Literature and Fable 2

The first thing I would like to talk about is the books I have read this year. First I would like to say that I am not a avid read by nature and have always struggled to force myself to read for pleasure. I am extremely happy with my progress this year, even if some are more advanced. So far this year I have read roughly 5,692 pages.

I started with the Harry Potter series simply because there was nothing else to read. I always thought it was, for lack of a better word, stupid. I watched the movies simply because my sister forced me, but I never had a great interest in the story. I still gave the first book a chance with little expectations. I am glad I did because I quickly finished it and the rest of the series in around a month.

I moved on to The Chronicles of Narnia for the same reason, there was nothing else. I enjoyed it as much as I could a children's story but I didn't think it was easy to connect with the character since they changed so fast, especially the ones in Narnia. I also was reading A History of Pirates on and off at the time which is a fairly interesting book.

I am now beginning the end of my reading this year, or what I plan to be the end. I have school coming up in about two weeks and I feel I will not have much time for reading in my spare time. So I decided I would end with an old favorite I have not yet read this year; The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. I have read the series twice two years in a row, making this the third time. This time I get a special treat, illustrations by Alan Lee. If I have time after I finish that I may pick up another book or two but I suspect that those will keep me busy right up to new years and from there I will have to plan my new reading schedule.

I also have one quick gaming note to add about Fable 2. It appears from the latest community update that they are keeping the fairly limited path system from Fable. The areas though, are apparently going to be much greater in size, which is a good thing. I long for the days when Peter Molyneux would say everything and anything he wanted to the press. Sure, many of people got upset about features that didn't make the cut that he mentioned, but it was so great having an honest and open look into the development of a video game.

That is all I have for now. I hope to get a few more posts in before school because I doubt I will have time to make many posts.

I Told You EA Stood for Evil Alliance

A few days ago EA announced they are closing servers down for older games. I wonder why they would do this? Maybe they want people to buy newer games. If people would wise up and start buying sports games in the 2K series things like this wouldn't matter. I find this funny for two reasons.

The first is that if you bought an EA game you deserve it. I own Fifa but only because it was the only game I could play online with Lance at the time. Anyone that buys an EA game should expect poor support and a sub-par to decent game. That does not mean they don't occasionally put out a good game, but the odds are against you.

The second is that the main reason EA would not support Live! in the beginning was they wanted to use their own servers. Can anyone else see the stupidity in that? I guess that is what all those dense Madden fans out there get.

E3

Sorry for the lack of posts. I don't really have a reason either, which is sad.

As you have probably head, E3 is over as we know it. It is sad in a way. I remember looking forward to E3 all year and then trying to keep up with the sudden flood of information. At first I was outraged, I have never gone to the conference and now all chances of going are obliterated. Now though, everyone benefits but a small group of people.

E3 is now a small trade event by invitation only. What does this mean for the average gamer, absolutely nothing. The only thing it means is a better flow of information with less fluff. It is as if the industry has finally started taking itself seriously and no longer needs the over-the-top show. It doesn't really affect journalists that much either since they will invite a good deal of them to the show. The only gamers it affects are those that went to E3 not as journalists, or programmers or anything esle but gamers. Those lucky few who slipped into the trade event unnoticed with unsurpassed ninja skill to play games early. It will also affect business in the area counting on the 60,000 people that attended the show, but they are in L.A., so who cares?

I will miss E3 for what it was, but I am happy that the industry is moving forward. I also expect to see more public shows popping up soon. I also would not be surprised to see more interest inPAX by the big companies. Plus, it is much cheaper and open to the public, so no ninja skills are required.