The wife gave me a beautiful new 24″ panel for Christmas this year and we bought the tot a new 360 with Kinect, so I moved my older 360 upstairs and connected it to the hdmi port so I can play my games in the office and not on the couch downstairs.  For the first couple of months, I didn’t really play the console anyway, I was busy with Dishonored, AC3 and Farcry3.  Recently though…  Well, recently I’ve been way back into Forza 4.  I almost bought a ps3 when GT5 was released, but after doing some research, I was happily surprised that Forza looked much better than GT5 did.  I’m mostly an rpg gamer.  Seriously, besides playing NHL on a Sega in college I’ve only really played action/rpg type games.  That being said written, I’ve always loved racing simulators.  I used to keep a notebook with my best times during my ps2 days and have always loved the tinkering and building that the Forza series has allowed and below is the latest example of what I’ve tinkerated (now that’s a good word).

I’m selling the design in the storefront for 5000 credits.  I kind of randomly came to that price considering the time I spent on the design and the reality that 5k is less than half of what normal race winnings give you.  The design is in the storefront under the name porscheSpyd550.  I found the design on a website named cartype.  The original images that I based my replication on are found on this page.  The website is amazing and I will definitely be using it in the future.

I hope you dig the design.  Please feel free to leave a comment either way.  I always love criticism.  Thanks for reading.

It’s been a seriously long time since I’ve really played and enjoyed a single player game.  It’s hard for me to pass up the interactions and depth of an mmo, but over this last week, I’ve been lucky enough to have picked up 3 games I’ve really been looking forward to playing.  First, I grabbed Max Payne 3 for a mere 15 bucks on a Steam sale.  I played about a third through the game and wasn’t all that impressed with the story.  I played the first Max Payne on my ps2 and then picked up 2 and three for my pc.  What I absolutely loved about the first two games was the dark, dank story and comic book feel to game.  It was filthy.  The first game is still one of my all time favorite stories.  The gameplay always seemed a little awkward, but fun enough to keep the story in the forefront and the cut scenes, were always at the right time.  MP 3.0 seems like a completely different game.  Which I assume was the developers plan.  I just don’t care for it.  I’ll eventually finish the game when I get bored with EVERYTHING else, but I’m in no rush to get back to fat Max.

The second game I grabbed was Dishonored and holy shit did I love t his game. HOLY SHIT DID I LOVE THIS GAME.  I usually don’t care for first person stealth games, but this puppy turned me.  Let me get the bad out of the way first.  I took my sweet ass time and still finished the story in about 20 hours.  Maybe it’s the mmo-freak in me, but that seemed way to short, especially when you get to the last part of the game and it feels like the devs corked a third of the story into 2 missions.  I would have loved this game to hit about 30 hours and allow the end of the story to play out over 4-5 missions.  The real bad asses were only in the game for and hour and in that hour, were extremely easy to circumvent.  Their story, which is really essential to the plot of the game, is merely glossed over.  This was a pity and a truly lost chance at significant depth to the already amazing story.  Ok, enough shitty, now the goods.

I haven’t had this much fun playing a video game since I first played Goldeneye.  Seriously.  I loved this game.  Did I mention I loved…  Anyway, this story and world is fantastic.  So fantastic that I feel screwed that I didn’t get to be in more of it.  The lack of a top down menu hides how little of this city you actually see.  What I want is the huge, explorable world of Fable 3 with the incredible gameplay of Dishonored.  When the pseudo-climax hit me square in the jaw, I was freaking out that I had more of the game to play, but that “more of the game to play” wasn’t really all that much more.  The bitch of the whole thing is that I assume the DLC isn’t anymore of the story.  That’s the mmo player in me wanting the story to continue.  If I read the description correctly on Steam, the DLC is a trials based set of missions that test time and pvp-esque combat to try and top a leader board, and I’m sorry (for the run-on sentence as well) but in a stealth game, I really have no desire to turn my ghostly specter into a fist fighting thug.  I will eventually play it again, I know I will, but I want to savor this one for a while.

The last game I bought was Assassin’s creed 3 and it’s downloading as I type this (errrr, 30% more).  A little background.  Besides loving AC1 and 2 even more due to the upgrades available, I grew up and still live in New England.  Only about an hour north of Concord, Massachusetts and a couple of shity driving hours from Boston.  As a New Englander, you grow up with a ridiculous amount of pride beaten into you about the Revolutionary War.  I’ve walked the freedom trail a dozen times and have visited Lexington and Concord a zillion times starting at age six.  Living in a locale that also happens to be a museum of our countries beginnings brings out a strange “caretaker” feeling in me.  I am at times a fierce critic of this country and offer no apologies for my disdain.  That being said, I offer Mark Twain’s words “loyalty to the Nation ALL the time, loyalty to the Government when it deserves it.”  And without going into a political rant, know that I am proud of the man I helped elect twice now, and am proud of my brothers and sisters that did the same.  ENOUGH!!!  THIS IS A VIDEO GAME POST!!!  Just the idea that I am going to be able to participate in the pretty-much-fake-but-enough-real-history-to-make-David McCullough-not-puke revolutionary war is flipping rad.  I can’t wait for the…16%…  to finish up so I can git me some red coats and help liberate my colonial brothers from the tyrannical palm of King George.

I plan on posting a bit more about Dishonored “hard mode” and my impressions of Assassin’s Creed III soon, but now I have…  GAH, 13% to search the webs for keyboard controls and set up the G13/G600 for my evening adventure.

I assume that when the “coming back to blogging” posts outnumber the actual posts on a blog there is something seriously wrong with the writing habits of the blogger.  And that shits me.  So, when I tell you I’m working hard to update my actual website and get my swag shops in order, you’re probably rolling your eyes and wondering why the hell you’re even here in the first place.  If that’s the case then GET FUCKED!  No seriously though, get fucked.  No really, I’m trying.  I suck at following through with projects and they pile up and I often bite off way more than I could ever chomp down.

But…

It’s the new year and I have big plans for getting my shit onto peoples backs and cars and bags and computers.  I plan on offending others with opinions and jokes and photos.  I truly feel like this is the year you will feel the power of the Nat, and suffer you will for ever doubting my conviction to make you like me.  (It’s more of a mental illness really).  Cheers!

Well I finally sold one of my K-9 bumper stickers.  I’m honestly not a douchy designer that thinks everything I make is better than anything YOU can make, I just think this little bumper sticker is pretty cool.  If I could print them here and distribute them myself, I would give them away.  Anyway, pick one up.  They’re five bucks and the money goes directly into my cs6 fund.  So now I’m only…  Well, I’m nearer than I was before I sold a bumper sticker.  Here’s a chance to pick up your own!

(clicky, click-click)

UPDATE!!!  Well, I didn’t sell all that many of these guys, and the ones I bought for myself were of such poor quality, I decided to pull the design down from cafepress.  I will be opening an Etsy store in the next couple of weeks and selling them from there.  If you need oned before then, please email me and I will see what I can do.  As always, thanks for stopping by.

Hello human male,

Thank you for your letter.  I appreciate you taking the time to stumble through your language to find the words you needed to publicly scorn me for being:

• a disgusting animal that refuses to eat day old food
• a thick, uneducated twat
• not dead

My understanding is that my owner, the adult human female is responsible for apporximately 90% of my feedings and waste removals.  I also understand that when she is not in the house when one of these tasks need attention, you substitute your “care” for hers.  I apologize for disrupting your free time spent masturbating and playing video games.  If I knew that taking 3 minutes out of your night, already chock full of self demeaning acts to feed me was such a problem, I would have grown thumbs, 3 feet in height and fed myself.  No wait, I can’t do that.  That only happens to animals in your fantasy computer screen.  That’s right, I rely on humans to feed me, house me and remove my waste from the box of sand you make me shit in.  It is tremendously embarrassing to have you pick up my urine and feces and then stare at me like I had a choice in making them.  Thank you for understanding that since you will not allow me to leave the house, I have a choice of shitting in a box or your slippers.  I trust we have an understanding concerning the timely removal of my waste.  Thank you.

Concerning the age of the food you expected me to eat this morning, all I can say is get fucked.  I don’t see you feeding the human-child food prepared the evening before and she is much more healthy than I am.  As you mentioned, I am not in the greatest shape, being as old as I am.  Would it kill you to do a little research and discover what food is best for a cat of my age?

Chances are that if you wished it, you could provide care for me that rivals “adequate” and who knows, maybe some of my fur will grow back and I wouldn’t scare the neighbors anymore.  Thank you for taking the time to read my concerns.  Have fun tonight and remember, when you think no one is watching you…  I am.

Dear Cat,

I did see you this morning while I was making coffee.  I hope you noticed that I did check to see if you had cat food in your cat dish.  You still had plenty of food left from last night when I fed you.  That’s right, me.  I pulled back the lid on your truly stomach-churning “wet” cat food.  I mixed half of it with some of your “dry” food and fed you.  You were there, remember?  Now, this morning, less than 9 hours after I had fed you last, you stood next to a half full cat food dish and wanted more.  More, or something else, something…  different?  I know you are a cat.  I know you don’t have a job, money or a working understanding of how food gets from somewhere else into your stomach.  I won’t argue that you have a basic concept of using your liver-spotted mouth to chew your cat food and that makes you feel “good”, but there is much more to it than that.  Let me explain.

You are a 20+ year old pet.  Not 20 cat years or anything pitiful like that, I mean you were born in 1991.  You are older than ALL of the morons in the local high school and half of the local college twats.  You probably don’t understand, but that is a really long time for a cat to live.  So long in fact, we thought about taking you to a vet and telling the vet that we found you on the side of the street and we, “feel utterly distressed that we can’t keep her, ma’am, but our landlord has a strict policy against having pets.  We’re sure you understand.”  -But we haven’t. Yet.

My wife, the human who adopted you oh so many years ago, feels that you are an omen of sorts.  That we won’t be truly successful or happy until you die.  You see what kind of pressure you are putting on this family?  Every time that kid, my human daughter, goes to pick you up, I need to stop her because I honestly feel your spine might snap like a pixi stick and dust that was originally your blood and organs will spill out onto the floor.  I know this doesn’t speak to the concern at hand, but I wanted to give you some insight on how lucky you are to still be eating at all.

You don’t know this, but there are large buildings in most towns that were built after you were born and have since been demolished (that means taken apart).  You’re life, your simple, filthy life has lasted longer than million dollar structures.  Please, PLEASE try and see it from my point of view.  You have lived in more states than most people, successful, rich people.

Now, if your cat food dish was empty this morning I would have suffered the vile smell of the overpriced meat pieces contained in the small cans that get you so excited.  I would have choked back vomit and fed you again.  This was NOT the case.  You had, dare I say, most of your dish still full.  And to this I say, “I don’t understand.”  Please realize that every time you are fed, I die a little on the inside.  I ask you to understand, knowing that you cannot.  I ask for your gratitude, despite your lack of brain size.  I wish for your timely, yet painless death, knowing with all that is unholy, that you cannot be killed.

That is all for now.  Until next time.

Sincerely, The human male who married your owner.

I appreciate a free month of gameplay when I buy a new mmo.  I mean, I REALLY appreciate it.  If I am buying a new mmo, which I have done a lot of in the past 4 years, I plan on playing it.  Something I have read or seen from beta interests me about the game.  Unfortunately, when it comes time to play the new game, I usually only last 15-20 days or more accurately between 60-75 hours.  Lord of the Rings Online was different.  When Moria was released, I picked it up.  I played LotRO for almost 3 months.  That was back in the day when we paid to play, before the ugliness which is FTP/micro transactions (but that is a different angry).  Warhammer, Aeon and Rift never made it past that first, free month.  I have a tendency to completely jump into a new mmo.  Playing as much as I can, reading as much about the game as I can, and usually burning out as quickly as I can.  Most of you know that on December 20th, Star Wars: The Old Republic launched.  I have been looking forward to this game since I first read about it.  I tried to not get over excited about the release due to the nature of games on this scale.  They get pushed back and pushed back until all of the major excitement is smothered to a minor spark, and then after a couple of weeks playing the game, it dies.  I think…  I think I may be sticking around this time.

I was lucky enough to squeak in 2 beta weekends and 5 days of early access, but besides that, I kept away from SWTOR news and announcements.  I didn’t really evaluate the classes until beta and still haven’t chosen whom I plan on taking to 50 first.  I have a Jedi Guardian at level 37, he is probably the best candidate for my first 50, but I absolutely LOVE the Smuggler story, and the trooper gameplay is so much fun.  I actually have a Bounty Hunter at 13, but I honestly HATE the Imperials.  The leaders are disgusting and after running Black Talon on my BH, I can say that the decisions during the social parts of the flashpoint are ridiculous.  If I could have the gameplay and spell animations of the BH only fighting with the Republic, I would probably already be 50.  My Guardian is most certainly my style though.  I loved tanking on my warrior and druid in WoW and I am finding that my Jedi guardian is very similar.  I love having to be constantly moving to keep agro on all the mobs.  I’ve kind of freaked out some groups I’ve been in by hopping from mob to mob.  I appreciate them trying to only hit what I am hitting, but this is a different game and with a class that doesn’t have many ranged options, as guardian tanks, we should plan on being very mobile.

I think what is keeping me interested in this game is that there are different things I want to do.  It’s hard for me though.  I am so used to the “rush to end game while wearing a full suit of heirlooms” way of playing, that I am consistently telling myself to take a breath for craps sake.  Slow down, there is plenty of time to do all the things I want to do in the game.  With WoW, I always felt like I “should” be doing something else.  I “should” be running heroics on my current main.  I “should” be dropping my profession and leveling one that gives me the extra 5% crit.  When Cataclysm launched, I felt lousy because I wanted to finish leveling my warrior instead of taking one of my 3 80s to 85.  Sometimes, while I am at the character creation screen, AGAIN, I feel like I am slacking because I’m not on my guardian, pushing towards 50, but that goes away when I reassure myself that we are less than a month into this adventure, and there is plenty of time to do everything.

I hate publish a half finished post, but time to do some paid work.  We’ll call this part one.  Part two soon?  I hope so.

Years back, I wrote a post about the podcasts I consumed daily.  Well, things have changed, podcasts have been retired (Me and the Bean, I’m looking at you!) and I no longer play the game that spawned so many of the podcasts that I listened to way back when.  No fear though, my old list was destroyed anyway when I thought I knew what I was doing and effectively deleted 2 years of blogging.  C’est la vie, right?  So, servers are down, I am awake and the kid is still sleeping, time to put together a new list.

Ok, here are the Star Wars: The Old Republic podcasts I am listening to at the moment:

Mos Eisley Radio - Hosted by Zach Brown, Evan Lewis, Leo Andrie & Alan Nauman (Sorry, the link for Leo Andrie’s twitter went to Alan’s page too)

Solid podcast that is updated most every week.  Zach and Evan have hosted most of the podcasts, but Leo and Alan are listed on the About page, so they are listed here also.  This podcast is probably my most listened to of this list.  I really dig this podcast and the information I have taken from it.  I would start here if you haven’t subscribed to any yet.

The Instance: The Old Republic Edition – Hosted by Veterans Scott Johnson and Dills

This podcast is definately the new kid on the block, despite Mr. Johnson being one of the most prolific podcasters working right now.  I LOVED The Instance and I hope that this podcast will get to where The Instance is someday.

Sunny’s Diner – Hosted by Sunny Ravencourt and Radicool.

I’ve only hears a couple of their recordings, but I really dig the flow of this podcast.  Their thing, their “angle” if you will, is that they are casuals.  I’m not sure how many casuals listen to or record podcasts, but there you have it.  This podcast reminds me a bit of Casually Hardcore from back in the day.

The Holocron 2.0 – Hosted by Brian Casey (Fiddleback) and Phil Maiewski (Darth GM)

Along with Mos Eisley Radio, this podcast is solid, real solid.  They update regularly and have real decent content.  This is actually where I got some major tips about my new favorite part of SWTOR, space combat!!

These are the four podcasts that I have been digging on for the last couple of months.  I will hopefully get some more for my earhole, but for now, these are keeping me in the loop when I am physically(or virtually) not.

Google+ pages:
Mos Eisly Radio
The Instance: TOR Edition (twitter link, no g+ yet)
Sunny’s Diner
The Holocron 2.0

I listed my K-9 bumper sticker at my cafe press store.  Take a look and show your K-9 pride!

UPDATE!!!  Well, I didn’t sell all that many of these guys, and the ones I bought for myself were of such poor quality, I decided to pull the design down from cafepress.  I will be opening an Etsy store in the next couple of weeks and selling them from there.  If you need oned before then, please email me and I will see what I can do.  As always, thanks for stopping by.

So I am going to print a prototype SITH/CCCP sweatshirt this week.  I will be putting the Imp. logo on the front left breast, with the main image on the back.  Wednesday, Friday at the latest.  Stop back for pics!