Saturday, May 08, 2004
As I burst back to reality with a gasping of air...
I don't remember the last time I played a game for 5-6 hours straight. I really don't remember the last time I played one for 16 hours out of a 28 hour time period. Nevertheless, that is just what I have done. City of Heroes has claimed my soul, and I don't think it's going to be letting go for some time.
I am a MMORPG virgin. That is to say, I have not been previously hooked on Everquest, Anarchy Online, Asheron's Call, Dark Age Of Camelot, or any of those. I did play AC during the beta, but it lost its charm rather rapidly, and I did try the 7 day trial of AO, but it proved not to be interesting enough for my tastes. City of Heroes is different though. It is superheroes, and I am a comic fiend. The combination of these is similar to the combination of chocolate and milk: totally amazing. I don't know why, or how, or whilst, but this game is awesome.
I should amend that. I do know why it rules. It is because it is so simple. See, comic books are not the most deep of reads. The typical book relies on 3 simple things to keep it going: cool characters, engaging dialogue, and the beating of the crap out of the bad guys. You can shuffle those elements around a bit, or even perhaps remove one of them entirely, but as long as you have two, you will have the kickness of ass. CoH has two. The game is basically two games in one: a character generator and the MMORPG part. The first is simply sublime because you can literally make almost any bloody hero you want. Got a hankering for a heavily armed dwarf? Done. Need to play a Hulk knockoff? Right there for ya. Want to have a mandarin hat while wearing a polka-dot suit tux and be known as The Amazing Lampooni? Not a problem. When I say you can make a character and play the entire game without seeing someone that looks like you, I really do mean it. The second part of the game is basically your average MMORPG, but reduced for flavour intensity. In EQ or World of Warcraft, sure you can go out and kill monsters. Player vs. Environment is the largest part of any online game of this type. Difference is, you can get distracted by all the crafting and trading and items and clothing and on and on. Not so in City: you get one appearance and that is it. You get no pockets, and so all you can hold is what is in your head and powers (inspirations/potions and enhancements/weapons mods). Spandex and tight leather just don't lend themselves to holding suits of armour and herbs and components, you know? So when Tycho said a while back that City of Heroes lacks game width (ie. having lots to do) over game depth (ie. doing what it does REALLY REALLY WELL), he was totally right.
I'm rambling now, so I'm going to abruptly change the subject.
I think I'm going to be a vegetarian. I have no moral or biological aversion to eating meat, and I haven't adopted any form of religion, so there's no real reason for me to do this. Still, I think it would be interesting to see if I can go for a month without eating meat. I'm still hammering out the details in my head, but I'm going to be allowing dairy. For me to try and get by without my cereal in the morning would be like asking the sun to just, y'know, not come up tomorrow, m'kay? Following that reasoning, eggs should be in as well, but I'm still not sure. I'll probably not object if they happen to be included in something I order in a restaurant or in something I buy, but I don't think I'll buy them as is. Other than that, I'm just going to play it by ear and ask around. I don't think getting my protein will be an issue, since I'll be relying on beans and nuts and such. Otherwise, I suppose this could be considered as lent or something.
Saddam being interrogated. Funny. This is going to be odd, since I have all but abandoned my link list. Everything is bloody out of date when it comes to news, and I haven't sifted through to find the just-plain-nifty ones yet. I will though. I will.
I am quite happy working at RIM. This job kicks ass, and I think I would not object strongly if I were to end up pursuing a career as a Project Scheduler/Manager. Also, I really dig my BlackBerry. You would be surprised at how pleasing it is to be able to think "I don't need to check my email, for if I had some, I would already know." Also, you would be surprised at how pleasing it is to have a 21" monitor. Like having a digital vista for your eyes to wander, I tell ya. Only downside I can think of is that I do have to work on RIM time, which is 4 minutes fast if you ask the network server, but 8 minutes fast if you ask the phone. The upside to this downside though, is that if you're late for things, nobody cares.
So work is good. Gaming is good. Having a goal to meet, even if it kills me, is good. Fencing tomorrow, so that's good too. One would think that under all this happiness I would explode, right? Not exactly. I did have the thought a while ago that I was turning too normal, but I've since gone crazy enough to discount that. I've also noticed that I seem to live very much in the moment and remain in a state of sort of permashock. This is bad, since I tend to freak out about everything (whether I let this be apparant to others is something else, but trust me, if there's something happening in my life, I've probably freaked about it at one point or another), but also good since I can adopt a Tyler Durden-ish attitude and really let that which does not matter truly slide. Which brings me right back to the whole "I'm getting into a rut in my life, but that's OK since it's a comfy rut with a nice view and Ikea chairs."
Yeah. So.
I think my metabolism really has changed. It's again with the hungry thing I mentioned before. Take today for example. I basically made a full supper-like meal for lunch today (which in itself is odd since I'm not usually the type to eat lunch on weekends when I sleep in, or rather as I sleep in as much as i can sleep in now...) and not 2 hours later I was getting hungry again. Hell, I'm hungry now. I think this is phase two of my body's crazy master plan of making me into a productive member of society. Now that I have to be up at 6-8ish in the morning, every day, whether I like it or not, now the plan is to make me actually work for that time and now I have to be active during that time. Urgh.
(Aside: I'm listening to Lacuna Coil right now, and I'm both in shock at how good their music suddenly is at the moment and pissed off that I can't see them in concert. Now the fact that they sound really slick probably has more to do with my current mood and state of mind, but the fact that I still can't go see them is on account of being in Ontario. Boo.)
To be active though, requires me to be awake, and to that end, I have taken my relationship with coffee to the next level. See, we started dating when I was in school, but she was all reserved and shy and shielded herself with milk and sugar. Once I started working, she warmed up to me and we ditched the neck-to-ankle attire that was the double-double. Once we got her in the much more attractive tank-top and shorts that is the "just a bit of milk, no sugar", we started experimenting in making her brew stronger. The result was rather incredible. Now, I think I'm ready to tie the knot. I bought a coffee grinder, and am now grinding my own beans whilst storing them in the manner to preserve flavour the longest. Am I turning into a total coffee snob? Probably. Do I care? Not in the least. Is this a good time for a non-sequitur? Hells yeah.
In Ottawa, pedestrians do not fear the cars. The cars fear the pedestrians. I was reflecting on the fact that people just walk/run across the road at random with no regard for the oncoming piles of metal that will squish them handily, and I thought to myself that I don't think I would ever want to drive in Ontario. Yes, the drivers in Edmonton are arguably worse, but at least one only worries about other cars there. To have to drive down the road and watch for small, easily breakable peoples cutting me off would be just crazy talk. Crazy, I say, CRAZY!
I remember seeing a Disney movie starring Mickey that aped Jack and the Beanstalk. In it, Mickey/Jack was captured by the giant and dropped into the giant's breast pocket. There, Mickey managed to use the tin of snuff inside to make the giant sneeze and release him. Now, would you ever see a tin of snuff in a Disney animation nowadays? Not a bleeding hope. I just thought I would point that out. Oh the times, they are a changing. Or rather, have changed. I don't know.
I think I'm just about all incoherent now. Time to go. Need. More. City. Heroes. Hurrah! ¶ 9:07 p.m.
I don't remember the last time I played a game for 5-6 hours straight. I really don't remember the last time I played one for 16 hours out of a 28 hour time period. Nevertheless, that is just what I have done. City of Heroes has claimed my soul, and I don't think it's going to be letting go for some time.
I am a MMORPG virgin. That is to say, I have not been previously hooked on Everquest, Anarchy Online, Asheron's Call, Dark Age Of Camelot, or any of those. I did play AC during the beta, but it lost its charm rather rapidly, and I did try the 7 day trial of AO, but it proved not to be interesting enough for my tastes. City of Heroes is different though. It is superheroes, and I am a comic fiend. The combination of these is similar to the combination of chocolate and milk: totally amazing. I don't know why, or how, or whilst, but this game is awesome.
I should amend that. I do know why it rules. It is because it is so simple. See, comic books are not the most deep of reads. The typical book relies on 3 simple things to keep it going: cool characters, engaging dialogue, and the beating of the crap out of the bad guys. You can shuffle those elements around a bit, or even perhaps remove one of them entirely, but as long as you have two, you will have the kickness of ass. CoH has two. The game is basically two games in one: a character generator and the MMORPG part. The first is simply sublime because you can literally make almost any bloody hero you want. Got a hankering for a heavily armed dwarf? Done. Need to play a Hulk knockoff? Right there for ya. Want to have a mandarin hat while wearing a polka-dot suit tux and be known as The Amazing Lampooni? Not a problem. When I say you can make a character and play the entire game without seeing someone that looks like you, I really do mean it. The second part of the game is basically your average MMORPG, but reduced for flavour intensity. In EQ or World of Warcraft, sure you can go out and kill monsters. Player vs. Environment is the largest part of any online game of this type. Difference is, you can get distracted by all the crafting and trading and items and clothing and on and on. Not so in City: you get one appearance and that is it. You get no pockets, and so all you can hold is what is in your head and powers (inspirations/potions and enhancements/weapons mods). Spandex and tight leather just don't lend themselves to holding suits of armour and herbs and components, you know? So when Tycho said a while back that City of Heroes lacks game width (ie. having lots to do) over game depth (ie. doing what it does REALLY REALLY WELL), he was totally right.
I'm rambling now, so I'm going to abruptly change the subject.
I think I'm going to be a vegetarian. I have no moral or biological aversion to eating meat, and I haven't adopted any form of religion, so there's no real reason for me to do this. Still, I think it would be interesting to see if I can go for a month without eating meat. I'm still hammering out the details in my head, but I'm going to be allowing dairy. For me to try and get by without my cereal in the morning would be like asking the sun to just, y'know, not come up tomorrow, m'kay? Following that reasoning, eggs should be in as well, but I'm still not sure. I'll probably not object if they happen to be included in something I order in a restaurant or in something I buy, but I don't think I'll buy them as is. Other than that, I'm just going to play it by ear and ask around. I don't think getting my protein will be an issue, since I'll be relying on beans and nuts and such. Otherwise, I suppose this could be considered as lent or something.
Saddam being interrogated. Funny. This is going to be odd, since I have all but abandoned my link list. Everything is bloody out of date when it comes to news, and I haven't sifted through to find the just-plain-nifty ones yet. I will though. I will.
I am quite happy working at RIM. This job kicks ass, and I think I would not object strongly if I were to end up pursuing a career as a Project Scheduler/Manager. Also, I really dig my BlackBerry. You would be surprised at how pleasing it is to be able to think "I don't need to check my email, for if I had some, I would already know." Also, you would be surprised at how pleasing it is to have a 21" monitor. Like having a digital vista for your eyes to wander, I tell ya. Only downside I can think of is that I do have to work on RIM time, which is 4 minutes fast if you ask the network server, but 8 minutes fast if you ask the phone. The upside to this downside though, is that if you're late for things, nobody cares.
So work is good. Gaming is good. Having a goal to meet, even if it kills me, is good. Fencing tomorrow, so that's good too. One would think that under all this happiness I would explode, right? Not exactly. I did have the thought a while ago that I was turning too normal, but I've since gone crazy enough to discount that. I've also noticed that I seem to live very much in the moment and remain in a state of sort of permashock. This is bad, since I tend to freak out about everything (whether I let this be apparant to others is something else, but trust me, if there's something happening in my life, I've probably freaked about it at one point or another), but also good since I can adopt a Tyler Durden-ish attitude and really let that which does not matter truly slide. Which brings me right back to the whole "I'm getting into a rut in my life, but that's OK since it's a comfy rut with a nice view and Ikea chairs."
Yeah. So.
I think my metabolism really has changed. It's again with the hungry thing I mentioned before. Take today for example. I basically made a full supper-like meal for lunch today (which in itself is odd since I'm not usually the type to eat lunch on weekends when I sleep in, or rather as I sleep in as much as i can sleep in now...) and not 2 hours later I was getting hungry again. Hell, I'm hungry now. I think this is phase two of my body's crazy master plan of making me into a productive member of society. Now that I have to be up at 6-8ish in the morning, every day, whether I like it or not, now the plan is to make me actually work for that time and now I have to be active during that time. Urgh.
(Aside: I'm listening to Lacuna Coil right now, and I'm both in shock at how good their music suddenly is at the moment and pissed off that I can't see them in concert. Now the fact that they sound really slick probably has more to do with my current mood and state of mind, but the fact that I still can't go see them is on account of being in Ontario. Boo.)
To be active though, requires me to be awake, and to that end, I have taken my relationship with coffee to the next level. See, we started dating when I was in school, but she was all reserved and shy and shielded herself with milk and sugar. Once I started working, she warmed up to me and we ditched the neck-to-ankle attire that was the double-double. Once we got her in the much more attractive tank-top and shorts that is the "just a bit of milk, no sugar", we started experimenting in making her brew stronger. The result was rather incredible. Now, I think I'm ready to tie the knot. I bought a coffee grinder, and am now grinding my own beans whilst storing them in the manner to preserve flavour the longest. Am I turning into a total coffee snob? Probably. Do I care? Not in the least. Is this a good time for a non-sequitur? Hells yeah.
In Ottawa, pedestrians do not fear the cars. The cars fear the pedestrians. I was reflecting on the fact that people just walk/run across the road at random with no regard for the oncoming piles of metal that will squish them handily, and I thought to myself that I don't think I would ever want to drive in Ontario. Yes, the drivers in Edmonton are arguably worse, but at least one only worries about other cars there. To have to drive down the road and watch for small, easily breakable peoples cutting me off would be just crazy talk. Crazy, I say, CRAZY!
I remember seeing a Disney movie starring Mickey that aped Jack and the Beanstalk. In it, Mickey/Jack was captured by the giant and dropped into the giant's breast pocket. There, Mickey managed to use the tin of snuff inside to make the giant sneeze and release him. Now, would you ever see a tin of snuff in a Disney animation nowadays? Not a bleeding hope. I just thought I would point that out. Oh the times, they are a changing. Or rather, have changed. I don't know.
I think I'm just about all incoherent now. Time to go. Need. More. City. Heroes. Hurrah! ¶ 9:07 p.m.
