Pages

Friday 29 February 2008

Video editing

The Entertainment Computing lecturers should realise that when you give a student a camera, lots of weird clips start to appear. (For example, we had a lot involving a photo booth. )

The theme of last week was 'Superheroes.' Apparently, someone suggested it, and since it was his birthday, Nicky said yes. I hope I get asked for a theme when it's my birthday. The videos to come out of that would be priceless. And NSFW.

Anyway, I joined up with the usuals, and we walked around Preston looking for ideas. When nothing came to mind, we ended up walking down an alley to see what was there. At the end was a nursery. We had cameras. I walked away promtly.
It gave Will the chance to point out Bhalock Street though. (Note: Read as 'Bollock')

An extra hour passed where we took random videos and linked them to superheroes very slightly.

The amazing thing is, we managed to make a decent video with the severe lack of footage we took. How we managed to make a spinning chair relevant is beyond us!

Me, Mo, and Will toiled over a hot Movie Maker window for an hour and a half this week to make something relatively watchable. Ricky was meant to help since he was with us when the group split up into groups last week, but he was doing the usual looking at Youtube videos. We still gave him credit since he appeared in the movie though, because we're nice like that.
We'll beat him later.

I'm sure you're dying to see the video, so here goes.
If the video below doesn't work, follow this link.

Wednesday 27 February 2008

Say it isn't so!

So my life is practically over!
My laptop is screwing up, and I'm thinking it may have to be sent off since it looks like a hardware malfunction.
It keeps freezing randomly after about half a minute.
I'm hoping it's not an internal error, since I'll be without a laptop for a week or so.
Hopefully it's just a virus.
It took me an hour to back up all my uni work, since it kept freezing in the middle of it.
In the end I had to copy over each folder seperately and hope for the best.
I'll reformat it later and hope it helps, or even better, fixes the damn thing.

Not a lucky day for me really.
I came to the games lab to go on the internet, only to find that Internet Explorer isn't working.
And Firefox is blocking most websites.
Ebuddy and Blogger are thankfully working though.

Sod's Law that this would happen when i have a slight hangover isn't it?

Monday 25 February 2008

Talk about impulse buys

First off was a trip to HMV. While Mo looked around for a DVD, I stupidly browsed around and found the Airplane 1 and 2 boxset in a 3 for £20 deal. It was my mission to find two more to go with it so I could reap the rewards. My bank balance cried a cry of pain as I found The Holy Grail and Austin Powers International Man Of Mystery to go with it. Proud of my purchase, we all went Subway while I picked up my wage slip. It had £50+ in, which will be a critical point later. For our next lecture, we learnt about the key games, people, and industries we should know. Somewhere in between all the name dropping, a deal in Gamestation was mentioned, where Gamecube's were going cheap. Later on, during a trip down to said shop, I found out it was £35 for the console and any 4 games from the 4 for £20 range.
Remember that £50 I got today?
It didn't help that I saw Ocarina Of Time for the N64 for £9.99 either
So I'm £44 out of my wages already and the cheque hasn't even cleared.
Although I did get the Pokemon Colusseum pack, which had a new Gamecube, Memory card, and Pokemon Colesseum, along with the 4 games I picked: Metroid Prime, Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, Star Wards Rogue Leader, and Blood Omen 2.
Combine that with Airplane 1, Airplane 2, Monty Python's The Holy Grail, and Austin Powers Internatiol Man Of Mystery and I don't think I'm getting any sleep tonight.

Belated news

So I can't help but feel like I should blog about last week's Entertainment Computing lesson, just in-case I need to.
So Friday was another fun packed day of sleeping until 1PM, then getting ready for a 2:30 lesson. Thing is, I was still tired for some ungodly reason. Anyway, fatigue aside, the aim of the day was to grab a camera or two, go out into the streets of Preston, and take videos with the theme "Superheroes"
We were all clueless.

For most of the lesson we walked around spouting out ideas, involving some from 'Whose Line Is It Anyway.' We had the idea of 'Impotent-Man', but I didn't want to take the video with that. In the end I found a giant banana, became BananaMan, and smacked Mo on the back of the head.
I'll find a way to relate it to superheroes later.

Friday 22 February 2008

Games galore

Like many other bloggers before me, I feel it is my turn to infest the Internet with my opinions on what is great and what sucks metaphorical genitalia. Today I'm feeling positive, so we'll stick with the former. And what is the fabled topic of discussion?

Video games.
(Oh come on, like you didn't see that coming.)

Watch as I, for your own amusement, list my top 10 favourite and most influential games of all time.
Or at least post-1992, when I could hold the controller and have the vaguest idea of what the cool blue buttons did.

No particular order. Just the order I think of them.


The Curse Of Monkey Island. (1997, PC, LucasArts.)


One of the first games I ever completed, admittedly with a little help from the parents. The Curse Of Monkey Island is the third installation of the Monkey Island series, and manages to implement comedy with outstanding gameplay. Some of the jokes used in the game are some of the funniest I've heard in a game. You play as Guybrush Threepwood, a wannabe pirate (because pirates are obviously better than ninjas,) as you try to defeat the zombie pirate LeChuck, who you meet in the previous two games. You know you're in for a treat as soon as you watch the opening scene. Not only do the opening credits have an amazing song played over them, but you start off marooned in the middle of the ocean in a dodgem car, pining for food and water, all of which float buy much to the ignorance of Guybrush. As a ten year old this was comedy gold to me, and it still is to this day.
The game has advanced a lot from the second game, Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge. No longer do you have to click the action from the menu at the bottom, but all the actions you need are encased in a coin that pops up when you hold down the mouse button, making it much easier. The graphics have improved a fair bit as well, and I was amazed at how good some of the scenes were animated. Admittedly, LucasArts have spoilt the aesthetics a bit in the next installment, Escape From Monkey Island, by bringing it into 3D. In my opinion 2D looked much better.
If you've not played this game before, or are a fan of the Monkey Island series I'd fully recommend The Curse Of Monkey Island.


Final Fantasy VII. (1997, PSX, Square.)


Let's just get one thing straight before I begin. I'm not using this game because it's the most popular, it made the list because it was the first final Fantasy I ever played, well before all the hype about it came up. Just needed to get any "Fanboy!!1" comments out of the way. FFVII was the game that brought Final Fantasy into the mainstream eye, and was also the first FF Playstation release. Previously, The SNES was honoured with such delights. It was the first 3D Final Fantasy, as the previous games had used sprites, typical of the time. One thing that set it apart from any other games was the size of the game. I first saw this game at a computer fair and thought it might be a good game to pass the time. And that it did. 60+ in-game hours later I was hooked, and helping Cloud and the gang get raped by Weapon and Sephiroth. Even after I'd completed the story mode, there were too many sidequests left just to let it sit alone on my shelf collecting dust. It also opened the gates to other Final Fantasy games, such as IX, my favorite. Recently I managed to get FFI and FFII for the PSP, and got the Advent Children soundtrack, so even now it has as much an impact on me as it did over ten years ago.
The size and depth of the story was amazing, as was the soundtrack, and some of the challenges. (Chocobo Racing, anyone?) The story has caused a few spin-offs, such as the game The Dirge Of Cerberus, and the film Final Fantasy: Advent Children. I could go on forever about FFVII, as there is just too much to talk about. But I'm sure you've heard it all before.


Grand Theft Auto: Vice City. (2002, PS2, RockStar.)


Vice City was the fifth game to be released into the Grant Theft Auto franchise, and the sequel to Grand Theft Auto III, though it is set nearly 20 years beforehand. Before Vice City, I'd never been into the GTA franchise. Sure, I'd played the first few, but as soon as I played VC, I loved it. The story, in my opinion, is the best in the series, and even though the engine needed a bit of work, it was still one of the best. Some of the radio stations where the best I'd heard, and it is another of those games which managed to bring comedy with good gameplay. GTAIII also does this, but I never really got into that game until a few years later. There was a wide range of weapons, and the game was pretty non-linear, which was different to anything else I'd played before then. If I got bored of doing missions, I could go and explore the city, and there was a lot to explore. The range of weapons to be found meant it rarely bored me. It was also the first GTA game to use helicopters and which allowed you to fly. GTAIII allowed you to briefly, but the controls were messed up and needed lots of improvement. And to all those saying these types of "murder simulators" encourage violence, I've not once told a hilarious anecdote about how I beheaded a guy with a screwdriver. But I'll leave the violence rant for another blog.


Sonic The Hedgehog. (1991, Sega Megadrive, Sonic Team.)


Where would any self respecting games list be without Sonic. Possibly the fist game I ever played, and I've never regretted it. My dad teaching me how to play, and the countless hours that followed is one of the best highlights from my childhood. No violence, barely any story, no character development, but lots and lots of shiny rings. Who knew collecting spinning rings and jumping on small animals so they transformed back into bunnies could shape a childhood. But it did. To this day I still have my Dad's Sega Megadrive, along with the three Sonic games with the Knuckles expansion pack.


Tony Hawks Pro Skater 3. (2001, PSX, Activision.)


The game that hooked me into skating games, and possibly one of the early influences of 'Rock' music. Skating, good music, and good challenges. What was not to like? With bands such as Motorhead and The Ramones gracing my ears, I kept going back to play. The range of tricks had a little something to do with it as well. The size and variety of levels has to have an honourable mention, as well as the 'Park Creator' option, which I spent many hours on. Plenty of conversations in school revolved around me and a mate discussing the park we'd created the night before, and the insane combos we'd pulled off. (We weren't the coolest of people.) THPS3 was the final game where the timer was present at all times. This was called classic mode in the later games.


Guitar Hero II. (2006, PS2, Harmonix Music Systems.)


Since coming to uni my love for GH has grown because of my mates. I think it's safe to say I'm addicted. OK, so Guitar Hero III has Rise Against, and Guitar Hero I has Graveyard BBQ, but GHII was the game which made me beg my parents that Christmas for. Just because I played it in a demo booth in Curry's. Shout At The Devil - Motley Crue, who I also saw the following April, because I'd heard this song and fell in love with the band. It hasn't stopped introducing bands and songs to me. The unlockable section is a great feature as unsigned bands get featured in the game, then people like me rejoice since they can 'play' their song. The hammers on's and pull off's had improved much since the last installment of Guitar Hero, which made it a little easier. There's always going to be that argument to "go play real guitar", but when you're having this much fun you don't care. To be fair, real guitar does hurt less though.


Duke Nukem 3D. (1996, PC, 3D Realms.)


Another game introduced by my dad, and the game which brought me into the world of FPS's. 1996, so I was 7. As a 7 year old, seeing mutant pigs with guns is cool. As a 7 year old, controlling the dude that kills them is awesome. I must admit, I had to use cheats to get through most of the game, but that's expected of someone so young, right?
For 1996, some of the graphics were stunning. I'll always remember the space level, I think it was the second one, and just staring out the window into space, or hooking up loads of lasers just to see the explosions.
3D Realms did a great job of enforcing some comedy into the game. Some of the gore was exaggerated, such as shooting a pig and watching them wheeze on the floor, or just some of the quips Duke makes in the game. Well if you're going to make a game about saving the human race and killing pigs you might as well make a few jokes about it.



Hogs Of War. (2000, PSX, Infogrammes Studios.)


Continuing the theme of pigs, Hogs of War was a game I got when I bought my Playstation. It's sort of a Worms clone, in which you control a team of pigs instead. Comedy is a high factor in the game, as the pigs make comments when injured, attacking etc, and Rik Mayall of Bottom and The Young Ones fame popping in to act as the general during multiplayer mode and FMV sequences. For me, it was the Rik Mayall voiceovers that won the game. I loved Bottom and used to play multiplayer against the computer just to hear some of the remarks he made.
The teams in the game represent six nations of the world: England, America, France, Russia, Japan and Germany. Each pig makes comments relevant to their particular stereotype.
Some of the weapons used are typical of the genre, such as bazookas etc, but there are also some new ones, such as the medical dart, which you use to shoot your team-mates to heal them.
With such a range of levels, I never got bored of this game.


Pac-Mania. (1987, Sega Megadrive, Namco.)


Not to be confused with the original Pac-Man, released in 1980 by Namco, Pac-Mania, for me, was the first time I'd come across Pac Man. My mum love the game and introduced me to it. I really should thank her for that. Since then I've bought and been given clothing and other merchandise with the loveable 'hero' decorating it. Originally an arcade game, the aim of the game is to eat all the pellets without touching the ghosts. Sounds easy? You'd be wrong. The difficulty increases each level, and the ghosts get more fearsome. The maps change each level, and grow in size increasing the challenge. It's the ultimate addiction.


Age Of Empires II: The Age Of Kings. (1999, PC, Ensemble Studios.)


Originally downloaded from a demo, I fell in love with the Age of empires franchise, especially the second installation. Some people like the different games for their graphics, the abilities or the settlements. I like it for the sheep.
You could herd sheep at your town centre, and get a shepard to collect food from them. This was a new feature for the second game, which was changed slightly for the third game.
Other, more sane reasons, for liking the game included the random map campaigns. The variety of maps and customisation on each was astounding. If you didn't like any, start from scratch and make your own map. even make your own objectives. Hour, days, even weeks were spent making maps and giving myself crazy advantages. Withing the editor there were also a few troops you couldn't research in the game, such as the Flying Dutchman.
The expansion pack wasn't too bad, as it added yet more maps and settlements for you to try out.

And so ends my list. You may not agree with what has been said, but please remember this has been about what has influenced me as a gamer, not the most successful or most popular game. If you still don't agree, then go write your own blog.

Wednesday 20 February 2008

Two blogs in one day. You lucky readers.

So i just read the Entertainment Computing blog and it seems I have to talk about some stuff which I haven't yet covered. I'm bored with no games with me to play in the games lab, so here goes.

The pictures taken the other week have been slightly edited, but the original images came about by the group getting together, discussing what they wanted to do, taking the shot and seeing how we could improve it before we got distracted by shiny things or started taking pictures of boobies. (Believe me, it's harder to not get distracted than it sounds)

I think many of us were going for an 'A day in the life of a student' kind of thing, so the shots we took fit in with the theme quite nicely. If you've read my previous posts, you'll know these include booze and video games. And zombie attacks. You know, the usual.


No idea how i'm going to set out the video yet, or what transitions I'm going to use. I have to have a think about the music I'm going to use as well. Ah well, at least I have Easter to think about it.

Oops

I accidently deleted a blog from the 8th. Was deleting the drafts that saved randomly and clicked the wrong button. Twice. >_<
I blame fatigue.
Anyway, there wasn't much exciting stuff to be lost. It was just talking about editing some of the pictures we took the week before and adding captions. I'll try to post some as I have to upload them to a photo album anyway, but I've not got them with me at the minute. They're all on my laptop
The assignment we have for this module looks pretty good so far, as I have a few ideas for the pictures I've taken, and even a few I've taken outside of lesson time. I'm adding captions to them to add to the humour, and hopefully I won't be the only one to find them funny. Using similar text boxes to the Final Fantasy IX speech bubbles, which I made on Photoshop. Yay for avoiding copyright.

Hopefully I won't lose marks for not having this blog posted at the right date.

Tuesday 19 February 2008

Tuesday blogging

Now that my serious posts are out of the way for a while, i can get back to the matter at hand, Video games.

Recently I managed to unbrick my PSP. I was asking anyone if they wanted to buy any of my then redundant games before I realised I had the internet at my disposal and I could at least try to find a good website with any information. Thanks to Youtube (I feel dirty just saying those words) I managed to find a video which gave a very In-depth tutorial on how to unbrick your PSP. As long as you can get to the recovery screen, it would work. I managed to get to the recovery screen, and spent the next half hour frantically taking notes and downloading various programs. Success! It was alive again!

As I'm re-united with my PSP, I thought I'd talk about a PSP game today. Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories. This is the first in the series for the PSP, set three years before the events of Grand Theft Auto III, but six years after Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. You play the role of Toni Cipriani, and his story as he becomes Salvatore's right hand man, as he was in GTAIII. The game uses the same engine as GTAIII, which I can understand as it's set in the same place Liberty City, and uses the same characters. However, once you've played GTA: San Andreas for a while, it takes a while getting used to the controls again. And the not being able to swim thing got a little old after they allowed CJ to swim in SA. On a side note, and not to be racist or to offend, but it seems like only black characters can swim in these games. The next game to be released in the series was GTA: Vice City Stories, where the main character, Vic, is black and can swim.

Anyway, the missions in LCS are pretty easy, and minimal at times. There are a few missions where the goal is to get from point A to point B, with person C shooting at you (and missing.) After the depth of the missions in SA and previous games it seems like we're just filling in the plot holes the other games left.

The fact that it's on the PSP means modding is pretty easy. There are many sites giving you cheat devices and cheats that require minimal knowledge to put on. There is also the custom soundtrack feature which was a nice bonus, as I combined two of my favorite things. Listening to Bullets & Octane and running over old ladies.

The story mode might be pretty flawed, but the multiplayer makes up for it. My college days were spent with 6 of us constantly on multiplayer trying the different match types, and it's so fun. The player can unlock different costumes when they get to different parts of the game, some of which bring some typical 'Rockstar' humour to the game. (Rockstar being the developers.) We all had our own trademarked character which no-one else was allowed to use. Because of this, a gimp chasing a chicken in a truck became a daily sighting. The cheat device can also be used in multiplayer, much to the dismay and frustration of my opponents.

I'd recommend the game to any fans of the genre and series, or just to a first time player. The controls and lack of features may be a little dissapointing and frustrating to advanced players.

Friday 15 February 2008

Digital Manipulation For Dummies

Photoshop.
Since before the dawn of time, it has allowed us to take an image and change it.
The internet.
It has given us thousands of websites to take more images from.

Censorship has basically become redundant, as anyone can take a picture and manipulate it to our every whim. My college days were spent editing pictures. If I did this to someone's work, it's plagiarism.

Photo editing software is so advanced and easy to come by that almost anything can be done to an image. A few weeks back, in an Entertainment Computing practical, we managed to make a picture of a lake into a Loch Ness Monster picture. Many of the class had never used Photoshop before, but still managed to make decent pictures, many of which looked authentic.

Images have been known to be edited so as to mislead others, a common case in the news. This article is just one example.

Isn't it funny how before cameras and film, miracles happened,(See: Jesus) and strange creatures were seen.
Then cameras came along and nothing happened for a while.
Then editing software came along and now we have tales and 'evidence' of Bigfoot and UFO's etc.

On a similar note, the pictures from a few weeks ago have to be edited slightly to fit in with this topic. So here we go. Fear my skills!
(Note: they're only quick jobs. quality wasn't an issue.)
Click for full size.







Sorry for the somewhat serious topic. Back to randomness and chaos soon. Ideas for my next blog in a Stamped Addressed Envelope to the usual address.

This would be a lot easier if I liked those pesky applications

So a task for our assignment includes listing my 10 favourite Facebook applications in order of preference. Before I do this, can I just make it clear that the majority of application requests go ignored by me, so I don't have that many installed. I don't see the point in many of them, and I hate getting my page cluttered by them. The ones at the top of this list will be the ones I've already installed. After that, if there's space to fill it'll be the ones I've had a look at and which seem OK. That said, let's begin.

1) Wrester - Such an addictive application. I don't know if it's the fact that I'm Central Lancashire champion (and hopefully Liverpool champion soon) or the fact that they keep updating and adding new moves which makes me keep clicking and fighting.

2) Cyanide and Happiness - One of the interweb's best webcomics got it's own application, which I promptly installed. Displays a random comic on my profile. Many laughs guaranteed.

3) iLike - This is on the list solely for the Music Challenge. Back when I played this challenge, many hours were spent guessing the song name for the first 10 seconds of a song. I did pretty well also.

4) Flog Blog - I've found a few bugs with the application, but I don't know if that's just my computer acting up again or not. When I've found a way around them, it's a pretty good application. If you have friends that like to blog it's a little better as it gives you something to read during the boredom hours.

5) What Position Are You? - Put on my profile purely for lol's, and it's stayed ever since for the same reason. A simple quiz tells you what sexual position best suits you. Apparently my personality shows that I'm the Missionary Position.

6) How Good A Lover Are You? - Added for the same reason as above. A simple quiz determines how good a lover you are. I'm yet to ask the lady how true the description of it is.

7) Top Friends - Adds a top friends list, much like Myspace. I think the limit is around 30, but it could be more. This application also lets you 'send drinks' and tells you when people add you on their top friends, bringing your social level up.

8) Photos - One of the default applications, but still a pretty handy one. Lets you create photo albums and upload your own pictures for the world to see. Also lets you tag photos so people can now stalk your friends as well as you.

9) My Drunk Friends - Like Top Friends, it places a list of friends on your profile, this time stating your drinking buddies. Downside is you have to invite at least 10 friends, so if you don't like spamming friends, this isn't the application for you.

10) Counter Strike: Red Team Go - Recently added application so I'm not exactly sure what to do. Seems like you just choose to attack someone and keep doing it until one of you dies. Much like the actual Counter Strike game.

Well that list is done, now to talk about two of them in greater detail. It'll have to be the first two on the list.

Wrester is one of the most addictive applications I've ever had the mispleasure of installing. Many an hour have been lost while I try to keep up with the 6 people all attacking me at once. Went through some major updates recently, making the matches more balanced, using a momentum bar for example. Different moves give differing attack power and momentum power. You can challenge random people in your networks as well as your friends who've added the application. So far my networks include Facebook, England, Central Lancashire, and Liverpool, so I'm never without a match or 5.

Cyanide and Happiness is one of the most crude and random webcomics out there. So when I heard about an application about it I ran to install it. This places a random comic strip on your profile, and you can also add one specifically from their website. When you do this, your mini-feed is updated to show your friends which one you chose. It's a good application since when I'm bored, I can click on my profile and laugh at the randomness. Since the webcomic updates everyday, you can never be short of laughs.

A good Facebook application is one which keeps you coming back to check up on it. I've had many applications where I just installed them, and then forgot about them. A few weeks ago I did a clean up of my applications to get rid of the ones I never used and it took forever. I never knew how many I had. Most of them were pointless application which didn't have a purpose. (Don't ask why I installed them in the first place. I went through a phase of accepting everything.) A good application also needs to have a clear purpose, as there are many out there just designed to spam friends. Many of applications listed above I use regularly. 'How Good A Lover Are You?' and 'What Position Are You?' are quizzes so there isn't much to check on, but the application 'My Drunk Friends' I've recently deleted because I never used it. The Counter Strike application is only below it because it was installed while I was writing this blog so didn't seem fair.

Well I think that covers all the points I need to cover, so I'm going to leave it here as I need to go get some food. And don't you love how I've done next Monday's blog on Friday morning. I need to stop blogging so much.
Or do I?

Wednesday 13 February 2008

Romance day

For such a commercial holiday, today wasn't too bad. Yes, I know Valentines is tomorrow, but today was the only day me and the lady could be together due to those things I like to call lectures. As the male, it's my role to give the best gift and to pay for any meals we encountered. While I fulfilled point two, the first point was overshadowed by her desire to make my present look like the excrement of a sick panda in comparison. Okay, so she loved my gift and gave the typical girly shriek of joy when I presented it, but going out and buying a moogle (FFIX one, not the crappy FFXII one) doesn't compare to a handpainted painting of Vincent Valentine, signed by my one and only. She actually stayed in for two days straight painting this masterpiece.

And this, ladies and gentlemen, is why my girlfriend is so much better than any of your respective partners.

Tuesday 12 February 2008

Hello again

If it wasn't for this damned education, university would be a lot better. Right now I'm in a 'lesson', but everyone is busy procrastinating. It's our social time. But don't worry Mom and Dad, I've downloaded all the lecture notes and worksheets ready for me to read and complete.

Out later! ^_^ Where's Mavis is back to it's rightful home after damage to PR1. This means it's the first week I've actually been to PR1 this semester. First visit of 2008. They're so lucky.


In other news, Valentines Thursday. What have you got planned?
I'm celebrating on the Wednesday instead. The one time of the year I'm obligated to be as romantic as hell. And as broke as a hobo.
It's worth it.

Monday 11 February 2008

A world without the norm

So here I am, half 2 in the morning, blogging. Doesn't get much better than this. Maybe if I'd tried to get some sleep instead of playing Kingdom Hearts I wouldn't be in this mess. Then again, whenever I try to get an early night I wonder who's online, how my wrester application on Facebook is doing, whether or not I've got any comments on Myspace and if any webcomics I read have been updated.

This is the norm, and since my laptop is next to me at all times and needs to be surgically removed, it sort of interferes with sleep. I can't remember back before I had at least a computer which didn't have an internet connection. Okay, my desktop had a modem which I shared with my dad, passing through to each other when one of us got bored with being online, but still it affected my insomnia. If I wasn't told to get offline, I stayed awake until all hours on (I'm ashamed to say it) chatrooms, and the old social networking sites I used to frequent.

I even had at least two games consoles in my room since the age of 7, and while they've helped me become the lovable gamer I am today, they did stop me sleeping the normal hours when I came of age and was allowed to pick my own bedtimes.

And I'm sure I'm not the only one this has happened to. There are many people out there, like me, who are online at all hours doing nothing. Friends, family, random people who found my e-mail online. I've talked to all of them at 3am when we've needed to be up at 8am the same day for a busy day.

Is this wrong? The amount of times I've woken up for a lecture and regretted writing that wall post at 2am are too many to count.
If only I'd saved my game 2 save points before.
There was nothing on TV so why did I turn it on?

All have been through my mind at some point or another.
So would the world, and people's sleeping patterns, be better off without electronics?

I for one would hate it. Late at night is the only time I get things done.

Monday 4 February 2008

My balls are bouncing!

Obviously talking about that pool table we're programming.

Well the requirement for this blog was to keep it updated regularly. You think I've surpassed that? It's been 2 days (I think) and I'm back blogging away. Ah well, all in the name of internet entertainment. You lot have it easy. I'm the one who has to think of something to write about, try to use wit, and take time away from my busy procrastinating to form readible sentences. You just have to find this page and read. Not that many people would read this. Maybe I should put a counter on so I can see the pitiful amount of internet traffic I draw.

I'll either inflate my ego, or kill it completely. Win/Win.

Maybe I'll put ads on as well.
Or a Paypal button.
Or some kind of musical video for entertainment.
OR A PONY!

The possibilities are endless.

Friday 1 February 2008

I could be a photographer

Not a good one, but still. Today as part of our assignment we got given cameras and let out onto the university campus. It was a scary experience for the general public. Armed with cameras we had to take pictures to fit in with the theme 'A day in the life of...'

Hardly any fit in with the theme. And the ones that do involve video games and alcohol.

I need to go back to the flat and shower before work, so a short blog.
And now I can take a break from blogging!
Huzzah!

Winter-een-mas - Night 7

And so it ends for yet another year. The end of Winter-een-mas was upon us, so we celebrated with a bang. Lots of bangs actually. As we played Halo 3 most of the night again. And a bit of Call of Duty 4.

I suggested going 'Old Skool' and hooking up my N64 for some Super Smash Bros, but Ricky has the bigger flat, so it was round to his for next gen gaming.

It's 3am, and I've been gaming since 1PM, after lectures. Got further on Kingdom Hearts, then to the games lab for CounterStrike and Guild Wars. Then it was onto Ricky's.

I've tried to play a different game every day this holiday, but all I managed tonight was half an hour of Call of Duty 4 on multiplayer, not enough to write about really. So I'll skip the 'review' tonight. Good thing as well, since I need sleep.

Thanks to the gaming buddys for a great Winter-een-mas, and I hope everyone else had a good one this year. Bring on 2009.