AoC, EQ2, Drakensang, Prototype

Heck...I wanted to write a post that dealt with what is coming for AoC...but, I wanted to touch on these other games that are in my list.

First up is EQ2. Well, it is more about "Not much" about EQ2.
I did have some nostalgic feelings as I played through my first 10 levels, but I am, at this point, not feeling it to log back in.
Do not get me wrong, I think it was fun what I was doing...just since I have done some changes in Conan, I actually am having more fun in AoC than EQ2...that I just do not feel the urge to log back into EQ2.

Another distraction is Drakensang. This has become a family past time game (along with 1vs100 on Xbox Live). Basically we just chat and play this together all on the couch. Each person actually contributes to that game time, thus making it a fun diversion in the evenings.

Finally , Prototype has become my "hop in" game and do stuff when I wish to blow a few minutes or less than an hour, which also then detracts from EQ2.

What I really think it has to do with is the fact that no matter how many times I have tried, going back to that old MMO style seems to not really keep my interest for long.
This worries me down the road when Aion launches, and if I will be able to handle the grindy style of questing that everyone keeps mentioning (tons of fetch quests and kill 10x).
As long as it looks gorgeous (which EQ2 really does not, as it is starting to look long in the tooth with the ugly textures and funny looking models) and combat is smooth...it will rock my socks.

But, here is the meat. Age of Conan. Dangit, I really am enjoying myself.

I started a new Herald of Xotli, and man oh man, what an awesome class to play. Fire, decapitations galore, more fire, more fatalities than I can shake a stick at.
Things just die faster overall with this character.
Also, it is Tuesday night, and this will be my first Raid night with these guys. I need to kill Vistrix again specifically as he holds the key to the Black Ring Citadel. Once I have that key, I can enter the wing one raids, and hopefully start to get some Tier 1 gear.

But, the big news this week? Patch 1.05 may launch Wednesday.

I have spent some time on Testlive with my level 80 Dark Templar, Amatheon.
What I noticed on his copy over today is all of my feats stayed intact. I had made changes about a month ago for raiding and it has been quite effective. So much so that when the update comes, I do not need to change one single thing.
Awesome.
So, this may go pretty smooth, except for the raids.
Seems many changes have taken place in that arena, and I have yet to try this thanks to being so new to it. Isn't that nice that it could all change from what I have been learning?
Other basic changes like fixes to the DX10 client, and a whole new zone to quest in, this could be a make or break patch for Funcom.
The changes look good for Amatheon at least (Dark Templars may actually be wanted for more stuff...lol) and visually some major updates.
I took some screenies and will hopefully post those soon of what some things look like.

And thats it. Quite a bit there. A lot going on, especially with gaming. Having a blast so far this summer.

Now...back to it!

Fathers Day Weekend - What to do

Oh yea...that's ME!! I am totally the "Daddy!"

Well, I have totally planned this out also. I get to relax and totally take it easy while being waited on..

So, my plans?

I have the following schedule lined up..

Prototype missions - Maybe one or two. This game is awesome, and I am trying to make it last...seems most new Single Player games go too fast.

Age of Conan raid - I bought a new headset (I got the xbox 360 Bluetooth wireless earpiece. This thing is a gem...comfortable, small, and works with my wireless gaming receiver for my 360 controller...) and plan to try some raids this weekend. Not sure which yet. I know Vistrix the dragon, Yakhmar the Ice Worm and Kylikki (what the heck is Kylikki? All I know is I fought demon hounds...that was one well done raid also run by one of the major guilds..Ronin).

And...EQ2.

Thats right. I bought a 9.99 copy through Steam.
I do have a character I had played before...but, since this required a new account, I decided to start in Kunark with a new character.
I had never completed Kunark before, and decided now was the time to try and make it to the level required to leave that zone.
We will see how I do.

I do know I felt nostalgic, and rather enjoyed myself playing for an hour this morning. EQ2 is another MMO which actually works with my controller, and now with it's new multicore and shadows to GPU features, it actually runs like a game on my hoss machine should run.

So, it is good for 30 days I think.

Finally my weekend is topped off by some Indian food (my #1 favorite food in the world!), and relaxation mainly...and the wife has agreed to all these plans.

But, me being me...I have her and my son included, with first some 1vs 100 competition on Xbox live. I will also show the wife Magic: The Gathering TCG on Xbox Live (she loves these card games) and then Drakensang, a single player RPG, but we always gather around the TV...all of us... and will play together, taking turns at controls, working on puzzles etc.

Then we have from Netflix, Death Note...the live action version of this anime.
That movie looks like fun!!

Ok..I better hit it...CYA!

Vacation time again

Well, I will be out of town starting Sunday afternoon for several days. Gametime will be at a minimum, and posting any goodies, probably not happening.

But, who knows. I do have some good pics of my various raids and dungeons and may do a screenshot diary....those are fun and easy...and look good.

I am gaming like a monster though. I started a new character in AoC (and still enjoy Tortage, especially if you have done it, leveling goes fast) and it rocks. A Herald of Xotli, who has the capability to breath fire, and uses a two hand sword. The class may be weak armor wise, but death comes swiftly to those who fight me. As an added bonus, this class happens to be a massive fatality hog. I have maybe done 4 times as many fatalities as my other melee based classes I have tried.

As to Amatheon, he is on retainer waiting for another raid. But, after my last attempt Friday evening, I am not sure if I want to go that route for endgame. I know it may be the only way to get tiered armor, but fun is not how I would describe the raid. As long as I am not in tiered armor, I get to be the "Fight the adds" kinda of raider.

I stand back a lot and watch for extra mobs attacking. Hooray.

I need to investigate if any dungeons offer a tier to do, as I much prefer the smaller groups to the 24 mass zergs.

Finally, I fixed another DX10 issue for AoC in Windows 7 . I have been sharing my reports with Funcom, and they actually rewarded me with 2 weeks free game time. How awesome is that? I am thinking of changing my tagline (to make sure to honor the tech support...but, I am still out on the development team).

As to that development team hate, there are rumors that the next patch could take a while to release. This does not bode well for customer retention. But, Craig has Twittered that this may not be the case, but has no clear release schedule for Patch 1.05.

Discussion is that players would be happy if it releases by the beginning of July. I agree with that sentiment. If the patch hits by the first week of July, I think that would be great. Any later, and people are going to start saying goodbye, as they continue to max characters...very quickly.

Anyways, this week I also got my copy of Prototype. With similarities to Crackdown, and the open world Spider Man games, I am having a blast. This is a perfect single player "Hop in and play" sandbox style of game. It was available for the xbox 360, but I found the PC version for over 25 bucks less...wow.

Graphics are not awesome, but has some cool moments (standing on skyscrapers and looking over Central Park is pretty cool), and at first the story seems blah, but the underlying conspiracy is starting to get interesting. The upgrades system is awesome to play with to see what powers you can get, and the unlock missions as you accomplish things is a cool mechanic. Mini games galore also work in the games favor, that you can just jump in, get some upgrade points for doing quickies, and get out.

I like it a lot.

Finally, I am goofing off again with a demo for a game called Drakensang...a single player RPG, that may be fun for myself and the wife to play. It is stat heavy with a lot of babysitting, which we like to do in RPG's, and the place where I got Prototype has it on sale now.

If you are missing some Final Fantasy turn based gaming fun, maybe look at this. It is like Neverwinter Nights, but I think it has better graphics and controls...and more ways to upgrade.

Ok...well, I am chatted out here. This will be my last post until I return. But, Twitter may get some love still, and I need to get back to the games.

Have a good week folks.

You don't know what you got...

Until it's gone.

Seems starting last night, I am having server issues in Age of Conan. I seem to be alone as well.

I have checked with my ISP, and done tracerts with no issues showing.

Basically every 30-60 secs I get a lag spike pulse. The game is then unplayable at that point. Red bar for the latency meter, and nothing happens...no movement, rubberbanding...you name it.

Is this Funcoms way of kicking me off the game now that I hit 80? Do they have personal issues with their endgame?...lol

Anyways, I have entered a ticket, so this left me time to go and sign up my 30 day account for Dungeons and Dragons Online. Still had that sitting around, and with the news of the freemium edition, figured I would see how far the game has come.

This game presents all sorts of new issues. From mouse and joystick control problems. Weird bugs in the game itself (inventory errors for example), and the DX10 LCD bug (which is not their fault...definitely a Microsoft issue).

Good thing the AoC LCD tricks works for it.

But, other issues abound with launcher errors (Vista/Windows 7?), launch problems, where the screen goes black and drops me back to dekstop.

Man...what a pain.

Well, today my copy of Prototype arrives, which my son notes as "Awesome", and we have been playing a new Xbox 360 live game called 1vs 100, a simple trivia game against other players using your avatar...comes off like a Deal or No Deal/Who wants to be a Millionaire game.

Should keep me occupied until AoC is fixed, as I am ready for a Raid this weekend.