World of Warcraft Ten-Day Challenge (1)

June 9, 2009 — Andrew Carlson

Day 1:

Okay, so I just created an Orc character named Exaltlegions. It would not let me put two more characters to make it ExaltedLegions. Oh well. Character is complete and I am joining the Alexstrasza (Horde) realm. Guess there is no realm changing without paying cash so I joined my brother’s realm. As I said, I created an Orc character so my brother’s Tauren could easily find me. I originally wanted to play as an Undead Warlock, but that was too far away. I am instead an Orc Warrior to compliment his Tauren Shamen. After doing a little grinding in Durotar, my brother joined me and we started questing. The basic quests for my low-level character include:

  1. Killing 10 Boars
  2. Killing 10 Familiars
  3. Beating 5 peons into not being lazy (they sleep too much)
  4. Collecting 10 Cactus Flowers
  5. Finding the Burning Blade Medallion

There were more quests and more grinding and I now have a Level 5 Orc Warrior! It is not much but it is okay for my first two hours! My laptop ran warmer than I would like it to, I need to buy a fan if I am to continue. The game is starting to grow on me, but paying for it monthly is a problem. I do not want to do that. Maybe that thought will help me win this challenge!

Final Words: World of Warcraft is a game that I just spent two hours playing without even realizing it. Who knows, maybe I will get bored of it. Keep following as I keep you posted! If you play in the Alexstrasza realm then we should quest sometime!

Posted in Ten-Day Challenge, World of Warcraft. Tags: , . 2 Comments »

ExL Rundown 6/9/09

June 9, 2009 — Andrew Carlson

Okay, so today’s run-down involves the two new games:

  1. Starfighter (created by cilcoder)
  2. Mind’s Eye of Jupiter – 01 (created by rogerst)

Starfighter is a classic 2D space fighter game with a scrolling background. Dodge enemies bullets and kill as many as possible for the highest score. Earn upgrades as you progress to survive! While the concept is simple, and the game is initially fun, the game is not hard to figure out. Enemies fire once until their bullet disappears and then they fire again. Not only does this make the game easy, but it ruins the entire experience. The feeling of fighting for survival is gone.

Final Verdict: For 200 Microsoft Points, Starfighter may make some people happy, but it’s not for me.

Mind’s Eye of Jupiter – 01 is a 3D exploration/puzzle sci-fi game. It kind of reminds me of Myst, but with a lot less content. The game is split into three “chapters” that seem to be rooms. The game follows a woman’s search through a Roman Temple. She is searching for the legend of the Mind’s Eye of Jupiter. Along the way players will search for items and figure out small puzzles. The “rooms” are not as big as I would hope, but they are fun to explore. Something about this game just reaches out to me. It’s probably because it has a classic feel with a fresh community games feel. There is nothing like it in the community games section. The 3D can be misleading. Some things are 3D, but some items have been (smartly) edited to give the appearance of 3D. It is still cool to look at (though ground textures could be better). The game can be beat rather quickly, but it is worth playing.

Final Verdict: 200 Microsoft Points is worth spending for this fresh experience. Expect more in future sequels.

Posted in Domain of the Infinite, ExL Rundown, Mind's Eye of Jupiter - 01, Starfighter, Xbox Live Indie Game Developers, Xbox Live Indie Games. Tags: , , , , , . Comments Off

World of Warcraft Ten-Day Challenge (0)

June 9, 2009 — Andrew Carlson

Okay, so my brother just bought the World of Warcraft Battle Chest. He is playing as a shaman and is already level 15. I have seen and heard of countless people getting sucked into World of Warcraft. Because of this I have never played it, but I will now. I am undertaking the World of Warcraft Ten-Day Challenge. It is not an official challenge, but one that I am starting. The next ten days will log my journey into the World of Warcraft.

What: See if I can pull myself away from World of Warcraft after ten days.

Why: Because the trial only lasts ten days.

Dates: June 9, 2009 -> June 18, 2009

Purpose: Prove that someone can walk away from the World of Warcraft without purchasing it.

Follow under the same heading!

Posted in Ten-Day Challenge, World of Warcraft. Tags: , . 2 Comments »

ExL Game Update – Kodu Goes Live in June

June 9, 2009 — Andrew Carlson

Ever heard of Kodu? It is Microsoft’s response to making games directly from the Xbox 360. Kodu is a community game developed by Microsoft (so pricing will be 800 Microsoft Points or lower) that has been streamlined to help people create games. It is simple enought that a child could make a game (in any genre), but deep enough that a developer could make a full-fledged game. Games can be shared around the world, but I am not sure whether developers can set pricing on them (probably not). It is available to be played on Xbox 360 and Windows PC and releases towards the end of June, 2009!

If using Kodu from the Xbox 360, don’t worry. The game does everything using the controller, no keyboard required! If I were to go on I would just be re-hashing what it is, so take a look at theire development sites:

Website:

http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/projects/kodu/

Blog:

http://community.research.microsoft.com/blogs/kodu/default.aspx

Posted in ExL Game Update, Kodu, Microsoft Game Labs, Xbox Live Indie Game Developers, Xbox Live Indie Games. Tags: , , , , . Comments Off