So I've had my PS3 for awhile and even picked up a few more games (Journey, Flower, Flow (?), Resistance 1, 2 & 3, Little Big Planet, and Overlord: Raising Hell). I've even finished (play to credits) Journey and got a lot of the achievements . . . I mean trophies for that game.
It took me a while to get comfortable with calling something trophies instead of achievements but I don't get hung up on it as much any more. That doesn't mean I like it though.
There's only 3 levels of trophies to get. Bronze, Silver and Gold. There is a Platinum level but so far those trophies are only for getting every other trophy in a game. How lame is that? I'm assuming the Bronze trophies are easy-peasy ones to get. The Silver will take a little bit more moderate work to get. And the Gold are ones you might have to plan out and carefully do something to unlock those. I don't know because I don't have any Gold trophies.
The biggest problem I have with trophies is that I don't really think of them as a reward for doing something (unless it's Gold). I've been in enough dance competitions in my life to know and associate a Bronze trophy with being a loser. A Silver trophy with being the first loser. They're consolation prizes as far as I'm concerned. If you get a Bronze trophy that just means that there are 2 other people who did the same thing, but better than you.
I know that's not how the trophies are created and assigned to tasks in video games. But that's how they are associated in my mind. Since the Bronze trophies are the easiest things to get they fall under the impression that anyone can do that. If so, what's so special about a trophy for that?
Now achievements for Xbox are assigned a point value. They could be 5 points, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50 or even 100 points or more. The value of the points does have some correlating relevance to how difficult it might be to get a particular achievement. If you're gunning for a 100 point whopper you can expect to have to spend a good deal of time working towards that achievement before you unlock it. Also, there are some 5 point achievements that you might not get because you made a choice in the game that steered you away from that particular achievement.
There's an individual value to each achievement earned. You and a friend could have played the same game but have different achievements and also a total different gamer score in the game. You can compare your 675 with their 550 and know who's probably played more and invested more in the game.
With trophies all you get is a number. Ten trophies earned: 7 Bronze, 2 Silver and 1 Gold. Your friend might also have ten trophies but they could have 9 Bronze and 1 Silver. You both have ten trophies, so how can you tell how much one has played the game more than another?
And what does the levels mean? I was just barely level 2 and I earned a Bronze trophy and my percentage went up 6 percentage points. After my next Bronze trophy my level percentage only went up 3 percentage points. What gives with that. I just don't understand how one Bronze trophy could be weighted more than another Bronze trophy when they are exactly the same thing. If you're only giving Bronze, Silver and Gold trophies you can't have one Bronze trophy counting for more than another Bronze trophy without telling me how or why. Seems a bit suspect to me.
As for the Platinum trophies, I don't get it. It's like "here have another one because you got all the others". I think the satisfaction you get with earning trophies or achievements should be for those individual tasks. Passing out another trophy just because you got all the others is stupid and has no value. Getting the last trophy (not counting Platinums) or achievement in a game should be all the reward you need for having "completed" a game. But getting these "finishing" Platinum trophies is like going to a dance competition and winning all the awards that they have categories for, but then having the judges say "here's one more for winning them all". There's nothing tied to the trophy. Your 100% completion for trophies and achievements could already been seen on your list without getting another one just to say "way to go".
I understand that Playstation was trying to duplicate and "improve" on Xbox's achievements, but doing things in their own way. I just don't get it. I feel less impressed and motivated with trying to get trophies because there are only 3 levels of skill and work involved in getting them. And don't get me started on the lame notification pop-up that shows when you get one.
Trophies also feel vague and tacked on to activities without any thought on how a game is played or the challenges at certain points in the game play. "Oh, this looks like a good spot to earn a trophy". They seem to highlight some of the "not that exciting moments" in the gameplay. Sometimes if feels very anti-climatic when you do unlock a trophy.
In Final Fantasy X HD remastered there's an achievement for winning your first Blitzball game. The first game you play you really haven't learned how to play that much. But winning or losing will generate a different outcome after the match. So why not have a different trophy (or harder trophy) to earn if you can win the first match the very first time you get to play Blitzball.
When I played FFX on the PS2 I didn't win my first time. Or my second or third time trying that first game. I think it took my 5 or 6 tries and reloading the save before I understood enough about Blitzball to win that first match and get Wakka the trophy.
That's a challenge for a gamer and what we thrive on. We play and replay games to try something new or earn achievements/trophies for doing different things. If we're going to have these challenges, the least thing they can do is reward us for completing them comparative to the effort we put in to achieve them. But please, just not with a Platinum trophy.
I blogged a LONG time ago that I wanted my gamer score on my tombstone when I died. Unfortunately I can't say the same thing about my count of PS3 trophies. They'll just have to collect dust in my PSN account and no one will ever know.
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Monday, October 27, 2014
The Last of Me and going back to an old friend
So of my PS3 games, I've been playing The Last of Us. Well, actually I've been trying to play that game. I've got it on easy, but I keep dying.
Every time I get in an area that explains a new thing to me, like clickers, or crafting Molotov's, I get stuck because I keep dying. My first time running through those sections are usually my best. Each time after that I get worse and worse.
I even had to call my brother for advise because after dying 7 or 8 times I was ready to throw the game in the pool. He explained to me what to do but I just couldn't see it in my head how I was suppose to make it work. I got on Twitch and watch someone struggle in the same area. He was using my brother's strategy of trying to confront the runners one at a time. He died several times but eventually made it through. When I went back to the game and tried it I was able to make it through on the first attempt. But I think I got lucky.
Now, I'm stuck again. This time I have at least 3 clickers and about 6-8 runners in one area and I can't seem to make it through. It's right after you learn how to make Molotov cocktails. On my first attempt I threw the Molotov too soon but was able to get several of the infected to run in to the flames before they went out. But then I died. After several attempts I can no longer get out of the starting area before dying. What is wrong with me?
I was getting so frustrated that I stopped playing the game. I thought about playing Uncharted but I was afraid that I would end up with the same problem. I was beginning to think that buying a PS3 was a mistake. I needed to do something before I totally regretted my decision and returned the system and games.
I went back to Game Stop and bough another game. An old friend. One I've played and finished. One of the few games I've finished. I have spent several hundreds of hours playing, and loving, this game, and it's sequel. I bought Final Fantasy X and X-2 HD remastered.
I've finished FFX and I started playing it again before I got robbed. Just recently I started it again on my PS2 because I was looking for something to get me back in the mood for gaming. I had played FFX-2 for quite awhile before the break in, and only recently restarted that one making sure I played everything just right in order to get 100% completion in the game. I'm currently stuck in that game in one area but the game lets you move to other places when you want.
I consider FFX a old friend. I could spend all day playing that game and it would only feel like a few minutes because the time spent is so enjoyable. And that's not counting playing Blitzball. I could play that all day and do nothing in the story and have an even better time. I don't know why.
The pace of the game is just right. The characters endearing. The action exciting and manageable. The combat controllable. The story touching and very emotional at times. I just watched one of the most beautiful cut scenes in the game last night. It's beautiful to look at but gut wrenching when you think about what is happening and why. And even more so if you've finished the game and you know how everything turns out. It's just one of those games that I think hits all the right notes. I like this Final Fantasy game better than FFVII and I think FFIX is a close 2nd.
I see 2 problems with the HD remastered edition. 1) I don't have an HD TV. I still have an old, fat CRT TV and while I can see a slight improvement in the graphics I'm sure I could see more if I had a newer HD flat screen TV. The font size is smaller, but still readable for the most part. 2) It seems to take a little longer to load things including the end of battle screens. There's slight pause/delay before everything loads up. I think it's because it's taking more time to load those new fangled graphics that I can't see on my old TV. It doesn't effect the overall game play except that it make everything seem to take longer.
After playing the game for a couple of nights, my old friend has restored my faith in my PS3. I won't be chucking it, or The Last of Us, into my pool. I will probably play FFX some more before I take another swipe at The Last of Us. But I think I'll need to watch some more Twitch before I do.
Every time I get in an area that explains a new thing to me, like clickers, or crafting Molotov's, I get stuck because I keep dying. My first time running through those sections are usually my best. Each time after that I get worse and worse.
I even had to call my brother for advise because after dying 7 or 8 times I was ready to throw the game in the pool. He explained to me what to do but I just couldn't see it in my head how I was suppose to make it work. I got on Twitch and watch someone struggle in the same area. He was using my brother's strategy of trying to confront the runners one at a time. He died several times but eventually made it through. When I went back to the game and tried it I was able to make it through on the first attempt. But I think I got lucky.
Now, I'm stuck again. This time I have at least 3 clickers and about 6-8 runners in one area and I can't seem to make it through. It's right after you learn how to make Molotov cocktails. On my first attempt I threw the Molotov too soon but was able to get several of the infected to run in to the flames before they went out. But then I died. After several attempts I can no longer get out of the starting area before dying. What is wrong with me?
I was getting so frustrated that I stopped playing the game. I thought about playing Uncharted but I was afraid that I would end up with the same problem. I was beginning to think that buying a PS3 was a mistake. I needed to do something before I totally regretted my decision and returned the system and games.
I went back to Game Stop and bough another game. An old friend. One I've played and finished. One of the few games I've finished. I have spent several hundreds of hours playing, and loving, this game, and it's sequel. I bought Final Fantasy X and X-2 HD remastered.
I've finished FFX and I started playing it again before I got robbed. Just recently I started it again on my PS2 because I was looking for something to get me back in the mood for gaming. I had played FFX-2 for quite awhile before the break in, and only recently restarted that one making sure I played everything just right in order to get 100% completion in the game. I'm currently stuck in that game in one area but the game lets you move to other places when you want.
I consider FFX a old friend. I could spend all day playing that game and it would only feel like a few minutes because the time spent is so enjoyable. And that's not counting playing Blitzball. I could play that all day and do nothing in the story and have an even better time. I don't know why.
The pace of the game is just right. The characters endearing. The action exciting and manageable. The combat controllable. The story touching and very emotional at times. I just watched one of the most beautiful cut scenes in the game last night. It's beautiful to look at but gut wrenching when you think about what is happening and why. And even more so if you've finished the game and you know how everything turns out. It's just one of those games that I think hits all the right notes. I like this Final Fantasy game better than FFVII and I think FFIX is a close 2nd.
I see 2 problems with the HD remastered edition. 1) I don't have an HD TV. I still have an old, fat CRT TV and while I can see a slight improvement in the graphics I'm sure I could see more if I had a newer HD flat screen TV. The font size is smaller, but still readable for the most part. 2) It seems to take a little longer to load things including the end of battle screens. There's slight pause/delay before everything loads up. I think it's because it's taking more time to load those new fangled graphics that I can't see on my old TV. It doesn't effect the overall game play except that it make everything seem to take longer.
After playing the game for a couple of nights, my old friend has restored my faith in my PS3. I won't be chucking it, or The Last of Us, into my pool. I will probably play FFX some more before I take another swipe at The Last of Us. But I think I'll need to watch some more Twitch before I do.
Thursday, October 23, 2014
Where I welcome a new gaming system to my household . . .
I've been wanting to get a new gaming system for a long time. I ended up with a little bit of money this month and I decided to take the plunge and get a new system.
What system did I get? Was it an Xbox One? Maybe a PS4? Or could it be a Wii U? There's also a PS Vita to consider. As well as a PS3. And I desperately need a new computer. Plus I'd love to get a new laptop. There's also the possibility of a 3DS. Which could it be?
I decided to get a PS3. Yes, my "new" console is considered a "last generation" system. I don't care. My finances have been really tight for the last 6 years or so and I've always wanted a PS3. My favorite console until recently was always the PS2. Mostly because of the great games and that it was also backward compatible so I could still play my PS games without having to swap out systems.
I got the 500GB The Last of Us bundle. It was last year's holiday bundle and I was afraid that they would come out with a different one that I wouldn't like. I also got lucky finding it at my local Game Stop.
And you know what the best part of all of this is? I got to keep my same gamertag. Yep. I'm Pengwenn on Xbox Live and now I'm Pengwenn on PSN. When my brother bought his PS3 (in July) he set up his account with a different name. That's going to be hard to remember which one he is on the different systems. If you have a PS3 and want to add me as a friend, send me a message and let me know who you are (if you have a different gamertag from how I know you on Xbox.
I got 3 games for the system. In addition to The Last of Us, I also got a 2 game bundle of Uncharted and Uncharted 2. I didn't have any money to get anything else. I will try to get more games. I figure they're cheap now so many I could pick up one every couple of weeks on payday. I'm sure I can find some really good bargains now.
Eventually I'll move up to the "current gen" systems and get an Xbox One and PS4 and a Wii U. Right now I don't have the money. There are some games that I know are out on Xbox 360 or PS3 but I want to have them for the current systems. Games like Destiny, Shadows of Mordor, etc. Hopefully I won't have to wait as long to get those systems and games that I did for my PS3.
I've only played The Last of Us and I've already gotten stuck twice. The first time I called my brother and he told me what to do. I understood what he was saying but I needed to see visuals so I got on Twitch and found someone in my exact spot. I watched him die 5 or 6 times just while I was watching before he got through the area. He did it just like what my brother said. When I got back on to the game I was able to get through that area on my first attempt and it was pretty easy.
Now I'm stuck again. I have to figure out how to get past/through 3 clickers and about a dozen runners. Yeah me. I guess it's back to Twitch for some help. If anyone has this game and wants to play some co-op or multi-player (whichever it offers) let me know. It will be nice to make some new friends and to actually play with them.
What system did I get? Was it an Xbox One? Maybe a PS4? Or could it be a Wii U? There's also a PS Vita to consider. As well as a PS3. And I desperately need a new computer. Plus I'd love to get a new laptop. There's also the possibility of a 3DS. Which could it be?
I decided to get a PS3. Yes, my "new" console is considered a "last generation" system. I don't care. My finances have been really tight for the last 6 years or so and I've always wanted a PS3. My favorite console until recently was always the PS2. Mostly because of the great games and that it was also backward compatible so I could still play my PS games without having to swap out systems.
I got the 500GB The Last of Us bundle. It was last year's holiday bundle and I was afraid that they would come out with a different one that I wouldn't like. I also got lucky finding it at my local Game Stop.
And you know what the best part of all of this is? I got to keep my same gamertag. Yep. I'm Pengwenn on Xbox Live and now I'm Pengwenn on PSN. When my brother bought his PS3 (in July) he set up his account with a different name. That's going to be hard to remember which one he is on the different systems. If you have a PS3 and want to add me as a friend, send me a message and let me know who you are (if you have a different gamertag from how I know you on Xbox.
I got 3 games for the system. In addition to The Last of Us, I also got a 2 game bundle of Uncharted and Uncharted 2. I didn't have any money to get anything else. I will try to get more games. I figure they're cheap now so many I could pick up one every couple of weeks on payday. I'm sure I can find some really good bargains now.
Eventually I'll move up to the "current gen" systems and get an Xbox One and PS4 and a Wii U. Right now I don't have the money. There are some games that I know are out on Xbox 360 or PS3 but I want to have them for the current systems. Games like Destiny, Shadows of Mordor, etc. Hopefully I won't have to wait as long to get those systems and games that I did for my PS3.
I've only played The Last of Us and I've already gotten stuck twice. The first time I called my brother and he told me what to do. I understood what he was saying but I needed to see visuals so I got on Twitch and found someone in my exact spot. I watched him die 5 or 6 times just while I was watching before he got through the area. He did it just like what my brother said. When I got back on to the game I was able to get through that area on my first attempt and it was pretty easy.
Now I'm stuck again. I have to figure out how to get past/through 3 clickers and about a dozen runners. Yeah me. I guess it's back to Twitch for some help. If anyone has this game and wants to play some co-op or multi-player (whichever it offers) let me know. It will be nice to make some new friends and to actually play with them.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Games with Gold downloads
Just because I know someone will ask I'm going to tell you which Games with Gold downloads I've got. Until this month I think I've down loaded all the arcade games. This month has fighting games and I'm not interested in those. I've downloaded the full game ones even if I already have the disk for the game. I did that so I would have the game in my download history just in case something happened to the disk. I think those games were one of the Fable games (can't remember which one), Civilization Revolution, Gears of War and one of the Assassin's Creed games (can't remember that one either).
The games that I didn't previously own that I downloaded are: Crackdown, Dark Souls, Dead Island, and Hitman Absolution. I also bought the download version of Red Dead Redemption. I was thinking of getting that game and the download price was the same as a used copy at Gamestop. I choose the download. I was also in the process of pricing Dark Souls when I saw that it was the Games with Gold download. That saved me some money.
If you have any of these games and are willing to play with me I'd love to play with you. Just hit me up with an invite when you see me online. I'm not on much and I'm not far in any of these games. Just warning you.
The games that I didn't previously own that I downloaded are: Crackdown, Dark Souls, Dead Island, and Hitman Absolution. I also bought the download version of Red Dead Redemption. I was thinking of getting that game and the download price was the same as a used copy at Gamestop. I choose the download. I was also in the process of pricing Dark Souls when I saw that it was the Games with Gold download. That saved me some money.
If you have any of these games and are willing to play with me I'd love to play with you. Just hit me up with an invite when you see me online. I'm not on much and I'm not far in any of these games. Just warning you.
1 minute Time Travel game + 3 new games
I know I haven't blogged for awhile but that's because I've had a lot of stuff going on in my life that has made blogging (and sometimes gaming) very hard to do. For starters my birthday was this month (the 15th). I've gotten to a point in my life that another birthday is just another day in my life. But on the other hand I've been feeling a little blue lately that having someone actually acknowledge it's my birthday and want to celebrate with me would be nice.
On top of all of that my supervisor went out on maternity leave this month and I've had to tag along to a bunch of her meetings before she left so I can step in to her shoes and fill in for her while she's out for the next 3 months.
On top of that I've had problems with my AC unit. Right when the temperature starting hovering around 108-110. I called the guy out the first time and he couldn't pin point what was wrong with the unit, but admitted that it wasn't functioning correctly. He suggested either the thermostat, the compressor or the blower motor. The cheapest fix was the thermostat, starting at $200. My dad suggested I go to Home Depot and buy one myself. I got one for $25 and he helped install it. Unfortunately that didn't solve the problem. After getting another guy to come out and have a look he found out it was the starter relay for the compressor and the compressor wasn't running efficiently. The bad news is I ended up spending $1,116 to fix the relay and compressor. The good news is I finally have cold air in my house again.
So with all those things (and a general disgust with how things have been happening while playing) I haven't blogged or felt like playing for awhile. I did buy 3 new games though. It was my birthday present to myself. And I needed some cheering up. I got The Darkness 2, Final Fantasy XIII: Lightning Returns and Splinter Cell: Blacklist. Got 'em used and cheap at Gamestop (although I found out later I could have gotten SC:B even cheaper on Amazon . . . and new too). I should probably stop buying new games and just focusing on the games I already have.
If I hadn't had to spend so much money to fix my AC unit I would have gotten a PS3 bundle. There's a The Last of Us PS3 500GB bundle on sale for $269. Unfortunately I'd rather have cool air than a new system right now. I'm hoping it will still be available next month or August after I've financially recovered from this.
But until then I have a new "1 Minute" game. This time (ha ha) it's with time travel. You have one minute to list every game you can think of that has time travel as an element of game play. Your character either travels through time to another point in the time continuum or your player plays in two different time periods. I'm going to rule out the Fable games. Starting as a kid for the "tutorial" parts and then playing as an adult for the main game doesn't count. That's just a gimmick to help you learn the mechanics of the game before getting in to the real story. So Fable games are ruled out. For me and for you.
So now lets get to your list.
On your mark.
Get set.
Go.
Time travel.
Don't be cute and try to reset the timer. That doesn't count as 'time travel'.
If you can get one in a certain franchise you should be able to get all 6.
And no, I'm going to give you a hint.
You better hurry. You're running out of time.
(hee hee)
And STOP!
Okay how many did you come up with?
Here's my list:
Chrono Cross
Chrono Trigger
Time Splitters: Future Perfect
Assassin's Creed 1-3, Brotherhood, Revelations & Black Flag
Gears of War Judgement
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Final Fantasy X and X-2
Blink: The Time Sweeper
Civilization Revolution
That's a total of 14 games. I'm very disappointed in myself. I thought I could think up more than that. There's got to me more, right?
I wasn't going to included Gears of War Judgement because I was thinking it was all flashback story telling but then I remembered that you actually play in the present when the Locus storm the courtroom place. It's not stereotypical "time travel" but you are playing in two different time periods and I said that would count.
I haven't played Blink for so long but I remember it has something to do with time. I could be totally wrong about that game. I think I might have to go look up the story for that game and see if I'm way off.
I will admit that Civilization Revolution was also a stretch. But since you play in multiple time eras and things change as you play I'm counting it. Hey, it's my game so I will allow it.
As for the Final Fantasy games I'm saying they count even though I don't understand exactly how or why. I'm not even sure I can explain to you my reasoning in a way that you'll be understand, even if you have played the games. I understand all the Summoners and Sin stuff (to a point with Sin anyway) but where (or maybe when) Tidus comes from and how and what Yuna does in the second game to find him is still pretty hazy to me. I'm working on another play through of the first game and I'm slowing plodding my way through the second game (when I can get my system to load it). Maybe when I finish the second game I'll have a better understanding.
So tell me how many you got in the comments. Was there an obvious game I missed? Did I have some that you think you should have gotten? Did you cheat and read my list first? Shame on you.
On top of all of that my supervisor went out on maternity leave this month and I've had to tag along to a bunch of her meetings before she left so I can step in to her shoes and fill in for her while she's out for the next 3 months.
On top of that I've had problems with my AC unit. Right when the temperature starting hovering around 108-110. I called the guy out the first time and he couldn't pin point what was wrong with the unit, but admitted that it wasn't functioning correctly. He suggested either the thermostat, the compressor or the blower motor. The cheapest fix was the thermostat, starting at $200. My dad suggested I go to Home Depot and buy one myself. I got one for $25 and he helped install it. Unfortunately that didn't solve the problem. After getting another guy to come out and have a look he found out it was the starter relay for the compressor and the compressor wasn't running efficiently. The bad news is I ended up spending $1,116 to fix the relay and compressor. The good news is I finally have cold air in my house again.
So with all those things (and a general disgust with how things have been happening while playing) I haven't blogged or felt like playing for awhile. I did buy 3 new games though. It was my birthday present to myself. And I needed some cheering up. I got The Darkness 2, Final Fantasy XIII: Lightning Returns and Splinter Cell: Blacklist. Got 'em used and cheap at Gamestop (although I found out later I could have gotten SC:B even cheaper on Amazon . . . and new too). I should probably stop buying new games and just focusing on the games I already have.
If I hadn't had to spend so much money to fix my AC unit I would have gotten a PS3 bundle. There's a The Last of Us PS3 500GB bundle on sale for $269. Unfortunately I'd rather have cool air than a new system right now. I'm hoping it will still be available next month or August after I've financially recovered from this.
But until then I have a new "1 Minute" game. This time (ha ha) it's with time travel. You have one minute to list every game you can think of that has time travel as an element of game play. Your character either travels through time to another point in the time continuum or your player plays in two different time periods. I'm going to rule out the Fable games. Starting as a kid for the "tutorial" parts and then playing as an adult for the main game doesn't count. That's just a gimmick to help you learn the mechanics of the game before getting in to the real story. So Fable games are ruled out. For me and for you.
So now lets get to your list.
On your mark.
Get set.
Go.
Time travel.
Don't be cute and try to reset the timer. That doesn't count as 'time travel'.
If you can get one in a certain franchise you should be able to get all 6.
And no, I'm going to give you a hint.
You better hurry. You're running out of time.
(hee hee)
And STOP!
Okay how many did you come up with?
Here's my list:
Chrono Cross
Chrono Trigger
Time Splitters: Future Perfect
Assassin's Creed 1-3, Brotherhood, Revelations & Black Flag
Gears of War Judgement
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Final Fantasy X and X-2
Blink: The Time Sweeper
Civilization Revolution
That's a total of 14 games. I'm very disappointed in myself. I thought I could think up more than that. There's got to me more, right?
I wasn't going to included Gears of War Judgement because I was thinking it was all flashback story telling but then I remembered that you actually play in the present when the Locus storm the courtroom place. It's not stereotypical "time travel" but you are playing in two different time periods and I said that would count.
I haven't played Blink for so long but I remember it has something to do with time. I could be totally wrong about that game. I think I might have to go look up the story for that game and see if I'm way off.
I will admit that Civilization Revolution was also a stretch. But since you play in multiple time eras and things change as you play I'm counting it. Hey, it's my game so I will allow it.
As for the Final Fantasy games I'm saying they count even though I don't understand exactly how or why. I'm not even sure I can explain to you my reasoning in a way that you'll be understand, even if you have played the games. I understand all the Summoners and Sin stuff (to a point with Sin anyway) but where (or maybe when) Tidus comes from and how and what Yuna does in the second game to find him is still pretty hazy to me. I'm working on another play through of the first game and I'm slowing plodding my way through the second game (when I can get my system to load it). Maybe when I finish the second game I'll have a better understanding.
So tell me how many you got in the comments. Was there an obvious game I missed? Did I have some that you think you should have gotten? Did you cheat and read my list first? Shame on you.
Thursday, May 22, 2014
I could use a break. Anyone have a KitKat bar?
I did not have a good weekend last week. And saying it was "not good" is an understatement. And things have only gotten worse since then.
I did a check of my outstanding achievements in Gears of War 3 and I found that there were 160 points that I could realistically get in that game before I would consider myself done. Getting the achievement for onyxing every medal is not what I call realistic for me. I'm just trying to keep it real. But executing Minh 10 times is doable. Getting 10 reflective kills is doable. Re-upping for a 2nd time is doable. And maxing out the command center levels is doable. Among others.
Or should I say WAS doable.
I've been working on leveling up my "Ready for the Heavies" medal to onyx and I only had 10 more ribbons to get to do so. I was working on getting those last 10 ribbons all week last week. Sometimes it was easy. Sometimes I was playing with a bunch of idiots. And sometimes my teammates were just too good.
On Saturday night I finally got the last ribbon needed to make the medal onyx. When the match was over I jumped in to my stats and checked out my newest Onyx medal. It looked so pretty. I sat and admired it for awhile before searching around for the next medal I'd focus on to try and get it onyx.
The next closest one was earning money in Horde and if I also spent money repairing the command center I could get that achievement as well. It seemed like a win-win situation. Unfortunately it was late and I really wasn't in the mood to play some Horde so I jumped into some Guardian matches (another medal close to leveling up - sadly not to onyx).
I played a few rounds. I was the leader a couple of times and even killed someone as the leader (working towards another medal). After a couple of matches I called it a night and jumped out of the game and logged off for the night.
On Sunday I didn't get to play until later in the evening. I put in Gears 3 ready to grind away at some Hordes and hopefully getting an onyx medal or an achievement before the night was over. But things didn't turn out that way as soon as I hit the start button.
My system froze a little bit as it was "downloading player profile". No big deal, right? It's done that to me many times before. Unfortunately this time it was different. As soon as it unfroze I started to get pop ups for unlocking this character, or unlocking this weapon skin, or unlocking something else. I thought that was very strange and maybe there was a medal or achievement that was glitched and was hoping it was finally unglitched and I actually earned something I should have a long time ago.
Wrong.
On the party screen it said my level was 1. That didn't worry me too much. A lot of times it has taken my screen a while to update with my current level. When I got into my stats menu I realized things were worse than that. Much worse.
My level on the stats screen said 11. That's right. A one followed by another one. I was level 67 and about a third of the way to level 68 on my second go around on levels. I had "prestiged" once and my level was a different color. But now the system was saying I was 157 levels less than what I was when I played the night before.
Oh, but it gets worse.
When I looked at my stats I showed that I haven't even played the game at all. No Horde. No Beast. No multiplayer. And no campaign. Everything was gone. Almost everything. I still had the characters and weapon skins unlocked . . . but only up to level 11. It was showing that I collected every collectible item in the campaign, even if it showed that I had never played the campaign.
All my ribbons were gone as well. I only had 2 ribbons I hadn't earned yet. One was for reviving 3 downed teammates as a kantas in beast mode. The other was for killing 3 headsnakes in Horde. The headsnakes were much more doable in my opinion. All those 130+ ribbons were gone. Grayed out. locked up as if never earned. Ever.
And then there was the medals. I immediately got the onyx medal for earning achievements in Gears 2 so at least that wasn't taken from me. All the other medals (except one) looked like dusty unused trinkets found in the back of your grandmother's closet. Unloved. And not looked at for years. The only other medal that had something (besides the Gears 2 medal) was the medal for playing in Gears of War 3 events. That medal was sitting at 29 out of 30. I remember sitting at that level for so long wondering if I would ever get that last event to play in before they finally had something going and I was finally able to get that medal to onyx. Finally.
Except this time I was stuck back and 29 out of 30. And I don't think there's anymore events to play in to make it onyx. I was dumbfounded. I didn't consider getting the achievement for getting all onyx medals as being realistic for me. Killing your nemesis X about of time, and getting "number 1" in arcade mode are probably out of my wheelhouse when it comes to game play. But not having another "event" to play when I only needed one to make that medal onyx was a blow I just couldn't take.
I logged off. I would have cried but I was so shocked and dumbfounded that I just couldn't get the tears to fall. Three years of my life wiped out from one night to the next. And no hope of getting it all back.
I talked with a friend who knows someone who this happened to. Fortunately for him it was still early enough in the game that he could recover and earned everything back. He had sent Epic an email explaining what happened and wanted to know if they could do anything about it. Unfortunately for him, and later for me, Epic said they know about the problem, don't know why it is happening and have no way to fix it when it does. Way to go Epic.
I was so traumatized that I couldn't even look at ANY gaming console Sunday night. I was baffled and befuddled. Angry and anxious. It was like being robbed all over again. But this time it wasn't dumbass people being shitheads that broke in and took things, it was a dumbass company who took things because their shit broke and they don't know how to fix it. This happened to me before in Gears of War 2. I lost 15 levels from one log in to the next. My friend lost about 10 when it happened to him. It was early enough in the game that I got over it but I remember being at level 89 when everyone else on my friends list was maxing out at 100 (we use to be all close together in ranks). Once they maxed out they didn't want to play the game any more. It was really hard to get those last 11 levels mostly on my own. When I finally got to level 100 and got my wings my friends said "well it's about time". If I'm having a hard enough time finding friends to play with me right now in Gears 3 what chance did I have to have them play longer with me to unlock the campaign again?
I went to bed Sunday night not even wanting to play my Xbox 360 every again. But at lunch on Monday I thought I would try a bunch of things to see if that might help. One of the things I tried was deleting my profile and redownloading it. That didn't help. I even tried having the game download my profile to the cloud instead of my hard drive. Still nothing worked.
I then decided I would play a level in the campaign and see if that might magically unlock things for me. I played the first level on normal and when done my screen went ballistic with unlocking stuff. I jumped out and checked my stats and it seems like I got credit for fully playing the campaign on casual and normal and also playing those difficulties in Arcade mode. Hmm....
I played the next level on hardcore and the same things happened. I then played the next level on insane and next thing I know I've got an onyx medal for playing the campaign on insane and playing arcade on insane. I was starting to think that things might not be all bad. At least I didn't have to play the entire campaign again.
I next tried Beast mode and while I unlocked beast on casual and normal I didn't unlock anything else for all those other Beast medals. Previously I had onyx medals for all of beast mode but now they were still grayed out and locked. You could see the counter going up for what I played but I didn't get credit for everything like I did with the campaign. The only good news was that I got credit for playing an "event" when I finished the Beast mode game and that medal turned onyx . . . again.
I then gave up on Gears 3. Partly because I had to go to work, but partly because I had to decide if I was going to put the time in to get everything back that I previous had. That would mean starting over from scratch in Horde . . . when I was almost done with it. That meant trying to get those ribbons that I had to have a friends help me plan out and get. If I played Gears every night faithfully how long would it take me to get back what I had? How long would I get bored of the game and could no longer stand it? How many other games would I not be playing because I'm having to recreate everything in Gears again? I just wanted those 160 points in my gamerscore then I could put Gears 3 aside until nostalgia stuck and I felt compelled to play it again.
On Tuesday I put Gears 3 away and tried playing Lost Odyssey. It turns out I'm in the last area before I get to put in disk 4. That means I'm close to being where I was before I was robbed. And close to finishing the game. Unfortunately I was having a hard time with my magic users coming up against physical attack enemies. Two hits and my characters is out. And since they all come after the same character when it's their turn I always had a character down (sometimes 2) at the end of every round. And the first character they always take out is my designated healer.
Enough with the Xbox 360 games. I just couldn't take it anymore. I disconnected my 360 and stashed it away. I figure my gaming time would be better served playing on another system. It turns out it wasn't. I couldn't get my PS2 to load three of the games I wanted to play. I finally found a game that it would load (Champions of Norrath) and started that.
It was very obvious from my saved file that the last time I played this game was when I replaced it after having it stolen. And then, I only played it long enough to see that it worked (character was level 3). Unfortunately, after trying to play and dying all the time, because I was out of health potions, I gave up on that game and walked away.
I'm not sure what I'll play now. What game or what system. I just can't catch a break. If I can't catch a break I think I'll just have a KitKat bar instead. With my luck I won't be able to open the wrapper.
I did a check of my outstanding achievements in Gears of War 3 and I found that there were 160 points that I could realistically get in that game before I would consider myself done. Getting the achievement for onyxing every medal is not what I call realistic for me. I'm just trying to keep it real. But executing Minh 10 times is doable. Getting 10 reflective kills is doable. Re-upping for a 2nd time is doable. And maxing out the command center levels is doable. Among others.
Or should I say WAS doable.
I've been working on leveling up my "Ready for the Heavies" medal to onyx and I only had 10 more ribbons to get to do so. I was working on getting those last 10 ribbons all week last week. Sometimes it was easy. Sometimes I was playing with a bunch of idiots. And sometimes my teammates were just too good.
On Saturday night I finally got the last ribbon needed to make the medal onyx. When the match was over I jumped in to my stats and checked out my newest Onyx medal. It looked so pretty. I sat and admired it for awhile before searching around for the next medal I'd focus on to try and get it onyx.
The next closest one was earning money in Horde and if I also spent money repairing the command center I could get that achievement as well. It seemed like a win-win situation. Unfortunately it was late and I really wasn't in the mood to play some Horde so I jumped into some Guardian matches (another medal close to leveling up - sadly not to onyx).
I played a few rounds. I was the leader a couple of times and even killed someone as the leader (working towards another medal). After a couple of matches I called it a night and jumped out of the game and logged off for the night.
On Sunday I didn't get to play until later in the evening. I put in Gears 3 ready to grind away at some Hordes and hopefully getting an onyx medal or an achievement before the night was over. But things didn't turn out that way as soon as I hit the start button.
My system froze a little bit as it was "downloading player profile". No big deal, right? It's done that to me many times before. Unfortunately this time it was different. As soon as it unfroze I started to get pop ups for unlocking this character, or unlocking this weapon skin, or unlocking something else. I thought that was very strange and maybe there was a medal or achievement that was glitched and was hoping it was finally unglitched and I actually earned something I should have a long time ago.
Wrong.
On the party screen it said my level was 1. That didn't worry me too much. A lot of times it has taken my screen a while to update with my current level. When I got into my stats menu I realized things were worse than that. Much worse.
My level on the stats screen said 11. That's right. A one followed by another one. I was level 67 and about a third of the way to level 68 on my second go around on levels. I had "prestiged" once and my level was a different color. But now the system was saying I was 157 levels less than what I was when I played the night before.
Oh, but it gets worse.
When I looked at my stats I showed that I haven't even played the game at all. No Horde. No Beast. No multiplayer. And no campaign. Everything was gone. Almost everything. I still had the characters and weapon skins unlocked . . . but only up to level 11. It was showing that I collected every collectible item in the campaign, even if it showed that I had never played the campaign.
All my ribbons were gone as well. I only had 2 ribbons I hadn't earned yet. One was for reviving 3 downed teammates as a kantas in beast mode. The other was for killing 3 headsnakes in Horde. The headsnakes were much more doable in my opinion. All those 130+ ribbons were gone. Grayed out. locked up as if never earned. Ever.
And then there was the medals. I immediately got the onyx medal for earning achievements in Gears 2 so at least that wasn't taken from me. All the other medals (except one) looked like dusty unused trinkets found in the back of your grandmother's closet. Unloved. And not looked at for years. The only other medal that had something (besides the Gears 2 medal) was the medal for playing in Gears of War 3 events. That medal was sitting at 29 out of 30. I remember sitting at that level for so long wondering if I would ever get that last event to play in before they finally had something going and I was finally able to get that medal to onyx. Finally.
Except this time I was stuck back and 29 out of 30. And I don't think there's anymore events to play in to make it onyx. I was dumbfounded. I didn't consider getting the achievement for getting all onyx medals as being realistic for me. Killing your nemesis X about of time, and getting "number 1" in arcade mode are probably out of my wheelhouse when it comes to game play. But not having another "event" to play when I only needed one to make that medal onyx was a blow I just couldn't take.
I logged off. I would have cried but I was so shocked and dumbfounded that I just couldn't get the tears to fall. Three years of my life wiped out from one night to the next. And no hope of getting it all back.
I talked with a friend who knows someone who this happened to. Fortunately for him it was still early enough in the game that he could recover and earned everything back. He had sent Epic an email explaining what happened and wanted to know if they could do anything about it. Unfortunately for him, and later for me, Epic said they know about the problem, don't know why it is happening and have no way to fix it when it does. Way to go Epic.
I was so traumatized that I couldn't even look at ANY gaming console Sunday night. I was baffled and befuddled. Angry and anxious. It was like being robbed all over again. But this time it wasn't dumbass people being shitheads that broke in and took things, it was a dumbass company who took things because their shit broke and they don't know how to fix it. This happened to me before in Gears of War 2. I lost 15 levels from one log in to the next. My friend lost about 10 when it happened to him. It was early enough in the game that I got over it but I remember being at level 89 when everyone else on my friends list was maxing out at 100 (we use to be all close together in ranks). Once they maxed out they didn't want to play the game any more. It was really hard to get those last 11 levels mostly on my own. When I finally got to level 100 and got my wings my friends said "well it's about time". If I'm having a hard enough time finding friends to play with me right now in Gears 3 what chance did I have to have them play longer with me to unlock the campaign again?
I went to bed Sunday night not even wanting to play my Xbox 360 every again. But at lunch on Monday I thought I would try a bunch of things to see if that might help. One of the things I tried was deleting my profile and redownloading it. That didn't help. I even tried having the game download my profile to the cloud instead of my hard drive. Still nothing worked.
I then decided I would play a level in the campaign and see if that might magically unlock things for me. I played the first level on normal and when done my screen went ballistic with unlocking stuff. I jumped out and checked my stats and it seems like I got credit for fully playing the campaign on casual and normal and also playing those difficulties in Arcade mode. Hmm....
I played the next level on hardcore and the same things happened. I then played the next level on insane and next thing I know I've got an onyx medal for playing the campaign on insane and playing arcade on insane. I was starting to think that things might not be all bad. At least I didn't have to play the entire campaign again.
I next tried Beast mode and while I unlocked beast on casual and normal I didn't unlock anything else for all those other Beast medals. Previously I had onyx medals for all of beast mode but now they were still grayed out and locked. You could see the counter going up for what I played but I didn't get credit for everything like I did with the campaign. The only good news was that I got credit for playing an "event" when I finished the Beast mode game and that medal turned onyx . . . again.
I then gave up on Gears 3. Partly because I had to go to work, but partly because I had to decide if I was going to put the time in to get everything back that I previous had. That would mean starting over from scratch in Horde . . . when I was almost done with it. That meant trying to get those ribbons that I had to have a friends help me plan out and get. If I played Gears every night faithfully how long would it take me to get back what I had? How long would I get bored of the game and could no longer stand it? How many other games would I not be playing because I'm having to recreate everything in Gears again? I just wanted those 160 points in my gamerscore then I could put Gears 3 aside until nostalgia stuck and I felt compelled to play it again.
On Tuesday I put Gears 3 away and tried playing Lost Odyssey. It turns out I'm in the last area before I get to put in disk 4. That means I'm close to being where I was before I was robbed. And close to finishing the game. Unfortunately I was having a hard time with my magic users coming up against physical attack enemies. Two hits and my characters is out. And since they all come after the same character when it's their turn I always had a character down (sometimes 2) at the end of every round. And the first character they always take out is my designated healer.
Enough with the Xbox 360 games. I just couldn't take it anymore. I disconnected my 360 and stashed it away. I figure my gaming time would be better served playing on another system. It turns out it wasn't. I couldn't get my PS2 to load three of the games I wanted to play. I finally found a game that it would load (Champions of Norrath) and started that.
It was very obvious from my saved file that the last time I played this game was when I replaced it after having it stolen. And then, I only played it long enough to see that it worked (character was level 3). Unfortunately, after trying to play and dying all the time, because I was out of health potions, I gave up on that game and walked away.
I'm not sure what I'll play now. What game or what system. I just can't catch a break. If I can't catch a break I think I'll just have a KitKat bar instead. With my luck I won't be able to open the wrapper.
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
1 minute Dragon game
So I’ve got another “1 minute” game for you. This time, here there be dragons. Yep.
Those big winged flapping lizard-like creatures. You have 1 minute to list as many video games
that have dragons in them. Be they bosses, pets, or just in cut scenes. It should be
easy, right? So . . .
On your mark . . . .
Get set . . . .
Go . . .
You got started off really fast.
You’ve named a couple but are you sure they really have
dragons in them?
Oops, is that a duplicate?
Come on keep going.
You’ve run out of ideas already?
Okay . . . and time’s up.
How many did you get?
Here’s my list. I have a few
maybes on it and I’ll have to explain those.
My list:
Legend of Dragoon
Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy VII
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age 2
Skyrim
Spyro the Dragon
Spyro the Dragon: Ripto’s Rage
Sypro the Dragon: Enter the
Dragonfly
Blue Dragon
My maybes:
Dark Stone
Balder’s Gate
Champions of Norath
Summoner
Untold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade
Gauntlet
So I got 10 that I know of for sure that have dragons. I could have probably listed all of the Final
Fantasy games but I wasn’t sure if they all had a dragon in them. I’m not even totally sure with FF7 but I’m
hedging my bet that it does. And I'm know there are more Spyro games that what I have listed but I can't remember any more than what I put down.
As to the maybes I have various excuses or doubts about
including them. I might have to do some
research to see if I’m just imagining things with these games or I got it right. Unless someone wants to do it for me and put
it in the comment’s section.
It’s been a very long time since I played Dark Stone and
then I didn’t even get very far in the game.
I’ve been meaning to go back and what I remember of the game it’s
perfect to have a dragon.
It’s also been a very long time since I’ve played both
Balder’s Gate and Champions of Norath.
They are also a couple of games that have got to have a dragon or
two. I’m pretty sure that my brother
dain and I have finished both of those games but nothing comes to mind
specifically about dragons. Even if not
a boss but just something terrifying to look at in a cut scene.
Summoner is the game dain and I are supposed to be finishing
for the PS2. When I think of “summoners”
I think of magic and summoning dragons.
So there’s got to be a dragon in that game right?
Untold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade is a game I’ve been
playing on the PSP. It’s another game
that I’m not very far in but seems perfect to having a dragon in the game. If not a boss, then some eye candy instead. There’s another game in the Untold Legends
series that I have but I can’t remember the name so I didn’t count it. Warrior’s Code. Or maybe, Warrior’s Guild. Or something like that. Since I can’t remember what it’s called, I’m
not counting it. Even as a maybe.
Gauntlet is a game my brother dain and I have finished a
couple of times. On the N64. On the PS.
And on the GameCube. And maybe
more systems and versions of the game. I
can’t remember if there are any dragons in the game. If there are they’re probably fought while on
the ground. At least I don’t remember
any aerial combat battles in any of those games. And since I can’t remember any subtitles for
any of those versions I’m only counting them as one game. And that’s only a maybe too.
Personally I’m disappointed with myself. I thought I would have done better than
that. Especially since one of my
favorite genres of video games is RPGs and those are usually fantasy
games. And aren’t dragons, in one form
or another, a requirement in fantasy games?
Maybe if I played more of those games . . . or at least played more IN
all of those games that I have I could have done better. How well did you do? Leave your results in the comments. And if you’ve got some ideas for more “1
minute” game ideas leave those in the comments as well. I’ve got a few more ideas I want to explore
but it won’t hurt to have more.
Friday, May 9, 2014
Just to show you what I have been playing . . .
And here's a list of my most completed games from my spreadsheet I talked about in my previous post. All my games down to 20% completion. You can probably see a trend, it's not hard to see. My overall numbers are 17,615 gamer score earned out of 134,745 possible points for a 13% completion percentage. Obviously my arcade titles are not included in this number.
I’m really not this organized.
I’ve had several people ask me how I keep track of my games
and how I’m doing in them. It’s not hard
and it’s not a secret. I use an Excel
Workbook.
When my brother, dain bramage, and I started playing
together we didn’t have very many games.
We would give each other games as gifts if we hadn’t bought that game
for ourselves previously. After a while
it got hard to remember who had what game.
We both sat down and created an inventory of every game we owned. It was just a simple Excel spreadsheet. One for each system. We also added a column for “dain owns” on
mine and “Pengwenn owns” on his.
Once we did this it was very easy for him to pick the games
for our little challenge that started this blog oh so many years ago. It was also easy to figure out what games to
get the other person. And when I got
robbed it was a godsend for filling out those claim forms. Plus it is an easy way to check off the games
I had replaced as I was recovering from the theft.
Here's a snapshot of the first couple games on my Xbox 360 tab. You can see I haven't play these games very much. (I did changed my brother's name because I don't call him "dain bramage" in real life but that's what you know him here in my blog world.)
If you have a lot of games (I also have a similar list for
my movies) I would highly recommend creating an inventory for said games (or
movies). There’s so many useful things
you can do with this information. You
can search for games that are almost complete in their achievements so you can
focus on those and finish them off. If
you marked which ones you’ve finished you know what ones you can blog about . .
. of help your friends with or recommend something. It’s also helpful to seeing trends in your
game buying.
I went through a “buying only RPG” phase. Don’t remember what set that off but I have a
bunch of games I know I got at around the same time and they’re all RPGs. Most of them I haven’t even played other than
to put it in the machine to make sure the disk will load. I also went through a “FPS” phase after I got
my Xbox 360. That phase I can point to Gears
of War and Call of Duty 4 specifically.
Another way I’ve organized my list is by games with strategy
guides. If I have a guide I’m likely to
play the game knowing that if I get stuck I’ve got something handy to help me
get unstuck. But even though I buy the
guide for most games I really don’t like to use them unless I’m desperate. I much prefer to figure things out on my own
even if it will give me headache while I’m trying to do so.
I’ve also been able to organize my list by games with no
gamer score. I don’t like seeing games without a gamer score. There’s just something about that “0” that
screams “YOU NEVER PLAY ME” and while that might be true I feel terrible about
neglecting one of my games. There are
just so many hours in the day so it’s unavoidable to not getting around to
certain games. But that doesn’t mean I’m
not at least thinking about them. Now
that I can isolate which ones they are I can work on playing them and getting
some achievements. It worked for Too
Human. I now have 150 points in that
game.
Until recently I had the games listed alphabetically, but by
release dates for collective franchises.
That means that while Assassin’s Creed would list 1-4 first before
Brotherhood and Revolution my list was showing them in order of the release
date. That way I could play them in
order as they were meant to be played without messing up the timelines. Unfortunately the last sort I did messed that
up and I haven’t gone back and corrected that mash-up.
And speaking of release dates, I have a separate list with
the release dates of all the games.
Why? Because I feel bad for not getting
around to playing Batman: Arkahm City, but I feel even worse for not playing
Kamino. Why? B:AC was released in October 2011 but Kamino
was released November 2005. It was a
launch title and I haven’t gotten very far in the game. That game (among others) have been sitting
around longer so I’ve had more time to play them, but haven’t. But whatever you do don’t get me started on
my original Playstation games that I haven’t played. The number of those un-played games will just
spiral me down into depression if I think about that too long. Again, not enough time in the day.
Despite this fancy, organized spreadsheet I’m not running a
well oiled machine here. I still can’t
decide which games to play. I still play
games I’ve finished but can’t get enough of.
I still can’t get to all my older games.
And I still give up to easily when things go south.
I’ve been really trying to evaluate any new
purchases on a scale of what I’m really dying to play (there’s a spot on my
list for those games as well).
Unfortunately I occasionally give in to the hype and buy a game that I
had originally planned on passing on. I
won’t mention any name Call of Duty: Ghosts.
I might look organized but I just say “meh” and play whatever I’m in the
mood for at that time.
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