Monday, May 14, 2007

Updates Lacking

Well it seems that like all good things my gaming blog is going to come to an end. I have way too much to do which prevents me from making even the smallest of updates. Real-life issues compiled with projects and problems are preventing me from maintaining it regularly. I know that may sound silly but I haven't had time to play games or review them, nor have I had the money. I simply can't afford to get a Wii or a DS or the games for them. Maybe eventually I will start blogging again but for now I must bid my few readers a fond farewell. Stay in touch! My website and e-mail are always open. Well the website isn't open just yet but I am working on it.

Anyway, good journey!
Mr. Gone Mail Me, My Website

Tuesday, May 1, 2007

Television Review? Heroes!

Okay, I have to deviate. I am a little... miffed... to put it lightly. I have been following Heroes, nothing against the story, I love the show. I just don't like how similar it is to the book I have been working on. If I publish my story some of my ideas have been plucked right out of my brain and thrust onto television. Damnit. Just thought I'd share that. Anger Out.

Anyway, so I have been working on a novel of sorts since I was in high school. I have started the damn thing over twice so far because of how the story ended up. The core story line and characters have not changed since its inception. Damn it all to hell my ideas are going to be branded as 'no longer original'. That angers me again, anger out.

Hardware Review: Creative Labs Zen Vision:M

Screen: 9 of 10
Colors, millions of colors. The screen of the Vision:M (henceforth called V:M) is very impressive in the way of colors and resolution. The only flaw I have found is that I would rather have a larger screen.

Sound: 10 of 10
Check your MP3s before you transfer them, I've found several of them that have really crappy recording quality (some of my older rips). The sound is so clear on this device you can hear every little error in ripping/compressing. Definitely the main focus of an MP3 player is sound quality and the V:M does a flawless job.

Portability: 6 of 10
I would say the weight and the size of the V:M is on par with its other 30+ gig cousins such as the iPod. Truth be known I would like something more portable but I went mid-range portability because I wanted more space. I would have given the iPod of the same size category a similar score though. Nothing against the player itself, it is light and relatively small just not that great for working out.

Battery: 10 of 10
I've clocked mine at 14 hours of playtime (constant running). But by that time the battery completely dies. That's good life span for the battery. I don't play mine full blast though, mostly the opposite and I don't do video that often ether.

Ease of Use: 4 of 10
a.) Hardware Interface 4 of 10
The slider control is a bit of a tough thing to get used to at first but once you turn of the incessant clicking and adjust sensitivity it actually is just as intuitive as the iPod dial.

b.) Software 8 of 10
The only thing I have against the easy-to-use software included is that the whole software suite is just a bunch of separate programs. I'd like to see one software program instead of a jumble of utilities. Playlist creation and manipulation doesn't allow you to just add a directory, you have to actually choose the MP3 files themselves. That can get tedious if you're like me and you sort everything under its own folder. Other than that the software is good. The CD Ripping software is quite quick and efficient!

Overall: Worth the buy, I'd do it again. I may give a few of these out to my favorite relatives for Christmas.

Game Review: Harvest Moon - Magical Melody

Platform: GameCube
Graphics: 5 of 10
The graphics are basically chibi anime. For those of you who don't know what that means just search for the word 'chibi' on google. They are well drawn for annoyingly friendly/happy sprites.

Sound: 2 of 10
Dear god make the music stop, oh my lord the same sounds over and over again. The sounds are good but they get very repetitive.

Gameplay: 5 of 10
There is a lot of Micro-managing to do in this game, so much that it takes away from gameplay. However, if you're not into the whole 'manage everything' mentality you can pull away from it and focus on individual goals. I, for instance, like to work on getting my tools upgraded and getting a wife. Time, also, goes by way too fast. Every few seconds ends up being 10 minutes, which limits what you can do every day.

Multiplayer: N/A
None

Overall: 4 of 10
While the game can be engrossing like others of the Sim-Life genre it somewhat takes away the fun of gaming by making the game feel like work at times.

Update or Non-Update?

Not much has gone on in regards to Neverwinter Nights 2. Yeah that's it.

Okay, let me expand that. I haven't had time to work on the module much because of real-life issues. Things are cascading downward and I am responsible for quite a broad scope of.. things.. at work and at home.