Year In Review: 2014

Ahhhh, 2014 is over and another year of the non-leap variety has begun, this time ending in the newly minted 2015 style.  But seriously, who talks that way!?

2014 was a good year for us here.  I felt our writing has increased quite a bit since we started over two years ago and we continue to be more and more coherent and consistent.  Dr. Potts with his newly NP inspired title Pak Watch which will be seeing further development in the coming year and the creation of Wednesdays' MIDI Week Singles of which both of us are always excited about writing for.

Looking back, I feel that I re-submerged myself in the board game playing industry, mainly towards the end of the year and partly because Conklederp and I got married which brought in some gifts in the board gaming department.  Although, I feel that this re-germinated seed began earlier in the year when Chreekat's mom moved up to Portlandia and we played Settlers of Catan.  Since then, we've played a fair amount of Mansions of Madness, Pandemic, as well as a handful of other games (7 Wonders, Camel Up!, Blokus, DiXit) with some other friends.  Our current year looks to be even more expansive with Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition that I am planning to get started in the coming weeks/months.

I also noticed that I started watching a lot more episodes from both Extra Credits and LoadingReadyRun as well as listening to podcasts of Roosterteeth's The Patch.  Coupled with my reading of Penny-Arcade and the occasional article from PC Gamer and Kotaku, these are my primary sources for gaming news and information (and I guess occasional hilarity) from the past year and 2015 doesn't look to be any different.

Gaming-wise, there's a lot more to cover and after creating a list of the games I had played, finished and stopped playing, I decided not to subjugate our reader to that kind of monotony.  But now that Steam's Winter Sale is over (as of roughly four and-a-half hours ago) and that my 3DS has filled up with games from Nintendo's eShop sale (oddly a lot for Nintendo), I am perfectly content to wallow about in this (I guess technically it's last) years haul which includes old (and a couple newer) titles such as Castle Crashers, Trine 2, Wasteland, Child of Light, VVVVVV, Crimson Shard and Weapon Shop de Omasse [which I am definitely going to write about in the coming week(s)].

With the move that Conklederp and I just completed a few weeks back, we'll be putting in a retro gaming room (SNES, N64 and GameCube) so look for more articles about games that Dr. Potts, Conklederp and I all grew up with.  With any luck, I might be able to acquire the NES from my parents house (once my older sister and I determine custody).  I've also re-installed my magnifying light which means that I will be getting back into painting miniatures, which I am very excited to do again after a three plus year dry spell.

Oh, and I had nearly forgotten that 2014 marked my official foray into the world of online gaming with The Elder Scrolls Online, of which I played for about four months before having to stop due to a lack of incoming income, and Path of Exile, which I am still playing, but appear to be unable to find the time to make my way up and through the Pyramid in a single sitting.  Ah, first world problems.  Amiright!?

So when I am not being all accountable (eh, EH!?) this upcoming school year, I'll be keeping busy with one of many forms of gaming, which I will keep y'all updated on, because that's why we exist here.

Happy 2015.

~JWfW/JDub/Jaconian

Instrumental

End of The Year - Monthly Update January

http://memoski.deviantart.com/art/Indie-Collision-447101402

I'm noticing that I'm less and less inclined toward playing video games lately.  And as this has become the case, I notice I tend to narrow my focus when gaming.  I really only play one or two games at a time.  And I really want to finish them out and put them to bed.  The latest has been starseed pilgrim.  I've played this game off and on for a year, and I've gotten close to beating it but dammit if I can't seem to beat the thing!  Even now, as I'm typing, I'm wondering if I should give it another shot.

... and yes, I tried, and no, I didn't finish it.  So close!  arrrgh!  I do love that Starseed Pilgrim, though.  This game is so challenging and rewarding.  I find it can really absorb my attention, and that concentration can be good for me.  Just so long as I can put the thing down before I'm pulling too much of my hair out.

I also started playing Chrono Trigger the other day, just to see what it would be like.  I was being very good too, playing about 30-60 minutes a night, occasionally skipping some.  But the holidays threw that out of whack.  A skipped day flows into a couple days visiting family and friends and then suddenly I'm out of the habit.   Incidentally, that's exactly how it always goes for me when flossing, exercising and other good habits I want to get into.

Frog Fractions, seems innocuous enough, but is it really?

I suppose I should take some time to actually review the year, for this year in review.  Wow, a lot can happen in a year.  My year in gaming started out strong, with the unique and often hilarious game, The Stanley Parable.   Jaconian and I both played this game, and had a blast.  I would recommend this game to anyone who has played a lot of video games.  I actually had a similar experience playing the flash game Frog Fractions.  Though the two games have much different game play, there is a similar sense of parody and tribute to games past.  All in all, Frog Fractions was a great time hidden in the guise of a math game.

I should mention that I entered 2014 as a member of our nations unemployed, and it was in this unemployed state that I discovered Zelda Classic, the Legend of Zelda quest editor.  Zelda Classic occupied all my attention for a solid month.  I had very high hopes.  Unfortunately, when I finally got a job, I tapered off on Zelda Classic before being able to produce anything I was really proud of.   
My new job was at a garden nursery, so for a while, all I could think about was plants.  I stopped gaming almost entirely.  Unless you count doggie soccer.  I start doing a lot more book reviews, reviewing old games and rambling on about gardening.

Toward the end of the year, I started playing and buying magic cards again, after a many-year hiatus.  I still regularly get together with my friends Ghost and Ramsden.  It's still really fun, though I sometimes wonder for how much longer.

I think I'll have to call Starseed Pilgrim my game of the year.  Even if it didn't come out this year.  The point is that this game captured my attention more than any other game I played.  I may even have to write another post after I finally beat the thing.  Zelda classic comes in second, and would have won if I could have played it more consistently throughout the year.  Unfortunately, Zelda classic is a much heavier commitment.  The Stanley Parable gets special recognition, and always will.  

Looking forward to the new year,  I'm mostly thinking about my job and my housing. I don't have any goals related to gaming.  And that's just fine.  Maybe I'll check a new indie title, or get involved in some multiplayer games.  I'll probably do some exploration of the past, probably playstation 1 era.  Whatever the case, video games are here for me if I need them, and I wouldn't have it any other way.  

-D

P.S.  I also want to take a second to say how much I love the MIDI Week Singles column that Jaconian introduced this year.  It's such a fun series to follow and to write for, and the possibilities are limitless. There is always something to say on the subject.  Jaconian has long been 'tending the fires' of video game music, and his appreciation for the medium cannot be overstated.   

2013 Year in Review

When reading over our mission statements, I do wonder if I have lost sight of anything.  Actually, I wonder that whenever I post, and I just used the mission statements to reinforce that belief.  Or something.  Anyhow, it is true that I originally spent more time reminiscing about my life and video games, and the influence games on my life.  However, posting at this blog has guided me to become more involved in the video game 'scene' as it were.  Really, the scene is made up of many different 'scenes' and I'm mostly interested in Art Games, Retro Games, free indie games, and higher production indie games available on Steam.  

This was a big year for non-game, games.  2012 might get a little mixed in here, since I don't really distinguish the two years very well, but I've played a few games that bend the rules about what video games are.  So far there's:  Proteus, Dear Esther and To the Moon.  And I'm also set to play Gone Home and The Stanley Parable.  Pretty excited about those two.  And about these high profile games that are so non-traditional.  

Because, let me tell you, when I returned to the gaming scene, I was appalled at how completely saturated it was with First Person Shooters.  I was never a huge fan of the genre, but to my understanding, there are so many generic shooters out there that even big fans of the genre are getting over-saturated.  I guess the good news is that the over-saturation of fps market has created a greater interest in non-traditional games like the ones I listed above, four out of five of which are from the first person perspective.

And then there's Portal.  Technically a shooter, but you don't shoot bullets, you don't shoot people, you shoot walls, and you create portals.  Beautiful and awesome, I still love this game, and had a great time playing through it again.  I also played Portal 2, which suffered a little by being, in my opinion, too long.  I also wasn't that into the whole 'gels' thing.  But I did just the other day get to play co-op mode with Jaconian for the very first time.  I had a great time and I can't wait to do it again.  

There is so much more depth in games than I am experiencing, and co-op mode reminded me of that.  We were just hanging out, playing video games (before we were rudely interrupted by a broken internet connection on my end).  It was nice.  I thought of my non-gaming friends who might not have such an easy time getting into hang-out mode with someone who lives hundreds of miles away.  

Okay, resolution time:   I resolve to play more online co-op (not hard, since my total games last year were 0).  I resolve to work harder on my more complex posts, rather than rushing them out at my self-imposed deadline.  As an amendment to that resolution, I'd like to actually finish the posts about the Console Wars and Graphics in games that I began over a year ago.  Also, to finish knitting the scarf I started, and one more too.  I also learned to knit this year - it's a excellent thing to do while watching TV or movies.  

Alright, acheivement unlocked:  New Years Ramble.

Happy New Year,

-Dr. Potts


P.S.  Here's some lists for the new year:

My Favorite gaming podcasts:  Experience Points, Brainy Gamer, A Life Well Wasted

My Favorite games I played this year:  Proteus, FEZ, SuperBrothers:  Sword and Sworcery EP

Top games I desperately want to play again, but don't have access to:  Journey, Barabari Ball, Nidhogg

Games I desperately want to play for the first time, but don't have access to:  Mario Galaxy 2, Zelda: Windwaker HD, Monster Hunter 3

My favorite posts I can't seem to finish:  Console Wars, What I mean when I talk about Graphics, Tecmo Bowl

My favorite Online video Programs relating to video games:  Extra Credits, PBS Ideas Channel, Hey Ash, Watcha Playin?

The consoles I am most nostalgiac for:  NES, SNES, Playstation 1

Consoles I would buy if, y'know, I had a TV and some extra spending cash:  Wii, Playstation 4 (it's backwards compatible, right?), Steam Box (just 'cause steam is awesome)

P.P.S.  Oh yeah, I lost my job in August, and proceeded to couch-surf for the next four months.  I guess that was a pretty big developement, huh?  Right.  Well, I discovered that even with a bunch of extra time to game, I don't play any more video games than before.  I guess I feel like I earn the time to play more when I'm paying rent.  But I'm going to pay rent at a house with a PS3 come January, so we'll see what develops!

Year in Review ~ 2013: Year of the PC

Well damn.  Only four days left in 2013, which is hard for me to imagine considering that I remember at the beginning of the year thinking about resolutions, none of which I kept.  I had planned to write 10 songs this year and paint "more" miniatures.  None of that happened.  What I did do though, was become more deeply rooted in PC gaming and I read more books (including comic books a la The Walking Dead).

2013 began with my computer in the shop after spilling a beer (again) onto the keyboard.  I gave the first two games in The Elder Scrolls series a go, two posts which seemed to be pseudo-popular with our target audience.

Looking back at what I've written, I noticed that the first half of the year I dedicated a lot of time to 3DS play while the second half of the year, there was very little in the way of 3DS games that I reviewed.  Of course not to forget the PSP, of which I only reviewed a single game the entire year.  And yet, I still like the PSP as a gaming platform, I don't use it as a portable gaming platform as I do with the 3DS.  I've noticed that I predominantly play the PSP whenever I'm home, which then presents the dilemma that since I'm at home, why don't I just play one of the many PC games that are gathering dust on my hard drive?

But really, 2013 was The Year of the PC for me.  My PC games library grew from something manageable to something that I'm surprised hasn't started reproducing on it's own.  And actually, reproduction has occurred with a couple of the games through Steam.  In one of the auto updates, Anna added an "Extended Edtion" without my knowledge.  Left 4 Dead 2 Beta became something that sparked questioning throughout the Steamverse for a week or two.  You're welcome Linux users.  Company of Heroes was released with a "New Steam Version" and since I haven't played any of those games from one of the Humble Bundles (back before they became an every day/week/month sale thing).

It was also the year that I visited both Kickstarter and Indiegogo a few times to back games that I wanted to see made.  Two Out of Three Ain't Bad, but I really would have like to have seen Shadow of the Eternals be made and Precursor Games stay around as a game development company.  I will see Beyond the Sleep and Darkwood come into fruition sometime in the coming year, so I am happy that at least two indie game companies are able to see their vision.

I will sometimes think back about what the mission statement that Dr. Potts and I had for when we created our little space here in the electronic void.  In our pre-production days, the thought of doing predominantly "retro games" was an idea that looked very tasty, and looking back throughout the year, I 've realized that that is something that I have not personally done a lot of.  I blame my lack of components that allow my SNES and N64 to be played on the schnazzy HDLEDC3POTV that sits six and-a-half feet from me.

I also found myself watching more-and-more over at LoadingReadyRun.  I guess I just have a thing for Canadians:  Nathan Fillion, John Candy, Caroline Dhavernas, Dave Foley, Ryan Reynolds, Jewel Staite, Conklederp.

So I'm now going to cut myself off before I continue to ramble on more than I already tend to do (thanks Dad).

Happy New Year everyone.  I don't want to say "Hopefully 2014 will be. . ." because I thought 2013 was a pretty damn good year as far as years go.  It wasn't the all time greatest year of the year, but that would be rather hard to beat.  Now, I don't want to make any promises, but in the coming year, look forward to more reviews that are/will be at least 6 months behind the release date of the game, or if you're lucky, it might be upwards of 20 years late.  But that how we do here.

~JWfW/JDub/Jaconian

Hanging Out With No One But Me