What are you playing?

[captain swoop]

No new recipe or spoiling on this one but you have to balance your meals.

I think food prices are too cheap myself and there is far too much laid around just for the taking.

[Fazor]

Edit: I take that back, a little. I did enjoy the Close Combat series (not too much going on for me to handle), and I see Matrix have upgraded those, too, so that/they may be the next thing I'm playing...)

I *loved* the (first two? sooo long ago!) Close Combat games! I've been hoping for a Steam or GoG re-release of those games so that I can run them on my current system. I'm not much of an RTS fan (I'm horrible ((HORRIBLE!)) at RTS games) but there's something about those that I loved.

Closest "modern" game is Company of Heroes, but I can't run that on this laptop.

[pzkpfw]

I *loved* the (first two? sooo long ago!) Close Combat games! I've been hoping for a Steam or GoG re-release of those games so that I can run them on my current system. I'm not much of an RTS fan (I'm horrible ((HORRIBLE!)) at RTS games) but there's something about those that I loved.

Closest "modern" game is Company of Heroes, but I can't run that on this laptop.

You can buy them online from Matrix ( e.g. http://www.matrixgames.com/products/...he.Longest.Day ). They've been updated to work on current OS's, and with higher resolution screens than they used to cope with. I'll definitely be buying once I've played enough Panzer Corps.

(All my Close Combat games were bought out of $10 sale bins, so the full price for the new game seems steep. But on the other hand, I played and played and played them all - so good value for money I guess.)

[captain swoop]

Close Combat was good but I always seemed to get stuck in a loop of re fighting the same action on the same ground over and over again so gave up.

[pzkpfw]

Close Combat was good but I always seemed to get stuck in a loop of re fighting the same action on the same ground over and over again so gave up.

Yes.

Certain maps of certain campaigns were definitely like that. Some of the maps would be where reinforcements would arrive, so even though you'd win the battle there the previous round, you'd have to re-fight instead of advancing. You wouldn't move on until other units in adjacent maps had gone past or around. (And in some maps it was just because it was too hard to occupy the entire space in one battle). It could easily mean that during a "grand campaign" you'd play on some maps many times and some maps never at all.

(Playing the mini-campaigns was a good way to "try-out" different areas.)

This was especially a drag in the battle of the Bulge (as the Axis). If you did very well, and occupied all the maps at the edge of the campaign area. You'd just keep fighting again and again in those edge maps, as that's where the Allied forces would keep reappearing - and do pretty much the same thing again and again. (One thing I think that game sorely missed was a campaign where you played as the Axis, but which began at the historical maximum extent of advance and as the Allied push back really got started).

For all it's faults (like the AI for movement of tanks) I really enjoyed the ones I had. The first ones I'll buy of the new batch will be the re-makes of the oldest ones, which I never had (Last Stand Arnhem and Cross of Iron).

[R.A.F.]

Just finished Mass Effect 2.

....and it's got to be the worst "drug" ever.


Seriously...I can start playing, lose all track of time, and suddenly "discover" that hours have passed. It's rather scary.

[Moose]

Seriously...I can start playing [ME2], lose all track of time, and suddenly "discover" that hours have passed. It's rather scary.

Doesn't it just? Wait 'till you get to 3.

[R.A.F.]

I'm putting off starting 3...at least until after the Olympics.

[Moose]

Just to mention: Dawnguard is just now available on Steam.

[Moose]

And to add: if you're heavily into mods, you may run into trouble. At least, I find I'm totally stuck in Solitude. Any attempted transition to the main map brings me to Solitude's main gate. Still experimenting to see if I can resolve this without reverting back to vanilla.

[Nope, other problems noted. Reinstallation it is, and another no-doubt few weeks before the mods get updated and I get 'em installed and happy. *grumble*]

[captain swoop]

turn them on one at a time till you find the ones causing the problem?

[Moose]

Yup, that's the way to do it, all right, but because it looks like more than one mod is causing problems, I prefer to start from a clean installation. Also means starting a new game, unfortunately.

[Edits]
Notes:
* Looks like the monster scaling overhauls are breaking on Dawnguard and may be the cause of the "stuck in a city" bug. Egh, I can live without Skyrim Scaling Stopper for the moment.
* Tales of Lycanthrope is already working.
* Better Vampires expects to be up and running by tonight.
* Werepyre (basically lets you play both) already works.

[Fazor]

Anyone seen any of the videogame "reviews" Conan O'Brien has been doing? Appropriately enough, the one they posted to the website today is for Skyrim. I love these clips!

http://teamcoco.com/video/clueless-g...reviews-skyrim

[Fazor]

Big week for gamers after a bit of a summer drought. Darksiders II and Sleeping Dogs hit in the retail space. Both look very good; I think I'll be picking both up on Friday.

Papo y Yo landed on the Sony PlayStation Network. Downloadable indie title. Artistic platform/puzzler about a boy and his sometimes helpful, sometimes killer friend Monster. It's a metaphor for growing up with an alcoholic father. I'm not real far in, but it's been pretty moving so far.

Xbox Live Arcade gets it's own downloadable game in Dust: An Elysian Tail. Admittedly, I don't know much about the game. Beautiful 2D side-scrolling arcade beat'em up. It's getting pretty rave reviews so far. Might pick that up this weekend as well, though I don't have a lot of time this week to play anything, let alone four things.

[Moose]

Skyrim. Had an encounter with the Headless Horseman. I don't know if that's a vanilla encounter or from Skyrim Monster Mod, but it made my afternoon all the same.

[HenrikOlsen]

Skyrim, just killed my first dragon.
Seems like I've left what may be the main quest alone since the very first step.

[Moose]

Ever fight a dragon with a pesty cat, between the keyboard and monitor, locked in mortal combat with her own feet? (2 on 2, front vs rear. Near as I can figure, her tail was ref.) Intense.

Henrik, if you liked that fight with the dragon, you might want to check out the Deadly Dragons mod on Nexus. Unfortunately, random dragon attacks don't scale very well in vanilla.

Best one I had recently, -with DD-, was chasing a dragon into an elaborate mining colony camp. I'd run in without pausing to consider just exactly who held the mine. As it turns out, an even dozen bandits were there, and they were all wide awake. (Dragon Attack[tm]: All the sugar, twice the caffeine! True slogan!)

It seems everybody decided I was the biggest threat there; which, as it turns out, was strangely prophetic.

[HenrikOlsen]

It was the Whiterun non-random dragon, where it's revealed that the protagonist is dragonborn, haven't killed one without others distracting it yet.

[Moose]

Yup, I recognized your description. I'm just saying that you'll be encountering them randomly from time to time from now on. Those random encounters don't scale very well, I'm afraid. Cave bears remain a serious threat long after dragons just aren't anymore.

That said (and make sure you save before trying this), for kicks, try attacking a dragon from directly in front of its head while it's on the ground.

[HenrikOlsen]

Does it make for one of those "as the jaws opened and time contracted, the only light he could see at the end of its throat's dark tunnel was the pilot light waiting to ignite its breath" moments?

Or just for another "Bam! Headshot!" killing move?

[captain swoop]

As you guessed the reason for the return of the dragons is the main quest, everything else is a sideshow more or less.
I have been playing for an age and I am about half way through the 'main quest' I like to go off and do everything that comes along in any location before I move on

[Moose]

Heh, yes. (Dragons apparently get killmoves too, and most of them can trigger on the sucker who's checking the pilot light.)

If you're looking for the spoiler version of the one I have in mind, well, during the intro, when Ralof and Hadvar are shouting at each other, just before you enter the keep, did you notice the black dragon [spoiler]snatch an imperial bowman from the wall and fling him half-way to Solitude?[/spoiler] I've had that happen to me, once, while it was on the ground. [spoiler]The view was impressive. The landing...[/spoiler] not so much. Saw at least one other killmove from 3rd person perspective before I got the message. [spoiler]Attack from the sides with a two-handed power move to swat the dragon down[/spoiler]. Alternatively, [spoiler]a Dawnguard enhanced crossbow with special ammo[/spoiler] works superbly.

[Moose]

I have been playing for an age and I am about half way through the 'main quest' I like to go off and do everything that comes along in any location before I move on

Yeah, me too. I did Whiterun's part of the main quest, but not yet where he sends you. I just haven't passed close enough to detour yet. Soon, soon. I've picked up a mod that lets me [spoiler]join the Dawnguard as a vampire[/spoiler], but the mod requires recovery of an item from the main quest before they'll trust you.

[HenrikOlsen]

Heh, yes. (Dragons apparently get killmoves too, and most of them can trigger on the sucker who's checking the pilot light.)

If you're looking for the spoiler version of the one I have in mind, well, during the intro, when Ralof and Hadvar are shouting at each other, just before you enter the keep, did you notice the black dragon [spoiler]snatch an imperial bowman from the wall and fling him half-way to Solitude?[/spoiler]

That happened to one of the guards in the Whiterun battle too. Quite impressive.

Funniest thing I've had happen with a killmove was shooting an elk with a bound bow. The game went into slow motion, with the camera following the arrow as it flew with unstoppable force and unerring precision, just to miss the elk as it moved away at the last moment. I had to laugh.

[captain swoop]

That shouldn't happen, a slow-mo arrow flight is one of the kill movies, like jumping on the dragons head or beheading someone etc.

I have to say I haven't had much trouble killing dragons. Use the appropriate potions, arrows while they are in the air then the Dragonsbane sword when they land (when you get it) It helps to have your companion well armoured and alongside as well. Using the right shout helps too.

[HenrikOlsen]

That shouldn't happen, a slow-mo arrow flight is one of the kill movies, like jumping on the dragons head or beheading someone etc.

I know, that's what made it such a funny moment.

[Moose]

I've seen it happen often enough. Faster arrow/bolt mods help with this.

[TJMac]

Guild Wars 2.

A lot.

Last weekend was the three day head start for prepurchasers. I felt like I played a lot, others played much more.

Apparently, my play style levels up slower than others. There are so many aspects to the game, I am only just getting immersed in the possibilities.

TJ

[Paul Beardsley]

Clare and I finally succumbed to the pressure of others on this thread and bought Skyrim last week. We've got to Level 7, and are on our way to meet the Grey Beards after killing the first dragon, and stopping off for various side quests along the way.

[Fazor]

Clare and I finally succumbed to the pressure of others on this thread and bought Skyrim last week. We've got to Level 7, and are on our way to meet the Grey Beards after killing the first dragon, and stopping off for various side quests along the way.

Good luck! If you picked it up on Xbox 360, the second DLC was just released today. 'Hearthfire' -- allows you to buy land / build / customize a house. I think there's only one place you can build it . . . I haven't really looked into it since I have the game on PS3, and it's looking doubtful we'll get *any* DLC. Bethesda's been struggling with the Sony hardware since release.