I think hugging fish removes their protective slime coating and exposes them to disease; unless you are shirtless and covered in lake water - which you probably are. Hug on, my friend. Hug on.
I haven't listened yet (or read M117's brief response), but I just have to tell you that that issue of X-Men is one of the few I held onto after The Purge. Also a lot of Flaming Carrots.
Good analysis and good topic!
The main time I really think about game saves is when they annoy me. Finished Final Fantasy XII not too long ago which still used a traditional save point system. That really cramped my style at times as I tried to squeeze game time in between everything else I had going on. Because of it's save system, I often didn't even try playing even if I had a reasonable chunk of time to dive in, like thirty minutes or so, because of where the save points were located.
Another gripe: quit limiting the save slots. If there is one slot because there is one play through, like on certain RPGs - fine. When it's an action game or platformer, developers need to give me more slots than 2 or 3. I've got a family here and if it's a Mario game or something we're all likely to play, then I need tons. Mario Galaxy had eight if I recall, and that was perfect. Then they cut it down to three for the sequel. Nonsense!
Now that my first world rants are over...
I definitely think save systems can have an impact. A few blurbs:
With some games taking a more and more story-driven tact these days, the auto-save is definitely a good method since it keeps you from detaching from the narrative to click around in a menu or what not.
As the opposite philosophy for an RPG than your Mass Effect example, I really enjoyed what Fable II did with its auto-save system. (Fable III might have this too - I wouldn't know.) I preferred the freedom of making a choice and then that was my choice. I didn't have the option to try out all the possiblities and pick "the best," but just had to go with my instinct or what I thought was right. This led my character down some paths I wasn't expecting and gave my morality meter hell, but I loved it that way.
I think that's all I've got for now. Thanks for the great blog.
You seem like a very supportive friend to have around. It's wonderful to see how you have used your bad experiences to do a lot of good for others (and yourself, no doubt). Stay strong, Mikey. I wish the best for your friend Aaron too.
"Cloud saves"
Heh.
I'm curious to see your Minecraft doings! Glad you took the plunge and are enjoying it so much.
I'm also glad you got over your fear of downloadable games! There are a lot of great titles out there, many for sale at baby chicken prices.
I have similar piles that I keep meaning to photograph... perhaps I shall now that you've started a local trend.
I'd knock out something you're already half way through. I have a lot of affection for Vanquish for all the wrong reasons, so I vote for that.
I had never heard of Sword of Hope II. Doesn't look like the internet gives it a lot of respect either. If you're interested in a let's play: http://lparchive.org/Sword-of-Hope-II/Update%2001/
or a full soundtrack: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLED06DE0F6CA17042
Looks like something I would have enjoyed at the time of release... but would be unable to appreciate now without any nostalgia for the game.
I rarely put any portables in my pocket, so the XL's size is not really an issue for me. I am loving the DSi XL I just got, so think this would be similarly awesome. That said, I have no real way to justify buying this thing any time soon.
Fear not, Esteban! You can still buy the PGR3 UNO theme deck. Get out your Microsoft points!
It is strange that the game wouldn't even get some sort of listing any more. At least a notice that DLC has been discontinued. Perhaps DLC falls under the same rules as the arcade games that require a certain rating and download number in order to remain available. I can imagine that car packs on a relatively early game like PGR3 had some small sales numbers, but that's just a hunch.
