Cool, Interesting Stuff?
Oct. 21st, 2004 08:47 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
silverthorneMaybe....
Nature has the best crayons
Okay, so I'm driving home the day before yesterday, and like the goofball I am, I'm looking at the sky when it's safe to do so. Beautiful clear bright blue sky, high wispy clouds, and the coolest effect I've ever seen.
You see, one of those wispy clouds was shaped like a thick line...and the sun was at just the right angle that where the end of this cloud line ended, a shadow extended past it...all the way to the horizon.
It was pretty cool--a thin grey-black line extending across the sky. Only lasted until the cloud moved on, but still just awesome...^^
Just because their back is to you, doesn't mean they cannot see you...
All right then.
In the fine tradition of our household, we took about two years longer than everyone else to get an X-box. Of course, the only reason was did get one is because Playstation has been woefully derelict in providing RPG games that don't require you have the reflexes of a Mortal Kombat junkie on speed.
Hey, we're getting older...our brains don't fire the old pins as fast as they used to--I'm sure folks older than me can nod wisely and agree...
Anyhow, we came, we saw, we bought the X-box...
And we played.
We got two games--Fable, which my room-mate is totally enchanted with (and I have to say I enjoy watching her play--lots of eye candy). And then there's Morrowind III: End of Year Edition.
I'm hopelessly addicted to it.
Both games seems to use a similar decision making engine to the Sims games--if you do something, good, bad, or indifferent, it effects how you look, how you get treated, even your alignment. Characters recognize you, and will treat you according to how you've treated them. It's just bloody awesome...
Unfortunately, though, in Morrowind, you start with no friends, no food, no weapons and no money. Fresh off the prison boat too, sent to BFE 'Where The Fuck Am I?" by your loving Emperor...
I teased my mate when she ended up cleaning out the Registrar's house on her way to final processing. I laughed harder when she proceeded to steal from every rude asshat in town.
And then I started my own game.
You cannot get very far without food or weapons...
I ended up being a worse thief than her...^^; Even cleared a garrison out of anything that wasn't nailed down when the guards were busy elsewhere...sold it all, too...bought sensible things like food...and, yes...weapons.
Of course, I learned a very valuable lesson while furthering my thieving career (and the sad thing is, I started out with a very admirable goal of being Paladin-like until I realized I'd die without supplies...).
1) Make VERY sure there isn't anyone anywhere near you when you steal something. If they're just around the corner, or happen to 'come back' just as you've filched something, you're in trouble--you'll get fined or put in jail (or else you'll have to hit the reset button if you want to avoid that). The volumn control on this game is your friend--you want to be able to hear them coming, so that you can resist stuffing 'just one more plate' down your shirt as they're turning the corner and into sight...;)
2) Even if they're one room over and their back is turned to you--they will see you. And then they'll come running. I tried it, three times, with the character's back completely towards me. I ended up not only getting caught, but the guards killed me. Although...the killing might have been because I was stealing the silver plate off of some gods altar...and they were cult guards....^^; Ah well...if I had gotten away with it, it would have been a good haul...lol.
Anyhow, the games are great fun if you like RPG and wandering vast worlds. Morrowind seems to be a little more flexible in the 'go where you want to' thing--but then, it's meant to be. The world is HUGE and the guide book itself is 200 plus pages--and half of those are maps with just the highlights of what you can find in any given area.
Fable is far more simple, and the old guy who ends up being sort of your boss and wise-dude will often harass you in the guise of the Voice Of God if there's hero-things to do and you don't check in in a regular basis to get assigned some of them...the flip side though is that your character literally shows the signs of everything he's gone through, whether its physical, emotional, alignment, mental, and even is affected by what you eat (or don't eat). This can be another source of amusement if you forget to feed them--or feed them too much (My room-mate tends to forget to eat in RL...likewise, so does her charrie...poor guy started out as a buff dude and is now whip-thin...).
Anyhow, if that's your thing, I recommend both games--Fable for a short term play--Morrowind if you have an attention span that will stick around for at least a few months...
And remember--They can see you...they can always see you....;)
Nature has the best crayons
Okay, so I'm driving home the day before yesterday, and like the goofball I am, I'm looking at the sky when it's safe to do so. Beautiful clear bright blue sky, high wispy clouds, and the coolest effect I've ever seen.
You see, one of those wispy clouds was shaped like a thick line...and the sun was at just the right angle that where the end of this cloud line ended, a shadow extended past it...all the way to the horizon.
It was pretty cool--a thin grey-black line extending across the sky. Only lasted until the cloud moved on, but still just awesome...^^
Just because their back is to you, doesn't mean they cannot see you...
All right then.
In the fine tradition of our household, we took about two years longer than everyone else to get an X-box. Of course, the only reason was did get one is because Playstation has been woefully derelict in providing RPG games that don't require you have the reflexes of a Mortal Kombat junkie on speed.
Hey, we're getting older...our brains don't fire the old pins as fast as they used to--I'm sure folks older than me can nod wisely and agree...
Anyhow, we came, we saw, we bought the X-box...
And we played.
We got two games--Fable, which my room-mate is totally enchanted with (and I have to say I enjoy watching her play--lots of eye candy). And then there's Morrowind III: End of Year Edition.
I'm hopelessly addicted to it.
Both games seems to use a similar decision making engine to the Sims games--if you do something, good, bad, or indifferent, it effects how you look, how you get treated, even your alignment. Characters recognize you, and will treat you according to how you've treated them. It's just bloody awesome...
Unfortunately, though, in Morrowind, you start with no friends, no food, no weapons and no money. Fresh off the prison boat too, sent to BFE 'Where The Fuck Am I?" by your loving Emperor...
I teased my mate when she ended up cleaning out the Registrar's house on her way to final processing. I laughed harder when she proceeded to steal from every rude asshat in town.
And then I started my own game.
You cannot get very far without food or weapons...
I ended up being a worse thief than her...^^; Even cleared a garrison out of anything that wasn't nailed down when the guards were busy elsewhere...sold it all, too...bought sensible things like food...and, yes...weapons.
Of course, I learned a very valuable lesson while furthering my thieving career (and the sad thing is, I started out with a very admirable goal of being Paladin-like until I realized I'd die without supplies...).
1) Make VERY sure there isn't anyone anywhere near you when you steal something. If they're just around the corner, or happen to 'come back' just as you've filched something, you're in trouble--you'll get fined or put in jail (or else you'll have to hit the reset button if you want to avoid that). The volumn control on this game is your friend--you want to be able to hear them coming, so that you can resist stuffing 'just one more plate' down your shirt as they're turning the corner and into sight...;)
2) Even if they're one room over and their back is turned to you--they will see you. And then they'll come running. I tried it, three times, with the character's back completely towards me. I ended up not only getting caught, but the guards killed me. Although...the killing might have been because I was stealing the silver plate off of some gods altar...and they were cult guards....^^; Ah well...if I had gotten away with it, it would have been a good haul...lol.
Anyhow, the games are great fun if you like RPG and wandering vast worlds. Morrowind seems to be a little more flexible in the 'go where you want to' thing--but then, it's meant to be. The world is HUGE and the guide book itself is 200 plus pages--and half of those are maps with just the highlights of what you can find in any given area.
Fable is far more simple, and the old guy who ends up being sort of your boss and wise-dude will often harass you in the guise of the Voice Of God if there's hero-things to do and you don't check in in a regular basis to get assigned some of them...the flip side though is that your character literally shows the signs of everything he's gone through, whether its physical, emotional, alignment, mental, and even is affected by what you eat (or don't eat). This can be another source of amusement if you forget to feed them--or feed them too much (My room-mate tends to forget to eat in RL...likewise, so does her charrie...poor guy started out as a buff dude and is now whip-thin...).
Anyhow, if that's your thing, I recommend both games--Fable for a short term play--Morrowind if you have an attention span that will stick around for at least a few months...
And remember--They can see you...they can always see you....;)
