Johnny

We do not speak of SSX Blur.

OH SHIT YES!

I've only played the demo, but it seems to be most similar to 3. My copy should arrive in the next few days.

House keepers? Really? I don't know anyone who ever had one, and I was friends with some pretty rich kids. Both parents working as well, that's the norm here.

I had to roll my eyes at the part of the .nfo where they are mocking the pirate install process: "1) Insert disc 2) Play " Kind of funny when you've got a game that requires origin.

March 1st is in a few days, that's when the coupons expire, and I currently have no plans to use any of mine. -25% Valve -25% Valve -33% Valve -50% Valve -25% Sega -25% Focus Home Interactive -25% Cogs -50% Rockstar Games -50% Nail'd -50% Oddworld: Abe's Exodus -50% Droplitz -50% Trauma -75% Aliens vs. Predator -50% Duke Nukem Forever (The True Coal) I'm willing to trade against other cupons, any minor gifts like a tf2 item you may have lying around, or just give them away at this point. Anyone want any?

Nope. You could order from .co.uk, or any of the other european departments, or even .com, but the shipping fees and waiting time would be horrendous.

I'll rephrase my statement: I find it funny that EA so often manages to make the pirated version of their PC games the most complete one, by making pirating the only way to get all the vendor-exclusive DLC unless you are a millionaire. Even more amusingly, most of the pre-order bonus thingies don't even make it to sweden. Gamestop is the only one of the usual suspects that exist here.

Mass Effect 2 PC version has a massive $P cost. In related notes, I find it funny that EA so often manages to make the pirated version of their PC games the most complete one, by making pirating the only way to get all the vendor-exclusive DLC

Beat Hazard sessions last either as long as the song you select in single track mode, or as long as you can survive in survival mode. I've done survival mode for 35 minutes or so. The crazy people on the leaderboards keep it up for hours upon hours.

Mostly unrelated: I still take serious issue with using the term rape to describe anything that isn't sex where one party is unwilling, age notwithstanding. And yes, I know the legal reasoning behind it. It's still basically wrong in my eyes.

Though changing difficulty on the fly makes sense for most games with multiple difficulties, I know of at least one case where that would do weird and potentially game-breaking things (Beat Hazard)

I actually find it silly to claim any feature must be in ALL games. Take the changing difficulties for example, that wasn't in VVVVVV or Super Meat Boy, and I think both of those games would have been lesser for adding such a feature when the challenge was really the main point. In VVVVVV's case the brilliant checkpoint layout and relatively short game time ensures that the game remains fair and largely non-frustrating (unless you want to tackle the Trinket challenges. Some of those will make you pull your hair out.) Super Meat Boy manages the difficulty by making reaching the end of a stage far from "beating" it, using bandages, A+ times to unlock Dark World, and Warp Zone levels. Both of these games have their own ways of managing difficulty, ways that would not work for most games but work for them - though it can probably be argued that Super Meat Boy does not manage it as well as VVVVVV. I'm rambling again. Anyway, the point was that while having multiple difficulty levels and having them changable on the fly makes sense and is probably the best option for a lot of games (most AAA games), I would be sad to see certain titles take that route. If I'm allowed to speculate, I think it likely that the upcoming SSX is going to do what the franchise has always done and manage difficulty by having different milestones (Bronze, Silver and Gold) to beat, letting newer players feel a sense of progress as they learn the ropes and go from beating bronze to silver to gold.

It's 15 in Sweden, which amusingly enough seems to shock some people online. I really find the age of consent laws to be kind of silly. Making laws prohibiting it won't stop people having sex, especially not impulsive teenagers.

oh. Well that makes WAY more sense. Can I blame my lack of reading comprehension on running a fever? =P

I wonder how accurate those numbers are. 30% sounds a bit low, but maybe it's different in the US.

Yeah of course you wouldn't remove the combat in a game where the game is only combat. That speaks for itself.

For example, in western RPGs, the gameplay involves far more than just combat. Exploration, tackling the quests in the order you choose, dialogue sequences and choices, etc.

@FDS: Two games can feel very similar without using the same engine.

I really don't mind this in the implementation Mass Effect 3 is doing it. All arguments that "It's not a game without the combat" falls on the detail that this doesn't change the game for the player who wants to play with combat. I like that they are offering the choice. If it was an option at individual fights, I would probably end up abusing it and ruining the game for myself. I feel saying that people who enjoy the story a lot more than the combat should go to another medium is silly and kind of elitist.

Of course it has simplified graphics. The vita can't output the same kind of stuff a stationary console can.