21 Jump Street; A Review
Posted by Landerpurex on March 19th, 2012, 3:05 am. Category: Scribery Entry
9/10
I consider myself a comedy connoisseur. Whether it's the fine wine comedy of Monty Python, the outrageous antics of Will Ferrell in Step Brothers or Old School, or the recently over-the-top Wanderlust, and even further back to classics such as Caddyshack, National Lampoon, Animal House, and even further to the Stooges and Charlie Chaplin. I've seen it all. I have not, however, always enjoyed it all.
21 Jump Street was, simply put, a fantastic comedy. I wouldn't consider myself a huge Jonah Hill fan, but he does well in this movie. The star who really excels is Channing Tatum, however. As some other reviewers mention, seeing the actor exit his (boring, in my opinion) romantic role and enter into a comedic one is fantastic. His simple, yet sincere character is one we've seen time and again, but it's incredibly funny and somehow fresh in this film. Jonah Hill's character is similar to those in the past, the outcast bookworm, but again, it fits the movie.
The premise of the movie is that Tatum and Hill are newly graduated policemen, and aren't at all good at their job. After losing some perpetrators doing drugs in the park, they are reassigned to the run-down undercover unit at 21 Jump Street. Here, their captain (A hilarious Ice Cube) assigns them to pose as students to try and take down the supplier of a new hallucinogenic drug called HFS (Holy F'ing
). Simple enough premise. A large part of the comedy of this movie is currently edgy, and will hit home with our generation for years to come. Tatum and Hill return to school to find that studying, caring for the environment, and being tolerant is now 'cool'. This, of course, is openly satirizing the abrupt shift that is taking place with youth today, for good or ill and remains a very potent comedic strand throughout the movie. In a memorable scene, when the two first return to high school, they are bombarded by new cliques, such as asians dressed in cosplay and the now infamous hipsters. Again, it's humor that has a target audience and works incredibly well for us who are mired in these new cultural phenomena.
Interestingly enough, there are a few good action scenes to be had in this movie as well. It's no Jackie Chan movie, but the director manages some good action, explosions (and satirizing the convention of explosions), car chases and shootouts to change the pace when a change is warranted.
This isn't an art film, and will not wow you with presentation, cinematography, sound, or any other technical aspect. It is driven by its humor, strong acting, and script, which is always enough with a successful comedy. We are meant to pay attention to the jokes, not what the camera angles suggest. It is sufficient enough technically that we aren't distracted by *bad* decisions, there is just not anything that will wow you in that respect.
There are many laughs to be had in this movie, for people of all ages and backgrounds. The guys are forced to try the new drug right away to prove they're not police, and the insanity ensues. Tatum bursts into the band room and destroys and disrupts. Hill returns to drama class and somehow nails himself the lead part in the school's production of Peter Pan. In an attempt to get in with one of the dealers, the guys throw a party of wicked proportions, and kids from a rival school show up. This ends in Tatum punching almost anyone who steps in front of him and Hill getting stabbed with some kind of artifact. Then, their parents return and break up the party.
This movie toes the line between ridiculous and incredibly funny exactly the way a great comedy should. It's witty, edgy, and simply funny nearly all the time, with very strong acting and writing throughout all the while remaining grounded in a decent enough story. There are even a few great surprises to be had, including a fantastic cameo. The ONLY reasons this film garners a 9 instead of a 10 from me is because it falters in the final scenes, going too far with a shock device that seems totally unnecessary given the merit of the rest of the film. There are also some cliches to be had, but they serve their purpose in the plot.
In short, go and see this film as soon as possible.
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Guild Wars 2 (Pre-Purchase) April 10th
Posted by killa kiaba on March 15th, 2012, 6:52 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
https://buy.guildwars2.com/
All pre-purchase editions include these exclusive bonuses:
Access to all Guild Wars 2 Beta Weekend Events
Three days of headstart access
Hero’s Band (+2 to all stats)
DIGITAL EDITION $59.99
Guild Wars 2 game
DIGITAL DELUXE $79.99
Guild Wars 2 game
Summon Mistfire Wolf Elite Skill
Rytlock Miniature
Golem Banker
Chalice of Glory
Tome of Influence
COLLECTOR'S EDITION $149.99
Guild Wars 2 game
Summon Mistfire Wolf Elite Skill
Rytlock Miniature
Golem Banker
Chalice of Glory
Tome of Influence
10-inch figurine of Rytlock
112 page Making of Guild Wars 2 book
Custom Art Frame
Art Portfolio and Five Art Prints
Best of Guild Wars 2 Soundtrack CD
Minimum System Requirements*
* Due to potential changes, system requirements may change over time, and you may be required to upgrade your current system (or obtain a new system) to continue to play the game.
Windows® XP Service Pack 2 or better · 2 GB RAM
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo 2.0 GHz, Core i3, AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 or better
NVIDIA® GeForce® 7800, ATI Radeon™ X1800, Intel HD 3000 or better (256MB of video RAM and shader model 3.0 or better)
25 GB available HDD space
Broadband Internet connection
Keyboard and mouse
All pre-purchase editions include these exclusive bonuses:
Access to all Guild Wars 2 Beta Weekend Events
Three days of headstart access
Hero’s Band (+2 to all stats)
DIGITAL EDITION $59.99
Guild Wars 2 game
DIGITAL DELUXE $79.99
Guild Wars 2 game
Summon Mistfire Wolf Elite Skill
Rytlock Miniature
Golem Banker
Chalice of Glory
Tome of Influence
COLLECTOR'S EDITION $149.99
Guild Wars 2 game
Summon Mistfire Wolf Elite Skill
Rytlock Miniature
Golem Banker
Chalice of Glory
Tome of Influence
10-inch figurine of Rytlock
112 page Making of Guild Wars 2 book
Custom Art Frame
Art Portfolio and Five Art Prints
Best of Guild Wars 2 Soundtrack CD
Minimum System Requirements*
* Due to potential changes, system requirements may change over time, and you may be required to upgrade your current system (or obtain a new system) to continue to play the game.
Windows® XP Service Pack 2 or better · 2 GB RAM
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo 2.0 GHz, Core i3, AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 or better
NVIDIA® GeForce® 7800, ATI Radeon™ X1800, Intel HD 3000 or better (256MB of video RAM and shader model 3.0 or better)
25 GB available HDD space
Broadband Internet connection
Keyboard and mouse
The Mars Volta - Noctourniquet (3/27/2012): A Review
Posted by defeat on March 12th, 2012, 8:14 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
Rating: 9/10
There are few bands I expect to blow me away with every release, and The Mars Volta is one of them. In any form of art there is an indefinite number of artists trying to take their chosen medium to the next level of originality. This is especially true in music, but most tend to get hung up on the concept of genres. It’s an easy thing to do, as genres are the best reference points art has to describe it. A genre is sometimes necessary for description, but at other times putting a label on a work of art can hinder the art itself. Trying to describe The Mars Volta’s music is hard enough, but putting one specific genre or label on it is simply impossible. One thing that they have stuck by, however, is the pop format. Granted, their songs aren’t the verse/chorus/verse all-in-under-four-minutes that Top 40 radio stations have come to embrace (it’s more like intro/verse/chorus/verse/bridge/chorus/outro, all-in-sometimes-10-minutes-or more), but they do have choruses that fans of intensely poetic, non-linear lyrics can try and sing along with. I say try, because, come on…Who can sing that hauntingly beautiful falsetto like Cedric Bixler-Zavala?
Throughout their career The Mars Volta have incorporated everything from jazz to Latin into their music, but their latest release, entitled Noctourniquet, comes closer to being a pop/rock album than any of the others. There. I said it. It’s a pop album. This shouldn’t have come as such a surprise to me, as the last release, 2009’s Octahedron, only had a single song over eight minutes (a huge departure from the band’s early days that spawned songs like the 35+ minute epic “Cassandra Gemini”). It was a surprise, though. Maybe it’s surprising because this is the first album they’ve released that I’ve heard parts in songs that could have come from other bands. “Aegis” has a feel reminiscent of Muse in the verses. “Zed and Two Naughts”’ drums instantly brought A Perfect Circle’s song "Weak and Powerless" to mind. Even the lead single has a guitar riff that could have come from any of the songs on Queens of the Stone Age’s album, Era Vulgaris, or any of Jack White’s past and present projects. I’m not saying that they were trying for any similarities, but when you make a pop album, it’s impossible to completely avoid them, even for The Mars Volta…
…And a The Mars Volta album it is! Even with these few similarities, the above mentioned songs are undoubtedly and uniquely straight from TMV’s songwriter and producer, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez. His guitar playing is as riff-tastic and sometimes nothing but effects per-usual. He’s always been an experimental little guy, and even with Noctourniquet’s pop sensibilities, he's still pushing the boundaries of music. Their usual use of keyboards has changed from jazzy piano and organ to synth (possibly due to the departure of keyboardist "Ikey" Owens), although their trademark sound manipulation can be heard throughout the album’s entirety. Fans of The Volta’s past efforts won’t be disappointed, especially with the songs “Dyslexicon”, “Molochwalker”, and “Trinkets Pale of Moon”, which range from in-your-face to soft and sweet, respectively. One thing some fans tend to complain about is the revolving door of drummers since Jon Theodore stopped playing with the band in 2006. I never jumped on that band wagon, and really enjoyed Thomas Pridgen’s drumming on the last two albums. However, the only complaint I have about Noctourniquet is just that, the drumming. New drummer, Deantoni Parks, just doesn’t do it for me. He seems to be trying way too hard to live up to the sonic pummeling that the previous albums have featured, and sometimes fails miserably (evident in “Lapochka”).
If you haven’t heard The Mars Volta before, disliked their previous efforts for being too artsy, or are one of the many who haven’t liked an album of theirs since the full length debut (2003’s De-Loused in the Comatorium), Noctourniquet is a great album to get acquainted with, as it’s their most accessible and listener friendly album to date. Fans of the entire discography beware…
It’s a pop album. There. I said it again...
Recommended if you enjoy: Radiohead, Muse, Queens of the Stone Age's Era Vulgaris and/or Jack White
The official lead single can be listened to here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yh0stkLanx4&ob=av3e
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning; A Review
Posted by Landerpurex on February 15th, 2012, 12:33 am. Category: Scribery Entry
Overall rating: 8/10.
I've done my homework on this game, both before and after buying it. Everyone seems to be looking at it completely the wrong way. Other reviewers and consumers are comparing this game to Skyrim, Mass Effect, and many other juggernaut RPGs. This is a mistake. Reviews range from a 9/10 from IGN to a 5/10 from Adam Sessler at G4TV.
Kingdoms of Amalur is similar to other RPGs in some respects, and in others it is radically different. If we analyze and enjoy this by itself, it's a great game. If we stand it next to Skyrim, it falters badly in some respects, and excels in others.
The things this game does well are apparent from the moment you start playing. Environments are very vibrant, and are sufficiently unique. They're somewhat linear, but also allow for quite a bit of exploration and free roam. There are enough hidden treasures, places, and quests to keep you busy for many hours. Often I would venture off the path in search of a treasure that showed up on my map thanks to my 'detect hidden' skill, and would instead spend a few hours saving a town from some kind of spider woman. This had nothing to do with the main quest or any of the 'factions'.
The story for this game is very good, and has RA Salvatore's flair. Sometimes, however, this is its undoing. Every little quest has five minutes of backstory or lore, when you might simply be trying to complete a quest for a quick buck or exp gain. I sometimes found myself skipping dialog for meaningless side quests. On the other side of this issue, the main storyline and faction quests are well-done. I especially loved the storyline of the House of Ballads, a group of elf-like people who endlessly reenact battles and adventures long past. In short, the overarching story isn't anything unconventional, but there are many originalities and nuances to be enjoyed. It's easy to see the care that went into the story, and that a good novelist was the one who oversaw it.
I can't write a review about this game without mentioning it's greatest strength: the battle system. It's fast-paced and more than simple button mashing. I like the emphasis on combos and certain attacks, such as those that 'pop up' your enemy, making them vulnerable for further hits. The amount of attacks is satisfying, but the key is exploring which ones work best together.
The game's skill system is pretty basic but fulfilling at the same time. There are plenty of skills and styles to be explored, without there being *too* much. The destiny system is great, you can unlock bonuses for your character as you dump points into any of the three skill trees. You can also unlock destinies for hybrid classes, even ones for supporting all three trees. This allows for a fantastic amount of customization with ample reward for whichever tree/s you choose to support.
That being said, this game's mechanics allow for one of the best roleplaying opportunities I've seen. The destiny system and hybrid classes make for an experience that really hasn't been amply explored in other titles. If you couple this with the strong story and hundreds of quests, then you have a very enjoyable recipe.
The game, of course; is not without faults. Some consumers have complained about the voice acting, but I actually enjoyed it. I found it more inspiring than some, and dialog seemed to fit the character saying it. I will be the first to admit that character models and facial expressions are lacking. Though the voice acting is good, it is not paired with good facial modeling. The characters are expressionless and half the time, their mouths don't even follow what they're saying.
Other cons involve slight dips in framerate, but nothing that was at all gamebreaking. I also often found the shops lacking, I finished the game with over 5 million gold. Granted, I was a money-making machine with max mercantile and detect hidden skills, but there was literally nowhere for me to spend my money after about 2/3 of the way through the game.
I spent about 50 hours on this game, and I was thoroughly satisfied with my experience. There seems to be dozens more hours of content, as I finished with over 50 side quests unfinished, and who knows how many more I left not taken. The replayability of the game is high as well, with trophies/achievements awarded for each playstyle. Though it would be just as easy to totally re-allot your skill points than to start over, but what's the fun in that?
The game is pretty standard fantasy fare on almost every front, while excelling in a few respects; namely the battle system and the major storylines. As other reviewers have pointed out, this game seems to borrow the best features of a lot of other titles and implement them in game to the point where they work together to near perfection. Loot, story, battling, skills, environment, and more. Overall, this game was a great experience and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a new, solid RPG to play from a new studio, but with some very hard-hitting names behind it.
The Woman in Black; A Movie Review
Posted by Landerpurex on February 6th, 2012, 1:05 am. Category: Scribery Entry
Rating: 7/10
This was a good movie, not a great one. It did its job, it scared me (badly) at times, and there were very great technical things happening with this movie. However, it was inconsistent and Radcliffe's acting was just awful.
This movie is pretty typical as far as horror stories go, it's set in early 1900s England. The main character Arthur Kipps (Radcliffe) plays a lawyer or paralegal, hard up for a break. He is sent by his firm to a sinister house near a small town, where the spirit of a woman terrorizes the town and the house. His son and their nanny are supposed to join him at the house after some time. Don't be fooled by the PG-13 rating, I learned with Insidious that underrated movies can be terrifying.
The opening scene of this movie was literally the most technically sound, and perhaps the best scene in the movie. While any opening scene should be great, it shouldn't be the best scene in the film. We're shown three young girls playing in an upstairs room, and nothing seems to be wrong. After a few moments, one of them drops their little teacup. It shatters. They then get up and advance towards the three windows, one of the trampling the teapot on the way. Here we have many good things in the cinematography and editing. Short takes. Shades of montage. Short jump cuts. This serves to confuse us, and it works very well. The three girls step up to the sill simultaneously, and jump out the windows. Then we're taken to Arthur's house, shocked by the previous scene and left with many questions.
The worst thing about this film, I felt, were its inconsistencies. It's easy to see that the aforementioned scene was meticulously cared for during production, whereas the rest of the film only shows glimmers of that care. As I said previously, Radcliffe's acting is terrible. He never shows any emotion, both when he realizes his wife has died in childbirth, nor at the end of the film when he is reunited with his son. This movie didn't call for him to strive for any awards, most of the time Arthur runs through the house chasing various noises. I was disappointed that when the script called for a little acting, he didn't deliver. And this took me away from the movie.
The movie delivers through jump-scares that we've come accustomed to with modern horror cinema. The cinematography is sound, with several first person shots that round corners, raising suspense. Of course, the scares don't come when we expect them. Moreover, there are several scenes in this film with these creepy, awkward, grimy toys that often act on their own. This was perhaps the most unsettling thing about the film. Picture a porcelain clown toy from that era, that contorts itself and ends with a close-up shot of his grinning face. Don't see this (or do) if you're afraid of clowns. *shudder*
Along those same lines, there is a scene where Arthur is (you guessed it) checking a noise he heard in the house. He's using a candle, and upon entering the room, there are closeups of the aforementioned toys, and the light of the candle is reflected in their eyes. It's moving with Arthur, and subsequently, moving in the eyes of the toys, making it seem as if they are following his movement. There are similar scenes to this, such as one where Arthur sees the reflection of the ghost in a mirror, but when he turns to check, she is gone. Subtle tricks like these make this movie a positive experience.
The house is a major star in the film, as it should be. It is sinister, old, foreboding, dusty, cobwebby, and simply everything a haunted house should be. There is a cemetery on the grounds that adds to the feeling. In addition to that, there is a lone wooden cross in the front yard where a little boy died when he sank into the swamp.
When we are first introduced to the house, Arthur goes downstairs, exploring. His job in the place is to make sure there are no more official papers in the home and to try and find the owner's last will and testament. When he enters the room, there is a newborn baby crow on the floor. He picks the baby up and puts it in the nest nearby. As soon as he does so, he is attacked by mama bird. I enjoyed this scene, it seemed an homage to the horror of yore, movies like The Omen and Hitchcock's The Birds, where birds figure heavily in the horror.
Additionally, this scene bears a stark parallel with the final moments of the movie. Clever foreshadowing, or heavy-handed symbolism? Go see the movie and find out!
In short, I really enjoyed this movie, both at the surface level of modern horror and as an amateur film student. Its inconsistencies are many, but the great scenes it offers do redeem it. It is scary in the same way that other modern horror films are, and is easily enjoyable by anyone that loves the horror genre. I recommend this film.
The Devil Inside: A Movie Review
Posted by Landerpurex on January 25th, 2012, 3:43 am. Category: Scribery Entry
Before we get started, let me state that there will be plot points discussed in the following text, but I will do my best to keep crucial points a secret. Let me also state that I am not a professional critic, but have more critical film expertise than most people; having taken several film courses in college.
Rating: 3/10
The premise that a woman named Maria Rossi kills three people in 1989. Her daughter, Isabella, goes to the hospital in Italy where her mother has since been committed. Isabelle then attends a class full of priests about exorcism. She befriends two of them, and sets out to find what has actually happened to her mother and document it on camera.
Let me first say that this movie was completely horrible. Awful. Terrible. The plotline was as jagged as a piece of broken glass, and not nearly as sharp. I don't even know where to begin with this one. The movie opens with a short black-screened scene that lets us listen in on the 911 call after Maria has killed three priests. This is, without a doubt, one of the scariest scenes in the movie, which isn't saying much. Then we are treated to some convoluted storyline and some basic 'travel' footage of Isabella and her cameraman in Italy. There's nothing of significance in the first portion of the film.
After a bit, we see Isabella visit her mother in the hospital. I was intrigued by the fact that the staff seemed to trust the woman, even though she had a violent past. I was surprised that her daughter was even allowed to see her. This was one of the numerous gaping plotholes in the movie, but I was willing to forgive if it could deliver in the scary department.
Maria Rossi's character is sufficiently creepy, especially on the first meeting. She's clearly insane, and looks the part. Her hair is frazzled, she looks completely gaunt and malnourished, and she has been cutting crosses into herself, into painful areas like the inside of her lip. She asks her daughter if she knows how to "connect the cuts..." which was creepy. But it wasn't nearly enough. Maria screams a scream that is certainly not human, and Isabella leaves the hospital.
Between 'exorcisms' we're treated to mundane storyline, and the ever present battle between the two priests. One wants to exorcise Maria and others like her to help them, the other is afraid of losing his priesthood as the two are doing these exorcisms without the church's consent. While the idea is nice, and shows another side to the politics of the catholic church, it is the same conflict between characters we've seen in thousands of other movies. It fails to deliver, and the bad acting doesn't help.
The film's only redeeming scene comes when the priests decide that Isabella should accompany them on a separate exorcism to learn more about the practice. In this scene, the victim does numerous disturbing things, such as popping her shoulder out of place and generally contorting her body. It's nothing more than what we've come to expect from this genre, but it is effective still.
After this, the film loses all its merit. The group returns to the hospital to exorcise Maria, only to have her multiple demons jump into one of the priests, the cameraman, and Isabella. There are generic scenes such as one when the lights go out with the possessed priest upstairs.
Lastly, I must comment on the ending of this movie. I warn you, I am about to spoil it. But then, a movie as poorly made as this doesn't deserve the decency of secrecy.
In the final moments of the film, with the possessed priest dead, the cameraman is rushing Isabella to an exorcism expert in Rome. He becomes 'possessed', takes off his seatbelt, and veers into oncoming traffic, causing a wreck and the presumed death of the people in the car. The movie then ends. Abruptly. We are told the case is unresolved, and that we can visit http://www.therossifiles.com/ to find out more. Is this a clever blending of modern technology to enhance your moviegoing experience, or is this cheap, pathetic advertisement? A good film shouldn't need some website to further explain itself, and the site doesn't even do that from what I could gather.
The way endings like this work in a positive way is if we have been on a satisfying journey throughout the movie. In this one, we have not. We don't care about the characters. We can barely process what's going on as we see multiple exorcisms and the demons jump into the characters. There are no technically sound aspects to speak of, this movie is low-budget and it shows. It takes from a really great genre, the 'documentary', 'found-film' horror. Such titles like the Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity work because they utilize the cheap camerawork to make it look real. There are clear plot arcs. There are foundations in classic horror, and there are innovations as well that make up for unknown (but not always bad) actors. The Devil Inside has none of these, as I've mentioned.
The Exorcism horror sub genre never stood a chance. In it's premier, the original Exorcist movie got it right the first goddamn time. And no good exorcism movies have been made since, only cheap, floundering copies cashing in on the same idea.
There were some decent things about this film, but not enough to make it any good and certainly not enough to redeem the ridiculous ending. It was as if the movie itself were saying "Ha-ha for watching this garbage, now go yourself" and the ending was the exclamation point on that statement. Don't waste your money on this movie, hopefully it'll soon be out of theaters and we can move on.
Rating: 3/10
The premise that a woman named Maria Rossi kills three people in 1989. Her daughter, Isabella, goes to the hospital in Italy where her mother has since been committed. Isabelle then attends a class full of priests about exorcism. She befriends two of them, and sets out to find what has actually happened to her mother and document it on camera.
Let me first say that this movie was completely horrible. Awful. Terrible. The plotline was as jagged as a piece of broken glass, and not nearly as sharp. I don't even know where to begin with this one. The movie opens with a short black-screened scene that lets us listen in on the 911 call after Maria has killed three priests. This is, without a doubt, one of the scariest scenes in the movie, which isn't saying much. Then we are treated to some convoluted storyline and some basic 'travel' footage of Isabella and her cameraman in Italy. There's nothing of significance in the first portion of the film.
After a bit, we see Isabella visit her mother in the hospital. I was intrigued by the fact that the staff seemed to trust the woman, even though she had a violent past. I was surprised that her daughter was even allowed to see her. This was one of the numerous gaping plotholes in the movie, but I was willing to forgive if it could deliver in the scary department.
Maria Rossi's character is sufficiently creepy, especially on the first meeting. She's clearly insane, and looks the part. Her hair is frazzled, she looks completely gaunt and malnourished, and she has been cutting crosses into herself, into painful areas like the inside of her lip. She asks her daughter if she knows how to "connect the cuts..." which was creepy. But it wasn't nearly enough. Maria screams a scream that is certainly not human, and Isabella leaves the hospital.
Between 'exorcisms' we're treated to mundane storyline, and the ever present battle between the two priests. One wants to exorcise Maria and others like her to help them, the other is afraid of losing his priesthood as the two are doing these exorcisms without the church's consent. While the idea is nice, and shows another side to the politics of the catholic church, it is the same conflict between characters we've seen in thousands of other movies. It fails to deliver, and the bad acting doesn't help.
The film's only redeeming scene comes when the priests decide that Isabella should accompany them on a separate exorcism to learn more about the practice. In this scene, the victim does numerous disturbing things, such as popping her shoulder out of place and generally contorting her body. It's nothing more than what we've come to expect from this genre, but it is effective still.
After this, the film loses all its merit. The group returns to the hospital to exorcise Maria, only to have her multiple demons jump into one of the priests, the cameraman, and Isabella. There are generic scenes such as one when the lights go out with the possessed priest upstairs.
Lastly, I must comment on the ending of this movie. I warn you, I am about to spoil it. But then, a movie as poorly made as this doesn't deserve the decency of secrecy.
In the final moments of the film, with the possessed priest dead, the cameraman is rushing Isabella to an exorcism expert in Rome. He becomes 'possessed', takes off his seatbelt, and veers into oncoming traffic, causing a wreck and the presumed death of the people in the car. The movie then ends. Abruptly. We are told the case is unresolved, and that we can visit http://www.therossifiles.com/ to find out more. Is this a clever blending of modern technology to enhance your moviegoing experience, or is this cheap, pathetic advertisement? A good film shouldn't need some website to further explain itself, and the site doesn't even do that from what I could gather.
The way endings like this work in a positive way is if we have been on a satisfying journey throughout the movie. In this one, we have not. We don't care about the characters. We can barely process what's going on as we see multiple exorcisms and the demons jump into the characters. There are no technically sound aspects to speak of, this movie is low-budget and it shows. It takes from a really great genre, the 'documentary', 'found-film' horror. Such titles like the Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity work because they utilize the cheap camerawork to make it look real. There are clear plot arcs. There are foundations in classic horror, and there are innovations as well that make up for unknown (but not always bad) actors. The Devil Inside has none of these, as I've mentioned.
The Exorcism horror sub genre never stood a chance. In it's premier, the original Exorcist movie got it right the first goddamn time. And no good exorcism movies have been made since, only cheap, floundering copies cashing in on the same idea.
There were some decent things about this film, but not enough to make it any good and certainly not enough to redeem the ridiculous ending. It was as if the movie itself were saying "Ha-ha for watching this garbage, now go
yourself" and the ending was the exclamation point on that statement. Don't waste your money on this movie, hopefully it'll soon be out of theaters and we can move on.
Lamb Of God - Resolution (01/24/12): A Review
Posted by defeat on January 23rd, 2012, 5:49 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
Rating: 7/10
I almost didn’t review this album after listening to the first half of it. I was thinking, “Oh….It’s (2009's) Wrath…again, and I’ll have nothing to say…” After giving it another chance, the second half of the album was indeed Lamb Of God’s saving grace.
Every member of Lamb Of God have seemingly evolved over the years, except for the second most talented member, drummer, Chris Adler. Don’t get it wrong. He’s a favorite drummer of many, as he’s a consistent, speed drumming machine with great fills and feet faster than light. Come with the dynamics already, though, Chris! Maybe, it’s the production that’s held you back with your sound. Maybe, it’s the way you tune your drums (Let them resonate a bit next time, eh? Every, single, solitary drum shouldn’t have the short thump of a bass drum…). Maybe, you just don’t care. Some don’t. Oh, well...so it goes. (I've been reading a lot of Vonnegut as of late.)
Resolution, contradictorily to the drumming, is LOG’s most dynamic release yet. Some thought the band had been lost to “The Graveyard of Previously Great Bands” with the bore that was their previous release, Wrath. It just seemed like a filler album without any originality. Resolution is an adventurous turn of events in LOG’s discography. Guitarists’ Mark Morton and Willie Adler have given us a new take on The New Wave of American Heavy Metal with some softer, more progressive, off-time riffs in the songs “Barbarosa”, “King Me”, and lead single “Ghost Walking”. In most metal, the bass guitar is just a copy of the lead riff, just lower. In this release, though, bassist John Campbell is pleasantly noticeable in parts throughout Resolution’s entirety.
It would be fantastic to have Machine back at the production helm instead of Josh Wilbur, as some minor kinks in the production are what took away some audio enjoyment points. The drums have been mentioned as a major issue. Other kinks were really just post-production snafus. “Barbarosa” and “Invictus” is clearly one song. With fourteen tracks, it’s not like LOG were scraping the barrel for material. Some of the songs on the second half of the album should have been mingled with the first half to break up the turn off of early monotony. This takes away from the listening experience the most. God, is that second half great, though…
In other news, vocalist, Randy Blythe is still alive.
Lead single: "Ghost Walking" Official Video
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows; a review
Posted by Landerpurex on January 7th, 2012, 7:28 am. Category: Scribery Entry
Before we get started, let me state that there will be plot points discussed in the following text, but I will do my best to keep crucial points a secret. Let me also state that I am not a professional critic, but have more critical film expertise than most people; having taken several film courses in college.
Rating: 8/10
Everyone knows the story of Sherlock Holmes, renowned detective. This movie is no different, with Holmes needing to solve a difficult case involving a sinister man named Professor Moriarty. The movie is deliciously mysterious, with Moriarty's motives in question until the final moments. Holmes of course enlists in the help of Dr. Watson, who is newly married; and the two go on an adventure that spans the European Continent to uncover Moriarty's plans and to try to save his intended victims that include Dr. Watson, his wife, a gypsy, and eventually all of Europe.
This movie was fantastic. Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, and Jared Harris can do no wrong. The acting is superb, though sometimes over the top. I have, however, come to expect this of Downey Jr in general as well as within this franchise, so it works. He and Law make a fantastic pair, and the charisma and camaraderie come across well. Jared Harris makes a great villain as well, it's that simple.
The film lives up to its predecessor. It leaves a trail of clues that you are expected to notice, but not expected to piece together as Holmes does in the end. Certain important items are centered in the shot from Holmes' point of view, labeling them as imperative. The cinematography is sound, using multiple angles and distances when necessary. Sound is coupled with this approach as well. For example, there is one scene where one of Moriarty's lackeys is shown smoking a hand rolled cigarette. The cherry burns extra bright, and the sound of it burning can be heard over the other things going on in the frame. I wondered to myself, 'how is this important?' And I had a great time racking my brain trying to figure it out. I felt accomplished when it was revealed that the cigarette was important to the plot. This movie's greatest quality is that it makes you think and guess along with Holmes.
The film's comedy is fantastic, though sometimes ridiculous, as with the killing and revival of the poor bulldog (again). Though, once again, Downey Jr has made Holmes his own and put a modern spin on the man. That is not to say that the movie doesn't take certain liberties with the classics, because it does. Which is one of the reasons it remains an 8 out of 10 instead of a 9 or perfect score.
The great fighting scenes narrated strategically by Holmes return, though they go awry by variants not considered by Holmes. In the final scenes, Moriarty himself interjects in Holmes monologue and engages in a match of wits with the detective that is both exciting and original.
Speaking of which, editing must be mentioned. The film uses jump-cuts when necessary, and very effectively as well. Just before the scene mentioned prior, parallelism is used to near perfection as Holmes and Moriarty are having a game of chess. The movie cuts between chess moves and the exploits of Watson and the gypsy as they attempt to reveal an assassin and ultimately, Moriarty's plot.
My biggest problem with this movie was the extreme slow-motion. It was only in one scene, but that makes it stand out and it went on for far too long. Ever since 300, movies have been abusing slow motion. It was over the top in that title as well, but at least it was consistent. In an otherwise great, sound, smart movie I felt this was the only thing that seemed uninspired and frankly, too stereotypical Hollywood.
In closing, this move was very enjoyable. It was a bit on the long side, but I was sad it was over. In some ways, it is very typical action, in others, it is original, fun, and smart in a lot of ways modern movies are not. It is technically sound, but not ambitious. The cast delivers and I hope they continue to do so. The plot keeps you guessing right until the final moments, and there are many twists and turns to be had.
Go and see this movie while it's still in theaters.
Rating: 8/10
Everyone knows the story of Sherlock Holmes, renowned detective. This movie is no different, with Holmes needing to solve a difficult case involving a sinister man named Professor Moriarty. The movie is deliciously mysterious, with Moriarty's motives in question until the final moments. Holmes of course enlists in the help of Dr. Watson, who is newly married; and the two go on an adventure that spans the European Continent to uncover Moriarty's plans and to try to save his intended victims that include Dr. Watson, his wife, a gypsy, and eventually all of Europe.
This movie was fantastic. Robert Downey Jr, Jude Law, and Jared Harris can do no wrong. The acting is superb, though sometimes over the top. I have, however, come to expect this of Downey Jr in general as well as within this franchise, so it works. He and Law make a fantastic pair, and the charisma and camaraderie come across well. Jared Harris makes a great villain as well, it's that simple.
The film lives up to its predecessor. It leaves a trail of clues that you are expected to notice, but not expected to piece together as Holmes does in the end. Certain important items are centered in the shot from Holmes' point of view, labeling them as imperative. The cinematography is sound, using multiple angles and distances when necessary. Sound is coupled with this approach as well. For example, there is one scene where one of Moriarty's lackeys is shown smoking a hand rolled cigarette. The cherry burns extra bright, and the sound of it burning can be heard over the other things going on in the frame. I wondered to myself, 'how is this important?' And I had a great time racking my brain trying to figure it out. I felt accomplished when it was revealed that the cigarette was important to the plot. This movie's greatest quality is that it makes you think and guess along with Holmes.
The film's comedy is fantastic, though sometimes ridiculous, as with the killing and revival of the poor bulldog (again). Though, once again, Downey Jr has made Holmes his own and put a modern spin on the man. That is not to say that the movie doesn't take certain liberties with the classics, because it does. Which is one of the reasons it remains an 8 out of 10 instead of a 9 or perfect score.
The great fighting scenes narrated strategically by Holmes return, though they go awry by variants not considered by Holmes. In the final scenes, Moriarty himself interjects in Holmes monologue and engages in a match of wits with the detective that is both exciting and original.
Speaking of which, editing must be mentioned. The film uses jump-cuts when necessary, and very effectively as well. Just before the scene mentioned prior, parallelism is used to near perfection as Holmes and Moriarty are having a game of chess. The movie cuts between chess moves and the exploits of Watson and the gypsy as they attempt to reveal an assassin and ultimately, Moriarty's plot.
My biggest problem with this movie was the extreme slow-motion. It was only in one scene, but that makes it stand out and it went on for far too long. Ever since 300, movies have been abusing slow motion. It was over the top in that title as well, but at least it was consistent. In an otherwise great, sound, smart movie I felt this was the only thing that seemed uninspired and frankly, too stereotypical Hollywood.
In closing, this move was very enjoyable. It was a bit on the long side, but I was sad it was over. In some ways, it is very typical action, in others, it is original, fun, and smart in a lot of ways modern movies are not. It is technically sound, but not ambitious. The cast delivers and I hope they continue to do so. The plot keeps you guessing right until the final moments, and there are many twists and turns to be had.
Go and see this movie while it's still in theaters.
The Darkest Hour: A Movie Review
Posted by Landerpurex on January 7th, 2012, 6:49 am. Category: Scribery Entry
Before we get started, let me state that there will be plot points discussed in the following text, but I will do my best to keep crucial points a secret. Let me also state that I am not a professional critic, but have more critical film expertise than most people; having taken several film courses in college.
Overall rating: 5/10
This movie was nothing that the previews didn't show. In short, it's about a pair of software designers either fresh out of college or in the twilight of their college careers. They are in Moscow to pitch an idea for a user-based online comprehensive travel guide to some executives. They meet with a Swedish exec who has basically stolen their idea and screwed them out of a major (multi-million dollar?) deal. After this, the guys go to a club and meet a couple girls vacationing as well, and know of one of them due to her use of their program. Then come the invisible aliens. The creatures are made of electromagnetic energy and are somehow able to vaporize people. But their weakness is that they give themselves away and set off any and all lights and electronics when they approach. The rest of the movie is spent showing the characters trying to escape these creatures and get 'home', though they soon find similar landings and destruction have happened all across the world. Near the end, the group find out that there is a nuclear submarine waiting to help transport survivors back to their homes and/or to a safer facility.
First, it takes some time for the creatures to land. This is notwithstanding the fact the the premise of the guys' reason to be in Moscow is convoluted, not paramount to the plot, and completely forgettable. Though there were a few comic moments, there was nothing to be had in the first quarter of the film. Once the creatures land, I was intrigued. This movie's lone strength is the originality of the aliens and the plausibility of their form and powers. But the scripting failed to deliver more on the subject, with only a few lines from a Russian militant describing the nature of the aliens in no terms understandable by most people; myself included.
Speaking of the Russian militants, their characters are amusing, but completely stereotypical and over the top. They spout catch phrases like 'welcome to Russia' when fighting the creatures, they speak stereotypical nationalist dialog such as stuff about protecting their home, as well as typical, completely uninspired dialog about war and tactics. Couple this with forgettable characters all around and it makes for an equally forgettable experience.
The technical side of the movie was unimpressive as well. Nothing incredible in terms of cinematography, sound, or anything else.
The star of this film is the city of Moscow. It's exotic, beautiful, and foreboding. The architecture is fantastic, and there are some shots that are worth looking at.
In short, this was a movie that offered very little in terms of excitement, technical inventiveness, writing, and basically everything else that makes a film good. It had a tiny bit of originality with the creatures but this was not appropriately handled by anyone. The city was fantastic, but left one wanting. I did not see this movie in 3D, but I'm positive it would have been a debacle.
This movie was far from the worst I've seen, but falls very short. If you've seen the preview, you've seen everything cool there is about the movie.
Overall rating: 5/10
This movie was nothing that the previews didn't show. In short, it's about a pair of software designers either fresh out of college or in the twilight of their college careers. They are in Moscow to pitch an idea for a user-based online comprehensive travel guide to some executives. They meet with a Swedish exec who has basically stolen their idea and screwed them out of a major (multi-million dollar?) deal. After this, the guys go to a club and meet a couple girls vacationing as well, and know of one of them due to her use of their program. Then come the invisible aliens. The creatures are made of electromagnetic energy and are somehow able to vaporize people. But their weakness is that they give themselves away and set off any and all lights and electronics when they approach. The rest of the movie is spent showing the characters trying to escape these creatures and get 'home', though they soon find similar landings and destruction have happened all across the world. Near the end, the group find out that there is a nuclear submarine waiting to help transport survivors back to their homes and/or to a safer facility.
First, it takes some time for the creatures to land. This is notwithstanding the fact the the premise of the guys' reason to be in Moscow is convoluted, not paramount to the plot, and completely forgettable. Though there were a few comic moments, there was nothing to be had in the first quarter of the film. Once the creatures land, I was intrigued. This movie's lone strength is the originality of the aliens and the plausibility of their form and powers. But the scripting failed to deliver more on the subject, with only a few lines from a Russian militant describing the nature of the aliens in no terms understandable by most people; myself included.
Speaking of the Russian militants, their characters are amusing, but completely stereotypical and over the top. They spout catch phrases like 'welcome to Russia' when fighting the creatures, they speak stereotypical nationalist dialog such as stuff about protecting their home, as well as typical, completely uninspired dialog about war and tactics. Couple this with forgettable characters all around and it makes for an equally forgettable experience.
The technical side of the movie was unimpressive as well. Nothing incredible in terms of cinematography, sound, or anything else.
The star of this film is the city of Moscow. It's exotic, beautiful, and foreboding. The architecture is fantastic, and there are some shots that are worth looking at.
In short, this was a movie that offered very little in terms of excitement, technical inventiveness, writing, and basically everything else that makes a film good. It had a tiny bit of originality with the creatures but this was not appropriately handled by anyone. The city was fantastic, but left one wanting. I did not see this movie in 3D, but I'm positive it would have been a debacle.
This movie was far from the worst I've seen, but falls very short. If you've seen the preview, you've seen everything cool there is about the movie.
1-6-2012 Modern Warfare 3
Posted by Tanksandguns on January 6th, 2012, 4:43 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
As a man who has played every Call of Duty game since Call of Duty 3, and sporadically before that since Big Red 1 I like to consider myself one of Call of Duty's biggest fans. Call of Duty has taken it's place as THE First Person Shooter. It's the franchise that comes to mind first when one talks about FPS games, and until recently, has had little to no competition in the field.
Rating: 9/10
Campaign
Modern Warfare 3 builds itself off of the same story line that we saw in CoD4 and MW2. It follows multiple story lines as you play several different characters across each and also brings back the memorable duo of Captain Price and Soap MacTavish. Modern Warfare 3 starts right where Modern Warfare 2 left off. The world is in chaos, and Makarov is still at large. The game has the player visit several cities completely ransacked with war and destruction, including New York City and Paris, France.
The overall flow of the campaign is excellent. The transitions between missions and the pacing is wonderful. And the whole games had sitting on the edge of my seat, with a subtle anxious feeling the whole time. I was constantly wondering what would happen next, and where I was traveling to.
The game is also very challenging. Having completed the first two games on Veteran difficulty, this was my first choice on my first play through of the game. I quickly learned, that this game doesn't beat around the bush, and I couldn't even make it past the first checkpoint. I quickly dropped the difficulty to Hardened, and again to Normal. Even while playing Normal, I found myself dieing fairly frequently, and I loved it. I enjoy a real challenge while playing video games, and to get one in a FPS is no easy task. I also didn't find myself in the slow buildup of anger mode that usually comes with the frustrating deaths of FPS Campaigns. At one point, mid-combat, the game cycles between one the ground fighting, and in the sky fighting in an AC-130 gunship. This is one of the best moments that I can remember throughout all the games, second only to 'Ghillie in the Mist' from Call of Duty 4. The developers did a stunning job of transitioning immediately after an explosion from the AC-130 missile, to the ground troops in the smoke and debris of where the shell had just impacted.
The game itself is really beautiful (or as beautiful as a war-torn city can be). I played the entire campaign on a non-HD TV, and still found myself staring in amazement at the graphics. When I moved over to an HD TV for multiplayer, I found that they were spectacular.
The storyline does an excellent job of wrapping up the first two games. I had few questions left after I had finished, and even teared up at one point during the story. If you played the first two, I can assure you that you will not be disappointed in the final game.
Multiplayer
The multiplayer has been reworked again from Modern Warfare 2. They have new Kill Streaks, and introduced things called 'Strike Packages.' Strike Packages affect what kill streaks you are awarded, and how they are awarded. They offer three types you can choose from: Assault, Support, and Specialist. Assault focuses on killing enemies to gain enemy killing kill streak rewards. It includes, AC-130, Predator Missiles, and Attack Helicopters. Support focuses on objectives such as capturing a flag, planting a bomb, capturing a Domination point, etc. It doesn't require kills to advance through the rewards, but kills also help. Also, Support doesn't reset on death, so you can keep on dying and unlocking rewards. This was my personal favorite. This can give you UAV, Care Packages, Stealth Bomber, etc. The final Strike Package you can use is Specialist. Instead of giving you kill streak rewards, it unlocks perks every 2 kills the player makes. By 8 kills, the player then has all the perks in the game. These have really reworked how the multiplayer feels, and it feels a lot more balanced than the second game ever did.
My main problems with Modern Warfare 2, were that there were kill streaks in the air almost constantly, and there was little anyone could do about it. That feeling has really subsided with Modern Warfare 3. There doesn't seem to be helicopters, AC-130's, and Predator Missiles clogging up the sky nearly as much as it did in the second game, and there's more that can be done about it. More launchers, Sam Sites, and fewer overpowered kill streaks make for the multiplayer experience to be a lot more enjoyable.
Another complaint that I had with MW2, was the the Sniper Rifles seemed extremely underpowered. It took 2, sometimes 3 shots to kill someone in a Core match. In MW3, this has been fixed. One shot to the torso is more often than not, a kill shot. I find this to be my favorite change that was made. I'm finally not getting angry that my high velocity round isn't killing someone when it should.
With CoD: Black Ops came the addition that CoD had been missing for all of its games that Halo and the likes had picked up on. Split Screen multiplayer available online, either through multiple Xbox Live accounts or the use of Guest Accounts. Modern Warfare 3, thankfully, did not change this. You can now play with a buddy on the same TV, online.
Usually with First Person Shooters, I find myself hating a majority of the maps. For whatever reason, Modern Warfare 3 seems different. I only really dislike one or two maps. All the others I seem to have a blast on! They're all beautiful, fun and fairly small. The only complaint I have, is there's really no open area map that is good for Snipers.
All in all, I was extremely happy with the subtle tweaks they made to the multiplayer experience. Prestige Mode now goes to level 80 (ten times), and they added Prestige tokens which can unlock little bonuses such as Double XP, Double Weapon XP, and Emblems and Titles, among other things. Each player starts out with 3, and since I haven't prestiged yet, I'm unsure whether you get 1 ever prestige level or more than that.
Spec Ops
Modern Warfare 3 sees the return of the Spec Ops mode. This can be done either solo or with a friend. I tried doing several of these solo, and found that once I had a friend help me out, they became significantly easier.
Spec Ops mode is a series of missions and objectives, some from the campaign, some completely fresh that test your speed and accuracy. Also, they can be a major challenge. From capturing the Russian President aboard his airplane, to killing waves upon waves in a Firefight type game mode, Spec Ops is nothing short of fun. Infinity Ward added a new style that resembles Horde from Gears of War and Firefight from Halo, where you face wave after wave of enemies including foot soldiers, dogs, helicopters and the infamous Juggernaut soldiers. For those looking for something after the campaign and after you get bored with multiplayer, I would recommend Spec Ops with a friend. It's an absolute blast!
Conclusion
All in all, I would say that Modern Warfare 3 was definitely worth the money I spent on it. It provided me with hours of entertainment, and will continue to do so for months to come. It fixed a lot of the issues I had with the previous game, and added some awesome touches as well. It did not disappoint me, and so far has lead to a lot less frustration with the game than Modern Warfare 2 did. I would recommend this game to any First Person Shooter fan, any fan of the Call of Duty franchise, and anyone looking for one of the best multiplayer experiences in gaming. I won't beat around the bush though, some of the fan-boys and the some of the casual players of MW3 can ruin your multiplayer experience, but that's why there's a mute feature.
~Tanksandguns
Rating: 9/10
Campaign
Modern Warfare 3 builds itself off of the same story line that we saw in CoD4 and MW2. It follows multiple story lines as you play several different characters across each and also brings back the memorable duo of Captain Price and Soap MacTavish. Modern Warfare 3 starts right where Modern Warfare 2 left off. The world is in chaos, and Makarov is still at large. The game has the player visit several cities completely ransacked with war and destruction, including New York City and Paris, France.
The overall flow of the campaign is excellent. The transitions between missions and the pacing is wonderful. And the whole games had sitting on the edge of my seat, with a subtle anxious feeling the whole time. I was constantly wondering what would happen next, and where I was traveling to.
The game is also very challenging. Having completed the first two games on Veteran difficulty, this was my first choice on my first play through of the game. I quickly learned, that this game doesn't beat around the bush, and I couldn't even make it past the first checkpoint. I quickly dropped the difficulty to Hardened, and again to Normal. Even while playing Normal, I found myself dieing fairly frequently, and I loved it. I enjoy a real challenge while playing video games, and to get one in a FPS is no easy task. I also didn't find myself in the slow buildup of anger mode that usually comes with the frustrating deaths of FPS Campaigns. At one point, mid-combat, the game cycles between one the ground fighting, and in the sky fighting in an AC-130 gunship. This is one of the best moments that I can remember throughout all the games, second only to 'Ghillie in the Mist' from Call of Duty 4. The developers did a stunning job of transitioning immediately after an explosion from the AC-130 missile, to the ground troops in the smoke and debris of where the shell had just impacted.
The game itself is really beautiful (or as beautiful as a war-torn city can be). I played the entire campaign on a non-HD TV, and still found myself staring in amazement at the graphics. When I moved over to an HD TV for multiplayer, I found that they were spectacular.
The storyline does an excellent job of wrapping up the first two games. I had few questions left after I had finished, and even teared up at one point during the story. If you played the first two, I can assure you that you will not be disappointed in the final game.
Multiplayer
The multiplayer has been reworked again from Modern Warfare 2. They have new Kill Streaks, and introduced things called 'Strike Packages.' Strike Packages affect what kill streaks you are awarded, and how they are awarded. They offer three types you can choose from: Assault, Support, and Specialist. Assault focuses on killing enemies to gain enemy killing kill streak rewards. It includes, AC-130, Predator Missiles, and Attack Helicopters. Support focuses on objectives such as capturing a flag, planting a bomb, capturing a Domination point, etc. It doesn't require kills to advance through the rewards, but kills also help. Also, Support doesn't reset on death, so you can keep on dying and unlocking rewards. This was my personal favorite. This can give you UAV, Care Packages, Stealth Bomber, etc. The final Strike Package you can use is Specialist. Instead of giving you kill streak rewards, it unlocks perks every 2 kills the player makes. By 8 kills, the player then has all the perks in the game. These have really reworked how the multiplayer feels, and it feels a lot more balanced than the second game ever did.
My main problems with Modern Warfare 2, were that there were kill streaks in the air almost constantly, and there was little anyone could do about it. That feeling has really subsided with Modern Warfare 3. There doesn't seem to be helicopters, AC-130's, and Predator Missiles clogging up the sky nearly as much as it did in the second game, and there's more that can be done about it. More launchers, Sam Sites, and fewer overpowered kill streaks make for the multiplayer experience to be a lot more enjoyable.
Another complaint that I had with MW2, was the the Sniper Rifles seemed extremely underpowered. It took 2, sometimes 3 shots to kill someone in a Core match. In MW3, this has been fixed. One shot to the torso is more often than not, a kill shot. I find this to be my favorite change that was made. I'm finally not getting angry that my high velocity round isn't killing someone when it should.
With CoD: Black Ops came the addition that CoD had been missing for all of its games that Halo and the likes had picked up on. Split Screen multiplayer available online, either through multiple Xbox Live accounts or the use of Guest Accounts. Modern Warfare 3, thankfully, did not change this. You can now play with a buddy on the same TV, online.
Usually with First Person Shooters, I find myself hating a majority of the maps. For whatever reason, Modern Warfare 3 seems different. I only really dislike one or two maps. All the others I seem to have a blast on! They're all beautiful, fun and fairly small. The only complaint I have, is there's really no open area map that is good for Snipers.
All in all, I was extremely happy with the subtle tweaks they made to the multiplayer experience. Prestige Mode now goes to level 80 (ten times), and they added Prestige tokens which can unlock little bonuses such as Double XP, Double Weapon XP, and Emblems and Titles, among other things. Each player starts out with 3, and since I haven't prestiged yet, I'm unsure whether you get 1 ever prestige level or more than that.
Spec Ops
Modern Warfare 3 sees the return of the Spec Ops mode. This can be done either solo or with a friend. I tried doing several of these solo, and found that once I had a friend help me out, they became significantly easier.
Spec Ops mode is a series of missions and objectives, some from the campaign, some completely fresh that test your speed and accuracy. Also, they can be a major challenge. From capturing the Russian President aboard his airplane, to killing waves upon waves in a Firefight type game mode, Spec Ops is nothing short of fun. Infinity Ward added a new style that resembles Horde from Gears of War and Firefight from Halo, where you face wave after wave of enemies including foot soldiers, dogs, helicopters and the infamous Juggernaut soldiers. For those looking for something after the campaign and after you get bored with multiplayer, I would recommend Spec Ops with a friend. It's an absolute blast!
Conclusion
All in all, I would say that Modern Warfare 3 was definitely worth the money I spent on it. It provided me with hours of entertainment, and will continue to do so for months to come. It fixed a lot of the issues I had with the previous game, and added some awesome touches as well. It did not disappoint me, and so far has lead to a lot less frustration with the game than Modern Warfare 2 did. I would recommend this game to any First Person Shooter fan, any fan of the Call of Duty franchise, and anyone looking for one of the best multiplayer experiences in gaming. I won't beat around the bush though, some of the fan-boys and the some of the casual players of MW3 can ruin your multiplayer experience, but that's why there's a mute feature.
~Tanksandguns
Skrillex-Bangarang (12/23/11): A Review
Posted by defeat on December 23rd, 2011, 7:11 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
Rating 5/10
Listen. I’ll start off by saying I’m as on the fence with the newest Skrillex release, entitled Bangarang, as I have been with all the others. The guy is an exciting producer, and the voice samples/hooks he’s used are unforgettable. However, as with his other releases, the mid-register robotesque bass lines, four to the floor beats, and general feel are the same as they ever were and absolutely forgettable. You’ve got the electronic industry by the balls, Skrillex, and the time to fix your broken record is nigh.
When Skrillex became an instant success, and his songs could be heard everywhere, I was impressed with the mash up of genre’s with him and Korn in the Korn single “Get Up“, and really enjoyed "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites" and “Kill Everybody” off of Skrillex’s EP with the same name Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites. It seemed like a fresh, American take on the dubstep scene. That fresh take quickly turned into endless copycats and the post dubstep sub-genre dubbed “brostep”. As the forerunner of this new trend, Skrillex didn’t impress me with his first release, mildly did with his second release, and fails to with his newest.
There are definitely moments of production clarity on Bangarang in the title track (a song referencing the movie Hook?! Awesome!) and the non-bass line heavy house song “Right On Time“, but he even uses a broke up, syncopated, unintelligible, Asian sounding voice on the track “Summit” juuuust like he did on the track “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites”. In a nutshell, Bangarang should be entitled Sonic the Househog On Crack. It’s got a Sonic the Hedgehog music + house + brostep sound on most of the songs on the seven song EP. If you are already a die-hard Skrillex fan (and I know you are out there as I just read the comment “Skrillex is life.“ from a fan on Skrillex’s Facebook page), you are going to absolutely love this album. If you haven’t ever heard Skrillex, and are into dubstep, you are probably going to like this album. The rest of us will either like it, dislike it, or think it’s OK (Mitch Hedberg anyone?). It does have bass drops and a couple buildups/breakdowns that make you smile with delight, so even after I write this review.....I’m still on the fence.
The title track:
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross-T.G.w.t.D.T.Soundtrack: A Review
Posted by defeat on December 12th, 2011, 11:14 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
Rating: 10/10
When Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor work together, they don't just make music. They mold sounds into layers of emotional synesthesia, and their newest masterpiece, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, is no different. Your brain and body don't quite know what to do with themselves. You smile. You get the chills. You get creeped out. You contemplate, yet sometimes you stop thinking all together.
After the near three hour playtime ended, I took my headphones off and the first thing to come to mind was Homer's epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey. If Homer were alive today, he'd be furiously writing a screenplay, day in and day out, so Reznor and Ross could give it the sonic pulse it (I'm sure) would deserve. They are just that good.
Reznor has always been one of my favorites as far as extremely layered music goes. I consider Nine Inch Nails' The Fragile to be the greatest double-album of my generation, and it's a perfect example of Mr. Reznor's musical depth. Atticus Ross, on the other hand is more of a minimalist, and I was first introduced to his music when he did some programming and/or produced Nine Inch Nails' last four albums. He also caught my attention whilst watching the movie The Book of Eli. The entire time I was thinking to myself, "This HAS to be either Trent, Atticus, or Saul Williams doing the soundtrack for this...." It was indeed Atticus, and I became a fan.
The soundtrack for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a drone type of electronica with some darker ambient soundscapes layered in, and when I write "layered in", I mean it as emphatically as is possible. It's the most complex minimalistic album ever created, if that's even possible. You'll always hear synth, and you'll sometimes hear keys, bells, guitars, strings, vibrations, xylophones etc., etc. One of the songs even has vocals, and oddly enough it's a cover of Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" (featuring Karen O on vocals) In a nutshell, it's epic in every way possible. Find three hours and treat yourself to what's bound to be a Grammy winner.
Recommended if you enjoy: Sigur Ros, Ghosts I-IV by Nine Inch Nails, The Book of Eli (soundtrack), The Social Network (soundtrack)
When Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor work together, they don't just make music. They mold sounds into layers of emotional synesthesia, and their newest masterpiece, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, is no different. Your brain and body don't quite know what to do with themselves. You smile. You get the chills. You get creeped out. You contemplate, yet sometimes you stop thinking all together.
After the near three hour playtime ended, I took my headphones off and the first thing to come to mind was Homer's epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey. If Homer were alive today, he'd be furiously writing a screenplay, day in and day out, so Reznor and Ross could give it the sonic pulse it (I'm sure) would deserve. They are just that good.
Reznor has always been one of my favorites as far as extremely layered music goes. I consider Nine Inch Nails' The Fragile to be the greatest double-album of my generation, and it's a perfect example of Mr. Reznor's musical depth. Atticus Ross, on the other hand is more of a minimalist, and I was first introduced to his music when he did some programming and/or produced Nine Inch Nails' last four albums. He also caught my attention whilst watching the movie The Book of Eli. The entire time I was thinking to myself, "This HAS to be either Trent, Atticus, or Saul Williams doing the soundtrack for this...." It was indeed Atticus, and I became a fan.
The soundtrack for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a drone type of electronica with some darker ambient soundscapes layered in, and when I write "layered in", I mean it as emphatically as is possible. It's the most complex minimalistic album ever created, if that's even possible. You'll always hear synth, and you'll sometimes hear keys, bells, guitars, strings, vibrations, xylophones etc., etc. One of the songs even has vocals, and oddly enough it's a cover of Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song" (featuring Karen O on vocals) In a nutshell, it's epic in every way possible. Find three hours and treat yourself to what's bound to be a Grammy winner.
Recommended if you enjoy: Sigur Ros, Ghosts I-IV by Nine Inch Nails, The Book of Eli (soundtrack), The Social Network (soundtrack)
allbroke- Broke/Free EP (12/02/2011): A Review
Posted by defeat on December 6th, 2011, 11:23 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
Rating: 10/10
The dubstep scene is in two factions at the moment. You’ve got the UK kids who are all, “Yeah, Yeah dubstep…it’s played out and now the Americans are catching on late….yet again.” And we also have the US kids who are getting into dubstep because the US producers/programmers decided to 1-UP the UK’s scene. I personally don’t get into all that myself. If the track is good…..the track is good, wherever and whenever it came out.
Now on to the album you all need to know about. Allbroke has had a few songs independently released recently, and his Facebook was droppin’ hints about a present to us all (his fans). It’s here. His present is the absolutely free EP Broke/Free.
This you are going to enjoy. It’s a mix between UK and US dubstep in all the right ways. The music itself tells a subtle sci-fi story in it’s four song way. Makes me wish dubstep was around when The Matrix was being produced. I think It would have been very cool for Allbroke to have had a couple songs on there.
“The Device” is the opener, and from start to beginning it walks us through a device being used to make some nasty drops. It’s a very unique song. I have yet to hear of anyone doing what Allbroke is doing here. With this opener you know you’ve stumbled upon something unique.
“Nostromo” is second in line and well. It’s pretty chill at first until 55 seconds in when it drops and don’t stop….in a good way. Enter some sci fi dialogue. Great song.
“Orion” The third track I really, really, really , really enjoyed. Sweet, sweet tension and release I am a fan of. This one however has more of a UK sound to it. Not that I’m complaining .
“Field Medic” This closure is the epitome of what I was trying to get across up in hurr. It’s a UKUSA dubstep orgy.
Over all this albums broke down the boundaries between UK and US dubstep with one fell swoop. I was impressed with the dynamics of it all. Solid, Solid, EP.
Recommened if you enjoy: Ed Solo, Datsik, skrillex, Nero
Now how about a music video combining the songs for maximum epic? EH?
The link to the FREE EP is
http://www.facebook.com/spirographed?ref=tn_tnmn#!/Allbroke
Like the page, download the nasty.
The dubstep scene is in two factions at the moment. You’ve got the UK kids who are all, “Yeah, Yeah dubstep…it’s played out and now the Americans are catching on late….yet again.” And we also have the US kids who are getting into dubstep because the US producers/programmers decided to 1-UP the UK’s scene. I personally don’t get into all that myself. If the track is good…..the track is good, wherever and whenever it came out.
Now on to the album you all need to know about. Allbroke has had a few songs independently released recently, and his Facebook was droppin’ hints about a present to us all (his fans). It’s here. His present is the absolutely free EP Broke/Free.
This you are going to enjoy. It’s a mix between UK and US dubstep in all the right ways. The music itself tells a subtle sci-fi story in it’s four song way. Makes me wish dubstep was around when The Matrix was being produced. I think It would have been very cool for Allbroke to have had a couple songs on there.
“The Device” is the opener, and from start to beginning it walks us through a device being used to make some nasty drops. It’s a very unique song. I have yet to hear of anyone doing what Allbroke is doing here. With this opener you know you’ve stumbled upon something unique.
“Nostromo” is second in line and well. It’s pretty chill at first until 55 seconds in when it drops and don’t stop….in a good way. Enter some sci fi dialogue. Great song.
“Orion” The third track I really, really, really , really enjoyed. Sweet, sweet tension and release I am a fan of. This one however has more of a UK sound to it. Not that I’m complaining .
“Field Medic” This closure is the epitome of what I was trying to get across up in hurr. It’s a UKUSA dubstep orgy.
Over all this albums broke down the boundaries between UK and US dubstep with one fell swoop. I was impressed with the dynamics of it all. Solid, Solid, EP.
Recommened if you enjoy: Ed Solo, Datsik, skrillex, Nero
Now how about a music video combining the songs for maximum epic? EH?
The link to the FREE EP is
http://www.facebook.com/spirographed?ref=tn_tnmn#!/Allbroke
Like the page, download the nasty.
A battle of time on communities
Posted by Demon on December 5th, 2011, 6:42 pm. Category: Scribery Entry
Time moves on inevitably, as I’m sure anyone can tell. Childhood memories become just what they are – memories. Not much can stay the same in a world rapidly evolving with people snaking along just as quickly towards some mysterious, unknown goal of worth we, as a society and race, have decided is vitally necessary. This is also true for the internet, but at a much broader and faster rate because of instant gratification and the scope of available tools for developers to build. While driving down ‘memory lane’ after twenty-odd years may bring the shock of finding your childhood home destroyed and a new shopping plaza in its place, you can still find your breath taken away at the vast and expanding internet. Simply visit Google and type in a keyword relative to your life (anything) and you’ll find more information instantly available than you can possibly read in your lifetime… with more being released as you’re reading!
Thus, what happens to a memory of a place once you can no longer visit it or feel that connection you once felt? How often do you drive or walk down a new, but familiar street where memories seem to come alive and flood into your conscious? Where do you go when you begin to relive those days of happiness, the shared, raw energy of a community? The whole experience can be quite a downer once you start thinking about those childhood playmates or perhaps the teenage adventures while testing the world, knowing you had your parents as a safety net. Where, then do you go when that memory is an online community?
Too often I’ve found myself needing information and simply visiting search engines like Google and Bing to find a quick resolution to any situation which may arise. This includes anything from technological break-downs, news, or entertainment; basically anything which would be best served instantly. It seems, at least to me, that technical forums and online ‘gurus’ have become a thing of the past. Why? Most times, ‘Googling’ an issue will bring up a laundry list of posts in forums with the exact problem, usually followed with an answer. However, the post was made and answered anywhere from ten years to a more recent four years. In either case, unless it’s a new product, there is no real need for posting on a forum only to wait days (if you’re lucky) for an intelligent response and possibly longer to get a true answer.
So where do communities fit into this? It seems only natural that communities, though once warm and welcoming to the casual internet browser, has become a thing of the past. They’ve been replaced with blogs and social networking where, again, everything revolves on instant gratification for the end-user. What kind of communities have survived? Other than those directly linked with a brand (Dell Technical Support – Love them) or with a particular product (Tip.It – A fansite based on a MMO game), it would seem there is little opportunity for growth among other communities. Yet there are still communities with mixed interests (Runevillage – A fansite-turned-general interest) where a wisp of memory and the attachment of veterans keep the community together, even through difficult times.
Despite the fondness of memories in our compulsive visits to places we’ve known and grown to love, there is a sort of sweet sorrow in their parting. Just as we must one day say goodbye to our parents, it feels there is an inevitable end to all communities – online or not. In a more directed note, while the Village may be the dear home of a few dedicated users who have stayed around for nearly the entirety of its life, the difficulty lies not in reviving the dead, but re-angling the community to be both ageless and timeless where simple trends don’t direct the life of the site as a whole. I’d say this has been the bane of countless sites with a targeted audience, because there was never any room allowed or even acknowledged to open the door for a broader scope of inclusion for outsiders and thus lays the self-imprisonment of sites with too little a mind to approach a large audience.
Simply putting it, the only means by which to survive in the rapid change and growth of the internet is to build and evolve with it, rather than staying focused on a single niche. A stubborn, slow mind will only be left behind as the community gathered moves on to bigger and better things, though they may still visit every so often (like an old man in a retirement home, perhaps). There can only be success where success is actively perceived and rendered into a useable model; building a strong community is great while there is community to build, but there has to be some means of bringing new users in and getting them attached the same way everyone else has become attached.
Thus, what happens to a memory of a place once you can no longer visit it or feel that connection you once felt? How often do you drive or walk down a new, but familiar street where memories seem to come alive and flood into your conscious? Where do you go when you begin to relive those days of happiness, the shared, raw energy of a community? The whole experience can be quite a downer once you start thinking about those childhood playmates or perhaps the teenage adventures while testing the world, knowing you had your parents as a safety net. Where, then do you go when that memory is an online community?
Too often I’ve found myself needing information and simply visiting search engines like Google and Bing to find a quick resolution to any situation which may arise. This includes anything from technological break-downs, news, or entertainment; basically anything which would be best served instantly. It seems, at least to me, that technical forums and online ‘gurus’ have become a thing of the past. Why? Most times, ‘Googling’ an issue will bring up a laundry list of posts in forums with the exact problem, usually followed with an answer. However, the post was made and answered anywhere from ten years to a more recent four years. In either case, unless it’s a new product, there is no real need for posting on a forum only to wait days (if you’re lucky) for an intelligent response and possibly longer to get a true answer.
So where do communities fit into this? It seems only natural that communities, though once warm and welcoming to the casual internet browser, has become a thing of the past. They’ve been replaced with blogs and social networking where, again, everything revolves on instant gratification for the end-user. What kind of communities have survived? Other than those directly linked with a brand (Dell Technical Support – Love them) or with a particular product (Tip.It – A fansite based on a MMO game), it would seem there is little opportunity for growth among other communities. Yet there are still communities with mixed interests (Runevillage – A fansite-turned-general interest) where a wisp of memory and the attachment of veterans keep the community together, even through difficult times.
Despite the fondness of memories in our compulsive visits to places we’ve known and grown to love, there is a sort of sweet sorrow in their parting. Just as we must one day say goodbye to our parents, it feels there is an inevitable end to all communities – online or not. In a more directed note, while the Village may be the dear home of a few dedicated users who have stayed around for nearly the entirety of its life, the difficulty lies not in reviving the dead, but re-angling the community to be both ageless and timeless where simple trends don’t direct the life of the site as a whole. I’d say this has been the bane of countless sites with a targeted audience, because there was never any room allowed or even acknowledged to open the door for a broader scope of inclusion for outsiders and thus lays the self-imprisonment of sites with too little a mind to approach a large audience.
Simply putting it, the only means by which to survive in the rapid change and growth of the internet is to build and evolve with it, rather than staying focused on a single niche. A stubborn, slow mind will only be left behind as the community gathered moves on to bigger and better things, though they may still visit every so often (like an old man in a retirement home, perhaps). There can only be success where success is actively perceived and rendered into a useable model; building a strong community is great while there is community to build, but there has to be some means of bringing new users in and getting them attached the same way everyone else has become attached.
LLL: Updated 1/07; info on my future in the scribery
Posted by Landerpurex on December 1st, 2011, 2:55 am. Category: Scribery Entry
**EDIT**
Alright, so I daresay you editors and high ranking officials at RV are not interested in pure literature or creative works being put on the front page. Though I think that is ludicrous, I also see why that is. The bottom line is that I go to the movies, like, A LOT. Think on a weekly basis, pretty much. I hope to make some topics there on the front page through reviewing new movies. I have already written two and dedicated several hours to doing so in an effort to help this place. I know they are somewhat outdated, Darkest Hour being most so but I intend to review newer releases soon. I plan on seeing The Devil Inside tomorrow, so perhaps you can expect that review soon.
I also know that there are tons of other movie review sites, far more comprehensive and those that have professional critics (HA), but I tried to take a frank, fresh approach to the movies that will help anyone who is looking for such information. I also have to say that I am inspired by Defeat, but no longer will I allow him to take the brunt of the responsibility here, and the glory along with it.
Bottom line is, I am not going to write nor post creative works if they have no chance of being used, similarly how I am not going to write to no end for the Villager.
If someone wishes to refute or update me on Scribery and subsequently, front page quality policy, I would be much obliged.
Also it should be noted that I would like to buy the new RPG coming out in February called Kingdoms of Amalur, so dibs on that review assuming I actually get the game.
***
This is the thread I'm gonna reserve for the (hopefully) many contributions I make to RV in its new direction. For now, I'm only posting one poem but expect more in the future. This is perhaps my favorite piece that I've written, and I believe it shows. Later, expect more poetry, short stories, and snippets from my novel/s.
That said, I need to post a small disclaimer: I hope to make a living as a writer someday, and much of what I post will be some of my best work. I retain all rights to my work as the author. In the unlikely event that I sell the rights to some of my work, I may ask for it to be taken off the site but that does not seem to be something that is possible for me to accept.
This was something I wrote for a two week intensive poetry seminar. I wrote this in response to my classmates who often said that my work was too triumphant, that it wasn't sad, depressing, or void of conflict. I hope you appreciate the satire. It's a form called "letter poetry" which I had never tried before, but I seem to be at least somewhat good at.
Alright, so I daresay you editors and high ranking officials at RV are not interested in pure literature or creative works being put on the front page. Though I think that is ludicrous, I also see why that is. The bottom line is that I go to the movies, like, A LOT. Think on a weekly basis, pretty much. I hope to make some topics there on the front page through reviewing new movies. I have already written two and dedicated several hours to doing so in an effort to help this place. I know they are somewhat outdated, Darkest Hour being most so but I intend to review newer releases soon. I plan on seeing The Devil Inside tomorrow, so perhaps you can expect that review soon.
I also know that there are tons of other movie review sites, far more comprehensive and those that have professional critics (HA), but I tried to take a frank, fresh approach to the movies that will help anyone who is looking for such information. I also have to say that I am inspired by Defeat, but no longer will I allow him to take the brunt of the responsibility here, and the glory along with it.
Bottom line is, I am not going to write nor post creative works if they have no chance of being used, similarly how I am not going to write to no end for the Villager.
If someone wishes to refute or update me on Scribery and subsequently, front page quality policy, I would be much obliged. Also it should be noted that I would like to buy the new RPG coming out in February called Kingdoms of Amalur, so dibs on that review assuming I actually get the game.
***
This is the thread I'm gonna reserve for the (hopefully) many contributions I make to RV in its new direction. For now, I'm only posting one poem but expect more in the future. This is perhaps my favorite piece that I've written, and I believe it shows. Later, expect more poetry, short stories, and snippets from my novel/s.
That said, I need to post a small disclaimer: I hope to make a living as a writer someday, and much of what I post will be some of my best work. I retain all rights to my work as the author. In the unlikely event that I sell the rights to some of my work, I may ask for it to be taken off the site but that does not seem to be something that is possible for me to accept.
This was something I wrote for a two week intensive poetry seminar. I wrote this in response to my classmates who often said that my work was too triumphant, that it wasn't sad, depressing, or void of conflict. I hope you appreciate the satire. It's a form called "letter poetry" which I had never tried before, but I seem to be at least somewhat good at.
Lander wrote:
Dear self,
You will never triumph against anything.
To presume otherwise is nothing
short of maniacal nonsense.
Wallow in your self pity,
Fill a pool with it,
Drown in it,
Glub.
Write your farewell poem in blood,
Then hang yourself.
Um, don’t do any of that.
I’m being facetious.
It surely wouldn’t kill you,
To let your weakness through
Every now and again.
Death dances around you.
He dances a jig in Swedish clogs.
He trips over his own robe,
Wreaking hellish havoc.
Pontificate.
Your father, dead by simultaneous stroke and heart attack
Your Uncle, dead by spidery spider cancer
Your cousin, dead by asthma attack
Your cousin, dead by drowning
Your mother, dead by house fire
Let a tear chart a new course
Down your cheek.
Taste bitterness.
Become angry.
Shout for no reason,
Curse the people who get under your skin.
Do it to their faces.
Your car’s a piece of,
Drive it til the wheels fall off,
Then light it on fire.
Loosen up and stop hiding
Your past and your trials.
They happened.
Pretending they aren’t real will only
Cause a quarter-life crisis.
Affectionately,
Me
You will never triumph against anything.
To presume otherwise is nothing
short of maniacal nonsense.
Wallow in your self pity,
Fill a pool with it,
Drown in it,
Glub.
Write your farewell poem in blood,
Then hang yourself.
Um, don’t do any of that.
I’m being facetious.
It surely wouldn’t kill you,
To let your weakness through
Every now and again.
Death dances around you.
He dances a jig in Swedish clogs.
He trips over his own robe,
Wreaking hellish havoc.
Pontificate.
Your father, dead by simultaneous stroke and heart attack
Your Uncle, dead by spidery spider cancer
Your cousin, dead by asthma attack
Your cousin, dead by drowning
Your mother, dead by house fire
Let a tear chart a new course
Down your cheek.
Taste bitterness.
Become angry.
Shout for no reason,
Curse the people who get under your skin.
Do it to their faces.
Your car’s a piece of
,Drive it til the wheels fall off,
Then light it on fire.
Loosen up and stop hiding
Your past and your trials.
They happened.
Pretending they aren’t real will only
Cause a quarter-life crisis.
Affectionately,
Me
By far, the most exciting news in the last year was the announcement of the latest entry in the Elder Scrolls series, Skyrim. Along with this announcement was a vast amount of detail on what would be included in the final product, as it would be released in less than 12 months, on November 11. The game is now out, and the biggest question series fans have had is this: Is it going to live up to previous games in the series?
I have to say what excited me was the announcement that this game would attempt to walk the line between Morrowind and Oblivion; Morrowind being one of my favorite games from childhood, and Oblivion being a technically good follow up set in a fairly generic setting. This is a pretty tall order. The magic of Morrowind, anyone can tell you, was in the discovery. You never knew what powerful ring you would find in that tomb across the river, or what daedric relic you'd pull out of the abandoned dwemer tower just outside of town.
Oblivion did away with this system, simply rewarding you these one of a kind items through quests; sure, a dungeon might provide a bunch of loot, but none of it had "pizzazz". None of it belonged to some great, unnamed warlock, and it certainly didn't belong to a demigod. You had to go talk to those guys in person, and you had to make sacrifices, but only when you hit the right level. Not the right level? Go back to Rockmilk and wait for those bandits and marauders to kill each other! Maybe after about ten delves you'll have fired your bow enough to get a level or two. It kind of got... boring. Not that other games don't have ridiculous amounts of grinding, but in a game claiming to be bigger and better than Morrowind, I expect even more relics to be dug up, not to just be handed to me for running between vendors and grabbing a shovel.
Skyrim, I'm happy to say, walks the line and leans toward the Morrowind side of the series. There's no telling what you'll find in any given cave, be it a powerful enemy wielding a magic weapon or a dragon wall providing you with immense power. The quests to find powerful artefacts often trigger just from discovering the tomb or strange item, so you still get the thrill of finding the artefact without feeling like you're a means to an end.
The world is wonderfully alien, just as it was in the good old days of the series. Expansive plains have herds of mammoths and giants wandering through, with beautiful mountains always in view. Rivers and streams flow through the landscape and look wonderful, although they are as much a nuisance as they are a beauty to look at. Often, there is no good way to cross a river without walking for what seems like miles out of your way. Attempting to wade across often goes awry, as there typically isn't a good way to climb out of said river. At this point, the best you can hope to do is survive the waterfall inevitably waiting 200 feet downstream and hope that you'll come out somewhere close to an actual road on the other side.
That's not to say that Oblivion's additions to the series were completely cut from the game; if anything, its shortcomings were tweaked until they became strengths for the game. While it didn't provide much in the way of setting, the fourth game in the series did a few things right: It simplified everything, and it added randomness in items. Skyrim expands on this.
Previous entries in the series required you to build your character around your Attributes, which governed skills, of which several selected as Major and [sometimes] Minor. You could only level up by increasing one of these selected skills, and then you had to weigh the pros and cons of increasing an attribute. These dilemmas are no more. Attributes: Gone. Major Skills: Nope nope. Minor Skills: That's been out of fashion for like ten years! All skills start the same, save for racial bonuses. You don't pick a class. You don't make a class. Whatever you use increases, and when a certain number of skill increases has been achieved, you level. You choose to increase your Health, Magicka, or Stamina bars, and then you get a perk to use to specialize in something. That's it. While I DO miss the challenge of increasing my luck, it's even better that I don't have to worry about respecializing in things after I've made my character. That isn't even a concern until after level 15 or so.
Building on the simplification of "Blade, Blunt, and Marksman", the weapon distinction has now become "One handed, Two handed, and Archery", with different sub-specializations within each skill tree that are up to you. One handed weapons include daggers, maces, swords, and one handed axes, and are great for damage dealers who don't want to take any damage. It goes hand in hand with the stealth tree, which only serves to make assassin characters even more overpowered (a common complaint I've heard of the game). From here you have the option to dual wield, a new feature to the series. It dramatically decreases your ability to block an attack, but the idea here is that you aren't going to be hit before this happens. Two handed is for people who don't mind getting punched in the face a couple times while swinging there weapon. These include greatswords, axes, and warhammers. Where does archery fit into all this? Very neatly, since it's so much more powerful than it ever was before. Put enough points into it, and it’s just as effective as any other weapon you could use.
Delving dungeons simply for magic items is always beneficial, especially at lower levels. Don't wear heavy armor, but still REALLY want that archery bonus? With the return of the Enchantment skill, items can be destroyed to learn their properties for use in making new ones. This means that equipment gathering is no longer the endless cycle of finding and selling and paying your first born to the Mage's Guild to make stuff temporarily better.
Oh, and dragons. With how late this review/rant is coming out, you've probably heard a lot about them already. Not a whole lot I can say on that matter except that they are far more fun than any of the other boss fights I have been involved with in this game up to this point. Fight them. Relish them, but remember that they are common throughout this game. If I had a nickel for every time I came out of fast travel and had to save a town, I wouldn’t have much money, because I don't think I've killed more than 20 dragons, and only like half those attacked towns. But I still feel like a boss.
Last, the main quest. I'm not going to get too much into this, because I honestly haven't done much with it. This shouldn't be a problem for many fans of the series, as no one really plays through it. From what I've seen of other people playing it, it is greatly improved story wise from Oblivion. What I can tell you is that guilds are back, with the Fighter's Guild and Mage's Guild being replaced by awesome. Dark Brotherhood is more disturbing than ever, and the Thieves Guild is... changed...
While a great game in and of itself, it stacks up with the best of the Elder Scrolls series. If you enjoyed any of those, give it a shot. It's definitely the best entry in the series. If you didn't, check it out anyway. Enough has changed that you may find yourself a new fan.
I have to say what excited me was the announcement that this game would attempt to walk the line between Morrowind and Oblivion; Morrowind being one of my favorite games from childhood, and Oblivion being a technically good follow up set in a fairly generic setting. This is a pretty tall order. The magic of Morrowind, anyone can tell you, was in the discovery. You never knew what powerful ring you would find in that tomb across the river, or what daedric relic you'd pull out of the abandoned dwemer tower just outside of town.
Oblivion did away with this system, simply rewarding you these one of a kind items through quests; sure, a dungeon might provide a bunch of loot, but none of it had "pizzazz". None of it belonged to some great, unnamed warlock, and it certainly didn't belong to a demigod. You had to go talk to those guys in person, and you had to make sacrifices, but only when you hit the right level. Not the right level? Go back to Rockmilk and wait for those bandits and marauders to kill each other! Maybe after about ten delves you'll have fired your bow enough to get a level or two. It kind of got... boring. Not that other games don't have ridiculous amounts of grinding, but in a game claiming to be bigger and better than Morrowind, I expect even more relics to be dug up, not to just be handed to me for running between vendors and grabbing a shovel.
Skyrim, I'm happy to say, walks the line and leans toward the Morrowind side of the series. There's no telling what you'll find in any given cave, be it a powerful enemy wielding a magic weapon or a dragon wall providing you with immense power. The quests to find powerful artefacts often trigger just from discovering the tomb or strange item, so you still get the thrill of finding the artefact without feeling like you're a means to an end.
The world is wonderfully alien, just as it was in the good old days of the series. Expansive plains have herds of mammoths and giants wandering through, with beautiful mountains always in view. Rivers and streams flow through the landscape and look wonderful, although they are as much a nuisance as they are a beauty to look at. Often, there is no good way to cross a river without walking for what seems like miles out of your way. Attempting to wade across often goes awry, as there typically isn't a good way to climb out of said river. At this point, the best you can hope to do is survive the waterfall inevitably waiting 200 feet downstream and hope that you'll come out somewhere close to an actual road on the other side.
That's not to say that Oblivion's additions to the series were completely cut from the game; if anything, its shortcomings were tweaked until they became strengths for the game. While it didn't provide much in the way of setting, the fourth game in the series did a few things right: It simplified everything, and it added randomness in items. Skyrim expands on this.
Previous entries in the series required you to build your character around your Attributes, which governed skills, of which several selected as Major and [sometimes] Minor. You could only level up by increasing one of these selected skills, and then you had to weigh the pros and cons of increasing an attribute. These dilemmas are no more. Attributes: Gone. Major Skills: Nope nope. Minor Skills: That's been out of fashion for like ten years! All skills start the same, save for racial bonuses. You don't pick a class. You don't make a class. Whatever you use increases, and when a certain number of skill increases has been achieved, you level. You choose to increase your Health, Magicka, or Stamina bars, and then you get a perk to use to specialize in something. That's it. While I DO miss the challenge of increasing my luck, it's even better that I don't have to worry about respecializing in things after I've made my character. That isn't even a concern until after level 15 or so.
Building on the simplification of "Blade, Blunt, and Marksman", the weapon distinction has now become "One handed, Two handed, and Archery", with different sub-specializations within each skill tree that are up to you. One handed weapons include daggers, maces, swords, and one handed axes, and are great for damage dealers who don't want to take any damage. It goes hand in hand with the stealth tree, which only serves to make assassin characters even more overpowered (a common complaint I've heard of the game). From here you have the option to dual wield, a new feature to the series. It dramatically decreases your ability to block an attack, but the idea here is that you aren't going to be hit before this happens. Two handed is for people who don't mind getting punched in the face a couple times while swinging there weapon. These include greatswords, axes, and warhammers. Where does archery fit into all this? Very neatly, since it's so much more powerful than it ever was before. Put enough points into it, and it’s just as effective as any other weapon you could use.
Delving dungeons simply for magic items is always beneficial, especially at lower levels. Don't wear heavy armor, but still REALLY want that archery bonus? With the return of the Enchantment skill, items can be destroyed to learn their properties for use in making new ones. This means that equipment gathering is no longer the endless cycle of finding and selling and paying your first born to the Mage's Guild to make stuff temporarily better.
Oh, and dragons. With how late this review/rant is coming out, you've probably heard a lot about them already. Not a whole lot I can say on that matter except that they are far more fun than any of the other boss fights I have been involved with in this game up to this point. Fight them. Relish them, but remember that they are common throughout this game. If I had a nickel for every time I came out of fast travel and had to save a town, I wouldn’t have much money, because I don't think I've killed more than 20 dragons, and only like half those attacked towns. But I still feel like a boss.
Last, the main quest. I'm not going to get too much into this, because I honestly haven't done much with it. This shouldn't be a problem for many fans of the series, as no one really plays through it. From what I've seen of other people playing it, it is greatly improved story wise from Oblivion. What I can tell you is that guilds are back, with the Fighter's Guild and Mage's Guild being replaced by awesome. Dark Brotherhood is more disturbing than ever, and the Thieves Guild is... changed...
While a great game in and of itself, it stacks up with the best of the Elder Scrolls series. If you enjoyed any of those, give it a shot. It's definitely the best entry in the series. If you didn't, check it out anyway. Enough has changed that you may find yourself a new fan.
It's the last FRIDAY of the month!
Happy Rustled Jimmies Month!
Happy Rustled Jimmies Month!
VOTE VOTE VOTE on the RuneVillage Cape Design! [DO IT!]
Posted by Christopher on April 25th, 2011, 9:15 pm. Category: RuneVillage News
Official List of Contest Entries
Sup dawgs.
Putting this poll on hold so we can get a few more potential designs suggested. Just post what you would like to see as the primary (cape) color and the secondary (trim) color.
The suggestion box will be closed on Friday, April 29th, and the poll will resume on Saturday, April 30th, including the suggested capes.
GO GO GO!
Click That -->:
Sup dawgs.
Putting this poll on hold so we can get a few more potential designs suggested. Just post what you would like to see as the primary (cape) color and the secondary (trim) color.
The suggestion box will be closed on Friday, April 29th, and the poll will resume on Saturday, April 30th, including the suggested capes.
GO GO GO!
Hidden:
19th Apr 2011 - Items Kept on Death Changes
Posted by Glodenox on April 19th, 2011, 11:44 am. Category: RuneScape News
Runescape.com wrote:
We STRONGLY recommend that, before you go anywhere dangerous, you check the 'Items Kept on Death' interface to see what you'll lose should you die. Remember: Grand Exchange guide prices change daily, so whatever was your most valuable item yesterday may not still be your most valuable item today.
We have made some major changes to what happens when you die in RuneScape. Previously, you'd respawn with the three most valuable items you were carrying, chosen according to their shop prices. Those shop prices seldom corresponded to players' perceived value of their items, and most people were respawning by Lumbridge Castle, which isn't always a convenient place to respawn.
Death Interface
From now on, if you die outside of an area that has its own death mechanic – e.g. the Wilderness or an activity – you'll be taken to a safe place and presented with a menu, from which you'll be able to select what items you want to keep. As with the old rules, you'll be able to keep three items (or 0 if you were 'skulled' at time of death), with an additional one item if you had the Protect Item prayer/curse active. Your most valuable items will be selected by default, but you’re welcome to choose differently.
The menu will then offer you a choice of respawn point. Lumbridge Castle will still be offered to all players, but members will have additional choices if they've completed certain quests – i.e. Falador (Recruitment Drive), Camelot (King's Ransom 'Knight Waves') and Soul Wars (Nomad's Requiem). You will also be offered the chance to respawn in the last 'hub' you visited; hubs include Ardougne, Canifis, Edgeville, Etceteria, TzHaar and Varrock, with more possibly being added in future updates. The 'Items Kept on Death' interface will note the last of these hubs you passed through.
Once you've made your choices, you'll be respawned and any items you weren't able to keep will be placed under your gravestone wherever it was you died. The gravestone timer will be counting down while you're looking at the death interface, so don't dawdle. We’ve not increased the durations of gravestones in this update to compensate for the time you spend in the menu; gravestone durations have already had a large increase this year.
This menu will not appear if you die in the Wilderness, since PKers won't want to wait for their loot to drop. If you die there, you will respawn immediately in Edgeville by the bank, and your protected items will be chosen automatically by the game. This is exactly how Wilderness death drops were handled before this update; the only difference is that an item's value is now determined by the Grand Exchange guide price, not shop prices.
Protecting Items
Some items are now always kept when you die, and do not count towards your three protected items. This applies mostly to basic tools, coins, costumes, quest-specific items (but not including reward weapons!) and low-level equipment. (Note that a borrowed item is always prioritised over any other items.) This automatic protection is completely ignored in the Wilderness, though, so you still shouldn't take anything in there that you aren't prepared to lose.
The game is now using Grand Exchange guide prices to determine your most valuable items in all cases. If an item is not enabled for trading on the Exchange, the game will look up some alternative price. For example, the values of degraded Barrows kit and Fist of Guthix rewards are calculated from the values of the tradeable versions of these items. Where no equivalent item exists, the game will use the shop price of the item, although we have overridden this for especially high-profile items such as Dungeoneering reward weapons.
We STRONGLY recommend that, before you go anywhere dangerous, you check the 'Items Kept on Death' interface to see what you'll lose when you die. Remember: Grand Exchange guide prices change daily, so whatever was your most valuable item yesterday may not still be your most valuable item today.
Good luck, and have a nice death.
Mod Ash
Senior RuneScape Content Developer
We have made some major changes to what happens when you die in RuneScape. Previously, you'd respawn with the three most valuable items you were carrying, chosen according to their shop prices. Those shop prices seldom corresponded to players' perceived value of their items, and most people were respawning by Lumbridge Castle, which isn't always a convenient place to respawn.
Death Interface
From now on, if you die outside of an area that has its own death mechanic – e.g. the Wilderness or an activity – you'll be taken to a safe place and presented with a menu, from which you'll be able to select what items you want to keep. As with the old rules, you'll be able to keep three items (or 0 if you were 'skulled' at time of death), with an additional one item if you had the Protect Item prayer/curse active. Your most valuable items will be selected by default, but you’re welcome to choose differently.
The menu will then offer you a choice of respawn point. Lumbridge Castle will still be offered to all players, but members will have additional choices if they've completed certain quests – i.e. Falador (Recruitment Drive), Camelot (King's Ransom 'Knight Waves') and Soul Wars (Nomad's Requiem). You will also be offered the chance to respawn in the last 'hub' you visited; hubs include Ardougne, Canifis, Edgeville, Etceteria, TzHaar and Varrock, with more possibly being added in future updates. The 'Items Kept on Death' interface will note the last of these hubs you passed through.
Once you've made your choices, you'll be respawned and any items you weren't able to keep will be placed under your gravestone wherever it was you died. The gravestone timer will be counting down while you're looking at the death interface, so don't dawdle. We’ve not increased the durations of gravestones in this update to compensate for the time you spend in the menu; gravestone durations have already had a large increase this year.
This menu will not appear if you die in the Wilderness, since PKers won't want to wait for their loot to drop. If you die there, you will respawn immediately in Edgeville by the bank, and your protected items will be chosen automatically by the game. This is exactly how Wilderness death drops were handled before this update; the only difference is that an item's value is now determined by the Grand Exchange guide price, not shop prices.
Protecting Items
Some items are now always kept when you die, and do not count towards your three protected items. This applies mostly to basic tools, coins, costumes, quest-specific items (but not including reward weapons!) and low-level equipment. (Note that a borrowed item is always prioritised over any other items.) This automatic protection is completely ignored in the Wilderness, though, so you still shouldn't take anything in there that you aren't prepared to lose.
The game is now using Grand Exchange guide prices to determine your most valuable items in all cases. If an item is not enabled for trading on the Exchange, the game will look up some alternative price. For example, the values of degraded Barrows kit and Fist of Guthix rewards are calculated from the values of the tradeable versions of these items. Where no equivalent item exists, the game will use the shop price of the item, although we have overridden this for especially high-profile items such as Dungeoneering reward weapons.
We STRONGLY recommend that, before you go anywhere dangerous, you check the 'Items Kept on Death' interface to see what you'll lose when you die. Remember: Grand Exchange guide prices change daily, so whatever was your most valuable item yesterday may not still be your most valuable item today.
Good luck, and have a nice death.
Mod Ash
Senior RuneScape Content Developer
19th April 2011 - Holly and Hawthorn
Posted by Glodenox on April 19th, 2011, 10:39 am. Category: RuneScape News
Runescape.com wrote:
Spring has sprung – the birds are singing and the sun is starting to shine – but there's still an unseasonal chill in the air. This could well be related to the ceremonial handing over of the 'Year', in which the Queen of Snow officially passes on the season to the Queen of Sunrise. For this year's ceremony, the queens have agreed to 'do battle' with evil holly and hawthorn trees.
You will be able to choose your side in this traditional tussle – spring or winter – by chopping down the rival season's evil trees. All players will be able to chop down the wintry holly trees in order to help springtime emerge, while members will have the added option of felling hawthorn trees, to hold on to the bitter cold of winter. All of this tree chopping will be closely monitored by the Season Tree, the look of which will change between the seasons based on how many holly and hawthorn trees get chopped down.
Everyone who pitches in will earn this event's cosmetic holiday reward; however, members will get the added option of giving theirs a useful function, by charging it with the ability to locate and teleport to RuneScape's other evil trees. This works much like communing with a spirit tree, but can be done from anywhere. About a month after the Easter event is removed from the game, the items will lose their charge and become cosmetic.
During the Easter event, we'll be running a couple of competitions. From Friday 22 – Monday 25 April, the player who chops down the most holly and hawthorn trees will receive a RuneScape goody bag. The second competition is to guess at the total number of trees that will be felled over the course of the event. If you want to take part in either of these competitions, or the daily prize draws, you'll need to post on the Easter Tree Competitions thread, so we know to keep an eye on your tree killing skills.
Finally, although this tree chopping 'battle' is only meant to be symbolic, some of the two queens' entourage are taking this year's event a little bit too seriously. Let's just hope that nothing goes wrong... If anything were to happen, there will at least be plenty of adventurers around to set things right.
Mod John A
Senior RuneScape Content Developer
Summary:
In other news...
In honour of the alleged wedding of the King Black Dragon and the Kalphite Queen (and the very real wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton), Diango will be selling some celebratory items for a short time. Everyone is welcome to buy fireworks, firecrackers, bubble blowers, confetti and a souvenir mug. Members can also buy a bouquet of flowers.
We've reduced the produce cost of unlocking the spell rewards at Livid Farm by roughly 20%, based on our post-release analysis and player feedback. This now matches our intended aims with this content in terms of effort vs reward. Players who have already unlocked any spells will receive the appropriate refund of produce, which they can then put towards any other spells they have yet to unlock and/or the wishes.
We’ve updated the sounds effects on the majority of NPCs in the free area of the game (as well as a handful in members' areas). The list is quite large, but includes skeletons, goblins, ghosts, dogs, dragons, and lesser, greater and black demons. We've also updated/added new environment sounds such as twittering birds and river sounds, as well as changed some other sounds such as for lighting fires and opening/closing doors.
The graphical update to mining rocks we first released with the Lumbridge Swamp improvement has now been applied across the rest of RuneScape.
You will be able to choose your side in this traditional tussle – spring or winter – by chopping down the rival season's evil trees. All players will be able to chop down the wintry holly trees in order to help springtime emerge, while members will have the added option of felling hawthorn trees, to hold on to the bitter cold of winter. All of this tree chopping will be closely monitored by the Season Tree, the look of which will change between the seasons based on how many holly and hawthorn trees get chopped down.
Everyone who pitches in will earn this event's cosmetic holiday reward; however, members will get the added option of giving theirs a useful function, by charging it with the ability to locate and teleport to RuneScape's other evil trees. This works much like communing with a spirit tree, but can be done from anywhere. About a month after the Easter event is removed from the game, the items will lose their charge and become cosmetic.
During the Easter event, we'll be running a couple of competitions. From Friday 22 – Monday 25 April, the player who chops down the most holly and hawthorn trees will receive a RuneScape goody bag. The second competition is to guess at the total number of trees that will be felled over the course of the event. If you want to take part in either of these competitions, or the daily prize draws, you'll need to post on the Easter Tree Competitions thread, so we know to keep an eye on your tree killing skills.
Finally, although this tree chopping 'battle' is only meant to be symbolic, some of the two queens' entourage are taking this year's event a little bit too seriously. Let's just hope that nothing goes wrong... If anything were to happen, there will at least be plenty of adventurers around to set things right.
Mod John A
Senior RuneScape Content Developer
Summary:
Quote:
Where to start Holly and Hawthorn:
Head through the Easter portal south of Falador.
Requirements to start Holly and Hawthorn:
None.
Head through the Easter portal south of Falador.
Requirements to start Holly and Hawthorn:
None.
In other news...
In honour of the alleged wedding of the King Black Dragon and the Kalphite Queen (and the very real wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton), Diango will be selling some celebratory items for a short time. Everyone is welcome to buy fireworks, firecrackers, bubble blowers, confetti and a souvenir mug. Members can also buy a bouquet of flowers.
We've reduced the produce cost of unlocking the spell rewards at Livid Farm by roughly 20%, based on our post-release analysis and player feedback. This now matches our intended aims with this content in terms of effort vs reward. Players who have already unlocked any spells will receive the appropriate refund of produce, which they can then put towards any other spells they have yet to unlock and/or the wishes.
We’ve updated the sounds effects on the majority of NPCs in the free area of the game (as well as a handful in members' areas). The list is quite large, but includes skeletons, goblins, ghosts, dogs, dragons, and lesser, greater and black demons. We've also updated/added new environment sounds such as twittering birds and river sounds, as well as changed some other sounds such as for lighting fires and opening/closing doors.
The graphical update to mining rocks we first released with the Lumbridge Swamp improvement has now been applied across the rest of RuneScape.
Quote:
Firstly, thank you for your patience last night, we know that not being able to access the game was incredibly frustrating for you, and we apologise for the interruption to your regular gaming experience.
Our Systems Admin and Game Engine Teams worked through the night to get the problem fixed just as soon as we could. Unfortunately it took us some time as it was quite a technical challenge to get things back to normal - but please be assured that 'nobody was going home' until things were fixed! Nobody was more frustrated about the problem than us, and anyone at Jagex who could do anything to help the issue, did so.
We know that the communication with players around the time of the disruption was limited, but we were severely hindered in our ability to access some of our key website modules, which is why we didn't make some sort of 'front page' announcement.
However, we did utilise social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to communicate the information we had, which we provided in French and German as well as English.
Some people are asking if there will be a 'roll back' of accounts - in our experience roll backs can be very disruptive to people, and whilst a few people may benefit the vast majority of players would find themselves less advanced and in a position they would not desire, and for this reason we feel that we need to do what's best for the vast majority of players - so there will be no roll back. We also know that some people have been asking for some sort of membership refund or credit, but we have no plans to refund or credit the few hours that the game was unavailable for.
For a tiny number of accounts there may have been some loss in profile data, which means that any changes on your account over the last period of game-play may be lost. We can confirm that all profile data is now stable, and again we apologise to the limited number of people caught up in this.
There have also been reports of people losing Dungeoneering binds, we are aware that this is an issue and we are now looking to create a solution for this problem. However, at this time, we are not returning any binds. Whilst we fully sympathise with people who this has affected, it is unfortunate that occasionally these sort of things can happen, which is why we are looking at possible future solutions.
A few people have also told us that the Hiscores seem incorrect (principally in-game XP not matching Hiscores XP) and for this reason we have now rebooted the Hiscores and all data should be correct.
We've also been asked why people were online and yet other people couldn't log in, this is because our servers were under heavy load - so even if you had been able to log in your gaming experience wouldn't have been much fun.
Finally, we really are truly sorry for this interruption to your game-play, this sort of thing frustrates and annoys us as much as it does you.
Our Systems Admin and Game Engine Teams worked through the night to get the problem fixed just as soon as we could. Unfortunately it took us some time as it was quite a technical challenge to get things back to normal - but please be assured that 'nobody was going home' until things were fixed! Nobody was more frustrated about the problem than us, and anyone at Jagex who could do anything to help the issue, did so.
We know that the communication with players around the time of the disruption was limited, but we were severely hindered in our ability to access some of our key website modules, which is why we didn't make some sort of 'front page' announcement.
However, we did utilise social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to communicate the information we had, which we provided in French and German as well as English.
Some people are asking if there will be a 'roll back' of accounts - in our experience roll backs can be very disruptive to people, and whilst a few people may benefit the vast majority of players would find themselves less advanced and in a position they would not desire, and for this reason we feel that we need to do what's best for the vast majority of players - so there will be no roll back. We also know that some people have been asking for some sort of membership refund or credit, but we have no plans to refund or credit the few hours that the game was unavailable for.
For a tiny number of accounts there may have been some loss in profile data, which means that any changes on your account over the last period of game-play may be lost. We can confirm that all profile data is now stable, and again we apologise to the limited number of people caught up in this.
There have also been reports of people losing Dungeoneering binds, we are aware that this is an issue and we are now looking to create a solution for this problem. However, at this time, we are not returning any binds. Whilst we fully sympathise with people who this has affected, it is unfortunate that occasionally these sort of things can happen, which is why we are looking at possible future solutions.
A few people have also told us that the Hiscores seem incorrect (principally in-game XP not matching Hiscores XP) and for this reason we have now rebooted the Hiscores and all data should be correct.
We've also been asked why people were online and yet other people couldn't log in, this is because our servers were under heavy load - so even if you had been able to log in your gaming experience wouldn't have been much fun.
Finally, we really are truly sorry for this interruption to your game-play, this sort of thing frustrates and annoys us as much as it does you.
"RV Lounge" is now "Runevillage"!
Posted by Christopher on April 12th, 2011, 10:17 am. Category: RuneVillage News
EDIT: Since the Lounge has now pretty much completely cleared out, and everyone seems to have successfully moved to the new clan chat, Jaron has officially closed RV Lounge's friends chat. Again, I have to give a big THANK YOU to Jaron for helping to manage Rv Lounge! You really are the best. 
Hey guys!
As many of you know, Jagex released an entirely new Clan system today. This accompanied the renaming of the old clan chat system to "Friends Chat", as well as released a secondary chat system that is now the new Clan Chat system.
While we may not be a clan, there are many features in this new Clan Chat system that we can take advantage of. For starters, RV Lounge can only be managed by a single person. We've always had to rely on Jaron for any bans and unbannings we've had to make, which has obviously caused us more than a few issues, despite how amazing Jaron has been with the entire thing since turning the management of the chat over to me. This new Clan system allows the Clan Chat Moderators and myself to manage the ban list, which is something we've needed for a while.
Likewise, having (most) all of the villagers united under this new clan system will allow for an easier time with in-game RVET events and such. It will also allow users to use Friend Chat channels for lootshare and whatever else while still being able to chat with RuneVillagers! And the best part is that anyone can enter our Clan Chat even if they're not in the clan, or already belong to another clan. There will be no limitations due this switch, only perks! It will be much more convenient for everyone.
A week from now I will be asking Jaron to officially disable RV Lounge's friend chat, and we will officially use the clan chat "Runevillage" from now on. As I said before, you don't need to be a member of the clan to enter the chat, so just hop on in like you would with RV Lounge!
It's also worth note that if you would like to be a member of the clan, all Clan Chat Moderators have the ability to recruit. Becoming a member will give you access to a Clan Cape to show off your RuneVillage pride. I'll also be taking suggestions for what our cape should look like.
Aside from the new chat name and the new ranks, everything (rules + strike/step system) will remain the same.
Let's thank Jaron for all his hard work and finally give him a break!
Clan Chat: Runevillage
//Before your message in Clan Chat
///Before your message in Guest Clan Chat
Hey guys!
As many of you know, Jagex released an entirely new Clan system today. This accompanied the renaming of the old clan chat system to "Friends Chat", as well as released a secondary chat system that is now the new Clan Chat system.
While we may not be a clan, there are many features in this new Clan Chat system that we can take advantage of. For starters, RV Lounge can only be managed by a single person. We've always had to rely on Jaron for any bans and unbannings we've had to make, which has obviously caused us more than a few issues, despite how amazing Jaron has been with the entire thing since turning the management of the chat over to me. This new Clan system allows the Clan Chat Moderators and myself to manage the ban list, which is something we've needed for a while.
Likewise, having (most) all of the villagers united under this new clan system will allow for an easier time with in-game RVET events and such. It will also allow users to use Friend Chat channels for lootshare and whatever else while still being able to chat with RuneVillagers! And the best part is that anyone can enter our Clan Chat even if they're not in the clan, or already belong to another clan. There will be no limitations due this switch, only perks! It will be much more convenient for everyone.
A week from now I will be asking Jaron to officially disable RV Lounge's friend chat, and we will officially use the clan chat "Runevillage" from now on. As I said before, you don't need to be a member of the clan to enter the chat, so just hop on in like you would with RV Lounge!
It's also worth note that if you would like to be a member of the clan, all Clan Chat Moderators have the ability to recruit. Becoming a member will give you access to a Clan Cape to show off your RuneVillage pride. I'll also be taking suggestions for what our cape should look like.
- Villagers who wish to be an official member of the chat will have the "Recruit" rank
- All Clan Chat Moderators will have the "Admin" Rank
- All Administrators will have the "Co Owner" Rank
- I will have the "Owner" Rank
Aside from the new chat name and the new ranks, everything (rules + strike/step system) will remain the same.
Let's thank Jaron for all his hard work and finally give him a break!
Clan Chat: Runevillage
//Before your message in Clan Chat
///Before your message in Guest Clan Chat
12 March 2011 - Clan Support!
Posted by TrendyHaz on April 12th, 2011, 8:02 am. Category: RuneScape News
Quote:
The new clan updates have arrived! We know that existing clans have many free-to-play members, so these new clan tools will be available to both free-to-play and members. They will give clans a real presence in the game, offering tools to help you organise and administer your clans, as well as ways to advertise and show your allegiance in-game.
In-game Clan Support
You will be able to create clans in-game and recruit new clanmates, assigning ranks and job titles to them. We are also offering three new chat channels that you’ll be able to use: the current 'Clan Chat' system remains as it is, although we're renaming it to 'Friends Chat', while we're also offering access to a chat channel unique to your clan (and access to chat on another clan's chat channel as a guest, if the clan lets you...). You'll even be able to keep track of chat in all three channels at the same time.
The Clan Camp is the starting point for all of these features. Here, you’ll find everything you need to start a clan, and it's designed to be a place for clans to meet, recruit and plan. It will also be the staging post for clan content, and the place to go if you're curious about clans and want to ask a few questions.
Customisation
As well as your clan name, you will be able to set a clan motto, design a clan motif and assign colours that will be reflected in other clan features. You’ll have a vexillum (wieldable flagstaff) and a clan cloak to display your clan's motif around Gielinor, and you can stand the vexillum in the ground while you get involved in clan activities, 'marking your spot'. Passers-by will be able to access essential clan information and get in touch via the vexillum.
Clan Web Pages
Each clan will have their own clan homepage, housing lists of clanmates, basic information and links to the clan's own clan forums, making the experience of managing a clan painless. Select keywords for your clan in-game, and others will be able to search for that keyword on the website, in an effort to find likeminded groups of players. You'll also be able to tag your vexillum and in-game clan noticeboards within these threads. Clan forums will allow you to keep secret 'planning threads' private, but will also allow public recruitment threads, to tempt and interrogate potential clanmates. Your clan forum is private and accessible by logging into your clan’s homepage and clicking on the forum tab. You may wish to bookmark your clan’s homepage for ease of access in the future. Finally, you will have clan hiscore tables, where you’ll be able to compare clan kills and skills.
Rated Clan Wars
As our first piece of new clan-specific content, we are releasing Rated Clan Wars. This is a redesigned version of Clan Wars, allowing clans to challenge each other directly. We'll have a rating system and ranking table as well, so you’ll be able to compete to be the best RCW clan.
We Want Your Feedback
We're offering clans a load of tools and features that we hope and expect you'll use constantly, so we need them to work for you. We've spent time talking to existing clans and clan leaders, trying to make sure we've selected the best and most useful features we possibly can, but we do want to see how you use them, so we encourage your ideas on how we can improve them.
To this end, we’ve set up two feedback threads: the Clans: Website Feedback thread and the Clans: In-game Feedback thread.
This is Just the Start
We hope you find these features to your liking, but, remember, this is just the start. For all this work to be worthwhile, we'll need your participation in creating clans, and getting involved in clan activities. It's up to you, with the help of our clan community J-Mods, to create and maintain a vibrant and varied clan community. We have created the infrastructure, but that's not where our plans end: we plan to keep an eye on your feedback, making improvements to the clan systems in the future.
For those of you who have already reserved clan names within the clan forums, you will find that your clan is ready for you now, with the leader and four others set up in ranking positions, ready for you to start recruiting immediately.
The RuneScape Team
In-game Clan Support
You will be able to create clans in-game and recruit new clanmates, assigning ranks and job titles to them. We are also offering three new chat channels that you’ll be able to use: the current 'Clan Chat' system remains as it is, although we're renaming it to 'Friends Chat', while we're also offering access to a chat channel unique to your clan (and access to chat on another clan's chat channel as a guest, if the clan lets you...). You'll even be able to keep track of chat in all three channels at the same time.
The Clan Camp is the starting point for all of these features. Here, you’ll find everything you need to start a clan, and it's designed to be a place for clans to meet, recruit and plan. It will also be the staging post for clan content, and the place to go if you're curious about clans and want to ask a few questions.
Customisation
As well as your clan name, you will be able to set a clan motto, design a clan motif and assign colours that will be reflected in other clan features. You’ll have a vexillum (wieldable flagstaff) and a clan cloak to display your clan's motif around Gielinor, and you can stand the vexillum in the ground while you get involved in clan activities, 'marking your spot'. Passers-by will be able to access essential clan information and get in touch via the vexillum.
Clan Web Pages
Each clan will have their own clan homepage, housing lists of clanmates, basic information and links to the clan's own clan forums, making the experience of managing a clan painless. Select keywords for your clan in-game, and others will be able to search for that keyword on the website, in an effort to find likeminded groups of players. You'll also be able to tag your vexillum and in-game clan noticeboards within these threads. Clan forums will allow you to keep secret 'planning threads' private, but will also allow public recruitment threads, to tempt and interrogate potential clanmates. Your clan forum is private and accessible by logging into your clan’s homepage and clicking on the forum tab. You may wish to bookmark your clan’s homepage for ease of access in the future. Finally, you will have clan hiscore tables, where you’ll be able to compare clan kills and skills.
Rated Clan Wars
As our first piece of new clan-specific content, we are releasing Rated Clan Wars. This is a redesigned version of Clan Wars, allowing clans to challenge each other directly. We'll have a rating system and ranking table as well, so you’ll be able to compete to be the best RCW clan.
We Want Your Feedback
We're offering clans a load of tools and features that we hope and expect you'll use constantly, so we need them to work for you. We've spent time talking to existing clans and clan leaders, trying to make sure we've selected the best and most useful features we possibly can, but we do want to see how you use them, so we encourage your ideas on how we can improve them.
To this end, we’ve set up two feedback threads: the Clans: Website Feedback thread and the Clans: In-game Feedback thread.
This is Just the Start
We hope you find these features to your liking, but, remember, this is just the start. For all this work to be worthwhile, we'll need your participation in creating clans, and getting involved in clan activities. It's up to you, with the help of our clan community J-Mods, to create and maintain a vibrant and varied clan community. We have created the infrastructure, but that's not where our plans end: we plan to keep an eye on your feedback, making improvements to the clan systems in the future.
For those of you who have already reserved clan names within the clan forums, you will find that your clan is ready for you now, with the leader and four others set up in ranking positions, ready for you to start recruiting immediately.
The RuneScape Team
For information on RuneVillage's clan - please visit this topic!
Quote:
The following small fixes and adjustments have now been made to the game. If you spot any further bugs in-game, please use the Bug Report feature ('Submit a Bug Report' under the 'Help' drop-down menu of the website).
Graphical
Audio
Quests and Tasks
Activities and Distractions
Miscellaneous
Graphical
- All scimitar animations have been updated to use the same animations as the recently reworked dragon scimitar.
- Some lunar brooms were sweeping the ocean west of the Fremennik Isles. They've been returned to Lunar Isle.
- The floor viewed through the roof of the Piscatoris falconer's house can now be seen.
- Players can no longer walk onto a square in Lumbridge that was causing them to sink slightly.
- Some missing minimap icons in the Lumbridge Swamp have been returned.
- The throwing knives animation has been altered to stop showing multiple knives.
- Some flickering issues in the Mountain Daughter camp area have been fixed.
- Flickering issues in the Champion's Challenge fight area have been fixed.
- Some height mapping in the Wilderness has been fixed.
- Flickering and occlusion issues in Tarn Razorlor's Lair have been fixed.
- The Berserker, Protect Item and Turmoil curses will no longer cause a player to jump around if seated.
- A lever in the Stronghold of Security no longer changes graphics when used.
- A highlighted bowstring now looks the same as the non-highlighted version.
- A gnome woman, south of Ardougne, no longer fires projectiles using a melee attack animation.
- Zamorak robe bottoms are no longer green inside.
- The Trollheim farm patch has had its flickering issues removed.
- Zombie boots do not stick to the floor with virtus robe legs equipped.
- Oziach's house has had some clipping issues fixed on the roof.
- Players can no longer walk half-stand inside a wall next to Paterdomus Temple.
- Items are now more visible when dropped in the Living Rock Caverns.
- A raised tile in the Warriors’ Guild has been levelled out.
- The Ardougne cloak no longer clips with robe bottoms while mining.
Audio
- Dungeoneering two-handed swords now have sound effects when using the ‘block’ stance.
- The living rock strikers now have sound effects when meleeing.
- Some strange rustling sounds have been removed from Port Phasmatys.
Quests and Tasks
- The ‘Totally Livid’ Task now appears completed correctly in the task list if a player has unlocked one spell.
- The ‘What is this Place?’ Task once again appears in the Lumbridge Task List.
- The ‘I've Changed My Mind!’ Task now requires the player to use regrowth on a Falador tree.
- The Gamer's Grotto is now classed as Falador in the Task List.
- The Elemental Workshop IV automaton no longer appears on the minimap if it isn't powered up.
Activities and Distractions
- The vecna skull is now restricted using the ‘No Potions’ rules in Duel Arena and Clan Wars.
- The vecna skull's cooldown is now reset on leaving a duel.
- The overload potion's effects are now reset when entering a duel, in line with resetting all stats.
Miscellaneous
- Players can no longer take body helms onto Entrana.
- Pyrelord and forge regent familiars now move more intelligently when firemaking.
- Castle Wars doors can now be closed from inside.
- The evil spirit from Rum Deal now drops accursed ashes.
- Quick Chat now correctly states the number of Livid Farm produce points that a player has.
- Canoes are no longer listed as members-only in the skill advance guide.
- Using a crossbow shortcut with a hidey-hole no longer gives messages about broken grapples.
RS Tech Problems April 11, 2011 [SERVERS ARE WORKING]
Posted by hiker on April 11th, 2011, 2:49 pm. Category: RuneScape News
SERVERS ARE BACK UP.
You may all go scape now. ~Goten
You may all go scape now. ~Goten
RuneScape.com wrote:
Due to an issue with our core infrastructure, the RuneScape game client and certain website features were unavailable earlier today for an extended period. We have taken steps to rectify this issue as quickly as possible, and the game and all website features should now be back in full working order. We have taken every care to save every player's progress, however, there is a very small chance that a few players have lost some minutes of profile data. We apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused.
Thank you,
The RuneScape Team
Thank you,
The RuneScape Team
Hidden:
Our quarterly hosting payment is due April 25th.
RVET #45: Skilling Competition VII (Winners announced!)
Posted by Sayaka on April 10th, 2011, 2:13 pm. Category: Global announcement
This was a wackily-close competition the entire week! I'm happy to finally announce the results of this month's Fishing and Hunter competitions! Remember, first place wins 1m from the RVET, second place wins 500k, and third place wins 250k. Now that trading limits have been abolished, I'll be logging in a lot more frequently to look around for anyone I owe money. Don't be shy about taking it--most of you have put long hours in this entire week to pull off such a feat! Without further ado...
First, the Fishing competition. Honorable mention goes to Omegaman/Omegaman1111, who gained 1,543,821 exp this week, but ended up taking a fourth place finish.
Most players gained a small chunk of Hunting experience just to be safe, but a few certainly went all out for the skill, too!
To recap:
Fishing
1st place: Flick/Frizoid
2nd place: Glodenox
3rd place: Goten/Goatmeal
Hunter
1st place: Grackman
2nd place: kikori kid/Kikorishadow
3rd place: Il Demon lI
Congratulations to all of this month's winners, and a huge "thank you" to everyone that participated!
~~~
RVET Event #45: April 2011
Skilling Competition VII
Glodenox and Jaron stared at the posting on the RuneVillage Bulletin Board. "The Skilling Competitions are back, eh?" Glodenox asked. "Yep, and with prizes that are more than a drop in the bucket, finally," Jaron replied. "And that million is mine," he added under his breath. Glodenox laughed out loud. "Excuse me? There's no way you're going to catch more than me. I'm coming out on top." "You're on!" Jaron said, immediately teleporting away to get a head-start on the task.
One week later, the two of them, weary and tired, were walking across the RuneVillage courtyard to see the results. "Still think you won?" Jaron asked. "I'm pretty certain," Glodenox said, smirking. With bated breath, they approached the bulletin board--and found that they had BOTH taken first place. "What--did we tie?" Glodenox asked, incredulous. "Wait a second--when you said you were going to 'catch more than me'...you meant..." Jaron started. Glodenox held out a RuneScape Bank Note worth 8,923 Sharks, and Jaron reached into his pocket and pulled out a note for 7,322 Red Chinchompas. "I should have known," Jaron said, laughing, as the two went to collect their prize money.
General Information
What: Skilling Competition
Skills: Fishing and Hunter
When: April 17 through April 23
Skilling Competition Information
Two months ago, the return of the Drop Party.
Last month, the return of the real PKing trip.
This month, the return of the Skilling Competition--for 3,500,000 gp in prize money!
That's right, the RuneVillage Events Team is holding our seventh Skilling Competition! This month, you'll all have one week to gain as much experience as you possibly can in two different skills: Fishing and Hunter. The top three winners in each category will win awesome amounts of prize money generously donated by the RVET (and some outside sources too!), so don't hesitate to join the fun. It doesn't hurt to sign up, and you never know if you'll place until you try! Thanks to the return of free trade, we're highly excited to announce the newly increased incentives to win:
1st place: 1,000,000 GP from the RVET
2nd place: 500,000 GP from the RVET
3rd place: 250,000 GP from the RVET
Interested in participating? Read below carefully to learn how:
April 10-April 16: Sign up! You can post here, or if you wish to remain secret and get a jump on your opponents, PM Jaron. We'll add you to a hidden list of participants.
April 17-April 23: The contest begins! Sometime between April 16th and 17th, we'll record the starting Fishing and Hunter experience of every player. At the end of the week, the person who has gained the most experience in either skill will be declared the winner. The winners will (obviously) go up on the leaderboard below, as well as win valuable cash prizes from the RVET!
April 24: Winners announced!
Are you better at stabbing those unsuspecting Monkfish from the shores of Piscatoris, or trapping unwary Chinchompas in Feldip Hills? Either way, remember to sign up here--the contest begins on April 17th!
Recent RVET Event Winners
This section proclaims the winners of past RVET events. Want to have your name up here on a Global for all to see? Come on down to our events and give it your all!
November '10 Skilling Contest Winners (ST & AG): Ranger Blue & Glodenox
October '10 Hide and Seek Winners: yogirl223 and kikori kid
October '10 Costume Contest Winners: yogirl223, Ventrue, and n00b 4 m1nin
August '10 Games Room Champions: Guirun (Runelink) and Jaron (Draughts)
July '10 Skilling Contest Winners (SL & CK): Grackman and Regulus
May '10 Who's that Villager II Winners: Monk Basher and Muscular Ape
February '10 Skilling Contest Winner (CON): Grackman
November '09 Skilling Contest Winners (MI & SM): Glodenox and Simons Pure
August '09 Games Room Champions: ZinyX (Runelink) and Jackstick (Draughts)
July '09 Skilling Contest Winners (FI & WC): Avian Maid & Glodenox
April '09 Skilling Contest Winners (FM & RC): Vincent Ashe & mentos
February '09 Barbarian Assault Team: Glodenox, Weirdocal, Jaron, Vincent Ashe, Jimmybe
January '09 Staff vs. Villagers War: Villagers win
December '08 Fight Pits Champion: Jaron
August '08 Who's that Villager Winner: Jackstick
May '08 Castle Wars Winners: Team Saradomin
April '08 Trouble Brewing Team: Caedo, Goten, Jaron, Justin, Shadow7, Simons Pure
March '08 Egg Hunt Winners: Simons Pure (2 eggs), Shadowsmage, Zinyx, Devil Fly
February '08 Snowball Fight Victors: Justin's Wind Faction
January '08 Fight Pits Champions: Simons Pure, Paidea, Ges2
December '07 Games Room Champions: Dark Paladin, Jaron, The123king, The Slayer
About The RuneVillage Events Team
The RuneVillage Events Team is a team led by Jaron with strong support from Dark Paladin, Jackstick, Landerpurex, Mackerel, n00b 4 m1nin, sammich, and Tanksandguns. Together, we plan one event every month for all of RuneVillage to participate in. Hopefully, you will enjoy this event as well as every other event we host, as a lot of thought and time goes into each and every one we do. Also note that if you have an idea for an event and want our help, please do not hesitate to contact us and we shall see if we can help out.
- The RuneVillage Events Team -
Don't be shy about taking it--most of you have put long hours in this entire week to pull off such a feat! Without further ado...First, the Fishing competition. Honorable mention goes to Omegaman/Omegaman1111, who gained 1,543,821 exp this week, but ended up taking a fourth place finish.
- In third place, with 1,815,786 exp, is Goten/Goatmeal!
- The defending champion, Glodenox, takes a second place finish this time with a whopping 2,715,433 experience (which is still more than the 2.2m exp he earned during Skilling Competition II.)
- And taking first place, with an astouding 3,256,535 Fishing experience, is secret entrant Flick/Frizoid! That's gotta be a record, very well done!
Most players gained a small chunk of Hunting experience just to be safe, but a few certainly went all out for the skill, too!
- In third place is Il Demon lI, with 447,749 experience.
- Second place goes to kikori kid/Kikorishadow, who gained 603,054 Hunter experience this week (which I must say is an impressive feat, starting from only 82k exp in the skill at the beginning of the week!)
- And out of nowhere, going from nearly a standstill to gaining almost a million experience in the final day of the competition to overtake kikori, is Grackman, who gained 1,128,443 experience this week!
To recap:
Fishing
1st place: Flick/Frizoid
2nd place: Glodenox
3rd place: Goten/Goatmeal
Hunter
1st place: Grackman
2nd place: kikori kid/Kikorishadow
3rd place: Il Demon lI
Congratulations to all of this month's winners, and a huge "thank you" to everyone that participated!
~~~
RVET Event #45: April 2011
Skilling Competition VII
Glodenox and Jaron stared at the posting on the RuneVillage Bulletin Board. "The Skilling Competitions are back, eh?" Glodenox asked. "Yep, and with prizes that are more than a drop in the bucket, finally," Jaron replied. "And that million is mine," he added under his breath. Glodenox laughed out loud. "Excuse me? There's no way you're going to catch more than me. I'm coming out on top." "You're on!" Jaron said, immediately teleporting away to get a head-start on the task.
One week later, the two of them, weary and tired, were walking across the RuneVillage courtyard to see the results. "Still think you won?" Jaron asked. "I'm pretty certain," Glodenox said, smirking. With bated breath, they approached the bulletin board--and found that they had BOTH taken first place. "What--did we tie?" Glodenox asked, incredulous. "Wait a second--when you said you were going to 'catch more than me'...you meant..." Jaron started. Glodenox held out a RuneScape Bank Note worth 8,923 Sharks, and Jaron reached into his pocket and pulled out a note for 7,322 Red Chinchompas. "I should have known," Jaron said, laughing, as the two went to collect their prize money.
General Information
What: Skilling Competition
Skills: Fishing and Hunter
When: April 17 through April 23
Skilling Competition Information
Two months ago, the return of the Drop Party.
Last month, the return of the real PKing trip.
This month, the return of the Skilling Competition--for 3,500,000 gp in prize money!
That's right, the RuneVillage Events Team is holding our seventh Skilling Competition! This month, you'll all have one week to gain as much experience as you possibly can in two different skills: Fishing and Hunter. The top three winners in each category will win awesome amounts of prize money generously donated by the RVET (and some outside sources too!), so don't hesitate to join the fun. It doesn't hurt to sign up, and you never know if you'll place until you try! Thanks to the return of free trade, we're highly excited to announce the newly increased incentives to win:
1st place: 1,000,000 GP from the RVET
2nd place: 500,000 GP from the RVET
3rd place: 250,000 GP from the RVET
Interested in participating? Read below carefully to learn how:
April 10-April 16: Sign up! You can post here, or if you wish to remain secret and get a jump on your opponents, PM Jaron. We'll add you to a hidden list of participants.
April 17-April 23: The contest begins! Sometime between April 16th and 17th, we'll record the starting Fishing and Hunter experience of every player. At the end of the week, the person who has gained the most experience in either skill will be declared the winner. The winners will (obviously) go up on the leaderboard below, as well as win valuable cash prizes from the RVET!
April 24: Winners announced!
Are you better at stabbing those unsuspecting Monkfish from the shores of Piscatoris, or trapping unwary Chinchompas in Feldip Hills? Either way, remember to sign up here--the contest begins on April 17th!
Recent RVET Event Winners
This section proclaims the winners of past RVET events. Want to have your name up here on a Global for all to see? Come on down to our events and give it your all!
November '10 Skilling Contest Winners (ST & AG): Ranger Blue & Glodenox
October '10 Hide and Seek Winners: yogirl223 and kikori kid
October '10 Costume Contest Winners: yogirl223, Ventrue, and n00b 4 m1nin
August '10 Games Room Champions: Guirun (Runelink) and Jaron (Draughts)
July '10 Skilling Contest Winners (SL & CK): Grackman and Regulus
May '10 Who's that Villager II Winners: Monk Basher and Muscular Ape
February '10 Skilling Contest Winner (CON): Grackman
November '09 Skilling Contest Winners (MI & SM): Glodenox and Simons Pure
August '09 Games Room Champions: ZinyX (Runelink) and Jackstick (Draughts)
July '09 Skilling Contest Winners (FI & WC): Avian Maid & Glodenox
April '09 Skilling Contest Winners (FM & RC): Vincent Ashe & mentos
February '09 Barbarian Assault Team: Glodenox, Weirdocal, Jaron, Vincent Ashe, Jimmybe
January '09 Staff vs. Villagers War: Villagers win
December '08 Fight Pits Champion: Jaron
August '08 Who's that Villager Winner: Jackstick
May '08 Castle Wars Winners: Team Saradomin
April '08 Trouble Brewing Team: Caedo, Goten, Jaron, Justin, Shadow7, Simons Pure
March '08 Egg Hunt Winners: Simons Pure (2 eggs), Shadowsmage, Zinyx, Devil Fly
February '08 Snowball Fight Victors: Justin's Wind Faction
January '08 Fight Pits Champions: Simons Pure, Paidea, Ges2
December '07 Games Room Champions: Dark Paladin, Jaron, The123king, The Slayer
About The RuneVillage Events Team
The RuneVillage Events Team is a team led by Jaron with strong support from Dark Paladin, Jackstick, Landerpurex, Mackerel, n00b 4 m1nin, sammich, and Tanksandguns. Together, we plan one event every month for all of RuneVillage to participate in. Hopefully, you will enjoy this event as well as every other event we host, as a lot of thought and time goes into each and every one we do. Also note that if you have an idea for an event and want our help, please do not hesitate to contact us and we shall see if we can help out.
- The RuneVillage Events Team -
Quote:
Rakes, spades and dibbers are on standby as the Moon Clan are using magic to tend their new farm. Don’t expect it to be all tomatoes and cabbages; instead Pauline Polaris is cultivating a crop of the Jade Vine that has been drastically enhanced by lunar magic. Being typically tenacious, the Jade Vine has been morphed into a new strain of plant called 'livid'.
Pauline is overworked and needs your help in performing all the tasks about the farm using your lunar spellbook. Cure plants, fertilise soil, fix fences and perform many other activities to be rewarded with plenty of experience in Magic, Farming, Construction, Crafting and Agility. The Livid Farm is intended to be a fast-paced and quick-to-grasp area where you can train multiple skills at one time.
You will be able to cast each lunar spell in the Livid Farm even without the required Magic level, but you'll gain less XP and the rewards will come more slowly.
As an extra 'thank you', Pauline is willing to share her knowledge and teach you some new lunar spells, such as Remote Farming, Vengeance Group and Disruption Shield, to name just a few. Unlock all of these spells and you'll be able to purchase 'wishes', giving you temporary skill benefits.
Mod Tim
RuneScape Content Developer
Summary:
Where to find the Livid Farm:
On the north of Lunar Isle.
In other news...
In preparation for the launch of clan support next week, the Clan Camp is in the process of setting up just outside of Falador’s south wall.
Around the Clan Camp, you’ll probably also notice a lovely new graphical look for the trees. When chopping these particular trees, you’ll be 10% more likely to receive bird’s nest (and yes, this does stack with a lucky rabbit’s foot).
Pauline is overworked and needs your help in performing all the tasks about the farm using your lunar spellbook. Cure plants, fertilise soil, fix fences and perform many other activities to be rewarded with plenty of experience in Magic, Farming, Construction, Crafting and Agility. The Livid Farm is intended to be a fast-paced and quick-to-grasp area where you can train multiple skills at one time.
You will be able to cast each lunar spell in the Livid Farm even without the required Magic level, but you'll gain less XP and the rewards will come more slowly.
As an extra 'thank you', Pauline is willing to share her knowledge and teach you some new lunar spells, such as Remote Farming, Vengeance Group and Disruption Shield, to name just a few. Unlock all of these spells and you'll be able to purchase 'wishes', giving you temporary skill benefits.
Mod Tim
RuneScape Content Developer
Summary:
Where to find the Livid Farm:
On the north of Lunar Isle.
- Requirements to use the Livid Farm:
- 70 Magic
- 60 Agility
- 60 Crafting
- 60 Farming
- 50 Construction
- Lunar Diplomacy
In other news...
In preparation for the launch of clan support next week, the Clan Camp is in the process of setting up just outside of Falador’s south wall.
Around the Clan Camp, you’ll probably also notice a lovely new graphical look for the trees. When chopping these particular trees, you’ll be 10% more likely to receive bird’s nest (and yes, this does stack with a lucky rabbit’s foot).
Quote:
All joking aside, April is a month of joy, be that dreamily toiling on a magical lunar farm, official support for RuneScape clans, celebrating life with a revised death mechanic, seeing in spring with the Easter holiday event, or joining in on the celebrations of a very real royal wedding.
Livid Farm
This month, Lokar Searunner – pirate and rogue – will plunder the Jade Vine for a cutting. His plan? To convince the Moon Clan to make it even more dangerous than your average Jade Vine. Then he plans to sell the resulting ‘livid’ to Rellekka for chestfuls of gold...
Poor Pauline Polaris, utterly charmed by Lokar, has been left to tend the Livid Farm on Lunar Isle. Help her out by using your lunar spells to fertilise the soil, cure the livid, bunch them together, fix fenceposts and energise Pauline, and you will receive Magic, Farming, Crafting, Construction and Agility XP for doing so. The Livid Farm is ideal for those looking to train a number of skills at once, and is fast-paced, with the plants growing and being harvested in a matter of seconds.
Help Pauline harvest enough produce and you’ll be able to unlock eight new lunar spells. The Remote Farming spell allows you to check the status of your patches and cure them; Repair Rune Pouch unsurprisingly repairs and reinforces your rune pouches; and you’ll be able to deal fiery death with Vengeance Group. Unlock all spells and you’ll get ‘wishes’, which offer temporary effects as wide-ranging as vialling your herbs automatically and raining seeds about your feet.
You will be able to cast each spell in the Lunar Farm without their required Magic level, but you’ll gain less XP and the rewards will come more slowly. The Livid Farm itself will only be accessible to those with the following requirements:
Lunar Diplomacy
Magic level 70
Farming level 60
Crafting level 60
Construction level 50
The Clan Camp
As announced last week, Tuesday 12 April will see the release of true in-game support for RuneScape’s many clans, and for those who aren’t yet part of a clan. The Clan Camp will be setting up just outside of Falador’s south wall, becoming a hub for all clan activity, be that setting up a clan, recruitment, arranging events or just for private and public meetings.
Your first port of call should be the clan scribe, who will help you to officially register your clan and personalise it with a clan motif, colours and motto. The colours and motif you pick will be reflected in your clan cloak and on your vexillum, a wieldable flagstaff that can be used as a tool to recruit other players for your clan.
Other features of the camp include the ability to set up public or private meetings (say, by clan rank), set up events and have clan votes. Then there’s Rated Clan Wars – with RuneScape’s clans becoming fully recognised by the rest of the community, it will only be natural to prove which is the best… To support all of these in-game tools, there’ll also be website features too, including a clan homepage, stats, hiscores and clan forums.
Items Kept on Death Changes
Dying in RuneScape will become slightly less painful later this month as we introduce the concept of Limbo. If you die in any unsafe, non-PVP area, you will be prompted to choose which items you retain (following the existing rules for how many items you keep on death); also, certain types of items will always be kept on death – most notably coins, but also most quest-specific items and common, low-value items such as tinderboxes, fishing rods and the like.
You will then be given a choice of where you respawn – be that any of the respawn points you’ve unlocked (i.e. Lumbridge, Falador, Camelot or Soul Wars) or the last respawn ‘hub’ you passed through (typically, the last major settlement you visited). Once you have respawned, you’ll be free to hunt down your gravestone to attempt to retrieve those items you did not keep.
Please note that the death mechanic used in the Wilderness and other dangerous PvP activities will not be changing from how it currently is, other than that your most valuable items will be decided by their Grand Exchange guide price, not their alch value.
Holly and Hawthorn (Easter 2011)
This year’s Easter holiday event sees the official changing of the seasons, as the Queen of Snow hands things over to the Queen of Sunrise, allowing winter to pass in to spring. At least it would if someone hadn’t stolen the ceremonial ‘year baton’! What is normally a simple ceremony is edging towards bitter rivalry. If you don’t commune with the elements and track down the year baton, we could all be forever trapped in winter...
While all that is going on, you’ll also be able to side with either winter or spring by chopping down seasonal trees. Free-players will be able to fell holly trees to help bring in springtime, while members have the additional choice of chopping down hawthorn trees to side with winter. The Season Tree will keep track of how things are going, and the Land of Holly and Hawthorn will sway between the seasons based on how many of each tree is cut down.
Everyone who pitches in will earn this event’s holiday item, but members will get the added option of making it more than just cosmetic, by charging it with the ability to locate (and teleport them to) evil trees around RuneScape, much like communing with a spirit tree. This additional function will only be available for a month after the event ends.
Royal Wedding
The marriage of Prince William to Kate Middleton on Friday 29 April brings with it a public holiday (in the UK), much reason for celebration and a party mood. To reflect that party spirit, towards the end of April, some of RuneScape’s own royalty will be getting in on the act...
‘Tis a tale of a Wildy-crossed monsters, you see, as the royalty in question is the King Black Dragon and the Kalphite Queen! Not that we’ll get to see the ceremony (they’re a very private couple), but any excuse for a party, right? So, to celebrate, Diango will be selling some party items, including confetti, bouquets of flowers, fireworks, bubble makers, firecrackers and commemorative mugs.
Have fun!
Mod Mark
RuneScape Lead Designer
Livid Farm
This month, Lokar Searunner – pirate and rogue – will plunder the Jade Vine for a cutting. His plan? To convince the Moon Clan to make it even more dangerous than your average Jade Vine. Then he plans to sell the resulting ‘livid’ to Rellekka for chestfuls of gold...
Poor Pauline Polaris, utterly charmed by Lokar, has been left to tend the Livid Farm on Lunar Isle. Help her out by using your lunar spells to fertilise the soil, cure the livid, bunch them together, fix fenceposts and energise Pauline, and you will receive Magic, Farming, Crafting, Construction and Agility XP for doing so. The Livid Farm is ideal for those looking to train a number of skills at once, and is fast-paced, with the plants growing and being harvested in a matter of seconds.
Help Pauline harvest enough produce and you’ll be able to unlock eight new lunar spells. The Remote Farming spell allows you to check the status of your patches and cure them; Repair Rune Pouch unsurprisingly repairs and reinforces your rune pouches; and you’ll be able to deal fiery death with Vengeance Group. Unlock all spells and you’ll get ‘wishes’, which offer temporary effects as wide-ranging as vialling your herbs automatically and raining seeds about your feet.
You will be able to cast each spell in the Lunar Farm without their required Magic level, but you’ll gain less XP and the rewards will come more slowly. The Livid Farm itself will only be accessible to those with the following requirements:
Lunar Diplomacy
Magic level 70
Farming level 60
Crafting level 60
Construction level 50
The Clan Camp
As announced last week, Tuesday 12 April will see the release of true in-game support for RuneScape’s many clans, and for those who aren’t yet part of a clan. The Clan Camp will be setting up just outside of Falador’s south wall, becoming a hub for all clan activity, be that setting up a clan, recruitment, arranging events or just for private and public meetings.
Your first port of call should be the clan scribe, who will help you to officially register your clan and personalise it with a clan motif, colours and motto. The colours and motif you pick will be reflected in your clan cloak and on your vexillum, a wieldable flagstaff that can be used as a tool to recruit other players for your clan.
Other features of the camp include the ability to set up public or private meetings (say, by clan rank), set up events and have clan votes. Then there’s Rated Clan Wars – with RuneScape’s clans becoming fully recognised by the rest of the community, it will only be natural to prove which is the best… To support all of these in-game tools, there’ll also be website features too, including a clan homepage, stats, hiscores and clan forums.
Items Kept on Death Changes
Dying in RuneScape will become slightly less painful later this month as we introduce the concept of Limbo. If you die in any unsafe, non-PVP area, you will be prompted to choose which items you retain (following the existing rules for how many items you keep on death); also, certain types of items will always be kept on death – most notably coins, but also most quest-specific items and common, low-value items such as tinderboxes, fishing rods and the like.
You will then be given a choice of where you respawn – be that any of the respawn points you’ve unlocked (i.e. Lumbridge, Falador, Camelot or Soul Wars) or the last respawn ‘hub’ you passed through (typically, the last major settlement you visited). Once you have respawned, you’ll be free to hunt down your gravestone to attempt to retrieve those items you did not keep.
Please note that the death mechanic used in the Wilderness and other dangerous PvP activities will not be changing from how it currently is, other than that your most valuable items will be decided by their Grand Exchange guide price, not their alch value.
Holly and Hawthorn (Easter 2011)
This year’s Easter holiday event sees the official changing of the seasons, as the Queen of Snow hands things over to the Queen of Sunrise, allowing winter to pass in to spring. At least it would if someone hadn’t stolen the ceremonial ‘year baton’! What is normally a simple ceremony is edging towards bitter rivalry. If you don’t commune with the elements and track down the year baton, we could all be forever trapped in winter...
While all that is going on, you’ll also be able to side with either winter or spring by chopping down seasonal trees. Free-players will be able to fell holly trees to help bring in springtime, while members have the additional choice of chopping down hawthorn trees to side with winter. The Season Tree will keep track of how things are going, and the Land of Holly and Hawthorn will sway between the seasons based on how many of each tree is cut down.
Everyone who pitches in will earn this event’s holiday item, but members will get the added option of making it more than just cosmetic, by charging it with the ability to locate (and teleport them to) evil trees around RuneScape, much like communing with a spirit tree. This additional function will only be available for a month after the event ends.
Royal Wedding
The marriage of Prince William to Kate Middleton on Friday 29 April brings with it a public holiday (in the UK), much reason for celebration and a party mood. To reflect that party spirit, towards the end of April, some of RuneScape’s own royalty will be getting in on the act...
‘Tis a tale of a Wildy-crossed monsters, you see, as the royalty in question is the King Black Dragon and the Kalphite Queen! Not that we’ll get to see the ceremony (they’re a very private couple), but any excuse for a party, right? So, to celebrate, Diango will be selling some party items, including confetti, bouquets of flowers, fireworks, bubble makers, firecrackers and commemorative mugs.
Have fun!
Mod Mark
RuneScape Lead Designer
New Lunar Spells. I am appoint.
