My lesson learned over the past year is that new games aren’t always better than old games.

I’m such a gearhead that I gravitate towards the new and shiny.  But in the MMORPG world, new and shiny typically means incomplete, buggy, unbalanced and disappointing.

Over the past year, I’ve tried the following MMORPG’s:

• Age of Conan – My favorite of the newer games and I’ll probably return one of these days.
• Warhammer Online – My biggest disappointment.  Combat is just so clunky that I couldn’t stand it, even though I love PvP and RvR.
• Atlantica Online – Turned based combat is interesting, so I still have it installed on my computer to give it another try.
• Free Realms – Cutesy, but far too casual for me.
• Runes of Magic – Not bad, but not good either.
• MapleStory – I don’t understand the popularity.
• Runescape – WTF.  I guess it’s good for people playing in their browser while pretending to do work?
• Pirates of the Burning Sea – Interesting change of pace, but sea combat was too slow and land combat was forgettable.
• Mabinogi – Pretty nice F2P game, but didn’t catch my attention after a few hours of play.
• The Chronicles of Spellborn – The absolute worst first impression of any MMORPG I’ve played.
• Shin Megami Tensai: Imagine Online – Just like playing a PlayStation 2 game on my computer…hopelessly outdated.

There were more, but I already forgot what they were.

After months of vainly searching for a new MMORPG home, I’ve found myself hopelessly addicted to Guild Wars again.  It really is an incredible game.  I can spent hours fiddling with my skills and outfitting my heroes.  Since I tend to be an altaholic (I keep rolling alts), I haven’t finished all the content yet.  I’m nowhere near achieving any of the crazy titles or reputation grinds, but that kind of stuff never appealed to me anyways.  Once I finish through the content, I think I’ll join a serious PvP guild.

Once I’m done with Guild Wars, I’m planning to return to City of Heroes, Everquest II and maybe even World of Warcraft.  I was never very hardcore about any of these games and there is so much content I haven’t played.  There is no question that they provide a far better gaming experience than any of their newer competition.

I’ll still give upcoming AAA titles a chance, like Aion and Champions Online, but I’m not holding my breath.  MMORPG’s need time to mature into a great game.

The Sims 3 is supposed to be a simulator?  A toy?  A virtual sandbox?

Is it supposed to be a life simulation?  If so, please tell me how I can get that life.  It would be such an easy life.  Unfortunately, I think I’d get really bored.  Everything I do in the Sims world is accomplished with such ease and lack of stress that there is no sense of achievement.

I started off with one Sim (I didn’t know what to expect from the game) and kept adding more and more Sims to the household, hoping it would provide more challenge.  Nope.

She’s been leader of the free world and she’s now the head of a corporation and a best selling writer.  She’s overflowing with cash.  She has dozens of best friends and it takes minutes for her to make another best friend.  By the way, these relationships don’t weaken with time.  Most of her skills are maxed.  She’s bought most of the life achievement awards.  Now she spends her time training her family to become superhumans as well.  There is basically nothing left for her to do except die.

There are so many things in the game that make it far too easy.  For example, while you are at work, you can tell your Sim to socialize with her coworkers or kiss up to the boss.  You don’t even have to bother with the relationship minigame.  Your sim will automatically make best friends.  One of my sims just goes out to the park and plays guitar all day long.  She automatically makes dozens of friends as well.

I’ve tried setting up little scenarios, like rivalries, love triangles, enemies, etc., but everything is accomplished far too easily.  I tried the minigames like fishing and gardening, but those are rather boring.

Making money is no challenge, except during the initial stages of the game.  Writing a book and painting brings in tons of cash.  Investing in businesses in town is just overkill.

Getting promoted and reaching the top of the Sims profession is a piece of cake.  It takes a day or two to get a promotion.

The Sims 3 is a wonderful game, but the fact that it’s too easy basically ruins it.  Games, just like life, need to be challenging or else there is no point in playing them.

I try not to be a pirate, but I simply could not resist downloading The Sims 3.  The official release date is June 2nd, but it’s been available (via warez) since yesterday.  That’s two weeks before launch!  In my defense, I resisted about 12 hours before succumbing.  Two hours later, it was downloaded, installed and running silky smooth on my new computer (no problems running on Windows 7 64).

Electronic Arts (EA, the publisher) is kinda screwed.  There is no doubt that TS3 is going to be one of their biggest games.  Piracy was already going to be ridiculous, but with this crazy early warez release, it’s going to be absolutely rampant.  Spore and The Sims 2 were the two most pirated games of 2008.  The Sims 3 will definitely be one of the most pirated games of 2009.

I’m not a Sims junkie like so many people, but there is something really relaxing about playing The Sims that I enjoy.  I’ll definitely drop the cash to pick up the game once it gets officially released, but this won’t be true for tens of thousands (maybe even millions) of people who will download TS3 in the coming months and years.  Like TS2, TS3 will probably have a nice hook into their online services to make buying the game more attractive.  Even so, TS3 is going to get pirated like crazy.

In any case, I’ve been playing TS3 for the past few hours and having a great time.

My first impression was disappointing.  I expected more from the next game in the series.  For the most part, it feels just like playing TS2.  That’s not a bad thing, but I really wanted the game to take a big step forward, instead of simply adding new features.

In a strange way, I was also disappointed because playing this game reminds me just how far away we are from realistic life simulators, photorealistic graphics and true AI.

It is extremely polished and well made.  It runs perfectly on my computer and I’ve heard many people say that it runs better than TS2.  It’s a pleasure to play a game that works so well.  I have some minor complaints about the controls, but anyone familiar with the series should have no problems.

Okay, enough blabbing for me.  My sim need to go smooze more people on her way to becoming the leader of the world.

The first time I played a Tower Defense game was a few days ago. I didn’t know what they were.  I didn’t even know they existed.  (They are strategy games where you defend an area from invaders by building and upgrading towers.)

Now I am thoroughly addicted to them.

I’m usually not a fan of casual and repetitive games.  I have friends who have logged ridiculous numbers of hours playing Tetris, Bejeweled, Peggle and similar games and I always felt like they were just wasting their time.  While Tower Defense games definitely fall more into the casual game category, the added level of complexity adds some much needed strategy that makes it more than just a typical timewaster.

Defense Grid

What is even better is that Tower Defense games are really cheap.  Plants vs Zombies is $10 on Steam.  Defense Grid is currently on sale for only $5.

Plants vs Zombies is the latest creation from PopCap, the ultimate geniuses at creating addictive casual games.  It takes a crazy, hilarious concept (plants vs zombies???) and turns it into a great Tower Defense game.

Plants vs Zombies

Yay!

I got my Core i7 920 running at 4.0ghz!

My i7 920 is running at 4.0Ghz

I’m not a hardcore overclocker, but I wanted to see if my processor could reach the 4.0ghz milestone. Wow, I can’t believe it booted up successfully into Windows 7.

I had to set the voltages higher than I like (my BIOS warned me that the voltage would reduce the life of my processor).  My idle temperatures are too high for my comfort as well (45C-50C idle).  I’m sure I could get a better idle temperature if I fiddle with my heatsink and jack up the speed of my fans.

I prefer being conservative with my overclocks and having a computer as silent as possible.  So I’m bringing it back down to 3.2ghz for my usual day to day work.  Next year, when I start to get dissatisfied with my computer’s performance, I’ll overclock back up to 4.0ghz and do it properly so it’s stable for day to day use.

At 3.2ghz and my GeForce 8800gt 512mb, I can happily run Left 4 Dead at 1920×1200 with max settings and 16xQ antialiasing/16x anistropic.  I have no problems running any of my MMORPG’s or single player RPG’s.  I can’t really ask for much more than that right now.

By the way, I don’t know how or why, but I can play Left 4 Dead (a first-person shooter) without getting virtual motion sickness.  It’s sweet.  I’m absolutely horrible at it, but it’s great to play a FPS for a change.  By the way, Left 4 Dead is on sale for $24 on Steam right now.  It’s easily one of the best games of the year, so now is a good time to check it out.

UPDATE 1:

High voltages are what reduces the life expectancy of a processor and the various components.  As a result, I’m going to run my computer at the highest stable overclock I can accomplish without increasing the voltages.

Right now, my lovely i7 is running at 3.5ghz at default voltages.  My memory is running at 1400mhz with 7/7/7/16/1 timings.  Torture testing my system with Prime95 results in temperatures around 70C.  I could spend more time fiddling with my computer, but I’m completely satisfied with her performance.  I couldn’t be happier.

I’ve been doing a bit more research and I found that 3.8ghz appears to be the average maximum overclock using air cooling.  4.0ghz has been reported by many people, so it’s possible, but typically requires much higher voltages.

Day 3&4

UPS dropped by my house a couple times leaving behind some very nice packages for me.  As any gadget freak knows, half the enjoyment of buying online is the anticipation of the delivery, receiving and opening boxes, removing the shrink wrap, unwrapping the product packaging and finally reaching in and appreciating how great technology can be.

My living room is a total mess.  I ransacked the packages and ripped up packing material, empty boxes and useless manuals are strewn all over the place.

Here are my first impressions of the various components:

• Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66ghz Quad-Core processor

What a gorgeous piece of hardware.  I actually expected it to be much bigger, considering Intel somehow squashed four cores into one processor.  One huge plus is that the processor doesn’t have a multitude of small pins on the bottom that interfaces with the motherboard.  There was always the risk of bending them by mistake and ruining the processor.

• Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4P motherboard

It’s not the prettiest motherboard I’ve seen.  Gigabyte put too much effort into color coding, which ruins the overall aesthetic.  The heatsinks and various parts seem very solid and well made.  Like any $200+ motherboard, it’s jam packed with features.  There are no cheap LGA1366 motherboards.  They are all premium parts loaded with extras and top notch components.  SIX ram slots.  EIGHT SATA ports.  EIGHT USB ports.  Support for THREE graphics cards running in triple Crossfire or SLI.  Ridiculous.

• 6GB OCZ DDR3 PC3-12800 1600mhz RAM

These sticks are almost gaudy with gold-colored metal covers.  I love the idea that I’ll have SIX gigabytes of memory at my disposal.  If I want, I could get three more sticks and have TWELVE gigabytes.  I have no idea why I would need so much memory, but I love having the option.

• Corsair 650w TX power supply

Corsair is renowned for making some of the best power supplies and this one appears to be no exception.  Solid and heavy construction with a buttload of wires, each covered with a black fabric mesh.  It’ll be easy to do a good cable job that doesn’t look too messy.

• Cooler Master Centurion 534 Plus Mid Tower Case

For a $50 case, this is a well made product.  Unfortunately, I’m used to playing with $100+ cases and I can see where Cooler Master made compromises.  It looks very nice, expensive and clean.  Definitely not one of those gaudy, overdesigned cases made for gamers who have no sense of style.

I have a major problem with the hard drive bays, unfortunately.  The hard drive cage only holds three drives and they are all squashed together.  That means it only holds two drives, if you care at all about cooling.  There are two 3.5″ drive bays, but they are an extremely tight fit and not made for hard drives.  I tried sticking a dead drive into one of the bays to see if it fits and it required far too much force, scratching up the drives completely.  The case comes with FIVE 5.25″ drive bays.  Why the heck would anyone need FIVE??

There are three locations for 120mm fans, which is good, but none of the openings in the case have dust filters.  I’ll have to patch together some homemade filters.

The side panel has an air funnel for the CPU and a side fan, but both will have to be removed to make room for the monster CPU cooler.

• Scythe Mugen-2 SCMG-2000 CPU Cooler

Comparison with stock heatsink

This thing is a beast!  I’m a little worried it’s not going to fit into my case, even though I did all the research beforehand.  One thing I love about Scythe CPU coolers is that they are some of the best performers, but somehow they aren’t ridiculously overpriced.  Some CPU coolers are $70+ dollars and many of them don’t deliver.  On the downside, the way Scythe attaches the fan to the heatsink is really cheap and ugly.  The baseplate has a mirror finish, which means hardcore cooler freaks shouldn’t have to do any extra work trying to get the cleanest connection between the heatsink and the CPU.

The BUILD

ARGH!!!  ARGH!!

That’s all I can say right now.  It took me six frigging hours to do this build…by far the longest and most frustrating build I’ve ever done.  Luckily, I didn’t have any dead parts, but somehow I managed to entangle myself with what felt like every possible mishap and mistake.  I basically built dozens of computers today because I kept putting it together and ripping it apart trying to troubleshoot every little problem.

Here is a sampling of some of the problems I encountered.  Some problems, I had no idea how to fix, so I ripped the computer apart and put it back together again, hoping it would magically work (it did!!).

• 

  Motherboard with huge heatsink

  The Scythe CPU cooler requires a weird and complicated installation and I messed up several times.  The first couple times, I didn’t screw down hard enough to make a good connection between the CPU and the heatsink, resulting in 70+ celsius temperatures and immediate shutdowns.  I’m getting good temperatures and the Mugen-2 is a cheap product, but I don’t recommend it unless you have a lot of patience.

• I have a lot of experience with ASUS and DFI motherboards, but this is my first Gigabyte.  With the Gigabyte, I had to manually reset the CMOS over and over again.  I’m used to a motherboard that automatically reboots to the last working configuration.  I’m not happy with the Gigabyte motherboard right now.
• You won’t believe the variety of error sounds that I got from the motherboard.  Long screeching noises that made me think the computer was going to explode….
• Numerous times, after doing yet another rebuild, I would forget to plug one power connector, resulting in yet another error message and more time wasted.
• Since the hard drive bay doesn’t have rubber or silicon parts to minimize vibration, the drives make far too much sound.  I had to fudge together a craptastic fix to muffle the noise.
• When I finally got to the Windows 7 installation, I kept getting a Linux GRUB error message.  I was booting from the Windows installation CD so it made no sense whatsoever.  I tried various boot discs (Windows 7, Vista, XP) and even swapped out the DVD for an old fashioned IDE drive.  No luck.  It finally turned out that my Raptor (hard drive) had an old Linux installation, which I completely forget about it.  If I’m booting from the DVD, I don’t know why it would get an error message from the hard drive, but it did.  I eventually formatted the drive using another computer.

Finished!!

In any case, the build is done and Windows is running so smoothly, it brings tears to my eyes.  No problems with drivers.  No problems with incompatibilities so far.  It’ll take me a while to get everything reinstalled and working the way I want, but I’m ecstatic.

I’m not that anal about doing a perfect wiring job, but it looks pretty good to me.  In case I need to go in and fix something, I don’t want to zip tie anything or put too much effort into hiding the cabling.

For now, I’m letting the Core i7 run at stock speeds and using the Gigabyte software (EasyTune) to overclock.  It’s at 3.2ghz right now.  Honestly, I’m not sure EasyTune is even working, but everything is really fast and snappy.  Everything loads so quickly.

Things I would do differently

Overall, it was a fun build (maybe a little frustrating, but the challenge is what makes it fun).  I learned a lot and I’m sure my next build will be far more successful.

• Skip Gigabyte and go with an ASUS motherboard.  Gigabyte recently held an overclocking competition and they picked the GA-EX58-UD4P as the platform.  So obviously they think it’s a great overclocking board, but I don’t think it’s a very novice friendly board.  I went with Gigabyte because I wanted to try a different brand, but I would recommend ASUS motherboards.
• Get a better case.  The Cooler Master Centurion 534 is a good case, especially for the price ($50).  But I am really picky about noise, vibrations, fans and dust.  So I need a case that is better suited to my needs.
• Get a more user-friendly CPU heatsink.  The Scythe Mugen-2 is a great heatsink, but it’s so difficult to install.  My other choice for a cheap, but effective heatsink is the Xigmatek Dark Knight ($40).  It also looks much better.
• Consider upgrading to SSD drives (Solid State).  They are still really expensive, but soon enough, it will be affordable for the average person.  The cheaper SSD’s ($100-$150) have too many problems right now.  For many computers, especially at the high end, the hard drive is the weak link.  With quality SSD’s, the difference is enormous.

Sony Online Entertainment’s Free Realms launched yesterday (really, really late yesterday).  As expected, they flubbed the launch.  The official website was basically down the entire day, providing absolutely no information for impatient players.  SOE did set up a Twitter feed, so there were little dribbles of information coming out, but I’m sure plenty of people were annoyed as heck.  Eventually, the game did launch around 11pm EST and it’s been smooth sailing since then.

I spent a couple carefree hours running around the world, playing mini-games (cooking, card games and racing) and engaging in the rather simplistic combat system.  I have to applaud Sony for making a very polished and slick game.  The entire experience was smooth, simple and trouble free.

I knew from the beginning that Free Realms is targeted at the kiddie demographic and parents.  They definitely succeeded in creating a kiddie friendly game.  Unfortunately for me and most adults, it is just too cute and too dumbed down to seriously play this game.

It is worth checking out just to see Sony’s latest MMO, though.  You don’t need to download a huge file to do a test run.  Sony did a great job streamlining the installation process.  It’s not quite as simple as a browser-based flash game, but it is fast and easy.

From what I saw, Free Realms definitely has the potential to be a success.  For the most casual players, there is plenty of free content.  If you want to upgrade the account (small monthly fee) or use the microtransaction shop, it looks like it could be worth the money.

While I won’t be playing Free Realms ever again, it gives me a lot of hope for Sony’s upcoming MMO, The Agency.

Image via Wikipedia

Day 1

I’m feeling ecstatic, jittery and exhausted.  Yesterday, I finally decided that it was time to get a new gaming computer!  I’ve been up all night researching product after product.  When I finally clicked the ‘Submit Order’ buttons on my two favorite online shops (Newegg and Amazon), I have to admit that the pleasure of buying all these new components was quite overwhelming.  Yes, I’m a gadget freak and an online shopping addict.

I usually do a major upgrade every two years.  In between, I do smaller upgrades like adding a new graphics card or more memory.  Any parts that don’t get used in my primary gaming rig get installed into one of the many computers in my house or I give away to family and friends.  I prefer doing regular upgrades rather than buying a brand new computer every 2 to 3 years.

Since I’ve been back from Peru, I’ve been waiting for AMD to release a product to compete with Intel’s high end processors, the Core i7 quad cores.  I was hoping that AMD would force Intel to lower their prices.  Unfortunately, it’s now clear that isn’t going to happen anytime soon.  AMD’s Phenom II competes very well with Intel for the midrange market, but I want something better.

My uber (kinda) Gaming Rig

• Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66ghz Quad-Core processor
• Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4P motherboard
• 6GB OCZ DDR3 PC3-12800 1600mhz RAM
• eVGA GeForce 8800GT 512mb videocard (taken from current gaming rig)
• Corsair 650w TX power supply
• Western Digital Raptor 74GB 10000RPM hard drive
• two Western Digital 1TB hard drives
• Cooler Master Centurion 534 Plus Mid Tower Case
• Scythe Mugen-2 SCMG-2000 CPU Cooler
• Logitech G15 keyboard and MX518 mouse
• Windows 7 RC1 x64 (Release Candidate 1, available via warez)

Since I’m taking parts from my current computer, my total cost for this upgrade is about $900.  If I bought all these components, the total cost would be closer to $1600.  This is not a budget computer.  It’s hopefully a high performance computer for a great price that should easily provide a couple years of gaming bliss.

The Core i7 920 is well-known as a massive overclocker.  There are plenty of reports of people getting the 2.66ghz clocked up to 4ghz on air cooling alone.  That’s a 50% overclock!  It’s ridiculous and makes me quite happy because it means my investment will last me even longer.  It’s unlikely I’ll ever get it up to 4ghz (I’m not an expert overclocker), but I’m sure I’ll be able to achieve an acceptable overclock.  My current computer has an Opteron 165 (1.8ghz) overclocked to 2.5ghz (40% overclock), but I think I got lucky.

By the way, I’m not upgrading my videocard at this time because the GeForce 8800GT is still a great videocard.  The bottleneck on my current computer is the CPU, not the 8800GT.  I also noticed that there are plenty of 8800GT’s for sale on eBay at cheap prices.  It could be a cheap upgrade during the next year to add another for a SLI (or even a tri-SLI) setup.

I’m going to put together a short buyers guide for Core i7 overclocked rigs that explains all my choices.

Day 2

Sigh.  My credit card company is sometimes overzealous when it comes to protecting customers against identity theft.  They denied half of my credit card charges and I didn’t realize it until a day had passed.  That means I have to wait another day until my UPS guy delivers all my packages.

On a positive note, Amazon is incredibly fast.  My order with them is going to arrive later today.  It is amazing that such a huge retailer can fulfill orders so quickly.

After discovering this TV show a few weeks ago, I’ve been doing marathon runs, watching entire seasons in one or two sittings.  It’s been a long time since a TV show has grabbed my attention so completely.

It’s about the life of a serial killer, from the perspective of the serial killer.  Dexter is very much an anti-hero, which is a hugely refreshing change from the typical.  How much better can TV get than that?  It’s smart, funny, thought-provoking, dramatic…I can go on and on with the superlatives.  Michael Hall is an absolutely amazing actor.

As much as I love the TV show, it does bother me that nothing in the show disturbs me.  I am so desensitized to violence that it’s rather sad.  I can eat dinner while watching bloody murder sequences without any problems.  Hacked up body parts, ritual murders, enormous blood splatters…nothing.  Should I be worried?

On a gaming related note, they are making an episodic game for the iPhone coming out this summer.  When I first hear rumors about a Dexter game, I was rather skeptical.  I’m still skeptical, but since it’s a mobile game and not one for a major gaming platform, the standards for quality are much lower.  Based on this article, the iPhone game looks quite good.

It looks to be primarily an adventure game with stealth elements, which fits the TV series.  I have to say that I’m rather torn on the idea of playing as a serial killer.  The game includes the ritualistic kill sequences and gives you access to a cleaver, knife and bone saw.  I’m fully aware that most action games basically puts the player in the role of a mass murderer.  On any given day, I probably kill dozens, if not hundreds of virtual humans.  But doing it in the shoes of a serial killer is another story.

I absolutely love the Sam & Max series of episodic adventure games.

Insanely clever and hilarious writing, stellar voice acting and simple but fitting cartoonish graphics combine to make the perfect point&click adventure game. I’m laughing and giggling the whole time while I’m playing, which makes me look like an idiot, but I don’t care. I often replay conversations and sequences because they are so damn funny.  The puzzles are just hard enough to make it satisfying when I solve them and the logic behind the puzzles makes sense in terms of the S&M world.

It also makes me wonder why so many other games have such horrible voice acting when the S&M series has so many characters who are all perfectly voiced.

Grim Fandango is still my favorite adventure game of all time, but S&M is a close second tied with the old school Monkey Island series.

I know the subject matter of this post isn’t related to gaming, but I smoke quite a lot especially while playing MMORPG’s.  So I wanted to get the word out.

Have you heard about electronic cigarettes?  The first time I heard of them was a couple weeks ago, but they’ve been around since 2004.  Considering I’m a gadget freak and I’ve been smoking for quite a while, I was rather surprised I hadn’t heard of them before.  I immediately went online, did some research and ordered a couple e-cigarettes to try them out.

It’s basically a battery powered fog machine that uses a flavored propylene glycol and nicotine liquid solution.  There is no smoke nor is anything burned in the process.  Propylene glycol is a common ingredient used in a wide range of applications, including food products.  Fog machines have been around for quite a while now and they are generally considered to be safe.

The vapor produced is a mix of water vapor, propylene glycol and nicotine.  Studies have shown that practically all the nicotine is absorbed, so there is no issue whatsoever with secondhand vapor.

Unfortunately, the current legality of e-cigarettes is somewhat unclear and some countries have even banned their sale.  In the USA, they are unregulated, but Senator Frank R. Lautenberg of New Jersey recently contacted the FDA and requested they be banned until further studies can be done regarding their safety.

In the US, it is currently legal to use them anywhere (although individual businesses may ban their use).  Even though it’s legal, you might get hassled because it does look like you are smoking a tobacco cigarette and most people have never heard of these gadgets before.

Research regarding their safety is sparse, but so far, the results are very positive.  In any case, most agree that e-cigarettes are a far safer alternative to smoking actual cigarettes.

Here are the results of three studies which basically show that e-cigarettes are quite safe.

• Supersmoker JP (pdf)
• Pillbox’s Totally Wicked
• Health NZ’s analysis of Ruyan

Another major issue with e-cigarettes is their relative novelty.  Too many people are not aware of what they are or how they work.  A lot of people who are vehemently anti-smoking tend to jump to erroneous conclusions and automatically fight anything even vaguely resembling a cigarette.

My experiences with e-cigarettes

First, let me say that since I received the shipment, I’ve only had a couple tobacco cigarettes.  Considering I used to smoke between 10 to 30 cigarettes every day, that is a huge improvement.

I ordered two e-cigarettes, but the online shop messed up my order, so I have experience with 3 different models.  I’ve tried the DSE901 (”The Mini”), the DSE801 (”The Classic Penstyle”) and the M401 (”The Pilot”).

If you are curious about e-cigarettes, the DSE901 is currently the most popular product and widely available.

• DSE901 – A good balance of size, battery life and vapor production.  It’s similar in size to a cigarillo.
• DSE801 – It looks like an actual pen, so it may look a bit strange if you use it in public.  It has a bigger cartridge for the eliquid, longer battery life and better vapor production than the DSE901.  Recommended for heavy smokers.
• M401 – It is similar in size to an actual cigarette (image to the right).

I like all three models. For a new e-smoker, I would recommend the DSE901.

You can also buy USB powered passthroughs that act as batteries for the DSE901 and DSE801.  This is really nice because you don’t have to fiddle with charging batteries as long as you are near a USB port.  The vapor production is better as well.

It’s not exactly like smoking a real cigarette, but I was shocked at how well they do work.  The primary difference is the slow and smooth inhalation.  With a good e-cigarette and eliquid, the throat hit can be rather strong and there is plenty of vapor.

Unfortunately, it’s not a perfect product yet.  All the parts are prone to failure (the parts are manufactured in China and lack brand-name quality control).  As a result, you have to view the e-cigarette as consumerables.  Various components need to be replaced every few weeks or months and it’s a good idea to always have backups.  In addition, the eliquid is ridiculously expensive.  If you buy from US online retailers, a typical price for only 15ml of eliquid is $10.  A typical user might go through a few milliliters of eliquid a day.  If you buy direct from China, $10 can buy 20 to 35ml of eliquid.

For me, even with these prices, it is a far cheaper hobby than buying tobacco cigarettes which currently sell for about $7-8 a pack.  It’s cheaper and based on the current research, it’s far safer.

A typical starter kit costs about $50.  It comes with an atomizer (produces the vapor), two batteries, a charger and some sample cartridges.  Bought separately, the atomizer is about $10-11 and the battery is $15.

Where to get more information

I’ve found two forums that have a lot of members and tons of information.

• www.vapeatron.com
• www.e-cigarette-forum.com

There are also plenty of youtube videos that show how they work, review various products, give advice and provide maintenance information.

Where to buy

I’ve had good buying experiences from the following US retailers:

• puresmoker.com
• vaporstix.com
• www.johnsoncreeksmokejuice.com
• www.e-smokeytreats.com

Here is page with a load of coupon codes which typically give between 5% to 10% savings.

If you want to buy direct from China, plenty of people have had good experiences with the following retailers:

• eastmall.net
• bestecig.com
• e-cigarette-mart.com
• ruyandirect.com

Several of them are online stores of the e-cigarette and eliquid manufacturers.  Delivery costs aren’t too ridiculous (maybe $15) and it takes a week or two to arrive.  So far, I haven’t heard of any issues with customs for US customers, but do a little research if you live in another country.  I have heard of people in Canada having problems.

Many articles regarding RMT talk about scammers, illegal business practices, exploitation and disruptive in-game advertising and behavior.  While these many be true, they are only symptoms and not a root cause.

I understand all the reasons that support RMT.  At the core, RMT is simply an aspect of the real world market economy.  You are hiring someone to perform a service.  I don’t have a problem with a market economy.  In the real world, we engage in such behavior all the time.  If gold farmers choose to spend their time farming gold, it is their choice.

The problem is that MMORPG’s are not the same thing as the real world.

MMORPG’s are games

Let’s look at some simple games that involves in-game money such as Monopoly or Risk.  How stupid would these games be if one player could buy in-game money or items from another player using real money?  That never happens because everyone accepts the rules of the game.  It’s no longer the same game if you change the rules.

This is an inherent truth for any game.  Play by the rules or you aren’t playing at all.  Unfortunately, the real world is never so fair.  Too many people are willing to cheat or bend the rules.

In many games, there is a negative consequence to engaging in unfair behavior.  How can you buy money in Monopoly if the other players are sitting right there at the same table?  They would stop it from happening.

Online gaming has an inherent anonymity and secrecy that allows people to cheat without any negative consequences.

MMORPG’s are closed virtual worlds

The core assumption of MMORPG gameplay is that you are playing a character inside a virtual world.  You are no longer yourself.  What you are and what you do in real life has no bearing on what happens inside the virtual world.

It doesn’t make any sense to be able to spend real world money to impact what happens in the virtual world.  From the standpoint of the virtual world, where is this money coming from?  Is it a gift from the gods?

For a roleplayer like myself, RMT breaks the illusion in so many ways.

Unfortunately, not everyone sees MMORPG’s as a virtual world that is separate from the real world.  In fact, the reality is that it is not a completely separate entity.  No one is roleplaying 100% of the time.  Real world issues with time constraints and interruptions are constantly influencing the game.

As a result, some people see MMORPG’s as an extension of the real world.  They don’t seem to consider MMORPG as games with rules that must be followed.

There is difference between open and closed virtual worlds.  Virtual worlds like Second Life and various social worlds that are popping up all over the place are not the same thing as MMORPG’s.  These worlds are intentionally designed to be an extension of the real world.  These worlds are intentionally designed to be open systems that allow external influences.

MMORPG’s are games that are played inside a closed virtual world.

I’m feeling rather frustrated.

After a few weeks of occasionally playing short sessions of Mirror’s Edge, I finally had to uninstall the game. I could only play 10 minutes at a time before I’d start getting an overwhelming sense of doom.  I could feel a pounding headache and vomit session just around the corner.

There was something really appealing to me about Mirror’s Edge.  The movement just felt right…at least as right as it could be considering the current limitations of technology.  That’s why I kept trying to play, even though it was like self-inflicted torture.

The game is known for causing problems as noted in this Wired.com article and this Penny Arcade comic strip.

I am one of the unlucky many who have problems playing first-person perspective games due to simulator sickness.  As an avid gamer, it is one of my biggest frustrations and regrets.  I know that I’m missing out on so many great experiences.  A huge percentage of online gaming centers around FPS’s.  Incredible games like Half-Life 2 and Bioshock are beyond my reach.

It’s not for lacking of trying either.  I own plenty of FPS games.  Occasionally I’ll load them up and try to force myself to endure.  By now, I know the physical symptoms that tell me I need to stop playing NOW.  There have been times when I forced myself to keep playing until I could no longer bear it.  Afterwards, I’d have to lie in bed for at least half an hour, unable to do anything else.

I have yet to find a first person shooter I can play for longer than 15 minutes.  I get motion sickness from a lot of driving games as well, which is perhaps why I love the Burnout series so much.  It’s a great series, but it doesn’t make me sick either.  I have a much greater tolerance for 3rd person perspective games, but some of those can cause problems as well (Grand Theft Auto 4).

This post outlines some suggestions gleamed from a research article published by the US Army.  It sounds like valid advice, but I’m not sure I’m willing to put in the time required to get myself adapted through a long series of short gameplay sessions.  The feeling of simulator sickness is rather painful and aversive and I have an embarrassingly low threshold for pain.

After doing some online research, I’ve seen plenty of other theories as to the cause of simulator sickness and how to overcome it.

• The framerate is too high or too low.
• The refresh rate is too high or too low.
• The field of view is too high, encompassing your field of view, giving a greater sense of immersion.  Sitting further back from the screen might fix the problem.
• Experiment with the field of view setting in games.  For me, Elder Scrolls: Oblivion was unplayable until I changed the fov setting and I only played it in 3rd-person perspective.
• Turn off bobbing and other extraneous movements.
• Play in a dark room or a brightly lit room.
• Try standard cures for motion sickness, such as Dramamine.

Sigh.

I hope researchers and developers figure out how to overcome this problem permanently.  Unfortunately, since it’s been around for  quite a while now, I don’t see a fix coming anytime soon.

For now, I’m going to re-install Half-Life 2 on my computer, slowly try to build a tolerance and finally see what all the hype is about.  If that doesn’t work, there are plenty of incredible games to play that don’t cause crippling pain.

I don’t have a taste for blood or a closet full of leather and PVC fetish clothes, but I’m starting to think that maybe I have a bit of vampire in me.  Hmm…I haven’t tried drinking blood before.  Maybe I love it, but I just don’t know it yet.  I tend to dress in a lot of black clothes as well.

Now that I’m back from Peru, I’m reverting to my backwards sleeping habits.  I wake up sometime in the afternoon and go to sleep when the sun comes up. I love the fact that so many stores are open late or 24 hours a day.  Internet shopping is 24/7 and the UPS guy drops off packages at my door without needing a signature.  Lucky for me, my job has such flexible hours.

My brain works so much better once the sun goes down.  When the sun is out, I feel sleepy and sluggish.  Afternoons are the perfect time for napping (siestas!).

Talking about vampires, why hasn’t anyone made a vampire MMORPG?!?  I know I’m sick and tired of elves and dwarves.  I’m sure there must be vampire tabletop roleplaying games.  There are plenty of movies and books that provide a great starting point for a MMORPG.  How about a Buffy the Vampire Slayer MMORPG?  Heh, maybe Buffy isn’t the best MMORPG idea, but it’s a great TV show.

Vampires, werewolves and other supernatural creatures versus humans wielding technology and witchcraft.  In most stories, supernatural creatures don’t get along, so there are plenty of PvP opportunities as well.

It’s been a few months since I last played Age of Conan.  I’ve been considering coming back, but for now, I was having fun remembering all the great times I had roleplaying while I was leveling up all my characters.

By far the most fun I had in that game wasn’t doing any of the PvE content, raiding, sieges or the endless FFA group PvP going on in Kheshatta.  I had the most fun taking advantage of the freedom provided by the FFA PvP servers and roleplaying to the fullest.  World PvP when you are roleplaying can be so much fun.  I leveled up my alts really slowly since I was constantly being sidetracked by the PvP, but it was worth it.

My favorite world PvP character was probably my necromancer.  She became notorious between the level 20-60 zones because the necromancer class in that level range used to be ridiculously overpowerful.  She could take on multiple people at a time and often win.  Her backstory is that she was enslaved by a demon and her pets are actually her children.  She can’t help loving her children, but they are demons and they control her.  She’s really helpless and is questing to find a cure for her children.

It was fun playing her because she’s really nice and friendly, but then her pets would backstab everyone when they least expect it.  I also had great fun sending tells to people asking permission for my pets to attack and feed on them.

My Herald of Xotli was probably the most exciting because she’s such a glass cannon.  Her backstory is that she is nobleborn, but she was kidnapped and forced to be a sex slave.  She prayed to the gods, but it was Xotli who responded and gave her demonic powers.  Now she’s like Jekyll and Hyde.  She’s scared of her evil self, but sometimes it comes out and takes control of her.

It was fun playing her because she had two personalities.  With her first personality, I pretended to be a really horrible player and a newbie who didn’t know what I was doing.  I’d run away from monsters and get other people to help me.  When her evil side came out, she’d go on murder sprees.  When she returned to human form, she’d forget she did anything wrong.  This led to a ton of hilarious conversations and battles where no one knew who was really the evil one (me!).  Some people would jump in and defend me (both in chat and in battle), while the people I killed would be all pissed off and accuse me of ganking them.  The entire time, I would act clueless and pretend like I was being falsely accused.

My most successful was probably my Bear Shaman.  I twinked the heck out her (pre-gem nerf).  She could go around and attack people 20+ levels above her and win.  Against people her own level, there were times when I killed entire groups.  I didn’t have much of a backstory for her.  She was just a psychotic trouble maker.  She would usually stealth around, jump out and kill someone really quickly.  I’d stand over the body and say something like, “You and your guild are murderers!!  You deserved to die!”  I’d basically pretend like they or their guild had wronged me.  This led to huge dramas where I ended up getting on a ton of guild KOS lists.  I had guild leaders contact me to try to resolve the issue or threaten me.  I also enjoyed going up to strangers and badmouthing random guilds.

I absolutely loved killing people in my main character’s guild.  My main was in the biggest guild on the server and had the most level 80’s.  So it gave me plenty of tempting targets anywhere I went.  It was hilarious killing my friends and seeing another side of them as they got embarrassed by someone 10-20 levels lower.

My main characters (my Tempest of Set and Priest of Mitra) were perfectly nice, helpful and team-oriented people.  They’d help out anyone in need and defend the weak.  That’s fun in its own way, but sometimes, it’s so much more fun to be a psychotic evil killer and just go crazy!

Another gamer has suffered a major health trauma after a marathon MMORPG session.  A 15-year old boy collapsed and went into convulsions after 24 straight hours of World of Warcraft.  This is only the latest in a growing problem of videogame addiction.  Some researchers have actually called WoW “the most dangerous game on the market” and likened it to crack cocaine.

As any experienced MMORPG gamer knows, it’s all too easy to get sucked into these games.  There is a potential for addictive behavior with any activity, but the power of MMORPG’s to promote such behavior scares the heck out of me.

Ultimately the success of any MMORPG depends on building and maintaining a playerbase.  In other words, the success of any MMORPG depends heavily on getting people hooked and addicted.

If developers wanted their game to be the most fun it could be, grinding wouldn’t exist.  Mindlessly repetitive behavior would never have made it into their game.  Yet, the reality is that a core component of MMORPG gameplay is the grind.

When I play a MMORPG, I’m reminded of the cognitive psychology class I took years ago.  Everyone knows about Pavlov’s experiments with dogs where he studied the relationship between stimulus and response and the impact of conditioning.  MMORPG’s are basically a way to condition or program people in order to keep them playing (and paying).

For example, rewarding someone sporadically with positive reinforcement is a basic and time-tested way to program them to continue their current behavior.  This kind of programming is one of the core components of an MMORPG: Loot.  People spend countless hours doing boring and repetitive actions in order to get rewarded with better loot.

The core design philosophy of MMORPG developers seems like it can be summed up by the following statements:

• People are goal oriented.
• People like to be rewarded for their efforts.
• People like to feel like they are making progress.
• People are competitive.
• People are social beings.
• Satisfy these basic needs and use programming and conditioning in order to promote addictive behavior.

I wouldn’t be surprised if these developers hire psychologists to tell them how to make their game more addictive.  This gaming genre is still relatively new and I’m sure developers will get much better with time at learning how to make their games even more addictive.

As games become even more immerse, the potential for videogame addiction is absolutely ridiculous.  Can you imagine being in a virtual world that is just as believable and immersive as the real world?  Eventually, our technology will reach the point where fiction (like the movie ‘The Matrix’) will become reality.  When that happens, it’s not hard to imagine that many people will choose to live in their virtual worlds instead of the real world.  All they have to do is earn enough money to supply their basic human needs (internet connection included, of course) and they can be plugged in all the time.

Plenty of people are showing all the signs of addictive behavior already, including myself.  Gaming definitely takes up far too much of my time.  There have been far too many situations where games, especially MMORPG’s, has negatively impacted my life.  With every passing year, games are only going to become more fun, more exciting, more immersive and more addictive.  I can only hope that I’ll have the maturity and sense of responsibility to control myself and maintain some balance in my life.

(Sorry about the gloomy post.  I’m in a weird mood today.)

It seems strange to complain about having too many great games to play, but I’m finding that it’s having an immense impact on my gaming behavior.

In the good ole’ days (5+ years ago), at any given time, my choices were usually limited to a handful of games.  I would typically play one or two games at a time, usually finishing them before moving on to the next one.  I used to have marathon sessions where I’d be glued to my computer or console all night long.

Now it is a completely different story.  When I sit down at my gaming station, I’m faced with dozens of choices.  I currently have the following games installed on my computer.

• Fallout 3
• Grand Theft Auto 4
• Tomb Raider – Underworld
• Half-Life 2 / Orange Box
• Bioshock
• World of Goo
• Sam & Max
• Mass Effect
• Assassin’s Creed
• Civilization 4
• Galactic Civilization II
• Sins of the Solar Empire
• Warhammer Online
• Age of Conan
• World of Warcraft
• Guild Wars
• Atlantica Online

I also have a nice pile of Xbox 360 games, most of which I haven’t finished either.  I have an even bigger stack of PS2 games which I’ll never, ever play again.  There are times when I look at some of the game titles and wonder if I missed out on an incredible gaming experience.  I bought God of War and Metal Gear Solid 3 shortly before I bought my Xbox 360 and I didn’t spend much time with either of them.

I sit down in front of my computer and waver over what I want to play.  When I finally decide, I boot up the game and find myself playing halfheartedly and wondering if this is really how I want to spend my time.  The moment the game gets a little boring or difficult, I quit and boot up another game.  My attention span is so pathetic.

There are nights when I spend more time reading about upcoming game releases and skimming game reviews instead of playing the games I already own.  How stupid is that?

Most of the games I own are some of the best games ever created.  Fallout 3?  Bioshock?  GTA4?  When I play them, I recognize just how good they are, but it’s increasingly rare for a game to capture my attention and imagination for any extended period of time.

Is my problem due to having too many choices?  Perhaps I’m looking to recapture the incredible feeling I used to get when I was new to gaming.  Maybe I’m just burned out on gaming in general and I need to find another hobby?  Maybe I’m just getting too old for videogames?  I don’t know the real reason, but it’s sad and frustrating.

Darkfall Online has launched (with many, many problems) and I chickened out.  I won’t be playing Darkfall any time soon.

First, I am sick to death of horrible launches and based on all the feedback, Darkfall is no exception.  Billing issues, major downtimes and queuing, sync issues, website/forum outages, etc…I don’t have the patience for that kind of crap anymore.  I am overwhelmed by the sheer number of incredible games I could be playing right now.  There are so many triple-A and highly rated games that I have not played yet.  Why spend hours being frustrated when I can spend it playing a game that is amazing and works perfectly?  (I’m currently having lots of fun playing Tales of Vesperia and Fallout 3.)

Darkfall needs time to mature.  MMORPG’s are not finished products at launch.  The best MMORPG gaming experience often comes after a MMORPG has had time to iron out bugs and imbalances and add more content.

Second, the more I think about it, the more I realize that hardcore PvP is not for me.  From my past experiences, it often brings out the worst in people.  In an anonymous world with very few consequences, many people choose to behave as poorly as possible.  I love PvP.  I even love free-for-all PvP.  But Darkfall features full looting and I can’t stomach that.  I feel too guilty to loot someone and steal hours of work away from them.  I’m pretty sure I’ll be pissed off getting looted as well.  I understand the desire for an adrenaline rush that comes from having consequences, but getting looted sucks.

In Age of Conan, I spent countless hours enjoying the free-for-all PvP.  A huge percentage of my victims were apparently very pissed off at me, judging by the mass of hate tells I received.  I have to be honest and say that I loved getting the hate tells.  In fact, I often laughed my ass off after reading some the more creative and emotional tells.  Maybe I am a bit of a griefer, but I have limits.  Killing people in a free-for-all PvP environment is good gameplay.  Looting people is crossing the line into griefing territory.

Darkfall definitely offers a different gaming experience and I think it is worth trying out for some people.  Maybe in a few months, I’ll take another look and see if it’s worth my time.

Less than a week from now on February 25th, Darkfall Online (DF) will finally launch in Europe! Plans for the North American launch hasn’t been established yet, but NA players are invited to play on the European servers.

It’s been 7 long years in development.  From the beginning, the developers (Aventurine SA) promised a sandbox game with hardcore PvP and skill-based progression. Although it isn’t a mainstream game, players have been talking about it for years, especially the hardcore PvP’ers who miss the glory days of Ultima Online and Asheron’s Call.

For the longest time, I doubted this game would ever launch.  After years of waiting, I wrote it off as vaporware and stopped paying attention.  I was surprised last year when members of my guild in Age of Conan mentioned that they knew people in the DF beta.  Most of the hardcore PvP’ers in my guild were disappointed with AoC and they talked about DF as if it was the answer to their prayers.

Sadly, I wasn’t lucky enough to get into the beta, but now that the NDA is lifted, there are plenty of beta reviews.  MMOCrunch has a great in-depth review that anyone even vaguely interested in DF should read.  Unfortunately, as expected, the feedback is all over the place.  Some beta players can’t stop raving about this game.  Others hate it and can’t understand the hype.

Although the beta reviews vary greatly, many do agree on many very important points:

1. DF is a game for hardcore PvP’ers.  Free-for-all PvP with full looting is not for everyone.  After years of being carebear’ed in most of the triple-A MMORPG’s, it will be a huge shock for many gamers to deal with a hardcore PvP game.
2. The DF world is absolutely enormous.  It is seamless (no zoning, load screens or instancing).  This is good and bad.  For people who love exploring, DF will be a great game, but there have been plenty of complaints about how it takes forever to travel and much of the world feels lifeless.
3. PvE is severely lacking.  There are few quests and they are average at best.  There aren’t enough mobs and apparently no boss or group mobs anywhere.  Many players will probably load into the DF world and find themselves clueless about what to do next.  DF isn’t like most triple-A titles (WoW, WAR, AoC, EQ, etc.) that are loaded with quests and basically hold the players’ hand and guide them through the game.  There are also complaints about the crafting system as well.
4. Currently, there are a ton of exploits, especially focused on the reputation/alignment system which can make PvP and PvE grinding into a complete joke.  It’s apparently common to find idiots intentionally getting hit by other players in order to exploit the alignment system so they can kill and loot players without any consequences.  There are also reports of macros being used, especially for crafting/gathering.
5. PvP has problems for a variety of reasons.  First, since items do not play a big role, some people are resorting to mindless naked zerging.  Second, as mentioned in the previous point, exploits are common.  Third, many people have issues with the combat system.
6. The graphics are unremarkable and the animation is often very poor.
7. The DF client is apparently rock solid and never crashes.
8. Almost everyone agrees that the launch is being rushed and a little more time would make a huge difference in terms of content and polish.

Some of these issues are rather serious and potentially game-breaking.  With the European launch less than a week away, it is rather worrisome.

I do consider myself a PvP focused gamer, but I am far from being a hardcore PvP’er.  Honestly, I’m not sure I can handle a full-looting FFA-PvP MMORPG.  I still remember my first experience with hardcore PvP in Ultima Online.  I was happily chopping down trees in the middle of a forest when I suddenly found myself in a race for my life that eventually ended with me dead and hours of effort lost.  But I am extremely curious about this game and since I’m currently between games, this seems like the perfect time to give a world with hardcore PvP another try.

Out of all the games I’ve played in recent memory, The Chronicles of Spellborn gave me the absolute worst first impression.  About 30 minutes after starting the game, I had no desire to play any further.  I’m so disgusted that I’m tempted to go to every MMORPG-related forum and flame this game to death.

First, TCoS is ugly.  Hideously ugly.  After months playing Age of Conan and various single player games like the latest Tomb Raiders and Fallout 3, TCoS was a shock.  It looks worse than games that were released years ago.  It’s not stylized ugly like World of Warcraft either.  It’s plain ugly, clunky and uninspired.

Second, character creation is a huge disappointment.  It has limited choices (all hideous).  To make it even worse, the game didn’t give me the option to change my graphics settings until after character creation.

Third, the introduction assumes the player is a total moron.  I spent far too long being ‘taught’ how to use basic movement and camera controls (WASD and mouse-look).  What PC gamer doesn’t know basic character controls?  How stupid are the developers of this game?  I spent far too long running into glowing sparkles and looking for boxes.  Let me also mention that it takes several seconds to open doors.  I know it’s just a few seconds, but it felt like an eternity when I was already so impatient with the game.

After I finished the initial quest giver’s moronic tutorial ‘quests’, I assumed I would start getting some meatier quests.  Nope.  The next quest giver tasked me with fetching several pieces of paper lying all over the area.

At that point, I swore profusely for a while, quit the game and decided I would never, ever give TCoS a real chance.

Fourth, I was given no compelling storyline reasons to keep playing.  Games are no different from any other forms of entertainment.  It has to hook the player into wanting to play more.  Maybe there is a storyline, but I didn’t experience it during my short time with TCoS.  It was so boring that I stopped caring.

I know it’s bad and extremely short-sighted to judge a MMORPG by the first 30 minutes of gameplay.  In this case, I don’t care.  My first impression was just so horrible that I don’t trust these developers to make a good game.  There are plenty of other games to occupy my time.

In any case, it looks like TCoS is practically dead already.  It was released to European (international) players a short time ago, but the servers are completely barren.  North American gamers are IP-blocked from playing until Acclaim (the NA publishers) decides to finally launch this game in NA.  What is really sad is that the official forums aren’t very active either.  That means people just don’t care about this game.

On the off-chance that people living in North America want to try out this game, this forum post gives simple directions on how to bypass the IP-block.