Star Wars the Old Republic

Yeah, this post is just going to be me ranting/gushing about stuff as I should actually be trying to sleep right now.  You've been warned.

I used to have a vow that I would never play an MMORPG if I could help it.  I could no longer help it.  I have six characters on SWtOR, and I regret nothing.  I finally finished the Jedi Knight story and my second highest toon is currently my light-sided Chiss Bounty Hunter (lvl 41) and I'm stuck on Belsavis...again.  I hate Belsavis.  I also haven't played in about a week, though the longest stretch I've gone is about two months, when my JK Atrys (also light-sided...I play everyone light-sided, I just can't be evil!) was stuck on Belsavis.  Seriously, I hate Belsavis.  Take two steps and fifty billion beings kill you because every area is overloaded with effing droids.  Also the map is confusing and for some reason the game kept leading me to the opposite faction bases and murdering me because of it.

I never thought I'd enjoy the experience, but I got sick of hoping for KOTOR III.  All the videos I saw of the Smuggler and Jedi Knight quest lines made me subscribe...and here I am, about nine months later still playing.  My favorite race is still the Chiss (Chiss rule!) with their beautiful blue skin and softly glowing red eyes.  I don't know why, I just love them.  They're freaking awesome.  I love my tiny BH with her Grey DeLisle voice and her big attitude and her jetpack attacks....even if I have to work for the Empire, who I really, really hate.  Though I do have fun with my Sith Warrior (which is really interesting if you're light-sided) making all the annoying NPCs kowtow to me.

Some of the romance is a bit lopsided, though.  Like the Jedi Consular female....everything about her is so...boring.  Her romance lacks any heat whatsoever.  I'm also stuck on Quesh with her story mission because all the enemies are two levels higher and FREAKING SITH LORDS.  I should get back to that grind at some point, but I'm not motivated at all.

I need to respec my Smuggler...'cause she's prone to death.  Rich as hell, though.  I love Corso, and the romance is freaking adorable.  Favorite romances so far: Smuggler & Corso, BH & Torian, SW & Malavai.  Malavai has such a stick up his ass, it's great. 

I want to start an agent just based on the romance and the story, but I still hate helping the Empire.  I need to finish a few more toons before starting a new one, but I suck at that.  I started the Sith Inquisitor 16 times before actually getting off Korriban.  Now she's on Balmorra and I'm still thinking of quitting and restarting it again....this game has taken over parts of my life.  It's very addictive.

Going to bed now....
 

Actually not dead...Really...

So, yeah. I kinda gave up on this blog 'cause I got busy at work and then I thought no one would miss me ranting on random stuff on the Internet, but then I was told I was wrong! (Also that's a huge run-on sentence I just typed.) Apparently someone actually missed my blog. Color me surprised.

So, lots of news I totally haven't updated on. Quick rundown on what's currently taking up my free time as of right now:

• Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood and the Fullmetal Alchemist manga. After swearing I was done after that godawful movie Conqueror of Shambala (honestly, Nazi!Hughes?) Tony managed to pique my interest in what I thought was an unnecessary remake by telling me it was actually following the manga this time and then proceeded to spoil the manga for me because I thought I was done with it. Anyways, it's totally awesome and Arakawa is a friggin' genius, and anyone who thought they were done with the Elric brothers should give it another chance. Also the dub is pretty sweet if you hate subs. There's more I can fangirl on this, but I'll have to do it later as I really need to get to bed soon.
• Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour or just the whole Scott Pilgrim series in general. The last (sixth) book finally came out and the wait was totally worth it. This comic series is a genius blend of real life ennui, geekdom and video game obsession rolled into a truly hilarious ball of fun and craziness. Honestly, if you like parody, comics, hilarity, video games, love, music, etc. this is for you. Check it out. Also, bonus movie directed by Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) coming out in August that I'm really looking forward to.
• Ouran High School Host Club is almost done in manga form! It's wrapping up pretty fast, so I think there's only one (at most two) chapters left. Those who love Haruhi and Tamaki will squeal like crazy.
• Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age: Origins had hijacked my life. I'm replaying the former for the bizillionth time as I finally broke down and paid for DLC. I had to download Kasumi when I saw part of her loyalty mission on YouTube. Worth it. I love her. Also, for the record Bioware officially owns my soul. When I saw The Old Republic trailer I was hyperventilating until I remembered it's an MMORPG and I hate playing with others because they ruin my fantasy/happy place/escapism. MAKE KOTORIII DAMMIT!!
• Inception was brilliant. If you haven't seen it, close down your browser window and head to your nearest theater to see it right now. It's so refreshing to see a competent, well-made movie with real actors and practical effects and solid writing. Also great directing.
• Still haven't played new PoP. Also wishing they hadn't abandoned the Elika/Nolan North one. I loved that one, really wanted to see where they were taking that. Though the combat sucked, they could've fixed it easy. Why did Ubisoft listen to the twelve irritating fanboys of the last franchise and abondon the new one!? IT WAS GOING PLACES! There were characters I friggin' cared about! GAAAAAAAAAAAH . (Also dragged poor Tony to see that stupid movie. Words can't describe how much fail that movie had. But also shirtless Jake Gyllenhaal, so I can forgive some of it.)
• Kick Ass was great. Loved every moment, even if it was different than the comics. Sometimes you need to stray from the source material because of the medium it's currently in.

That's all I can think of off the top of my head. I'll sit down for real in the very near future to torture all two of you who read this thing with my incessant fangirl squeals about something previously mentioned or something I haven't had the chance to gush on yet. So...fear me?

Oh! True Blood! Totally awesome. Really the only thing I'm watching consistently on TV right now. They are totally making shit up, but I don't care because it is amazing. Mostly. Sick of Sam's deadbeat family and Jason's obsession with Crystal. To be fair, I hate Jason and Crystal in the books too.

Games I Wish I'd Played Pt. 1

One of the games I wish I'd seen or played would have to be Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. After reading a synopsis and seeing a few videos on YouTube, I'd have to say that this particular game is a real stand-out. Sure, the combat seems punishing at times, but the characterization, gameplay and plot more than make up for it. The Prince and Farah are downright interesting (and fun) and watching the Prince do his acrobatics off of walls is really cool, not to mention inventing the whole slowing-down/rewinding time thing. Prince of Persia seems very whimsical with a great story and unique setting. This is a classic that I really wish I'd been able to play, even if it was made by Ubisoft. Maybe I should hop to a GameStop for this one.

Another game I wish I'd seen (not necessarily played) is Resident Evil 4. I've seen all the cutscenes and read the story as well, and I know a lot of the franchise's storyline. I'm just not a fan of zombies. There, I said it. I hate imminent armageddon and killer robots that have already wiped humanity off the face of the earth as well. Those are my top three on the list of Stuff Jill Can't Stand. So I refused to watch this when Tony got it. Now I'm seriously regretting it. I've just started to absolutely adore horror/action games, and this is one of the best of all time. Doubled with Capcom's punishing gameplay it would've been a rollicking good time. Plus Leon's really hot. Y'know, for pixels. So while I'm looking forward to Resident Evil 5, I still wish that I'd seen 4 from start to finish.

*Spoilers Ahead*

This is a little off-topic, but I also wish I'd played the Knights of the Old Republic series in order. Or at least not known that you're Revan in the first game. I played the second one first (and it was actually my introduction into RPGs) and am still in love with it to this day. Yes, I know it's a very broken game, but at its core it has real soul. And it's Lucasarts' fault that it was unfinished for rushing Obsidian the way they did. I love the character of the Exile. How fragmented her identity is, how ripped apart she is inside. She tries to put a good face on it at times, but she's a real mess. And Atton...boy, don't get me started. I adore Atton. He's a scoundrel-turned-decent because of his protective love for the Exile and can't help but continually crack jokes all the time in his sexy voice...*sigh* Love it. I can't tell you how sad I am that I can no longer play these games on PC. (I got Vista not too long ago.) The first one is of course excellent because Bioware made it. But the second one will always be my favorite. The idea of a broken Jedi will never stop being cool to me. I wish that someone would make a follow-up game to complete the story. Anyone. Please?

*Spoilers End*

That last paragraph reminded me of something I'd been meaning to write. One day you'll see me write about Bioware on this blog at length and going through all the games of their's I've played.

Mercenaries 2

So Tony got Mercenaries 2 yesterday (strangely it was released on a Sunday) and we all sat down to watch it. I wasn't a huge fan of the first one because I hadn't been properly introduced into the story (what little there was) and hadn't seen any of the voice talent being displayed. So I was pretty against this experience.

I was so totally, totally wrong.

Mercenaries 2 is awesome. Fantastic graphics, fun storyline, and one of my favorite voice talents of all time should you choose her character: Jennifer Hale. She's here using her Bastila voice which is hilarious considering the dialogue. It's fun to hear Bastila touting the virtues of an AK-47! (HK-47 still recieves no love from Bastila.) There's also the prolific Phil LaMarr and (my favorite merc) Peter Stormare. Very, very awesome. So far the story is about revenge after not getting paid and getting shot in the ass. And yes, I made Tony play as Jennifer Mui (Jennifer Hale's character) for about half an hour 'cause I wanted to see a female protagonist.

Nothing is more fun than ordering an air strike on someone. Except for maybe a nuclear strike. Which you can apparently do in this one. I can't wait! Definitely a cathartic release and pure destructive fun. Also, looks good in HD. Definitely five starry thumbs-up or however I rate stuff.

^_~