The Gaming Industry as I See it.

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I’ve played quite a few games growing up, but I don’t feel that it became a hobby for me until I discovered Halo in 2001. I’ve blogged about it. Gaming was a lot different fourteen years ago than it is today and I can’t quite put my finger why that is. The Internet has provided an outlet for everyone’s opinion (much like this blog) and it’s a lot more popular now than it has ever been. This is evidenced by the scores of gamers consistently yelling at each other and developers about almost anything. Gaming news has grown exponentially, but my realization of this could simply be because I didn’t read much of the gaming news available fourteen years ago. The biggest thing I’ve noticed, however, is the quality of games being made as well as corporate greed rearing its ugly head.

Once upon a time I would purchase every game that I was interested in. This was a time before Gamefly was a thing and before I had bills. I grew accustom to purchasing games before I had any idea how good or bad they might be. This risk was like an expensive version of eating a piece of assorted chocolate not knowing what the taste might do to your body. Certain companies earned my trust because they didn’t release the game version of whatever that chocolate is with the pink crap inside. Game franchises have also made blind purchases easier for me because I’m familiar with their brands and clearly enjoy them. Halo, Mario, Sonic, and Uncharted are just a few examples of that. 

Yet franchises mark the beginning of how different things are now compared to when I started gaming. Every title released in a franchise has the potential to be nothing more than a rough copy and paste of the previous title, only with better graphics. Think of Call of Duty as an example. I don’t care what anyone says, the core experience of that game has been practically the same since Modern Warfare came out and yet people still buy it regardless. They’re selling us the same product and it’s successful because of the title on the box. This reminds me of a quote from Tommy Boy, not word for word, “I could take a crap in a box and slap a guarantee on it if that’s what you want, but all you’re getting there is a guaranteed piece of shit.” That’s exactly how I feel about Call of Duty, each year it’s a piece of shit with the name brand slapped on the box for the comfort of those who don’t want to risk sixty bucks on something that may or may not suck.

Call of Duty epitomizes what can happen to franchises that release games annually. The experience is nearly identical with a fresh coat of polish to make it look nicer. Then they add a difference here and there to make people think they’re getting something totally new and worth another sixty bucks. But it’s a facade. What’s really happening is the quality of these games decrease with every new title. Not every franchise is like this, though, so don’t let me being jaded towards Call of Duty deter you from liking it.

Once the quality goes down in our games it feels like we’re paying a lot more and getting a lot less. Let’s look at Sim City 2013. Its colossal failure at launch was ugly and only proved to the world that corporate greed was at play. First and foremost they wanted us to stay connected to the Internet in order to play it, a primarily single player game. The thought alone of that is annoying enough, but when they did that they must have overlooked the fact that their servers weren’t ready. So they crashed and the game was garbage for however long it was because EA thought they were successfully battling pirates.  Even when it was playable it was a half assed version of what we’ve grown to expect out of a Sim City game. I dumped sixty bucks on this “masterpiece” without thinking because I loved previous city building games and yet it bit me in the ass.

Fast forward to 2014, the year of disappointment in my book. First we have Watch Dogs from a company I trusted to put out good games, Ubisoft. They’ve made some of my favorite franchises, Assassin’s Creed, Splinter Cell, and Far Cry. So when Watch Dogs was rolling its hype train deep into my brain I got really excited. I could write an entire article on why Watch Dogs sucked and how Ubisoft half assed the game. The subpar graphics, mediocre story, and generic gameplay all rolled into one was disheartening. Why can I shoot random people if I want yet I’m unable to punch them in the face? Why the hell can’t I jump! What is going on?

September rolled around and we got Destiny a game developed by my beloved Bungie. The creators of Halo! Destiny was going to be so awesome and then it tanked. It’s very fun to play, but it’s an unfulfilling experience. It lacks a story, period. The story that is present makes you feel like a bunch of it was cut out for whatever god-forsaken reason. After completing the game you find yourself replaying the same missions over and over and over and over and over again in order to level up, earn new gear, level up that gear. It’s a grindfest and it’s my absolute worst nightmare in a game. I felt very betrayed here because I held Bungie up high on an undeserved pedestal because…Halo. They’ve lost that trust.

Finally, and this one is a real doozy for me, Halo The Master Chief Collection. This IS my game. Four games wrapped into one with every single multiplayer intact. Holy shit balls I was ready to relive my Halo 1 and Halo 2 experiences with my friends and it was going to be all I ever needed until I died. That was until the game released and didn’t work for close to FOUR MONTHS. That is completely unacceptable and yet I threw my money at them because not only was it coming from a company I trusted, but also because I’ve played all four of those games on the previous two generations of Xbox and they worked just fine. Again, I can write forever on this subject and have even posted on article on it already.

Ubisoft finished up my year with three games that not only burned the bridge of trust I’ve had with them, but helped me lose faith altogether. Assassin’s Creed Unity had its massive hiccups as well as The Crew. Far Car 4 is a fantastic experience if you wanted to relive the exact same experience you had in Far Cry 3. Well, minus the good story in Far Cry 3 and in the mountains instead of an island.

So what we have here is a list of games that came out in the past two years that have been broken upon release, had a lack of content, or simply sucked. I know it’s happened in the past and perhaps having social media and gaming news constantly at my finger tips pushes these items up on the list of what is and isn’t important, but part of me finds it truly odd that all of this happened in the past year and I haven’t even mentioned the flop that was Drive Club. The thing that truly baffles me about this, though, is that more and more big companies are spending loads of money on their games and yet here we are getting less in return. Destiny cost half a billion dollars to make and the amount of content within its universe is abysmally small. You’d think with larger production costs that we’d at least see better quality in our games. I don’t need a game that is busting at the seams with content if more than half of that content is simple fluff, but I do expect a certain standard of quality. Hell I expect the game I purchased to actually work *cough* Halo *cough*.

Console games haven’t always had the luxury of patching their titles as games on PC have. It wasn’t until the last generation that this became a thing and we would see all sorts of titles forcing day one patches. That’s because it gives them a bit of extra time to finish the game. But what’s the rush? Why not pretend like it’s ten years ago when you had to make sure your game was as perfect as it could be because you wouldn’t get a chance to fix it? It’s because gaming is a billion dollar industry and the faster you push games out the door the faster a brother gets paaaaaaid. I believe that since gaming has grown into a huge money making business that corporate greed has begun to settle and tearing away the quality that use to come in a game and replacing it with useless content (fluff) that’s safe.

It reared its ugly face, for me anyway, with companies like EA forcing people to buy online passes if people who bought used copies wanted to play their game online. It seems weird to me. Someone bought that new copy of the game so it isn’t like there are two different people somehow playing the same copy simultaneously from different locations. That one purchase still shows up as one person online.  Well obviously used games are killing development studios, right? I don’t think so. It’s when distributors like Gamestop try selling you a used copy for five bucks cheaper than a brand new copy only a week after the game came out that I think hurts the industry, but I digress.

Downloadable content (DLC) has become a big issue over the past decade. I remember a time it was a labor of love where the developers of our favorite games gave us the chance to play more content. PC gamers are familiar with this stuff in the form of expansion packs to their favorite games. Unlike expansion packs, which came with a lot more content, presumably, DLC was hashed out in smaller doses. Here are five maps for Halo 2 at the low price of ten bucks.  Sweet deal, and we bought it because we wanted to and the developers made it because they wanted to. Sure they could easily make some extra scratch, but that isn’t the only reason they did it. As time progressed the cost of DLC rose. Five bucks for this, ten bucks, and now fifteen dollars. While some of it is well worth the money, it soon began to look like a desperate grab for some extra cash. Finally it seemed that every game was doing it.

Then DLC grew into a model I really have distaste for. Season passes. At first I thought this idea was brilliant, I could pay ahead of time and simply get all the DLC. Whoo! But I’ve soon realized that paying early for content makes it so the developer could release a steaming pile of shit (guaranteed) because I’ve already given them my non-refundable money. What am I to do then? They can give the three DLC packs as promised, but there isn’t a guarantee on how much content there will be nor the quality of that content. We’re basically just throwing our money into their pockets and hoping that they provide a worthwhile experience. We’re showing them good faith by paying for something that isn’t here yet and it’s disgusting. It’s gotten to the point where season passes are being sold before the fucking game is even out! Batman Arkham Knight is currently selling fans a forty-dollar season pass for their unreleased title. Disgusting.

All of this stuff is designed to milk the games we’re buying for as much money as these developers and publishers can get out of them. While at the same time we aren’t seeing anything new. Sure we get a few new IPs here and there but how often do they sell well? The Last of Us did great, but that title fits under the trust we have for Naughty Dog, which has provided very successful games in the past. But what about games like Kingdoms of Amalur, developed by 38 Studios? That game wasn’t all so terrible and yet the studio went bankrupt. Why is that? Well this whole business model is terrified of that very thing happening. These companies spend millions of dollars developing a game and they don’t know how well it will sell. They don’t know because gamers themselves are scared. Every time we spend sixty bucks we are risking our hard earned money on something that, for most people, is expensive.

So what this boils down to is gamers purchasing things that they are comfortable with. Call of Duty 14, Halo 10, Tomb Raider 12, whatever. That’s why franchises like Assassin’s Creed are releasing games every damn year because it’s usually a safe bet for gamers. So these companies doing that wind up making loads of cash while selling you the same damn thing over and over again and never truly providing something fresh and new. On top of that they sell you DLC to keep you playing that game so you won’t take it back to Gamestop after three days to get something else. It’s DLC that has been in production before the actual game has even released. Hell, this DLC may have been stuff that was taken from the original game and then sold to you for additional money.

Sidebar: The attention span of gamers these days is ridiculous. Gamers rarely finish their games and often times when they buy a brand new title, it’s being traded in for something new a week later. What in the holy hell people? Am I the only person who likes to see most of his games all the way through to completion?

So all of this stuff to milk games on top of many games being rehashed or unimagined versions of what they should be has really lowered the quality of games where as ten years ago we were getting twice the content and quality. It’s because they don’t care as much about their games anymore as they use to. Developing a game use to be a labor of love while now it seems to be a massive cash grab. Who cares if the game sucks as long as we make a profit from it and we can do that by hyping up the game and making look like something it isn’t. Who cares if the game is broken, it’s got Halo in the title and we can just fix it in four months and forget about in favor of the next game we’re going to release. There is no integrity I tell you.

But there is light during these dark times. Indie games are the way of the future and after the last AAA studio has fallen to their own greed (will never happen), Indie games will be right there trucking along. The production cost is a lot lower and this allows them the creative freedom to try new and exciting things. Since the production cost is lower they can sell their games for cheaper meaning more gamers may be willing to take a risk. I recently had the pleasure to spend 12 hours playing through Ori and the Blind Forest and I can tell you that I got more from that 12 hour experience than I ever did with the forty plus hours I put into Destiny. 20 dollars worth of game valued my time more than a 60-dollar game did. I know there are probably crappier indie games out there on the market, but that’s because they can afford to be shitty. They’re at least trying new things rather than rehashing the same experiences we’ve been “enjoying” over and over in other popular titles.

I’m now realizing that this whole article is nothing but a giant rant, but I’ll try to sum things up here and end it. I’ve lost my trust in the companies that make games for me to play. I feel that they lack any real effort in the games they release so that they can produce them faster and milk the fans for additional money on DLC. As a result we’ve seen crappier quality in our games than we used to. I feel that indie development is the way of the future. Regardless, I’ve made it so I won’t pre-order games anymore, no matter how much I like being able to pre-download them and play them at ten the night before release. What’s the point of me showing good faith to a company that may not even deliver a functioning game? I only buy DLC when it’s on sale and if it’s for a game that I really enjoyed.

Seriously. Trust will take you a long way. You may be able to fool the idiots out there or the rich people who don’t care, but I’m hoping with all of my heart that gamers unite and force corporate greed out of the picture. Make games because you love games; don’t make games because you want a fat check. Have some integrity and earn that fat check the way you’re supposed to. Great quality products WILL make money. Okay, the end. Mad props if you read this whole thing. Rant over.

My Return

When I was younger I had gotten engaged to a woman I didn’t love. It was a lustful relationship that ended with constant fighting. I remember sitting at my thinking spot in Cheyenne and texting her that it was over. I can’t remember why it was over, but I was so mad about something that I was going to make her suffer. At the time I didn’t really mean it and thought she would beg me to stay, but she agreed that it was over and that hurt me the most. I made a rash decision that I almost immediately regretted. Thinking back on this now I can tell you that her and I were never meant to be, and that’s okay. But the situation itself, where I hastily did something I knew I really didn’t want to, came into my head as I emptied the recycling bin on my computer. What had once been in that bin was a folder with at least two-dozen blogs I’ve written and never posted online because I thought they sucked. It feels like I erased a part of myself because what was in those blogs were thoughts and emotions I had felt about certain subjects ranging from why Far Cry 4 is amazing and crappy at the same time to what life has been like as a single dad.

I still have all those thoughts and feelings for those subjects, but never again will I be able to write them with such a fresh palate of emotions. A friend of mine has been telling me to just write and post what I wrote without revision or editing, which to me sounds insane. If I did that my blog would be full of diarrhea in the form of words. No, I must still edit my work, but the realization that other people may like my writing even though I don’t hit me like a ton of bricks. I’ve been living the past year and a half of my life in a self-loathing environment where I have been a victim to someone else. My wife left me for another man. She’d never admit that it was for another man though, but instead would go on to explain why I’m such a skid mark to society that she couldn’t take it anymore. I bought into that whole-heartedly and let those feelings control me. Maybe she’s right about me. Maybe I do suck at life and don’t deserve things that I work for. But the reality is that she is wrong about me. I don't suck at life and I do deserve the things I work hard for. Before this happened I was always eager to write and share my opinion with the world. I was always very excited to write a new story so I could post it online for people to read. That ambition has been silent for so long. In truth it’s never been silent, it’s been buried deep within me and it screams to get out. The sound, however, has been muffled by the much louder sound of me feeling sorry for myself.

I say no more to that. People have been telling me to pick my balls up out of the dirt and move on. Don’t let this one person and event drag you down. Clearly I ignored that and in doing so I’ve destroyed a beautiful landscape I had filled with words, and for what? A writer who doesn’t write really isn’t a writer, is he? I mean, who cares that I just graduated with a writing degree? If I’m not actually writing, that degree just becomes a piece of paper that is as useful as the roll I have sitting next to my toilet. If you don’t practice your craft and get better at it then you’ll never become anything. What if Stephen King gave up? We wouldn’t know his genius and the world wouldn’t be rich with his amazing stories. I’m not comparing myself to him, of course, but he is a prime example that hard work and dedication can pay off. Anything in this life worth having is worth working hard for and it will never come easy.

That’s why my blog is back, that is why I am writing this now. No doubt in my mind I’ll hate every word of this as I go through to revise it, but the world will see it anyway. I know I have a talent for this and that is why I pursued it in the first place, but I need to get over this self-loathing and realize that not everything I write is garbage. So with all of that being said, I have decided that I will be writing for at least one hour a day. Practice makes perfect, right? Practicing my craft WILL make me better and that is what I’m hoping for. It’s my goal to post at least one blog per week, get the script for my graphic novel finished, start writing a game, and even a novel. My mind is full of all sorts of crazy shit. I’m a dreamer who concocts insane stories in his head and it’s time those stories see the light of day.

Halo: The Master Chief Collection is a Broken Game

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In what was supposed to be a love letter to fans, Halo: The Master Chief Collection has turned out to be a great disservice to those who have loved and followed the franchise for years. It’s been almost two weeks since its release and, even with one huge patch, the game is broken on a colossal scale. I understand that it must have been hard to compile four games into one and making it so we can relive the Halo CE and Halo 2 games in online multiplayer again and for that I’m truly grateful. But that doesn’t excuse the fact that they pushed this game out the door with so many issues that it truly baffles me that it made it past quality assurance. Here are the issues I’ve personally seen since Halo released last Tuesday and that’s including the recent patch.

     -Insanely long wait times to find a match. Every now and then I can get a match within minutes, but after that game is over I usually have to wait 10-15 to find another suitable game. Hell, even when you find a game there are issues.

     -The match has been found, teams have been set, but the game never starts. It pretends to start and just as I get fed up and ready to leave it takes us to a post game carnage report that states the match was incomplete. No shit. It never even started.

     -Uneven teams. This is probably the most annoying thing to come across. You wait as long as you do to get a game only to wind up on a team of four going against a team of six. Halo CE through Halo 3 are all multiplayer games that rely heavily on teamwork,   weapon control, and map control. You have no idea how easy it is to gain weapon and map control when you out number the other team by even one person. Not all is lost. I’ve been playing team slayer a lot and I have won a decent share of games when we were out numbered, but I’ve lost even more. This is also not to   say that I haven’t been on the team with more people, but even that is less fun because it’s all too easy to dominate the other squad. So you can either take your chances and get walloped or you can be the one doing the walloping, regardless, it makes for a game not as   fun as I remember.

     -Halo CE and Halo 2 seem to have issues with registering shots on other players. I’m not sure if this is because someone in the match is hosting the game, even though we’re supposed to be on dedicated servers, or if it’s an actual issue with the game. In Halo CE I’ve peppered entire clips of a pistol into someone’s head and detonated a grenade right at their feet and they just walked away unharmed while I faced a cold and brutal defeat. The beautiful thing about the Xbox One is that I can now record proof of things like this when they happen, and I have. Halo 2 it’s less noticeable but it’s still there. Same scenario where it takes more than it should to kill someone.

     -Getting friends into your lobby is a freaking pain in the ass. More often than not we’ve had to completely reset Halo in order for this to work. I’ll accept a game invite and wait minutes before being dragged into the game, if it takes me at all, or it tells me that it failed. Once you are in a group I’ve found wait times to be much longer than if I were searching by myself. Hell, any of the issues I stated before this become more annoying when you’re with a group of people. Especially if you can’t find a game and you have to back out to restart the search because…

     -Every time your party leader has to back out of a search or tries to back out after the completion of a game, the whole party is split up and you must then go through the trouble of getting back together. This seems to be a tiny bit better since the patch, but it’s still troublesome enough to mention here.

     -I’ve experienced a one second delay in campaign that makes shooting, melee, and diving for cover simply pointless. I have only played one level and I was connected to a friend of mine who was hosting the game, so I’m not sure if it was a straight up lag issue or not. I’ll have to test out the mission again by myself to see if I experience the same thing.

So there you have it, all those issues are just what I’ve experienced, but if you care enough to read this you’ll know that there are dozens of other issues that people are having. Hell, if you look at 343’s patch notes it was such an ungodly long list of crap that truly has baffled me. How does a game have this much wrong with it and they didn’t catch it before it came out? It feels like a cash grab that was rushed out before it was ready and that is truly disappointing to me. I love Halo and have been a huge fan since the first day I’ve played it. I have the all the Halo related soundtracks, novels, and comics. Hell I even purchased the legendary edition of Halo 3 that came with a statue of Master Chief’s helmet. So when I’m told by other fans to suck it up and wait, it pisses me off. Prepare yourself for a rant on how much I hate apologists.

First off, stop apologizing for 343. You people do not owe this company anything and they most certainly do not owe you anything. Granted, I say kudos to them for fixing their game, or attempting to, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to sit back and take it lying down like Jody Foster in The Accused. They don’t have to fix the multiplayer issues if they don’t want to. Hell we all already forked over our cash to them for a broken game. Luckily they want to sell Halo 5 next year and they most certainly need to save face here. But people on the Internet are so annoying about this. You cannot complain about the game being broken without being called an impatient noob. Seriously? I paid money for a broken game that I have wanted to play since the day it was announced but I can’t because it’s broken and that makes me impatient? How about I’m pissed because I feel duped. More and more these days companies are releasing broken games and the apologists are saying, “hey guys, relax while they fix it, go play something else,” or “it’s only sixty bucks, are you that broke?”

That’s not the point. No I’m not broke and I’m not impatient. When I hand my money over for a product, I expect that product to work. I wouldn’t have minded waiting a few extra months for them to polish this game before releasing it, but the fact that I can load it up and still not play it is very frustrating. What if you purchased a car that promised you an amazing CD player or heated seats or something and they didn’t work? I bet money you’d throw a fit over it and would be back at that dealership to raise hell. You wouldn’t be all content with waiting weeks after your purchase for them to fix what they promised to give you in the first place. The same goes for phones, tablets, and whatever other technological product you bought that didn’t work as advertised. This isn’t like going to McDonalds and not getting the extra fries you asked for.

What these apologists don’t understand is that it’s not about the money we spend on the product; it’s about our relationship with the people who create these things we love so much. If they release a broken product and you’re content with them and patient while they iron it out, then why wouldn’t they just continue to do that for future games? We already see enough day one patches for every game that is released and that tells me they ship games that aren’t finished in the first place. Sure those day one patches usually fix issues we’ll never see, but that is obviously not always the case. So if we stand idly by why developers do this kind of stuff then we’re saying it’s okay for them to continually do it in the future and it’s not. Raise hell like people did with the Mass Effect 3 ending that caused Bioware to release a free extended cut. Raise hell like people did when Microsoft threatened to impose unwanted restrictions on your gaming with the Xbox One that caused them to do away with them. We have a voice people! Use it.

So by now you’re probably wondering why I haven’t returned the game and I’m sure this will make me sound like a hypocrite, but it’s fun. When I can actually get into a game with even teams it’s fun as hell and takes me back to ten years ago when I was in my first year of college. All I would do is go to school, hit up my part time job, and play Halo 2 until I passed out. All those amazing LAN parties I had with family and friends can now be re-lived and I Just want it to work the way it was advertised. I will not buy Halo 5 unless there is a way I can snag it for free. I WILL NOT give 343 any more of my money until they can prove they can make a game that isn’t broken upon release. I know it’s going to be super hard for me to do that when the time comes because I’m sure this whole thing will be resolved and put behind us, but I have to make a statement to them and every other company. I won’t buy games anymore until I know they released and are functionally working. With that being said, I’m going to go enjoy more Sunset Overdrive because at least that game has been working since the moment I downloaded it. I’ll try writing a blog about that game because MY GOD it’s amazing.

The Matter of Choice in The Walking Dead Games

SPOILER ALERT!! THE FOLLOWING CONTAINS MASSIVE SPOILERS FROM THE WALKING DEAD GAME SEASONS ONE AND TWO. BUT I’M GUESSING IF YOU HAVEN’T PLAYED THEM BY NOW THEN YOU REALLY HAVE NO INTENTIONS OF EVER DOING SO AND YOU MAY NOT EVEN CARE WHAT I HAVE TO SAY. REGARDLESS, IF YOU PLAN ON PLAYING THESE GAMES, DON’T READ THE FOLLOWING BECAUSE IT’S GOING TO SPOIL THE CRAP OUT OF EVERYTHING AND YOU ONLY HAVE YOURSELF TO BLAME FOR NOT TAKING FIVE SECONDS TO READ THIS SMALL, ALL CAPS MESSAGE.

The Walking Dead games use story as a game play mechanic and it has truly innovated the way stories can be told in an interactive medium. I wanted to talk about these two stories in particular because I have recently played through both of them a second time and realized that these games, despite their amazing stories, totally fumble the whole, your choice changes the game, thing. Or perhaps it’s us who misunderstood the intentions of the choices given.

The first thing that stands out about The Walking Dead is that the story is decided based on the decisions you make. Haha I’m totally kidding! Your journey is determined by your choice, not the story itself. Regardless of the many choices you’re given throughout the entire franchise, The Walking Dead games tell the exact story they intend to tell. Let’s look at some examples.

Lee is still going to die after his zombie bite. It doesn’t matter if you choose to have his arm cut off or not. You’re still going to sit through that terribly emotional scene where, in my case, I had Clementine shoot him. Rough stuff.

That scene with Lee confronting Clementine’s kidnapper plays out EXACTLY THE SAME WAY, even if you played the game totally different the second time around. Seriously, his primary beef with you and your crew is when everyone stole his supplies, which in turn caused his wife to leave him and wind up dying. Play the game differently and try not to steal his stuff and your group robs his ass blind anyway and he still thinks you’re the world’s biggest asshole despite the fact that you sat on the sidelines.

I saved Carly instead of Doug because I thought maybe being her knight in shining armor would get me laid. I saved Doug the second time around because I knew Carly wasn’t going to put out. Doesn’t matter though because not only did Doug also fail to put out, but he is still shot in the face by Lilly the same way Carly was.

I saved Duck instead of Shawn because he was the helpless little boy. The second time around I saved Shawn instead. What happened? Duck still gets saved and Shawn still winds up being a human happy meal. The only difference is that you piss Kenny off and have to spend the rest of the game with him reminding you of what a dick move that was.

I helped Kenny drop a salt lick on Larry’s head when he died. What happens if you play it differently? Well, instead of helping Kenny drop a salt lick on Larry’s head, I helped Lilly try to revive him. Guess what happened? Kenny dropped it on his freaking head anyway, only this time Lilly wasn’t mad at me. Still, that didn’t stop her from becoming a psychotic team killing fuck tard.

So the game doesn’t really adapt to your choices in a way that determines the ending. Think of each decision as a fork in a road. Each side of that fork will be different, but in the end the roads are connected again.

Season Two plays out the same way. No matter what you do you can’t save Pete or Alvin, Arvo still brings his gang after you and winds up shooting you, and Kenny will definitely get his face smashed in by Carver. Probably the most annoying thing in Season Two, for me any way, was Luke’s death. You can either not help him and watch him drown, or you can try to help him, fall in the lake, get saved by Luke, and watch a zombie drag him down where he’ll drown anyway as he’s being simultaneously eaten. That scene just feels like a slap in the face. Like who cares? Why bother saving him if there is no chance he makes it off of this frozen lake either way?

People boast about Season 2 having like five different endings and they’re wrong. There’s five different ways to reach the end, but the end is the same regardless. It’s just a matter of who will be standing next to you when you get to that point. Clementine and the baby will be there every time. But did you let Kenny kill Jane (you’re an ass if you did)? Or did you shoot Kenny? From there you can either forgive the victor and they’ll join you or you can choose to go your own way. So in reality there is one ending, just multiple different choices you can make as to who will be with you.

One other thing I’ve learned from playing these games twice is there are no good choices, ever. You’re always a douche bag to someone. Even if you try to play neutral, you’re decisions always seem to have a negative consequence. The entirety of Season One is like that. Quite literally everything you did for Clementine as Lee (our hero) is used against you at the end when the kidnapper tells you how terrible you’ve done raising a little girl in the apocalypse. Like there’s a right way? Of course he says this to you moments before he opens a bowling bag with his dead wife’s zombie head inside and starts talking to it. I’m sure that’s less emotionally jarring to a little girl than teaching her how to defend herself against the dead people trying to eat her.   

Regardless of that crazy bastard, other characters judge the living piss out of you. Did you try save Omid or his pregnant girlfriend, Christa, as they tried jumping onto the train? Doesn’t matter, the person you saved first will verbally attack you for not saving the other person before them, even though you wind up saving them both. Um, you’re fucking welcome! At one point you’re tasked with passing out five food items to people when there are eleven in your group. Yet instead of people being understanding adults and letting the kids eat first, they gripe at you like the selfish babies they are.

How about the cannibal farm? Oh it wasn’t really just my idea to come out to this farm and trade gas for some of their food during a time where only some of us got to eat today, right? I mean, we were all kind of like, starving and wanting food. Yet when we realized we were eating our wounded pal, who we thought was being taken care of by these awfully nice farm folk, it’s all of a sudden my fault that we were there. Piss off people. Kenny got pissed off because I put a girl out of her misery while she was being eaten alive. So selfish was he to use her as a distraction while we got away. Imagine dying a painful death where human teeth are ripping your flesh right off of you. Yeah, shoot me if that’s ever happening to me. Regardless, if you let her live the zombies still find and chase you. Some good that did.

Don’t let any of this deter you. If you’ve read this far and still want to play these games, despite me having ruined everything, I implore you to do so! You have to understand that your choices will not put a dent in how the story is played out, but that story is just so amazing. The relationship between Lee and Clementine is so strong that when its foundation is shook, you cannot help but feel the real human pain these fictional characters can’t. I won’t lie. I cried a couple of times during the first game. Watching as the young Duck dies from his zombie bite was tragic to me and not just because I’m a dad. Watching his parents walk him out into the woods all I could hear is his harsh shallow breathing and it just crushed me. That entire scene was tragic. If you have played this game and didn’t shed a tear as Lee had to say goodbye to Clementine then you’re a sociopath who probably murders people for fun.

So with all of this said it’s hard to harp on The Walking Dead games because they are truly amazing experience to have as a gamer. I just feel there is a misconception on what your choices are intended to do. I’m not sure if that stems from the developer telling us that the choices effect the game or if it’s us gamers assuming that a game that includes choice must provide us different conclusions. Regardless, this is a fantastic franchise and I look forward to Season Three.  

The Game Off

INT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY

DEXTER, 27, thin and scrawny with trimmed brown hair, wears a headset. He plays a game on his computer.

                         DEXTER
               (Into headset)
               Zac cover the left side! Laura I need to be healed!

Dexter CLICKS his mouse ferociously.

INT. ZAC’S HOUSE - BEDROOM - DAY

ZAC, 24, heavyset with shaggy hair and tight clothes, wears an identical headset as Dexter. He frowns at his computer screen.

                         ZAC
               (into headset)
               Dex I’m getting slaughtered!

                         DEXTER (V.O.)
               Hold it or we’ll fail the whole thing.

INSERT - COMPUTER SCREEN

ZAC’S GAME CHARACTER, a large blue warlock, swings a large club. A mob of ENEMIES surround him and shoot him with arrows.

A final arrow strikes him in the head. He falls to the ground.

BACK TO SCENE

                         ZAC
               Damnit!

Zac SLAMS the desk with is hands.

INT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY

Dexter shoves his keyboard away from him.

                         DEXTER
               Zac!

Dexter runs his hands through his hair.

INT. CHAD’S OFFICE - DAY

CHAD, 25, stunningly handsome with blonde hair and blue eyes, sits back in his seat and grins.

                         CHAD
               Uh oh, you done pissed off our fearless leader. Better run, Zac.

Chad drinks from a cup.

INT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY

Dexter sits at his desk.

                         DEXTER
               I’m not mad. It’s just, Laura’s boyfriend is probably wanting her to get off and we’ll have to wait until tomorrow to try again.

INT. LAURA’S HOUSE - BEDROOM - DAY

LAURA, 28, beautiful, slightly heavyset, wears an aged headset, presses a button.

                          LAURA
               No, we can try again. What’s another two hours amongst friends?

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               Prince Charming is cool with that?

                         LAURA
               Chris and I broke up a couple of months ago.

INT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY

Dexter perks up in his seat.

                         DEXTER
               Wow, I guess we’ll have to go out some time, haha.

Dexter pauses.

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               I’d pay to see that. The most socially awkward person on the planet out on a date with Laura.

                         ZAC (V.O.)
               He’s not socially awkward.

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               Maybe not online. But I remember Dex in high school as the senior who always ate lunch in the corner by himself.

Dexter’s Frowns.

He reaches for the power button on his computer.

                         ZAC (V.O.)
               Dude what the fu...

Dexter powers off the computer. He stands up and walks towards an open door.

INT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - BEDROOM - DAY

Dexter falls face first into his bed.

EXT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - DAY

Zac gets out of his car, walks to the front door, and knocks.

Dexter opens the door.

                         DEXTER
               What are you doing here?

                         ZAC
               Well since you were ignoring my calls, I figured I’d make sure you didn’t hang yourself.
             
                         DEXTER
               I didn’t.

                         ZAC
               Clearly.

Dexter and Zac look at each other.

                         ZAC (CONT’D)
               So, are you going to invite me in?

Dexter moves from the door Zac enters.

INT. LIVING ROOM - DAY

Zac sits on the couch.

Dexter walks into the kitchen.

                         ZAC
               So what the hell was that all about? With Chad I mean?

Dexter enters with two beers. He hands one to Zac.

                         DEXTER
               The dude’s a douche.

Dexter sits on the couch.

                         ZAC
               I thought you were friends.

Zac places his beer on the coffee table. Dexter picks it up and places a coaster under it.

                         DEXTER
               So did I. But he’s still the same jerk from high school embarrassing me in front of a girl I like.

Zac looks around the apartment.

                         ZAC
               You’re a bit of a neat freak, huh?

Dexter nods.

                         ZAC (CONT’D)
               I didn’t know you liked Laura. You should go for it, man. I bet she’d say yes.

Dexter takes a sip of his beer.

                         DEXTER
               Chad is right, though. The only friends I have are online. I’ve never been a social person outside of that realm.

                         ZAC
               Dude, we’re having this conversation in person. Chad’s a jealous baby who likes to hurt people. We should boot him from the guild.

Dexter looks towards Zac.

                         DEXTER
               You’re right.

                         ZAC
               So you’ll kick him?

                         DEXTER
               Not that. I should give it shot, huh? You and I became good online friends before we met in person.

                         ZAC
               True.

                         DEXTER
               Laura and I have gotten pretty close, so maybe she’s comfortable with the idea.

Dexter stands up and walks to his desk.

                         ZAC
               Sounds to me like you’re the one who’s getting comfortable with the idea. She’s not as weird as you are.

Dexter smirks and turns his computer on.

He logs into his game and checks the guild board.

Chad and Laura are logged in.

Dexter puts on his headset.

                         DEXTER
               Laura. I know I was kidding before, but I like you a lot and I think we should go on a date.

Silence.

                         DEXTER (CONT’D)
               If you want to, that is.

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               Oh my God. I literally just threw up in my mouth a little.

                         DEXTER
               Why are you still here?

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               Oh I was having a little chat with Laura before she went A.F.K. It was nice a quiet until you spewed verbal diarrhea all over the channel.

Zac pulls out his laptop and types.

                         ZAC
               Dude, what did she say?

Dexter mutes his headset.

                         DEXTER
               She’s not here, it’s just Chad being an ass.

                         ZAC
               I’m logging in.

Zac types on his computer.

INT. CHAD’S OFFICE - DAY

Chad fiddles with the cord on his headset.

                         CHAD
               Funny story, Dex. I like Laura too and I think I’m going to ask her out.

                         DEXTER (V.O.)
               I don’t think you’re her type.

Chad leans forward in his chair.

                         CHAD
               Oh, I’m exactly her type. I’m good looking, amazing in bed, and I’m not afraid to be in public. But I’ll throw you a bone.

Chad smiles and leans back.

INT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY

Zac puts his headset on.

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               I’ll back off from Laura if you make me the guild leader.

                         ZAC
               Don’t do it. He’ll just kick you out and claim all the gold we’ve earned as his own.

                         CHAD
               Stay out of it, troll. Let the grown ups talk.

Dexter mutes his mic and sits back in his chair.

                         DEXTER
               Give up the guild for Laura? That doesn’t seem fair.

                         ZAC
               That’s because it’s not.

Dexter unmutes his mic.

                         DEXTER
               No. I’m going to ask her out as well and she can decide who she wants to date.

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               It’ll be me. We both know this. The difference is, you actually care about her and all I want to do is get her naked and...

                         ZAC
               Stop! Why don’t you guys handle this through a challenge. The best of three in player versus player gets the guild and Laura.

INT. CHAD’S OFFICE - DAY

Chad taps his mouth with his finger.

                         CHAD
               I’ll agree to that. But let’s make it interesting. Let’s do it in person.

INT. DEXTER’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY

                         DEXTER
               What? Why?

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               To make sure there are no lag issues, of course. And so I can see your face the moment after I defile your avatar.

                         DEXTER
               Fine. I’ll be there.

                         CHAD (V.O.)
               Tomorrow, noon, at LANS R US.

EXT. LANS R US - DAY

Dexter and Zac sit in a car. They stare at the internet cafe.

                         DEXTER
               He’s pretty good.

                         ZAC
               No, his character is good. Mage is the easiest class to be good at. You don’t think this dim witted jock has skill, do you?

                         DEXTER
               Maybe not, but he is a jock, and jocks are more competitive than lonely shut ins like myself.

                         ZAC
               It’s time.

Zac and Dexter get out of the car and walk towards the cafe.

                         ZAC (CONT’D)
               You’re psyching yourself out. The knight is a good character and you’re so much smarter. Just stay focused on the prize.

INT. LANS R US - DAY

Dexter sets his laptop on the table and starts it up.

Zac sits next to him.

Chad walks into the cafe. He is well dressed. He winks at a waitress and strides over to Dexter.

                         CHAD
               Let’s get this over with, noob. I have a date later.

                         ZAC
               With who?

                         CHAD
               Ah, some bimbo I work with. I need to get it out of the way now so I’ll have more room for Laura.

Chad winks at Dexter who scowls back.

Chad sets his laptop up and both players get logged in.

A small crowd gathers around.

                         ZAC
               Okay. I will be officiating the match. This is a best of three player versus player match. The winner will presumably win Laura’s love, and take control of the guild.

Dexter wipes his sweaty hands on his jeans.

Chad cracks his knuckles and neck like a boxer getting ready to enter the ring.

                         ZAC (CONT’D)
               The player will win if they kill  the other person or burn down the other player’s capital city. Are you ready?

Chad nods his head.

                         DEXTER
               Let’s do this.

The match begins.

INSERT - COMPUTER SCREEN

DEXTER’S KNIGHT moves through the virtual world.

He rides a horse over amountain and spots CHAD’S MAGE at the bottom.

The Knight shoots an arrow at the Mage.

The Mage whips around and sends a fireball towards the Knight.

The Knight deflects the fireball with his shield. It hurtles right back into the Mage, killing it.

BACK TO SCENE

Chad shakes his head.

Dexter nods his head and smiles.

                         ZAC
               Round one goes to Dexter!

Round two begins.

Dexter sweats profusely. He uses his sleeve to wipe off his forehead.

INSERT - COMPUTER SCREEN

CHAD’S MAGE spots DEXTER’s KNIGHT.

The Mage sneaks up behind the Knight and assassinates him with a knife through the throat.

BACK TO SCENE

                         CHAD
               WHOO!

                         ZAC
               Round two goes to Chad.

Dexter shakes his head.

                         DEXTER
               I wasn’t even playing yet, what the hell?

                         CHAD
               Can it nerd. Play the game or go home.

Dexter wipes his hands off again. He peers into the crowd and sees Laura. She smiles at him. Dexter quickly looks away.

Round three begins.

INSERT - COMPUTER SCREEN

DEXTER’S KNIGHT rides his horse.

THE MAGE spots the Knight first and shoots fire and ice at him.

The Knight’s gets hit. His health is low. The Knight rides over the hill to safety.

BACK TO SCENE

Dexter frowns. He looks to Zac.

Zac subtly nods towards a fire extinguisher on the wall.

                         DEXTER
               The capital city.

INSERT - COMPUTER SCREEN

THE KNIGHT circles behind CHAD’s MAGE.

The Mage walks over the mountain where the Knight was hiding.

The Knight finds the capital city of the Mage and sets fire to it.

                         CHAD
               Oh, very clever. You can’t beat me in a fight so you try to attack my city?

                         DEXTER
               Can it, nerd.

The Mage races to his city and extinguishes the fire.

The Knight sneaks up behind the Mage and assassinates him with a swift jab of his sword.

BACK TO SCENE

Dexter jumps out of his seat.

                         ZAC
               Dexter wins!

Chad SLAMS the lid of his laptop.

                         CHAD
               That’s bullshit and you know it!

Dexter shuts his laptop and faces Chad.

                         DEXTER
               You’re out of the guild, Chad, and stay away from Laura.

Chad smiles at Dexter.

He sees Laura in the crowd and walks over to her.

                         CHAD
               Hey, Laura. You’re looking great.

Laura rolls her eyes.

                         LAURA
               Hi, Chad.

                         CHAD
               Say, would you like to go on a date with me tonight?

Laura’s makes disgusted face.

                         LAURA
               God no! Besides, don’t you have a date with a bimbo you work with?

Chad’s face turns red and he storms out of the cafe.

Laura approaches Dexter, who packs up his laptop.

                         LAURA (CONT’D)
               Well that was fun to watch.

Dexter, still sweaty, looks up.

                         DEXTER
               Oh, hey, hi, Laura.

Laura smiles

                         LAURA
               So you guys had a battle over who got to be guild leader?

                         DEXTER
               Yes, well. You were actually part of the prize too. I should’ve told you.

                         LAURA
               Relax. I knew the whole time.

Dexter makes solid eye contact for the first time.

                         DEXTER
               You did? How?

                         LAURA
               I got tired of talking to Chad. He’s such a jerk. So I told him I was A.F.K. But I wasn’t.

Dexter and Laura both laugh.

                         DEXTER
               So you heard?

                         LAURA
               Everything, yup. I also heard him schedule a date with his co-worker. Would you like to grab some dinner?

Dexter smiles and holds his hand out to Laura. She takes it and they walk out of the cafe.

EXT. RESTARAUNT - NIGHT

Dexter and Laura are chatting with each other.





FADE OUT

Pax Prime 2014: Day 3

Day 3 began like any other day that we’ve had here at PAX. Woke up, showered, grabbed breakfast, and walked directly to the main theater for a panel. Gearbox was opening the morning with one of their epic shows. I love going to Gearbox panels because they give out some epic loot. Normally I would think it’s damn shady to stand in line for such reasons, but this theater is big enough to house everyone that showed up. Hell, we showed up pretty early and still would up in the middle of the pack. I also really enjoy Gearbox panels because they’re very entertaining. Randy Pitchford did magic for us and it rocked. He basically told a story of Borderlands the Pre-Sequel using the cards he had. We got some cool new information on the playable characters and some hints at future downloadable characters. They also talked about a game they recently announced called BattleBorne and showed a kick ass trailer. I love the idea behind this game and how you can go from level 1 to level cap in the span of thirty minutes. They’re supposedly offering a wide variety of characters to play as and combine that with the speedy level ups, this is looking like it could be a highly replayable game. Overall the panel was fun and rewarding and the entire crowd was awarded the season pass for Borderlands the Pre-Sequel, which I suppose guarantees extra sales on their end. Very smart marking ploy, still totally worth it for me though!

The rest of our day was devoted to trying to play some games. We first decided we would try to do The Order 1886, but I wanted to check the line for Tales from the Borderlands first. Packed, just as it has been everyday. I guess the demo is thirty minutes long and they’re giving awesome t-shirts. So naturally, people who have no intentions of buying the game get in line for free shit because fuck you. Whatever, we head past the Evolve booth, packed, Borderlands Pre-Sequel, packed, Shadows of Mordor, packed, and finally The Order, packed. The lines for all of these games were capped off meaning we had to wait in order to wait. So we decided to check out less popular things. I went over to play Ori and the Blind Forest and accidentally wound up playing a game called Project Totem. I vaguely heard of this before and was pleasantly surprised at how fun it was. It takes puzzle platformers in a different direction. You control two totem pieces, one on top and the other below. You must navigate these pieces safely to end in order to complete the stage. So even though I wasn’t expecting to play this game, I’m very glad I did.

This is where things got a little crazy for us. We checked all of the lines again and they were all still capped. We had momentarily split up for a quick coffee/lunch break and then met up at the Far Cry 4 booth. I really wanted to sneak into the Evolve demo, but that line was capped and there were so many people hovering around it that the idea of getting in was absurd at this point. It’s around this time that I realize the Far Cry 4 booth, the one with the fuzzy cage fighting animals, actually had a demo. So I convinced my Uncle to stand in line with me to play it. It was a very short wait, one my Uncle didn’t complete because he realized he didn’t care if he played the game or not. I certainly enjoyed my turn though. I am a big Far Cry 3 fan and taking over the controls on Far Cry 4 felt very familiar. The goal was to liberate an outpost. I got to choose three different play styles, sneak, flight, and one other I cannot remember. I chose sneak. I started with a crossbow and a sniper rifle. I snuck into the outpost and disabled the alarm as fast as possible. From there I literally snuck around the camp and put an arrow into the face of every guard I saw. I was so fast and efficient that the exhibitor running the booth was impressed. Far Cry 4 has the same look and feel of Far cry 3, but the new setting, better graphics, and new weapons give it a fresh spin that I’m looking forward to.

I received a text from my Uncle as I was playing that said the wait for Sonic Boom wasn’t bad. I’ve been playing more and more of my Nintendo Wii U and have been on the lookout for new titles I might enjoy with my kids. I went and waited in a short line and played the shortest demo I’ve ever touched. The game let me pick a level to play on and dumped me right into the action. The portion I played was a modern version of the old school Sonic I played as a kid. It had Sonic and three of his friends racing from the beginning of a level to the end all while avoiding dangers and collecting coins. It was very simplified and obviously meant for kids, although I did enjoy the time I spent on it. This might be a title my kids would love.

I was a tad disappointed at how short my demo was, especially because my Uncle picked a different level and his lasted closer to thirty minutes. I was happy though because they gave us a giant tote bag, which fortunately made life much easier. Now I can’t remember exactly when we visited the Assassin’s Creed booth, but we did. There wasn’t much there at all other than a cool new trailer for Assassin’s Creed Rogue, which is only coming out on the last gen consoles, and a gameplay video of Assassin’s Creed Unity, which is only coming to next gen. I did score myself four shirts by pre-ordering all of their games, but I cancelled it shortly after that. It’s not that I don’t want the games, because I do, but I would rather purchase them digitally. After Sonic boom finished my Uncle got in line to play Smash Bros on the 3DS while I attempted to play Ori and the Blind Forest…again. Failed attempt on my part. I did walk over to The Order 1886 and saw that the line had some room, yet they weren’t letting people in. I asked the guy how long it would be and he told me fifteen minutes. So I rushed over to where my Uncle was to find him playing Smash Bros. I didn’t want to be rude and kick him off, but we hadn’t been able to play ONE major title we had on our list for the day and time was running out. I did let him finish though because this wasn’t about me, it was about him getting to enjoy something he wanted. We did make it back over to The Order booth just in time to not get in. We did hover around, however, and once he opened the gates we stormed the castle like a bunch of fat kids headed to Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.

Once we were actually in line, the wait wasn’t even that bad. I think we waited around an hour or so to get in and play. We had a great chat with the guy in front of us, I think his name is Matt, and that helped the wait go by faster. The Order’s booth was a real nice set up because it was staged to look like an old steam punk building. The TV’s they were using to play the game on were by far the nicest at PAX. I sat down and jumped right into the game. Had I been wearing a diaper I probably would’ve gone ahead and shit myself. The Order is an absolutely stunning game and it really shows the power of the Playstation 4. The thing that impressed me most about it was how immersive it felt. There isn’t a heads up display other than the occasional instructions in the upper right hand corner to tell you what to do.

The shooting mechanic in The Order 1886 is very unique. You’ll have to forgive me because I cannot remember the names of things, but you shoot your gun at someone and then you shoot secondary ammunition to ignite the white particles you just shot, or vice versa. Moving from one section to the next was very smooth and from the short section I played I could tell how decent the acting is. This sexy steam punk game may be my tipping point for buying a Playstation 4, well, alongside Drive Club!

We really wanted to play another major title before the day ended, and since Evolve, Borderlands Pre-sequel, and Tales from the Borderlands were all insanely packed, we decided to check out Shadow of Mordor. Unfortunately that line was closed for the day, as was Tales from the Borderland I soon found out. My Uncle wanted to check out the Astro gaming headsets and I decided that it would be a perfect opportunity to FINALLY play Ori and the Blind Forest. I get over there and only have to wait a couple of minutes to get my hands on the controller. I started playing through the beginning of the game and learned the ropes when I get a text from my Uncle telling me he was with Angry Joe. So I played for another minute or so, soaking the game in enough to know I DO want it, and then ran back towards the Astro booth.

Sure enough, Angry Joe, one of my favorite Youtube personalities, was checking out the gear as well. I went up and introduced myself and told him that I enjoyed his work. I have to say, out of all the people I have met in the industry, he was by far one of the nicest people. He let me take a photo with him and that made my day. Well, that and having just played one of the best games at the show. The Order, not Ori, although I would recommend Ori to platformer fans.

This pretty much wrapped up our day. We didn’t have much time left so we went cruising on back to the hotel. Well, I did, my Uncle wanted to go get a few of the QR Codes that PAX had hidden around. Find all sixteen and get a prize. I went back to the hotel, grabbed some Subway, and wrote day 2’s update. Let me know what you guys think and stay tuned for the final day of our adventure.