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11-26-03, 4:36 AM
Find hungry samurai. 
Okay, well, looks like the Holiday Holocaust is being moved back to Friday. I've got my hands on a 16-port hub to use over the weekend so we've got that covered. Bring any spare ethernet cables, the longer the better, and power strips, people, we'll need 'em.
I'll eventually talk about the film festival and Manhunt, but I'm only doing this because I have ADD and should be working on this paper...
-K.
Don't make the same mistake these people made, don't die.
11-23-03, 4:39 PM
Congratulations! You're the first to survive the audition!
As much as I want to enjoy True Crime: The Streets of L.A. for PS2 I can't, simply because it keeps freezing. It's got a mess of other bugs, as well, but it would probably be an almost enjoyable experience if I didn't have to keep restarting.
That is all.
-K.
Jumbone
11-22-03, 2:56 PM
You're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.
The more I play Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic the more I'm sucked into it, as it's designed like a classic PC RPG, but plays like nothing before. I played it for six hours straight after I got home from class and didn't even notice that the sun had gone down, and I'm just barely scratching the surface. I've spent more time with side-quests like bounty hunting and climbing the ranks in a cantina dueling ring than paying attention to the story itself. And training my character (Jack Sora, a hard-boiled smuggler) to wield dual blasters makes me so happy it brings a tear to my eye. I highly recommend checking it out, if you have, say, a month to kill. It should be noted that the game takes up 3.5GB of space, so be prepared. I even finally uninstalled Half-Life for it, so that should say something.
Unfortunately, like last time, something must balance out this greatness. While SW:KotOR is a magnificent achievement in RPGs, a game that finally brought PC-style depth to the console market (It came out for XBox months ago), the demo of Deus Ex: Invisible War makes helpless children cry out in agony as it whips them and sells them into slavery to chip away in a mine in India hoping that an archaeologist with a fedora will come save them. The game is a mess of controls that are so muddled it defines unintuitive and the heads-up display will get in your way most of the time rather than help you. If that wasn't enough, the game simply isn't very fun or interesting, it looks great, sure, but it's boring. The game is set to be released in roughly two weeks, so unless this demo is very, very old or showcases one of the worst parts of the game, I think we're all in for a big disappointment come December.
Long story short, go check out SW:KotOR if you're looking for something that's not only great fun, but giant in scope and surprisingly immersive. It's long and complex, though, so those of you that just dabble in games should be warned, as I'm told that it takes at least 45-50 hours to get through. You may be overwhelmed.
Also be wary when DX:IW comes out, because I still have confidence, but the demo has diminished it greatly.
I'll talk about the film festival eventually, as it's going to wrap up this weekend, but there are still a couple things I want to see.
-K.
They floozled their woozles
11-20-03, 8:21 PM
I've been shot... Just a little.
So, it seems as if the first annual Holiday Holocaust is being set for Wednesday, but the problem is that while the rest of you may be off, I, however, am not, and my last class of the day goes until 4:50 then I'll be caught in traffic. Oh well, it may not be as long of an event as I had hoped, but we'll get it worked out.
So, yes, I know, I haven't updated in a while, either, which has caused a whole zero of my three loyal readers to complain, but Tripod's been a son of a bitch lately, randomly going down. There's not much I can do about that.
Anyway, I still haven't gotten around to writing any game reviews, hopefully during the break I'll be able to write one or two of them. The main problem I'm having with writing the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time review is trying to invent a brand new word to explain how good it is, as it features the best platforming element I've ever seen along with one of the most enjoyable combat engines this side of... Well, anything. Imagine if ICO got the fighting system right and you'd be pretty close to the level of fun PoP achieves.
Conversely, Castlevania: Lament of Innocence is an oozing, puss-filled sore of a game that utterly defecates on the sacred franchise it's supposed to be expanding. Hopefully, you'll have my full thoughts on both of these soon, with more disgusting analogies to bodily functions.
I've just started playing Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic not even an hour ago and so far I'm impressed, simply because I've never really liked anything BioWare has made before, apart from MDK2. That's right, I didn't like any of the Baldur's Gate games or Neverwinter Nights. Now, I like a good RPG as much as the next person, like Fallout or Arcanum, but neither of those games really cut it for me. Games have to be fun, but I just found them to be tedious bores. Oh well, I'm going off on a tangent, SW:KotOR is good and that's all you need to know.
Wow, I meant to talk about the St. Louis International Film Festival that started last weekend, but I don't feel like typing anymore, so I guess that's something for tomorrow.
-K.
it's like a koala bear crapped a rainbow in my brain
11-09-03, 8:03 PM
One tires of being executed.
Get those computers upgraded, people, because I really want to get the ball rolling on the first annual Holiday Holocaust LAN party during Thanksgiving break.
I'd like to, if possible, make it a much bigger event than the one in August, so get ahold of anyone with a halfway decent system who'd be available. Don't expect any direct contact from me, though, as people wrangling and organization isn't my thing. You reading this, Travis?
Much Call of Duty must be played, as I am enjoying it more than Battlefield 1942, despite lack of vehicles. Even though the single-player is slow and thoroughly crapified, Halo multiplayer is still a blast. I've been digging the Contract J.A.C.K. demo as well, which is the upcoming expansion to No One Lives Forever 2 though if I can just dig up my copy of that we'll go with it. There's a good chance Worms 3D will get some play time, though I've yet to try the PC version. Who knows, we may also give that Mutli-Theft Auto a try. I don't mean to sound unflexible, but I'd really like to cut down on the Half-Life mods... The game's five years old, guys, it's time to let it go.
If you have suggestions on anything and/or just want to let me know you'll try to attend, let me know.
-K.
Super duper seven
11-05-03, 6:46 AM
Only the meek get pinched. The bold survive.
So, since I've screwed up my sleeping hours I've been going to bed around six or seven in the evening and waking up at two or three in the morning. I've spent my day so far playing Gladius and driving around a little, which is what I do if I can't think of anything else.
I eventually found myself at the Crestwood 24-Hour Schnuck's Super Center, which is probably the largest super market I've ever been in. I love Schnuck's because the ones I frequent have a refrigerated beverage aisle with just about every liquid in a bottle imaginable sitting there, already cold, waiting for your purchase and consumption. I entered this Schnuck's for a Wild Cherry Clearly Canadian, so I began my search for said area. This place was huge, gigantic, roughly the size of two or three regular supermarkets, so it had to be there, right?
The Crestwood Schnuck's is, I believe, seventeen million square miles in total area, and contains, if I got my information right, sixteen thousand aisles, eleven thousand deli meats, eight-five thousand kiosks selling Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Red Bull, and bolas, the Caspian Sea, an indoor airport, the state of North Dakota, George Wendt, and a herd of buffalo. I got this information from Bob the night clerk, who's friendly enough but a little slow, so I can't account for its veracity.
My journey begins in the massive produce section, which takes up roughly half of the supermarket, and boasts a full surround sound Bose speaker system playing Mozart's Symphony No. 30 (Bose, to this day, refuses to acknowledge my suggestion to change their slogan to "Drop some Bose on 'em"). My quest continues through the mile long frozen foods section and finally through the fully-decorated wine section, complete with a cedar lattice laced with fake ivy. However, no beverage section is to be found, and I must settle for a thoroughly bland bottle of Sierra Mist from the generic Pepsi refrigerator case.
Just thought I'd share that with all of you.
-K.
And I ran, I ran so far away
11-04-03, 6:29 PM
Yeah, well, uh, just keep your Power Gloves off her, pal, huh?
Okay, so, thanks for the suggestions, Theron.
I haven't been going to theaters often enough to do film reviews, though I did finally see Lost in Translation and it comes highly recommended. I'm probably going to go see The Station Agent some time soon, because I can't say no to a warm comedy of friendship where the protagonist happens to be a midget.
Turning the website into the official Treadmill Safety Productions site wouldn't accomplish much as it's pretty much defunct now, and I prefer the title of Slacker Films.
I am, however, planning to jam out a couple video game reviews as I've been getting back into my gaming groove. I finished Max Payne 2 the day after I got it, but I still go back to it every now and then. It's short, yes, but brilliant. I've also been spending a lot of time playing Call of Duty, the latest WWII-themed FPS that simply destroys everything else out there today, and it will be played at the next LAN party. I've been stimulating the tactical portion of my brain with two turn-based titles, Silent Storm, which I've mentioned in the past, and LucasArts' Gladius and both have been delicious.
Anyway, expect some full reviews some time in the future, whether that's the distant or not too distant future is unknown.
-K.
"There must be some kind of way out of here," said the Joker to the Thief.
11-02-03, 4:23 AM
You're too stubborn to die.
Simply because I don't know what else to do with myself, I'm not going to let the site die, I'm going to do something new with it.
I'm thinking about a redesign as well as a new title. I've since re-activated my e-mail account, so thoughts?
-K.
AHHH MOTHERLAND!
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