My thoughts on all things OS, sports, and life.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
I very rarely want to see a movie badly enough that I can't wait for it on DVD, maybe 2 or 3 movies a year. This is one of those movies, partially because I am familiar with the Bruno character from the Ali G Show and I had always hoped to see the character fleshed out (no pun intended).
Now I know many people will find it offensive, extremely crude, juvenile, and just plain stupid. None of those things should deter you from seeing it if you go into it expecting to be shocked and looking for a good laugh.
Don't expect a 2 hour witty well written, deep plot. Don't expect characters you can relate with. Just watch it for what it is, a very funny mockumentary.
I say well done SBC, well done.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
I thought cool, that's a pretty good number and I usually only see that many at the same time with a game like NCAA and Madden.
Within 2 hours, I saw 12 people online and 11 of them were playing UFC Undisputed! I was in a 6 person party and every one of us were engrossed in Career mode.
As I've looked around on the internet it seems that everyone is playing this game everywhere. It has captured a lot of interest offline and online.
I know it might be due to the slow time in video game releases, but I think the combination of the growing popularity of the UFC and the long wait for a good UFC game is also a major factor.
I'm gonna bet that when the May 2009 NPD comes out that UFC Undisputed 2009 will be among the Top 5 on 360 and the Top 10 on PS3. I also would guess that by January 2010 the game will have sold well over 1 million copies on 360 and probably 750,000 copies on PS3.
It released at a perfect time IMO too, right before TW10 and FNR4 and a couple months before NCAA10 and Madden10.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Posted on April 30, 2009 at 12:22 AM.
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1) Change my job/Start a career for myself. - Well, I guess you could say that I accomplished this goal, although not how I had it pictured. A potential job opportunity with someone else was a huge bust this month too.
I was really hating my job this month, had an extremely busy week from 14-17th, but things seemed to be going well. Things were even looking up I'd say. I was thinking about a transfer to another store location that would have been much better for me. I was getting used to the new manager at my current store. I even had a meeting with other employees about the situation.
Then I got a funny call on Sunday the 26th from one of my fellow employees. I wasn't on the schedule for this week and my name was missing from the time sheet. Well, I thought it must have been an honest mistake, I'd call back when the manager was there. So I did make that call on Monday afternoon, and I was told to that I needed to come in Wednesday 30 minutes before the store opens.
The picture started to clear up, but I still wasn't convinced. I told myself that maybe we would just be having a meeting. But of course, when I showed up I was told that I had been terminated and to hand over my store keys and sign them over right there. I wasn't given a clear reason why, but I was later told from another source that my sales numbers were too low. How the hell am I going to make people buy stuff in this economy?? Especially disposable entertainment.
So I guess I changed jobs. Mark one off the list.
2) Save more money. - Oh boy I did a HORRIBLE job with this part of life in April. Had my worst month with money. On the weekend of the 18th & 19th I needed a new serpentine belt for my car. The old one had split in the middle and once I had it off it was actually split in three places in one area. That cost me $60 that I didn't expect to need to spend. I bought a lot of cheap video games this month, a lot. Also bought a lot of pro wrestling DVDs and DVD movies.
3) Spend less money of gaming. - Did a bad, bad job. As I said, "I bought a lot of cheap video games this month, a lot". Bought 7 or 8 non sports game this month, none were recently released (in the last 3 months), but they all add up. I really depleted part of my "extra" savings. I'm really disappointed in myself.
4. Spend more time with those that are most important to me - family and friends. - Well, I did good this month in this one area. I guess even though I screwed up every other area of my life, I did pretty well here when I reflect.
I spent the early part of the month(a Fri night through Tuesday afternoon)in Boone and watched the Opening Day Reds baseball and the NCAA National Basketball Championship game with my friends. Easter weekend was spent with the family. I worried a lot about a friend of mine who was going through a lot of questions and concerns about her health. Starting talking more with another friend of mine this month and I'm really happy about that. I hope it really takes off in May. I also found out that two of my best friends are having a boy together.
Many times this month I've thought "I dunno what I'm gonna do but I have to change my life". Well, it changed whether I like it or not. Now my challenge is going to be to make the best of my new opportunities. I have to see it as a door closing and a window opening.
One thing is for sure, May 2009 is going to be a pivotal month in my life. Things could really go downhill from here or hopefully, things will really begin to look up.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
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I just want to add a note here. The blogging I'm doing here is more for me, so I can go back at the end of this year and see what happened. See what went right and what went wrong. Hopefully see what months I did well in and what months were bad for me. If you guys read it that's great. If no one reads it, that's OK too.
Ok so moving on, I may also start to add in monthly highlights and lowlights in my life for each month. While I'm wary of putting too much information on the internet, I like the idea of going back in December and re-living certain events through this blog. We'll see how I feel about it each month.
1) Change my job/Start a career for myself. - Nothing has changed for the better here in March. If anything I am much further away from this goal. Part of that is out of my control due to workplace politics and the bad economy, but part of it is my own lack of future ambition that I must overcome.
2) Save more money. - I haven't done a great job saving this month. I haven't spent more than I've made, but I am in no better shape in March than I was in February. I bought both the WWF Summerslam DVD set from 88-92 and the 93-97 DVDs and that ran me about $75 total. I also spent quite a bit this month on entertaining friends.
3) Spend less money of gaming. - I've stuck to my guns about not buying non-sports games because I know I won't play them. I wanted RE 5 and 50 Cent : Blood in the Sand but passed on both. I did however purchase MLB 2K9 on March 4th and also pre-ordered and paid for OOTP 10 this month. These are two purchases I can live with, because they are sports games and both have the potential to give me many hours of enjoyment.
4) Spend more time with those that are most important to me - family and friends. - I'm still not satisfied with this part of my life. I wish I lived closer to a couple of my best friends.
I just found out in the first week of this month that my buddy is going to be a father in September. He and his girlfriend (also one of my close friends) will be new parents. They are both full-time college students right now and none of this was planned, but I'm proud of the way that they are handling it.
This has really been a crossroads month in spending time with the people that I call my friends. I've been more active but still not where I wish to be.
In closing the book on March 2009, I guess that other than the shocking revelation that my buddy and his g/f are having a baby, not much has changed one way or the other since last month and that has me feeling very bored with life right now. I'm battling a lot of insomnia this month too. Not sure why, but I think a lot of it is me thinking about my life and how little it has changed. I'm sure this is a good thing in general, but I would welcome a few key changes.
The end of March has also been a "re-organization" month for me as well. I've been making a few personal changes and changing up my personal space a bit too. I'm hoping it will give me a spark to get back into a groove in life. I'm outta sorts right now.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
So, I wanted to try my hand at writing a review that I would want to read. Something that takes into account the bugs, glitches, and possible fixes to a game. I decided to start with MLB 2K9 from 2k Sports and Visual Concepts.
I wanted to spend some time with that game before giving it a fair review. I understand that not everyone who writes a review has time to do this, because of deadlines and the need for a release day review in many cases. Thankfully, I have the time and have put in the hours with the full retail version. Here are the results.
So in my case I'm gonna start by explaining how I review a game. First off I begin every game at 5/10 or 50/100 which ever you prefer. From there I take both positives and negatives into account to formulate a final score and then I give a "potential score" based on the bugs being patched and other issues being resolved.
I also classify every bug or annoyance by importance. A significant bug loses 1 full point out of 10. A minor bug or annoyance loses between 0.1 and 0.7 points out 10. A major positive or great leap forward can garner 2 or more points.
So with those basic ground rules set, let's begin!
MLB 2K9 Review - 3/19/09
Base Score 5/10.
The negatives: I'm going to begin with the negatives because I like to end with a positive note and with what this game gets right.
Okay, out of the box MLB 2k9 isn't very playable to a true sports gamer. It just isn't right. It has no sense of balance or real game immersion. Upon tweaking sliders, you can alleviate some of the many issues that plaque this year's MLB offering.
For example using some great community sliders here at OS you can begin to get the CPU pitcher's ball to strike ratio more in line with real life. You can also make user pitching harder and somewhat more challenging, although not enough of a challenge for a good amount of people who have played the game. You can get the CPU to attempt more steals. You can cut down on infielder speed, a long time 2k Sports baseball issue. You can also tweak a myriad of sliders to enhance the batting experience.
A key issue to many, myself included, is the removal of sliders from this year's game. I consider this to be a big issue and a poor decision and thus I take 1 point away from the score for removing some of the most effective sliders from MLB 2K8 to MLB 2K9.
It is a 4/10 now.
Let me just say that MLB 2K9 has some MAJOR balancing issues. By now we all know about the hyper-aggressive CPU batters who will swing at every first pitch if it isn't blatantly out of the zone and will even swing on some that are clearly off the plate. After many hours spent tweaking by the community and many slider combos, it has become apparent that only a patch or fix from Visual Concepts, the developer of MLB 2K9, will remedy the problem of balance and AI hitter aggression.
I feel like the controls for hitting this year are solid but not spectacular. I would prefer a true zone hitting system as seen in the High Heat series. Instead we get the option of batting with the R-Stick or classic button control or using a huge baseball bat cursor to try and make it more challenging. I really have no complaints here, although I would like to see progress in this area in 2K10. VC needs to find a more realistic way to influence hits than pushing a direction on the L-Stick. Also, many veterans of the series are aggravated that the step timing influence is completely removed, so I think it'd be a good idea to have it return for 2K10 as an option for those users.
Many have also speculated that the highly touted "Inside Edge" scouting feature is broken as well. I fall on that side of the fence. The walk ratings are all showing a letter score of "D", no matter if a player is rating highly or poorly with regards to plate discipline.
The Inside Edge scouting reports do provide a wealth of knowledge for the baseball gamer looking for something more, and I commend 2K on using it again this year and trying to make it a more integral part of the gameplay experience. The problem lies in the execution or lack thereof in MLB 2K9.
So while I add a point for bringing Inside Edge onto the field and integrating it throughout more than previous versions of the MLB 2K series, I also dock that same point for the AI hitter aggression and seemingly broken application of the feature.
Still just 4/10 at this point.
So now that we have covered batting AI and issues, let's look at pitching issues. Upon booting up the game for the first time you find many inaccuracies among the MLB pitchers in the game. Many key pitchers were missing pitches or worse yet, had the wrong repertoire of pitches. This was later corrected largely by a "Living Roster" update, but what about hardcore gamers without an internet connection or access to PSN or XBL?
The controls for pitching are some of the best I've played with personally and add a sense of control that simply mashing a button doesn't give you. Many are not happy that the 3rd step in the pitching process has been removed and added as optional, but after the MEATBALL fiasco with MLB 2K8 I certainly do not fault VC for slightly simplifying the controls for pitching. The option is there for those that must have it, unlike the step timing that was removed completely.
Some complaints have come up about the pitching being too easy to pinpoint your pitches. While I agree somewhat, I think the trade off for less frustration is fair this year.
Fielding is one area of hot discussion not only here on OS but over on 2K's own boards. The fielding mechanic of using the right stick to throw to each base is brilliant in my opinion, no matter what game it originated from. For those who prefer old school buttons for bases, you can still use that option as well. The problems begin with fielder speed and slowdown, first basemen who decide not to touch the base, and outfielders who can't pick up the ball.
Infield speed has always been an issue of contention in 2K baseball, but I think it's as good as it's ever been this year. Where some problems begin to show up, is in the outfield. In an attempt to keep players from twitching in the outfield and over running balls, the computer offers some basic assistance by default to help you get to the landing spot.
The animations are nice but the problem here is that many, many times the spot that the computer "pulls" you to, isn't correct and the ball either goes over your head, through your legs, or right past your running player. This has led to many frustrated gamers. It is a minor but annoying issue and I'm taking 0.5 points off for it.
There is also a widely reported issue of players becoming "stuck" on parts of the geometry of the stadiums and running in place while the ball sits un-retrieved and the runner scores an inside the park homerun. It needs to be fixed in the patch.
3.5 out of 10 as it stands.
On to other miscellaneous issues with the game. The default rosters have big league players, the wrong skin color. This has also been a big 2K stumbling point in the past. Anyone with cursory baseball knowledge knows the race of the most of the players and if 2K wasn't sure on a guy, they have the MLB license for crying out loud! Look it up. This issue was corrected in a Living Roster update, so kudos to VC for fixing the issue. It still should have never shipped that way. 0.1 pts off the score.
3.4/10
The 1B glitch. Do I even need to go into more detail? I believe it to be a case of an animation that is not triggering when called upon and a fix will hopefully be included in the next patch from VC. -1 point for a major bug that affects gameplay.
2.4/10.
The exclusion of a simple Exhibition mode. Are you serious? So all we are offered is "Play Now' and we have to invent workarounds involving two controllers or having several different roster saves just so we can play against a team's #2 through #5 starters?? It defies logic to leave out Exhibition Mode, a staple of every game since the NES Baseball days! -0.7 for this issue and it just falls below being a major issue because we, as a community, have found a workaround.
Score tallies at 1.7/10 so far.
Tag-Up to score from 3rd glitch. When tagging up to score on a sac fly from 3rd base with less than two outs, the player on third base will often take several slow jogs before beginning to run to home plate often costing your team a run on the process as he is thrown out from the deep outfield. This needs to be addressed in the new patch from VC. -0.4 for this issue, it has potential to be a major problem over a franchise.
1.3/10 if you are scoring with me.
Stuttering frame rate on balls hit down the line. For me this is such a minor issue that I'm not going to knock off points for it, but it does need to be mentioned. It does happen and it is annoying.
Scoring errors and statistical anomalies. It is true that no baseball game is completely free of these issues but they are issues nonetheless. Users have reported outs not recording correctly, saves not being recorded correctly, runners from 3rd scoring on a 2 out ball in play and the run counting anyway, and other odd scenarios that defy correct reporting.
Also, not being able to replace your pitcher before an inning starts means that you cannot use a mound visit for that pitcher in that inning. That is a small issue that needs to be fixed.
I'm going -.03 for these issues combined and we stand at 1/10.
I also need to mention the complete failure on 2K's part to allow us to customize batting stances and pitching deliveries in MLB 2K9. This was in 2K6, 2K7, and 2K8! There is no good enough excuse for not allowing us to customize a game that we bought. It really is a baffling omission and the only reason I'm not docking points for it is because I'm not sure if it is an intentional decision or an oversight.
I will however dock points for the edit players limit. The limit to editing players names caps out at around 120 I believe, which renders much of the planned user created content worthless now. Many people were looking forward to naming the minor leagues and sharing those with the community. The discovered limit on that has killed that. I know some efforts are ongoing to try and solve it with the C-A-P system, but it should have never come to that. This needs to be addressed with a patch as well if possible. -0.7 points for this large mistake.
0.3/10 is the score now.
I'm sure I've missed some issues still yet, but at this point I think I've hit the major ones and plenty of minor ones. If you want to leave another issue in the comments section, please feel free.
Now on to the GOOD stuff about MLB 2K9! Yes there is a lot of good stuff here. I'll start with the first two things you get when you boot up the game, the sound and menus.
The menus have always had a love them or hate them feel for a lot people. This years menus are very familiar for me as they are almost directly imported from NBA 2K9. I find them easy to use and much better than previous efforts. I'd also like to commend VC on choosing a really good selection of menu music this year. We have everything from classic rock to Latino inspired jams. I enjoyed hearing "The Final Countdown" as I booted up the game. Often times menus are taken for granted (see Madden) but I'd like to give some recognition for what I feel is a good system. +0.2 for the menus and menu music.
0.5/10.
The next subject I want to tackle is graphics and on-field sound. I've found that most people are mixed on the issue of graphics, mainly sighting the need for more transition animations and a lack of fluidity in many motions that are included. I actually quite enjoy the graphics this year DESPITE the ridiculous Pepsi and State Farm ads. Don't over-do the adds again in 2K10 OK? I'm gonna let it slide this year. I still think that overall, MLB 2K7 was a better looking game in total appearance.
I'd be remiss if I didn't give some kudos to the living ballparks. I'll go into presentation later for the new Virtual Director, but the small detail of the fans going for a foul ball is appreciated.
The stadiums are the best I've seen in a 2K baseball game, from dimensions, down to little details like tarps and box seats. They could still use some refining, but they are nice.
The player models are very good and while I won't argue that they are as good looking as SCEA's MLB The Show 09, I do think that they are better proportioned in body scale.
Add in the new signature stances and deliveries and you get a very nice graphical package. I will give 2K 1.5 points for the graphics. It would have been 2 points, but the overkill of ads won't allow me to do that. Overall a nice package in the graphics department.
2.0/10.
On field sound, from the fans to the PA announcer, to the outstanding commentary in MLB 2K9 is a truly praiseworthy highlight. The fans react dynamically to the action, getting loud at the right times and standing up on big plays. This has been a huge thorn in the collective baseball game side for years, and I hope to see continued improvement in this area.
The commentary is top flight. The choice of Gary Thorne as lead man was a great one. I know people are mixed on Steve Phillips in his real life commentary, but in 2K9 he is excellent opposite Thorne. I've found the duo to be among the best commentary I have heard in a sports game. They have a natural flow to the conversation and on-field action which is so underrated and important. No one wants to hear a cut and paste mess. I can't say enough good things about the commentary team.
If there is one negative to the sound department, it is the old 2K bat on ball sound. It needs to be recaptured with several different contact points and added in for the correct type of hit in 2K10. Some people also hate the organs that seem to play almost non-stop during a game, but I find them somewhat charming. I'm giving 2K 1.5 points in the on-field and commentary sound department.
Now we are at 3.5/10.
Virtual Director or Real Time Stadiums. This is a groundbreaking approach to presentation and one that I hope to imitated in all of the other major sports video games in the years to come. The details are amazing. From seeing the players taking practice hacks, to the bat boy running onto the field, the bullpen guys tossing, and the dugout being full of guys who look alive! You can actually see your manager (Joe Torre looks eerily lifelike).
This is a terrific idea that is hampered slightly by some buggy execution. Being that it is the first year of the new in game real time world, I'm not going to be too hard on it's flaws.
But to mention a couple of flaws, on user mound visits, your manager does tend to get the lower half of his body stuck under ground and players sometimes float in the dugout like spirits.
When you add it all up I'm giving the Virtual Director 1 full point and I would have given two points if not for the graphical glitches involved in it's execution.
4.5/10
On the field of play, the AI seems adequate at making somewhat realistic decisions in my playing time. They will bring in a reliever when necessary, pinch hit late in the game, and even pinch run on occasion. Obviously there is room for improvement here, but this is one area I can say that I'm OK with this year. It is a step up from 2K8 in my opinion. Another point to that, is now the CPU will actually attempt to steal and steal often, nullifying a bug that existed in 2K8. The AI also attempts drag bunts and will play small ball when it is appropriate. No change in score for this category.
Some other noteworthy things that I like about the game are as follows:
2K Beats Customizable Stadium Sounds. I know this isn't a feature exclusive to MLB 2K9 by any means but it is a nice feature for 360 owners and I appreciate the ability to add in some of the real life sounds of the game. +0.2 for the feature.
4.7/10.
Playoff Mode. We finally see the return of playoff mode in the 2K baseball series. In the past we had situational mode, but this allows the user to jump into the playoffs without going through a 162 game season. +0.1 for bringing this back.
4.8/10.
Living Rosters. I am thrilled that Living Rosters made it over from NBA 2K9. So far they have really delivered with timely updates that reflect the latest transactions and also fixing some issues that the game shipped with. For example the LR has been able to correct jersey, helmet, cleat, and sock color combos that were wrong by default. And while these things should have never been wrong in a full price product, those of us with PSN or XBL are thrilled to see these things fixed. With the great community here @ OS, users can even upload the updates onto AR or Max Drive saves for people without their gaming system hooked up online.
A fix for the Cubs schedule is also promised through the Living Rosters and some speculate that VC might be able to tune the game's balance through it as well. Living Rosters are a terrific feature that shouldn't be taken for granted. Remember the days of 4 updates a year or before that, no updates unless it was user created? This feature gets a full point from me.
5.8/10.
Franchise Mode is a given in today's sports games but I will give VC kudos for the face lift with MLB.com and improved trade logic. +0.3 points.
6.1/10.
Finally I do think there is a quality that is hard to measure in a review and that is Fun Factor. I find myself having fun with MLB 2K9 for the most part and that is important to getting my moneys worth out of the title. For all of it's issues, it still has me holding out hope when I would have given up and traded in an inferior title. This one compels me to hope for the patch and hang in there. I gotta give it +0.2 for Fun Factor.
Final Score - 6.3 out of 10
Now here comes the last part of my review, so if you've made it this far, just hang in there for a little bit more.
IF the proposed patch by Visual Concepts and 2KSports does come about and IF it includes fixes to the bugs that were mention earlier (Inside Edge balancing, OF speed and getting stuck on the walls, 1B error glitch, tagging up to score from 3rd bug, scoring errors, editing limit fix, other small issues) the game could potentially be an 8.4 out of 10.
The reason it couldn't reach any higher is because I docked a point for taking away sliders, I docked 0.7 for excluding Exhibition Mode, 0.5 for poor animations in some key areas, 0.1 for shipping the game with default rosters that included long time major league players with the wrong skin color, and 0.3 for the still not quite steady framerate. Inaccurate ratings are one thing, but to not even know that Kevin Millar is white!?
So you're final scores are:
As of 3/19/09 MLB 2K9 socres a 6.3/10 or 63/100.
MLB 2K9 has the potential with a great patch to score 8.4/10 or 84/100.
Friday, February 27, 2009
1. Change my job/Start a career for myself. - This has stalled somewhat, as my company has put me in limbo working many different positions but none actually advancing myself. I've come very close to quitting which I guess would technically count as changing my job, lol. Crappy month. February Grade = D+
2.Save more money. - I've done a tremendous hob with this, although here at the end of the month I've spent a lot of money on alcohol and pre-ordered OOTP10. I feel good about this in February 2009. I have $800 more in my savings then I did at the end of January. February Grade = A-
3.Spend less money of gaming. - I've only pre-ordered OOTP10 which was 29.99. Other than that, I've put down a $10 pre-order on MLB 2K9 but I used a Gamestop gift card. February Grade = A
4. Spend more time with those that are most important to me - family and friends. - Wow, so much has changed in regards to my family and friends. I have had two devastating bits of news among my friends in Feb. and it has really changed my life, and my family situation has become more tense with more unrest and worry as the days go by. I haven't even seen my best friends this month. February Grade = D
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So I'm going to grade myself every month on how well I've stuck to these 4 primary goals that I set for this year. Then at the end of the year (god willing) I'll come back and do a cumulative review of my year and assign a final grade.
1. Change my job/Start a career for myself. - Well I've taken the first step in putting myself in position to be a manager, which would quadruple my salary and make me a fully insured, full-time employee. I'm waiting in the "que" so to speak to be trained and then hopefully assigned a store somewhat locally. January Grade = A+
2.Save more money. - This one is a bit hit or miss. I have been holding back more of my check to keep in a savings account, but I've also not been able to completely eliminate "impulse buys" and wasteful spending. I'm definitely on the right track with this one, and I've been keeping this in mind moreso than ever before. January Grade = B-
3.Spend less money of gaming. - Well so far I've not bought anything gaming related in January as of the 27th, although I have been tempted. That's going to change when I likely pick up MLB Front Office Manager in the next few days. This however, is a better buy for me than in the past, as I usually get a lot of mileage out of my sports games. January Grade = B+
4. Spend more time with those that are most important to me - family and friends. - This one I've really done well with I think so far in 2009. I've spent a lot of time with family in January, I've been more socially involved with my friends as well, and this coming weekend I'll be in Boone, NC with my closest friends @ App State, at a Super Bowl party. There is still some room for improvement though. January Grade = A-
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
The sound is a mixed bag on the XBox version of HH 2004. On one hand you've got some good commentary, but a lot of repetitive lines, some horrible canned sounds for crowd stomps and chants, and some "good for their time" bat, ball, and glove sounds. The enthusiastic umpire calls are a nice touch, and the crowd boos repeated pickoff attempts too. An example : Tom Glavine attempted to pick my baserunner off 3 times in a row (wow) and the home Cincinnati crowd let him have it! It was a nice touch.
The graphics, while not having face or head scans were good enough to not draw me out of the game world. I was the most worried on how HH's graphics would hold up, but they did, and reasonably well I'd say, in HD. I remember playing on an SD TV and playing far worse looking games, so I try to look back on HH 2004 with some perspective. You simply cannot compare it to any game that has been made on XBox 360 or PS3. It's not even close, obviously.
The field detail isn't very good as far as having correct seating charts, flat crowds, bland scoreboards and wall graphics, and some choppy animations on fielding. The diamond itself though held up pretty well through a couple of play-throughs. It was raining in one game, and while not beautiful, it was satisfactory to me. Now we all know High Heat was never known for it's graphics, but all in all, I think that Heat has aged better than I expected.
I had forgotten some of the little things like the computer making defensive substitutions and pitching around players. Pitching around the 8 hitter when a man is on second and I have the pitcher on deck. The game has some truly remarkable AI even now. I also like how at the end of a game you get an uber-detailed newspaper style boxscore with everything from how many ABs a guy had, to how many strikes each pitcher threw and how many batters he faced. There is also a very detailed run down of each inning's action.
Now I know to some of the HH veterans, this is old news. I also know that the definitive experience of High Heat 2004 is on the PC with all of the mods and community support. But for me, finding the game used for $1.99 at Gamestop and being able to come home, put it on my big screen, pop the disc into my 360, and play a damn fun game of baseball is something that I hadn't done in a long time.
The game is fun and realistic. I think that's about all that any of us are looking for in a game. High Heat 2004 delivers on that.
I've also snagged used copies of All-Star Baseball 2003 ($.99) and All-Star Baseball 2005 ($2.99) a while back, two games which gave me many fond memories during my Xbox days and also kept me up at night tinkering with them. In the near future, I'll take each of those games through a few paces and see how well each game holds up respectively. So look for blogs on those games in the near future.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
MLB Network promises to air live games, original programming, highlights, classic games, and coverage of baseball events. The Network also has secured the rights to air Ken Burns's 'Baseball'. That is a huge plus to me.
MLB Network has a really strong cast of personalities such as Matt Vasgersian, Al Leiter, Joe Magrane, Harold Reynolds, and occasionally Bob Costas.
MLB Network plans to air 26 live games throughout the season. While that might not seem like much, remember that the NFL Network, the strongest of the dedicated sports networks, aired ZERO live games until the last couple years and upon launch in 2003 was mainly just a studio show.
Now I've been watching a lot of MLBN since it launched on January 1st, and I have to say that so far I'm impressed. The selection of shows seems to be adequate, especially for such a new network, and I must say it looks great in high-definition. The MLBN looks very professional and comes off as a good promotion for the game of baseball.
I've enjoyed the ''Cathedrals of the Game' series, the 'Hot Stove' studio show, and the re-airing of games so far. I'm looking forward to watching the Ken Burns's 'Baseball' as well. I missed it's original airing on PBS and haven't bought the DVD set yet.
So far I like what I see from MLBN. I have been thinking for a while now; that with the very eventful off season in baseball, and wealth of knowledgeable voices in baseball available, that having a dedicated channel was a natural fit.
I'm excited to see this trend because I'm a fan of the dedicated sports network with the ESPN family airing more original programs and entertainment and not as much sports and scores as you would get 10 years ago. I could write a whole other blog entry about that, but I won't - for now.
With NFLN, NBAN, NHLN, CBS College Sports (formerly CSTV), and now MLBN - fans of each of the above mentioned sports can now get 24/7 access to programming that is geared to that sport. It's a good thing and I think it is a boon for the hardcore sports fan.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
So, I thought it would be a really cool idea for me to use my OS Arena Blog to make a record of my desired changes/resolutions and then come back at various points throughout 2009 and see how I am doing.
Then at the end of 2009 I'll re-visit this and see how many of the things that I set out to accomplish, actually got done. So let's get started ...
1) Change my job/Start a career for myself. - I'm 27 years old and treading water. I am at a job, not working on a career. Furthermore I hate my job 99% of the time. I can't make enough money to move my life forward in my current situation which leads into my next resolution ...
2) Save more money. - I can be a frivolous spender at times. I buy entirely too much "stuff" just so I can say that I have it. I am more of a collector at this point when it comes to buying stuff than I am anything else. This also ties into my next goal ...
3) Spend less money of gaming. - I buy too many video games at full price and don't end up getting nearly my monies worth. Hell, I still have several games in my backlog that are still unplayed or even unopened.
4. Spend more time with those that are most important to me - family and friends. - Just what it says, spend more time and appreciate that time, with my family and my good friends. I've started this one already, but I need to commit to following through from here on out.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Apparently, he had written a living will and had some songs he really liked, so at his funeral some select classic rock songs were played and I felt like it really reflected the man's personality and also seemed to bring home the loss even more immediately.
Obviously, that left quite an impression on me. So as I still think about that from time to time, even today, I thought to myself - what would I want played at MY funeral? I'm limiting it to 5 songs, to make the choices harder and more important.
Obviously, I'd love some feedback from everyone who looks at this blog. That said - here are my 5 songs that I want played at my funeral when I die.
I will also post the order on which I'd like the songs played.
First Song - Dust In The Wind - Kansas
(Sums up Life)
Second Song - If Tomorrow Never Comes - Garth Brooks
(For my 2 year old neice)
Third Song - He Stopped Loving Her Today - George Jones
(for the few women that I have loved)
Fourth Song - Goodbye To Romance - Ozzy Osbourne
(One final goodbye to my friends)
Fifth (Final) Song - See You On The Other Side - Ozzy Osbourne
(Very Fitting in my opinion)
*If I got a bonus song - since it's my blog (LOL), then this would be the one*
Time In A Bottle - Jim Croce
Just a beautiful song full of meaning.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
I was doing some late night internet browsing, as I do most every night, and I came across an article that really struck a chord with me. It reads true and makes a lot of sense. The ironic thing is, it was written on a humor website, cracked.com, yet it is a very "real", very meaningful piece of writing.
If you haven't read it, give the link up there a click and let me know what you think about what is said within the piece. Does it ring true to you, or is it way off? How much of that piece can you identify with? I feel like everyone will find some bits of universal truth in what is written.
*Note* - I'm not trying to rip off www.cracked.com or promote the site, I just wanted to link a very interesting article and get some reactions from OS.
Monday, December 1, 2008
I was wondering if anyone else here feels the same way? I don't feel like I fit in well with any "generation". Kind of like a gap is there. Most everyone I hang out with is either a few years younger or some years older than me. I don't even know that many people that are my age.
My best friends are all in college or younger than me, but the people I really identify with are older than me.
It's also hard to be a single guy at my age. Most guys I know my age are married or engaged. Makes for some awkward times at the holidays.
Monday, November 24, 2008
I work at a retail store. I have to work the opening shift on Black Friday. I'm pissed off. I wasn't scheduled to work Friday when my schedule was made this week. I was scheduled for Thanksgiving day, which I accepted because after all, someone has to do it.
Tonight my manager informed me, that instead of her working on Black Friday - as the schedule had said she would - that the schedule had changed now, and I was now going to work it and she would take one of my days earlier in the week. That is BS right there.
I'll be working the entire store by myself from open until 5 pm. I hate my job as it is, and the biggest reason is the crap like this that goes on there. The schedule was arbitrarily changed when the manager came into work today and found out that she was supposed to be on duty for Black Friday. So now she and her salary that more than doubles my salary, has the day off while I get ambushed by holiday shoppers looking for a deal.
I had to vent about this, it pisses me off to the core. I want to get out of that sh*+hole so bad.
Has anyone ever seen the movie Falling Down? I worry sometimes that I'm gonna flip out like that.
Anyway, thanks for reading.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
As a gamer, this is great time of year as well, so many big releases are coming or have come out since late September. For all of the good that this time of year brings then, what is my gripe?
Getting a cold/flu/virus/sick.
I always come down with some sort of illness shortly after the seasons change to fall and wintry weather. It is without fail. I think my health is cursed in the months of October, November, and December.
So now I'm coming down with something. I don't know yet whether it is a cold or something more serious. I have a low fever, chills, muscle aches, headache, sore throat, and an upset/sour stomach. I haven't been this sick feeling all year long and now my number has come up it seems.
Being sick this time of year DOES stress me out quite a bit. It is trying to work through the illness and walk that line of trying not making my co-workers and customers sick and trying to not call in every day. It's worrying about making friends and family sick. It wondering how long will I feel this way?
I'm just coming off of a terrible month of October with my wisdom teeth and now I seem to have some sort of virus. When it rains, it pours it seems.
I've been doing a lot of reading on WebMd and other sources. I've got my zinc and echinacea lozenges. I've got my DayQuil and NyQuil. I'm armed with Cepocal throat drops. I've done about everything I know to do, drinking plenty of fluid etc. trying to cut down on the duration of this sickness.
So what say you OS? Are you down with the flu? Got a stubborn cold? What kind of things work best for you when you are under the weather? How do you cope with the chills and fatigue?
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