I Game, I Saw, I Conquered now has a Steam Curator Page!

Making a Steam Curator page has been a goal of mine for awhile and now, after a well-timed snow day in which to work, it's a reality.  Like this blog, I am gearing my curator page more towards the games I enjoy and write about here.  My target audience is gamers who are similar to myself--working adults with lives and responsibilities who game for fun.  I wish I could say that I explore a lot of unknown, edgy titles but I tend to stick to the tried and true.

If you're looking for a curator to follow, please consider me.  The link to the curator page on the Steam store is:  I Game, I Saw, I Conquered Curator Page

Thanks to everyone who visits or reads!  I will continue to post reviews, thoughts, and updates on this blog.  Look for the Mars Attacks!  alien to find me.

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.

The Steam Summer Sale is On!

The cute Steam Summer Sale mascots.

It's Steam Sale time!  Scrape together those pennies or rev up your credit card and plump up your game library.  There are some interesting new features this year revolving around the monster themed sale.  There is a mini-game in which the community can unlock special deals.  I have yet to play it because it seems to be completely broken but obviously some people have been able to get in because there were some special deals unlocked today.  Hey, maybe it'll work tomorrow.....

I'm on the lookout for some fantastic deals.  Here's what's I've already purchased and here's what's on my wishlist:

1.) Dust:  An Elysian Tale

This game looks interesting and beautiful.  I'm not a huge fan of platformers but you can't beat the $5.09 price tag.

2.) Shovel Knight

Another indie game that's also a platformer.  I've read a lot of great things about this game and it looks cute.  It wasn't quite as cheap as Dust, but it's on sale.

The rest of my wishlist looks like this (there's no way I'm buying all these games...at least that's what I'm telling myself):

Pillars of Eternity

Ori and the Blind Forest

Valkyria Chronicles (I'm not sure about this one...I'm not a big JRPG fan)

Cities:  Skylines

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light

Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris

There's one more that I can't think of right now, but I keep adding more and more.  There are some great deals on some games I've really enjoyed--Wasteland 2 is currently 50% off ($19.99), The Witcher 1-2 can both be purchased for a total of under $10, the XCOM franchise is super cheap...so many great deals!

Steam Refunds--Good or Bad?

Lately Steam has been at the center of some pretty divisive issues in gaming.  The first round saw them introduce a system that would have made many mods a commodity players paid for rather than the free creations that they currently are.  There was much backlash and they eventually decided to remove the paid for mods and do some more exploration.  The newest round of controversy has to do with a decision announced last week that they would refund any game purchased on Steam for any reason.  This is a very bold move and one that has sparked much discussion.

Initially I thought this sounded like a really great idea.  You should be able to return a product to the store where you bought it from even if it is a digital platform like Steam.  This would also allow players to get their money back for any wide variety of reasons--don't like a game, game doesn't run on your machine, game isn't what you expected, etc.  If you are thinking of returning a game there are a few conditions--you can't have played a game for more than two hours and must request a refund within two weeks of purchase.  One nice part of this policy is that you can also return a previously purchased game if it then goes on sale--probably within the same time period.

Here's a video where Jamin from PBS's "Game Show" shares his thoughts on this new policy:

From a consumer standpoint this is a really big step and seems to be one that a lot of the big distributors are now instituting.  Not all of this refund policy is a good thing though.  Developers of smaller games are worried about people abusing the system.  What about the games that are two hours or less in length?  Couldn't I just play a game all the way through and get a refund?  I wouldn't do that but according to this policy there is nothing to stop me from getting a refund.  This could have a big impact on the makers of smaller, shorter games.  In a statement Steam said they would crackdown on people who abuse the policy...but how easy is that going to be?  Would this policy keep smaller Indie projects from appearing on Steam?

I'm interested to see how this thing plays out and if Steam backtracks or decides to shore up their policy.  How many games are actually being returned?  I can only think of one that I would want to return (I'm looking at you Spelunky).

Steam Reviews to get New "Funny" Rating Button.

I like to write reviews for video games in my Steam library.  My hope is that someone will read my review and it will help them make a choice about purchasing a game.  I would really love to brag that I've written a review for all 102 games in my library.  One of my completely ridiculous life goals is to write reviews for all the games in my library.  I'm not even close.  I've written five.  Yup, just five.  This is partially due to the fact that every time I write a review I end up with people downvoting my reviews.  I'm not overly sensitive, but I just don't understand why.  It's irritating when I write a decently descriptive review for a game and someone writes "has goats 11/10" and their review gets more favorable votes than my thoughtful and helpful review.  Nerdrage!

 Disliking Skyrim didn't stop him from playing 1,300 hours.

If you're like me and write a review only to have it shot down by angry Australians (I'm sorry that I feel that the humor in Borderlands:  The Pre-Sequel was Australiacentric and that I didn't get it.  I also just made up the word Australiacentric.  I have nothing against Australians.  I've never really met any, but you seem cool) you should be thrilled about this change.  Now all those people who are reading reviews sheerly for the laugh factor won't pollute the review feed with their nonsense about "you dont have to ware pants 12/10."  You can read about some Steam changes here.

Now to finish writing the other 97 reviews for the products in my library....

Shadowrun Returns Review

As part of my semi-annual game purchasing binge I acquired Shadowrun Returns for a low price as part of the winter Steam sale.  I also finished it relatively quickly.

Shadowrun Returns is a video game adaptation of a popular pen-and-paper cyberpunk RPG.  It is a turn-based RPG with many features that are similar to X-COM:  Enemy Unknown.  I played through the main campaign "Dead Man's Switch."  I very much enjoyed Shadowrun Returns and found the story and setting a refreshing change from the typical turn-based fantasy/strategy type of game.  I would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of X-COM or turn-based strategy games.  Overall I would give it an 8/10.

Pros:
1.) Cyberpunk
--Before playing Shadowrun Returns I was completely unfamiliar with this genre.  You take one part traditional fantasy elements (magic, elves, dragons, dwarves) and smash it together with futuristic elements (cyber enhancements, automatic weapons, "decking") and you get this really amazing and different combination that works.  I liked that I could make a mage and then give them cybernetic enhancements.  Cybermage is so much cooler than your traditional robe-wearing spell flinger.

The stylized portraits and art are really fun and lend themselves well to this genre.  I enjoyed meeting new characters just to see what their portraits would look like.

2.) Setting
--The world of Shadowrun Returns is a dark but familiar world.  The story is set in and around a futuristic Seattle.  In this world magic has "awakened" ancient races, elves, orks, trolls, and dragons and has changed everything.  Major corporations are run by dragons and have a very powerful impact on everyday life.  As a shadowrunner you navigate the seedier side of life in this world--you deal with the gangsters, thugs, and others who lurk in the dark places.  Many of the locations in the game are authentic--anyone who has been to Seattle will immediately recognize them.  Even if you don't you'll enjoy the rainy, dark streets and the cheery atmosphere of the "Seamstresses Union."

3.) Campaign/story
--The campaign has you following up on a strange message you receive from a former business associate.  This associate had installed a "dead man's switch" that would automatically contact you in the event of his death.  Your job is to find out who murdered your friend and bring them to justice.  The story feels much like a murder mystery with you at the center finding clues and unravelling the threads that weave the story Sam Watts' death.  There are a number of side quests and the more you investigate the bigger and more interesting the plot gets.

4.) Interesting classes
--These ain't your momma's traditional classes!  Street samurai--specializes in ranged and melee combat.  Physical adept--utilizes magic to enhance physical abilities (punching with magic!).  Mage--a more traditional class focused on spellcasting.  Shaman--a support caster who specializes in summoning powerful spirits to help your party and also has many useful buff/debuff spells.  Decker--the Shadowrun version of a hacker who can enter the computer world known as "the matrix" and manipulate defenses, unlock doors, and do all kinds of other handy things.  Rigger--another technology related class that focuses on controlling drones in combat.  Drones can navigate small vents and are good tools for scouting.

5.) Combat
--Combat in Shadowrun Returns is enjoyable.  Once you have figured out how each class functions it highly enjoyable to see your choices play out positively.  Your casters are great at providing support and buffs to more offensive classes like physical adepts or street samurais.  The more tech centered classes are a nice change from the traditional "tank, healer, DPS" makeup present in many games.

6.) Moral choices
--You get to choose how your character responds to situations.  You can be the diplomat or the brute depending on how you want to play your character.  This isn't something novel, but is always something I enjoy in a game.

7.) Editor/workshop support
--If you're into designing your own content Shadowrun Returns offers a set of editing tools that allow you to do so.  I did not experiment with them but am supportive of any game that allows users to generate their own content.  There is also a large amount of Steam Workshop content to bulk up the game.

Cons:
1.) Length
--Although engaging and interesting the campaign was relatively short.  I finished it in 10 hours and was a bit disappointed that there wasn't more.  The flipside of that coin is the editing/workshop support with player generated content.

2.) Cover
--Similar to issues in X-COM, the cover system can be frustrating.  Often I would place my characters in heavy cover and they would still be crit.  There is also bonus damage awarded anytime you are flanking an opponent but the definition of what is actually "flanking" seems to be pretty broad.  This is great from an offensive standpoint, but not from a defensive one.  I found that my party was flanked much of the time even though no enemies were really behind me.

Despite the short length of the campaign I found Shadowrun Returns to be an enjoyable and refreshing journey.  It's worth picking up and is even more-so if you are someone who enjoys creating content.

Gimmick or Fun?

I always tell myself that I'm not going to fall for stupid gimmicky stuff that seems to be a ploy to make more money.  I'm smarter than that!  Unfortunately this is not always the case.  I am an avid Steam user and have been for quite awhile,  If you're at all familiar with Steam then you know that besides being a platform for digital distribution there is also an extensive community feature.  Within this community there is a marketplace to trade and sell virtual items.  I was astounded when I first learned that people were bartering virtual items for real cash.  It seems crazy...right?  I would never do that.....

Nope.  I totally fell for it.  For many games Steam has added in collectible trading cards.  These trading cards feature different artwork from a specific game.  For buying and playing a game you earn three or four "card drops" that are rewarded for spending time playing that game.  Once you have collected all of the cards to make a set for a certain game you can craft a "badge" for that game.  Badges award experience points that are used to "level up" your Steam profile.  Crafting a badge also awards special items like profile backgrounds or emoticons that are themed to the game for which you crafted a badge.  You are awarded a little set of numbers next to your name to indicate your current level.  This system is really brilliant.  A digital distribution platform that sells games that is totally using gamification to make cash.  Do these Steam levels actually mean anything?  Not really.  For earning experience you can unlock different features on your profile page like the ability to have a showcase of your favorite games or greatest achievements.

The trading card part of this system is what has sucked me in.  The completionist that I am hates having unfinished sets of trading cards in my inventory.  Typically they give you just enough that you have completed half of a set so it doesn't feel like you're very far from finishing it.  Cards are usually pretty cheap ranging in price from a few cents up to a few dollars for rare cards.  There is also a trade forum dedicated specifically to trading cards and other items.  I am too leery to trade and generally just list my cards on the marketplace--even paying a small "transaction" fee of two cents.  I can put $5 in my Steam wallet and not get anywhere close to spending it all.  Microtransactions are totally the way to go.  I don't feel bad about spending a few cents as compared to a few dollars.  It's really quite brilliant.

The recent addition of the ability to turn your unwanted cards, profile backgrounds, and emoticons into gems that can be used to buy booster packs is a great idea.  I've been happily disposing of all the silly backgrounds and emoticons I have acquired from creating badges.  With enough of these gems I have been able to create a few booster packs to help me finish off a few card sets.

So am I a sucker for falling for the trading card trick?  I can't help but think that I am but there's something about watching that meaningless Steam level number increase that's addicting.  I have to hand it to Steam for coming up with a system that totally buys into the inferiority complex.  I want to be a higher level because I can...and because I'm a higher level than you are.  /sigh....here just take my money.