, instead of $10. No biggie. It wasn't really about the money. And, for that matter, I all but forgot about them ever being printed, my copies of the magazines getting lost (at worst) or misplace (at best) in the last couple of times I've moved to a new place.

However, just today, I was Googling myself (no, not for the typical vanity purpose; I was trying to locate some information about my mother in conjunction with myself) and I found where someone had put some issues of Commodore Magazine online when my search pulled up a couple of results from scribd.com.

Wow. 1988. In the Heyday of the Commodore 64. I realize that they're all but completely irrelevant (at best) now, but still, I wanted to post a link to them, for anyone who might want to check them out.

My first Game Tip ever published...
'Commodore Magazine Vo1-09-N12 1988 Apr'
(Search for "Yie-ArKungFu"): http://www.scribd.com/doc/14565370

My keyboard repair tip for the C64...
'Commodore Magazine Vol-10-N04 1989 Apr'
(Search for "RepairingYourKeyboard"): http://www.scribd.com/doc/14573215

I looked at the info about these being scanned in and saw that they were scanned in last year, which probably has something to do with copyright expirations, as it's 20 years after publication, but I also found it interesting (coincidental, I suppose) that they were both scanned in on my birthday. What a nice gift. Thank you, Steven D. of Prince George, B.C. Canada. It's just what I didn't even realize I wanted.

New Design on the Horizon

In celebration of GameVortex's 10th Anniversary, we've been making changes here and there. The thing we're currently working on is a redesign.

We're focusing on making the site more functional, not just different looking. That mean that we're going to be really addressing the way you navigate the site quite a bit. There are some things that are a bit clunky, currently, and we're going to be making the navigation of the website(s) a bit more straight-forward. Also, we are going to make some of the little known sections of our sites, such as our predefined search pages (such as this Tomb Raider page), our Features Index and our Company Index easier to locate.

The vast majority of our readers seem to find us via Google and then only stay for the specific review they were looking for. We don't mind, but we would love for those same readers to check out other content that we have that might interest them. To this end, we will be working on making new links to related content, as well as making it more obvious that the old links are actually there. Hopefully, readers will take the time to check out some of the other content we have that appeals to them.

Also, if you noticed above that I keep saying "sites," instead of "site," that's because GameVortex, while our flagship website, is not the only website we have. We also run PSillustrated (PlayStation Illustrated), which is actually in its 11th year, as that was our first website. Additionally, we are currently trying to come up with good names for a DVD/Blu-ray website, so our readers can still get that information, without the movie reviews taking up as much space on the game sites. All of our websites share a common reviewer pool and common management, so, in order to help stress this relationship, our new site designs will share a good bit of commonality between them - similar navigation, yes, but also elements that give them a unified look.

If you have any suggestions for the design, please leave them as comments to this entry, or email me at Robert [at] GameVortex [dot] com.