h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Might take a look at Oolite tonight.

I've been sinking my time into the horrendously dense yet addictive Crusader Kings II. Well worth a look.

I've been playing a surprising amount of Settler of Catan on the iPad. The original game frustrates me. Although this does too it's so much quicker that if things just don't go your way then it's only a 15 minutes wait until it's over rather than an hour.

Also when your opponent's 3 comes up twice as often as your 5 you can pretend the AI is cheating.

I was ill last week and pretty bored so decided to, post all the Elite chat, finally give X3: Reunion and later X3: Terran conflict a go.

A couple of observations:-

1) I have never, ever played a game as inaccesable as X3. It just dumps you in with viturally no explanation ( I later read the lengthy manual. A bit helpful but still not enough) and this game is bloody, bloody complicated.

I evenutally downloaded the pdf fan handbook that on my kindle is 287 pages long!

2) It is **hard**, you wonder into a pirate area early on and you get slayed every time.

3) Once you get the hang of it, it is maybe one of the best games I have ever played. But careful now it is like doing crack.

FB

Haven't had much time to play because I'm moving country on Thursday, but managed to get a little time with one of my xmas prezzies, namely Far Cry 3, which is so far proving very entertaining. Particularly creeping around hunting animals with a bow and arrows.

Also picked up a few things in the xmas steam sale, including Civ V which I also spent a little time on. So far, it doesn't seem that different to any of the other civs I've played from time to time, although the interface is much simpler and slicker than it has been in the past, and obviously the graphics are much fancier.

Just started playing Borderlands 1.

Good fun, I like the cell-shading, the feel of the game which has an edge of humour and it doesn't always feel like you are breezing through it either.

I've written something about some of the games which will be published this year: A87782809

I'm looking forward to the new Tomb Raider.

I've never been a great fan of the series prior - that fell to my brother's friend who had the playstation 1 and would bring it round for us all to play on) but everything I've seen of this from the early trailers seems like they've begun incorporating some of the RPG elements from other games.

Some things I noticed:

Lara has a 'survival instinct' that will point up clues, escapse routes etc.

I imagine this is almost a direct copy of the kind of Bat-vision you had in Arkham City.



They have a series of 'base-camps' essentially saveable 'safe' areas where you can, for example, assemble and upgrade new equipment.

This I think is the most RPG element I saw in the previews - the idea that you might 'specialise' as a hand-to-hand combatant or a sniper/archer, and upgrade your equipment (scopes, better bow etc) to model your character's specialisms and play-style; spending 'points' earnt through actions in-game either set mission-completes or a steady currency of the more you fight the better you become at it.

There's also the phenomenon of the "kill-cam", featured most memorably in Skyrim (I shall, I think, never get tired of loosing an arrow over a chasm,back-flipping a bandit over a bridge then watching them plummet over a waterfall )

Scalable environments (I wonder if we'll get the free-running of Assassin's Creed?)


Basically; I think this game is shaping up to be everything I enjoy in the games I already have so expect to see me playing it when it comes out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kn-p_wk88Ow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r-2sUbTeJUc

Well on X3, now I have got over the initial steeper than Everest learning curve it is utterly, utterly consuming me in the way only great games and great books can.

At the spending every minute not playing game, thinking about playing game stage. I'm sure this will burn out in a bit but for the time being Jeez it is addictive.

FB

Anyone playing Guild Wars 2?

Currently working my way through the Assassin's Creed series. The first one annoyed me quite a lot but had enough of a spark in it to keep me interested and finish it. Number two is better in every way: it's like they knew exactly what worked in the first, kept it intact, exactly what didn't work and (mostly) got rid and added some more cool stuff. In the morning I'll be off to Venice and I'm genuinely excited by the prospect.

In the first Assassin's Creed they thought: how would an assassin go about setting up a kill and they followed that method so it was, if you can call it, realistic, within that universe. I didn't bother me too much as I played the first one after the other Ezio ones apart from the last one and hence I could see what they changed.

You will love the rest of the Ezio ones...they really did nail all of them.

Have not played the new one set in the America yet.

I'm playing Barry Trotter and The Order of (couldn't give a stinking pile of dren)

Not good. At all.

I'm a completist, however, so I must endure it for another couple of sessions (one of which potentially 3-5 hours) Gods how I'll yawn

My new boyfriend Alex - has introduced me to "Mark of the Ninja": a Steam game on PC, but I'm currently downloading the console version from the x-box arcade. (to purchase is 1200 credits) - it's a stealth platform puzzle adventure, with emphasis on sneaking and lots of upgradable skills, costumes (that boost a skillset while crippiling another) i.e superior sneak but no swords or easy to create terror scenarios but reduce carrying capacity for support gadgetry like smoke bombs etc.

I was getting the hang of the PC controls (WSAD, Space, L CTRL, SHIFT) etc I wonder how it will convert to ABXY and control sticks?

I am off to go and find out!

Finished Assassin's Creed 2: my word that was fun. Though I wondered if some of the Assassin's tombs were a conspiracy by Microsoft to get folk to buy new controllers as they've broken their other ones in frustration. It was a good piece of storytelling too, with some decent characters.

On to Brotherhood.

The Assassin's Tombs are sods the first time. I did them again late last year after a couple of years lay off and breezed through them mainly.

On the controller issue I have had to cease playing Pro Evolution Soccer and FIFA since 7th gen consoles as I cannot afford the cost of smashed up controller anymore.

On the 6th Gen I probably smashed up about 10 Xbox controller due to Pro Evo. It is just too expensive and I therefore have just stoppped playing the games.

FB

Anger management classes would have been cheaper!

I'm currently playing Legend of Zelda, Skyward Sword. I like it. Much better than Twilight Princess, which I gave up after about an hour, although maybe I should try it again.

To answer fords' question: I own Guild Wars 2, didn't play for a while now because there always were other things to do. I'm also waiting for updates and fixes and set hopes in the 28th January update. And I'm quite waiting for Elona and my old friend Palawa Joko.

And here's the 2nd part of my previews: A87783150