While all the sites and many people are gearing up for or travelling to (including Plarzoid and Mugu) Templecon this weekend, you’ll get all you need from them since I won’t be going (at least not this year 😉 ). Instead, I thought I’d do something a little different today and talk with you about something that frequently cuts into my painting time. I’m sure it’s the same for a lot of you.
Video games.
Oh video games. Before I sank my time and money (so much money) into this pewter crack, I was sinking it into digital crack. I am always looking for new games to play. None of this 1 billion hours into COD/40 times Prestige non-sense. I tend to gravitate more towards single player games mostly anyway and my portfolio is diverse. Just check out my LIVE profile. As I often have to explain to people, they are my television. While you are watching vampires and their love lives or orange people getting drunk, I’m slaying dragons, protecting the universe, speeding down a raceway, or any number of things. But yeah, video games are dumb. Sorry /rant.
Nowadays I do all my gaming on my Xbox 360. Love the thing. Before you go jumping on me about the “PC is better than console” circlejerk, I also used to game on my PC…then I got a full time job. The last thing I want to do is sit in front of another computer hunched over, waiting for carpal tunnel to grab hold of me. Lounging on the couch is where it’s at.
Over the holidays, I picked up Skyrim, Space Marine, and Assassin’s Creed: Revelations, which I haven’t even opened yet. I started with Skyrim, which I’m sure has been sucking up many a gamer’s time recently and it was doing to same to me. It’s a awesome game. But I’m burned out on it already. I have a level 24 Dark Elf Spellsword, which is an awesome build, real fun to play. That’s not the problem. My problem is that it is just too much. My current quest list is longer than the Encyclopedia. With so many choices I end up making none. I’m a completionist with video games and this game is killing me! I ended up shelving it before I had a breakdown and popped in Space Marine instead.
Now this is what I’m talking about. I don’t play Warhammer 40K tabletop, but I have always loved the setting. I’m pretty well-versed in the universe and enjoy it immensely, heck sometimes I read the wiki when I have some downtime at work. I’ve owned all of the Dawn of War games (ALL of them) and love them. They are my RTS standard and Relic is a favorite studio of mine. They also made Homeworld, which is another RTS that causes me nerdgasms. When I saw they were making a third-person action game based on 40K, I was excited. Dawn of War from the ground level? Sign me up. Playing the demo pretty much sealed the deal.
The story is good stuff, not earth-shattering awesome, but very good. And long, probably running me around 10-12 hours playing it on hard. It also has probably one of the best female heroes in any game in Lt. Mara. The voice acting is superb, as is the sound in general. The bolters sound like the pistol-ized rocket launchers that they are. The game itself does a very good job of making you feel like a Space Marine. The screen shakes when you run and there is a real sense of weight to your movements. It’s a game that I can’t recommend enough and really hope they do another (but with THQ’s recent trouble who knows). But it’s the multiplayer that is currently eating into my time and that’s crazy for me. I’ll usually play a few games to test it out, but I’m not much of a power multiplayer like a lot of people. I never get to the max level. Hell, if I get halfway to the level cap to me that means I’ve played it a ton. The one thing I LOVE in Space Marine however is the Customizer. I am a sucker for customization. It’s a selling point for me, and the customization in Space Marine does not disappoint. You have almost complete control over creating your Space/Chaos Marine, from various shoulder pads to breastplates to helmets. And then the color options! I really hope they have something this in-depth in Dawn of War 3. In addition, I’m addicted to unlocking stuff for my Marine (and Chaos, except I dislike them). Check out my member of the Deathwatch I made below (Assault is also my preferred class). And speaking of the Deathwatch, I think they should be the focus of the next game if there is one. They are like the MIB of the Space Marines. They have sweet armor. They are made up of members from various chapters (hello team tension side plot). It’s a game that needs to be made.
Since this is a Warmachine blog (for now), I’d like to mention that there is a Warmachine video game in the making. Unfortunately, that’s all I can tell you about it. There doesn’t seem to be much movement on it since 2010, but it looked promising, even if it may not include EVERY single unit of the game.. Check out the developers website here and some of these screenshots.
I think it looks like a Dynasty Warriors type of affair from the 2010 E3 game trailer I saw.
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Some of my favorite current series/games:
- Mass Effect
- Borderlands
- Dragon Age
- Darksiders
- Batman: Arkham Series
- Assassin’s Creed Series
- Mortal Kombat 2011
What about y’all? What games do you like or play? Let’s discuss a little in the comments shall we?
Oh, has anyone checked out the co-op demo for Syndicate yet? It’s like a cyberpunk Left 4 Dead but with objectives rather than point A to B run-n-gun. And I think that’s all I ever really wanted. Now if only they have a character look customizer in the final game…
Miniature armies, huge time sink. 
cool blog I never played warhammer, but always wanted to get into it. where do you recommend to start?
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Gavin Jedionston
http://jedionston.wordpress.co…
Thanks for visiting!
If you are interested in getting into any tabletop game, my best advice is to find a game store in your area and see if there are people that can offer you a demo game to see if you like it.
If you are interested in playing Warhammer 40K, that’s probably the best way, as Games Workshop (company that makes it) seems to hate the internet.
If you are interested in Warmachine, you can find quick start rules on Privateer Press’ website, along with a gallery of all the current models. Battlecollege is also a resource for looking at the models and what they do. Check out the link in my Top Links section to the right. These are many of the sites that helped get me started.
Video games are great, but there is a great satisfaction from having a painted miniature in your hand!