Hello again, Giant Bomb blog readers. It seems like I try to update this thing monthly now, even though I've been meaning to write something for a little bit. Some stuff been happening outside of my life besides video games, and I kinda wanted to talk a little bit about that before talking about games. I turn 17 in a week from when I'm writing this (meaning my birthday is on the 26th). And that seems really crazy to me. I mean, 17 is kinda the golden age for me. I get to buy M rated games by myself and see R rated movies in a movie theater. I'm getting my "official" driver's licence in February, so hopefully I'll have a car by then to get a job, so I can earn money and buy stuff on my own, have enough money to go on dates regularly, help pay the bills and whatnot. Thinking about it now, in one sense, I'm kind of afraid to grow up. I kinda have the least productive life ever right now and I wish it would stay that way, but I know it can't. That's just not how life works. But I'm also really excited. Soon I can have my own source of income and have the potential to do more with my life. And that's awesome. Even if it does potentially kill my free time.

I also have to think about college, and that's another struggle in of itself, but I suppose I have more time to think about that stuff. Life after high school is a scary thing to think about, especially with me. No work experience with no outstanding extra curricular activity to put on my application, and my girlfriend is in a higher grade than I am so I won't be able to see her (in person) that often after this school year ends. We've been together for more than a year and thought of seeing her go already hurts.

I guess there's a silver lining to all of this, and it's that I found something productive that I really have grown to love, and that's writing. This school year my counselors have decided to put me in Journalism, and honestly that's a subject that I haven't really been interested since freshman year, I've kinda shifted towards trying out computer classes since then. But there's something about getting information from research and interviewing and organizing all these facts into one smart, well-written piece that I really love. Having the freedom to write about pretty much anything I want to write about, as long as it's well written, is awesome to me and it's something I want to keep doing while I'm still at high school. I don't know if I want to make that a career or anything, but it's just fun to do. And I guess I'm alright at it too, since my teacher recommended I write some articles for the school paper (which first year journalism students normally don't do) and whenever I hand something in, it's full of compliments.

I recently wrote a review for The Walking Dead for that class and I posted it on here not too long ago. Check it out if you want to read it. (Keep in mind that it's written with the context of the school paper in mind, so a lot of the facts about the game itself is generalized and doesn't go into much detail.)

Journalism class naturally led me to reading things that I wouldn't read otherwise. I actually starting paying attention to news and articles and the way they are written. And some things I learned are this: Patrick Klepek was a great choice to be in charge of news of Giant Bomb, Kotaku is, for the most part, full of garbage, and the quality work shown at Polygon is pretty much what games journalism should strive for. Those guys know their stuff and I'm so surprised at how well written it their articles are. (Though some of their articles sometimes seem pretentious.) Oh, and I've been looking at CNN on the side, mostly because we get quizzed on current events stuff in journalism. All the reading kinda makes me want a tablet, too, and I bet loading Giant Bomb videos would be much faster on that as opposed to this outdated laptop...but I guess that's a conversation for another time.

ANYWAY, that's enough ranting about my personal transitional period. On to GAMES!

Sly Cooper

I bought the Sly Cooper collection a few weeks back, and I've been playing some of it here and there. It is awesome. The platforming is really well done, and the setup for the villains are really charming, along with the character models for them. The only things that I don't like are the missions that play like mini-games, because the platforming is so fun that I really don't want to play the game for anything else but that. And they're a little clunky. Also the voices of your side-kicks are really annoying, but I guess I was able to put up with with Daxter in those Jak and Daxter games so I should be able to put up with these. But I'm only speaking for the first game in the series here, mind you, and I think I might be about half-way through. It's my first time playing through these games and I'm excited about what comes next.

Psychonauts

I've also been playing a little more Psychonauts. I just because the Napoleon level, and yeah, that game is still great. I wish the platforming and combat felt a little more tight, though. But other than that it's great. Still funny.

Arkham City

Finished Arkham City and played the Harley Quinn DLC. It's great game, everything about the way it plays is still very fun to me, though I don't care too much about the story at this point. I'm very interested to see where the series goes next, though. Still weird that those Cat Woman sequences were locked behind a season pass when it was released.

Mass Effect 3

I played a lot of Mass Effect 3 today. The conclusion I came to, about 11 hours in? It's okay. The mission where you cure the Genophage is great, and the game has some really great things about it that make me want to keep playing. But in some ways it also feels half-finished. Like the fact you cannot engage in full conversation with the majority of your squad in any given time. What the hell? The scene that made me stop playing was when my Shepard got with Liara. Again. See, my Shepard has been loyal and I've been with Liara for two damn games, and yet the "romantic" scene on the Citadel didn't address any past events or anything. It just seemed so generic and badly written, to a point where I kept saying to myself "Wait, that's it? That's all they wrote? Seriously? What? Why didn't they talk about....what?" So yeah. That was disappointing. But I guess I should save a full judgement for when I actually finish it.

Anyway, that's about all for games. I'm going to hit that "Post Blog" button after I proof read this and add pictures or whatever and then watch some more Giant Bomb content - they have been absolutely killing it with the Premium stuff this week. It's been awesome. Until next time guys, thanks a lot for reading.

I played a lot of Mass Effect 3 today. The conclusion I came to, about 11 hours in? It's okay. The mission where you cure the Genophage is great, and the game has some really great things about it that make me want to keep playing. But in some ways it also feels half-finished. Like the fact you cannot engage in full conversation with the majority of your squad in any given time. What the hell? The scene that made me stop playing was when my Shepard got with Liara. Again. See, my Shepard has been loyal and I've been with Liara for two damn games, and yet the "romantic" scene on the Citadel didn't address any past events or anything. It just seemed so generic and badly written, to a point where I kept saying to myself "Wait, that's it? That's all they wrote? Seriously? What? Why didn't they talk about....what?" So yeah. That was disappointing. But I guess I should save a full judgement for when I actually finish it.

This is precisely how I felt about Mass Effect 3. Not a bad game but it does not scratch the surface of the first two.

@believer258 said:

I played a lot of Mass Effect 3 today. The conclusion I came to, about 11 hours in? It's okay. The mission where you cure the Genophage is great, and the game has some really great things about it that make me want to keep playing. But in some ways it also feels half-finished. Like the fact you cannot engage in full conversation with the majority of your squad in any given time. What the hell? The scene that made me stop playing was when my Shepard got with Liara. Again. See, my Shepard has been loyal and I've been with Liara for two damn games, and yet the "romantic" scene on the Citadel didn't address any past events or anything. It just seemed so generic and badly written, to a point where I kept saying to myself "Wait, that's it? That's all they wrote? Seriously? What? Why didn't they talk about....what?" So yeah. That was disappointing. But I guess I should save a full judgement for when I actually finish it.

This is precisely how I felt about Mass Effect 3. Not a bad game but it does not scratch the surface of the first two.

Yeah...and yet, I still keep playing it and I find myself just wanting more. Maybe after I finish ME3 I'll go back and buy Kasumi to remind myself what was really special about Mass Effect 2?

@MetalGearSunny said:

@believer258 said:

I played a lot of Mass Effect 3 today. The conclusion I came to, about 11 hours in? It's okay. The mission where you cure the Genophage is great, and the game has some really great things about it that make me want to keep playing. But in some ways it also feels half-finished. Like the fact you cannot engage in full conversation with the majority of your squad in any given time. What the hell? The scene that made me stop playing was when my Shepard got with Liara. Again. See, my Shepard has been loyal and I've been with Liara for two damn games, and yet the "romantic" scene on the Citadel didn't address any past events or anything. It just seemed so generic and badly written, to a point where I kept saying to myself "Wait, that's it? That's all they wrote? Seriously? What? Why didn't they talk about....what?" So yeah. That was disappointing. But I guess I should save a full judgement for when I actually finish it.

This is precisely how I felt about Mass Effect 3. Not a bad game but it does not scratch the surface of the first two.

Yeah...and yet, I still keep playing it and I find myself just wanting more. Maybe after I finish ME3 I'll go back and buy Kasumi to remind myself what was really special about Mass Effect 2?

Mass Effect 2 had better writing, better characters, better events, a story that made more sense, etc.

Also, it seemed to have a better sense of tone and self-awareness. See, Mass Effect isn't really something that should take itself quite as seriously as the third game did, it should have at least some semblance of "hey, you guys, we know this is kind of cheesy. Enjoy!" And ME2, while it definitely had serious moments, at least had some undercurrent of that. Bioware knew precisely what it was then, an homage to old sci-fi like Star Trek and Star Wars.

Mass Effect 3, on the other hand, tried to take itself very seriously and it didn't really work out for me. It came across as unintentionally cheesy and bland, instead of intentionally kind of cheesy. They tried to play characters like Kai Leng completely serious when his whole schtick just had me rolling my eyes.

You should still finish it, though.

On a final note, I do wish that we could get the combat roll from ME3 into ME2.

Jesus, you're sixteen? I thought you were older than me!

Good luck in your journalism class! Writing is, well, probably what most of us heavy forum users want to do for a living, so I'm glad you're still interested in doing it.

Mass Effect 3 effectively starts once you've cured the genophage, in my opinion. And the ending (and I mean the last four or five hours, not the last twenty minutes everyone's so focused upon) is everything about whether you love that game, think it's okay, or think it's gutter trash. I honestly prefer Mass Effect 3 to the other two games. Also, if you've been loyal to Liara for two games, you really should buy From Ashes and play with the Extended Cut installed. From Ashes is more important to Liara players than anybody else. It enhances the ME3 playthrough as much as Lair of the Shadow Broker saved my ME2 playthrough.

My best advice is to roll through focused on getting where you want to go, and not giving a fuck about anyone else's bullshit in the process. It's harder than it sounds.

@Little_Socrates said:

Jesus, you're sixteen? I thought you were older than me!

Good luck in your journalism class! Writing is, well, probably what most of us heavy forum users want to do for a living, so I'm glad you're still interested in doing it.

Mass Effect 3 effectively starts once you've cured the genophage, in my opinion. And the ending (and I mean the last four or five hours, not the last twenty minutes everyone's so focused upon) is everything about whether you love that game, think it's okay, or think it's gutter trash. I honestly prefer Mass Effect 3 to the other two games. Also, if you've been loyal to Liara for two games, you really should buy From Ashes and play with the Extended Cut installed. From Ashes is more important to Liara players than anybody else. It enhances the ME3 playthrough as much as Lair of the Shadow Broker saved my ME2 playthrough.

It seems that I get the "Whoa, you're that young?" comment often. For the love of god, don't ever go look at the post I made when the site first launched. I was a fucking idiot.

Is From Ashes the Javik DLC? Because yeah, I downloaded it before I even started playing, and that's probably been one of the best parts of that game. I just thought that one scene I mentioned was so...out of place and generic.

@Rowr said:

My best advice is to roll through focused on getting where you want to go, and not giving a fuck about anyone else's bullshit in the process. It's harder than it sounds.

It is indeed.

@MetalGearSunny said:

For the love of god, don't ever go look at the post I made when the site first launched. I was a fucking idiot.

Most of the site came from GameSpot, so we all are.

@Video_Game_King said:

@MetalGearSunny said:

For the love of god, don't ever go look at the post I made when the site first launched. I was a fucking idiot.

Most of the site came from GameSpot, so we all are.

Yes, but also, I was like 12 and had no idea what I was doing.

@MetalGearSunny said:

had no idea what I was doing.

Do we ever?

Yes, but also, I was like 12

This couldn't help things, though.

@believer258 said:

@MetalGearSunny said:

@believer258 said:

I played a lot of Mass Effect 3 today. The conclusion I came to, about 11 hours in? It's okay. The mission where you cure the Genophage is great, and the game has some really great things about it that make me want to keep playing. But in some ways it also feels half-finished. Like the fact you cannot engage in full conversation with the majority of your squad in any given time. What the hell? The scene that made me stop playing was when my Shepard got with Liara. Again. See, my Shepard has been loyal and I've been with Liara for two damn games, and yet the "romantic" scene on the Citadel didn't address any past events or anything. It just seemed so generic and badly written, to a point where I kept saying to myself "Wait, that's it? That's all they wrote? Seriously? What? Why didn't they talk about....what?" So yeah. That was disappointing. But I guess I should save a full judgement for when I actually finish it.

This is precisely how I felt about Mass Effect 3. Not a bad game but it does not scratch the surface of the first two.

Yeah...and yet, I still keep playing it and I find myself just wanting more. Maybe after I finish ME3 I'll go back and buy Kasumi to remind myself what was really special about Mass Effect 2?

Mass Effect 2 had better writing, better characters, better events, a story that made more sense, etc.

Also, it seemed to have a better sense of tone and self-awareness. See, Mass Effect isn't really something that should take itself quite as seriously as the third game did, it should have at least some semblance of "hey, you guys, we know this is kind of cheesy. Enjoy!" And ME2, while it definitely had serious moments, at least had some undercurrent of that. Bioware knew precisely what it was then, an homage to old sci-fi like Star Trek and Star Wars.

Mass Effect 3, on the other hand, tried to take itself very seriously and it didn't really work out for me. It came across as unintentionally cheesy and bland, instead of intentionally kind of cheesy. They tried to play characters like Kai Leng completely serious when his whole schtick just had me rolling my eyes.

You should still finish it, though.

On a final note, I do wish that we could get the combat roll from ME3 into ME2.

I guess...but there have been some funny moments in ME3 as well, like Garrus and Joker cracking jokes on the Normandy, I thought that stuff was great.

@Video_Game_King said:

@MetalGearSunny said:

had no idea what I was doing.

Do we ever?

Yes, but also, I was like 12

This couldn't help things, though.

angst angst angst

I think you mean:

@MetalGearSunny: From Ashes is the Javik DLC, yeah. I'll not go back, for your sake.

Just make sure to bring the two of them on the Thessia mission. Not that I necessarily think I'd take anyone else on just about any mission; maybe Garrus, 'cause he's cool.

@Little_Socrates: I would never not bring Javik to any mission.

Growing up is never easy to do, and it's something that we all learn sooner or later. Hold on to what you love and set your goals, don't care about what people think or say about you, do what YOU want, and you shall live a moderately happy life. I had to learn these lessons hard way, and I'm very much paying a heavy price for it.

I've always wanted to play Sly Cooper as I can tell that it's a great game.

Damn Sunny, I remember when you were knee high to a grasshopper. Keep your head up, you'll figure it out. Life isn't half as hard as it seems. You just wake up and face the day ahead. If you start it with a smile on your face, you've already won the day.

Congratulations, you're about to enter "2nd puberty," a time where you'll look at yourself from last year and say "Really?" I say it's puberty because while your body will stay the same (for the most part), your mind is about to go places you didn't think it'd go, and college is 80% doing new things that you previously couldn't. Have fun.

Mass Effect 3 gets a lot of undeserved hate, I think. People want exposition (even though they poke fun at it in other games), but putting such depth of races and places and everything in a game that is essentially the final chapters in a book would be too much. Mass Effect 3 is a game for the fans of the series, not newcomers. I was a bit worried when I saw the quote on the back of the box "Now's a great time to get into the series" or whatever. I wouldn't know about the Liara stuff, though. I romanced Ashley, everything seemed complete going that route.

@LikeaSsur said:

Congratulations, you're about to enter "2nd puberty," a time where you'll look at yourself from last year and say "Really?" I say it's puberty because while your body will stay the same (for the most part), your mind is about to go places you didn't think it'd go, and college is 80% doing new things that you previously couldn't. Have fun.

Probably accurate.

@Claude said:

Damn Sunny, I remember when you were knee high to a grasshopper. Keep your head up, you'll figure it out. Life isn't half as hard as it seems. You just wake up and face the day ahead. If you start it with a smile on your face, you've already won the day.

Thanks, Claude! I don't like to remember when I was a "grasshopper" lol

@Tireyo643 said:

Growing up is never easy to do, and it's something that we all learn sooner or later. Hold on to what you love and set your goals, don't care about what people think or say about you, do what YOU want, and you shall live a moderately happy life. I had to learn these lessons hard way, and I'm very much paying a heavy price for it.

I've always wanted to play Sly Cooper as I can tell that it's a great game.

Thanks! And yeah, Sly Cooper is pretty awesome.