Slow Posts From Me This Week
This is "paint the new house" week for us, so my posts will be very slow (if I post anything at all). So, just to clarify:
-Yes, we got 2 speeding tickets on the same day (Sunday) 68 in a 55 and 53 in a 35.
-Yes, both were speed traps. My ticket (the 53/35) was going down a hill in a small ass town I'm never driving through again (Centerburg) where the limit went from 50 to 35 at the bottom of said hill. Nice. I even tried the, "But I'm Bill Abner!" line. Totally did not work.
-Yes, Arena Football is decent, but limited, and I doubt it has a lot of legs beyond the initial "hey a new game" feeling.
STORM OF THE CENTURY!
Well, the sun is out on this day-after-the-blizzard Monday. It really wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. You know what was even funnier? Seeing all the news people try to make it into a disaster, but everyone they talked to was actually excited about all the snow. It was pretty funny.
Thanks for your HD comments, I was glad to see I wasn't the only one with HD problems with the Olympics. Last night seemed to go much better. I have 2 NBC HD feeds, but only one is in 5.1 surround. Go figure. I also have the Universal HD, which was to show hockey live today, but I had to go to work so I missed it. I did get to watch Knight Rider with my son in HD before work, so that was worth it. Knight Rider rules. They also have Quantum Leap in HD too. God I'm a geek.
Sportsgaming wise, I've been playing New Star Soccer 3 for the PC pretty regularly. FIFA it isn't but it sure is fun. There aren't many games where calling for the ball all the time will reduce your popularity with your teammates 
.
Fight Night is now next week (I thought it was this week, maybe I was wrong), but Full Auto is out this week. I haven't tried the demo, and I've heard good and bad...here's hoping it will be very good. I'm looking forward to trying out the final game.
Burnout 360 is on the horizon too. I can't wait for that one. MLB 06 The Show is right around the corner for the PS2, and I have high hopes...
True Confessions
Okay, I'm about to share with you some very disturbing information. As we prepare for the blizzard of the century, I put in the American Pie: Band Camp DVD. Yes, that is disturbing.
Then I started watching and noticed that the nurse looked very familiar. Her name is Ginger Lynn Allen, who is a former adult film star, but unfortunately, that is not where I recalled her (that wouldn't be disturbing). Do you know what I recalled her from? The Wing Commander game.
Now that is embarassing.
In other news, the Band Camp movie wasn't bad. I've seen worse.
In more other news, I watched the Olympics tonight. I have two NBC HD channels and Universal HD. Did anyone else tonight have a shitty NBC HD feed? It kept going from HD to SD quite often, and on both NBC channels on my system. I was just curious if it was my cable or if eveyone had this problem.
Netflix in the news
Although this has been going on for a long time, all it takes is one story to hit the AP and boom it's everywhere. Apparently 'unlimited' doesn't mean 'unlimited' when you use Netflix.
My thoughts: BFD. Full disclosure: I own Netflix Stock, about 50 shares (again, BFD). I think everyone in this day and age, that's familar with the internet knows that 'unlimited' never means 'unlimited.' This guy apparently rented 40 DVDs a month and was complaining that Netflix will do what it can to delay shipment -- using a different service center, take longer to check movies in, etc. This guy apparently has also done a calculator to show if you're profitable.
So this guy is pretty mad, but he's still a customer of Netflix. WTF. Also, as a charter subscriber, I get the 4 out plan for the price of the 3 out plan. (Being a customer since 1999 gives you some nice features). You also avoid having to go to the video store. I laugh at those people. My local Blockbuster charges about $5 a rental. Even if you only rent, say 5 movies a month, you're better off with netflix, and you aren't fighting for movies like a Furby doll.
That being said, Netflix does disclose the policy (albeit in paragraph 230,345), so it shouldn't be news to anyone. Just like back in the day, the 'unlimited' dial-up allowed ISPs to charge for excessive use. I see two camps here -- the one camp who sees the 42 HDTV at buy.com for "$49.99" and say that they should have to honor that price, even though they did make an error and the price was 4999.99, and the sane citizen that knows that a 42" HDTV would never retail for 50 bucks...
Okay, I'm done. Time for work.
Who left their radio on during the Olympics?
Anyone else watching the Olympic Opening Ceremonies? Who the hell left on their radio? I missed the reason for it but it seems that during the parade of nations, someone left on XM 25 The Blend...
Arena Football PS2
Bill gets the formal review on this one, but I wanted to add my thoughts. Reviews on this game have been all over the place, IGN says it's great, Gamespot says it's meh and other sites say it's a turd.
I'm on the Gamespot/other sites area. Now I have the PS2 version, not the Xbox, but my gawd is it fugly. I honestly think the Midway AFL game played better. Don't bother running, period. The screens, which are such a huge factor in the real game, don't seem to do much. Whenver a ball bounces on it, your player seems to be a ball physics expert and knows where it will land.
At least the clock runs right and the game does explain some things to you, such as why I got a penalty for blitzing on a field goal (it's not permitted). Some of the things IGN loves like the coach being on the field, I'm not sure i've seen that happen for real. I have seen people go over teh boards and that's fun.
The play calling is not fun at all. All of the plays are very similar, and like I said, don't bother running. The ingame cat calling and trash talking and coach/player discussions are neat.
I am a follower of TV arena football, but I have a tough time seeing this one to being that much fun unless online is just totally awesome...
I'm looking forward to seeing if Bill thinks I'm an ignorant slut on this one or if he agrees....
Jon Stewart and the Gamer’s Tome
Cool story.
My wife is currently in Manhatten on business, hiring a new New York office tech person. Before going, she made me write a letter, to, of all people, Jon Stewart of The Daily Show. Mary has been acting as my pro bono press agent for the book, setting up potential book signings at local stores, calling newspapers, etc. She's a machine. So I write this small paragraph-sized letter to Jon Stewart. I wasn't forward enough to blatantly ask for anything; I just wanted him to have a copy because I know he plays games and because we're both big fans of the show and since Mary was going to be there, hey, why not?
So she goes down to the studio 2 hours before taping. There's this huge line and she tries to talk to a guy at the door. He sees she has a book with her and before saying anything points her to a woman carrying a clipboard quipping, "We got another one and the show hasn't even started." Mary has no idea what he's talking about, but off she goes to see this woman.
Mary explains why she's there -- she wants Jon Stewart to get a copy of the book as a gift, we're huge fans, Mary just happened to be in town, yadda, yadda. The lady doesn't buy it. She simply cannot fathom that someone would want Jon to have a copy of the book and get nothing in return.
"Are you on the level?" I believe were her exact words.
Mary says that in fact she is very level and that we thought Jon would really enjoy the book, knowing that he plays games and doesn't have time to really follow the hobby. Well, the woman was simply flabbergasted by this, and takes the book along with the letter and thanks Mary again and says that she will "absolutely make sure" that he receives the book. Mary was stunned, as was I, that the woman simply could not believe that all we wanted was for Jon to get a copy of the book. The fact that we didn't ask for anything in return just blew her away.
So, anyway, Jon Stewart is going to get my book. I really think that's cool.
Detroit Sports Roundup
Okay, so the Lions have now officially signed Mike Martz as their offensive coordinator. It’s a three year deal with financial terms not disclosed but it’s reported that the contract is heavily backloaded. I like this deal. I was iffy when reports were the Lions would just sign him for one year, but a backloaded three year deal might keep him in the Motor City for a couple of years. Combine Martz (who I think is a great OC, but wouldn’t want as a head coach) with the signing of ex-Jets DC Donnie Henderson and I think new coach Rod Marinelli is putting together a pretty kick ass coaching staff. I mean you look at how bad the Jets offense was last year and it's easy to appreciate the job their defense was able to do, keeping them in games. Certainly there’s no way the boatload of malcontents that is the Lions roster will be allowed to go mouthing off to the press about why the team’s losing because of this guy (Harrington) or that guy (also Harrington). I don’t expect miracles after the most disastrous unwatchable season I can think of (it really was worse than the 2-14 and 3-13 seasons under Mornhingweg), but I do think the team might at least be fun to watch again. And here I though I might be able to let me Sunday Ticket subscription lapse. There's another $200 down the drain.
Speaking of coordinator hires, the Wolverines have undergone a similar makeover. OC Terry Malone just left for the New Orleans Saints’ OC gig. I do think he might be missed. Michigan’s offense sputtered this year, but injuries played a huge role in that, as did the growing pains of Chad Henne (who still took far more flack than he deserved). However, Mike DeBord, who was Michigan’s OC in 1997 when they won the national championship (okay, okay, co-championship) is taking over so I’d like to believe the worst case scenario is that it’s a lateral move and certainly not a drop-off.
The big deal, though, is that DC Jim Hermann is finally, mercifully out. He may still remain in some capacity, but he won’t be the defensive coordinator. Rumors earlier in the week had Georgia Tech’s DC in the mix, which I think would’ve been a good move, but now it looks like their secondary coach, Ron English, will be the guy. The rap on English is that he’s an unbelievable recruiter. Which is sort of like being told your blind date has a good sense of humor when you ask what she looks like. But unbeknownst to me, apparently Michigan ranked 2nd in the Big Ten in pass defense last year,which shocked the hell out of me. Plus, Hermann’s defensive schemes (all Prevent all the time) I think are far more responsible for Michigan giving up leads in virtually all of their losses the past two years. As long as English puts an end to corners lining up six-plus yards off of wideouts it'll be an improvement.
Then there's the Pistons. After years of only getting Ben Wallace on the All-star team, Detroit is abuzz with the news that four Pistons have made the team as reserves. I know some will call that crap, but each of those guys is worthy. Their numbers may not all be up with a few of the guys left off the team, but they’re the only team that distributes the ball to all five guys on the floor with any regularity. I think if you put any Piston starter (save Ben Wallace, who is truly an awful shooter) on a crappy team where they’re the primary option and their offensive output would go up 50%. There’s even rumors that Prince (the only starter not yet named to the team) is on the short list to replace Jermaine O’Neal. I doubt that’ll happen, and as good as I think Prince is, it probably shouldn’t happen (especially with Gilbert Arenas not yet on the team), but it’s cool that his name is being mentioned.
As for Detroit’s chase for 70. Hopefully the three losses in six games will cool that talk. It was great that they looked like they were going to flirt with it for so long (and they might still if they get on another extended win streak), but at some point you knew they would hit a skid. It’s the dog days of the NBA and the team is obviously fatigued and banged up (Chauncey Billups in particular is playing with some pain). Even if the team only nets 60 wins it’s still going to be by far the greatest regular season in Pistons history. It’s just flat out fun to watch this team play basketball and there’s just no way they don’t make the NBA Finals again this year (barring injuries). There is no team in the East that’s in their class and they have more depth on the bench than most people realize. (Carlos Delfino is going to be a legit player in this league for a long time.) It will be interesting seeing who comes out of the West. The Mavs are playing unbelievable basketball right now, the Spurs are the Spurs, and the Suns have done their fans proud the way they've been able to keep it together without Amare Stoudemire.
And hey, I can’t not bring up the Red Wings, who just beat Nashville in a home-and-home series and have the best record in the Western Conference. Take that "the cap will kill the Wings" prognosticators! And how about two of the young "uknowns" who have played big, big roles this year: Mikael Samuelsson (37 points) and Jason Williams (42 points). And all this despite losing two critical defensemen early in the year: Niklas Kronwall (only now starting to come back) and Jiri Fischer (career is probably over). Anything can happen in the NHL playoffs, but this is a team capable of winning the Cup, even with the way-underrated Manny Legace between the pipes. (At some point that guy will get the respect he deserves as a quality goaltender.)
Oh yeah, and did you hear about that whole Super Bowl thing? That was in Detroit too. No really, you can’t make something like that up. And aside from several cheap shots from a few notable media hacks, the city did itself proud. Eyesores remain to be sure, but the majority of people from other media outlets had nothing but nice things to say about the organization of the event and the hospitality of the people. Hopefully the city keeps it rolling now that all the cameras have left town, especially with regards to the rebuilding of several riverfront areas.
Winning Eleven 9
Anyone find this game? I see it available at EBGames.com, but no stores have it locally. WTF?!?!?!
One More Turn! One More Turn! One More Turn!
My apologies for my lack of posting the last couple weeks. Since the plague has passed from under my household life has had a rather constant cycle that leaves little time for writing: get up, go to work, come home, play with the kids until their bedtime, then play Civ4 until I fall over (almost literally).
I had managed to free myself from the clutches of this game in December, but a couple of weeks ago I was home alone with little to do so I fired it up again. Yeah, that was really dumb I know, but for my money this is the single finest strategy game I’ve played. I really don’t get the people who say it’s just a prettier Civ3. Civ3 has serious in the initial version that I played at least, and I thought it was a step back from Civ2. This is just a whole new ballgame and months later I still think it's mindblowing. There's nothing about it that's the same when you start to understand how fundamental issues of culture, combat, trade, etc. work under the hood.
There’s really just one area where I think the game (and the series) continues to fall well short: navies. On continental and archipelago maps navies need to play a huge role. And I suppose on the Archo maps they are important as is, at least as a means to ferry troops around. However, what you can do with navies from a strategic perspective is still far too limited. The primary shortcoming in my mind is the lack of organized blockades. Adding naval blockades or other ways to disrupt foreign trade routes, especially if they can be done without necessarily having to get involved in a shooting war, I think would really ramp up the importance of ships in Civ4.
Here's an idea of what I mean. In Civ4 cities produce culture that determine a civilization’s borders. One city that has produced a sh#@ ton of culture can control more land than two cities who produce none. I think ships ought to replicate that effect in ways that allow you to control the seas. A mobile border so to speak, but one that isn't based on culture (which would just be silly), but rather on strength and number of ships. Say you have one frigate off by itself in the year 1600 (making it state of the art). Fine, that ship can control naval passage just for the square its on. Now, say you add two more to it. The increased naval power in that area could then grant you a zone of control over all adjacent squares too. If you have open border agreements with another civ they can pass through. If you don’t, they can’t (at least not without attacking your ships). If a stronger navy moves into that area you have to cede some control over the square where the superior fleet is. If a fleet of equal power moves into that area maybe the zones offset. At that point blockades wouldn’t even have to be centered around stopping traffic into and out of ports. Having control of narrow or limited access seas (like the Mediterranean) could be of crucial strategic value and really make a sound navy a key component for any civ when on a game map that includes any kind of ocean.
Granted, this is a simplified way of looking at it and there would be other problems to address, but the main point is something needs to be done to increase the strategic value of navies in the game. I’d love to see Firaxis play around with this in an expansion. It's the only part of the game that I consider radically incomplete.
Anyway, after winning a time victory Tuesday night (on an archipelago map, Noble difficulty). I started a new game last night (Continents, still on Noble) and based on this start I think it’s probably time to bump up to the next difficulty level (where the AI is officially given a head start, instead of playing on a level playing field).
Playing as the Egyptians last night I was able to birth Hinduism and Judaism, while also building their core temples (via Great Prophets). I narrowly missed Buddhism and I’ve got a legit shot at Christianity. My capital city of Thebes was able to nab Stonehenge, the Oracle (which allowed me to grab the Metal Casting tech way early), the Pyramids (immediate access to the Representation civic; Woot!), and the Hanging Gardens. And all of these are in my capital city (Thebes), which is becoming a real production and cultural powerhouse. (Part of this was possible because I was able to nab four free techs from the so-called goodie huts, which in my experience is very rare.) I should be able to add the Colossus to another city tonight (about six turns away and looking good) and I think for the first time in my games I’ll be the first civ to nab Music and the free Great Artist that comes with it.
At this rate I could end up cruising from end to end. Again, Noble is a rather pedestrian difficulty setting (though it’s tougher than in past versions) so this is probably no great shakes for a die-hard Civ vet. For me, however? I’m quite proud.
The big difference for my play has been reading some of the narrative threads put together to document games, written by two of the people involved with the making and testing of Civ4 (by Sirian and Sulla), which really provide a ton of insight into how to win. This thread of theirs in particular at CivFanatics, which documents a hotseat game where they both alternate controlling a single civ, (while painfully long) is both wildly informative and at times flat out hysterical. There’s even knock-knock jokes . (Bad ones, but still.)
In any case, my posting may be on the sporadic side so long as Civ4 remains a nightly obsession. Any day now I'm expecting an intervention from the freakazoids at CivAnon.com.
Time for the Mailbag
I haven't checked our hotmail account in some time (if you want to get a hold of me, make sure you use the contact Dan link above as I check that everyday)...there's some interesting posts there, so let's hit it:
First, Scott Rudoff emailed us to let us know there are some Crazy Delicious modders out there. They've taken MVP 05 for the PC and modified everything and voila, it's now MVP 06 with Major League Baseball! Sounds awesome. It is a 586MB download but it sounds worth it, and you can start downloading by clicking here.
Next, Peter Liao emails me to let me know about the possibility that Rockstar Games may be bought out by Elevation Partners, which of course U2's Bono is part of (Elevation, get it). Not sure how great of an idea this is. I don't want to see 2K Games go down the toilet, but sometimes the financials are so bad, how is anyone going to fix this? I don't know.
Speaking of 2K Games, Nathan Weber lets us know that College Hoops release date for the X360 is "before March Madness" to which I say it is "if 2K Games gets bought by Elevation Partners".
Next up, Hido writes in to ask if Tiger Woods 2006 is worth buying for the PC. I've only played it for the Xbox 360 and as far as that version goes, I'd have to say no. I've heard very favorable reports from other commenters and Blogger Pal Bill Harris about the PC version. Personally I'm sticking with True Swing golf for the DS right now.
Resident Hottest PR person alive and Mr. Pibb supplier to Dan, Tara Clover writes in agahst at the lack of Booth Babes at E3. I completely agree. What are the horny 17 year olds going to do at E3 this year? Now they'll take up valuable game playing time for us 'qualified journalists.' I also don't know what IGN, and all those other sites will do with 1/2 the content. I mean seriously all the content online is "lame interview with guy who say this game will rule" followed by "Jugs On Parade". Why even bother going? Oh well, since Tara is a PR person and not technically a booth babe, maybe she can ride the line there. Kinda like how you walk into Cumby's with no pants and you tell the clerk, well it said no shirt and no shoes..so I'm wearing those..where does it say no pants?
SerialMike posted a comment to a post asking about the word verification on the comments. I agree that you're staring at that freaking challenge phrase going "is that a q or a g" and you always get it wrong. However, we had two choices: choice one, not have word verification but put up with 23 comments like "Yes, I agree with you. Have you checked out my blog on ancient man-animal hybrids?" on every post, or have word verification. We opted for the latter. Sorry!
Thanks for the posts, emails and comments. Keep 'em coming!
Another Quick Update
Ashley is really sick so I'm off Blog Duty at the moment. Still, I'll try to get some Arena Football thoughts posted this week. I should get the game today.
Oh, and Eastside Hockey Manager is crazy fun.
Along these same lines, I think a Thoroughbred Racing game, using this same "global" approach that SI uses in their games would be a superb fit. You could include racing in Europe, Japan, the States, Canada, , South America...include trainers, track variants, jockies, and really dig into the rating of the horses the way that SI digs deep to rate the players in both hockey and soccer. This remains a dream that I won't just let die, but I think a strategy-management game in this genre would be a fantastic and rather heady simulation.
Still, EHM is a blast.
Awesome Audio Tracks
Take a spin over to JerryKramer.com and listen to these Packer audio links. The Max McGee link is classic.
Darkfall and Ratings
Looks like I'm going to get in on the Beta of this one. Anyone know anything about Darkfall?
Oh and for everyone that thought a matchup between Pitt and Seattle would rate poorly on TV, it was only the 2nd most watched TV show in history. (MASH finale being #1) The Super Bowl is the Super Bowl. It doesn't need New York, Boston, LA, or Chicago involved to sell.
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