Some of us have more money after the holidays but others have just spent it all on others. In the case you're the latter and didn't get all those games you wanted I've got a treat for you. It can be a bit exhausting trying to plow through those fresh games so why not take a break and give a tiny free game a shot?

Beware of incoming giant pictures...





So that's what you have to expect for graphics. I was surprised by the polish and sheer enormity of races and add-ons. I personally stick to the multiplayer primarily and it has a very Warcraft 3 feel to it. But even the single player is deep and refreshing. There are many campaigns you can go on to fight for or against Wesnoth. I'm not a huge RTS fan so the new (to me) concept of leveled units being recalled and reused in later battles was fun.

The game reminds me a bit of Advance Wars with its turn based action as well. This makes it great for multiplayer so you can play it windowed and explore other avenues when it isn't your turn.

Now there certainly are some problems. Each unit has abilities and attacks given to it. Most have melee and ranged attacks but some only have one. The big problem a lot of others have with the game is ranged attacks still require being only one hex from the enemy. This typically leads to battles where you rush your archers to kill their infantry and then your infantry to kill their archers. Some units are average at both too though so its all a complex system of dice rolls.

I wish there was a friends system or just private chatting in the lobby but other than that you get what you pay for. So head on over to http://www.wesnoth.org/wiki/Download#Stable_.281.2_branch.29 and make sure you get the stable version that isn't the source code.

Install it, go through the ingame and grab the Extended Era add-on and maybe some others that interest you and have some fun. Its got a great tutorial, some fun campaigns, and multiplayer is great if you can wrangle up a few friends for comp stomps or versus.

One of the themes I've had bouncing around in my head for the last week or so is how games have to increase their sense of reality to the player and vastly improve upon storylines. I've heard that you can measure a game on whether or not it makes you cry. I personally disagree with that, two of my favorites Deus Ex and Ocarina of Time did no such thing. I find myself much more satisfied when I leave the game and find myself considering what my life in that universe would be like. Just what kind of ship would I want to fly in Freespace and could I really live with myself if I had multi-colored hair like in Rock Band?

But let me deviate for a paragraph. I've been listening to the Lord of the Rings soundtracks a great deal while studying for my upcoming finals. Besides motivating me they also stir up a great deal of emotions. Songs like "Concerning Hobbits", "The Rings Goes South", and "The Bridge of Khazad Dum" paint Middle Earth in my head. And when I consider them further I realize they aren't just brilliantly executed fluff. Without the score many of these scenes would lose a great deal of value. And that is how I'll transition into characters in video games.

The characters in video games are extremely vital, one of the most important pieces of the game fabric in my opinion. Sure you can have the perfect main character who experiences hostility and grows from it but what if his supporting cast is weak? Sure great gameplay and graphics will get people playing and keep them there but personally I want more from a great game. I have yet to play Mass Effect but I feel like its the wave of the future. If developers won't force a character on you then they should be prepared to weave all of your actions and their consequences into the story.

For narrative purposes I prefer controlling a character that's been forced onto you. I don't want to be playing a movie but I do want to get a sense of my characters motivation and what some of his goals are. Unlike some I don't "play to see the next level or cool animation" as Gabe from Penny Arcade put it. I don't ache for a high score or every achievement but I do want to see a story unfold. Give me intrigue, give me deception, heartbreak.

When I look back at a game I want the story to be inseparable from the fun I had with the game just like the Lord of the Rings soundtrack was to the movie. They should go hand in hand and help enhance each other. I hear a lot about games becoming more than the sum of their parts but I'd love to see a game that does that while each part is excellent on its own. Then maybe we can finally have our own Citizen Kane.

An interesting thought came to mind after reading a topic on the destructoid forums concerning player names. It asked the question over whether or not players typically changed their character names and if so was it to their real name or a fantasy name? I know I try and match the name with the universe and if its in the realm of possibility (sports or a game based in the modern era) I'll tend to use my name.

But continuing this discussion I pondered whether names could alter realism. During my time in WoW I certainly preferred to see believable names like these...



over 'Scrotum Thief' and 'xXXx SSJ Gokupiccolo xXXx'. Some could argue that these names are inevitable and if others want to avoid them then stick to roleplaying servers. I understand that sentiment but I just wish more players were inclined to become a part of the universe even if that doesn't mean imitating Old English.

And finally my last point for this overly long community blog post. Does the race/religion/nationality of a main character change all that much? In a time when affirmative action and race and gender are huge issues has discrimination been removed from video games?

I know I've been hoping Niko Bellic is Polish (although I believe he'll be Ukrainian or Serbian). Will that change my love for his character at all? No, but I much prefer his nationality is Eastern European over Russian. Why? I don't know, I just feel that way. But what about CJ? I wasn't around to see the reactions of a "gasp!" black main character but I see now that he isn't loved the way some others of the GTA lineage are. Maybe that's because he was too thug or he's too recent but could it be racism?

But before this turns into an essay I'll wrap it up, although my spidey sense is telling me a follow up post is in my future.

P.S. A million thanks to maggie for my gorgeous banner :)

As I sit here composing my first blog post accompanied by my horribly stretched, non-banner image above I wonder. Who the hell was in charge of stress testing the instruments?

Within the first week of play our band, Fancy Hat, broke the guitar strum bar. No big deal, it was terribly constructed. After a week of confusion and receiving two boxes for the guitar it was finally shipped back. Hooray consumerism, hooray EA for making the process relatively painless.

And then two days ago the kick pedal broke. The plastic just clean snapped right through. Obviously the strum bar and kick pedal are going to receive some of the worst beatings out of all the instruments so how did this happen? Clearly EA must be shitting the bed having to replace all these instruments and pay for shipping.

I love the game and I love rocking out but holy Raptor Jesus I'm just waiting for the mic to break from an intense session of cowbell. Anyone have me an explanation?