The Energon Pub

[1337W422102]

Bionic Commando Rearmed [PC]:
This is how to make a remake. Holy crap, it is awesome.

Bionic Commando [PC]:
Playing with the retro costume, of course. Going to start a new game because I missed some challenges.

[SlyTF1]

You thought Liara was...annoying? You thought the hot blue scientist alien chick who was easily the most soft-spoken and reserved member of the entire cast of the first game, was annoying? I mean, sure, in ME2 working with the Shadow Broker and Cerberus made her into a total bitch. She gets better after becoming the Shadow Broker. What about her annoyed you?

Her voice.

[Shadowman]

You thought Liara was...annoying? You thought the hot blue scientist alien chick who was easily the most soft-spoken and reserved member of the entire cast of the first game, was annoying? I mean, sure, in ME2 working with the Shadow Broker and Cerberus made her into a total bitch. She gets better after becoming the Shadow Broker. What about her annoyed you?

Her voice.

Huh? Her voice is very low and soft. She has probably the nicest voice of anyone in ME1, and Keith David is on the cast list!

Borderlands:
Tried doing the long tournaments in Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot with a friend of mine. A friend, mind you, who outclasses me in every way. We were actually doing good, until part way through Wave 10 when one enemy apparently fell through the map, causing the round to become impossible to complete. While searching around, I got curious and suicided. Though it didn't fix the problem, I DID prove my theory that mad Moxxi is directly above the Penalty Box, in clear view. A well-placed grenade jump (I ran out of grenades doing it) and I was able to get up on her platform, where I learned three things:

1. She is way cuter the closer you get to her

2. She dances like a stripper, which just seems oddly appropriate

3. She wears baby-blue panties, though I could only tell because her "skirt" doesn't cover her hips.

So, a victory in the name of...science, I guess...I'll be in my bunk...

[1337W422102]

1. She is way cuter the closer you get to her

2. She dances like a stripper, which just seems oddly appropriate

3. She wears baby-blue panties, though I could only tell because her "skirt" doesn't cover her hips.

So, a victory in the name of...science, I guess...I'll be in my bunk...

Er, we knew all of those things beforehand, buddy. At least you got some good screenshots for posterior posterity!

[Shadowman]

1. She is way cuter the closer you get to her

2. She dances like a stripper, which just seems oddly appropriate

3. She wears baby-blue panties, though I could only tell because her "skirt" doesn't cover her hips.

So, a victory in the name of...science, I guess...I'll be in my bunk...

Er, we knew all of those things beforehand, buddy. At least you got some good screenshots for posterior posterity!

...

Damn it! I KNEW I forgot something! To be fair, though, the light from the New-U pole would have obscured a lot of detail, and also she doesn't stand still long enough to get any reasonable pictures. Also, come to think of it, I don't even know if there's a screen-grab button...

...heh...Grabbing screens of Moxxi...

EDIT: this same friend also gave me a few gifts including sweet little Bessie and the Atlas Omega Shield. If anyone here needs help with Crawmerax, I'm ready to murder his face off. Also his arms and carapace, because that's how the fight works.

[1337W422102]

1. She is way cuter the closer you get to her

2. She dances like a stripper, which just seems oddly appropriate

3. She wears baby-blue panties, though I could only tell because her "skirt" doesn't cover her hips.

So, a victory in the name of...science, I guess...I'll be in my bunk...

Er, we knew all of those things beforehand, buddy. At least you got some good screenshots for posterior posterity!

...

Damn it! I KNEW I forgot something! To be fair, though, the light from the New-U pole would have obscured a lot of detail, and also she doesn't stand still long enough to get any reasonable pictures. Also, come to think of it, I don't even know if there's a screen-grab button...

...heh...Grabbing screens of Moxxi...

I'm so 'nadejumping there, going into third-person mode, and takin' Xfire videos for great justice... when I get the DLC, I mean.

[Shadowman]

when I get the DLC, I mean.

The DLC pack is only $30. Just sayin'. Oddly enough it's the exact same price as the GOTY edition.

[1337W422102]

when I get the DLC, I mean.

The DLC pack is only $30. Just sayin'. Oddly enough it's the exact same price as the GOTY edition.

Considering I got the game itself for $10 and have to spend about 2 grand on university-related stuff this month, the DLC will have to wait. Besides, I never buy stuff at full price, because you KNOW those Steam sales are pants-moistening.

[The Happy Locust]

What about her annoyed you?

Her voice.[/quote]

Agreed. Didn't mind in ME1 but something about ME2 just didn't work for me. Made me ditch her for the Quarian Hottie that much faster.

Fallout New Vegas
Espionage proved to be easier than expected. The weapons plans are now in the hands of the Crimson caravan company. After that, ran some minor side jobs, finally met Mr. House and got a new suite. Helped a super mutant population towards a cure for the Nightkin without resorting to further experimentation on one. Helpded the King's leader fix his cyberdog with the unwilling help of another dog as a brain donor.
Decided to hit up the great kahns. They're not too fond of me, but still managed to meet with their head people and convince them to ditch an alliance with the Legion (and got them to kill the legion ambassador)
Travelled to Cottonwood cove and met Ceasar, who offered me amnesty in exchange for favors. Needing what he had, told him I'd consider it, then returned to cottonwood cove and dumped toxic waste on the Legion outpost.
All in a day's work.

Fallout New Vegas
Running out of side quests. After doing some research, realized that my exploits with Yes man were going to earn me the Ire of the NCR sooner or later. Decided to ditch that quest and throw in with the NCR instead. Met with their embassador and ran some jobs for him. First was to get the Boomers on their side. Easily done since I was already friendly with them. Next, needed to stop the violence between the Kings and the NCR squatters. The King would have obliged but I'd already used up my favor with them. With diplomacy out of the way, spiked the King's second-in-command's drug supply to give him a permanent bad trip. As he was the primary instigator of the violence, things should be calmer now.

[1337W422102]

Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days [PC]:
Playing co-op with a friend. Reached the level "Resurrection;" earned 6 Achievements today.

[Shadowman]

Her voice.

Agreed. Didn't mind in ME1 but something about ME2 just didn't work for me. Made me ditch her for the Quarian Hottie that much faster.

I ditched her because she turned into a total bitch. She gets better after Lair of the Shadow Broker, though. Can't wait to see what this will do in ME3.

Borderlands:
Was up until 5AM last night playing with two friends of mine. We killed Taylor Kobb, and I helped them get the "On a Boat" achievement, as well as showing them the Fun With Barrels and New Haven Secret Basement Easter Eggs.

On the more powerful side of things, I wanted to test out a hypothesis of mine as Lilith: I believed, using Bessie, that I could kill Crawmerax in six rounds, one shot for each weak spot. My hypothesis proved, sadly, incorrect.

It took seven rounds.

Well, okay, that's still wrong; it WOULD have took seven rounds, if I had better skill with a sniper rifle, particularly in the accuracy department. (My fault, my sweet little Bessie is blameless) I should say seven HITS, but then I was unable to hit his upper left arm with Bessie and instead resorted to spraying SMG fire at him. It worked, though, and this was EASILY my best Crawmerax run ever. The fight didn't take more than ten minutes and I never died once. Lot of nice orange-level equipment dropped, no Pearlescents, as usual, but I got a nice new Pestilent Defiler (My favorite revolver type) out of it.

(Yeah, I'm going to show a lot of somewhat creepy love for Bessie. Anything that can take off a piece of Crawmerax without needing to reload is a God in my book)

[1337W422102]

Shadowman confirmed for wizard.

[Shadowman]

Shadowman confirmed for wizard.

I'm a wizard, but the guy who gave me Bessie is a couple leagues above me. We did Crawmerax together, and while I turned by back to Crawmerax to deal with one of his entourage, by the time I turned back around (Only a matter of seconds) my friend had already taken off Crawmerax's eye. he wasn't even using Bessie, I think he was using the S&S Serpens. When we tried doing to 20-round Tournaments in the Underdome, the most I ever got was 19 kills in an entire round, he outclasses the crap out of me, and I've been playing the game longer than him.

EDIT: Read the following very carefully: I can't promise that your head won't explode:

I killed Crawmerax four times...today. I think, not counting co-op sessions, I'm nearing the double digits. I'm not even doing it for experience anymore, now it's just for loot and bragging. And pretty soon bragging will become kind of pointless ("Okay, you killed Crawmerax. Great, go learn a new trick, you one-trick pony") and I assume at some point the loot's not going to be as impressive.

[The Happy Locust]

Fallout New Vegas
Continuing my aid to the NCR. A Colonel gave me a few side missions. 1st involved checking on the Great Kahns. As I'd already convinced them to relocate, this was already completed. Second was to check on the Omertas casino family. Tried a few different things but a scripting error and a partially completed quest involving them left me with no way to complete this properly. After some trial and error, decided to just say 'screw it' and assassinate the bosses of family. Turns out that killing one bosses causes the other to disappear, making that idea impossible. Gave up and killed who I could, then went back and lied to the Colonel. sigh...
Next up, needed to remove the Brotherhood of steel as a threat. My earlier dealings with them made it easy enough for them to sign a truce with the NCR and even get their aid in an upcoming battle.
With all loose ends tied up, offered to protect the visiting NCR president during a visit. Found a bomb on his vertibird and got the speech called off, allowing him to escape safely. With taken care of, it was time for the big epic battle.
Before that though, told them I had to prepare, then traveled to Ceasar's home base and completely depopulated it, including killing Ceasar himself. Sadly, the platinum chip wasn't in his possession so I lost a quest there, but at least the threat was gone... sort of. Returned to the Dam and let the battle commence. Fought off the invading Legion and even got a few of them chopped up by activating the turbines in the drainage pipes they were sneaking in through. After that, fought to their encampment and personally defeated Legate Lanius, who didn't seem to care that Ceasar was dead. Pretty sure I'm nearing endgame at this point.

[1337W422102]

I killed Crawmerax four times...today. I think, not counting co-op sessions, I'm nearing the double digits. I'm not even doing it for experience anymore, now it's just for loot and bragging. And pretty soon bragging will become kind of pointless ("Okay, you killed Crawmerax. Great, go learn a new trick, you one-trick pony") and I assume at some point the loot's not going to be as impressive.

At that point, you will have a new goal: building a Brick so strong he can punch Crawmy to death.

[The Happy Locust]

Pretty sure I'm nearing endgame at this point.

Fallout New Vegas
Scratch that. That WAS the endgame. GAME.OVER!
Generally positive ending, with most benevolent factions ending happily. The followers, fiends, powder gangers, and other groups didn't end happily, but the NCR seemed to handle things fairly well. Things are peaceful, but more expensive thanks to new taxes. Well, that's the price of stability, I guess.

Okay, I really did like this game, despite the bugs. There are some gamebreaking script issues which made things more trouble than they needed to be and the reputation and damage threshhold systems made things more complicated than I would have liked, but I still think it was an overall great game. Oddly, I don't have the urge to replay this one like I did with Fallout 3. maybe later, for now I'm moving onto my other current to-play games.

[Shadowman]

I killed Crawmerax four times...today. I think, not counting co-op sessions, I'm nearing the double digits. I'm not even doing it for experience anymore, now it's just for loot and bragging. And pretty soon bragging will become kind of pointless ("Okay, you killed Crawmerax. Great, go learn a new trick, you one-trick pony") and I assume at some point the loot's not going to be as impressive.

At that point, you will have a new goal: building a Brick so strong he can punch Crawmy to death.

I once made a bet where, if DLC4 didn't come out at a specified time, I'd bare knuckle brawl Crawmerax. The DLC came out sooner, but then I never said it'd come out BEFORE the time I suggested, so I was stuck to it. I think I used Lilith. It didn't go well.

The problem with melees Crawmerax is twofold: 1. Two of his weak points are too high to reach by melee. 2. being in melee range means he's in range for his own melee attack, which will either one shot you, or he'll do a one-two punch, which WILL kill you.

[1337W422102]

I killed Crawmerax four times...today. I think, not counting co-op sessions, I'm nearing the double digits. I'm not even doing it for experience anymore, now it's just for loot and bragging. And pretty soon bragging will become kind of pointless ("Okay, you killed Crawmerax. Great, go learn a new trick, you one-trick pony") and I assume at some point the loot's not going to be as impressive.

At that point, you will have a new goal: building a Brick so strong he can punch Crawmy to death.

I once made a bet where, if DLC4 didn't come out at a specified time, I'd bare knuckle brawl Crawmerax. The DLC came out sooner, but then I never said it'd come out BEFORE the time I suggested, so I was stuck to it. I think I used Lilith. It didn't go well.

The problem with melees Crawmerax is twofold: 1. Two of his weak points are too high to reach by melee. 2. being in melee range means he's in range for his own melee attack, which will either one shot you, or he'll do a one-two punch, which WILL kill you.

I was joking, buddy! Borderlands: Serious Business.

[Shadowman]

I was joking, buddy! Borderlands: Serious Business.

Crawmerax IS serious business. I need to photoshop him wearing a suit and tie and glasses, carrying a briefcase. Because that's serious.

[1337W422102]

I was joking, buddy! Borderlands: Serious Business.

Crawmerax IS serious business. I need to photoshop him wearing a suit and tie and glasses, carrying a briefcase. Because that's serious.

Or just the sunglasses, with a helpful tip suggesting that those affected cope with the predicament.

[Shadowman]

Monday Night Combat:
I...I don't really know how to describe this. It's like, if Exteel had a baby with Team Fortress 2, but then the fetus was spliced with DNA from War for Cybertron and Mass Effect. And it is so...so...beautiful...assuming you find a server that works. Apparently none of the servers updated to match the update the game itself went through when it was released on Steam and...well, the majority of them don't work as a result. If you CAN, the game flies.

I tend to play Assassin. (The name Datassassin fits quite well, screenshots to come later) I upgrade the Assassin perk so she switches her kunai for a katana. Because katanas are just better. Nothing as satisfying as finding some unsuspecting rube, sneaking up, then executing a grapple attack, killing him in a spectacular way. Even more spectacular if you can survive for another ten seconds after doing it.

[1337W422102]

Monday Night Combat:
I...I don't really know how to describe this. It's like, if Exteel had a baby with Team Fortress 2, but then the fetus was spliced with DNA from War for Cybertron and Mass Effect. And it is so...so...beautiful...assuming you find a server that works. Apparently none of the servers updated to match the update the game itself went through when it was released on Steam and...well, the majority of them don't work as a result. If you CAN, the game flies.

I tend to play Assassin. (The name Datassassin fits quite well, screenshots to come later) I upgrade the Assassin perk so she switches her kunai for a katana. Because katanas are just better. Nothing as satisfying as finding some unsuspecting rube, sneaking up, then executing a grapple attack, killing him in a spectacular way. Even more spectacular if you can survive for another ten seconds after doing it.

I gotta get me some of that. Plus, bonus MNC items in TF2 and TF2 items in MNC. Hell yeah. And you know how much I love datassassins. (that's also my main Lilith's character name in Borderlands)

[Shadowman]

Monday Night Combat:
All right, getting the hang of things here. First off, leveling up seems to be pretty much just for show. Second, custom classes are significantly better than the prefab classes you start with. Finally, if you CAN grapple attack someone, there's a high probability it won't kill them when you're an assassin, unless you get them from behind, which results in a backstab (With the kunai) or a sweep kick, followed by leaping on top of them and plunging your sword into their face. (With the katana) And if it doesn't kill them, then I hope you had a full life free of regret.

Also, 1337W422104, some glorious bastard just sent you a guest pass for MNC. Just a heads up.

Advent Rising:
For the past couple years, I promised myself I wouldn't buy this, after learning that Orson Scott Card is an insane homophobe who thinks Stephenie Meyer is a good author. Also I played the Xbox version and it was...eh. Then, in a moment of weakness involving thought processes that I'm still not sure what they were, I bought this. I learned two things;

1. Tommy Tallarico is some kind of video game music God. (Confirming my suspicions from the Earthworm Jim soundtrack)

2. I remember this game being prettier.

Crashed on the planet of the friendly aliens. The main character's girlfriend drowned, though...which raises the question of why they would give me the choice of saving either her or the main character's brother, if the one you save is just going to die shortly after. All that changed was a few lines in gameplay and a few cutscenes!

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion:
Got the GOTY edition off of Steam, so I can give Tweezy his physical copy back. I know some people prefer a physical copy, but those can be broken, damaged or lost, but data is forever. Plus I find it easier to install and uninstall through Steam. Sure, it takes long, but I prefer it anyway.

Lucky me, I was able to transfer over my saves from the non-Steam version. Completed the Knights of the Nine sidequest. Now I think I'll resume the main story.

[1337W422102]

I love you in a completely hetero bromance sorta way, O Mighty Lord Of Darkness! Installing that like a boss.

[Shadowman]

Monday Night Combat:
Okay, finally getting the hang of this for real now. The most important thing to realize is that you first have to stop thinking of victory as Kills and Deaths. Success is determined by money gained, and the best way to do that is to kill bots. Furthermore, human players can't bring down the Moneyball's shields. Sure, you want to kill a human player if you can, and you obviously want to wreck their turrets, but remember that bots = money and money = victory.

That wasn't progress at all, was it? Well, I've been doing great as Assault (A mix of Demoman and Soldier) and Support. (A mix of Medic, Engineer and...Mario. It makes sense if you hear him talk) The Steam forums were all a-fluster over Datassassin being overpowered, but a recent influx of posts have emerged pointing out that she has the lowest HP pool, she's useless without the Gold-level Armor Endorsement, and her cloak doesn't work at close range, making a loud humming noise and being fairly visible long before she's in range to grapple you. She CAN be a very valuable asset, but you shouldn't go looking for a PvP fight.