Pending me thinking of a better blog topic I'm going to try and do my best to keep a running record of what I'm currently playing a impressions mid-game (or, as in this post, slightly post-game).  If you find it interesting let me know and if you have any suggestions for making it better or improving my writing please let me have it. 
 
Mass Effect 2 - STATUS: Finished first playthrough (4/29/10) 
It's amazing that Bioware was able to make this game so much different than part one but manage to keep or improve on what worked in their first outing.  I would highly recommend playing through Mass Effect before taking a stab at 2, primarily due to the fact that the story is so important to this game.  So many choices and plot points carry over into part two that, while you can probably still enjoy it; you are missing out of the fun of meeting old friends and seeing the fruit of your past endeavors.  While it is a 3rd person shooter at its core I'd recommend it even if you aren't the biggest fan of the genre.  Mass Effect two has so much more to offer than well done cover based shooting.  A deep and compelling conversation system, an engaging story, likeable characters (who you really will come to care about as the story progresses)  and an astounding number of things to do make this game one of the best, and by best I mean ever. 
 
 
Trails HD - STATUS: Taking a break 
Trails HD is frustrating but in that, "OK, one more time!" kind of a way.  You will keep punishing yourself with this game hoping to get the next medal or pass your friends on the leader board.  Being a typical completionist the difficulty relative to my ability is a little daunting but after I finish cooling off from the last round of having my butt kicked I'll go right back at it, if for no other reason than to pass up my friends' times. 
 
The Orange Box - STATUS: Still scoping it out 
 I haven't gotten more than a couple of hours into any of the Orange Box's offerings but I can tell this was worth every cent of the $19.99 I spent on it.  If you do not own this and you enjoy FPS's or good games in general you should find a way to kick yourself in the nuts and once you've recovered get your ass to a game store and pick it up.  It's a freaking steal.  So far Half Life 2 has me hooked with the presentation.  It is amazing how a game which (while still pretty) is aging a bit still get's you to feel as though you inhabit its world.  I am interested to see how the story continued to unfold.

Portal is amazing because it is so unlike anything else I have ever played.  I'm not a huge FPS player so the fact that Portal is not about headshottin' dudes is appealing.  Top that off with some seriously awesome puzzles and you have a winner as far as I'm concerned.  Hopefully it can keep up this pace. 
 
We'll see when I get around to Team Fortress. As I said before, I'm not a huge competitive FPS fan (mostly because I suck and dying is not t is fun) so you can probably understand why this wasn't the first game I jumped into.  I'll be sure to check it out (it deserved that much) but it's unlikely I will play a ton of it. 
 
 
As far as upcoming games go, at the top of my list is Red Dead Redemption.  I've been hankering for a good western game for a long time and RDR looks like it is going to deliver.  Fallout New Vegas is a no-brainer considering I've dumped nearly 200 hours into Fallout 3 and just picked up Point Lookout on sale the other day with the intention of going back in for more. Finally, Just Cause 2.  Now, I'm hearing some middling reviews but I really liked the demo (with the exception on the awful
accent of Ms. Bolo Santosi) and the map is freaking huge with an impossible number of tasks to accomplish so I think it might make a good filler game.  I'll probably wait until it's around $25 though.   
 
To wrap up, thank you for reading through and please let me know if there is anything I could do to improve or make this something you might want to follow. 
 
Thanks again! - JHawk