I've always known I prefered Star Wars over Star Trek. The only thing Captian Kirk does for me is send shivers of revulsion down my spine. Now, Obi-Wan Kenobi on the other hand, well . . . I'm a sucker for a guy in a cowl. And after a recent jaunt to a SciFi/Fantasy convention those life long beliefs have only gotten stronger.
Call 'em trekkie, trekkers or just plain nerds, Star Trek fans are weird. Now I'm sure some people will say Star Wars fans are just the same but at least we know what to call ourselves.
I am a Jedi.
May the Force be with you.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
I want my Gamerscore on my tombstone
My Xbox Live Gamerscore is going to be the death of me.
I'm a competitive person by nature so I was expecting a little competition among friends when it comes to our Gamerscores, but now I've been consumed by the beast. Is it healthy? Probably not. Do I care? Not as long as I keep unlocking achievements. But that's the rub.
When I first got my Xbox 360 at the beginning of the year I was embarrassed about my Gamerscore. 25 points? For Hexic? That wasn't anything to brag about. But I was just learning about and messing around on the whole online dashboard. Then I got in to some actual gameplay.
Now I want to hear that little bleep. I need those achievements. It was all well and good while I was one of the early people from my old original Xbox friends list to get a 360 (we were having too much fun playing Star Wars Battlefront to worry about a new system, besides I wanted some time for them to get all the bugs worked out of the new system's launch). My 120 Gamerscore beat their big fat zero any day. And that was just for starters. Then one by one they all started to get 360s.
I still have a few holdouts that are content with their original Xboxes but they'll come around in time. One of them just got his 360 last weekend. Now Ice is a very nice guy and a good player but I wasn't all that happy to see him go from zero to a 115 Gamerscore in just a couple of hours. Give him another week or two and he'll be busting my butt again in whatever games we happen to be playing together. He's just one damn good player. I'm thrilled that I'll finally get to test my mettle against him in Gears of War, but in no time at all he'll leave my paltry Gamerscore behind.
Now I know I could hatch a plan with my friends to set up a ranked match in Gears for just us so we can work on all those 100 kill ranked achievements in the game but to me that's just cheating. If I get an achievement I want to earn it. Fair and square. But I'm not against hedging my chances though. I set up a Hearts game last night and invited my brother (someone who hasn't played Hearts but whose Gamerscore is climbing faster than mine) thinking I could use him to get a few wins and hands in towards an achievement. What does he do? He shots the Moon . . . and the Sun in the same game. What do I do? Come in last place. So while I walked away with ZERO points for my Gamerscore he walked away with 40 points without really trying.
I remember when I broke the 1,000 point barrier. I was excited. It looked more like a serious score than the laughable 990. Why? I don't know. With all my friends getting 360s and increasing their Gamerscore my competitive nature kicks in and says I need to stay ahead of them. My brother, once more than 300 points behind me is now only 20 points away from matching my score. I have too many other friends creeping up behind me . . . and some passing me that all I want to do is play video games and listen for that bleep.
When at work, I check out my friends list hourly on http://www.xbox.com/ just to see who's recently unlocked an achievement and in what game. I take notes of what achievements I think I can unlock that night when I get home. I've sent messages out asking friends for advice on how to unlock those pesky ones that I can't seem to do on my own. But despite my best efferts I don't always get to hear that blessed bleep. I need to hear that bleep. I need the points for my Gamerscore. It's consuming my life and I don't know how to stop it.
My Gamerscore will be the death of me. And even if it is I want it carved on my tombstone, but only if it's better than everyone else's.
I'm a competitive person by nature so I was expecting a little competition among friends when it comes to our Gamerscores, but now I've been consumed by the beast. Is it healthy? Probably not. Do I care? Not as long as I keep unlocking achievements. But that's the rub.
When I first got my Xbox 360 at the beginning of the year I was embarrassed about my Gamerscore. 25 points? For Hexic? That wasn't anything to brag about. But I was just learning about and messing around on the whole online dashboard. Then I got in to some actual gameplay.
Now I want to hear that little bleep. I need those achievements. It was all well and good while I was one of the early people from my old original Xbox friends list to get a 360 (we were having too much fun playing Star Wars Battlefront to worry about a new system, besides I wanted some time for them to get all the bugs worked out of the new system's launch). My 120 Gamerscore beat their big fat zero any day. And that was just for starters. Then one by one they all started to get 360s.
I still have a few holdouts that are content with their original Xboxes but they'll come around in time. One of them just got his 360 last weekend. Now Ice is a very nice guy and a good player but I wasn't all that happy to see him go from zero to a 115 Gamerscore in just a couple of hours. Give him another week or two and he'll be busting my butt again in whatever games we happen to be playing together. He's just one damn good player. I'm thrilled that I'll finally get to test my mettle against him in Gears of War, but in no time at all he'll leave my paltry Gamerscore behind.
Now I know I could hatch a plan with my friends to set up a ranked match in Gears for just us so we can work on all those 100 kill ranked achievements in the game but to me that's just cheating. If I get an achievement I want to earn it. Fair and square. But I'm not against hedging my chances though. I set up a Hearts game last night and invited my brother (someone who hasn't played Hearts but whose Gamerscore is climbing faster than mine) thinking I could use him to get a few wins and hands in towards an achievement. What does he do? He shots the Moon . . . and the Sun in the same game. What do I do? Come in last place. So while I walked away with ZERO points for my Gamerscore he walked away with 40 points without really trying.
I remember when I broke the 1,000 point barrier. I was excited. It looked more like a serious score than the laughable 990. Why? I don't know. With all my friends getting 360s and increasing their Gamerscore my competitive nature kicks in and says I need to stay ahead of them. My brother, once more than 300 points behind me is now only 20 points away from matching my score. I have too many other friends creeping up behind me . . . and some passing me that all I want to do is play video games and listen for that bleep.
When at work, I check out my friends list hourly on http://www.xbox.com/ just to see who's recently unlocked an achievement and in what game. I take notes of what achievements I think I can unlock that night when I get home. I've sent messages out asking friends for advice on how to unlock those pesky ones that I can't seem to do on my own. But despite my best efferts I don't always get to hear that blessed bleep. I need to hear that bleep. I need the points for my Gamerscore. It's consuming my life and I don't know how to stop it.
My Gamerscore will be the death of me. And even if it is I want it carved on my tombstone, but only if it's better than everyone else's.
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Friday, March 30, 2007
In the middle of an affair . . .
Sometimes I feel like I'm in the middle of an affair. Not the other woman, but mixed up in it just the same.
Several of my guy gaming friends are married, yet we spend 4-5 hours a night online together playing games. They get on right after work, just like I do. They play until they go to bed, just like I do. So when are they spending time with their wives?
I know I'm not the other woman because they would be playing online whether I was there or not. Their consoles are the "other woman." An addiction they won't ever give up. I'm just a side part of their little affair. Roped in just the same. Like a menage a trois . . . except with a lot more people.
Several of my guy gaming friends are married, yet we spend 4-5 hours a night online together playing games. They get on right after work, just like I do. They play until they go to bed, just like I do. So when are they spending time with their wives?
I know I'm not the other woman because they would be playing online whether I was there or not. Their consoles are the "other woman." An addiction they won't ever give up. I'm just a side part of their little affair. Roped in just the same. Like a menage a trois . . . except with a lot more people.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
I'm "sticking" with Gears of War
The other night a group of us were together playing Gears of War and we all sent out invites to people on our friends list to max out the room. There's nothing worse then getting a room almost full of friends but with 1 or 2 jerks messing up the game for everyone. I had a friend who had achievements in Gears, but I've never actually seen him in the game. I sent the invite, only to be declined.
Was it because he didn't want to play with me? No. Was it because he was too involved in what he was currently playing? No. Was it because he didn't know how to play video games? No. The guy's a good player. He didn't want to play Gears because he "didn't like it." WHAT?
Apparently he borrowed the game from a friend when it came out, played a few levels on his own, played a few multiplayer maps and just decided . . . eh . . . "I didn't think it was that fun of a game."
Gears is not a perfect game, but it's pretty darn close. Yes, you do tend to get stuck in cover . . . even if you weren't trying to get into cover in the first place. Yes, you can't see who's talking in the multiplayer (unless you tap your left bumper). Yes, you don't get to respawn. Yes, ammo conversation could make or break you. And yes, multiplayer teams are only 4 x 4.
There are glitches in the game, infinite frags and the like, but every game has a glitch or two. And while you can't respawn, you CAN talk to the players on the other team while you watch whoever's left in the match. Bragging (and/or complaining) of spectacular kills is a must. What other games lets you immediately assail your opponents with a verbal assault while your body is blown to smithereens?
Despite it's very minor hang-ups I love Gears. And while I hate the fact that I keep getting booted from ranked matches because I'm a girl (for some reason guys don't like to lose to a girl) I'll still play. For me I'll "stick" with Gears of War. I'll just have to find another game I'll invite this friend to play.
Was it because he didn't want to play with me? No. Was it because he was too involved in what he was currently playing? No. Was it because he didn't know how to play video games? No. The guy's a good player. He didn't want to play Gears because he "didn't like it." WHAT?
Apparently he borrowed the game from a friend when it came out, played a few levels on his own, played a few multiplayer maps and just decided . . . eh . . . "I didn't think it was that fun of a game."
Gears is not a perfect game, but it's pretty darn close. Yes, you do tend to get stuck in cover . . . even if you weren't trying to get into cover in the first place. Yes, you can't see who's talking in the multiplayer (unless you tap your left bumper). Yes, you don't get to respawn. Yes, ammo conversation could make or break you. And yes, multiplayer teams are only 4 x 4.
There are glitches in the game, infinite frags and the like, but every game has a glitch or two. And while you can't respawn, you CAN talk to the players on the other team while you watch whoever's left in the match. Bragging (and/or complaining) of spectacular kills is a must. What other games lets you immediately assail your opponents with a verbal assault while your body is blown to smithereens?
Despite it's very minor hang-ups I love Gears. And while I hate the fact that I keep getting booted from ranked matches because I'm a girl (for some reason guys don't like to lose to a girl) I'll still play. For me I'll "stick" with Gears of War. I'll just have to find another game I'll invite this friend to play.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Crash and Burn . . . then reading a book
Okay, what was up with Xbox Live last night? We crashed 3 rooms in about 20 minutes. It's kind of hard to get into a game when every other map the whole system "wonks" out. I eventually gave up and read a book. No wonking out going on there.
And speaking of that. The book I finished up last night was Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson. A GREAT book. With a different style of magic the book is not your typical fantasy. "Burning" a metal gives a user special abilities. Of course that metal has to be ingested first. A band of skaa (peasants) thieves try to overthrow an empire that's been in existence for thousands of years. There's just one little problem . . . the empire is led by an immortal god. An ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC read. It's the first book of a trilogy. Much more greatness to come. You should check it out. I'd love to see a movie made from this book. The fighting would surpass anything The Matrix or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon could ever do.
And speaking of that. The book I finished up last night was Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson. A GREAT book. With a different style of magic the book is not your typical fantasy. "Burning" a metal gives a user special abilities. Of course that metal has to be ingested first. A band of skaa (peasants) thieves try to overthrow an empire that's been in existence for thousands of years. There's just one little problem . . . the empire is led by an immortal god. An ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC read. It's the first book of a trilogy. Much more greatness to come. You should check it out. I'd love to see a movie made from this book. The fighting would surpass anything The Matrix or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon could ever do.
Monday, March 5, 2007
My Xbox 360 paper weight
Unfortunately I have to work today, but my two younger brothers don't. My gamer brother wanted to play Fuzion Fenzy 2 with my married brother but needed another controller. On Saturday I loaned him mine (figuring I had other consoles and games to play over the weekend) so they could hook up today and play FF2 and anything else they had in mind. That meant on Sunday I was staring at a nice big white paper weight. No controller . . . no play. And what game did I want to play more than anything else? Gears of War. I guess I could have gone out and bought another controller but since I play all of my multi-player games on line why would I need another one? A back-up maybe, but they're still $40 a pop at my local Game Stop. Why couldn't Microsoft make a new system that still used the controllers from the old one? Playstation did.
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