Category: Archive

Archives – the Good, the Bad, and Ugly pre May 31, 2015.

LittleBigPlanet – Love is in the air.

I am not sure how I previously missed out on all the LittleBigPlanet fun, but stranger things have happened. I remember when the game was announced; the build-up until release was really exciting. Somewhere along the way I decided that I had better things to do, and I figured I would get sucked into the create mode way more than necessary.

So LittleBigPlanet passed me by. Circumstances dictated that my PS3 would die a painful death last summer, although my successfully YLoD repair project is an entirely different story that has already been documented for your viewing pleasure.

When I replaced my original 60GB PS3 “Fat” with a new (and debatable not so improved) PS3 “Slim” model, the bundle I purchased allowed for two Greatest Hits titles. One of the titles I selected was the LittleBigPlanet Game of the Year Edition.

And, for everyone looking for a great value, the GOTY edition includes 7 packs from the PlayStation Store. These packs feature tons of costumes, stickers, objects, [18] new levels and the “Paintinator” to amplify the fun you’ll have. Once more, these are on the disc FREE (that’s nearly a $30 value)

Content Packs include:
Metal Gear Solid Level Pack – featuring the “Paintinator” paintball gun
Metal Gear Solid Costumes
Monsters Costumes
Monsters Pack
History Costumes
History Pack
Animals Costumes

The game sat unopened in my PS3 box for the better part of 6+ months, before I finally decided to give it a go and see what the fuss was all about. That and on a whim I decided to preorder the Little Big Planet 2 Collector’s Edition; yes, it is a sickness.

So here I am to profess (or is that confess) my love for all things LittleBigPlanet. While I have yet to really tackle the create mode in either version of the game, I can say that I really love the ingenuity offered up by the LittleBigPlanet fan base.

While this is almost random and irrelevant to my newfound love for LittleBigPlanet, I will close out with a quick link to an article from the Examiner that outlines some of the details from the various LittleBigPlanet 2 DLC costume packs.

Those who purchased the collector’s edition of LittleBigPlanet 2 received all of the pre-order DLC costumes mentioned above in addition to the exclusive Jak, Daxter and The Great Gonzo (from The Muppets) outfits. As expected, the 11 costumes voucher code ended up being the most demanded of the bunch with the bids topping at $31.00.

I think it is interesting to see what “virtual” items are worth, or at least the perceived value of said items. If you consider that the standard edition of the game is $59.99, the LBP2 Collector’s Edition was a great deal: Sackboy + bookends + DLC.

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PlayStation NGP – First Comments

Now that Sony has unveiled the first info on the successor to the PSP, the various mega sites have beaten the NGP to death with their coverage, predictions, options, etc.

To keep things short and simple, I will offer up a few comments of some items that caught my attention.

The NGP will contain 3 motion sensors, including six-axis motion support. It will be interesting to see how well this capability is implemented in games; hopefully it will not just be a cheap gimmick.

The NGP is set to have front and rear cameras, which should be perfect for practical applications such as video conferencing. Gaming should also benefit – basically a built in PlayStation Eye Camera (or two).

The NGP will have touch screen technology. This one is pretty obvious, but when there was a lot of speculation around the PSP Go, a touch screen was in demand.

GPS will be built into every NGP. There should be plenty of apps in the work for instructions to the nearest bar or cheapest place to buy some new NGP game.

The NGP will support Wi-Fi. Let’s just hope this works if you are off the 3G network, either by physical location or lack of funds to support your mobile phone needs.

And oh by the way, the NGP is obviously a phone. I thought I would save that one for last and make a clever joke, but in retrospect, the implementation and execution were poor.

All of this is great stuff, but what about the price? Predictions range from $249-349 according to analysts quoted on PlayStation LifeStyle. The PSP has notoriously poor battery life, so Sony better be able to muster 15+ hrs for a full charge.

Of course for a portable gaming device, games matter. Sony is starting off with a solid library of PSOne Classics to play on the go, Minis, and whatever else is in their current PSP PSN stable of games. Will that be enough? I still hate the fact that not all UMD based games are available in digital format on the PSN. At this point in the PSP lifecycle, I believe that is unlikely to change, and I think there is almost zero chance that Sony will offer some sort of conversion utility.

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PS3 Gets Inferior Angry Birds Minis

I am not sure why I care. It’s not as if I have posted anything in the last few days, or have purchased the Angry Birds Minis. Sometimes something just catches my attention, amuses me, and for shits and giggles I have to post.

Take this PC Magazine review of PlayStation Minis Angry Birds as an example. It is an entertaining review (I have quoted the review summary) because it points out so many of the flaws with the current PlayStation Minis program.

Pros
Faithful port of the iPhone/Android versions.

Cons
Jerky on the PSP. Blocky on the PS3. Analog stick/disc control isn’t as satisfying as touch screen. Not as many levels as smartphone versions.

Bottom Line
Though it’s still just pocket change to play, the PlayStation Mini version of Angry Birds is more expensive and less enjoyable than the iPhone/Android versions.

PlayStation gamers are straddled^ with a port that is flawed on the PSP with graphics issues, slowdown, etc, and apparently the game looks like shit on the PS3. I can only imagine how bad things must be on a good quality high-def TV.

For those of you keeping score at home, the PlayStation Minis version cost more ($3.99) than versions for other portable devices; it only includes 63 levels (vs. the 180+ levels available on other portable devices), and the port is flawed.

Good grief. I hope Sony addresses these types of issues with their publishing partners in the future. At a minimum, when the NGP is released, Sony has to address Minis pricing.

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^ = Edit.  Upon further review, in this context, this does not make sense, but I like the way it sounds/flows.  Besides, it is my blog, so it stays.

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Falcons – Disappointment in ATL

Saturday night’s 48-21 drubbing of the Falcons at the hands of the Packers was disappointing on a number of levels. First, Atlanta squandered home field advantage. Second, I hate seeing the Falcons fail so miserably on a national stage. Third, the playoff atmosphere was so fun, that I really wanted to do it again on NFC Championship Sunday. Fourth, I am at a position in my life where I could actually afford the luxury of season tickets and playoff tickets; who knows if that will happen again. Finally, I am a Falcons fan; I never want to see my team get their collective asses kicked ten ways to Sunday.

I am not going to re-cap a lot of the pain and suffering that I saw in the Georgia Dome. I think this summary from the post game report that the Falcons send their season ticket holders will suffice for now.

An NFL playoff record 102-yard TD return by Eric Weems in the 2nd Quarter gave the Falcons a 14-7 lead over the visiting Packers, but after the huge play not much else went right for the NFC’s #1 seed. The Falcons’ defense ran into an offensive buzz saw led by a red hot quarterback, as Aaron Rodgers completed 31 of 36 passes for 366 yards and 3 TD passes (and another rushing TD) during a humbling 48-21 Divisional playoff game rout that ended Atlanta’s magical 2010 season.

Re-seed Needed
A re-seed system is needed, but only after the Wild Card round, where each division champion, even a weak one, gets some credit for winning their division. Without a re-seed for the divisional round of the playoffs, the current system diminishes the value of being the top seed.

I know it sounds a lot like sour grapes; however I am not just calling for a re-seed as a Falcons fan. Sure I was disappointed, but down the road another weak division winner will advance, while a “hot” Wild Card team with a better record than said division winner manages to play their way into the playoffs, and then advance. Wait until this happens to one of the popular teams in the NFL; there would be an outcry for justice.

I have to get this out of the way. Even if a re-seed process was in place that would have allowed the Falcons to play the weakest team, Atlanta played so poorly Saturday night that there would be no guarantees that the Falcons would have beaten the Seahawks.

This year both of the AFC wild card teams were “better” than two of the division winners (Colts and Chiefs), but neither division winner escaped the Wild Card round. The same could not be said in the NFC, where a 7-9 NFC West Seattle team played the #2 seeded Bears, while Atlanta ran into that 10-6 Green Bay buzz saw. Let’s fix the system before it happens again.

Next?
Up next may be an article or two about the AFC and NFC Championship games, along with the Super Bowl; however my attention is going to be narrowed in on what Atlanta needs to do in the off season to correct some of the flaws that the Packers exposed. Of course none of this will matter if the owners move forward with a lockout.

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Chipper To Return By Spring Training?

When Chipper went down last summer, I thought that was the end for the Braves legend, but it looks like Chipper has a good chance to return by Spring Training. I just hope we do not see Chipper return too soon or see an aging star that is well past his playing days.

“He’s a big part of the lineup, no question,” Wren said. “He’s not the Chipper Jones of his MVP year in ‘99, we know that. But he makes a difference, and we saw that in August and September after we lost him.”

Injuries decimated the Braves last year, but even a healthy Chipper may not be enough to overcome the Phillies in 2011.

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Falcons Get Tough Draw in Packers

I thought the line would open with the Falcons favored by 5 and the gap would close to 2 before kickoff. No respect for Atlanta? The Gambling911 (no idea – just did a google search) line that has the Falcons -1.5.

I read an article early (I forget if it was via the ajc or espn) that the Atlanta brass would rather have faced the Seahawks or Saints than the red hot Packers. Playoff re-seeding in the near future? The Seattle did win their division, however they have the worst record of the remaining teams, so it would have been nice for them to match up against the best team in the NFC. I guess getting home field as long as you win is enough of a reward without a re-seeding effort.

I really did not want to see the Saints again; revenge factor or not, when rivals meet, anything can happen.

And then there are the Packers, who Atlanta dispatched 20-17 in the closing seconds Thanksgiving weekend. Green Bay is a scary opponent because they are so hot right now and have a lot of momentum going into this Saturday night’s match-up with the Falcons. At the game earlier this year there were a lot of Packers fans; my best guess would be 15-18K. Hopefully that is not the case this weekend!

When it is all said and done, Atlanta is the more balanced team and they should be able to win.

Go Falcons!

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Scathing Buckeyes Article

Not a lot to say here, but I thought this SI article was well written, taking Ohio St. to task for stooping to the level of the SEC. I only want to point out that a two loss (now three loss) Arkansas team should not be celebrated as a top SEC teams.

Yes, I said earlier that I wanted Ohio St. to win. Actually, I just did not want Arkansas to win. In the future, I hope that writers refrain from saying that Ohio St. can keep up with the best in the SEC if they decide to use the 2011 Sugar Bowl victory over Arkansas as an example.

Over the last 5 years, Arkansas has not been a significant factor in the SEC. Regular season losses year-by-year: 5 (2009), 7 (2008), 4 (2007), 3 (2006), and 7 (2005).

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Gamestop and PlayStation Rewards

I read this article from Gamasutra, which discussed the strong holiday showing by GameStop. While I hold no grudges towards GameStop (or EBGames) I never appreciated purchasing a “new” game from their mall stores only to discover that the “new” game had in fact been previously played. One only needs to perform a google search to see that I am in good company.

I strongly suspect that the new PlayStation Rewards program will either change PS3 owner’s purchasing patterns (i.e. no longer purchase “new” games from GameStop) or stop GameStop from allow employees to play new games, return them to the packaging, and sell them as “new” games.

From the PS3 Rewards FAQ:

How do I advance my standing faster?
At launch the program rewards playing new Blu-ray games, and activity in Home & on the PlayStation®Store such as buying movies, shows, games or other content. We’re always evaluating additional Reward behaviors.

Gamers that really care about Rewards may also think twice about purchasing a used game if they really want to receive credit for their purchases.

Should be interesting to see how this plays out.

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Falcons Updates – Mularkey, Playoff Tickets, and 2011 Falcons Schedule

The nice thing about a bye week is that there really is not a lot of new coming out of the Falcons camp, with the exception of news that offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey is set to interview this week with Denver and Cleveland for their head coaching openings.

I am not 100% sure how I feel about the possibility of Mularkey leaving, however I think the timing stinks. The last thing the Falcons need is a distraction; they have done well avoiding those all season and now the lowly Broncos and somewhat rising Browns have the possibility of upsetting Coach Smith’s happy place. I wish the NFL would not allow teams to pursue coaches in the playoffs until their team is eliminated, but of course that will never happen.

As far as Mularkey goes, I just do not feel he is all that creative. Granted, the offense has done well, so I would hate to rock the boat. Hopefully there is a good backup plan in place for Mularkey because his name has been out there for a few years due to the success of Ryan.

Playoff Tickets
They arrived yesterday; enough said!

2011 Schedule
ESPN (and probably other sites as well) posted the Falcons 2011 schedule (well, at least their opponents) yesterday.

Home: Carolina, New Orleans, Tampa Bay, Green Bay, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Jacksonville, Tennessee.

Away: Carolina, New Orleans, Tampa Bay, Chicago, Detroit, Seattle, Houston, Indianapolis.

Too soon to start talking about how difficult (or easy) the schedule is until we see how the off season shapes up, where the bye weeks land, and all that other jazz.

Go Falcons!

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Darksiders

Cruising around this morning on N4G I saw that Darksiders was on sale for $12.99 from Amazon and decided to pick it up pretty much sight unseen based on the price and the 82 metacritic score (based on 73 critic reviews).

For this price, the game is actually out of stock until Jan 10; no biggie as I already have a ton of other crap to play. Will just add this one to the upcoming need to play queue.

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Tough Day for Big-10

Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. That is the sound of the Big-10 tucking their collective tails between their legs and heading back up North for another cold winter. I didn’t think the SEC was going to go 3-0 today against the Big-10, but of course they did, and in the process completely pounded the Big-10 into submission. That really was nothing, as the Big-10 failed in two other “non SEC” Bowls, going a miserable 0-5 on the day.

I have never seen such. The Michigan teams were completely out played by Mississippi State and Alabama. At least the Nittany Lions put up a fight against Florida until the closing minutes. Northwestern managed a respectable 38 points; too bad they gave up 45 to the Red Raiders of Texas Tech. Wisconsin showed some quality, but in the end could not manage to take down those purple Horn Frogs from TCU.

0-5 for New Year’s Day? Seriously. Pathetic.

I guess there is always Ohio St …

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More Georgia Blues. SEC Down. Ohio St. Rules?

Will there be any fall-out from Georgia’s lackluster performance in yesterday’s Liberty Bowl? In Coach Richt’s post game press conference, he talked about “making changes” and making sure this (losing record, getting taken out by a C-USA team) does not happen again. Jeff Schultz writes a damning indictment of Richt’s program, and I have to begrudgingly admit that I cannot disagree with his assessment.

The Dogs didn’t necessarily look emotionless. They just looked pointless.

Central Florida, coached by the familiar George O’Leary, smacked them in the mouth. Georgia didn’t look equipped to smack back. They couldn’t run the ball. They couldn’t get tough yards. They couldn’t make a big play when they needed one. They were 3 for 14 on third-down conversions.

I am not ready to say that Richt has run his course at UGA, but I am almost ready to jump on that bandwagon. The problem Georgia faces – if they fired Richt, where do they turn next?

Let’s just hope that Richt figures things out by kickoff time next year against Boise St. or Dawg fans can look forward to another miserable year.

SEC Lays 3 Rotten Eggs
Tennessee (North Carolina), Georgia (UCF), and South Carolina (FSU) laid eggs, giving the SEC a nasty 0-3 Bowl record going into today’s match-ups. Granted, no one really cares about these lower tier games, with the exception of the Chick-fil-a Bowl, which is turning into a top flight experience.

After today’s SEC/Big-10 clashes – Alabama (Michigan St.), Florida (Penn St.), Miss. St. (Michigan) – the best the SEC can hope for is to break even, but I have a sneaking suspicion that SEC will not run the table.

Would you believe a dirty little secret of mine is that I have not necessarily been pulling for SEC teams this Bowl season. With the exception of Georgia, how in the hell would I pull for the others? Tennessee – no way. Fighting Chickens? You must be the Dancing Queen.

Today’s games are not really any different. There is no way on God’s Green Earth that I will pull for Florida, and Saint Nick is too damn smug for my taste. I will however pull for the Western Bulldogs to hammer Michigan.

Pessimism Abounds
From an SEC fanboy perspective, I think it looks good for the conference when the SEC does well, but I am really down on college football right now. Part of my doldrums can be contributed to having ATL Falcons season tickets, but this feeling has been building for a long time. The A.J. Green four-game suspension at the beginning of the year rubbed my nose in it. It is ridiculous that Georgia and Texas A&M split $1.1 million in last year’s Independence Bowl, but an athlete cannot cash in on his jersey.

Of course Bush giving back the Heisman and Cam having to do the same thing in a few years, once all the evidence comes out, is just the tip of the iceberg. I think the NCAA is out of control – not the athletes and institutions. I could write on this all day, but there is no need to get my blood pressure up before 8AM on New Year’s Day!

Love Me Some Buckeyes. No Really.
Long time readers will chuckle at the thought of me pulling for Ohio St. Tuesday night to embarrass Arkansas, but this should not be a total surprise if you kindly remember the following. As much as I cannot stand the yearly artificial hype from the media perching Ohio St. on the BCS Championship leader, I despise Bobby Petrino and find Arkansas the most unlikeable fan base in the SEC. So there; done. Buckeyes in the Sugar!

Tigers and Wildcats
This year’s Cotton Bowl features a Friday night clash between regional rivals LSU and Texas A&M. Shouldn’t college football be over by next Friday? I really do not like the Tigers from LSU, but that is only because every once in a while they beat my beloved Dawgs. Texas A&M is a different matter. They are arch rivals of Texas, so I should immediately hate the Aggies in this one, however I may just pull for state ties and bloodlines. Once a Texan, always a Texan? At least I have a week to decide who I want to lose.

Kentucky is playing on January 8 against Pittsburg in something called BBVA Compass Bowl? Seriously; that was a question. WTF is wrong with the Bowl game lineup powers that be for supporting a Bowl game this deep into the year on a NFL Playoff Sunday?

BCS – Ducks over Tigers?
The SEC could lose all there other Bowl games and I am not sure anyone would care. Thanks to the advent of the BCS, except for the large paydays, most of the other Bowl games have been rendered irrelevant by a game played over a week after the Rose Bowl. All is right with the world when an SEC team sits atop the Championship ladder, however, life in these parts would be unbearable if Auburn closes out the season with a win.

This is shades of 2009; the Tide fans were even more obnoxious than is typical for the Roll Tide sorts. I guess it comes with the territory living minutes from the Georgia/Alabama state line, and just 45 minutes from the Plains of Auburn.

At least last year was easy – Texas all the way. This year is not so easy, and I really don’t want to hear the Auburn cheated arguments. Regardless of what happened with Cam off the field, any shenanigans and likely paydays did not help Cam or Auburn win games.

With all that said, I think I am still going to pull for the Ducks. I would rather a PAC-10 team win it all than having to put up with an off season full of “War Eagle” cries.

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Now Drinking – Closing Out 2010 in Style

As I sit on my screen porch, writing this article, waiting for the Dawgs Liberty Bowl match-up with UCF, it is 72F, which makes this winter “Now Drinking” edition rather strange. I wanted to get in one last beer special before 2011, so without further ado, here are some current choices.

Young’s Double Chocolate Stout
Young’s Double Chocolate Stout is a very nice winter classic ale, coming in at 5.2% AvB. This one is a strange ale if you consider beer and chocolate an unlikely mix. I am not a huge stout fan, however I do enjoy a stout when the weather turns bitterly cold. Decided to try this one on a lark, and never would have expected to like a chocolate brew, but I have to admit that this one is delicious.

Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale
All I can say is wow, what a spectacular beer with the perfect blend of bitterness that still manages to be smooth, without completely overpowering your taste buds. At 7.2% AbV this Indian Brown Ale packs a wallop; recommended as a nightcap, not an all day tailgate!

New Belgium 2 Below Ale
2 Below Ale is my current favorite every day beer (er, ale). In fact I am enjoying a pint as I write this article from the lovely spring-like Calvert Games manor. The brewer recommends that 2 Below Ale be served at 37F, which makes the 6.6% AvB even more stunning on a cold winter’s day (or night), or delightfully refreshing on a mid-winter’s spring day.

Demise of American Breweries
I have been meaning to post this one for a while, but never got around to it. It seems rather unlikely that a country as wealthy as the US cannot manage to hold down a major brewery.

Happy New Year! May your beers taste wonderful in 2011!

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Return of Reviews That Don’t Suck

It has been a while since I praised a review, so why not get in a quickie before the close of 2010. I have been interested in Spelunker HD since I read about the game a few weeks ago in some random blog and forum posts. Of course there seems to never be enough time to play all the games I own, so why lust after yet another title? Come on, why not!

This little gem of a game has only managed a meagerly 63 metacritic score (based on 9 critic reviews), but what does this gamer from gamecritics see that others have yet to explore?

This fastidious adherence to its own rules is paired with a welcome dose of player-friendly wisdom. As strict as the game may be, it veers broadly around the pitfall of spitefulness. The denizens of the caves can all be evaded with some careful footwork; snakes can be leapt over, and bats periodically pause their bombardment to allow safe passage. Even so, bombs and flares—which can be used to drive these creatures into hiding—can be found before their every occurrence without exception. Spelunker HD takes no joy in needless frustration.

I may not pick up Spelunker HD anytime soon, but at least the gamecritics review keeps this one on my radar. I tip my hat to this reviewer, unlike many; this reviewer writes reviews that don’t suck.

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