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![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) theferrett |
| 2008-08-21 12:31 |
| Once Again, The Real World Disappoints |
| Public |
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A man called Usain Bolt is breaking world records. And yet he has not yet a) donned a spandex costume,and b) found a way to use his fantastic sprinting powers to fight crime.
The man's name is "Bolt," for God's sake! In the crappiest Marvel comic, the man would already have his girlfriend stuffed into a refrigerator, found that with great speed comes great responsibility, and faced down Dr. Doom. Yet all the man does is, you know, run fast.
What a world, what a world.
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http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/PluckyPixels/~3/371031955/review-too-human.html  Pretty shit is still shit. The game looks great! You can see that the art has been worked on and refined for these many years that the game has been in production. They've had time to craft beautiful unique worlds full of nord-punk scenery with ice and machines beautifully melded. The drawn out process that Too Human has gone through also shows in game mechanics, but not in a good way. Oh the feature creep! You can see how concepts grew and spawned and mutated, until they had to perform a massive feature-ectomy too near the end. What's left is half-there, half-done, a frankenstein of a game. There are some great ideas in there, but they just aren't fully realized. And because of that, many of the issues are just unforgivable. The biggest issue for me is the co-op play. That's the whole reason we bought the game, so that me and my finacé could play co-op together. Here's one of the first places you can see the effects of last-minute chopping. It was supposed to be up to 4-players and there was supposed to be local co-op. With everyone on the same screen, you don't need a way to track the location of the other players, they're right there with you. But when you have to play online and you're running around these immense spaces fit for gods and the characters are all darkly dressed so that they blend into the forbidding shadows, it's really easy to lose track of someone. No minimap, no locator, unforgivable. The other problem we had with co-op, is no story. Being able to skip story elements when you're just blazing through a section for the billionth time, fine. But not even allowing players the OPTION of playing through with the story, unforgivable. We started straight out playing co-op, no tutorials were offered, no hints as to why were running from room to room. No guidance as to what our goal was. It's nice to have goals. Loot is great and all, but goals give a player a sense of accomplishment. There's none of that with the co-op mode. It's nothing but a grindfest for loot and that's annoying for players who may want to have goal markers along the way to the finish line. Unforgivable. It wouldn't be so bad grinding through if there were at least different enemies. Too Human has 4. Four fucking enemies in the entire game. Those four are beautifully done, don't get me wrong, with each part capable of taking damage and crippling the monster in a different way. But 4 enemies? How many years has this game been in production? It's repetitive. Once you figure out how to defeat one type, you know how to beat a quarter of the game! Part of the fun of being a gamer is being able to suss out the patterns. You get that thrill all of 4 times. Unforgivable. And the worst offence of all is the camera. Every other review has already covered that much. It works against you and is utterly uncontrollable. Maybe there are 5 enemies in the game, if I could just figure out how to kill the fucking cameraman I'd be happy. Mapping the right stick to fighting so that moves can be about style instead of button mashing is an interesting idea. But if you're going to take away camera control, you'd better fucking be able to step up with some great cameras of your own. Unforgivable. Along with cameras is the invisible wall category. Good lord! Those collisions are so poorly set. It's like someone did the collisions and then they made all the models 10% bigger or smaller. WTF? Forgivable, but it's just another little thing that adds to the big things. As for cyberspace which some people detest, I find it more of an annoyance. The puzzles are lame and are more time consuming to get in and out than to "solve" the problems themselves. It's worst crime is that it breaks the flow. Yet again another feature creep that was obviously cut back to the point of impotence. Forgivable, but shoulda been cut altogether. Another area where the cuts showed were in the classes. My fiancé played the Cybernetic Bioengineer, which is basically crippled. He needs combo points to heal, which means getting in the thick of things, except he's more of a ranged character. The two just don't work together! My Human Beserker was lots of fun, focusing on crazy combos. This meant that I had already destroy any low-end melee enemies by the time he was on the battlefield. Forgivable, but after this long the classes should be completely balanced. The menus suck because once again they went for style over function. Pretty and unique, sure. But they take forever to load and exit, and those 5 seconds can feel like an eternity when you're trying to play a fast-paced game. Forgivable, but some things are standardized for a reason, to reduce user frustration. As irate as I am about these things, there are some things that make the game good. The graphics are stunning (if a but buggy at times), the style-over-force rewards are good, lots of loot is fun. Juggling is ok, but it's more the combos I enjoyed. Zipping around the screen just destroying every enemy in a matter of minutes is pretty gleeful. Lots of loot is good, but it does break the flow since after nearly every battle you're ready to upgrade at least one thing. They cut out a lot from the game and fans cried out when that news hit the intertubes. But I would say they didn't go far enough. The lack of focus leaves the game loose and full of holes instead of a tightly-packed gaming experience. Instead of trying to be everything to everyone, it should have focused on getting one thing perfectly right. We will keep playing for a while. I just really hate that I'm forced to play through solo just to hear the fabulous story that Mr. Dydack has been pimping out. So many of these things could have been easily forgivable. But with the amount of time they've had to perfect the game, like everyone, I was expecting something far more polished and Too Human just didn't deliver. 
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| stacymckenna |
| 2008-08-21 09:08 |
| Interesting observation |
| Public |
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When it comes to the Curious George TV show, I relate much better to Hundley than to George.
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When you have not one, but two jobs that involve relying on your brainpower to work, having a stupid flu is not fun. When I get sick, my brainpower tends to shrink rapidly, and having a head cold for four days running has impeded my progress.
How dumb am I?
- I could not watch "The Spiderwick Chronicles" because I was having difficulty following the plot.
- It took me (no joke) three hours to figure out how to do a proper three-table grouped join in mySQL - admittedly, there were one or two things that made it slightly tricky, but what should have been a fifteen-minute conundrum became the goddamned Da Vinci Code.
- It took me an hour to post my Barack Obama post the other day, and at the time I posted it I wasn't even sure if it made any sense. (I still don't.)
- I spent four hours staring at my screen, revising, to produce 800 words of revised story, and I don't even know if they're the right words. (This may be par for the course for many slower writers, but I'm known for my speed.)
I am trying to struggle along on fewer pistons now. I have become Simple Jack, and the slowness of my head movies makes my eyes rain. (And of course, what am I trying to red to educate myself in my sickness? Building Scalable Web Sites. Yes, that's going swimmingly.)
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Originally published at The International House of Bacon. You can comment here or there. Okay, I’m hearing a ton about this, and I can’t really separate the noise from the evidence, and maybe someone here can.
Obama had that vote in the Illinois Senate that has everyone up in arms, the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act. My understanding of it is that the law would give those who survive abortions the same legal status as those who weren’t aborted. Obama opposed this bill, many are calling it akin to supporting infanticide, and I’m utterly confused.
Any help here?
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![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/syndicated.gif) electoralvote |
| 2008-08-21 06:00 |
| Thu, Aug. 21 Electoral Vote Predictor Obama 264 McCain 261 Ties 13 |
| Public |
http://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2008/Pres/Maps/Aug21.html http://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2008/Pres/Maps/Aug21.html Joe Biden: Veep Flavor of the Day
First the rumor mill had Gov. Kathleen Sibelius (D-KS) as the sure-fire Democratic Veep nominee.
Then the spotlight moved to Gov. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and then to Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN).
Today's favorite
is Joe Biden. Biden brings 33 years experience to the ticket as well as a mouth that never stops.
In 1988, while running for President, he plagiarized part of a speech from a British politician. If he is the nominee,
the Republicans will hammer him on this, but he will say it was two decades ago. On the plus side,
Biden obviously brings a lot of experience to the ticket, especially in foreign affairs. But at 65, his presence makes
it hard for the Democrats to say McCain (71) is too old. If Obama wins and serves two terms, then in 2016, the leading
contenders for the Geriatric Party will be Biden (73) and Hillary Clinton (68).
If Biden is the candidate and wins, the new governor of Delaware will appoint his successor.
Gov. Ruth Minner (D-DE) is retiring and the Democrats are having a gubernatorial primary fight
between the state treasurer and the lieutenant governor. However, the state is sufficiently
Democratic that whoever wins the primary is likely to be elected governor, so Biden's seat is safe.
National Polls
Several new national polls have come out as follows:
| Where |
Obama |
McCain |
Start |
End |
Pollster |
| National |
45% |
43% |
Aug 17 |
Aug 19 |
Gallup tracking |
| National |
47% |
46% |
Aug 17 |
Aug 19 |
Rasmussen tracking |
| National |
45% |
42% |
Aug 15 |
Aug 19 |
New York Times |
| National |
45% |
42% |
Aug 15 |
Aug 18 |
Wall St. Journal |
| National |
45% |
43% |
Aug 15 |
Aug 18 |
Louisiana Times |
| National |
41% |
46% |
Aug 14 |
Aug 16 |
Zogby |
| National |
47% |
42% |
Aug 12 |
Aug 17 |
Quinnipiac U. |
| National |
46% |
47% |
Aug 10 |
Aug 14 |
Lake/Tarrance |
| Average |
45% |
44% |
|
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It is pretty clear that the race is a dead heat now. Obama has lost the small but statistically
significant lead he had after his world trip. The inescapable conclusion is that Steve Schmidt (McCain's campaign manager
in all but name) is a lot smarter than Rick Davis (the nominal campaign manager) who was running the show until
Schmidt was hired. Schmidt, a pupil of Karl Rove,
immediately started running negative ads. Several polls say that huge majorities think
McCain is running a negative campaign--but the message sinks in.
Washington WA-08 Primary: Reichert Wins
Congressman Dave Reichert (R-WA)
narrowly defeated
challenger Darcy Burner (D)
in Washington state's bizarre Cajun-style primary in WA-08 Tuesday. The primary (like Louisiana's)
is nonpartisan, with the top-two finishers facing off in November. Reichert got 48% of
the vote to Burner's 45%. Reichert said he won because he finished first. Burner said
she won because the incumbent got fewer than 50% of the vote and she will pick up the
votes of the minor candidates in November. The two of them faced off in November 2006,
when Reichert beat Burner 51% to 49%.
Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones Dies
Five-term congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones had a massive brain aneurysm while
driving yesterday. Police saw her erratic driving and when the car stopped saw that
she was unconscious. She was taken to Huron Hospital and put on life support but she died
shortly thereafter. Her Cleveland-based distict is D+33, which makes it the 13th most Democratic district in the country.
Under Ohio law, it is too late to remove her name from the ballot, so she will be the Democratic nominee in November.
There is no problem with dead people being elected to Congress. Mel Carnahan (D-MO) was posthumously elected senator in
2000.
A special election will be held next year to fill the vacancy.
Click here for full story
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| urangme |
| 2008-08-20 22:12 |
| Independence Day |
| Public |
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For any red blooded American, especially a Former Marine...you'd think this would be a good day. A day to be proud of, standing tall, hand over heart while a glinted stare in the eyes tells the world around you that you have served, you are proud of that service, that you believe in what this nation stands for, and are willing or at least, were once willing to put your life on the line for your nation.
I spent most of this last July 4th, cringing. Starting. Jumping at loud noises.
I've been out of the Corp for over 10 years at this point. I've had various empathogenic pharmaceuticals in my system, I've seen a therapist, I've participated in LGAT for over 3 years. I've changed my name, my profession, my lifestyle. The only people from those days that I'm still in contact with are my family, E. and Twistedcat. Given that the family knew me before the Corp, and that both E. and Twistedcat are a major source of sanity for me, I think I've kept the best and brightest history.
I started poking around the internet tonight, listening to random music through itunes and my new headphones (Sennhieser HD555), and what I see just makes me sad. PTSD is something you need to prove, and honestly, by proving that you suffer from traumatic stress, directly related to your military experience, you prove that you are damaged, that you are less, that you are sick.
It's been 10 years, and I still have to stop myself from diving under a table when I hear a M-80.
I'm pissed. And I have no faith that my country or my government gives a flying fuck that this is the case.
Thank god for family and chosen family.
Steven T. Shogren, Sgt. USMC, Former.
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![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) engineers (posted by nanikore) |
| 2008-08-20 19:12 |
| Intel offering free subscription to its Software Dispatch for Visual Computing |
| Public |
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Intel just announced their software dispatch for graphics developers. Subscription is done via this page:
http://www.intelsoftwaregraphics.com/welcome.htm
What Ryan Shrout over at PC Perspective thought of the Visual Adrenaline magazine when he got a copy at IDF:
Visual Adrenaline is an Intel magazine that will focus purely on getting developers interested in their graphics technology. It is incredibly well put together and appealing. They are obviously spending a lot of money on this... Here was the FAQ included in the welcome email I received after subscribing: ( the FAQ after the cut )Even if you're not a software developer I think VA makes a good read. I'm no programmer myself (I'm a hardware guy) but it was interesting looking through the issue since it also talked about game development.
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Haven't touched LJ in a week. No idea what's up with you people, though I have high hopes.
Things I have learned:
- I (kind of) fail at relaxing. (seismic, stop sniggering.)
- Northern Michigan is being invaded by the interwebs, though not the part I was in.
- Children, for some strange reason, adore me. I am like catnip for toddlers.
- Heinlein still sucks. (I was on an airplane and desperate.) He's inventive, yes - but suckily.
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| urangme |
| 2008-08-20 16:24 |
| FOR SALE: 14 foot Bubble Dome by Shelter Systems (775) |
| Public |
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( Cut for Commerce )
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My Playa Address is
Ranger Bacchus
aka Jonathan Reilly
Ranger Outpost Tokyo
HexaYurt Housing Project
9 O'Clock and B
C/O BRCPO
Burning Man
Gerlach, NV 89412
I love mail on the Playa :)
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Automatically shipped by LoudTwitterThere. Terribly interesting, I know...
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Please learn the lesson from Al Gore's 2000 defeat.
Your poll numbers are dipping. You lost twelve points among young voters. Why? Well, I'll tell you - in fact, I already have told you. When your guys called me up and asked me for my usual monthly donation of $100, I said this:
"Kindly tell Mr. Obama I won't be donating to him for the next two months."
"Do you mind if I ask why, sir?"
"Not at all. I've been supporting a liberal. Then it turns out that he's perfectly fine allowing the telecommunication companies immunity, as he said he wouldn't be. I'm not thrilled about that. And he's now moving towards the center in other aspects I'm not thrilled about - wire-tapping, for example."
"Sir, he needs to compromise - "
"He may well. But I want a liberal in the White House, not some watered-down centrist. If he wants to alienate the die-hard supporters in order to get mainstream America, rather than trying to sell his liberal policies to them, then that's fine. But at that point he is not representing me, and I'm not going to give him my money so that he can try to get voters who have stances that I don't agree with. He's an eloquent speaker; tell him that I'd prefer he actually start fighting for liberal values instead of being embarrassed by them."
"So he can't count on your support now, sir?"
"Why should he? He hasn't supported me. Call back in two months and we'll see where he is."
Al Gore, I should add, lost me in 2000 by the exact same strategy. Liberals are tired of having to apologize for their values, and a little sick of having politicians flee like a retreating army any time someone suggests that they're not "tough enough." If Obama wants to try to reach middle America by hiding his true values and obscuring the debates that need to happen, then not only do I think he can't win, but I think that he's doing active harm by treating liberal concepts like they were a shameful case of head lice.
Break open the debate, chief. Bring it on. McCain's been rallying his base, you've been pissing off yours. Make it liberals versus conservatives - we're at the tail end of seven years of conservative power, and where has it gotten us? Make your case. Make it so that "liberal" isn't a value that costs you votes. Remind people what liberal thoughts actually have done for people.
It's not a guaranteed win by any means. Certainly there are enough conservatives who believe that liberal values are toxic. Fair enough. But unless you start making a case for the other side - that government programs are often more effective than their free-market equivalents, that unrestrained free markets often lead to economic collapses, that the government's job is to ensure a level playing field, that living in constant terror means the terrorists win - then you're going to lose the war.
Fight, sir. Please. I want to give you my money. But you have to raise your fists a little.
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Originally published at The International House of Bacon. You can comment here or there. So much for a regular schedule this week. Got backed up and now I have two late nights at work, so here’s some stuff I’ve had lying around.
* The chairman of a gay dating site in Cambridge, Massachusetts was forced to resign following a donation to McCain. This is unfortunate.
* McCain gaining with evangelicals and possibly everyone else following his performance at Saddleback last week (a very interesting discussion if you’re unaware of it). How well did McCain do? Obama’s people had to suggest he cheated. I can’t wait for the real debates at this point.
* More bizarre stuff: Access to the Annenburg Challenge Papers, which document former Weather Undeground bomber and Barack Obama’s Chicago organization, is being blocked. One has to ask why, and it’s hard not to assume the worst.
* Patterico on July fundraising totals.
* Phil Gramm wasn’t wrong.
* United States people aren’t the only dummies in some areas.
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