Construed

It’s been a cold, hard winter.

The World’s economy is like a mouse staring at the smallest piece of cheese, that is resting on the mousetrap named greed.

So in these depressing times, what do videogamers do for their kicks?

They go & play Fallout 3, of course – just throw on another bucket of water, to dampen the mood!

Of course anyone playing Fallout 3 will know, that the setting of a post-apocalypse is very well represented but then again maybe the mood, post-apocalypse, has been captured too well?!

In describing my thoughts on the experience of playing Fallout 3 to a friend, I quipped it was

…too soulless for its own good…

I haven’t yet played the first DLC, Operation: Anchorage, I will be looking at the next installment that is due for release this month, namely titled The Pitts. But my main concern with each of these DLC packages, is that they will stick to the same formula of drab, fallout-ridden environments that made gameplay uninspiring at times in the original game.

Sometimes an smattering of hope can go a long way to instilling the will to survive & carry-on, even in a videogame setting. Let’s just hope Bethesda aren’t intent on leading us all down an ever-darkening path without at least some candlelight for comfort.

DM∞

This is post  #99.

It feels the right time for me to do a quick look back just to see what I failed to follow-up on in previous posts – I don’t like to leave you all hanging!

Before I do so, I’d just want to mention that in the next Construed post up(#100), will be my first Comic Book Review. If you’ve missed out on what I’m talking about here, then go back 15 posts to read the announcement.

OK onto the loose ends…

Videogaming

A few bits to tidy up here:

My copy of Spore still remains unopened – I will get to it sometime soon, now the hype surronding this game has passed away. Anyone still playing with this toy, I mean game?

I’d love to finish both Fallout 3 & Bioshock.

Spider-Man: Web of Shadows is also crying-out to to be played – I did give this to a friend to play & his initial thoughts were bad but he did go on to complete it in the end. The more he played it, the more forgiving he was of the game’s shortcomings – this alone makes me want to give it a spin.

You can also expect a Skate 2 review by me, up at Caught in the Crossfire by the end of the month – if not before.

Music

I promise there will be more to come on this topic – I’ve even got a ticket to a gig in March which is my first for many a year! More on that soon.

Movies

I have two that I have been meaning to watch but they still remain unwatched, they are: The Fountain & Dark City. Of course, the end of this month sees the premiere of the Watchmen movie which I hope to catch at a good cinema -  maybe even at the IMAX in London.

TV

CSI & Heroes are my main catch-ups – I have yet to watch at least 8 Heroes shows before it broke at the end of last year. I have some thoughts on the new season of CSI, written down in note-form, which I want to share here on Construed but I may wait for a few more shows to air before I do so.

OK that’s all my tying up done. Just remember, if your a comic book fan like me then keep a sharp eye out for post #100, as I’m back reading monthly comic books again!

DM∞

Operation: Anchorage is due this month

Before you all get over-excited, I have not yet seen any of the new DLC for Fallout 3. No sneak peaks for me but I do, however, have a confirmation that each of the new packs(Operation: Anchorage – due Jan, The Pitt – due Feb. & Broken Steel – due March) will be accessible to the player, even if the main quest line of Fallout 3 has not been completed – as long as you have completed the escape from Vault 101.

For me, this is great news – I’ve yet to finish the main quest in Fallout 3 on the 360 & it will be nice to be able to flit from each scenario. It does, however, raise the question of continuity & whether this will effect the game experience as a whole.

In an interview over at Eurogamer, Jeff Gardiner states:

Broken Steel not only extends the game to level 30, it alters the core ending. It allows the player to continue exploring the ashen Wasteland and see the fruits that are born, or that die, from their decisions. It will reprise several main characters, and conclude some of the story threads left dangling.

So all of you that took the bad karma(-1000 for this decision!) line in Power of the Atom quest, will possibly see Megaton replaced by some new community(yes that does include me).

At this point I’d like to ask which of my readers like the idea of DLC & if they would part with 800 Microsoft points for each of the Fallout 3 packs?

DM∞

I have owned my 360 for all of 5 minutes, well OK more like 3 weeks, but I can’t fault the console for the gaming experience it has given me, so far. Nope, not a bit – to the point that my PS3 has sat unused during that time, save for a few excursions of playing Call of Duty – World at War or the odd movie watched.

Now, before you all go & ready your pointy sticks I don’t intend this post to be a console vs. console affair – both the PS3 & the 360 have their good but also their bad points & to own both consoles is a very nice position for me to be in.

What I do want to do in this post is highlight the reasons why I think the 360 will be my console of choice(when I have the luxury of choice) for future gaming:

Achievements – Better conceived than the PS3’s Trophy system, the 360’s achievements give extra depth & life to the videogame experience. The organic feel of progress you get from unlocking achievements, I have found to be spot on with the notification of unlocking each achievement feeling natural to the game experience. Controller – Great fit, well shaped with such a great weight, the feel of the 360 controller gives to the gamer is of a well put together but natural feeling input device. Have to congratulate Microsoft on that one alone. NXE & LIVE – although the new avatars are a bit too Wii for my liking the overall feel I get from the NXE is warmth plus my limited experiences playing online have been faultless. Titles – Great catalogue of videogames on the 360 – I now have Bioshock, Fallout 3, Gears of War 2, Fable II & Left 4 Dead. I now prefer to receive 360 versions of a game title over a PS3 version which I never thought I’d say – getting a PS3 promo of Prince of Persia today made me feel a little sad that it wasn’t a 360 disc, ha!

I may just be out of the honeymoon period of my 360 experience but in a nutshell, as a whole the XBOX 360 wins me over as the closet thing to perfection that a videogaming console, imagined, could be. Time & my 360s cooling fans, of course, will indeed tell.

DM∞

So it begins…

Fallout 3 has a very cold heart beating at its core.

First review for Caught in the Crossfire has now gone live & am fairly pleased with it – here’s the link: http://www.caughtinthecrossfire.com/games/7608.

Am already onto the next review which will be Valve’s Left 4 Dead.

DM∞