Dragon Age: Inquisition

Wait, isn't the anchor on his left hand?
Leave it to EA to get the cover
of their own game wrong

You know, there just really isn't a whole lot to say about this game.  It's good but it's not great or anything like that.

I think the best way to describe this game is that it's like eating macaroni and cheese.  It tastes pretty good and you might even say, "Damn!  That's good!"  But, it's not particularly new or ground breaking in any kind of way.  Sure, it's expanded a bit on what we've seen in other games, but it's not giving hardcore RPG players anything particularly new to cheer about.

Just about everything Dragon Age:  Inquisition does, it does pretty well.  The graphics look like they belong on this generation.  The levels vary in size from one room dungeons to expansive countrysides and coastlines.  Textures look detailed which, considering how large some of the levels are, is pretty impressive how far the technology has come.  Character design is incredibly detailed particularly in the facial features where small scars are evident to the casual cutscene viewer.  In fact, there is no drop in graphical quality between cutscenes and gameplay; which I suppose has become pretty typical at this point.  Most animations are very fluid but the jump animation looks hilarious and horse riding is stiff.  There were a few glitches that I experienced but when someone puts 80 hours into a game, they're bound to find a few.

Where this game falls a little flat is in the combat and plot.  The combat is fine but we're really not experiencing anything new here.  No matter which class you select in the character creation, the controls are the same.  There's one button for normal attacks and the others are for special moves that expend mana/skill points.  Oh and there are also limit breaks, something else that definitely isn't new.  Based on the combat, this game was definitely meant for PC play.  On PS4, you can map eight different special skill/spell slots (X, Circle, Square, Triangle, and L2 + the aforementioned buttons), which I'm certain on PC would be the numbered buttons 1 through 0 or you could simply click the icons like in just about any other PC MMO.  Fortunately, in this game, you will be able to beat the game before even unlocking more than ten special skills/spells.  The downside:  there aren't very many moves to unlock unless if you want to needlessly level grind.

Other than that, not much more to the regular combat than that.  No blocking, dodging, etc.  You can run away though.  There's another mode of combat where you can give direct commands to all four members of your party from an overhead view for a more tactical experience.  However, most of the time, this is not only an unnecessary approach but also a waste of time as it takes much longer to win a battle this way.

The story is painfully average.  And it's actually a shame because there was clearly a lot of thought that went into this plot.  There are plenty of factions, characters, and their interactions with one another to understand, but ultimately, it just gets really convoluted trying to remember all of these people and nations and what their motivations are.  It all feels pretty useless anyways because it really just boils down to one thing anyways.  You see that guy over there?  You need to go kill him because he wants to do bad shit and has already done some bad shit.

In fact, like some other RPGs, the side quests and character quests were much more interesting than the main quests.  In the main quests, it just furthers the motivation of the main enemies of the game and what they are doing to stop them.  But in the side quests, we learn a lot more about the main characters of the game and where they come from, what their desires are, what they want from life, etc.

There's another feature in the game where you can tell your ambassador, army commander, and spy master to do stuff.  This is way less interesting than it sounds though.  You just click on stuff on a map and a timer gets started until they finish the tasks.  You'll want to do these because they unlock side quests and such but it's really boring.  It feels more like a free-to-play android game than what should be an interesting extra in a good RPG.

The best part of this game is the decision making.  It feels like you can take the story in an infinite number of different directions.  The main plot remains the same but there are a lot of nuances you can change along the way depending on who you become closest to or what side quests you decide to do.  Even aspects of the character creation affect the plot.  For instance, I chose for my main character to be the mage class which, unbeknownst to me, would result in just about everyone in the game being skeptical of my character since, in this universe, just about everyone dislikes the mages because some of them are murdering assholes.

Overall, not a bad game, but not a great one either.  What it does, it does well and I'm sure there are plenty of RPG players out there that enjoy it since it's well executed.  I had a lot of fun playing it as well but because it felt similar to a lot of RPGs I have played before, it began to feel a bit stale about 40 hours in.  I would still recommend it though as this game has plenty to offer and gets right all of the cliches we've seen in other RPGs such as crafting, item hoarding, and the stereotypical character classes such as tank, rogue, warrior, mage, etc.

But yeah, if you're looking for solid execution in a more or less typical RPG, you should check this out.  If you want an RPG that's a bit more unique and innovative, I would give this one a pass.

Cover:  http://static4.gamespot.com/uploads/scale_medium/1197/11970954/2509963-blw5obcciaallar.jpg

Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Asunder, Sweet And Other Distress

And the herd repeats...

Godspeed You! Black Emperor, the Canadian post-rock band, had released an album earlier this year.

It's *yawn* okay.

There's definitely nothing bad to say about this album other than it's pretty boring.  It's a four track album with all of the boredom residing in the middle two tracks.  I'm sure there are plenty of hipsters out there that would say that I just don't get the brilliance of the composition.  Maybe they're right; I don't know.  Let me try to explain why I think this album is boring.

I guess I'll start by saying that the two middle tracks really are the only problem on this album.  The first track "Peasantry or 'Light! Inside of Light!'" is really awesome!  It definitely stands up to some of their best songs, no doubt.  The closing "Piss Clowns are Trebled" is also really good.  They both have interesting guitar melodies and harmonies which are very reminiscent of what the band does best.  The textures are also incredibly interesting, with the violin being just gut-wrenching at times; clashing with the tonic guitars with their non-tonic tendencies.  Basically, I really enjoyed these two pieces and would recommend that you at least check them out.

The middle two songs, "Lamb's Breath" and "Asunder, Sweet" are a combined 16 minutes and 30 seconds of nihilism.  The only way you could be more nihilistic is if you wrote something similar to John Cage's "4' 33''," a piece that is purely silence.  Neither of these middle two pieces have a sense of melody, which in turn, means no sense of harmony, counter-melody, or key.  This isn't even that much of a problem if you like really progressive music.

However, these two pieces fall flat in one other major way which would even leave ambient music fans disappointed:  the textures in these two middle pieces are just unimaginative.  It mostly sounds like someone who put their electric guitar down and forgot to turn off the amp, a keyboard player that fell asleep with his head on a single key, and a rhythm section that is just flat out absent.

If you're going to talk about filler in an album, I don't know of a better example than this.  If there was any composition at all in the middle two tracks, it was lazy.  Throughout the middle 16 minutes and 30 seconds, the textures hardly ever change and the dynamics are stiff.  The performance is mundane and uninspired.  And this is a real shame because this is a band that gave us incredible compositions and performances in the past but in these two middle songs, the most work was clearly done in the editing/post-production.  But without much to work with, it leaves the middle of this album rather lack-luster, at best.  It probably would have actually been pretty cool if it was reduced to a 3 to 5 minute interlude.  Unfortunately, I think I would have to be stoned in order to not fall asleep during this snooze fest.

Perhaps I am wrong as I am not a particular fan of ambient music, but I just can't comprehend the brilliance if there truly is any.  However, in my opinion, this album is truly a mixed-bag.  The middle is boring but the opener and closer are some of the best songs the band has to offer.  I would definitely check those out and skip the rest.



Cover:  http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/1f/Godspeed_You!_Black_Emperor_-_Asunder,_Sweet_and_Other_Distress.jpg 

Introspection Sucks

The topic of this post is actually kind of difficult to talk about.  It's not really in a way where I get choked up or emotional or even that frustrated.  But I think it's tough for me because I honestly can't figure it out.  I guess, being an engineering major and soon to be graduate, I often approach problems very analytically.  One of the hardest things to analyze is yourself.  Introspection is truly difficult to do, which is part of the reason why I am writing this post.  Perhaps we can bounce ideas off of each other with this post as a start to our thread of what I would like to talk about today.

Most things I can figure out decently well, even difficult concepts.  In most areas, I can conclude that I'm at least adequate.  Sure, there are some things that I'm just not very good at but we all have faults.  Even the things I'm not very good at, at least I can put in a good effort and be content.  A lot of things it's a matter of figuring them out or just flat out practicing them.  Really, simple enough; sometimes easier said than done but still not very complicated.

However, the one area of my life that's been completely a maelstrom of difficulty is, without a doubt, relationships.  And, by this I mean, I can't even get a girl to go out with me.

Not one.

And maybe that's the problem right there.  In the phrase "I can't even get a girl to go out with me," implies that there's some sort of manipulation involved.  I mean, I try my best but at the end of the day it really turns into a matter of whether women I ask even like me enough to give it a shot.

The short answer is no.

But maybe it's this inherent analytical approach that I default to that is the root cause of the failures.  It's pretty easy to say that dating is a game that doesn't involve just strategy.  It seems to me that it requires talent, good looks, and confidence.  You can't trick a woman into dating you.

Well, I guess I don't know that for sure but yeah, probably not.

There are people that say I should just 'be myself' but that seems like an inadequate approach as well.  Why do I say this?  Well, I just simply don't have a lot to be proud of.  Sometimes my friends say I should be more confident but I'm not really sure why.  There's nothing to be confident in.  I'm just a regular guy.  I'm not going to go around saying I'm the best person that ever lived or something because that's just stupid.  No one's buying that!

Anyways, introspection is one of the most difficult things to do but I'll try my best anyways.  The only approach I know is the analytical approach so I guess I'll put out my thoughts that way, for now, even though I know that they don't work.

I think it all starts with my personality and sociability.  I frequently find myself stumbling through social situations.  Frequently may not even be the right word for it.  It's more like all of the time.  I think it's because I'm not very normal.  I can get along with fellow students in the engineering building okay but I soon as I find myself in a social situation with a normal person, I become hopelessly awkward like every word that I choose, every joke I muster up, every thought that becomes communication becomes something that they either don't understand or just really can't find interesting (I can't tell which one).  As you may imagine, this would carry over to potential dating situations.  In fact, I think it may get way worse, like a lot worse.  This is something I can't figure out at all.  Maybe I just don't have the nerves.  It's like my body has the mechanism that just kicks in that makes me completely emotionless to get through tough situations.  When I give presentations, this will happen as well which often leads to my speech becoming monotone.

Though, this doesn't happen when I play shows so that's good.

I think another thing that really plays against my favor is how unrelatable I am.  For how little I fit into any one clique or social stereotype I think really makes me undefined.  For the people that do get to know me, I think they have difficulty placing me into these cookie cutter personalities.  Humans like being able to classify things.  Since I'm pretty hard to classify, I'm also hard to define.  When women get to know me, all they can conclude is that there is a lot that they don't know about me because they can't place me into what they already know.  Would you want to date the unknown?

I think also that it is the crowd that I hang with.  Don't get me wrong; my friends are great!  But that's the problem.  I'm basically last among my friends in social worth.  It sounds depressing but it's pretty true.  Not only am I the ugliest, but I'm also the strangest, quietest (sometimes), and the least experienced.  So when I'm out with my friends, no one is going to notice me unless if it's for bad reasons.  It's unfortunate but it's what happens.  Never was there a time when a girl preferred me over any of my friends so I will always be the last pick; which means that I will most likely never get picked at all.  About the only way I have anyone beat is with a higher GPA which doesn't mean shit to anyone, even me.  It just means that I tried harder at school.  Dating prospects don't care about that, trust me.

And that kind of brings me to my next point.  Just about everything that I have in my life I got through hard work.  I have no natural talents to show off other than working hard...which isn't a natural talent, anyone can work hard if they want.  This doesn't sound like a problem but it definitely is.  Women don't care if you try hard.  In fact, they will probably prefer if you can make difficult things look easy or simple.  Basically, they like a show off.  I'm not talented enough at any one thing to be like that.

And before you start thinking that since I have the potential to make money with an engineering degree that I will be better off with the ladies, just remember that dating ladies who only want you for money or as a financial crutch will only end badly.

I guess the points that I've made don't really amount to much but I think that about sums it up.  And maybe that means I'm not a complete lost cause but when I really think about it, that's a lot to change about myself.  Quite frankly, I don't really want to change.  It's too much of a wasted effort.  All of that work just for a relationship?  You know what, it makes no sense.

In the end, the analytical approach certainly won't work.  Maybe I'll get lucky one day or something.  But you know what?  I think I don't care.  No, I want a relationship.  No, I don't care.  No, I want a relationship.  You see?  I can't even make up my mind.  My logical side says that a relationship is way more trouble than it's worth, but my emotional side says that it is worth it.

But I think at the end of the day, I'll be too wrapped up in work, my hobbies, writing this blog (just kidding), etc. to even make a proper effort at something that I shouldn't care about.  So you know what? I think I'll try to live the rest of my life single.

Yeah, that sounds pretty good......Right?