DC never looked so good [r]

I picked up Fallout 3 a couple days ago.

• Environment: More than anything else, the game succeeds at being immersive. So much so that the tiny things stand out, e.g. non-sequitur dialog or ruins that just half-assedly cover up an invisible wall. The large, semi-contiguous map feels more unified than any of the GTA games and it's great that I can recognize the remains of various parts of DC - and I'm not talking about the White House and Capitol building.
• Visuals: The texturing is top notch, the polygon count is okay. I'm not too familiar with the various xbox engines, but the game might have benefitted from the Gears of War look - utter grittiness but still clean. It takes about two seconds to see my point, you just have to watch the opening cinema. It's a great scene with fantastic music that is totally ruined by the blocky rendered-on-the-fly graphics. If you don't have the two seconds to spare, just imagine trying to be horrified by the original King Kong.
  
• Leveling mechanics: Meh. Nothing fantastic here, basic rpg fare. Bethesda could definitely have gotten away with de-enumerating some or all attributes and achieved a more organic experience system. Rather than add skill points to rifle use, I'd just like to use my rifle and let increasing accuracy speak for itself. That means less stepping out of post-apocalyptic DC and a better experience.
  
• Combat mechanics: Sloppy. You can choose to fight regular and not stand a chance, or use bullet time ('VATS') and have the unfair advantage of being able to manipulate time. Of course action rpgs have always struggled with this and it's certainly not a bad solution, but...
  
• Story: I'm not deep into the story - I've taken a few detours - but from what I've seen I'm optimistic.
  
• Dialog: Mass Effect has set the bar pretty high. I cringe at the thought of the dialog mapping and testing required to achieve the endless interactions, quests, and story arcs. But it's just painful to see someone greet you with a gruff 'Don't bother me' and proceed to tell you cheerily about their town when asked. That aside, the writing and voice acting is great, and so is the prevalence of snarky comments available to the user.

Fallout is certainly proving great, and I'll readily nod that it lives up to the hype. As such it's very easy to identify the things that might perfect the experience.


In other news, my wine cellar is slowly growing.


And Stacy and I made dumplings.


And, er, I replaced a couple cabinet nobs. New versus old seen here.


On the list is a motion sensor outlet for the C. Crane led cans. They provide a cool glow from the ceiling not unlike moonlight.


Gnomed.

Gears of War 2 [r]

Ty and I just finished Gears 2 with some help from Kevin. It was a two-sitting playthough thanks to a midweek cold.

As expected, the game mechanics are pretty much the same as the first, the graphics have improved, and Epic has added a few more toys. Some of the levels are visually and aesthetically quite impressive. The level design hasn't changed, it's linear except each area has a few dead end branches to make you waste time scouring them, or wonder if you missed something important.

The ai is coming along nicely, and that adds intrigue to what might otherwise be a shoot-duck-shoot adventure. On the subject of switching up the trench/barrier gunfight formula, Gears does something well. The go-to methods for preventing players from camping are to surround and/or charge. It's a crutch for adding difficulty when your pretty graphics don't let you send endless hordes.

The baddies in Gears do sometimes charge, and often flank - which is much different from having them pour in from every direction. This game presents a number of scenarios where the cover moves or disappears. The ars reviewer was all hyphy about this. It's okay but I'm glad they didn't overuse it.

What's really cool is the introduction of mortars. Fearing the vertical element you can still snipe, but not with complacency. It creates a distinct disincentive to be co-located with your buddy. There's just a whole new dimension when you can be surrounded by cover, but not safe. And it works the other way when you pick up a mortar tube.

Let's see... Epic realized that if there's going to be a trilogy, they need a story so that's been added (ahem, Halo). The in-game dialog is good and sometimes humorous (Marcus = Bender), the cutscene scripts are horrendous.

Great fun and a fantastic application of the media room.

Game consoles 101 [i]

I've gotten a few questions recently about audio, video, and game systems. Here's everything I learned from NES to Wii in a few paragraphs.

Peripherals:
With few exceptions, the best controllers, wheels, guns, and chargers come from the console manufacturers. The MadCatz and Sidewinder gadgets will save you ten bucks but are rarely a smart purchase. They tend to feel cheap, fail sooner, and have buttons in all the wrong places - likely because you're so used to the OE controllers. And if you buy a third-party gamepad, you'll inevitably get stuck using it in the next Halo deathmatch being the prime candidate for a handicap.

The one company that makes peripherals on par with or exceeding OE quality is Logitech. I'd still recommend trying out a floor model before purchase, but they're very good at ergonomics and durability.

There are a few niche games for which there is no first-party controller. Microsoft doesn't make a guitar and, for a while, Sony didn't have a force feedback wheel. In this case, definitely try before you buy. Your happiness/frustration with a game is heavily impacted by how easily you interface with it (think your first Wii experience or Drinking Kart).


Connectors:
I shouldn't need to say that Monster cables are known to be the biggest ripoff in the history of electronics, moreso than imperfect Pentiums or even mystical ion healers. But what about composite/component/hdmi? For those that prefer to be in front of the tv rather than behind, check the diagram below.

You have your choice of hdmi, component, or composite. Don't plug them all in. Use the hdmi if your tv has hdmi, component if your tv has component, composite otherwise. Component gives you separate channels for each color and hd capability. HDMI is a higher bandwidth digital signal. For the first month I had hd cable I was using component and the color was funky. As soon as I swapped in an hdmi cable all was well. Beware a $5 hdmi cable, but I assure you the $50 Sony wire is no different from the $30 on the lower shelf.

Consoles and cars [p]

2007Q1 console sales:
Wii: 1,000,000
X360: 720,000
PS3: 500,000
(With DS outselling every system and PS2 outselling X360 and PS3.)

It's nice Sony and Microsoft are getting theirs. To paraphrase the past few years of trash talk:

• Motion control? That's a gimmick.
  
• Motion control? That can't fit the paradigm of modern games.
• Motion control? We invented it! We call it Sixaxis.
• The Cell processor basically gives Playstation 3 the power of a supercomputer.
  
• We're going to change the way people interact with games. X360 will create an environment where gameplay is driven by human energy.
• We're not in competition with Nintendo, they sell childrens' games.
• Playstation 3 will launch this November to compete with X360.
• The next generation doesn't start until we say it does.
  
• When Playstation 3 launches next Christmas, Halo 3 will be there to steal all the attention.
• The reports that we're implementing the Miis are lies and we will no longer talk to Kotaku... Okay we'll talk to Kotaku again.

That said, I have a fever for a racing game. And the only prescription is a Gran Turismo or Forza. If there's one group that's as annoying as the trash talking SCEA and X360 brass, it's Polyphony. Extraordinary delays, repeated feature sets, and the greatest sin of all: almost charging for content on a re-release. They were the best, and then stopped trying. I believe the verb is 'to EA'.

History indicates the second Forza will follow the Halo series and be the same game with more polygons. It'd be nice to see some innovation, but that's just not going to happen with Microsoft so worried about taking risks with their franchise titles.

Still if the gameplay is solid I'll unshun Microsoft and pick up their system. The Forza car list has been released. Ultimately the quality of the list depends on how it's used. If you have no business buying 90% of the cars because the other 10% blow their class away, your huge list just became very short.

I'm of course saddened that rally hasn't yet been introduced into the series. But other than that I'm impressed. They have a great sampling from so many generations of motorsports. The multiplicity of a single model exists in having numerous race versions rather than the ten different consumer models. The mid-90's lineup is strong, as are the LeMans GT series cars.

Most of all, I'm looking forward to playing with a wheel. It's been all dual shock for me until now. A precision analog wheel and pedal set should make the experience much more enjoyable.

Some highlights of the list...
2002 M3 GTR / 2006 Corvette C6R / 1964 250 GTO / 2003 Mugen S2000 / 1993 XJ-220 / 2005 Exige / 1998 FTO / 1997 GTO / 2002 Skyline Nur / 2007 Peugot 207 / 1995 911 GT2 / 1998 Tommy Kaira Impreza / 1969 2000GT / 1998 VeilSide Supra / 2001 Tuscan R / 2003 R32

Sadly missing...
Nismo Skyline GTR / Veyron / AMG CL35 / M6 / R10 LMP / R34 / Astra