TheMightyEthan

The easy/cynical answer is that it's the big publishers who have all the lobbying power when it comes to this stuff.

Best soundtrack: one of the Halos, can't decide for sure which one though. Maybe Halo 1.

Alan Wake full game download code on Amazon for $10.49 ($5.00 + $5.49 S&H). http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004KODHKM/ref=s9_simh_gw_p63_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=0HBVG88SSSAEV4T6PB1X&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846

Yeah, I read that importing the time like that would double up with any already-recorded time you had, so I decided not to do it.

I wouldn't call it warmongering, but I would say that the statutory authorization for the President to use military force against other countries for 90 days (60 days of operation + 30 for withdrawal) without Congressional authorization specific to that conflict is probably unconstitutional. Under the constitution Congress has the sole authority to declare war and while it still retains the sole power to actually make the declaration, it has effectively delegated the power to start a war to the President. That delegation is in violation of separation of powers/checks and balances principles underlying the constitution. *Edit* - I'm not arguing that the attacks are in violation of international law, in that sense they're legal because they were authorized by the UN. I'm also not saying that Obama is "usurping Congress" as some have been saying, as there is general statutory authorization, passed by Congress, allowing the President to conduct military operations for 90 days before those operations require Congressional assent. I would just argue that that grant of power was unconstitutional.

@WTF: Your entire post just goes to show that color is artistically useful, but in a world where color film was a physical impossibility (just assume for the sake of argument) people would still make films that are just as good. Pan's Labyrinth could still have been made in such a world, it would just have been constructed differently to achieve the effect using something other than color. Color is not absolutely, 100% necessary, in the sense that the lack of color would prevent the films from being made or from being just as well done.

Honest question, what's the benefit to logging in to Steam with Raptr? Whenever I'm logged in to the Raptr client I'm also logged in to the Steam client itself, and Raptr seems to track my Steam achievements and stuff just fine without needing my login.

I think of 3D in films just like color in films: sure it's not absolutely necessary, but it allows a more accurate representation of the real world, and will in time come to be the standard.

That's not a game.

I like Tali's character a lot for the most part, but I do not like how she acts when you're romancing her. In my Mass Effect Tali is more confident than that.

Call it ridiculous if you like, those are the rules you agree to every time you install a game. Not saying I agree with the practice, but they are operating within the terms of the agreement. I know, and the fact that EA seems to be willing to do that is making me rethink buying EA games. And it's making me quite happy I decided to hold off on purchasing DA2. Regardless of whether they're legally entitled to do this, choosing to do so means I won't be buying their products (or "services").

You can in Lair of the Shadow Broker. Well, maybe, but I don't intend to pay for sex in real life, let alone a video-game. That statement implies that the only benefit of LotSB is the sex...

Cutting off access to any legitimately purchased single-player content, whether the main game or DLC, is ri-fucking-diculous regardless of what behavior you're trying to punish, or whether you call it a product or a service. End of story.

I think I might have to go with the Chief and Cortana as well, as I can't think of another couple in a game that I even remotely cared about. You can in Lair of the Shadow Broker.

Although it's not as pretty as a lot of people's cursive I can actually read yours easily, which is better than I can say for most people.

So I just read today's Penny Arcade post which talks about this game, and something he said in there really rang true for me: the game (and specifically the story) seems more like the kind of thing you'd see in a franchise tie-in novel or comic, not something you'd see in one of the main-series games.

Yeah, a while ago GFWL had all those daily $1 sales to try and drum up business... I think all they accomplished was selling a bunch of games at $1 to Steam users, who then went back to Steam when the sales stopped. Although I guess they got me to start checking their weekly deals, which I still do, so there's that.

I didn't know that... now I'm sad too.

It didn't do much to advance the in-the-past story, but I feel like it advanced the modern-day story a lot. And even though it was totally a cash in, it was a very well done cash in so I don't mind.

You are completely insane.

Updated my post to include some relevant info. Also, your comment about reading in the car made me realize that the feeling in my head I got while playing is very similar to the feeling I get when I read a book in the car, though it was significantly less intense than the book-in-car would give me, and as I said it only lasted a short time.

Okay, so I just played Mirror's Edge all the way through in one sitting with the dot turned off, and did not get sick. On two occasions I got a slightly odd feeling in my head that felt like maybe the beginning of motion sickness, but it was never very intense at all and always went away quickly. I don't know whether I'm representative of most people or not, but there's my anecdotal evidence. *Edit* - For reference I was playing on a 23.5-inch 1080p monitor that I was sitting approximately 2-feet away from (I scooted in closer than normal so it would fill more of my view and hopefully increase the likelihood that I would get sick).

I've also been trying to make more of an effort to wait for prices to drop (on the new version, I don't buy used unless the game is several years old), but something like L.A. Noire I'm willing to pay the day-one premium.

lol, I knew that the English used to use it that way, but I figured you had moved on in terms as well.