IJBMer Updates

DYRE

First impressions of Skyrim:  It's exactly like Oblivion except the interface is a hundred times more awful.

ClockworkUniverse

Have you tried using the keyboard for the inventory?

DYRE

Playing the Xbox version, unfortunately.  And I know, better on the PC and whatnot and I really didn't want the Xbox version anyway, but my brother got it for Christmas so I figured I may as well play it.

My main problems are how you can no longer equip magic separately from weapons and shields, meaning if you want to switch between the two you actually have to go through the menus every time, and visual things.  Particularly, the text in the menus is unreadably dark, and I don't like the health/magicka/stamina bars, both their placement and how they disappear when they think they aren't needed (but usually I really do still want to see them).  There are other problems too though, like how the world map has clouds over it that make actually seeing the map pretty difficult.

On the plus side, the leveling system seems at least bearable, even if it still isn't perfect.

ClockworkUniverse

The menu text is pretty bright for me. That might be your tv.

The bars only disappear whn they're full, not any time they're not in use.

As for equipping stuff, on PC you can set items or spells as "favorites" to make them really easy to equip. I dunno about xbox.

DYRE

Well, yeah, I figured many of my complaints were mostly unjustified... >.>

The text really is way too dark for me though.

Anyway, other than that though, the game doesn't seem to feel any different from Oblivion.  Which I guess I should have expected, but the hype managed to make me believe that it was at least a bit different, since I don't remember Oblivion being nearly as popular.

ClockworkUniverse

Its different in a few ways. The faces aren't terrifying, gaining levels doesn't make you weaker, and they gave a shit about the main quest, to name a few.

Also, better music, ten times as many voice actors, dungeons aren't entirely copypasted, the setting is far less generic and the lore actually matters.

DYRE

The faces still kind of look like shit, really... >.>
Then again, I thought they did in Fallout 3/NV too, and apparently they were better in those games too, somehow.

Leveling also usually didn't make you weaker in Oblivion, though I guess it would if you were either bad at the game or you weren't paying attention.

The devs caring about the main quest, however, does I guess sound like it should be a good thing.  Though honestly I am almost completely certain I won't care about the story (because it's about a war and religion and like, different factions and other boring shit and doesn't seem to be about things I actually care about by which I mean actual characters.  Plus it's told entirely through scripted events and the game's usual dialogue system, neither of which are really suited to anything other than irritating me) and so the only thing that really matters is if the dungeons and whatnot that it makes me do are fun.  And from what I've seen, the dungeons seem... pretty much like in Oblivion.  Hopefully less exactly the same as one another though.

ClockworkUniverse

The civil war is a sidequest. The main quest is about Alduin.

As for the dungeons, it's more the fact that more of them have actual stuff to do and unique maps and such. Much less samey.

Saigyouji

"since I don't remember Oblivion being nearly as popular."

There's a reason it won Game of the Year at the 2006 VGA.

DYRE

Then people on the internet and also not the internet need to learn how to, like... talk about games better.

Still...

Eh.  I guess what it comes down to is I should actually play the game for more than like an hour before I judge it, eh?

Not that I'll likely do that any time soon since there's far more important things than Skyrim.

Like Sakura Wars. >.>

Incidentally, regarding that, I think I've reconsidered my opinion of visual novels and such.  Which is to say I no longer am unfairly biased against liking them on principle.  Or something. >.>  Still not really interested in most of the popular ones though, based on summaries.  Though maybe I'll try actually playing one and maybe I'll change my mind.

^ I know it was popular, but it seems like Skyrim is significantly more so.  Far more so than is justified by Oblivion's popularity.

ClockworkUniverse

Good to hear. Maybe you'll actually read mine when I'm done with it, then.

And when it comes right down to it, Skyrim's popularity increased past Oblivion's because that's been happening with every TES game so far, and it was accelerated by having an awesome trailer.

Icalasari

I just read a list of Top 5 Most Irritating Bosses, and Silver Sonic from Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was on it

...That guy's simple! Heck, if you had rings for that fight then it would be one of the easiest boss fights ever!

nohaynicklibre

Is it bad that I kinda want this t-shirt?

InsanityAddict

Medicine test jewgolds will arrive in the coming three weeks. Yes, this pleases my avarice.

Also, plans for frat's open week are coming along nicely: committee is being productive for once.

Forzare

Just watched Rise of the Planet of the Apes for the first time.

I'm honestly kind of shocked at how good it was.

Legionnaire

...Three people I know have their birthday today.

The hell is it with December 28th?

IanExMachina

^

Valentines day sex.

nohaynicklibre

Are they Hispanic?  Maybe they are just pranking you

Legionnaire

One's my mother, one's my best friend over in Perth, and one is Waltzy.

And unless I'm completely wrong about Waltzy, none of those are hispanic.

Oh jeez I hope she doesn't get mad for saying its her birthday (even though it technically isn't yet, time zones and all that).

Nyarly

Well, you wound up convincing me that Zelda stopped having continuity
around the time of the Oracles,

Since when does any Zelda game have continuity? Any timeline stuff is obviously nothing but an afterthought. At best.

I think that's the weirdest thing about Skyward Sword: It kind of implies that it has any connection to other games.

nohaynicklibre

I think that's just because it happens at the very beggining of the timeline. But yeah,some references would have been nice.

ClockworkUniverse

Since when does any Zelda game have continuity?

Every game from the second to sixth had, as part of the premise, a chronological relation to the other games up to that point. It was a loose continuity (to put it lightly) and only really mattered for OOT and MM, but it was there. And starting with the Oracles, it wasn't really given much attention.

Nyarly

Yeah. A loose continuity. Very fucking loose. So loose, it borders on not being there at all.

ClockworkUniverse

Yes, it was loose and nobody cared about it, but it was there.

What my post was saying is that I'm pretty sure it stopped being there at all at some point (since nobody really cared about it at the time), and Nintendo only recently decided to actually have one again, leaving them with a massive mess to retcon.

Wicked223

Question: Is there any incarnation of Catwoman, any one AT ALL, where 90% of her dialogue is bad cat jokes and forced sex appeal? 

Because I'd love to see, I really would.

MillerCross

her whole point is being a bondage fantasy

so, um...no

Wicked223

phooey.

Icalasari

Hit my head on the dumpster

Sent home an hour early, although due to needing a lift, I am stuck here another hour

No blood or anything, but I do have a slight headache, troubles focusing on tasks, my balance is bad (I have to move more slowly to keep from falling), and my body wants to go to the left or right, depending

Malkavian

I liked the incarnation of Catwoman where she went to the Middle East and trained under Egyptian ninjas and became Indiana Jones if Indiana Jones was a sexy lady with cat ears.

Legionnaire

Alright so, Madass died early on and I couldn't Phoenix Down him, then Waltzy and Juan died, so I ended up killing Garland with only Tzetze. I eventually reloaded to a point where they were alive, stomped Garland and managed to scrouge up enough money to revive Madass.

I'm bad at this game.