Wess

If people are still looking for NA PS4 codes, I have 2 - PM me.

@jinx1: That's a lot of trained guys! And a whole of hours played too.

I checked my 3DS Activity Log, hadn't thought to do that before - I was just looking at save file times.

The time for Y is actually 187 hours, and my Pokemon Bank/Transporter time was a little over an hour.

It's crazy how much time we can sink into these games...

I think Dragon Age 2 had some interesting ideas and themes, sure, but that didn't make it anything close to an amazing game for me. Like you, I think the story surrounding the Qunari was pretty cool, I enjoyed talking to their leader and thought that part of the game was generally interesting and well written. I didn't think about it in terms of real world social context (which for me, that line being there doesn't make it any better or worse), but I thought it was done well enough in the game to be interesting. The setup of the Mage vs Templar dynamic is interesting, and there are some interesting points to it (throughout both games), but I could not get past how the final scenes of the game play out.

But really, the main issue I have with your argument for the story is, you basically admit that its only good if you follow a certain path. There are 3 class options, and 2 options about whether to take Carver with you in Act 1, so that should be 6 valid options, and you are saying that the story is excellent, even though you admit only one of those 6 paths is so. Maybe that isn't an issue to you, but to me that's a huge bummer.

As far as the gameplay, I think the basics of the combat are fine, but everything about the lazy quest design, reused environments, and enemies literally spawning out of thin air in waves during encounters turned me off so much, its really hard to appreciate the game's mechanics. That's not to mention various performance issues and bugs that I remember having. It's unfortunate, like you say, that the game was as sloppily produced as it was, and while I agree there is some merit to what they tried to do, it is simply too marred by its many problems for me to say its anything but bad.

Anyway, I say nay. Not that you're wrong to enjoy it, but I most certainly did not. I'm hoping Dragon Age 3 is a game we can both love.

1. Mass Effect 2
2. Dark Souls
3. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

Not to nitpick, but should 3DS games (Bravely Default, Pokemon X/Y on your suggestions list) really be counted? 3DS has been out for a bit, but it's lifespan is far from over, so I'd put it with the current gen rather than last gen.

@generic_username: Honestly, I don't worry about breeding perfect IVs. I'm sure the very competitive community would shame me for saying such things, but the change in each stat (31 points max) is pretty small compared to EVs and Nature, which are pretty easy to control compared to IVs. I tend to breed the type I want until I get 10 or so with the correct ability and nature, and then check their IVs and take the best one. Usually that's plenty to get IVs in the 20s or above in the 2-3 stats that really matter for the build I'm going for.

That said, higher stats are certainly better, so if you're up for breeding perfect IVs, by all means.

@deadpancakes: Thanks! If people are interested, maybe I'll do a spin off post (or maybe a couple) talking about my other trained 'mons or something, when this series is all done. Something to think about for me.

@dankempster: Thanks for the comments, and I have to say I really like your team.

Galvantula was a serious consideration for me when making my new team, as he combines two of my favorite types and has some really cool combo effects, which you are using really well in this build. I really like Tyrantrum's design, and that build sounds pretty fun - I love switching in tanky 'mons into a predicted hit, that's one of the reasons I really like my Goodra.

Excadrill has always been a beast, and I like that the introduction of Fairy has made an attack like Poison Jab worth using. I've never seen or used a Politoed or Scrafty in a competitive scene, but I like the idea of combining Scrafty's defenses with Drain Punch/Big Root - that's not something I would have expected if I met one in battle.

All I can say about Charizard Y is that you picked the superior Mega Evolution, so kudos. Also Charizard Y is terrifying, especially to my new team which has a kind of bad fire weakness.

Glad you're enjoying the series - I hope to have some more meaningful updates sooner rather than later!

@mb: @andorski: Interested that I got 2 responses saying I don't need the CPU cooler. That will save me a little bit if it isn't necessary - thanks!

@mb: Wow, thanks for the awesome response! I'll definitely reconsider an SSD taking your advice in consideration.

@mosdl: I'm looking at getting a new monitor along with this. If you have any recommendations on that, they are welcome. I would assume a 1920x1080 monitor would be the recommended?

Greetings Duders,

I am in the market for a new desktop PC for my gaming needs. I've never had a particularly powerful computer, or built my own. I only know the very basics about computer hardware (nothing useful). So this will be a post with multiple questions - any and all advice would be appreciated.

First, after my initial research, I have come to this build:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/32lit

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor

CPU Cooler: Thermaltake Frio 101.6 CFM CPU Cooler

Motherboard: Asus Z87-PRO ATX LGA1150 Motherboard

Memory: Kingston HyperX 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card

Case: Corsair 500R White ATX Mid Tower Case

Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply

Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)

If I were to go with the building my own PC route, is this a good build generally for gaming for around $1200? Any problems/suggestions? Can anyone give me an idea of how this would perform with recent and upcoming games?

Second, is putting all of those pieces together simple enough for someone who doesn't know much? Any specifics I should worry about? Are there any options for ordering a pre built machine around these specs and price that anyone knows of?

That's basically it, but feel free to offer up any advice you may have, and thanks!