Dragon Age 2 Demo Thoughts

On trying not to dwell on the horrible voice acting.

I popped the demo in with ZERO expectations. I swear. I was skeptical about Dragon Age 2 since Day One. Anyway, in a nutshell, here are my impressions:



Gameplay is fast... like really, REALLY fast.
In fact, it's so fast that it actually felt awkward to pause the game. Darkspawn die even before I could pause it and glance at the rotating wheel. I found it difficult to enjoy combat strategies. While handling Hawke, I had this lazy urge to just "X, X, X, X" until the Darkspawn drops dead. Not good. This mechanical button mashing reminds me of FFXIII. Not. Good. I hope I'm wrong about this.



Dialogue options
Here comes Bioware's bread and butter: the storytelling. I tried femHawke first and boy was THAT experience weird. She had this strange voice actor that kept eating her words. You get this feeling that as femHawke, you're trying to be funny but it's either the script is off or the voice actor is off. I don't know which. Whenever I try to crack a joke or two with femHawke, it just comes out weird. I get what they're trying to do by employing the Mass Effect dialogue wheel model but... I'm just not entirely convinced I like this better than reading paragraphs of text.



I missed Flemeth
Flemeth kicks major ass. That is all.



Isabella's HUGE Gazongas
Really. THEY ARE HUGE. Why.



Warrior > Rogue this time.
Back in DAO, I favored the Rogue class above all else. Because we're cool, because we have Momentum which makes us move twice as fast as everyone else and shoots up our DPS. This time in DA2, everyone is just moving so goddamn fast (even the 2H wielders don't seem to be ~that~ slow)so I don't see myself being special anymore. However, I found that the Warrior crowd control skills are AWESOME.

With the number of chicks in the Demo, and with the number of meaningless conversation I had with said chicks, I found myself reaching for male Hawke more instead of femHawke. There's just too many dialogue awkwardness between the characters that I just don't see myself relating to ANYONE of them.

I wonder how that will change though when Fenris or Anders comes in. Maybe femHawke would be more fun to play by then.

YES PLZ.

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Gaming and My Deteriorating Social Skills

On spending each and every night with a videogame.

What I realized about gaming nonstop for the past few weeks is that it DOES take its toll on you. Glued to the screen all night every night did something to my social skills.

I was practically a ticking bomb.

I noticed that I got annoyed more often, got disappointed way too easily and got offended by the simplest things. This also could be attributed to PMS which renders this argument completely invalid (LOL?) But perhaps PMS plus being secluded in my room gaming like my life depended on it was the culprit.

For the past few weeks, I've been popping in Dead Space 2 as soon as I get home. I had to finish the game as fast as I could so I could dish out this excuse for a review that I had to do for this awesome gaming blog I write for.

After being attached to the PS3 like that, my geeky boyfriend and I went out on a little date. We watched the movie 127 Hours and had coffee (for him) and tea (for me) afterwards.

I'm not sure just how anonymous he wants his face to be so I chose this photo lol

It felt nice getting out of bed and putting on something nice for a change. My geeky boyfriend knows how much of a slob I can be when I spend all day gaming. When I say 'slob' I don't mean the acceptable-bordering-on-cute kind of slob we see in SO MANY Hollywood rom-coms. When I say slob I meant Penny-in-that-episode-she-got-addicted-to-online-gaming kind of slob.

Perfectly accurate. I go through phases like this.

After that date, I'm much more amicable. I smile more often, I'm less stressed and I'm generally in a good mood most of the time.

Moral of the story?

TAKE BREAKS.

(Anyway, I'm back playing Mass Effect 2 for my "Perfect Playthrough" LET'S DO THIS)

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I wanted to write you a love letter

I wanted to write you a love letter. A long one. Written in cursive. On paper that smelled like powdery perfume. I would slip it in your bag when you’re not looking or I’ll try to trick you into looking at the barren sky, comment on where the stars have gone missing, and make up a story about where they are. I would push the love letter inside your bag, the paper trembling in the dark, eager to be opened.

But I couldn’t write you a love letter. Not a long one, not in cursive. Not on paper that smelled like powdery perfume.

I was scared to use words that could not describe the workings of my heart. How it beats not for you, but because of you. How it laid itself bare, honest and absolutely defenseless to your charms and your wit and your love.

I was scared that it may not be enough. That planting my limited vocabulary in a wild slur of cheesy exposition may confuse you, or much worse, alienate you from what I truly feel.

I could say that I love you and leave it at that. Tell you that you mean the world to me. That your happiness makes me happy and your sadness makes me sad. I could say that you are amazing. Like freshly baked cupcakes or a massive pile of comics. But see, it’s still not enough.

I really wanted to write you a love letter. A good one. One that could make you cry. Make you blush. Make you want to hold me and embrace me with your eyes closed.

And then, a grand idea. My life spent with you will be my love letter. And it will be a long one. Written not in cursive but in laughter and conversation. Not on paper but on fond, warm memories. They will not smell like powdery perfume but of sweet nostalgia and contentment.

I love you, Happy Valentine’s Day.



NOTE: I wrote this for my geeky boyfriend for Valentine's Day but as with letter traditions between the two of us, I ended up READING this for him instead of just sending it. haha

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Things Keeping Me Up at Night

On trying to finish Dead Space 2 without my heart bursting out of my chest.

I mentioned something about being tasked to play Dead Space 2 so I can write a review on it, right? Well, all throughout this week, I spend around an hour playing the game. (I have a day job and a really long commute okay?)

Let it be known that I am no horror-survival game expert.

In fact, I suck at it, completely. As fast as I can finish massive RPGs and 3rd person shooters, when it comes to horror-survival I seem to be spending triple the time on a stage as I normally would.

This can be attributed to the fact that I am a cautious, paranoid little freak.

I turn around a dark corner and expect this:

When in fact, what would greet me is probably this:

Well not that games like Dead Space 2 would have innocent little kittens lurking in dark corners, but you know what I mean. By this weekend, I hope to finish this game once and for all.

Good luck to my trigger finger then.

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Dear Woman with the thing for Maximus

On watching Tangled and sitting beside a woman with a ticklish spot for horses.

At first we thought you were just easily pleased. That it just so happens that cartoons tickle your funny bone. Hey, we all have our guilty pleasures. And then we notice how you don't laugh at any other scene BUT the scene with Maximus, the horse.

Maximus doesn't know what the HELL.

Maximus comes up on screen and even if he just stands there, you LAUGH YOUR ASS OFF.

Wait, laugh is a mild word for what you did. Your whole voice resonated throughout the theatre like the rumble of a war drum. When all sound has died out, yours bursts out like a goddamn choir in heaven. All because of Maximus, who wasn't even doing anything. (Frankly, if I was the horse I would have been offended already.)

Bet you'd like some of this, huh?

We actually thought for a while that you were being sarcastic already. But no, your laughter would easily trump every single kid's laughter in the theatre combined. You were enjoying yourself, immensely. The funny thing is, you don't laugh in other (funnier) scenes, oh no madame, you wanted that horse.

The implications are disturbing, miss.


Sincerely,
Disgruntled Moviegoers by the name of Nikki and Obie

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Dead Space 2: I've got nowhere to run.

On being tasked to PLAY a game and write about it.

Remember my post about not lasting 5 minutes into the Dead Space 2 Demo? Well now I actually have no choice but to FINISH the game.

You see, I also write for this awesome gaming blog, and my boss scored an amazing deal with Datablitz (the ONLY store where I buy my PS3 games and PSN cards) The deal involved playing games and writing about it. For a writer and a geek this is like a paid vacation.

Well of course, it's all roses and daisies until the devil's advocate kicks in and then play becomes work and then you'd hate your life and then a wonderful, wonderful thing like games and writing becomes hell and then you end up spitting on every game that comes out because the magic and novelty is gone and then-- *breathes*

Penny Arcade illustrates it best.

Okay, I'll worry about the devil's advocate later.

For now I'll be burying myself under a nice warm blanket, chips and chocolates just within an arm's reach, while I BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF THIS GAME FUCKYEAH.

DEAD SPACE 2 YOU GUYS!!!!

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February is for Love. Superhero Love.

On getting candy for the first day of February. LOL.

So I just came across this photo from this awesome place of happies and Joseph Gordon Levitt.

Excuse me while I struggle to keep my pants on.

Now, let's set aside our dissenting opinions on who should play who and just marvel at this beauty (OMG I MADE A PUN). We all have our dream actor for our favorite superhero. My love for Ryan Reynolds goes beyond what is legal but Hal Jordan is important to me. I'm not even sure if I would find enjoyment in seeing him play my childhood love. IMHO, he'd make a better Kyle than Hal, whoops, I wasn't able to stop myself. Gyah. In any case, when overwhelmed by these doubts, I would always try to repeat the "Remember Heath Ledger" mantra. I suggest you do too, lest you become a bitter, violent man. LET US BE HOPEFUL AND POSITIVE!

So yes. HE~LLO February!

Photo Source: http://fearthereaper.tumblr.com/

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