Video game addicts...

That's why they invented PTT. All those stupid consoles with their voice-activated crap.

So now you can download the classic Command & Conquer games at no charge to play on your PC.

http://www.commandandconquer.com/classic

Hot Damn, I'm on it!

I had this in my house for a couple of weeks. I sold it for a friend, but got my own personal mileage out of it. It had 39 games built in, all from the 1980's.
It was fun to play so many old favorites again.

When Civilization is released on Facebook, no one will leave.

Hot damn, that's not fair!

Ya know I was surprised at how many little tricks I remembered, and how well I did on some of the games.

I used to play on one in the bar area of a restaurant we ate at when I was little. It looked exactly like that, but I think it only played Mrs. Pacman.

Christ, how did he do that with a straight face.

I hate consoles.

I have one and I play this stupid motogp 08 game and I suck at it.

What're you doing in my house!?

If you play many of those classic arcade games via Xbox Live, you get World Leaderboards bragging rights.

Just what I need, another fucking button to push.

Quiet, mouth-breather, we don't need to hear you!

Alright, so MW2 was pretty cool.

There's still some elements I liked about the first one better, but I think the 2nd one comes out on top.

The story bothers me a little though, are they intentionally keeping price and soap alive along with nothing happening to Makarov for a 3rd installment?

Also, what was the whole deal with Shepard, He talked about losing 30,000 men all at once (apparently during the first game) but I never caught why he turned evil?

Nearing the end of Mass Effect 2. Overall I'm going to have to call it a mild disappointment.

The first game had some rough edges (like the inventory system and the Mako physics and controls) that needed cleaning up. So I was happy to see some of of the streamlining in the second game -- most obviously the elimination of any need to do inventory management.

But overall I think they went way too far in the direction of streamlining. Getting rid of the Mako altogether was a mistake. Replacing the flawed but basically fun Mako with the plant scanning process was a sin. (Whoever thought up the planet scanning thing should be forcibly ejected from the gaming industry. It's boring as hell, and makes absolutely no sense given what the game tells you about your ship, your character, and the organization you're working for.) The Mako added some variety to the gameplay, and it should have been improved rather than lopped off.

Maps were really dumbed down compared to what I remember of ME1. Aside from some non-combat hub areas, most of the map were almost completely linear. Each one is effectively a long (but winding) corridor with occasional side doors where you can pick up optional bonuses, and conveniently placed cover whenever you encounter baddies. I don't think I ever had to think much about where I was going in ME2, and that's a bad thing.

(I suspect that a lot of the streamlining reflects a need to control development costs, rather than a desire to make the game more accessible. The planet scanning had to have been easier to implement than an improved physics engine and extensive 3D terrain models for driving the Mako. And I'd imagine that simple linear maps are easier to build, debug, and play-test than more complex ones.)

The plot is less interesting than in ME1. Not much in the way of twists or surprises, little sense that you're gradually uncovering the details of some Galactic mystery. The primary storyline is actually very short and simple, and the bulk of the game's missions and content are tied to your efforts to recruit a bunch of crew members. Too many crew members, really. I would have preferred a smaller crew and a more complex primary plot. Oh, and those silly "mission summary" screens really destroy the suspension of disbelief. Way to remind me that I'm playing a video game and not actually in an open-ended world.

At the end of this long bitchy post about the game's problems, I have to say I'm still enjoying it. I've got enough residual curiosity about the plot and the universe from the first game to want to see what happens next. The basic combat is still reasonably fun. And the dialog and character development is as great as the first time around. Maybe better. So I'm finding it worth my time to play. But only barely so -- in a lot of ways its coasting on the goodwill that the first game earned. If the first game had been this weak, I wouldn't have bought the second.

I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that the next entry in the series finds the right balance.

I think the "crux" of the game is that "good" and "evil" when it comes to worldwide chess matches are fluid concepts- in Shepherd's mind, what he was doing wasn't specifically evil, but unfortunate and necessary in order to drum up support for a war to avenge the losses of the first game.

SPOILER BELOW FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOT YET PLAYED THIS GAME:

Look at the action Price took to turn world opinion back in favor of the US as a "victim"?

Overall, I think MW2 did a good job of demonstrating no small amount of cynicism decrying the black and white jingoism that accompanies most wars and global conflicts. In the end, it's pretty much a grudgematch between a few opponents with many willing and unwilling to serve as pawns. Despite being a "war" game, it doesn't really glorify violence as much as present it as having a sociopathic clarity of purpose.

Truly hilarious! I was crying, and trying not to spew my coffee. Good stuff.

I find it strange that he still needed a war to avenge those lost when both leaders responsible for what happened were assassinated by allied forces.

Spoilers:







The whole Makarov deal bugs me. I get why he was important, but it was kind of annoying how they dropped him so quickly.

I concur.

He goes from incredibly dark bad guy to "special guest star" rather rapidly.