Posted 11th June 2009 in Hardware, Software
Just like last time, the sound drivers are for some reason uninstall/not working after completely installing Service Pack 2 for Windows Vista x64.
After reinstalling the Creative drivers, it worked just fine.
No comments | Permalink | Tags: Creative, drivers, Sound Blaster, SP2, Vista, Windows
Posted 7th January 2009 in Games
UGO bought 1UP. Crap.
Long story short: UGO bought 1Up and has been laying off a long list of staff members. 1Up Show and all the podcasts are gone. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Personally, the most painful thing to see is that 1Up Yours is no more. It was, by far, the best gaming podcast I’ve ever listened to – and it kind of feels like I’ve heard them all. Then there’s Retronauts and LAN Party, which also were great podcasts.
Just like some of the spirit of GameSpot and HotSpot (their podcast) lived on in GiantBomb and the Bombcast, I hope I can hear guys like Shane Bettenhausen and Ryan Scott in new, awesome podcasts in the future.
It’s a sad day.
Posted 30th November 2008 in Games
Ubisoft decided they wanted it to be difficult to play online in Far Cry 2.
The “online key” is really just your CD key. I think you have to type it in with hypens, but not in caps.
You need to register at ubi.com for it to work. The password form don’t accept certain characters, so I wouldn’t use non-alphanumeric characters if I were you.
If you get a PunkBuster error while loading an online map, you must update it (PunkBuster, not the game). For some reason it didn’t work updating it with the PBSetup client, so I had to download the actual update instead. Go to the Far Cry 2 page on the PunkBuster website, download the latest file for your operating system, and put it in the “Far Cry 2/bin/pb/htm” folder.
Now you’re set to play a fairly boring and generic online shooter. Enjoy.
Update: The article was unnecessarily long and cluttered, so I cut it down a bit.
11 comments | Permalink | Tags: Far Cry 2
Posted 18th July 2008 in Games
So, the first trailer for Dragon Age didn’t impress me much, but it didn’t show any gameplay, just some trite cutscene. Now, BioWare has released the first gameplay video – something more palpable to judge the coming game by.
Dragon Age gameplay looks good.
I must say I am pleased with what I saw: the camera-view in combat is good, enemy behavior surprised me, and the interface is reminiscent of the good old Infinity Engine look.
For some odd reason, the fact that it’s a game where you can real-time pause gives me more hope than anything else that it will be a high-quality RPG. I guess it’s because it instantly reminds me more of Baldur’s Gate II – my all-time favorite game – than eg. Oblivion – a game I didn’t care much for – despite the graphics. The pause system will add a heavy strategy element to the combat; without it, it would probably have been more of a hack-and-slash, similar to Dungeon Siege and Diablo, and we don’t want that, do we?
According to a thread I just read on the official Dragon Age forum – a place I haven’t followed as much as I’d like – there will be plenty of areas in the game that aren’t combat-focused, meaning cities and villages where you can talk to people and trade and stuff like that. It was mostly that which made BG2 so much better than Icewind Dale; the latter was a good, linear dungeon-trudge, while the former felt like an living, breathing world.
I’d love for Dragon Age to be a Christmas title, but according to Wikipedia, it’s set for release Q1, 2009.
No comments | Permalink | Tags: BioWare, CRPG, Dragon Age, PC, RPG, video
Posted 13th July 2008 in Games
BioWare has put out an uninteresting trailer for the upcoming CRPG Dragon Age … See for yourself.
Looking at this uninspiring video didn’t make me any more excited about DA, but I am excited about the game, simply because I don’t have choice. When you’re an CRPG fan these days you have to be thankful for the few scraps you’re given.
This game has, from what I could gather, been in development for several years, and when we finally get a peek at it (at a cutscene) it’s this.
The only thought the trailer inspired – except from the disappointing-but-expected fact that it didn’t show any gameplay – was that it didn’t look like much I haven’t seen before. It’s humans (in an alliance with elves?) versus monsters (orcs and goblins?). We make for the refuge of Helm’s Deep! Archers!
No, I don’t know much about the game universe yet, and I shouldn’t make a judgement before I play the game, etc., but if it’s something new and interesting they’ve made, why are they showing us this?
Why couldn’t it have been humans versus humans instead? Why does it have to be orc-like monsters versus humans (with grim odds, of course) in a dark, rainy standoff? They (BioWare) made this universe themselves, and were free to come up with something more subtle. And why does it have to be epic? Can’t there be a fantasy game without making it epic? I guess it has to look easily recognizable and “safe” to potential customers – tried-and-true – so they know what they’ll get when they buy it. Can’t go with something new and inspiring – no no.
If I remember correctly, this game got an award at E3 2005. For what exactly? <sarcastic answer here>
Oh, and the new name – Dragon Age: Origins – sounds too familiar and video game-like. There’s Project Origin coming – the sequel to F.E.A.R.
No comments | Permalink | Tags: BioWare, CRPG, Dragon Age, PC, trailer, video
Posted 20th June 2008 in Audio commentaries
Cloverfield – Two-Disc Special Edition DVD
Commentary by director Matt Reeves
The entire commentary from director Matt Reeves is pretty much just director-talk – more so than I expected. It’s almost entirely about the technical aspects of directing a film – shooting, camera work, cutting, etc. – and hardly any speculations about The Monster and other things most people probably thought about after watching the film the first time. It’s interesting for anyone who wants to know about movie-making, but Reeves doesn’t hold your hand, and uses some jargon that not everyone might understand: for example he uses words like “post,” meaning “post-production.”
I personally prefer a more varied commentary from a director, like the average Ridley Scott commentary, where he talks about pretty much everything that went into the production, while at the same time reflecting on the story and the characters.
When I first saw Cloverfield it left me with a lot of questions, but Reeves doesn’t answer many of those, expect that he sheds some light on the fate of the character Marlena. I guess that is fine for some, and maybe Reeves wants to keep some of the mystery intact. The commentary would have benefited a lot if he had done it with producer J.J. Abrams or writer Drew Goddard. A separate one with all the central characters would have been fantastic.
Overall a pretty good commentary with focus on the technical aspects of movie-making that a director would know better than anyone else.
For those who want to know more about the the Cloverfield monster, you should read the interview with creature-designer Neville Page.
No comments | Permalink | Tags: Cloverfield, DVD, Matt Reeves
Posted 11th May 2008 in Hardware, Software
Unrelated picture
After I downloaded and installed Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista Home Premium (x64), it could no longer play sounds. If I for example tried to play an mp3 file, WinAmp would start, but the song wouldn’t begin.
I reinstalled the drivers for my Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer Fatal1ty card, and sound now works as it should.
There was nothing about sound card drivers in Windows Update (possibly because they weren’t really new), and I found no errors in the Device Manager.
Creative sound card drivers: http://us.creative.com/support/downloads/
I have had no other problems after installing SP1 — yet.
On a semi-related note: I recommend using a program called X-Fi Mode Changer, which makes changing modes (Entertainment and Gamer) less of a headache.
No comments | Permalink | Tags: Creative, drivers, Sounder Blaster, SP1, Vista, Windows
Posted 8th December 2007 in Games, Internet
Another game, another time.
Another game, another time.
We don’t know for certain the details as to why exactly Jeff Gerstmann was fired from GameSpot, because of all the hush-hush, and we might never know; but every indication we’ve received so far states that CNet did not like the fact that Gerstmann didn’t give high enough scores to AAA titles as often as other big gaming sites do. It wasn’t just the 6.0 he gave to Kane & Lynch, it seems; though that was probably the final straw. In other words, they want GameSpot to be more like GameSpy and IGN. So he had to go.
I wasn’t even a fan of Jeff Gerstmann, but it’s not about what I think of him as a person; it’s about what CNet want GameSpot to be. As long as CNet operates the way they do, in light of what has happened, I can not trust GameSpot as a source for gaming editorials any more. I cancelled my Total Access subscription last week, and I will not frequent any CNet websites again — not even GameFAQs! I will probably check in at GameSpot again, from time to time, to see who’s working there and what changes have been made, but that’s it.
I’ve been a member for many years now, and it pains me to see everything that has unfolded recently. I will miss The HotSpot the most, their weekly podcast (I’ve heard every single episode, I think). I feel sorry for the guys working there, because what they’ve worked hard for for many years have been given a solid dent by people who only think profit. CNet is just too big of a company for a site like GameSpot.
Last week I was pretty sad on GameSpot and Jeff’s behalf, and angry at CNet and Eidos; but as things have become a bit more lucid, I don’t think I have enough reason to give Eidos flak. Yes, it’s been confirmed that they weren’t happy with the score that was given to Kane & Lynch — obviously — but it’s CNet that pulls the strings here. Therefore, I will not boycott Eidos games.
Some relevant links:
If I could have my way, the remaining staff members would band together with Jeff and some of the former members, like Greg Kasavin and Rich Gallup, to form a new, kick-ass gaming site in the spirit of the older GameSpot — but that’s just a childish thought with hardly a shred of probability.
I could have posted the video review of Kane & Lynch, like everyone else who have written about this drama, but as was stated in the aformentioned HotSpot epsiode, it had really nothing to do with CNet’s decision to fire Jeff Gerstmann.
No comments | Permalink | Tags: CNET, Eidos, GameSpot, Jeff Gerstmann
Posted 15th October 2007 in Games
In my one-blog-post-a-year series, it’s time again to talk about games.
If I last week had to name the funniest game I’ve ever played, I’d probably say Fallout 2. A game called “Portal” now rubs shoulder with that old giant.
Had you also asked me what I consider to be the most refreshing gameplay experience I’ve had in recent memory, I’d say Darwinia without too much pondering. Today, a new kid on the street — yes, Portal — now stands taller than any other in that category.
You get my point. Good work. Keep it up and there’ll be cake for you at the end of this blog post.
Ah, there you are. Let's never fight again.
So I pretty much knew what to expect from Portal: A few screenshots and reading a couple of preview-paragraphs clued me in quickly; and ten years of 3d gaming have taught me to adapt swiftly to whatever’s thrown at me as far as first-person games go. There are things, on the other hand, that I had no idea about regarding Portal — and I’m NOT gonna spoil any of that for you, except by reiterating and say that the game is funny, quirky and that it will take you for a little unexpected ride, albeit a bit short. Had I extensively read previews and listen to people who already had played it, I would have been robbed of the many surprises. I know that now.
The PC-gaming community seem to have been head over heels about Orange Box for quite some time. Me, not so much: I haven’t even completed Half-Life 2; I played Team Fortress so briefly back in the days that I guess you could say that I haven’t actually played it at all; Portal sounded interesting — and that was that. The likes of Call of Duty 4, Acronym-Stalker and Crysis interested me far more. Silly me. I used to root for id; now I’m a Valve guy.
Listening to the audio commentary in the game, after playing through the whole thing — there’s audio commentary, people! — makes me appreciate even more the work that went into this game. Like the testing-phase, where the developers took note of how clueless people play the game, and tweaked it accordingly. I am glad they don’t let me die easily in the first half of the game, and that there’s no time-limit on the puzzles; I take my time and play around till I figure it out. No looking for ammo, or watching my back for headcrab-infested scientists; just plain fun that makes me simper like a dazed hippie.
Now Portal have left it’s residue on my mind: When playing my everyday first-person shooter I instinctively think, “out-portal on ceiling over there … and the in-portal right in front of me right here,” to save me some time. It’s kind of like how I think “CTRL+Z” when accidentally breaking something in real life. Also, the idea of how I could, with the help of a Aperture Science Handheld Portal DeviceTM, could stick my hand into the wall right beside me and pick up a refreshing beverage from the fridge … There was a Simpsons episode about that, I think.
And Peggle was fun as well, but where’s teh skillz?
And before I pull the plug: Anyone else think there should be a Companion Cube in the Valve store?
No cake. Sorry. It’s beyond my skill and comprehension.
Posted 15th October 2006 in Software
I am somewhat embarrassed to admit that for some time I’ve stored a lot of sensitive information inside plain text files on my hard-drive; not passwords, but rather an extensive list of usernames, URLs, and such, in order for me to keep track of the numerous websites and services I’ve registered on to.
After doing some research on e-mail encryption (OpenPGP, GnuPG, etc.) I accidentally came across PasswordSafe, by Bruce Schneier, the creator of the Blowfish algorithm. It was a neat program designed to store usernames and passwords securely. I added some of my passwords, to try it out, backed up the encrypted file …
Then, a couple of hours after trying PasswordSafe, I stumbeled on KeePass, another open-source program, similar to PasswordSafe, except that it most notably packed a lot more features. Instead of using Blowfish, it uses AES or Twofish; it doesn’t say that much to me, but I know all of these algorithms are supposedly very good, so it makes little difference. After trying out these two programs, I can wholeheartedly recommened them both, but I think KeePass is superior, because it has more options available to you. My only gripe with it is that the developers refuse to add an e-mail field; a shame, really.
I got two KeePass databases now: One for the accumulating website usernames/passwords I have gathered throughout the years, and another core database with only a few, very important passwords stored inside; I only have to write down the master password for the latter and I got it all covered. Just remember, if you want to do this, to make a long and complicated master password, write it down, and back up the encrypted database file on a removable disk!
Download KeePass for Win32 (unofficial ports to other OS, like Linux, available).
Version 1.06 was released yesterday.