Skyrim: Dragonborn DLC (2012) Bethesda

Fus ra...oh here we go again.  Yes fine folks I finally picked up the Dragonborn DLC, primarily because there's fuck all else to play right now and even EVE gets tedious after a while.  If you have a good game to recommend or let me borrow that'd be cool.

Dragonborn is, actually pretty good, though for 360 it's still plagued with crap-ass load times, freezes, and glitches.  Last night the game froze on me about a half dozen times due to an auto-save bug.  This is the last time I play a Bethesda game on the console and quite possibly the last console I buy for a long time.

If it weren't for the glitches and bugs and the recurrent voice actors Dragonborn would be awesome.  Unlike Dawnguard, which was literally just more of the same, Dragonborn opens up a new island under the control of Morrowind.  Half of the island is a volcano ash wreck and the other is fairly familiar by this point.  The area design is different and while it's desolate there's some interesting stuff to look at.  There have been a couple of dungeons that actually surprised me by their design and puzzles.  There are new enemies which are pretty awesome and challenging if they take you off guard.  New armor, new weapons, loot, loot, loot...

What I am happiest about is simple - lots to explore and get rewarded for doing so.  I've spent two solid evenings of gameplay just wandering around.  Dragonguard has a lot packed into it and even more to reward exploration and patience.  There's a good number of sidequests (so far) based around treasure hunting and some tantilizing clues about further rewards for exploration.  In particular, it's not even a quest but there's a puzzle in a Dwemer ruin that can only be solved by going to the other Dwemer ruins.  Ancient ruins?  Treasure?  Fortune and glory?  Hell yeah!  However one of the puzzles in a Dwemer ruin took me about an hour to solve without a FAQ.  I said some bad words.

As for the DLC story arc?  I have no idea.  I haven't even started it.  You guys know me, as soon as I get the chance I book it cross country.  Story?  What?  Save what?  Huh?  Fuck you, I gots loots to find!  It drives some people nuts, especially if they are attempting to watch me play.  It's also part of the reason why I feel main story end game are often such a let down, I've done everything.  I'm basically a freaking God and then I just smash the end boss into a paste.  Personally I kind of miss the Dark World element in Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past or the insane time travel involved in Dragon Warrior VII (which I think is a better game than FFVII) - something to keep the game going to add some depth to it.  Oh well.

Is Dragonborn worth $20?  If it weren't so buggy, yeah.  All games have bugs, I know this - you know this, games freeze sometimes okay.  It's an imperfect world, screws fall out.  But at this point and for a company of Bethesda's stature, it's absurd.  In a way they remind me of the old joke about Jaguars, having to buy a mechanic when you buy a Jaguar or one of those super expensive dog breeds that's so in-bred it can't breathe right.  It's slovenly.

Basically, when Dragonborn is good, it is very, very good and when it is bad, it is awful.

Fallout New Vegas - the pre-seventh inning stretch review (80-90 hours)

Yeah you read that right, I'm coming up on the 90 hour mark.  I know I still have a long way to go (and one or two more reviews to wring out of the game) but here are my impressions at this point in the game.

Pros:

1. The story and the "mature" themes (not naughty or sexy though there are some) such as massacres by government forces, intrigue, double dealing, heavy alcoholism and drug dependence and some really depressing story arcs. 
2. Right now I have the choice between selling out one of my companions to a pretty nasty bunch of folks (for a high profit and the opportunity to turn around and murder all of them) or not selling her out and putting both me and her at risk of life and limb.  Or we can walk into the bastards' HQ guns ablazing.  Or I can stealth into the HQ alone and try to dig up incriminating evidence.  Or I could turn down the job.  Hmmm..."what would Joe do?  Shoot everybody, say something cool, and smoke some cigarettes..."
3. The characters and companions.  Two of my two new favorite game characters are in Vegas; Raul and Grandma Lily.  I am really enjoying the story arcs for Boone and Rose as well.
4. Crafting ammo.
5. Dealing with factions.
6. Planning my new character to RP - a drug addicted chemist/snake oil peddler with a mean streak and a proclivity for explosives.  Basically my evil character out to manipulate and murder his way across the Mojave.

Cons:

1. The glitches and bugs are pretty bad at times.  There will be long stretches where everything is hunky dory and then the engine hiccoughs and stutters.  Unfortunately I just don't think the game should have been published in this condition.  Reviews and gameplay would have benefitted immensely.
2. The load times can be a little frustrating at times, especially during step'n'fetch quests that require you to enter and exit several different areas.  That being said there's no rhyme or reason to the length of a load screen.
3. I wish you could choose between being a ghoul and a human.  This isn't really a con but I really would love to RP a ghoul.

So you take the good, you take the bad.  Fortunately I can and am ignoring the exterior on this rough gem because it's what's on the inside that counts.

Fallout: New Vegas (hours 6-11)

You're just gonna bear with me folks while I jabber on about Fallout: New Vegas  for the next few weeks (though I do have some reviews and recipes on the way I promise).

So here's some of the fun and the tips I've been picking up:

• Using Iron Sights is a great way to pick off targets at long distance that you would have no hope of hitting with VATS.
• Trick: click on VATS to get the location of the target, turn VATS off, you're very closely sighted on your target.  If you're hidden you get an auto critical hit.
• The next character is going to put some extra points into explosives.  I forgot how much I like blowing stuff up.
• When you are starting to explore and at a lower level - stay near the main roads.  Listen to people when they tell you, "Yeah, you might not want to go over there, the nutcases and monsters over there will make you have a no-good bad terrible day."
• Example: I was warned by some NPCs not to venture into an area.  Pfft stupid NPCs, what do they know?  I have guns, grenades, dynamite, and a motherfucking shovel.  Bring it!  Unfortunately it was broughten by three giant radscorpions and as I was fleeing a pack of feral reaver ghouls joined the chase.  I died within sight of the town.  Lesson learned.  Bring bigger guns and a shovel covered in chainsaws that drip acid.
• Obey the maxim "Stay alert, stay alive."  It might be the difficulty level I am playing on or it might be the fact that, unlike the DC wastelands, the Mojave desert didn't suffer the worst of the nuclear holocaust but whatever the case is - there are always things that want to cancel your living status.
• I love the bizarre humor of New Vegas.  It's kind of a subtle, "wait, what?"  kind of humor - the bizarre absurdity hits you after the moment has passed.
• Don't forget!  You can use VATS to detonate explosives in your foe's hand or mid-air if you are quick.  Nothing like the satisfaction of turning a ganger into scrapple with his own grenade.  Mmm...scrapple.
• Get yourself a scope or a pair of binoculars ASAP.

That's it for now Wastelanders. 

Fallout: New Vegas - very first impressions.

I resisted the influx of teasers, trailers, and press regarding Fallout: New Vegas. I skimmed the reviews collected on metacritic and was surprised that the game was not knocking reviewers on their asses.  Reviewers were bitching about two main issues, bugs and the "same old, same old" syndrome.  I respond, I played for five straight hours and didn't encounter any game crashes or bizarre glitches and it's not the same old, same old - it's not leftovers from Fallout 3 casseroled. 

So far I'm pretty pleased with the game.  Everything I liked about Fallout 3 is present and there are several tweaks I really dig.

1. Hardcore mode.  This mode not only more difficult but you have to monitor your sleep level, food level, and hydration - the same as you have to monitor your rads.  Ammunition now has weight so you can't run around with ten thousand rounds of every kind of ammo. 
2. Crafting is actually worth a shit now.  You can break down unused ammo into supplies and then use those supplies to craft better ammo (armor piercing, etc, etc).  You can combine ingredients at campfires for impromtu food, healing items.  It certainly makes for a more tailored style of game play.  I'm doing exceptionally well with a silenced .22 with HP rounds (one shot one kill if in stealth).
1. A trick for hardcore mode - while ammo has weight, the components do not.  What I did was break down all the ammunition I didn't have weapons for into components.  Plus I was able to craft some better ammo for the weapons I do use.  Better ammo is also better for maintaining your weapons.
3. I haven't gotten that far into the perks and upgrades so there will more info to come as I unlock those.
4. Iron sights!  Since my V.A.T.S is still low level I've been using the iron sights a lot.  This is great, since I got tired of using V.A.T.S as a crutch in Fallout 3.  Plus it helps for one shot, one kill, sneaky tactics.

There's a lot more depth to Fallout: New Vegas and it feels it's going to be a deeper role-playing experience than Fallout 3 or Dragon Age.  Some people might be put off by thought, strategy, skill, and some inventory management juggling.  To those people I say, "Go play fucking Halo."

Level Caps: Yay or nay? I say Yay.

I'm not sure who first introduced "level caps" in RPGs but I have to admit that I like them.  There are two particular reasons I like them: I love tinkering with a character and attempting to come up with the perfect balance of stats/skills/weapon emphasis for my final goal. I do not love demi-god characters unless the enemies can match the player in terms of skill/power/dangerousness. Having a level cap with opportunities (sidequests/loots) to boost skill points is my favorite balance that has shown up in Bethesda games and to certain extent Bioware. Additionally having a fallible character makes for more exciting gameplay/role playing experience.  As an in-game looter/kleptomaniac I tend to lean toward an archaeologist (thief/rogue) type of character but I never beef up my character's strength enough to carry huge amounts of loot.  Also I rarely end up in heavy armor, etc etc etc.  With a level cap I have to be more careful with what skills I take and how I distribute attribute points.  Without a level cap I can put points wherever I want and end up some kind of uber-mensch able to carry eighteen suits of armor, twenty-two weapons, and enough healing potions to open my own Red Cross.  Where's the fun in that?  What do you folks like?

Fallout 3 - Mothership Zeta (2009) XBOX 360 DLC

The Lone Wanderer in space! Fighting aliens!

That's the long and short of the new DLC for Fallout 3. I polished it off pretty neatly in a few hours. I used the Chinese Stealth Suit and ghosted through the ship, picking off the little grey bastards. If I had attempted to storm through the aliens would have presented a greater threat.

I think I preferred Point Lookout as far as Fallout 3 DLC goes. Zeta is kind of a one trick pony that doesn't really have any impact - as far as I can tell on Earth or your karma. Meh.

The new weapons are alien tech and would have been helpful at an earlier point in the game but at this juncture they won't replace my stand-by weapons. There isn't any armor - that I could find.

I can't 100% rec this download. It's only 800 MS points so the cost ain't bad but you might want to wait until Bethesda releases a single volume set and you begin a new character.

Fallout 3: Broken Steel review

Well, after some intense gaming sessions I polished off Broken Steel, hit the level 30 mark, and had a generally good time blasting the hell out Raiders, Muties, and the Enclave. I had a good time though I am kind of bummed out that there isn't any more Fallout until the next game.

The new DLC was enjoyable but I have two major problems:

1. The level thirty cap makes the game too easy even when I bumped up the difficulty to high. I was just kicking the shit out of the opposition. Sometimes that's fun but sometimes I want a challenge.

2. Lord have mercy but the DLC is buggy. I had a great number of freezes. Bethesda needs to add a patch ASAP.

Other than that the DLC is fun, lots of kick ass weapons, and the new enemies are fairly tough when you first encounter them.

Creating my new character in "Fallout 3"

I am going to create my neutral character and have juggled numbers and perks/skills and this is what I've come up with:

S.P.E.C.I.A.L.
Strength: 7
Perception: 7
Endurance: 4
Charisma: 3
Intelligence: 7
Agility: 6
Luck: 6

Skills:
Small Guns
Lockpick
Repair

Perks:
Black Widow/Lady Killer (lvl 2)
Intense Training (lvl 3)
Entomologist (INT 4, SCI 40)
Comprehension (lvl 5)
Gunslinger (lvl 6)
Bloody Mess (lvl 7)
Commando (lvl 8)
Impartial Mediation (lvl 9)
Animal Friend (lvl 10)
Finesse (lvl 11)
Sniper (lvl 12)
Silent Running or Fast Metabolism (lvl 13)
Adamantium Skeleton (lvl 14)
Light Step (lvl 15)
Action Boy (lvl 16)
Better Criticals (lvl 17)
Concentrated Fire (lvl 18)
Mysterious Stranger (lvl 19)
Grim Reaper's Sprint (lvl 20)

Quests after leaving Vault 101:
Securing a home in Megaton.
Operation: Alaska
Seek out all possible Bobbleheads.

Helpful Hints?

Operation: Alaska is a really easy set of missions, even for an early level character - it is supposed to be a VR training mission after all. The major bonus of completing this mission ASAP is power armor that does not degrade in quality, stealth armor - nice but eventually useless at higher levels, and my personal favorite the Degauss Rifle. The Degauss is a solid sniper rifle that will knock most targets (Deathclaws in particular) on their ass.

Securing a base at Megaton rather than Tenpenny Tower allows, not only better karma, but a more central home base. The sooner you save Megaton the better - allowing you to complete the Wastelander's Handbook and get a shit ton of XP in the process.

Bobbleheads:

First thing - DO NOT max your S.P.E.C.I.A.L. or Skills. Your stats do not go past 10 or 100 so use your points where actually needed. I suggest tracking down all the Bobbleheads you can from the get go. It may be tough and you might actually, gasp, die every once in awhile but it's totally worth it in the long run.

If you do plan on destroying Megaton get the bobblehead from the Sheriff's house first. There's another in the Enclave fortress that you can't miss, rather shouldn't.


Okay,

Now that Broken Steel is coming out I would suggest starting a new character and holding off on The Pitt. Apparently Broken Steel boosts the level limit from twenty to thirty so you need all the XP you can get.

Fallout 3: Operation Anchorage

Yeah, even if with a completely level one character Fallout 3: Operation Anchorage is easy and not a particularly ripping diversion. It's pretty much just a rail shooter but when all is said and done it's just a training vehicle.

On the upside:

• It's a great place to very quickly level a starter character.
• Having immediate access to a mountain of powerful equipment. The T-51b power armor is instantly wearable. Plus the Guass Rifle and Chinese Stealth Armor are helpful.
• It's an excuse to play Fallout 3.

Fallout 3: Operation Anchorage

The first downloadable content for Fallout 3 is available! Operation: Anchorage is a VR Combat Sim mission. According to the official site:

"The Brotherhood Outcasts are trying to acquire advanced military technology, and the only way to open the vault containing these relics is by completing a tactical simulation only you can enter. In Operation: Anchorage you will re-live the epic Battle of Anchorage from Fallout lore. Find your way into the simulation, stripped of resources, and survive within the rules set up by the simulation’s creators. The Chinese red army is everywhere, so secure the surrounding mountain side and fight your way into the Chinese base."

Neat!

I downloaded the content last night and played through the first few sections. It's pretty cool - nothing too insanely outstanding compared with the downloadable content that was released for Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. Once I finish off the new content I will give a full review.

Assorted Tuesday news:

Interesting piece of news: today I am going to get my first tattoo. Yeah, yeah I know I swore I would never get one. Actually I believe what I said was I never thought I would have an idea for something that I would want to have when I was eighty. So yeah. Expect some pictures and me yabbering on about the experience fairly soon.

In other news:

Fallout 3 is still chugging along however:

• My first piece of advice to new players is: if you want to get the most out of the game then avoid the skill that gives you more XP and the skill that gives you an automatic extra level. There is not really any point in picking up skills that only give you a few extra points in skills - i.e. Gun Nut only gives you 5 points in Small Arms and Explosives.
• I like the level cap - Level 20 - in Fallout 3 but gaining XP is absurdly easy on Normal Difficulty. Every computer hacked, lock picked, enemy killed, and side quest gives you XP that adds up very quickly.
• I've maxed out my levels and have hardly touched the main storyline. This makes completing quests much easier. They are still challenging but I'm not in mortal fear of getting blasted into little bits.
• In order to get your exploring/adventuring money's worth avoid the level 20 perk Explorer. It reveals all locations on the map. You still have to get there in one piece but some of the mystery is gone.
• Fallout 3 has a nasty habit of freezing. I don't know if there's a problem with my copy or with my ancient 360. Actually Fallout 3 freezes as much as Elder Scrolls: Oblivion did for what that's worth. Remember to save often and don't rely on the autosave file.
• Walter - resident of Megaton - has completely disappeared. Maybe he got a gig in the Republic of Dave but I seriously doubt it. I checked some of the forums and apparently Walter and some other characters have a nasty habit of phasing through the environment and dying or simply vanishing.
• The inhabitants of Little Lamplight are the current focus of my wrath - even more so than giant radscorpions. You'll find out.

On the upside:

• Yes, I have hit the level cap and have kick-ass armor and weapons and a hired goon - pictures pending - but wandering through the Wastes is still dangerous. Higher level critters are roaming around and the damned giant radscorpions show up in pairs - I loathe giant radscorpions but I am glad there aren't giant spiders...I might get too heebie jeebie out to play. I should have gotten the "does an extra 50% damage to insects" skill.
• I am still having a blast playing the game though I am glad I've eased back and playing less. It's an easy game to tear through - on Normal difficulty.
• The new bad guys are awesome. I will say no more about that.
• The main story - what I've played is pretty darn awesome and I actually regret some of the decisions I've made.
• Fallout 3 is the first RPG in a looooooooooooooooooooong time I am actually excited about playing through again. I've already started planning my next character. If I wasn't so far into the game time wise I'd start over. My new character is going to be a psychotic cannibal who likes melee attacks, long walks in the Wastes, enslaving the weak, and explosives.
• Oh and by the by: Dear Bethesda dudes. xoxoxo thank you for the rolling pin. It is the neatest.

Okay folks, time for me to get inked up or tatted or whatever it's called.

Fallout 3 to-do list 11/06/08 (possible spoilers)

Yes, I know, I know...

Hooligan Youth Reviews has turned into Hooligan Youth waxes rhapsodic about Fallout 3. When I see or do something non-school or Fallout 3 related you kind folks will be the first to know. I am kicking around the idea of doing an piece about why I usually play female characters in video games. Until then however here's a run down of my to-do list and fun things in Fallout 3.

1. I ran across slavers yesterday out in the Wastes. Fortunately they kept their distance. I found the slaver main base and have had an offer to be paid for slaves but personally I don't like the idea unless it's raiders or slavers. My god, do I actually have scruples?
2. During further investigation of the Wastes I found the Talon Mercenary HQ. These guys are a bunch of dicks who have had a contract out on me for quite some time. They have a tendency to show up at inopportune times. Pinche mercs.
3. As much as I love Sergeant RL-13 he is not the best back up in a fire fight. I think he is best used as back-up/pack mule for searching the Wastes. I haven't been able to figure how to repair damage but I'm working on it.
4. Not really a spoiler just a warning - if you're not well-armed or prepared AVOID OLNEY CITY. The place is crawling with critters called deathclaws. These nasty fuckers are some kind of horrible mutated version of something whose entire genetic code is made up of rage-o-hol. I shit you not. If you are going to go after these things I recommend blasting off their legs with grenades and land mines so they can't sprint and bound after you and then picking them apart at distance. I've heard the dart gun instantly cripples limbs but I don't have one yet.
5. I heard a rumor about a kick ass weapon being at the base of a statue next to the entrance to the Tepid Sewers. Will investigate for more info.

That is that for now. Time to go to math.

"People comma we the!"

Blah, blah, blah Fallout 3 is awesome blah, blah, blah.

The last post about Fallout 3 for awhile, I promise. No honestly.

I want to get a screen capture up of my character now that she has an awesome hat. Yeah that's right, an awesome hat.

Fallout 3 keeps expanding on me - every time I complete one quest I unlock two more.

Being rewarded for skills I like to use is a real joy. I realize that sounds absurd but in most rpgs being a weenie brainiac/stealth/sniper/conversationalist is pretty much a death sentence for a good part of the game.

Now that my skills are improving I am able to do some real damage and when I use a scope the crosshairs stay pretty much where they are supposed to. The combat shotgun is one of my favorite weapons - the line from Aliens always pops in my head, "I like to keep it handy for close encounters." It's funny because Close Encounters of the Third Kind...it's... whatever. Most of the heavy weapons I sell because I'm too much of a pussweed to use them effectively.

The score and soundtrack are both tip-top. I have turned off the score - it was a bit...melodramatic and I'm more a fan of ambient noise. Plus I like to hear what's coming ahead of time. You tote around a radio and can pick up stations. One station is bizarre pro-America rambling from the President (narrated by Malcolm McDowell). The other station I picked up is a mixture of blues, jazz, and big band. I listen to that when I'm just trekking around town.

One problem I'm running into with the game and apparently it's a common glitch: NPCs are disappearing from Megaton. It's kind of a pain in the ass because I have all this scrap metal collected to sell him. Pinche NPC.

Fun tip: On the upstairs level of Sheriff Lucas Simms' house, there is a trap door in the ceiling.

There's also some hilarious dialogue about the skewed vision of American history in a post-apocalytic world. If I can find it on the net I'll post it here.

Fallout 3 continued initial impressions.

After restarting and recreating my character - Moxie the nerdy, treasure hunting, mechanical repair, and explosives expert - I have gotten myself to a good solid point for really getting into the rest of the game.

A piece of advice for starting - the ign.com beginner's guide is helpful. While some games favour well rounded, jack-of-all-trades characters it seems like Fallout 3 is a specialist based game. I really enjoy being able to have a character that has "useless" skills and still be rewarded for using them. In Elder Scrolls: Oblivion the main skill sets I chose - Speech and Alchemy - weren't particularly useful or helpful. I take that back - alchemy was useful for crafting some gnarly poisons. In Fallout 3 speech and a higher charisma can unlock dialogue threads and if used successfully award XP. I also chose the skill "Child at Heart" - unlocks dialogue options with NPC children - because I was hoping I could take care of a deceased NPC's kid. I thought about reloading the prior save to choose a different skill but I'm going to keep "Child at Heart". One kid gave me the combination to her Dad's safe. Kids say the darndest things.

I really enjoy the survival horror aspects of the game as well. Combat - depending on the critter - is pretty harrowing at times. Two pieces of advice:

1. Learn to use the targetting system ASAP.
2. Don't waste ammunition on insects. Use a melee weapon.

I also unlocked a house to use as a base of operations and am probably going to spend the next block of game time trying to get enough funding to furnish the place. It's just nice to have place to stash equipment I don't want to sell.

Other cool things about Fallout 3:

NPCs have different personalities and different voices. If you've played Oblivion for any length of time then you know how boring/annoying it became to hear the same three or four voice actors for every character.

Crap got to go to work. More ranting later.

Have a good weekend. Happy Halloween.

Initial squeeing (aka enthusiastic) impressions of Fallout 3.

Here's why I'm wetting myself and almost wrote Fallout 3 related answers all over my Western Civ II test:

An RPG from the makers of Elder Scrolls: Oblivion set in a post-apocalyptic Washington, DC.

Squeee!

Oh yeah and the load times that plagued ES: O are virtually nil in Fallout 3.  I've only been able to play for a few hours last night and plan to restart when I get play tonight.  It looks like I'm gonna have to reorganize my skill points.  I checked the ign.com beginner's guide and I think my classic thief/nerd/hacker/sniper/treasure hunter is going to do a lot better in this game than in Oblivion.  One aspect I really dig is that a higher intelligence gives all of your skills a boost.  Of course if I wanted to play some kind of dreadnought I could do that too.

Another fun thing about Fallout 3 it is going to be the perfect game to listen to the Six-String Samurai soundtrack while playing.  Boogie boogie on the beach indeed.

Once the initial pants-wetting is over I will attempt to give Fallout 3 a more in-depth review.  

"Goodnight America and good luck."

p.s.

I was joking that the player character's father in the game sounded like Liam Neeson - well mocking actually - "Lookit me,  I'm your father, oh oh oh, I sound like a Liam Neeson knock-off, oh oh oh."  Yeah...well...you see...it actually is Liam Neeson.

and Ron Perlman as the narrator - doing a much better job than he did in the Conan game...

and Malcolm McDowell is the voice of the President

So, apologies gentlemen.  Awesome work.