Someone once said the only thing constant is change. This has surely been a month of changes. I switched Internet providers after six years of loyalty. The sad thing is, I would have stayed with Comcast, but when you treat your customers like doggie dung, and they wake up and realize they are being treated that way, well, I had to let them go. I'll spend my money elsewhere. Obama's tax fiscal cliff thingie kicked in. My pauperous paycheck is now $20 less--something I needed like a shotgun blast to the chest. I'll just have to look at the brightside. I now save $75 a month with my new Internet provider, so that makes up for the extraneous government dip into my paycheck and still gives me an extra $35.00 a month. I'll never stop griping about my invasive government, but at least their increased taxation isn't affecting me this time around. Oh, something else, too. I became a grandfather for a second time. And I'm not just saying this, the boy is the most beautiful little baby I've ever seen. Welcome to the world, Eric Cruz. I'm glad you were born. Despite all of the busy-ness as of late I've still been able to dedicate myself to my geekdom, here I'll show you.
1. Snow Crash by Neil Stephenson
Still continuing the adventures of Hiro Protocol, pizza
deliverer by day, badass hacker ninja by night in the Metaverse (the
inspiration for the virtual environment, Second Life) this book is filled with huge nuggets of trivial
information, and some not so trivial. And I’ve never read a book that
correlates computer viruses and their proliferation with the spread of ancient
religions. This is definitely science fiction for nerds. Why did God bestow man
with the ability to talk in tongues? Simple really, it was all that much easier
to mingle with the jungle natives and convert 200,000 people
when they could instantly understand you.
2. Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood on PC
Gearbox released this game a mere seven months after the
release of the venerable Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30 back in 2005, and they took some
flak for it. The environments aren’t that changed, and the game even has the
same characters. Shoot, even the story overlaps the original game, but this time
you step up to the plate as one of the minor characters who has suddenly taken
charge and is in command. This game is still brutally difficult even on the
medium setting I’m playing it on. But each mission is historically accurate,
and I can’t help but feel as if I’ve really stepped into a time machine and
parachuted into the shrubs and backfields of Normandy
3. Lost on
Blu-Ray
You always hear me bragging about how great Battlestar
Galactica was. Well, I think Lost has stolen the title of the best writing on
television away from my beloved BSG. Yes, I know, I know, the ending
is garbage, but so far, though I’m still in season one, I have to say I’m
hypnotized. Just finished watching “The Moth,” where Charlie kicks his nasty
habit and we find out that Sawyer may be a bad man, but he’s not inherently
evil. If you were to ask me, I’m not a JJ Abrams fan. I know his endings are
weak, and how could he even accept the reins of both Star Wars and Star Trek? This
was a pretty arrogant gesture as far as I’m concerned. But Lost could make me a
real fan. Stay tuned for further details.
4. Interpol Antics on CD
I must have heard “Not Even Jail” late one night on Pandora
while playing Second Life, or when I was writing several years back. I’m not
sure how they ended up on my plate, but if The Joy Division hit a time glitch
and ended up in the here and now this would be them, well, maybe if the angst
were glitched out as well. This band sounds very much like them, from Paul
Banks’ vocals to Daniel Kessler’s shoeglazey guitar work. The background
synthesizer in guise of an old church organ that suddenly sung and danced
itself out of a funeral service nails my love for this CD. Holy hello, you know what? Their live band
pictures even remind me of Joy Division. Hmm . . . do you believe in time
glitches?
5. Incubus Light Grenades on CD
This band had a pretty loyal underground following for quite
some time. I had heard of them, but not listened to them. The slight exposure I
had to them reminded me too much of The Red Hot Chili Peppers, a band I
dislike. And then I picked up this CD. Brandon Boyd’s voice rings perfectly in “Dig,”
(supposedly, it was his voice that caused Sony to pick them up) and not to mention
the glittering guitar sound that reminds me of leaves flickering in sunshine
under a steady breeze. And Ben Kenny’s amazingly tight bassing is the true ear
candy that sold me. Go for a stroll with these tracks loaded up on your mp3
player. It will be a walk to remember.
6. Civilization V on PC
This game still makes me cry. Well, not tears of grief, but
tears because I stare at the screen so long and forget to blink. An hour later
my eyes are stinging because I feel like I’ve been staring at the sun. I
get so engrossed I forget to take eye breaks from the screen. And not to
mention, having six hours to go before having to get ready for work, and then
hoarsely mumbling, “Just one more turn, all I need to do is send my army into
this single city-state that’s been a thorn in my empire’s side then I’ll save
and go to bed.” Ha! Three hours later, not only has my army went in, they’ve
conquered and the city-state is now a member of the proud Burton
7. Titan Quest on PC
Edward Pyro is a force of nature to be dealt with, and his
fire elemental is almost as formidable. He is level 33 now, and he’s been alive
for almost 37 hours. He only comes out an hour or an hour and a half at a time,
but he’s roamed this Earth since September of last year. That’s a long time for
a computer game. In all of his fire mage ferocity he’s trekked across ancient Greece Great Wall of China . He believes the
final boss is around the corner, he has to be, and he's dreading it because he knows this will be the ordeal that will add another unnecessary six hours to his pixelated life. But oh why oh why? Because game designers are cruel beings. He'll have to aggressively ignore the dark steely whispers, "go ahead, ragequit, it's okay, you're not a failure, just quit . . ."
8. Manny's Search by Edward C. Burton
Got the “dummy” back from Amazon. It was definitely a
hallmark moment, opening the parcel and plucking my book out of the cardboard
and holding it up to the light of day. Flipping open the pages and seeing all
of the words is a feeling I shall not soon forget. The novel is with an editor
friend of mine now who’s giving it a going over, and then I’ll make the final
corrections before it goes out into the world. Will it become a bestselling
indie novel that gets picked up by a major publisher? Will it be a flop that
sells twenty copies and carries twenty one star reviews? I don’t know, but I do
know it’s inspiring me to stop being lazy and get my second novel reformatted
for Amazon. Maybe this was the kick in the seat of the pants I needed.
9. Portal on PC
Finally got around to playing this game. I’d always heard
the cake is a lie. This is a supposed 3 hour game. It took me 9 hours to beat
it, and I hated it. I almost ragequit three different times. Even after looking
at Youtube vids and reading walkthrough cheats I couldn’t get past certain
areas without trying thirty or more times. This is just not fun to me at all. I
finally struggled through it, and of this, I have to say about it. The cake is
not a lie is a lie itself. There is a cake at the end, you just don’t get the
chance to eat it. And furthermore, I will not ever play Portal 2, nor will I
see JJ Abrams Portal movie if/when it comes out. Forever. Most frustrating game
I have ever played. Done with all things Portal. (Okay, I do have to admit I'd love to pick up one of those sentry bots on Amazon. Those things exude hella coolness.)
10. PC Gamer Magazine 2011
PC Gamer was truly on its own in this year with Computer
Games and Games for Windows mere ashes in memory, and the publisher could have cheapened
things down, but instead it began producing the magazines on heavier paper,
and bragged how each one would become more collectible. Good on them! Yeah,
reading reviews/news on Internet sights is good, but sometimes you just want to
be able to carry a magazine around with you, you know, to show friends and read
at work. And as far as 2011 in particular: a great time to be producing a
computer game magazine. Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Dragon Age 2, Crysis 2, Diablo
III. Now you know.
