I kinda sat there, dumbfounded, watching my After Effects Composition slowly grind to a halt. The computers at school rendered the same animation without thought, but my machine sputtered, as if what I asked it was some terrible atrocity. I watched in horror as each frame rendered in a scream of agony. Literally. The fan sped and made the noise of a car engine.
It was time to get a new machine.
#1) I was offered immediately copies of games. I have turned everyone down.
#2) I was asked "why".
#3) Certain individuals were waaaaay to excited.
The ambivalence of certain people both humbled and annoyed me. I literally had a conversation that started like this:
"You have every current console system available, (Xbox 360/PS3/Wii/DS/PSP) why do you need a gaming PC?"
Not the best way to start a conversation, especially when your about to spend almost $2,000 on a product. Of course, I want a kick-ass PC also for the sake of my work, and that it's probably a goddamn better investment in myself than any game console.
But, I reserved my anger for a latter time. Thanksgiving is tomorrow.
...
I haven't really played anything new, and technically thrilling on a PC in years.
Suffice to say: It was very eerie and disturbing to hear that. Because no matter how much I don't want to admit it, there is a kernel of truth in his statement. Console gaming reigns supreme for multiple issues, I have friends that work at actual gaming companies that I met during my game testing days (Days I don't want to remember) who shared (still share) with me a litany of reasons.
Will I really see/feel a difference playing a console game in HD, versus playing one on my computer? It's a complicated answer, with a ton of legitimate emotion attached.
The amount of help I've also received has been unreal. I paid very little to what I got. If it wasn't for a few friends who researched the fuck out of this for me, it probably wouldn't have happened. My best regards to all those who helped me.
It's really nice so far. I've had quite a bit of fun for the last few days.
(Notice: The screenshots shared in this blog are terrible and ugly, made with the trial version of FRAPS. It is not an accurate representation at all with my set-up. I haven't moved all my software over, including Photoshop :/ )
That game I've played before.
I loved the first Mass Effect. I'm only missing the Pinnacle Station DLC for an #S Rank for god-sake. I've played it to death. After playing the Mass Effect 2 demo at PAX, I'm counting down it's release a bit...compulsively.
I like the elevator rides in the PC version. :P
I had a bunch of conversations regarding Mass Effect's load times at the time of it's release. Some people told me that the elevator rides were long on purpose, not because of technical strains. When I suggested that the game was actually loading, I was actually scoffed at by a certain nameless individual.
Of course we know the elevator rides were long for a reason. Heck, even Bioware has come out and stated that it was loading. I felt vindicated within the first elevator ride, yet at the same time I had the feeling of "well duh, of course."
The game runs great, and the refinements to the mechanics themselves are equally impressive. I don't know if it's enough for me to warrant an entire new play-through.
For the sake of testing I booted up HalfLife 2. I think the terminology regarding advanced anti-aliasing needs some help because, "16xQ CSAA" doesn't exactly roll of the tongue in conversation. It's neat to be reminded how such an old game still holds up quite well visually.
Forbidden territory
Personally for me this is the big one. I can run Crysis.
I can run Crysis, very, very, well.
As a longtime console gamer, Crysis always seemed like some unattainable threshold that I would never be able to reach. When I first booted the game up and checked the settings, I would be lying if I said I didn't get something akin to goosebumps. "Very High" sounded like an absurdity. Perhaps, if I hypothetically selected it I would be smote by some unforeseen creature? Disciplining me for choosing some forbidden form of existence.
I turned everything up. No hitches, no problems, no nothing. It runs like a dream.
I'm having problems with the game though. Visual fidelity aside, Crysis walks a tightrope of everything I love in shooters and everything I hate.
To put it simple: Hire a writer.
At one point in the game early on, one of the characters is attacked by a blue alien/monster thing as well as an entire patrol of North Koreans. When you finally reach them they are literally torn apart, your ill-fated buddy you ran to rescue hangs dramatically still strung up in his parachute. He is very, very dead.
The dialog follows:
"Jester, report in, what's Aztec's status?"
"Dead boss."
"Dammit, what the hell is going on out there?"
"I don't know, but I don't think were alone out here."
Well done Captain Obvious!
Holy shit Sherlock, you really earned your chops to be able to run around with in such expensive equipment. I was going to be pretty indifferent over the entire enemy patrol being ripped to shreds, including our buddy, thing. I had no idea that all the growls and animal roars we heard running over here were associated to something else palpable roaming around a dense dark forest! While it won't beat Killzone 2 in terms of being forced to listen to groan worthy manufactured "marine talk", Crysis so far has come pretty damn close.
In regards to it's visuals, yes it's pretty.
Yet at the same time, I feel strange. Uncharted 2 and Killzone 2 might not run, or have all the little visual tweaks that Crysis has at once, but there's a part of me that feels like they give this game quite the run for it's money. Perhaps it's unfair to compare a game from 2007 to today, but seeing the over-the-top nature of pointing to Crysis as the benchmark for your PC, I can't seem to shake off this feeling. Don't get me wrong. When you see a vista in Uncharted, you can't run to it. Technically they are built completely differently, and of course are incomparable mechanically. But I still can't shake off the feeling.
Perhaps this is a pro to Crysis. What other game can you think of made three years ago can hold it's own effortlessly with the likes of both Uncharted 2 and Killzone 2? Perhaps my perception is skewed.
I totally dig the continuation of FarCry's stalking and exploring gameplay, even though it feels a bit familiar.
The real question boils down to what other game let's you toss a North Korean?
None, that's what. That's the real reason why Crysis is amazing.
What other games has flying North Koreans? I can't think of any. Again, point goes to Crysis.
In conclusion: I'm really happy to get into PC gaming. This blog is a bit of a brag, but there's also a part of me that feels like I should have done this sooner. It's my negative experiences with my friends that really inspired this write-up. The very natural turn-off.
Expensive: Yes. Impractical: No.
I want something socially to change.
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