as in my twitter feed, since it took me a little longer than expected to install the mods, not all of which I will be using because of crashes, I didn't get to as much of the game as I wanted to this evening. I've got almost one blog post worth of gameplay, so definitely expect something Tomorrow night. Now, the more I thought about it the more I thought I should include a disclaimer: I have never done something of this style or this size. I'm still not entirely sure how the details will play out, but I do have a general sense of what to do. I'm hoping that as time passes I will become more proficient have have a defined style set for this. Just thought I ought to elaborate for those few who are interested.
I have a good feeling about this project. Since I'm doing this purely because I want to, and also for the enjoyment of others, I think I won't sputter out. However, as I said earlier that it may be sporadic (I still have to take classes and study and do homework on top of work occasionally), but you have my word that this journey will be complete!
    Over the past few days I have been toying around in Call of Pripyat, and this got me to thinking: Why haven't I done what I said I would do at the beginning of its release? I would run through the entirety of the series consecutively. I feel this grand journey to the hellish lands of the Zone needs documenting, so I plan on acting as your guide through these games. You may ask, Why S.T.A.L.K.E.R.? Well, because it will be my tedious crawl through a (mostly) unknown land that was truly one of my favorite open world experiences.
 Just meeting the Locals           My plan is to begin at some point today with the first game: Shadow of Chernobyl. After each play session I will post that section of my trip through the zone. I will try to maintain a fairly regular schedule of at least one documented trip per week, through each game. I will be using mods for all three games: The S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Complete mods. I know Call of Pripyat has a "Wish Granter" and Teleport feature, however, these features will NOT be used. In order to create a more natural experience each game must be completed through walking, or sprinting. I've tried the teleport feature and it simply takes away from the overall experience. Here's a link describing the Mods that are used. I highly recommend them if you're planning on your own trip through the zone. I will say also, I have no plans thus far for a livestream type thing for this event, specifically because I'm not entirely sure how to do it. This could be something I could add further on down the road, given the right help.        Hopefully someone will pay attention to it, and even more hopefully, I actually finish this. I think forcing myself to write the blog entries will help. I will warn folk who may be interested that I'm currently working 30 hours a week and going to school, so my posts may be a bit sporadic. That being said, I'm looking forward to assuming the role of your S.T.A.L.K.E.R. travel guide!
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I've been burning my way through the Persona 4 endurance run lately and it got me to thinking: "jeez, I really wish I had some friends who had some time to hang out and play through some of my jrpgs that I want to play but don't think I'll have the time/patience for otherwise." I've got Record of Agarest War sitting on my shelf with only a couple of hours cut out of it, but I just can't find myself getting all that much further in it. Even more, I still haven't finished Valkyria Chronicles, even if I loved that game, simply because I don't think I can persevere through that whole story. Most of my RL friends and I have conflicting schedules and don't really have time to sit down for a chunk of time and burn some time with these games, but I think that setting (friends and jokes) would help these games get completed, with a considerable amount of fun to be had. I suppose I'm just looking for some way to essentially do an endurance run-style thing without needing people to really be there. I suppose I could try live-streams, but I don't know if I could set that up myself. If there's anyone out there who can help a gamer out and do this maybe one day I could have a weekly event.
So... This Catherine game... A heavily story driven block pushing game? Okay, you have my attention. I finally got my hands on the delux edition of this game last week, and I've reached the sixth night of eight. I can't believe how frustrating this game can be. Sometimes I find myself falling to my death purely by accident because of twitchy controls, but most of the time it's because I'm stupid! I must say there are parts of this game that make me want to scream so loud my vocal chords splatter the television screen, but I couldn't stop playing. I found myself dying and saying, "OKAY, this is the last time. SHIT. Wait, THIS is the last time. Fewf, done with that. One more level can't hurt can it?"  Although I consider myself fairly stupid, I usually feel pretty good when I actually complete the levels. Honestly, half the time I'm playing this game I don't feel like I'm having fun, but I just can't... stop... playing... I will have to say the creators of this game did an exceedingly good job with the story that made me NEED to complete the next puzzle set just to see what happens in the story! I think more developers should take a look at what would be a simple concept flushed out to this extent. It's actually quite a surprising game.
As for shadow of the damned, I am finally done. It took me about 6 hours on normal, including cutscene time to finish but I actually played my first game of 2012 all the way through(I make it sound like 6 hours is a long game... >.>)! I was really pleased with the ending and semi-closure at the end. This could mean a review is coming down the pike, but I can't be too sure. Now the hard part comes, what I'm supposed to play next.... Well, I will see the world on the other side of another completed video game!
Far too often I've found myself purchasing games and then playing anywhere between 20 minutes to 10 hours and not completing the game, only to let it sit idly by while I say to myself, "I'll get to that eventually." Well the time has finally arrived where I strive to keep my ADHD brain focused long enough to finish more games, such as going back through old games and in future purchases. Being a gamer is more than having partially played a lot of games, it's about finishing the game and completing the experience. I guess my main problem stems from the fact that most story lines don't suck me in and so the gameplay is the only thing that can hold my attention. However, it seems I bore quickly... But, wish me luck as I try to complete these games! Well, I'm off to finish Shadow of the Damned!
I have to admit, when I first purchased this months ago I played up to the first section of act 3 and dropped it to nearly never return. However, last night I decided to pop the game in for old times sake, and what a beautiful fool I was. I couldn't believe I had stopped playing this somewhat hokey, but all the same brilliant, third person shooter. These game make me realize why I love video games themselves. From its tight controls to wacky story-line that's just cheesy enough to make me smile without cringing (a difficult feat to accomplish), and even a soundtrack that melds perfectly with the overall atmosphere, Shadow of the Damned has brought me gorily back to video gaming as a suitable means to waste my life. I think my next review will definitely be of this game, so I'll have to get on that soon. I mean shit, I'm almost done with the game anyway....
Let me just put the purpose of this post in one line: Suda 51 is the man, and his games always make me happy.
So I've decided to move some of my reviews from gamespot over to here, my old username StevenHawking probably won't mind that I use them, since they'll probably be put to better use here.
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