Panic at the Disco.....er, I mean Steam Sale!

If you've been blithely enjoying your holidays or residing under a dark, dark rock then you probably haven't heard about the recent *possible* data breach on Steam.  Don't panic!  It may not be as bad as it seems (or it might, but chances are we'll never really know).

Here are some basic facts that I've gathered in my own personal panic as I firmly believed that my Steam library was about to be decimated by strangers:

1.) On Christmas day around noon-ish PDT some users reported that when clicking on items on the store or community pages that Steam was re-directing them to the account details page of other random users. They were able to do this through the Steam dekstop/mobile clients as well as through browsers.  According to Steam the issue lasted for less than an hour.

2.) There's a chance that information such as your Steam wallet funds, e-mail address, partial phone number (last 4 digits), address, and last 2 digits of your credit card number (or PayPal info, but I don't use PayPal) were visible.

3.) I have read conflicting reports about what people were actually able to do on the random account details page.  Some people reported that when they tried to click on something on the random pages that they were simply re-directed to another random account detail page.  Others reported that they were actually able to change information (like phone numbers) on the account page.  Steam has reported that there hasn't been any unauthorized account actions.

4.) Steam is saying that they weren't hacked or DDoS'd and all the shenanigans were caused by a "caching issue."  It's probably North Korea...trying to steal our hot winter gaming deals.

Frustratingly, information from Valve/Steam has been trickling out.  The timing of this whole event has been horrid--right in the middle of a major holiday, right in the middle of a huge sale event, and right in the middle of people enjoying their vacations.  I only learned of it from browsing my Facebook newsfeed and seeing a panic-y article from Kotaku.  Hopefully after the holidays are over we will hear more.  Steam isn't known for their stellar customer service and any discussions related to the "event" in the Steam community were quickly quashed by moderators.  Some people were trying to spend gift cards or were in the middle of purchasing something when the problems started.  I hope those people don't lose their funds and are able to recover anything they might have lost in the fiasco.

I suppose the moral of this whole situation is that extra security goes a long way.  Although I initially was worried about the possibility of anything untoward happening to my Steam account (or personal info!), I felt reassured by the fact that I have enabled two factor authentication.  I would highly encourage others to do the same thing.  You don't need a Smartphone and can have authentication codes sent via e-mail.  It's another step to take when logging in, but in situations like this it is well worth the very minor added step.

Just to be safe I would keep an eye on my credit card/PayPal transactions.  There still isn't much information about the scope of the issue and how many accounts were actually exposed.

UPDATE 12/30/15:
Valve finally released an official statement about what happened.  It's not glaring on the front page of Steam, but it's reassuring that they finally spoke up (read it here).  34,000 accounts might have been exposed.  That seems like a relatively small number when compared to the 125 million estimated Steam accounts.  I haven't had many problems with Steam before or after this issue, but some users have complained about difficulties with many different aspects of the service during the holiday sale.  I'm still going to be watching my credit card statements like a hawk.

Happy Holidays!

The holiday season is here and it's time to throw the ol' Yule Log on the fire and enjoy some relaxing game time.  As for me, I'm doing a lot of reflecting about some of the games I'm currently playing and some that I've played in the recent past.  Yup, I couldn't even cobble together thoughts about one game since I've been jumping back and forth between several games.


The Winter Steam Sale
That magical time of year where oodles of great games go on sale has finally arrived...but on a much less flashy scale.  Steam sales of times past have been huge events filled with strange mini-games, flash sales, and pressure to buy games that we know we'll never play (just admit it!).  Why the changes?  There was always something exciting about Steam sales.  The addition of all the goofy little competitions and mini-games made them feel like a real event.  I'm not sure exactly how I feel about the change.  Part of me wants to celebrate the move away from using gimmicky psychological tricks (like the countdown timers) to pressure people to buy games.  On the other hand, there's this whole other part of me that liked the excitement of getting what felt like a great deal.  So far I haven't bought anything and haven't really felt pressured to buy anything.  I still explore my discovery queue every day to get my three free trading cards but this sale just feels a lot different...much more low-key.

Diablo III--Season 4
I'm not a hardcore Diablo player but I really appreciate the fact that when I do decide to play that there is always something new or interesting.  About a week ago I looked into the new (but almost over) season of Diablo III.  After months of not playing I found a reason to renew my adventures and level a new seasonal hero.  I enjoyed the fact that there were goals associated with your advancement through the season that ended with the reward of a portrait frame and pet (I'm such a nerd for pets--seriously, if there's a pet involved I will accomplish those goals).  The goals were highly obtainable, even for someone like me who started very late in the season.  I also noticed some minor changes to how some things worked--there's a whole new zone available in Adventure Mode that features a unique crafting item, Kanai's Cube.  The cube allows players to do several very useful things like extracting special powers from legendary items and allowing them to be placed on your current gear or using accumulated crafting materials to turn rare items into legendary items.  The cube is a creative way to address many of the items that become useless as players advance through adventure mode.

Kanai's Cube features several unique recipes.

It really feels like nephalem rifts have become a lot less important and bounties are more of the focus.  Kanai's Cube requires special legendary crafting materials that are found in the horadric caches that are rewarded upon completion of a string of bounties.  These crafting items are also required to craft the many legendary items available to the blacksmith.  I also noticed that the horadric caches seem to drop a lot of blacksmithing and jewelcrafting plans.  This is a nice change and allows set pieces and individual legendaries to become much more accessible.

Even though Diablo III threatens to give me a raging case of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome I still find myself clicking away.  I've always been a fan of Blizzard games and I am impressed with the way that they have kept a 2-3 year old game fresh.  Season 4 ends on December 30th and Season 5, which starts on January 15th, promises a new zone and other enjoyable features.

Santa has had enough.

Viscera Cleanup Detail:  Santa's Rampage
Seasonal twists on games always make me laugh.  The space janitorial sim Viscera Cleanup Detail features a not-so-jolly holiday map that requires players to cleanup after Santa has had some sort of mental breakdown.  The resultant gore includes a number of slain elves and some unfortunate reindeer.  The level is strewn with presents, toy guns, TNT, molotov cocktails, and clear evidence that Santa had been drinking off the stresses of delivering presents to all the children on Earth.  Although the map is relatively small it's an entertaining seasonal distraction.

The Witcher 3:  Making you feel bad for horrible characters.
My personal game of the year pick would be The Witcher 3:  Wild Hunt.  I was captivated almost every minute I played and found the story options refreshing from your rote good/bad choices.  The world of The Witcher 3 is very rarely black or white and is more frequently a really dark shade of grey.  I found this most noticeable in the many characters who populate the game.  The Bloody Baron is the best example of this dynamic.  The guy is a lousy drunkard who beats his pregnant wife until she miscarries.  He leads a band of soldiers with questionable ethics who are looting the war-torn countryside bare...but he also has a giving heart and takes care of Ciri when she shows up wounded at his castle.  You really want to hate the guy but he's just so....human.  He's not perfect and that's what makes him a great character.

The most recent DLC features another character, Olgierd von Everec, who is very similar to the Baron.  Olgierd seems like an alright guy--the leader of a pack of bandits, but with some morals--very Robin Hood-esque.  It's only as you progress through the story that you realize there's much more to his story.  Eventually you learn that he's made a deal with the veritable devil (Gaunter O' Dimm, the man of glass) in an effort to restore his family's wealth and name.  The story leads you through the tragic tale of his beautiful wife who died from a broken heart.  But, like the Baron, he's just a man who made a lot of bad choices.

Here's wishing everyone out there a happy holiday season.  I hope it finds you spending time with loved ones...and maybe some light gaming :)

Space Janitoring--It's a Hard Knock Life

I've had moments in my professional life where I've just wanted to pull a Kevin Spacey ala American Beauty.  If you're unfamiliar with the classic 90's film you should definitely give it a Netflix (or one of the other streaming services).  In the movie Spacey's character is having a bit of a midlife crisis--his wife is cheating on him, his daughter hates him, and he's miserable.  Part of that misery comes from his job, which he hates, and which he gets fired/quits early in the film.  After quitting from his job he decides that rather than getting another professional job that he was happiest as a teenager working at a local fast food joint.  It's laughable seeing Spacey as this former professional working the drive-thru window.  The plot in the movie is much deeper and complex than just Spacey's midlife crisis, but doesn't everyone have thoughts about how much easier life would be if our jobs were simpler?  As a teacher I sometimes look at the janitors and think about how much stress they have in their job.  I'm sure that I'm oversimplifying their job--I very much appreciate what they do and I'm sure it's a tough job.  Thanks to the magic of video games and their seemingly random topics we can all experience the joys of janitorial duty.  Viscera Cleanup Detail gives everyone the chance to truly delve into the janitorial arts.  It turns out that being a space janitor is not as easy as it seems.

In Viscera Cleanup Detail you play as a randomly generated janitor who is tasked with the cleanup after some sort of particularly nasty sci-fi encounter.  It could be an alien attack on a science facility, an underwater research station besieged by sea monsters, or a mine overthrown by deadly enemies lurking in the jungle.  Each level has the same objective--clean up the resultant gore and rid the area of any traces that the event ever happened.  At the end of the level you receive a score based on how thoroughly you cleaned the level.  This sounds very simple but each level could take many hours to completely clean.

Your janitor character comes equipped with some basic gear--a mop to cleanup those troublesome blood pools (human or alien) and a "sniffer" that helps you detect the cleanliness of an area and find any areas that you may have missed.  The controls are very simple and act similarly to switching weapons in an FPS--you hit 2 and switch to your mop and then hit 1 to switch back to your hands.  Each level contains three machines that are vital to the task at hand--the incinerator, the "what-a-load" bin dispenser, and a bucket dispenser.  You will establish a close relationship with all three of these items.

Each scenario requires your janitor to pick up and destroy all items tied to the crisis at hand.  You will pick up shell casings, garbage, body parts, entire bodies, used buckets, and anything else that is just laying around.  All un-needed items must be tossed into the incinerator and destroyed.  The best strategy is to grab a bin from the dispenser and pile in as many items as you can.  This can be quite humorous as you load up your bin with dismembered arms, legs, and various other...chunks.  Being physics-based means that you will constantly struggle to keep your bins from overflowing and causing even more of a mess.  During the time that you are picking up items you also have to be mindful of the fluid puddles on the ground--every time you walk through a puddle of blood you will track more blood over the floor which will require more mopping.  Once you've picked up the many items scattered around the level you are ready to move onto mopping.  Mopping requires you to fetch buckets of water from the bucket dispenser.  As you mop up an area your mop becomes dirty and you must dip it into the bucket to clean it.  The water in the bucket also gradually becomes dirty and requires you dispose of it (and the bucket) in the incinerator.  Similar to the bins the buckets are also physics based...bump into a bucket filled with dirty water and you will have a new puddle to clean up.

If you pay close enough attention and read the datapads scattered around the various levels you can piece together the story of each location.  If you want to raise your score at the end of a level you can take flash-drive like ID's to the "clock" and write up a report about how each person died.  When there can be ten or more bodies on a level...well, it's a lot.  There are tons of small details that you must catch in order to raise your final score--did you repair all the bullet holes on the walls?  Did you dispose of every shell casing, piece of garbage, or chunk of flesh on the level?  Did you mop up every footprint?  Did you stack all the crates and barrels in their designated zones?  Certain levels also require you to do something a little extra--planting seeds to re-grow some very destructive plants or re-arming malfunctioning turrets.  This little chunk of variety keeps each scenario fresh even though you are basically performing the same tasks.

There's something oddly soothing about Viscera Cleanup Detail.  The hours spent virtually cleaning fly by and that final vision of a completely clean area gives you a sense of pride.  If you're looking for a strange indie game to help you relax, this is the one.  No shooting, no yelling, no stress....just hours of sweet mopping action.

.1%

With my exhausting (and only somewhat exciting) adventure in Fallout 4 completed I decided it was time to check out Legacy of the Void.  The final chapter in Blizzard's episodic Starcraft II journey came out at the exact same time as Fallout 4 so I had to make the call on which one to check out first.  I was a little hesitant about delving into the Starcraft adventure as the Protoss.  After playing a very fast, frenetic, Heart of the Swarm I wasn't sure that I could handle the seemingly slower dynamics.  To build excitement for Legacy of the Void, Blizzard released a mini-campaign featuring some additional backstory.  In a few short missions players were able to follow Zeratul as he investigated the dark god Amon and attempted to warn others about the dangers of this entity.  It appeared that it would take all the major races working together to take down this seemingly invincible form of evil.

Before I get into the details behind the main storyline I need to explain my play of Starcraft II.  I've always enjoyed the story-based aspects of  Starcraft.  I don't play it for the more competitive aspects so I can only comment on the campaign.  I'm sure that I'm missing out on a unique part of Starcraft by only playing the campaign, but I've never been into the whole e-sports thing.  One new feature that was added in Legacy of the Void is co-op missions that allow you to partner up with a friend and take on A.I. opponents.  Each person gets to pick a unique leader that represents one of the three Starcraft races.  There are a number of leaders and each has their own set of special abilities.  It sounds fun and I'm hoping to check it out soon.

Legacy of the Void features Protoss characters.

Possible campaign spoilers for Legacy of the Void ahead!  Read with caution!

The campaign in Legacy of the Void follows the Protoss as they struggle against the powers of the dark god Amon.  Wings of Liberty and Heart of the Swarm each contained small pieces of the story leading up to Legacy of the Void.  In Wings of Liberty, Zeratul appeals to James Raynor and directs him to the memories he has stored in an artifact.  This prophecy hints at the end of life in the entire galaxy.  There isn't as much focus on the prophecy in Heart of the Swarm but it always seems to be lurking in the background.  The story in Legacy starts off with Zeratul and his attempts to warn the Protoss about the dangers of Amon.  Amon's powers include the ability to possess anyone and in particular the members of the Protoss who are joined psionically through their telepathic connection known as the "Kala."  In an early conflict and key part of the story it is revealed that the only way the Protoss can free themselves from the dangers of possession by Amon is to sever their psionic connection.  By doing this they will lose the link that allows them to share emotions, feelings, and the unique connection that is the hallmark of the Protoss.  A new leader emerges in the form of Artanis, a Protoss templar hailing from the conquered world of Aiur.  Artanis realizes that the only way the Protoss can emerge victorious against Amon is if they re-unite their shattered culture and fight together.  I felt like there was a great deal more Starcraft lore in this episode than in the others.  I learned a lot about the Protoss and the fact that their race is divided into distinct factions.  Each faction has it's own history and unique background that is thoroughly explored throughout the campaign.

When it comes to the unique abilities and units of the Protoss there are many to choose from.  The ability to turn your main ground troop training structures into warp gates is one of my favorite.  Once you've converted these structures you can warp troops into any pylon powered area.  Each warp gate allows you to warp in a specific number of troops before entering a cooldown period.  By building multiple warp gates you can have a sizable backlog of ground troopers that can quickly be warped in to supplement a defensive force or to bulk up your offense.  I undoubtedly relied too much on the ability to quickly warp in troops as I found the build time for most of the Protoss flying and siege-type units to be very long.  This is unfortunate because I think the Protoss offer some of the most powerful siege and flying units in the form of carrier ships and the colossi.

Like in the other episodes you also gain access to your own ship, the Spear of Adun, which grants you the abilities to assign special abilities to your troops or, through completing bonus objectives, other powerful abilities.  Assigning "solarite" allows you to choose (and swap) from special abilities ranging from the ability to instantly call down a pylon, to unleash a devastating attack, to call down a powerful robotic ally to fight on your side for 30 seconds, to harvest Vespene gas automatically, or freeze time.  These abilities are controlled by the amount of energy stored by your ship and must be used strategically.  If you didn't feel like taking any of these special abilities you could also assign solarite towards giving you special boosts like an early supply bonus giving you the ability to avoid having to build pylons early on or towards bonus shield regeneration rate.  I appreciated the ability to swap out talents/abilities in both Heart of the Swarm and Legacy as well as the ability to use any excess bonus objective items (unlike in Wings of Liberty where you were stuck with whatever bonuses you picked and were rewarded with cash for any excess items).

The special abilities that you can assign to your troops felt particularly unique and powerful in Legacy of the Void.  As the story saw Artanis uniting the disparate factions of the Protoss it also saw those factions granting special abilities to particular units.  Your basic ground unit, the templar, could choose from the ability to wield a two-handed axe and perform an AoE whirlwind attack or a special charging attack that allows them to phase through allies and to briefly stun enemies.  The dark templars had the special abilities that I enjoyed the most.  The ability to remain permanently cloaked makes them valuable in conflicts where there aren't many detectors.  One factional talent allows your dark templars to disable structures (very useful in disabling detecting structures) automatically.  I enjoyed the fact that the talents tied in so closely with the concept of unity and that each faction had it's own unique contribution.  My favorite of the bunch was the ability to transform sentries (traditionally used to shield your troops) into mobile pylons allowing you to easily warp in troops to any position.

The campaign itself contained the usual variety of differing missions--attack/defend, troop movement, massive defense, and a few notable unique missions.  One thing I noticed about the Protoss missions was that there were many that required you to attack multiple targets--multiple power nodes, crystals, or other objects.  One mission took place on a platform (meaning lots of air units) with very limited resources spread across the map.  The platform that contained your base could be moved along a sliding pathway and closer to other locations that also contained a meager collection of minerals and vespene gas.  This particular mission required you to scout ahead and clear areas in order to move your base platform to the locations with resources.  Ground troops were a moot point and amassing a huge group of carrier ships was the best (and slowest) strategy.  The missions that I struggled the most with were the defense missions against an overwhelming force.  The Protoss have a range of very useful defensive structures in the form of photon cannons, shield batteries, and the Khaydarian Monoliths (a slow, but very powerful defensive structure).

I expected much more unity between the three major races to be part of the story in Legacy of the Void.  The story does see Artanis working with the Terrans and the Zerg to accomplish specific goals but didn't end in the epic final battle with all the races uniting as one.  Instead the story focused on unity in Protoss society and saw Artanis bringing together many fragmented factions.  The final mission takes on the traditional massive defense against a timer aspect.  You, and your newly united Protoss friends, must hold off until the Xel'Naga artifact charges (sound familiar?).  This requires you to build up both a mobile defensive group as well as focusing on building up a massive defense around your base to protect the keystone.  I was moderately successful the first time and made it to a little over 93% before the keystone was destroyed and I failed the mission.  The second time I made it to 98%.  The third time I made it to 99.9%......that last .1% is brutal!  It took me four tries before I finished the final mission (actually that's pretty good for me--that last mission is always brutal).

Legacy of the Void is a great finale for the Starcraft II series.  It felt shorter than both Wings of Liberty and Heart of the Swarm but the story was interesting even if the Protoss characters aren't as memorable as James Raynor or Kerrigan.  I enjoyed the fact that the series followed the tradition of telling the story from the perspectives of each major race.  Getting to play as each race keeps the game fresh even though you are generally doing the same thing.  The cutscenes felt slightly less epic in Legacy--that's my one complaint.

After the credits rolled it was revealed that there was an epilogue.  The epilogue is a short series of missions that really draws together the three major Starcraft factions in an all out battle to eliminate Amon once and for all.  I don't want to spoil it but once you finish it you really are left with the feeling that the future of the series is questionable.

I really enjoyed Starcraft II.  That's high praise coming from someone who really doesn't play RTS.  I found the campaign to be compelling and the gameplay to be challenging enough to be entertaining.  That Blizzard....they know how to make a game!

The Hype Crits you for $59.99

I've mentioned several times that I'm a sucker for hype.  Snazzy game commercials have me reaching into my wallet despite my rational senses telling me to hold off.  I've fallen victim to the latest round of uber-hype courtesy of Fallout 4.  In my brain I knew that I've felt very ambivalent about the previous games in the series.  One cute retro themed commercial featuring our hero the vault dweller and his/her canine companion, Dogmeat, completely overruled any sense of restraint.  After playing A LOT (150+ hours) of Fallout 4, I'm kicking myself.  Even though I haven't completely finished the game this is me summarizing my thoughts about it (and really wishing it was over).  Possible spoilers ahead! Read with caution if you haven't completed the main storyline!

Fallout 4's strength is in it's massive open world.  Don't expect much depth.

Fallout 4 really looked to have some new unique features that would differentiate it from the earlier games.  The one that excited me the most was the settlement building feature.  Building your own unique structures...yes, please!  In reality settlements turned out to be more of a hassle than anything.  Sure, you could spend the time to scavenge materials, build structures, and then decorate those structures to your heart's content.  But what was the point?  Your settlers could care less about your coordinating cat pictures and the fact that they are sleeping on a bed and not on a crummy sleeping bag.  Does having all those settlements even really matter?  What's the point of making my people happy besides seeing a higher number on the happiness meter (and getting one achievement)?  Getting called away to defend a settlement from some sort of attack became more of an annoyance than anything.  This also includes any kidnapping or destroying quests that accompanied other settlements.  In talking to some fellow players (mostly high school students) their attitude toward settlements consistently was "Screw settlements!"  I was particularly irritated at the fact that sometimes, despite helping to defend a settlement, that the mission would not update correctly and as a result I would receive a failure message and have to repair everything in that specific settlement.  With more development the settlement system could have more depth and meaning.  What if each settlement could produce...something?  What if you could actually lose a settlement if you failed to defend it?  WHAT IF SETTLEMENTS MEANT SOMETHING!?!!  /exasperated hand motions.  Part of my frustration also comes from the fact that most of the settlement related processes are so poorly explained.

One of my other big frustrations came from the fact that there were so few meaningful quest lines and the fact that actually finding quests is difficult.  If you don't stumble on the right trigger to start a quest chances are you'll lose it in the massive expanses of the wasteland.  Diamond City is one place that exemplifies this frustration for me.  I did a few quests in Diamond City but generally didn't spend any time there.  This is sort of a bummer because the concept of a city inside Fenway Park is phenomenal.  I kept waiting for more quests to pull me into Diamond City....but they never came.  I am intrigued by the location called the "Home Plate."  It looked to be a home-like location that you could unlock in Diamond City.  Thanks to the poor quest locating mechanics I have no idea how (I could Google it...).  Some of the quest lines I did find were actually entertaining.  I particularly enjoyed getting to portray the fictional comic book character "The Silver Shroud."  The dialogue in that particular chain is hilarious as you have the option of your character staying in-character as the Shroud.  This is literally the only quest chain that stands out to me....yeah, out of an entire 150+ hours of play.  Even the main storyline isn't really that interesting.  It's so un-interesting that I've put much of it off until the very end of my playthrough (which was a mistake).

As I've progressed through the main storyline I'm also finding the factional systems and choices that seemed important early on have actually turned out to be meaningless.  Your choices break down into "help the Institute" or "destroy the Institute."  Helping the Minutemen, the Railroad, or the Brotherhood of Steel turns out to be another part of the game that is pointless (I am guessing that if you choose to attack the Institute that your chosen faction will give you the option of a specific series of attack-y quests).  The complete meaninglessness of the faction system became apparent in a quest to find some escaped synths at Bunker Hill.  It turned out that both the Railroad and Brotherhood of Steel were vying for the escapees and that there was a raging battle over the same synths you were attempting to return to the Institute.  What I expected to be a pitched battle turned out to be nothing more than my character running, completely unhindered, through the middle of a firefight to then disable the said synths.  After I had reset the synths the battle stopped and I ran back out...right by the very Railroad members who I had previously helped.  This could have been the perfect point for some very pitched dialogue about your character's true intentions.  Are you really ditching the Railroad/BoS to help the Institute?  I pictured Desdemona and Glory giving me the what-for and questioning my motives in helping the Institute.  Instead, I just ran awkwardly past a bunch of mannequin-like Railroad members who did nothing.  Another total missed opportunity for something so much better!

Honestly, I've reached the point now where I just want to finish Fallout 4 and be done with it.  When I think of the previous games I've come to the realization that I've felt this way about every game in the series.  I would classify Fallout 4 as an average game.  I've played games that were much better and also much worse.  Fallout 4 excels in it's portrayal of a wide open world torn apart by nuclear destruction.  If you enjoy wandering aimlessly for hours and shooting lots of assorted bad guys you'll probably like Fallout 4.  If you're looking for a compelling story filled with interesting characters and moral quandaries....save yourself $59.99 and look for something different.  I fell for the hype and wish I would've waited for a Steam sale.

I've got Starcraft II:  Legacy of the Void on deck for when I finally get through the chore of finishing Fallout 4.  I cringe when I see people make claims of Fallout 4--Game of the Year!  Seriously?  You would place Fallout 4 over a masterpiece like The Witcher 3?  When I finished The Witcher 3 I immediately started another playthrough (even after having played for almost 150 hours).  A great game makes you want more.  I've never been left wanting more from the Fallout games.

Fallout 4 Wishlist

In the time since Fallout 4 was released I've had ample time to explore post-apocalyptic Massachusetts.  I also jokingly posted several over enthusiastic, gushing expressions of Fallout 4 love on Facebook that inadvertently lured a friend into buying it (you're welcome Bethesda!).  Now that the initial joy of the release has passed, I've again come to the same realization that struck me with the other games in the Fallout series...."war, war never changes" and neither do the Bethesda Fallout games.  They aren't about interesting characters or an exciting storyline...they're about slaughtering your way through the wastes and looting everything in sight.  I read an interesting article in PC Gamer (Fallout 4: Good Game, Bad RPG) that hit the nail right on the head.  I agree with Andy Kelly's analysis that Fallout 4 is like a giant puddle...huge, but not very deep.  I wouldn't call it a bad game, I've played much worse, but I also chuckle at the overzealous forum posts about "Game of the Year!"  Supposedly there is a patch coming out soon that will hopefully address some of the glitchier hindrances plaguing parts of the game.

This is a wishlist of things that I would like to see improved.  I will preface this list by saying that I still haven't played much of the main storyline so I won't be commenting on it.

1.) The settlement system.  For some completely ridiculous reason I've latched on to the idea of managing settlements.  There's something intrinsically rewarding about providing a safe home for all the good people of the wastes.  But what is the point?  Is there a reason to be saddled with managing numerous settlements?  I like to think that at some point I'm going to have my own personal army but know this is undoubtedly not true.  Currently I am managing 10+ settlements for the Minutemen.  I've invested points into charisma so I can have supply lines to help provided needed items all over the map.  My main irritation lies in the fact that so little about managing settlements is actually explained in the game.  I've had to Google and read up on the finer aspects of running a happy settlement.  I'm irritated by the fact that my largest settlements (Sanctuary Hills and The Castle) are limited to 18 settlers (the number of settlers you have is determined by the charisma level of your character--the higher your charisma, the more settlers you can have in any given settlement).  There's this huge, glaring bar that says "settlement size" but it's only partially filled up!  What does that mean?  It's confusing.

In Googling happiness in settlements I learned that building certain shops will help.  I hadn't really looked at the shops menu prior to picking up rank two of the "local leader" perk and realized that there is a clear explanation included with the shops that will increase happiness.  Another very important aspect is making sure that your settlers are assigned a task.  This can be a pain to track since you have to A.) track down your settlers wandering around your settlements and B.) figure out if they've already been assigned a task--this is not easy to do since there is no indicator to tell you--my general rule of thumb is to watch the food or defense numbers and see if they fall.  I really wish this was easier.

Another wish of mine is for the workshop menu to be easier to use.  If there was a way to search specific components rather than having to page through the entire menu it would save a ton of time (this has become a non-issue with supply lines but was a pain early on).  It can't be that hard to include a way to filter specific components, right?

The tools to personalize your settlements are such a pain to use that I've given up on trying to create anything unique.  Just slap down a pre-fab and call it good because trying to get all your walls, roofs, and various other items to line up properly is going to make you want to pull your hair out.  I decided to build a fence around one of my settlements and gave up halfway because the unevenness of the terrain made my fence float....which defeats the purpose of a fence.

I've also run into an annoyance with a certain quest that continually pops up in Sanctuary Hills.  One of your settlers has been kidnapped by raiders and requires you to rescue them within a set timeframe.  I completed the quest only to find that it never ends....the same settler is standing in the middle of the road an hour later asking for your help again.  My recommended course of action is to avoid walking near that settler so you don't wind up doing a time-limited quest several times.

Sometimes I wonder if they intentionally kept parts of the game, like settlement management, vague in order to push people into buying the strategy guide.  Capitalism FTW!

2.) Better factions.  Or indicators about factional happiness.  I've met the Brotherhood of Steel.  I've clearly embraced the Minutemen.  What about the Triggermen?  Or the Children of Atom?  I have no effing clue but I've killed many of them which I would think means they aren't overly fond of my character.  I don't know who loves or hates me.  My main indication is whether they are shooting at me.

The view from the top of Bunker Hill.  Bunker Hill would make a great faction.

I'm confused by towns like Goodneighbor.  Other than them being another place to buy and sell stuff, what is the point?  I did a few minor side quests for some people in the town, but really didn't see any major plot points there.  It would be so much better if you had some sort of reputation (wasn't that a thing in the other games?) system.  It would make it more RPGish too.

3.) Companion perks.  Every once in awhile I do something that results in the fun, but boggling, messages of "X Loved that."  Apparently your companions take note of your actions and can either approve or disapprove of the things you do.  Umm, great!  So far I've determined that this matters for exactly nothing.  I'm ecstatic that Codsworth loves it when I make new weapons mods!  /sarcasm.  If you're going to include a system for companion approval/disapproval it needs to mean something.  Include some special perks for increasing their approval or make it possible for a companion to abandon you if they find your actions appalling.  Maybe unlock unique items, skins, or interactions with higher approval ratings?  Just give it some meaning!

4.) Better characters or storylines.  The addition of a main character who talks is interesting but the dialogue is so hollow.  I wish that I felt more invested in the other characters in the game.  Some sort of engaging storyline for the Minutemen or even for individual settlements like Goodneighbor.  I really like the whole societal rejection angle in Goodneighbor and feel like it could be fleshed out in an interesting way.  What if each settlement had it's own unique story and questline?

Right now I'm going to keep wandering the wastes and sneak-sniping multitudes of super mutants and raiders.  I'm crossing my fingers that things will get more interesting.

Edit:  I really hope they fix the annoying bug I'm calling the invisible weapon/weapon switching bug.  If you haven't experienced this yet you are lucky--your weapon will completely disappear (as in it's actually in your hands but you can't see it and can't use it) for a brief time while swapping weapons.  Most of the time this can be remedied by quickly zooming out to third person and zooming back into first.  As a stealther I tend to switch from a suppressed weapon to regular weapons all the time.

Double Edit:  I spent quite a bit of time messing around in my settlements and learned a few things.  The building design tool isn't quite as bad as I initially thought it was.  I've figured out how to get walls to slap right into place and other things to line up correctly.  My lack of engineering skills or knowhow means that all my buildings are ridiculous looking...but hey, my settlers don't seem to care.  I also learned that there is a way to figure out what tasks settlers are assigned to.  All you have to do is mouse over them while you're in workshop mode and the task they are assigned to will be highlighted.  This works well if you are in the vicinity of the thing they're assigned to...it works like crap if you're in a building or far away.  I still wish it was easier to tell.  Oh and I also finally solved the mystery of the repeat kidnapping!  If you're in The Castle the radio will announce that there is a kidnapped settler in Sanctuary Hills.  The quest requires that you talk to a settler and then go through the whole rescue scenario.  After turning it in to Preston Garvey the problem seems to be solved as I haven't seen the same settler standing in the middle of the road.

Wandering the Wastes--Some tips!

Initially I wasn't really that excited about Fallout 4.  I will cop to completely falling for the pre-release hype (the commercials were just so great!).  The transition back into the vast and extremely dangerous world of post-apocalyptic Massachusetts has turned out to be highly enjoyable.  I still haven't delved into the main storyline very much but am having a blast exploring the region and improving my settlements.  I thought I would share some handy tips...you know because there aren't already five billion other articles with Fallout 4 tips.  Here we go!

1.) Some items are more useful than they appear.  In past games there was a lot of junk just laying around wasn't particularly useful.  Now, those items are well worth picking up and lugging around.  Here are some that you should definitely grab:
--Duct tape/Wonderglue:  Breaks down into adhesives which are used in both weapon and armor mods.  It's a good idea to keep a good supply on hand so you can pimp out any new gear you find.

--Aluminum Cans/TV Dinner Trays/Trays:  Early in the game you gain access to some Power Armor.  Power Armor is great but it requires more maintenance and items than regular armor.  Unlike regular armor it also requires repair which is done primarily with aluminum.  Keep your eyes peeled for those silvery cans and dirty TV Dinner Trays and be sure to pick them up.  The fish packing plants (I've come across two--the Four Leaf Clover plant and another one in the far northeastern corner of the map) are a great source of trays for aluminum.

--Abraxo Cleaner:  Breaks down into antiseptic which is one of the main components to craft your own stimpacks.  You can find a fairly steady supply of stimpacks out in the world, but if you plan to use them as your main source of health replenishment you may want to grab lots of Abraxo.

--Build Items/Spec Items:  By this I mean specific items related to the type of build you are going for.  I like to sneak around a lot so I try to find a lot of cork in order to make my gear as light as possible.  I've also modded out my gear so that it is shadowed which allows even better sneaking.  I loot every single globe that I see because they are a great source of cork.

--Hot plates, telephones, desk fans, typewriters:  These items tend to break down into a lot of different and very useful parts.  The downside is that they are generally heavy.  If you intend to build happy settlements grab all that goofy pre-war stuff.

--Armor/Weapons with special components:  The build for my current character didn't involve the skills or perks that allow for both full weapon and armor modification talents.  As a result I've resorted to pinching useful mods from looted weapons or armor.  My advice is to pick up any items that have a mod that you might be interested in.  If a piece of loot has a particularly long name it's probably worth grabbing just so you can cannibalize it for mods.

--Meat:  Preparing food requires no special skills.  Most prepared food also gives you a handy buff for a specific amount of time.  Cooked food contains no radiation unlike most of the other food you will find in the world.

Those are the main items I can think of at the moment.  I'm sure there are way more that I'm forgetting.

2.) Your settlement doesn't have to be fancy.  Settlers are completely fine with sleeping in a sleeping bag which requires few components compared to building a bed.  They also take up less space.  Building the basics for your settlement is good enough.  (I'm not content with simply slapping down some sleeping bags and have, for completely no reason, tried to decorate and make my settlements a weird version of Martha Stewart-esque Fallout zones.  My settlers don't appreciate my sense of post-apocalyptic style and are stuck at 80 happiness)

Dogmeat with his cute lil' bandana.

3.) Dogmeat can equip certain items!  This took way longer to figure out than I care to admit.  There are a variety of dog related items that you can loot in order to give your canine companion a unique look.  Bandanas, collars, chains, and even dog armor can all complete the look for Dogmeat.  I was very excited when I came across my first set of dog armor...only to realize that it's purely cosmetic and doesn't do anything.  My Dogmeat sports a fun red bandana as seen here!

4.) You can buy another dog!  Last night I found a guy walking near the Red Rocket Gas Station (the first one you discover near Sanctuary) and he offered to sell me a dog for 250 caps.  I managed to pass a low-level charisma check and convinced him that I would take care of the dog.  After purchasing the dog you can send it to any of your settlements.  Having a dog in your settlement will provide 5 additional defense.

5.) Recon scopes are handy.  Even if you don't intend to do any sniping, grabbing a rife with a recon scope will allow you to mark enemies on your HUD.  This has been very useful in planning attacks from afar.

6.) Your companions are basically pack mules...use them accordingly.  Poor Dogmeat is usually burdened with all the junk and weapons I don't want to carry around.

Fallout 4 is Upon Us.

Fallout 4 made a grand entrance onto the gaming scene earlier this week.  It has been seven years since Fallout 3  re-birthed the beloved post-apocalyptic RPG and fans have been chomping at the bit for the next entry into the series.  I managed to restrain my pre-ordering tendencies...and made it right until pre-loading was available.  I've pried myself away from wandering the wastes of the Commonwealth to cobble together some thoughts.

If you're looking for a Fallout game that is vastly different from it's predecessors, this is not it.  Fallout 4 brings back and improves on all your favorite aspects of the various wastelands--a massive area filled with numerous creatures, raiders, super mutants, deathclaws, and other baddies to destroy; tons of unique building to explore; a plethora of lootable items including funky weapons; and many interesting characters to fight by your side.  The graphics are great and give the Commonwealth just the right amount of post-apocalyptic creepiness.

Diamond City.   I'll make it there someday.

I'll admit that I haven't delved into the main questline very much.  It's really easy to get sidetracked.  Here's what I'm liking so far in Fallout 4:

1.) Settlements--Rather than simply having your own house to decorate you can have an entire settlement!  Once you've unlocked a settlement you gain access to a workshop that allows you to build new structures and items.  The downside of having a settlement is that it requires some management.  Your settlers aren't content just milling about your town and require food, water, and defense.  In order to accommodate them you must salvage items to build the things they need.  Remember all that junk you would never pick up in Fallout 3--coffee cups, clipboards, teddy bears, etc.?  In Fallout 4 almost every item can be turned into various useful parts.  That coffee cup turns into ceramic, that clipboard turns into wood and a spring, and that cute lil' teddy bear turns into cloth.  You will often find yourself looting junk to access various parts.  You're also responsible for defending your settlement(s) from periodic raider attacks.

I have enjoyed managing my settlement but have spent a lot of time salvaging and building.  It's not as exciting as fighting a big pack if super mutants but it's satisfying seeing your settlement grow.  The one aspect of the settlement feature that I don't like is the structure building tool.  You can build your own unique buildings in the settlement and the tool features numerous floors, walls, roofs, and assorted parts.  I found the tools difficult to use as you must rotate and align each part of the structure.  Fortunately, you can also choose from several pre-fab buildings that can be plopped anywhere within your settlement.

2.) New refined talents/perks system--No longer do you have to choose from a huge list of perks!  The points you put into your basic SPECIAL abilities will influence the perks you can unlock.  I made my character into a sneaky/sniper-y type with points in perception and agility.  In the agility tree I can unlock perks that help me sneak more effectively or increased the number of action points I have to spend.  The perception tree offers lock-picking improvements as well as perks to make sniping easier.  This much more streamlined system makes choosing more straightforward than it was in the past.

3.) New and improved baddies to kill--I entered a small cabin that I stumbled upon and found several ghouls lumbering about.  The Fallout 4 ghoul isn't the ridiculous lumbering creature from earlier games and now will charge right at you with impressive speed.  Ghouls also like to play dead and you should never trust that a ghoul laying on the ground is a corpse.  Upon entering the Super Duper Mart in Lexington I found that the store was littered with numerous ghoul bodies.  It was very unsettling making my way through the store and trying to figure out which ghouls were actually dead (I don't want to spoil it for you....just be prepared).  You might get lucky (or unlucky) and find yourself fighting an enemy with a star by it's name.  These are "legendary" creatures and are much tougher to kill but they will always drop a piece of "legendary" loot.  I have only encountered two legendary enemies so far but have read that they are much more numerous on higher difficulty levels.  If you're looking for a good fight with some good loot...crank up the ol' difficulty.

Enemies in Fallout 4 seem to be a lot tougher than in previous games.  I've found myself in pitched battles with creatures who were complete pushovers in both Fallout 3 and New Vegas.  They've also wised up and adopted new fighting strategies that include "suicide" runs.  If you hear the beeping...run away!  It's either a bomb-laden molerat or a mini-nuke wielding super mutant preparing to send both you and it to the big Vault in the sky.

Even though I've really enjoyed my time playing Fallout 4 not everything is perfect.  One thing that is slightly irritating (or great, depending on your perspective) is the lack of tutorials.  Early on you will see a small window pop-up with some friendly advice about how to do something.  The settlement building aspect is very poorly described and I spent time Googling how things worked (I still haven't completely figured out how you connect power to lighting).  Maybe we're in an era where games don't really need tutorials anymore--anyone can write a guide or Google how something works.

Besides this very minor irritation I am finding Fallout 4 to be an enjoyable adventure.

Happy N7 Day!

In the midst of all the daily chaos I completely forgot that it's November 7th, the day that we celebrate the Mass Effect series.  My Facebook feed was filled with N7 day messages and events.  You can tune into Twitch and watch a marathon event celebrating the games or simply opt to enjoy some Shepard time on your own.  One interesting question that was posed on several of the posts from BioWare was "what does N7 mean to you?"  I've been trying to think about what N7 and the Mass Effect games really mean to me and why I love them so much.

We all know that N7 represents the highest level of elite special forces in the Alliance military.  Commander Shepard attained this rank, he/she (let's say "she" because we all know FemShep is the best Shep) represents the best of the best that humanity has to offer.  It's not just about the elite of humanity protecting the galaxy, but the elite of the galaxy working together for the good of all species.  To me N7 represents hope--hope for the future, hope that all species could unite, hope that in the bleakest of times the strong would look out for the weak, and hope for a brighter future.  Commander Shepard is the beacon of hope.  Whoever comes after Shepard will take up this mantle as the new beacon of hope.

The best Shep!

N7 also represents Shepard herself.  The female version of the Commander is exactly the type of female gaming hero that I love to see.  FemShep isn't about sex appeal and the stereotypical female characteristics that tend to populate a lot of games.  FemShep is a soldier, a commander, and a leader.  I know that a lot of it had to do with BioWare's strategy of using an almost identical script for the male and female characters, but it works for me.  I liked that when Kasumi dressed FemShep up during her loyalty mission that you got a sense of awkwardness.

My initial Mass Effect adventure started on a lark.  I hadn't heard of Mass Effect but it was part of a Steam sale.  The original Mass Effect is such a great game.  It manages to portray a sense of wonder at this amazingly imagined galaxy and also immerse you in the dangers within.  Rolling around in the Mako exploring ruins or wandering around the Citadel wondering at the size and scope of the massive structure.  The part of the game that really pulled me in was the sense of unity on Shepard's team.  It didn't matter that you crewed your ship with a bunch of aliens, they were your crew.  As the game progressed you could take the time to interact with them and form a bond.  BioWare's real talent is for writing characters so good that you actually care about them.  Sure, Ashley's poetry obsession is a little annoying, but you still cringe when you have to make the tough decision about who to leave behind on Virmire.  By the time I watched Shepard crawl out from under that huge piece of debris, I was completely enamored of Mass Effect.

When Mass Effect 2 rolled around in 2010 I was excited.  I have to admit that at first I wasn't overly excited about some of the concepts contained in ME2.  Cerberus?  You're working for Cerberus?  They're the bad guys!  I also wasn't really sold on the whole idea of Shepard dying but essentially being resurrected by Cerberus.  It's still one part of the game that I'm not wild about (I understand why it had to be this way but it doesn't mean I have to like it!).  After I got over my initial hesitation at the storyline in ME2, I was completely sucked in.  The whole concept of building a crew, earning their loyalty, and forming this amazing team to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds was marvelous.  I've played over 400 hours of ME2 because it never gets old--working together with your team, chatting them up on the Normandy, and saving the galaxy.  It doesn't get much better than that.

And then came Mass Effect 3.  Here's where you should expect me to say something really negative.  Whenever someone mentions Mass Effect 3 people immediately jump to berating the ending.  In these arguments they forget that the game leading up to that very controversial ending is phenomenal.  Sprinkled throughout the game are so many great moments--awkward conversations with EDI about human behavior, a giant worm taking down a massive Reaper, saving (or dooming) the Krogan, helping Tali take back her homeworld, forming an alliance with the Geth, and the battle for Earth....and, of course, saying goodbye to Commander Shepard.  Sure, there were some things not to like about the ending, but the trip to get there was completely worth it (and, amazingly, BioWare actually listened to fan feedback and took steps to make the ending better--something that I greatly appreciated).

After feeling horribly depressed about the ending of ME3, BioWare did a solid for the fans of the series by releasing the "Citadel" DLC.  This content allowed players to have an extremely enjoyable and goofy final voyage with all the unique characters Shepard accumulates throughout the three game series.  The culmination of the content is a hilarious party with the entire crew.  This was a fitting farewell to our hero and all of our favorite characters.

Now, the question looms about what's next in the series.  Will we get another hero who's as memorable as Commander Shepard?  Will the next game manage to capture the essence of the three previous games--we will get memorable new characters to fight alongside and fall in love with?  Will we have a ship like the Normandy, a ship that felt like...well, home?

Today BioWare released a new teaser trailer that will hit any fan right in the gut.  Recognize that voice?  Yep, it's Jennifer Hale who voiced FemShep.  This new trailer hints at exploration being a theme.  I thought I had gotten over the loss of Shepard and then this video made me tear up.

I can't wait to hear more about Mass Effect:  Andromeda.  Have a great N7 day and remember your favorite Mass Effect moments.

Overload!!!

After a bit of a gaming dry spell I was slammed with consecutive big releases.  Life is Strange wrapped up an almost year long journey with it's polarizing finale, Tales From the Borderlands revealed the final outcome of the treasure hunting fiasco, and The Witcher 3 saw the release of it's first piece of DLC in the Hearts of Stone expansion.  Sheesh...  I took the time to finish Tales (if you're still feeling depressed about the Life is Strange finale, I would recommend an immediate turn around of finishing off Tales--it's great!), but wanted to blog about Hearts of Stone since I just finished it.  (There will be spoilers about Hearts of Stone ahead!)

I love The Witcher 3 so much that picking it up after not having played it was so enjoyable that I feel like starting my third playthrough.  Hearts of Stone reminded me of all the things I love about The Witcher--engaging stories, morally dubious characters, and whacking things with a sword.  Hearts of Stone sees Geralt engaged in what at first seems like just another monster contract.  There's something lurking in the sewers beneath the city of Oxenfurt...this "something" is, of course, bound to be a disgusting and dangerous monster.  Once you accept the contract you are directed to a large manor house to meet the issuer of this job, Olgierd von Everec.  Olgierd is the leader of a group of tattooed and rowdy individuals known as the "wild ones."  The Wild Ones aren't openly hostile but when you make a motion to find Olgierd they have a laugh at Geralt by insinuating that each of them is actually Olgierd.  Eventually Olgierd shows up and informs Geralt that there is a large monster that needs slaying and that there is also a story circulating that there is a frog prince hiding somewhere in the sewers.  His followers have a good laugh about that--they're actually a little bit irritating but seem to be having a good time.  As you leave the manor house you are struck by the feeling that there is actually a lot more to this story....

Besides adding in the main questline, Hearts of Stone also opens up that irritatingly large portion of the Velen/Novigrad map that was unexplorable.  The sight of more question marked areas to explore was (sadly) exciting.  As you explore you will discover a number of new enemies, treasure hunts, and secondary quests.  My initial explorations found Geralt fighting off a pack of fuzzy spider-like arachnomorphs.  These little buggers are annoyingly fast and dart away quickly when attacked.  Once they reach a certain safe distance they will shoot a ball of webbing directly at you.  If you fail to avoid it, Geralt is trapped in webs and cannot attack or dodge leaving him vulnerable to attack.  Deeper exploration into the area also reveals packs of ferocious wild boars.  These ornery critters will charge Geralt, knocking him back and stunning him.  In larger groups these lil' piggies can be a real pain to take down.  Not all the new baddies are of the creature variety; Geralt will have run-ins with some old friends from the original Witcher game.  Remember the Knights of the Flaming Rose?  The pro-human group that was trying to breed an army of powerful mutants in order to rid the world of non-humans?  Ringing any bells?  Radovid wasn't too fond of this group either and the rejects have found themselves exiled into the countryside and looking for new ways to make a buck (oren? floren?).

A new craftsmen also becomes available as part of this expansion.  The runecrafter/enchanter comes from the mysterious land of Ofier and offers some powerful new ways to alter Geralt's gear.  The downside is that he requires a large investment before he will offer access to masterpiece enchanting (around 30,000 gold--this shouldn't be much of a stretch if you've been fairly looty.  I tried to avoid the Skellige underwater exploration and could still easily afford the upgrades).  If you're thinking of completely pimping out your gear...think again.  You can only put enchantments on gear that has three rune slots--swords and chest armor are the most likely candidates.  You'll lose the runes you already have in place, but some of the enchants sound great.  I didn't take advantage of the enchants because I don't like the idea of losing three rune slots.

Shani, from the first game, offers to help Geralt.

Once you've had your fill of exploration you can segue back into the main storyline quite easily--just fast travel to Oxenfurt and head for the main market square.  A previously covered entrance to the sewers is now open and you can descend a ladder into the darkened tunnels.  In the tunnels you encounter the typical sewer inhabitants--drowners-- but also run into an old acquaintance, Shani, the medic who assisted you in the first game.  She's muddied and bloodied and desperately trying to revive a downed soldier.  Geralt recognizes her, informs her that her resuscitation efforts are in vain, and the two begin conversing about her presence in the sewers.  She informs Geralt that she was part of a Redanian patrol trying to investigate the sewer monster.  Long story, short--the monster was too much for them to handle and she barely managed to escape.  Shani hopes to gather some slime samples to help treat patients poisoned by the monster and Geralt agrees to escort her.  As they walk through the sewers they catch up--Shani has been pressed into service as a medic for the Redanians and now practices in Oxenfurt.  After a few close encounters with drowners, Geralt and Shani find the passage that undoubtedly leads to the monster's lair.  Geralt tells Shani to leave for her own safety and she begrudgingly heads out.

Geralt prepares some bait and patiently meditates.  The monster arrives...lo and behold, it's a giant toad.  There's no chance of kissing it and it immediately launches into attack mode.  The first major boss fight of the expansion is no joke and requires some careful timing as simply trying to get in close will result in getting body slammed.  Moving out of range will save you from the frog drop but will open you up to long-range poison attacks in the form of spit-up globs flying toward Geralt's face (popping a Golden Oriole before the fight will help avoid damage from poisoning). Positioning is the key to avoiding both the melee and ranged attacks and there is much creative dodging involved.  Eventually you will manage to whittle this ugly toad down--as it makes a final leap over Geralt he slashes at it's exposed belly and lands a vicious gut-spilling blow.  Geralt winds up covered in a toxic stew of frog guts but manages to stay conscious long enough to see the corpse of the nasty toad turn into the body of a man.  The stories were true!  Geralt falls unconscious as a group of foreign soldiers enter the lair and find the body of the apparent prince.

The plot thickens as you anxiously wait to find out Geralt's fate.  Will Shani return and rescue him?  What's up with these weird soldiers?  To be continued...

Hearts of Stone review/walkthrough part 1 highlights:
1.) New crafter--Enchanter.  Offers new ways to enhance Geralt's gear.
2.) New enemies.  The arachnomorph, boars, and knights of the Flaming Rose.
3.) Old friends.  Shani, from the original Witcher, plays a part.
4.) New boss fight.  A giant toad.  A challenging and fun fight.

Play it or Skip it? "Life is Strange" Thoughts

After playing through the sometimes monotonous finale of the episodic story game Life is Strange, I've done some thinking about whether the $20 I spent on the series was worth it.  Spending our hard-earned money on games can require some research before laying down those simoleons (if you're a Sim anyway).  I've cobbled together some final opinions that might be beneficial to someone (I hope!).

Let me preface my thoughts by saying that I enjoy episodic story games but don't think they're for everyone.  If you enjoy the story-based aspects of games more than having engaging gameplay mechanics (pew-pew!) then you will probably enjoy them.  I also believe that how you purchase and play these games could influence your enjoyment.  I have purchased them before the initial release and then played each episode as it has been released (roughly every 1-3 months).  There's the whole aspect of waiting for the next episode that makes it feel exciting.  I don't know if it's the same if you buy the whole series and then play through it in a shorter timespan (I need to try it and see).  The $20 price tag makes these games affordable but the downside is that there's not a ton of replayability factor.

When Life is Strange was initially released I was very excited.  TellTale Games had sort of pioneered the episodic story genre (I'm probably way wrong on this) with it's amazing but dark series The Walking Dead.  Since then they've released numerous other games in the genre and really seem to be the dominant force.  Seeing a new face in the fray is and was great.  More diversity in the genre offers players a chance to have different experiences.  I hope to see the genre expand even more and we see more great stories!  But that's really a side note...back to Life is Strange.

Let's look at Life is Strange from a strengths and weaknesses standpoint.  I'm going to do this backwards and start with the weaknesses.  There could be possible spoilers.  Read with caution!

Weaknesses
1.) Goofy dialogue.  It's pretty clear that the writers for this game are not teenage girls.  There were cringeworthy moments of awkwardness scattered throughout the game.  It's nice that they tried to come up with some teenage lingo for those of us who are no longer of that persuasion.  I can live with this one and it didn't ruin the game for me.

2.) Bad lip-syncing.  I actually made it a point to not look at the mouth region of the characters who were talking because it just distracted me too much.  A word of advice:  read the subtitles.  The voice acting is great so just reading and listening to the dialogue is best.  I read in some recent patch notes that they were working to address this issue but didn't see much of a change in the final episode.

3.) Repetitious moments.  The story revolves around Max's ability to rewind time and use photographs to jump into different moments throughout her life.  There were times when the rewind mechanic became very tedious.  Rewinding through some conversations multiple times became tiring and got annoying after awhile.  Certain episodes involved more of this than others.  Even though it could get tiring it did add a fun aspect into other parts of the game.

Strengths

Max and Chloe.

1.) The "Core" Story.  I found it really interesting that Dontnod chose to make a game with two female protagonists and that the story is more female oriented.  At the core of this game is the story of two best friends who grow apart simply through tiny changes in their lives and then find themselves back together.  It's a story about friendship standing the test of time.  That's a really powerful concept and not your typical gaming material.  This emotional core is what made the relationship between Max and Chloe so great (but completely ruined it in one of the possible endings).

The more "detective" side of the story wasn't anything fresh or engaging.  It provided action to keep the story interesting but didn't stand out to me as much as what I am calling the "core."

2.)  Lots of cliffhangers and plot twists.  I was absolutely floored for each episode to be released.  Every episode ended with some serious drama that was going to unfold in the next episode.  I think a great episodic story game has to keep players on the edge of their seat and willing to wait for that next installment.  The major plot twist in episode four (revealing who was kidnapping students) caught me completely by surprise and made me look forward to the finale that much more (which turned out to be sort of disappointing).

 3.) The ending.  I have read so many differing opinions about the ending of the game--some people loved it and some people hated it.  I think it's a win if a game can spur debate.  (Note:  I have only experienced one of the possible endings and will say that I completely hate the concept of a Max/Chloe romantic relationship that was presented in one of the other endings.  I still don't really understand the point of adding in the possibility of a romantic relationship between the characters--political statement?  Attention grabber for the male audience?)  The ending I witnessed was so emotionally charged that it was depressing.

4.) The sci-fi aspect of the game.  The idea of Max having rewinding powers isn't anything new or fresh but the ability to hop between timeframes kept the story zigging and zagging.  When not being used to re-live the same conversations over and over the rewind power is pretty cool.  I liked seeing the multiple realities (which never worked out) and that the story wove those realities together so well.

Life is Strange is definitely worth playing.  I think the "core" story is powerful and deserves the bulk of the attention.  I'm excited for where episodic story games are going and like that these games are willing to address deeper topics.  The strengths of the series far outweigh the weaknesses.  I hope Dontnod keeps developing games and we see even more developers jumping into the episodic story genre.

"Life is Strange" Episode 5--It Hurt my Brain and my Heart.

It has been a big week in gaming for fans of episodic story games.  The teen centered, sort of sci-fi drama Life is Strange wrapped up it's final episode as did TellTale's Borderlands themed series Tales from the Borderlands.  I haven't quite had enough time to delve into Tales, but I spent my evening last night finishing up Life is Strange.  I'm still recovering physically and emotionally--the final episode managed to give me a headache while simultaneously ripping out my heart.

Please note that from this point forward there will be nothing but spoilers about Life is Strange episodes four and five.  If you haven't completed Life is Strange you should go finish it.

Episode four really left us with some crazy cliffhangers--we learned that Mr. Jefferson, the hipster photography teacher, is also the psycho responsible for drugging, kidnapping, and possibly killing students from Blackwell Academy.  We're also faced with the reality that Chloe might actually be dead since Jefferson has drugged Max thus preventing her from using her rewind powers.  This set the stage for an epic episode five--what was Jefferson going to do with Max?  Is Chloe dead?  These questions are answered in episode five, but you have to navigate a sloppy maze filled with meta-physical nonsense in order to finally get to the emotional main course.

Episode five opens with Max waking up in the creepy "dark room" that she and Chloe discover in episode four.  As she struggles to regain consciousness she realizes that she's not alone and that Victoria Chase has also been kidnapped by Jefferson.  As you look through the objects in the room, Max sees a table with one of the photographs taken of her while she was unconscious.  Using her powers she is able to focus on the picture and leap back to a previous point in the "dark room."  (Get comfy with the "dark room" because you're going to be spending an annoying amount of time there) This time Max finds herself on the floor and being actively photographed by Jefferson.  It's at this point that you really want to stab him.  He won't shut up!  For some reason the developers felt the need to have him run through this very long and very tedious monologue explaining his weird motives behind drugging and photographing the girls.  We get it, the dude is a total creeper!  I found myself wanting him to shut up and also getting very bored (getting bored at this early juncture of the episode wasn't a promising start).  The good news is that eventually he shuts up and leaves Max long enough that she can find her diary and focus on the selfie she took in Jefferson's classroom (in episode one).

Finding herself back at the beginning with her newfound courage, Max decides to take action.  She texts David Madsen and informs him that Jefferson is the kidnapper.  As she makes her way to the front of the classroom she has a nice, "I've got your back" moment with Kate.  In this reality she submits a photograph for the "Everyday Heroes" contest--but not before a very satisfying moment of putting Victoria Chase in her place (that's a rhyme!).  In the next beat Max wakes up on a plane headed to San Francisco.  Her photograph won the contest and she's on her way to be a part of the show.  At the gallery you can wander around and look at all the other photographs and there are some nice moments as Max realizes that she's a talented artist.  Max breaks away from the admiring throngs to check her phone and is shocked to discover that she has several missed calls.  Checking her voice mail reveals that Chloe has been leaving panicky messages because the giant tornado Max witnessed in episode one has hit Arcadia.  Chloe is trapped and is going to die.  Max has no choice but to use her winning photograph to jump back--and out of what felt like a very positive reality.

The winning photo!

The next jump finds Max back in her room taking her prize winning photograph.  She knows that the reality with the photograph can't exist so she chooses to tear it up.  Then she wakes up in the "dark room"....again.  There's more of Jefferson blah, blahing but it's here that Max realizes in this reality he has burned her diary--that means no more leaping back to the beginning.  This time it looks like Jefferson is going to kill her.  He fills a syringe with a large dose and prepares to finish her off.  He hears the noise of someone else entering the bunker and stops (phew!).  Remember how Max texted David Madsen?  That's about to pay off.  Jefferson grabs a nearby folded tri-pod and presses himself up against the wall to ambush David.  Max can rewind and warn David but this requires some good timing--too early and Jefferson will smash Max with the tri-pod, too late and he will knock David unconscious and proceed to kill Max.  I rewound multiple times and every time resulted in David being knocked unconscious.  Just when I was starting to get annoyed I rewound all the way to the beginning before David entered.  A new dialogue option opened up allowing Max to ask Jefferson to grant some type of last request before he kills her.  If you pick the right one it will allow David to enter without being heard.  After a couple of different tries I picked the option that allowed him to enter unnoticed.  It's not a straight up solution as now Jefferson pulls a gun that he has hidden in a nearby cabinet.  Boom!  David Madsen is dead.  Hmmm....rewind.  Max can tell David what to do!  Kick that table!  Boom!  David Madsen is dead.  Warn David that Jefferson has a gun.  Boom!  David Madsen is dead.  (This happened so many times that I was laughing--how many times do I have to watch this guy die?)  Eventually you choose the right thing (Max can pull on a lamp cord with her freed foot and knock it over causing Jefferson to move away from his hidden gun).  David, the guy who you possibly accused in the previous episodes, ends up saving Max.  Max explains what is going on and in the process has to make the choice about whether to tell him that Chloe was killed by Jefferson.  I opted to tell him (I had blamed him in the Kate Marsh incident and also not backed him up at Chloe's house when the argument about surveillance ensued--I pretty much wrecked his fictional life) and that result of that choice was watching him break down over Joyce, Chloe, and his general jerkiness.  He loses his temper and shoots the unconscious Jefferson, killing him.

Max then realizes that although she lost her diary and all the pictures that Warren still has the photograph from the Vortex Club party.  All she has to do is get that photograph and jump to the night of the party.  As she emerges from the bunker she calls Warren only to realize that the tornado is in full swing and is devastating the town.  Warren is hunkered down in the Two Whales diner and agrees to meet Max to give her the photo.

Once Max hits downtown Arcadia you get to realize the full extent of the damage from the storm.  Much of the town is in ruins and Max has to navigate through a devastated landscape filled with debris from the storm.  As Max is making her way through the wreckage she encounters many of her classmates from Blackwell who have been trapped by the storm.  Max can save them or choose to book it directly to the diner (I opted to save them--who cares if this is an alternate reality, you can't leave them to die).  Once Max reaches the diner she finds that Joyce is taking care of a wounded Frank.  You can have some lengthy conversations with both Joyce and Frank.  The conversation with Frank includes telling him that Rachel Amber is dead and witnessing his devastated reaction.  When Max makes it to Warren she has a brief conversation with him and then asks for the photo.  As she starts to focus on the picture Warren interrupts her and there is an interaction where you can choose whether Max hugs, kisses, or just simply leaves.  I chose to friendzone poor Warren and just gave him a friendly hug (this choice has some impact on the ending).

After focusing on the picture from the party Max finds herself back outside the Vortex Club party.  She tells Chloe what is going on and you have to navigate some different dialogue options to convince her that you don't need to go running off to the junkyard.  It took me a few tries but I finally convinced her that they should hide out at Chloe's house and avoid the junkyard.  And here begins the most tedious part of this episode.....

The next scene opens with Max and Chloe standing on the beach viewing the massive tornado heading toward Arcadia Bay.  Max knows that she needs to head toward the lighthouse and both girls start heading that way.  Max has really abused her rewind and focusing powers and it has taken a huge toll on her.  She passes out as they start heading up the trail towards the lighthouse.  Max wakes up back in Mr. Jefferson's class in Blackwell but there's no one in the room....  She walks out into the hallway but everything is happening in reverse--people are talking backwards, the text for selecting objects is backwards.  Something weird is happening.  Max heads down the hallway into the bathroom where she initially witnessed Nathan shooting Chloe and discovered her rewind powers.  As she opens the door to the bathroom she finds herself in the hallway to the dormitories.  The hallway is lit by eerie candles and Kate Marsh is crouched down outside her room.  As Max approaches Kate she opens the door to her room and appears to jump off a ledge.  Max follows her through the door only to discover that she's back at the entrance to the dorms again.....  There's this irritating sequence of figuring out which doors to go through as you keep finding yourself at the entrance to the dorms.  After a few times Max turns into Victoria Chase (I'm still not sure why), then she turns back but into Max wearing Rachel's clothes...then you finally escape the weird dorm part of the nightmare.

...And find yourself in a surreal landscape that mashes together the different areas from each episode.  Initially you are in a a gallery-like space and Jefferson is searching for Max.  You have to avoid Jefferson and find your way through this weird meta-physical maze.  Once you've done that Max finds herself in a locker room type of area similar to the pool area from episode 3 (or maybe 2?).  Now it's David Madsen looking for Max....you avoid him and move into another area and it's Warren looking for Max....you avoid Warren and you're in the junkyard and it's ALL of them and Frank shining flashlights and trying to find Max.  If you're caught by any of them you have the opportunity to rewind and avoid them, but overall it's another irritating sequence of sneaking.  Max finally reaches an area that is outside the lighthouse and can sit down on a bench.  While sitting Max finds that she's actually in a snow globe sitting on the mantle in the Price's house.  She witnesses the scene where William receives the fated call to go pick up Joyce.  Then you're back in front of the lighthouse but there's another path.  As Max walks up this path she witnesses a series of still scenes from the past episodes.  This serves as a re-cap of all the choices you made in the different episodes--I suppose it's a nice reminder, but by this point I was so tired of the whole nightmare sequence that I just wanted to move ahead.  I didn't spend much time stopping to witness each scene.

Max finally reaches the lighthouse and opens the door to find herself waking up.  She's with Chloe and they're at the actual lighthouse with the storm raging out in the ocean.  Max is exhausted after the experience of all the different realities.  Even with all the rewinding the storm just keeps happening.  There just doesn't appear to be any way to avoid the storm hitting Arcadia Bay.  It's Chloe who finally realizes that the storm is somehow tied to Max messing with destiny...it's destiny that Chloe has to die and the only way to avoid the storm is to rewind back to the beginning and let Nathan kill her.  This realization was like a karate kick right to the heart.  Max has to choose...she can sacrifice Chloe and save the entire town of Arcadia Bay or they can let the storm rage destroying Arcadia Bay but saving Chloe.  I let the screen sit on this decision for an agonizing amount of time.  In the end I decided that it was unfair to sacrifice the entire town to save one person...even if that person was your best friend.  Chloe hands Max the butterfly photograph from the first day and makes Max swear that she will remember her.  They hug and Max focuses on the photograph.

Back in the bathroom from the beginning...but now it just feels depressing.  Max sees the blue butterfly and photographs it.  She then slides to the floor and listens the the exchange between Nathan and Chloe.  While her tears drip on the floor she hears the gunshot that ends Chloe's life.  (This is where I started tearing up) The photo series runs by with the pictures of all of Max and Chloe's exchanges burn away and new photos of Nathan Prescott being arrested replace them.  The final scene sees a large group of black clad mourners heading to the cemetery for Chloe's funeral.  Joyce and David hug and cry.  Due to my friendzoning of Warren he stands awkwardly next to Max.  Then the small blue butterfly lands on the coffin.  Ugh, what an ending though!

So, what's my final verdict?
If you've played your way through the entire series there is no way that you can't play the final episode.  This final episode is all over the place and you'll most likely find yourself getting annoyed at all the physicy/time-travelly/timey-wimey nonsense that is woven throughout.  It really chops the episode up so much that I found myself getting bored (which didn't happen much in the previous episodes).  I get it that we need to be reminded that Max is travelling through alternate dimensions but the whole "many doors" thing has been played out (think BioShock:  Infinite's ending).  The fact that the ending basically tells you that all your choices didn't really matter is also pretty disenfranchising.  I was also irritated at the concept of the collectible photographs in the last episode and actually only completed about half of them.  I really wanted it to be over and had no desire to go back and find those minor opportunities for achievements.  I think if this episode had been done with less nonsensical stuff that it could have been really great.

As for the ending itself...(the one I chose anyway) the emotional impact was fantastic.  I think if a game can make you feel actual emotions that it has achieved something.  I felt connected to the friendship between Max and Chloe and it was really beautiful.  Although I haven't seen the alternative endings, I have read about them in other reviews.  Apparently if you spurn Warren's advances and opt to jokingly kiss Chloe in episode 2 or 3 and then choose to let the storm destroy Arcadia Bay you will see Max and Chloe in a romantic relationship.  This kills me and my concept of their beautiful friendship!  I never got the idea that there would be a romance between them.  Chloe is clearly in love with Rachel Amber and the possibility of a romance with Max seems almost perverse.  I don't really know why the developers felt the need to go there but it just feels so wrong (I just don't understand it and maybe other people got a much different feeling).