Monkey out of nowhere

Game Review: Fallout 3

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:53:44 -0600

So I got Fallout 3. Well "got" is a bad term to use, I'll get into that after the review.

Right here most reviews tell you what the game is about, I'm tempted to do that, but that's what the official website is for.

Let me start by giving you my impression of Fallout 3 after reading forums and other peoples reviews. "Great game but do you have to use so much bad language?" What? Bad language is their problem? Did they not reach level 6, get the bloody mess perk, and see that you can punch someone in the face and watch their HEAD explode, their arms and legs fall off, and blood FLY EVERYWHERE in a fine mist of crimson red? If they did, why are they not complaining about that? I can count on one hand how many times I saw the word fuck and almost everything I have killed at short range has lost it's head or legs or something. Hell I found a guy hiding in the water yesterday, shot him in the back of the head, and watched his head fall off. Then his body parts, one by one, rose to the surface of the water.

Ok so I love this game. It is so gory that it actually becomes a slight annoyance. The world is huge. I wouldn't think 18 square miles that big but I've barely scratched the surface of what to see out side of my vault in a few days of play. Small cities, encampments, roving trade caravans, and even large bombed out cities cover the map. Houses dot the land scape and give the world a tone of desolation and mystery. Every time you enter a building you aren't sure you are going to find humans, mutated insects, a pile of bones, or just a bunch of loot. The leveling system is nice and easy. Tons of skills to choose from giving you a different character everytime you play. Defiantly a wonderful modern day contribution to the Fallout series.

My favorite thing in game is the V.A.T.S. - Vault Assisted Targeting System. Fallout 1 and 2 were turn based game.s When you went into combat you queued up what you wanted to do and then executed them based on your action points. Fallout 3 is now a first person shooter. To keep the old turn based feel of the first two games they added the V.A.T.S. to give you some turn based feel and a chance to think during battle. You character has X amount of turns that replenish over time, similar feel to a mana bar in other games. In a battle if you want to focus on a target your activate V.A.T.S. and the game pauses. The screen changes to a focused targeting system and zooms in on your enemy. You can then select different targets like the enemy's head, torso, legs, or even their weapon. Once you queue up a few shots you then execute your actions. It goes all slow-mo and the camera will follow different points like the rounds you fire, the enemy, your self, or even stay in first person mode. If you kill someone in V.A.T.S. you get a nice slow motion death scene to savor the victory. Yeah OK I love the gore in the game it isn't an annoyance!

OK, so I have to say I have not found much that I dislike about the game. The whores are kinda annoying how they throw themselves at you after a while but other than that it is really a decision by Bethesda that makes me hate part of the game. Bethesda made the choice to include SecuRom on Fallout 3. They included it just for a disk check to verify you have the CD in the CD-Rom drive to say you "own" it. Take some time and Google SecuRom and see how much people hate it. Well I ran into a few problems with this disk check utility.

Lets say for example you own Roxio or Nero. Valid disk writing software you can buy. Roxio even came with my HP laptop from HP. If you have Fallout 3 installed and one of these software packages, or any myriad of other ones like Daemon Tools or Alcohol, SecuRom will just flip out. I could not play Fallout 3 with Daemon Tools installed on my system. It refused to run Fallout 3, and when I rebooted my computer it popped up a message box informing me that I had software on my computer that could be used to copy CDs. This is unacceptable.

In truth it was doing what it was meant to do for me. I do not own Fallout 3, I borrowed a copy from my friend to try while he was at my house. Even if I did I would have issues with the copy write protection software on it that are unnecessary and unacceptable. The fact that any person can buy software and then have it not allow you to run it or to have it bother you just because you have free or payed for software on your system. This is a classic example of malware and is the sole reason I will not buy Fallout 3. I will not support SecuRom!

On a side note, not only have I downloaded a special launcher.exe file to run the game without the CD but I also had to use a windows utility to edit the fallout3.exe that runs the game. I did this to make the game only run on one core of my duel core processor. Something about the AMD I have just makes the game unplayable because of lag. It would take 15-30 minutes to load a new area and freeze up graphics during NPC dialog.

In the end I recommend "getting" a copy of Fallout 3 and playing it for hours on end! Enjoyment for all! Especially you Luke. I can see you launching nuclear missiles and blowing up towns with nukes.

Shorpy!

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 08:45:03 -0600

Not much going on around here so I thought I'd share a link that features cool historical photos. Enjoy!

Shorpy

Also, check out the story behind the site's namesake. Upper right hand corner: "Shorpy's Page". It's interesting, in a haunting sort of way.

Stray Cats Welcome Here

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 08:13:07 -0500

There are several stray cats in our new neighborhood, and I, being the soft-hearted animal lover that I am, have taken to leaving some inexpensive cat food out for them (much to Speranza's dismay). One of these cats, whom I have dubbed 'Slinky', has become a regular here and I've been able to get closer and closer to her (or him, not sure but my more knowledgeable cat-loving friend thinks she is female) each time she comes by. A couple days ago I broke out the big guns--canned wet cat food-- and yesterday Slinky actually ate off my finger! She's still very nervous, but is getting more comfortable around me. I hope to find a low cost spay/neuter program and get her taken care of and maybe get her some shots. Here is a picture I took on my cell phone:

Slinky

Holy cow, Monkeyoutofnowhere.com is back!

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 10:55:01 -0500

Jeez, Luke, I was starting to think you'd abandoned it!

I've had lots of things I've wanted to post but now that the site is up I can't actually think of any of them. Figures. Times are tough. Vote Obama. More to come.

EVE-Online

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 06:38:47 -0500

As some of you know, I really enjoy playing EVE-Online. As one of the few people active around Stratics who does enjoy the game a lot I have been offered a wonderful opportunity. I have asked, been recommended, and been asked and then quickly accepted to be the Managing Editor of EVE Stratics!

We have lots of cool stuff coming out for the site which anyone of you who do not play EVE, or any other MMO, may not really care about so I won't bore you with it. Lets just say I think I have my hands full! I'm actually really excited about this and have so far enjoyed posting news to the new site. Soon I'll have the ability to really take the page to new places by being just more than an RSS feed with a human touch.

At Least It Hasn't Hit CNN Headline News. Yet.

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 08:08:04 -0500

Every time I hear the words South Carolina in a national venue, I cringe. It's not that I don't love my home state, and right now I am basking in the humidity, awaiting afternoon showers that could come more often, eager to see whether my largest tomato plant will actually manage to peak the roof line.

But we're the prodigal child of the nation, not quite welcomed back into the fold nearly a hundred and fifty years after seceding from the Union, and it's as if the rest of the country relishes every opportunity to witness us behaving like in-bred, parochial bumpkins. Only a few months ago I saw the Bishopville sheriff humoring a reporter's question about whether the Lizard Man caused damage to the front of a local couple's van. I gotta hand it to the guy; he almost managed not to crack a smile. Back when I lived in Arizona, I just knew they were talking about my home town in a lead for a story about the sheriff whose video surveillance captured not illegal dumping but an entirely different kind of illicit behavior instead.

And now we have state senators who've decided that their blogs should look like the Daily Show or Colbert Report. Last week South Carolina Senator Kevin Bryant posted a tasteless picture that poked juvenile fun at the similarity between the names Obama and Osama. He has since removed the photo, though his response to the outcry still includes a link to it. He attempts to cover his tracks by claiming he only wanted to bring scrutiny to Obama's foreign policy positions.

As you might imagine, that is not what happened.

Most distressing was Mr. Bryant's (or his office's) apparent moderation of comments on the initial post. Although there were some negative responses, it seemed evident that all the comments weren't being posted or that some were afterwards deleted. USA Today reported 22 comments on the site Monday night, yet by the time I reached the blog, only 9 showed as being posted before Tuesday. Some responses alluded to previous comments not being published. Mine disappeared into a black hole after awaiting moderation for most of a day.

Evidently someone in the Bryant camp pointed out the hypocrisy of waving the banner of free speech in his defense while suppressing it on his own blog, because by Wednesday morning, moderators were approving what appeared to be all of the comments on his response entry, including mine, though not necessarily in the order they were posted.

Mr. Bryant has his apologists, and I respect their right to that opinion. Some have defended him on the grounds that the photo was funny. For me that's just not enough. Is it so hard to understand that we hold politicians to a different standard than comedy shows and political cartoonists? There's a reason we react when Jesse Jackson talks like a thug, and that the proper response is an apology, not some song and dance about what he was really trying to do. Political figures who are trying to influence opinion and policy are not the same as celebrities merely trying to attract the public's attention.

I don't care what Sharon Stone says about China. But especially when it affects how the rest of the world sees and interacts with South Carolinians, I do care what my legislators say.

__________________________________________________________________

You can see Senator Bryant's blog, with 125 comments currently on his July 22 post, including mine, here.

You can see my first article about this subject here.

Happy Birthday Luke!

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 00:46:20 -0500

I looked around on Google to post a silly birthday picture. Then I realized that most of the stuff I found was crap. So here is a bunny with a pancake on its head:

EPIC.

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 15:54:17 -0500

A quick review from the Ben-Cave.

The reviews are all true and The Dark Knight is a riveting motion picture.

At 3 a.m this morning I felt as if someone had punched me in the gut then
stomped my left nut just for kicks. I have no idea how Nolan
pulled it off but this is the real deal. On more than one occasion I
had to reign myself in and say "Brooks get a hold of yourself Old Boy!
It's just a movie and a "comic-book" movie at that." And then I would
get lost in the grit and the grease-paint once more. This sucker is a back alley
knife fight, with no rules. None.
No one is safe. The script is point on and brutal. A few minutes after a pivotal scene where two lives are on the line (and you will know which one it is) I was in a cold sweat and as close to "in shock" as I have been in a theater since the opening salvo of Saving Private
Ryan. This film hurts. It hurts really bad. No one gets out unscathed.

The cast Nolan has put together for these movies is beyond brilliant. Only the best in the business. Bale gives another seemingly
effortless performance playing the duality even better this time
around. His Bruce is even allowed to "appear" to have fun at times.
The millionaire playboy is tossed around more so in this one, to much
needed comic relief. Aaron Eckhart is absolutely perfect as Harvey Dent. All-American chin and grin. The white to Bruce's dark. But you can still see that slow burn, that simmer just
below the surface. His hospital scene with the Joker is chilling and so,
so sad. And lordy, Gary Oldman.
He gets to shine in this one and yet shows such graceful restraint. I can't wait to
see him keep getting older and older as he will work forever. Maybe the best character actor
out there.
Maggie Gylennhal makes Rachel Dawes a woman to not only respect but to
understand how any man could be willing to sacrifice himself for her
love. She nails it.

And that leaves Heath. I thought Ledger was an interesting choice when
cast. He's like Depp in the fact that other than their first heart-throb
roles they were on in some crap movies or small interesting indies up
until Brokeback for Heath and POTC for Depp. But every time I thought of
either of them, I still thought of a "movie star." Because well, they are. And brother does Ledger burn it up here. I have
never seen anything like it. If you have seen the previews you have a
glimpse..but you have no idea. None. It's beyond iconic and a
performance that might just end the Joker on the big screen for decades
to come. I would be shocked if anyone felt they could step into those
shoes anytime soon. The world lost one of the greats.

I watched Batman Begins last night to get set up for the main event. And man, it's a good
movie. It really, really is a good, fun movie. But again you have NO IDEA how much the bar is raised with The Dark Knight. I'm sure you have
read the Empire Strikes Back and Godfather II comparisons...blah, blah,
blah. That's an easy out in the sense that yeah, it's a sequel that
trumps the original.
But this is more than that. It takes the genre to a new level and I for
one have no clue how they can possibly top it. And while we are
talking about it, no, of course it is not as great a film as Godfather II...but not much
is. But it is great. So, great that I might not ever see it again. It
might hurt too much.

Awesome Picture

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 01:40:21 -0500

I'd love to find more of these!
Decepticon!

Edit: New Link

Happy 4th

Fri, 4 Jul 2008 03:49:46 -0500

Yay Fireworks!