I've been relicensed

Well, I finally figured out (and took the time) to change the licensing on three of my Arcade games that I haven't been able to play since I sent my system back for repair. The process was very easy and enlightening. I just wish the gameplay could have been the same.

If you go onto xbox.com's website and their support page there's a link to the relicensing instructions. I followed the steps and I can now play Double Dragon, Golden Axe and Sonic the Hedgehog without the game reverting to the trail version. If anyone is having problems with their arcade games, either through having a different console or other wackiness I'd suggest you give the link a look-see. The only down side I saw was that you can only change your licensing once every 12 months. Hopefully that won't be a problem, but with Microsoft you never know.

I got one achievement in Golden Axe but didn't do so well in the other two. If anyone has these games and needs someone for some co-op play send me an invite and I'll see about joining you.

Fable II cheaters - my speculations

I was going to comment on Zenra's comment on my last post but I realized I had more to say than just a simple paragraph or two. So here it is.

First off: this glitch was discovered immediately once the game was out and the next day someone at the developer said a fix would be coming but then . . . nothing. Not a word, not a fix. Now I don't know anything about programming or game design but this glitch seems like an easy one to fix compared to say turning a chainsaw into a shot gun. So I think one of two options happened:

1) the person who spoke out that a fix was coming (and would be out soon) shouldn't have because he didn't know what he was talking about because this was planned from the beginning. If this is the case I'd like to know what happened to him. Did he get reprimanded? Or maybe after working to try to fix the problem they found out it's more complicated than originally thought. Which might lead to...

2) they decided AFTER THE FACT to incorporate the glitch into the game (since Fable is all about morality) when it's released. That could mean you have a warrant out for your arrest from the moment you start the game; or your patron comes after you for their share of the money because they funded you; or that no one will sell you anything because they don't want "dirty" money. That last one would be hilarious. You've cheated to get all that money to buy everything in the game from the get go, but no one would take it because it's "ill-gotten gains". That would teach the cheaters. I would even wait longer if the game is delayed in order for them to make that last option an integral part of the game. As much as I'm looking forward to playing that game I'd love to see those cheaters get what's coming to 'em.

I've visited message boards ever since the game was released and at the beginning there were a lot of people that were bragging about glitching and 'earning' lots of credits. They said if their credits were reset or if they had to start off playing as an evil character first "no big deal". Their next play through they'd just be good. But what I noticed the longer time passed without a patch or a word from the the developer most of them started to get worried. They wondered what kind of ramifications they'd have to face once they got the game. Would it lock up and refuse to load because they glitched? Knowing who this game is coming from, and the fact that Moyneux likes to push things and challenge gamers, they all figure something is up with this glitches, either from the beginning or as an after thought.

There is the possibility that nothing is going to happen and this is all a publicity stunt to keep gamers excited about a game that's not going to come out for awhile. I wouldn't put it past anyone to consider that. But just from the fact that the original Fable was a morality game (and it appears Fable II will be the same way) and that there is no obvious reason to create and release The Pub Games as an Arcade game besides to generate interest about the real game I have to think that something else is going on. It takes time, money and a lot of work to create an Arcade game so why go through all of that if it's just for publicity? Molyneux has said he likes to push the envelope and challenge gamer's thinking. I think releasing an Arcade game to tie into a retail game qualifies in that respect. But Molyneux is ambitious and I don't think an Arcade game tie-in is the extent of what he wants to do with his games. I could be wrong.

I will be playing Fable II at least twice; once as good and once as evil. I may even play it a third time to see if I can remain neutral. It might be boring but I like a challenge. Whether I have to play evil first because dain made me take a glitched win doesn't really matter to me. I just want to play the game. But since I don't play sequels until I've finished the first one I guess I need to get back to playing the original. And believe me I'm not complaining . . . except that I've just picked up The Force Unleashed and want to play that . . . and I've got Gears of War 2 on pre-order as well as Fable II. Okay, so maybe I'm complaining that I don't have enough time to play the games I want to. But then I'm always complaining about that.

Fable II cheaters will be punished

HA! I knew it. Molyneux: Fable II Cheaters Will Be Punished. Whether they planned all this or someone missed the glitch in the quality control I would love to see all those cheaters suffer somehow when the game comes out.

Oh wait, maybe not suffer TOO badly since I was showing the glitch to dain, with no intention of actually taking the huge payout it offered me, when I accidentally hit the wrong button and won big. If anyone should be punished it should be him.

I'm playing the game fair and square (except for that one hand) so maybe I should just get off with a warning. That's right, a warning. AND I'm paying my debts off before I log off. That's the kind of responsible-imaginary-fantasy-world-thrill-seeking-gambler I am. You got a problem with that?

Who changed the rules on me?

On Wednesday I saw someone on my friends list playing Gin Rummy. Eh? When did this game come out? Apparently just that day. Without even playing it or finding out any information about it I bought it and downloaded it. Come on, it's Gin Rummy. How hard would it be to learn how to play that game?

Plenty.

I've been playing Gin Rummy since I was about 8 years old. I still remember the first time I starting winning against my older sister and brother. After I won three or four hands in a row they suddenly didn't want to play any more. I think Gin Rummy was the only game, besides Canasta, that me and my siblings could play without some kind of argument breaking out over how someone was playing. It was a game we took seriously and we play it competitively too. When my sister was in labor with her first child we played Gin Rummy to pass the time. She almost always won. When I started to win more and more I knew her labor was increasing. I could have played much longer than we did, but after a while my sister couldn't keep up the pace.

I know how to play Gin Rummy. I love playing Gin Rummy. But all that came crashing down when I played the Xbox Live Arcade version of the game.

In the first game I never even scored a point. And whoever heard of "knocking"? When I started the game I thought it was laughable that there would be a "tutorial" for the game. You either know how to play it and so you'd want to get the game or your not interested. But after the first game I didn't have a clue as to what was going on. The second game wasn't much better and yet I still refused to go through the tutorial to figure out how they changed the rules on me.

I played it a third time last night and finally figured out what "knocking" was. And I don't like it. Gin Rummy is all about the patience and strategy to get a complete hand and go out before anyone else does. It's not about going out with a less than complete hand, i.e. "knocking". It feels cheap to "knock" and I don't like it. I did manage to get "Gin" on one hand and go out completely. No extra cards. No leftovers. Nothing. THAT'S the way Gin Rummy is suppose to be played. I won the hand and picked up a couple of achievements but there was a time there when I thought I had made a huge mistake in buying the game without playing it first.

I think I will have to spend some time in the tutorials just so I know how the system is going to play the game. I hope their convoluted rules don't ruin my love of the game. But I should warn you if you ever play a game with me online. This is the first game I ever got competitive about and so my competitive drive in Gin Rummy is stronger than anything else I play. If you know me that's saying something. They only way you're going to be able to beat me is because I don't know the rules the developer put in this game. Until then, be prepared to be annihilated. Who said card games can't be deadly?

My (latest and multiple) Obsessions

So I've been thinking about what my next Arcade games was going to be. I have lots to choose from. You see, I need some small little game to focus on whenever I need a break from the larger, harder and usually more time consuming disk games. Backgammon, Puzzle Quest and Jewel Quest all filled that need. So I've been looking for the next one.

Then I found it.

I loved playing Fable on the original Xbox. I've never got very far in the game because I spent too much time exploring and robbing people (I love doing that). So when I found out Fable II was coming out I was very excited. Then I found out that there would be an Xbox Live Arcade game that you can get before the game comes out that would have mini games from Fable II in it. And THEN I found out if you pre-ordered Fable II you'd get a code to unlock the Arcade game for free. I was there.

From the very first note on the opening screen I was hooked. I love the music of the first Fable game. I even have the soundtrack and listen it to quite often at work. Then I started to play the games. While I haven't figured out any strategy, besides random chance, in the Spinnerbox game I love the other two, Fortune's Tower and Keystone.

When I first started playing I couldn't win anything in Fortune's Tower. Keystone on the other hand was a gold mine for me. And no I haven't been using any of the glitches that make you win big even though you bet small. I finally figured out a strategy for Fortune's Tower and I've been doing well ever since.

The problem is all the games are so addicting. When it's time to go to bed it's just so easy to tell yourself you'll play one more pyramid, or archway or just one more spin. Next thing you know 30 minutes have gone by and you can barely keep your eyes open. Or you find yourself just wanting to get in one quick game before you go to work only to find yourself in a mad dash out the door trying to get to work on time (or maybe arriving late and sneaking past your boss).

Those games are addicting and fun and I'm loving every minute of them.

And then when I feel I need to pull myself away from the Pub Games for the sake of my sanity (and my job) I've started playing Hexic HD. A simple game that can be over quick but that could also provide an extended amount of play and challenges. I wasn't expecting much while playing it but I've pick up 4 achievements in the last couple of days and now I'm getting addicted to that game as well.

I finally made my first black pearl last night in a "just one more game and then I'll quit" moment. Considering I lost 6 silver stars in two separate collapses because I wasn't paying attention before I made the black pearl I was very proud of myself. I wasn't trying for it specifically, just trying to see what I could do. Any game that rewards me with achievements when I'm just trying to have fun and experiment with game play is worth it to me.

The only down side to my latest obsessions is that they're all single player games. I'd love to have an Arcade game that I obsess about getting all the achievements in that I could actually play along with my friends. We usually have such a good time playing with each other, name calling not-with-standing, that it bothers me I can't combine the two things. Oh well, maybe someone will come up with a game (Novadrome, Marble Blast Ultra, Small Arms or something) we could all agree to play.

Until then you can probably find me in the Pub. Spinning disks, rolling dice or dealing cards. At least the din of the background noise in the Pub makes me feel not quite so alone. Now if only my patron could loan me some more money, I feel an obsession coming on.

My Eyes - Part 3 (The Transplant List)

[This is a contination of the story of my eyes. Please read "My Eyes - Part 1 (The Diagnosis" and "My Eyes - Part 2 (The Treatment) prior to reading this.]

When the doctor told me I would need a corneal transplant my mind went numb. Because I didn't know much about the surgery I started imagining the worst. And since I like to write fiction stories my imagination went into overdrive.

One of the possibility is your eye could rupture. For me I was picturing a volcano type eruption coming from my eye. Then there was all the science fiction horrors I imagined. Like would I see things the way the donor sees things? Would there be cellular memory in that if I saw the face of someone the donor knew would I think I knew them as well? Let your imagination go wild with the ideas and I probably already thought about them.

But the two worst ideas I ever had took a long time to just come to grips with. I even have my moments now where those old feelings come back and I have to fight off the feelings of inadequacy.

The first feeling was that I would be turned into something less than human after the transplant surgery. On the surface this doesn't make sense because the donor cornea isn't coming from a cow or anything, but another person. Still human. But when I thought of all the crowns and root canals I've had done to my teeth and the moles I've had removed and the bone they filed off from my right heel I started to think that eventually I'd become something less than human. More metal and parts than human.

I've never been one to even consider plastic surgery for breast implants, or butt implants or whatever, but I started to wonder if those people (and I felt I was becoming one of them) are turning themselves into another species all together. And once I had that thought my imagination went wild. Would I have less rights as someone who's "all human"? While this thought is a gold mine for inspiration for writing a science fiction story it's not something you ever want to consider personally.

The second big thought/fear I had was "will I still be me?" It naturally sprang out of the first, "less than human", thought. Now I was thinking I was turning into something or someone other than myself. This surgery was going to alter who I was by hopefully making it easier for me to see, but would that be all it altered?

For the longest time I didn't feel like myself. And that was even before the surgery. Since I wasn't able to wear a contact lens in my left eye I really couldn't see very much from that side. It made driving scary and difficult especially when trying to navigate around the back of an elevator in a parking garage without trying to hit a car from the other direction. $3,000 dollars later in repairs to my car (and all the elevator had to get done was a new paint job) and I just didn't want to drive any more. I couldn't play video games very well. I couldn't read without concentrating so hard I gave myself a headache. And just walking down the hall left me dragging one hand along a wall of cubes so I could keep myself walking straight. I couldn't recognize anyone's face until they were right on me. Some people thought I was being rude not acknowledging them until they were right there when they had waved from far back. That was life for me and I had to live that way until my name came up on the transplant list that they had a donor.

My name went on the list in May of 2004. By October I knew that I should be having my surgery around January or February of 2005. My surgery did happen in February of 2005 and while I was grateful to finally have a date so I could get it over with it was a long time waiting and my imagination had control of my emotions during that whole time. I spent many lunch hours just sitting at my desk crying as quietly as I could so I wouldn't bother anyone around me. When the thought that you might lose your eye comes up and that every hobby you like to do requires you to see like reading, cross stitching and playing video games you do tend to cry . . . a lot.

There was a bit of a hiccup just before my surgery. When my annual benefits enrollment came around I switch health care providers. I wasn't going to stick with an HMO that was going from $50 a paycheck to $150 a paycheck even if I didn't have a surgery coming up. What that meant was that in January when I switched to my new provider I had to run around getting the proper documentation that the surgery I had scheduled in February was something previously planned, medically necessary and that I had been under care for this condition for at least three years. I think we got everything straightened out the third week of January and my surgery was schedule for Feb. 5th.

I think my surgery was schedule for 3:30 in the afternoon. It was going to be his last one of the day. And since I wasn't allowed to eat anything for 12 hours before surgery I didn't have anything after I went to bed the night before. But then again I didn't really sleep that night anyway. That sinking feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when you know you have to do something horrible just grew and grew all night and day. I might have even cried all morning long. I don't remember much before the surgery. But I do remember the surgery, but I'll save that for the next post.

Why can't life be simple?

I promise I'll get back to the story of my eyes soon. I know you're on the edge of your seats for that one (or could you at least pretend you are?). Unfortunately other things in life are messing with my concentration. For instance: house hunting.

When your realtor tells you you're not going to be able to find anything decent in your price range in the location where you're looking you end doing a lot of soul searching. Do I raise my budget and end up eating Top Ramen Noodles for the next 30 years? Or do I move the location where I'm looking and spend 1 hour or more commuting to work each way, every day, for 30 years?

I resigned myself to renting for the rest of my life, or until I win the lottery (note to self: buy lottery ticket). At least until I got home and had to listen to my neighbors and all their racket. At that point I think it didn't matter where I lived as long as it was quiet. So I'm looking again. And much farther away then where I want to be. Hopefully gas prices won't end up over $5 a gallon anytime soon. If it does I might not even be able to afford the Top Ramen.