We interrupt our PAX East reminiscing to bring you my first midnight movie review of 2010! Enjoy!
Friday, April 16, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Post PAS Post: Saturday, March 27th Part 3
The concert was epic, and before we knew it the time for my first live Late Nite JengaJam was upon us. I say “my” first live Late Nite JengaJam, because it wasn’t quite the shows first live taping. Regardless, everyone was still nervous and the generous amount of booze that we were steadily consuming was finally starting to help us out.
Joe was kind enough to help me haul equipment, and Jack came with us on our final run. The subway was much slower and more crowded than during the day, so the trip took a little longer than normal. Also I got hit in the face by some old guy trying to ask for directions. As his errant hand accidentally smacked me, I think the native Bostonians expected me to jump his shit. I had no such inkling, as we were on a schedule and I’m not as tightly wound as these East Coast types. I gave him the death look, as moved on. We had to move and we were fast approaching our midnight start time.
We got to the Sheraton Boston Hotel, where Lauren had already secured us a corner of the lobby as well as a small crowd. As I set up, I got more and more nervous. This was really about to happen. We did a quick sound check, and we were off. It was one of the fastest and yet longest hours I can remember. We had some quality guests and some great conversation. Some of the guests we had were people that had noticed us doing our thing, and yet others were people we’d actually just met at PAX. It was amazing, and what was even more amazing was the impromptu after-party that we had right then and there. We MIGHT have been drinking a little, who knows? The point was that fun was had by all and it was a magical night.
After the party, we took down our equipment and caught a cab back to our hotel. After getting up to our room and setting down all of our stuff, we realized that we were quite hungry. It was 3am in downtown Boston, so surely something was open. Not so much, as we quickly found out. We wandered around for a good 15 minutes trying to find us a good or even decent downtown diner. Nothing. The late night pizza place we went to Friday? Closed. The 7-11? Also closed. We were bummed to say the least. So we went back to the room, did some chatroulette, using the lovely Barbara as bait, and then called it a night.
…
Wait, you actually want to hear about our chatroulette session? Really? Well first off, there are lots of penises. I hear that they’re looking to fix this, but for now there are LOTS of penises. Every once in a while you’ll see someone and chat, and occasionally you’ll even talk to a pretty girl. Well we had our own pretty girl and we aimed to misbehave a little. The gag went something like this. Barb would smile and wave our new chat partner, assuming they were not showing us their junk. Barb would ask if they wanted to see some boobs, and when she got a YES and acted as if she would flash the camera, the rest of us who were hiding off camera would hop into view. John even took it upon himself to provide some man-chest flashing. Surprisingly, most of our marks ended up finding our gag funny, which was incredibly cool.
Joe was kind enough to help me haul equipment, and Jack came with us on our final run. The subway was much slower and more crowded than during the day, so the trip took a little longer than normal. Also I got hit in the face by some old guy trying to ask for directions. As his errant hand accidentally smacked me, I think the native Bostonians expected me to jump his shit. I had no such inkling, as we were on a schedule and I’m not as tightly wound as these East Coast types. I gave him the death look, as moved on. We had to move and we were fast approaching our midnight start time.
We got to the Sheraton Boston Hotel, where Lauren had already secured us a corner of the lobby as well as a small crowd. As I set up, I got more and more nervous. This was really about to happen. We did a quick sound check, and we were off. It was one of the fastest and yet longest hours I can remember. We had some quality guests and some great conversation. Some of the guests we had were people that had noticed us doing our thing, and yet others were people we’d actually just met at PAX. It was amazing, and what was even more amazing was the impromptu after-party that we had right then and there. We MIGHT have been drinking a little, who knows? The point was that fun was had by all and it was a magical night.
After the party, we took down our equipment and caught a cab back to our hotel. After getting up to our room and setting down all of our stuff, we realized that we were quite hungry. It was 3am in downtown Boston, so surely something was open. Not so much, as we quickly found out. We wandered around for a good 15 minutes trying to find us a good or even decent downtown diner. Nothing. The late night pizza place we went to Friday? Closed. The 7-11? Also closed. We were bummed to say the least. So we went back to the room, did some chatroulette, using the lovely Barbara as bait, and then called it a night.
…
Wait, you actually want to hear about our chatroulette session? Really? Well first off, there are lots of penises. I hear that they’re looking to fix this, but for now there are LOTS of penises. Every once in a while you’ll see someone and chat, and occasionally you’ll even talk to a pretty girl. Well we had our own pretty girl and we aimed to misbehave a little. The gag went something like this. Barb would smile and wave our new chat partner, assuming they were not showing us their junk. Barb would ask if they wanted to see some boobs, and when she got a YES and acted as if she would flash the camera, the rest of us who were hiding off camera would hop into view. John even took it upon himself to provide some man-chest flashing. Surprisingly, most of our marks ended up finding our gag funny, which was incredibly cool.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Post PAX Post: Saturday March 27th Part 2
After the RoosterTeeth panel, there was much hanging out with the RT guys before they kicked us out of the main theatre. The people that I’d been seeing in discrete little packets were all of a sudden in one place, and it was awesome. After chatting, and doing some stage dives into the sumo chairs, we adjourned to the expo hall. There was much to do before dinner, the Video Game Orchestra concert, and the live Late Nite JengaJam.
I had a different plan in mind. See, there was a group of Carnegie Mellon students that were at PAX to show off their school project. This project happened to be a Microsoft Surface, which was used to play Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition. The SurfaceScapes Team had been on the radar since about November, but this would be the first time since then that their project would be on display. I stopped by the room where the demo was going on throughout the day, and was immediately stopped by PAX East personnel. Apparently the small room was at capacity and people needed to leave before more could be admitted. I waited patiently before being let in, and was awed by what I saw. The table was surrounded by players, while the SurfaceScapes team looked on. One of the students was at a laptop controlling the action, while a team of four players fought off goblins and then a dragon.
After a few rounds, the session was reset and I got to sit down and play a Goliath Barbarian. Since we knew that our “encounter” would only last for a few rounds, we nova’d immediately, blowing all of our available dailies and encounter powers on the initial group of goblin minions. If nothing else, it was cool to see the different powers being animated. After about 4 rounds, the dragon showed up and our session ended. I got to briefly talk to the team and even invited them onto the Late Nite JengaJam recording, but more on that later. For being in a beta state, the animations present in SurfaceScapes were polished and the controls flowed rather smoothly. One notable omission was the Charge action, which had yet to be implemented. Another issue was less with the SurfaceScapes and more with the Surface itself. The touchscreen required a very specific amount of pressure to activate. Too hard or too soft, and your input would not be recognized. The future of this project is also in doubt. Once the team graduates in May, it’s unclear just how much more work will be put into this, or whether or not this might become a product that Wizards of the Coast would make available to Surface owners in the public. If nothing else, we’ve seen the truly geeky side of the Surface, and it looks rad.
After the demo, we tried to go to dinner as a big group, but we found that almost every where had 3+ hour waits for a group our size. Defeated, we eventually ended back up at the Sheraton lobby, eating hotel food. I managed to order a pizza, and we ordered some s’mores as a desert with Chantell and Casey (Jeff William's precocious daughter) . Hanging out was fun, and was a welcome rest after a long day that was not even over. I got to see some wonderful friends that I’d missed dearly (Martha!!) and before I knew it, it was time to go to the concert.
If you’d listened to the last episode of Late Nite JengaJam, you’d know that The Video Game Orchestra was not to be missed. I for one love hearing my favorite video game soundtracks performed in an orchestral format, especially the 8-bit and 16-bit stuff. We were in for a treat, from Mario to Chrono Trigger to Final Fantasy and even a metal version of Castlevania! We even got a bonus orchestral metal version of the Final Fantasy boss battle. This was totally awesome, made more awesome since talking to Shota and Jeff.
After the show, we couldn’t rest for long. Finally, at long last, it was time to do my first live audience recording of Late Nite JengaJam…
TO BE CONCLUDED. Well, the Saturday part will be concluded. :)
I had a different plan in mind. See, there was a group of Carnegie Mellon students that were at PAX to show off their school project. This project happened to be a Microsoft Surface, which was used to play Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition. The SurfaceScapes Team had been on the radar since about November, but this would be the first time since then that their project would be on display. I stopped by the room where the demo was going on throughout the day, and was immediately stopped by PAX East personnel. Apparently the small room was at capacity and people needed to leave before more could be admitted. I waited patiently before being let in, and was awed by what I saw. The table was surrounded by players, while the SurfaceScapes team looked on. One of the students was at a laptop controlling the action, while a team of four players fought off goblins and then a dragon.
After a few rounds, the session was reset and I got to sit down and play a Goliath Barbarian. Since we knew that our “encounter” would only last for a few rounds, we nova’d immediately, blowing all of our available dailies and encounter powers on the initial group of goblin minions. If nothing else, it was cool to see the different powers being animated. After about 4 rounds, the dragon showed up and our session ended. I got to briefly talk to the team and even invited them onto the Late Nite JengaJam recording, but more on that later. For being in a beta state, the animations present in SurfaceScapes were polished and the controls flowed rather smoothly. One notable omission was the Charge action, which had yet to be implemented. Another issue was less with the SurfaceScapes and more with the Surface itself. The touchscreen required a very specific amount of pressure to activate. Too hard or too soft, and your input would not be recognized. The future of this project is also in doubt. Once the team graduates in May, it’s unclear just how much more work will be put into this, or whether or not this might become a product that Wizards of the Coast would make available to Surface owners in the public. If nothing else, we’ve seen the truly geeky side of the Surface, and it looks rad.
After the demo, we tried to go to dinner as a big group, but we found that almost every where had 3+ hour waits for a group our size. Defeated, we eventually ended back up at the Sheraton lobby, eating hotel food. I managed to order a pizza, and we ordered some s’mores as a desert with Chantell and Casey (Jeff William's precocious daughter) . Hanging out was fun, and was a welcome rest after a long day that was not even over. I got to see some wonderful friends that I’d missed dearly (Martha!!) and before I knew it, it was time to go to the concert.
If you’d listened to the last episode of Late Nite JengaJam, you’d know that The Video Game Orchestra was not to be missed. I for one love hearing my favorite video game soundtracks performed in an orchestral format, especially the 8-bit and 16-bit stuff. We were in for a treat, from Mario to Chrono Trigger to Final Fantasy and even a metal version of Castlevania! We even got a bonus orchestral metal version of the Final Fantasy boss battle. This was totally awesome, made more awesome since talking to Shota and Jeff.
After the show, we couldn’t rest for long. Finally, at long last, it was time to do my first live audience recording of Late Nite JengaJam…
TO BE CONCLUDED. Well, the Saturday part will be concluded. :)
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Post PAX Post - Saturday, March 27th Part 1
Previously on Lost The Wandering Gamer:
PAX was met.
Lines were waited in the cold, but yielded awesome results like being practically first.
Wil of the Wheatons spoke.
Allies were gathered.
Songs were sung.
The sun rose on Saturday, and as I woke I realized that because I could see the sun, I was already running late. I was first into the shower and first out the door. I arrived to the convention center to find it open to the media, but not to the public. Note to self: get a fucking media badge for next time. I managed to score some extra concert wristbands for my compatriots, and left to get some breakfast.
While wandering around, I caught one of my friends in her Harley Quinn costume and let me say that the girl can really rock the slutty, insane nurse look. After saying FUCK THAT to sitting in another line, I followed another line into an area of the convention center that was originally closed off to me. I found the D&D area, and lounged in a Sumo bag for a while, until I was told by an event official that I needed to get the fuck out. It was a little more diplomatic than that, but not by a lot. FINE. I continued my wanderings, and eventually found some friends at the Sheraton. After hanging out for a bit, I headed back to the convention center for my preview of the D&D Dark Sun Campaign Setting.
One of the few things that I absolutely refused to miss was this little adventure in a new world. This new world of Athas is actually not new at all, but simply the update of an old 2nd Edition setting. The revised setting seems just as brutal and while my group that I played with survived the adventure, it seemed like we were constantely on the verge of total destruction. Fortunately I was assisted by the utterly relaxing shoulder rub given to me by the lovely OboeCrazy, who stopped by to see what all the D&D fuss was about. Also, the other guys at the table were totally jealous. :D Overall, it was quite fun, and I can't wait to get my hands on the full campaign this summer.
I'd also like to say that the guys I played with, including the DM, were refreshingly cool guys. I was a little worried that I might get stuck with a manical PC-kill-happy DM, or that I'd get a few unsociable types on my team as PCs. Fortunately everyone was extremely chill, and it was an absolute pleasure to play with those guys. Also, the quality of the guys I normally play with clearly has rubbed off on my, as I was able to answer and correct just about every rules question that we ran into. Obviously I was double-checked several times, but my accuracy was always there. Props to my home-town D&D group for helping to bring my game to a very high level. The players at the table were also very skilled, as we not only won the adventure but did it in the fastest time to that point.
After rocking the Dark Sun adventure, I met up with my group in line for the RoosterTeeth panel. Once again, we were near the front thanks to some selfless efforts. Also, people were playing Magic: The Gathering, as all of the swag bags had a different color starter deck in them. So I played M:tG for the first time in a while. The decks were pre-built, and the cards were actually reasonably powered. It was a fun destraction while having little else to do. Hanging out with everyone was also fun, and that's really what made waiting in line bearable. I tried to avoid it, but queuing up with friends was always worth it.
Getting into the RT panel, we got the choicest seats in the packed Main Theatre. Getting in, we finally got to chat with some of the staff, and Barbara who'd been busy tirelessly working the booth in the Expo Hall. It was really cool, and we even got invited to sit in the VIP Sumo lounge area just off the stage. Truly awesome! The panel was entertaining, but the highlight was finding out that Monty Oum, creator of Haloid and Dead Fantasy was now working on Red Vs. Blue as a CG motion capture artist. His work on RvB has so far been outstanding, and I can't wait to see more of his stuff.
TO BE CONTINUED...
PAX was met.
Lines were waited in the cold, but yielded awesome results like being practically first.
Wil of the Wheatons spoke.
Allies were gathered.
Songs were sung.
The sun rose on Saturday, and as I woke I realized that because I could see the sun, I was already running late. I was first into the shower and first out the door. I arrived to the convention center to find it open to the media, but not to the public. Note to self: get a fucking media badge for next time. I managed to score some extra concert wristbands for my compatriots, and left to get some breakfast.
While wandering around, I caught one of my friends in her Harley Quinn costume and let me say that the girl can really rock the slutty, insane nurse look. After saying FUCK THAT to sitting in another line, I followed another line into an area of the convention center that was originally closed off to me. I found the D&D area, and lounged in a Sumo bag for a while, until I was told by an event official that I needed to get the fuck out. It was a little more diplomatic than that, but not by a lot. FINE. I continued my wanderings, and eventually found some friends at the Sheraton. After hanging out for a bit, I headed back to the convention center for my preview of the D&D Dark Sun Campaign Setting.
One of the few things that I absolutely refused to miss was this little adventure in a new world. This new world of Athas is actually not new at all, but simply the update of an old 2nd Edition setting. The revised setting seems just as brutal and while my group that I played with survived the adventure, it seemed like we were constantely on the verge of total destruction. Fortunately I was assisted by the utterly relaxing shoulder rub given to me by the lovely OboeCrazy, who stopped by to see what all the D&D fuss was about. Also, the other guys at the table were totally jealous. :D Overall, it was quite fun, and I can't wait to get my hands on the full campaign this summer.
I'd also like to say that the guys I played with, including the DM, were refreshingly cool guys. I was a little worried that I might get stuck with a manical PC-kill-happy DM, or that I'd get a few unsociable types on my team as PCs. Fortunately everyone was extremely chill, and it was an absolute pleasure to play with those guys. Also, the quality of the guys I normally play with clearly has rubbed off on my, as I was able to answer and correct just about every rules question that we ran into. Obviously I was double-checked several times, but my accuracy was always there. Props to my home-town D&D group for helping to bring my game to a very high level. The players at the table were also very skilled, as we not only won the adventure but did it in the fastest time to that point.
After rocking the Dark Sun adventure, I met up with my group in line for the RoosterTeeth panel. Once again, we were near the front thanks to some selfless efforts. Also, people were playing Magic: The Gathering, as all of the swag bags had a different color starter deck in them. So I played M:tG for the first time in a while. The decks were pre-built, and the cards were actually reasonably powered. It was a fun destraction while having little else to do. Hanging out with everyone was also fun, and that's really what made waiting in line bearable. I tried to avoid it, but queuing up with friends was always worth it.
Getting into the RT panel, we got the choicest seats in the packed Main Theatre. Getting in, we finally got to chat with some of the staff, and Barbara who'd been busy tirelessly working the booth in the Expo Hall. It was really cool, and we even got invited to sit in the VIP Sumo lounge area just off the stage. Truly awesome! The panel was entertaining, but the highlight was finding out that Monty Oum, creator of Haloid and Dead Fantasy was now working on Red Vs. Blue as a CG motion capture artist. His work on RvB has so far been outstanding, and I can't wait to see more of his stuff.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Post PAX Post - Friday, March 26th
Friday started like most mornings. I was tired and I didn't want to get up. Then I remembered that I was in Boston, PAX was about to start, and I had to get to the liquor store for some flask booze. Also, I was going to scout the initial line to get into PAX.
First off, it was fucking cold. Also, it was snowing. LOUSY SMARCH weather! I swung by Bauer's Wine and Spirits on Newbury St. to find that they were closed. BOO, I thought. I figured since I was there, I might as well check out the line. I'm so glad that I did, because thanks to this early venture in the cold New England morning, I was able to get me and my friends a spot close to the front of the line for the PAX Opening Ceremonies.
Speaking of my friends, I would not have tolerated the wait in line had it not been for them. It was a chance to do nothing but talk and hang out with these wonderful people. John, Jack, Casey, David, Jozef, Ian, and Travie: you guys made the wait in line, and the whole experience worth doing.
As it turns out, Friday was a day of contrasts. After doing nothing but waiting in line for hours in the morning for the keynote, you were suddenly hit with the entirety of the pax experience. All of a sudden, you had all options available to you, and it was almost overwhelming. I for one explored, caught up with the RoosterTeeth guys, found the D&D area, and played some Rock Band with friends!
Speaking of the Keynote, it was awesome. Wil Wheaton talked about how gaming builds friendships, and I could not agree more. What brought my core group of friends together in college was gaming, and it continues to be the thing that we like to do most when we get together. The crowd was phenomenal, and although I didn't get picked to be an Omeganaut, fun was had by all and tweeting from the front of the line has its moments.
After my first exhaust day PAX, we met up with a bunch of friends and headed to The Golden Leaf for karaoke and bento boxes. On the way, I grabbed a hot dog at a joint called Spike's, and subsequently had the best hot dog of my life. OM. NOM. NOM.
After gathering everyone and walking to Golden Leaf, sake and BAD singing ensued. Props to everyone who came and hung out! After hiking back to the hotel, a few of us ventured into the chilly Boston night, and got some cheap ass pizza from the most shrewd pizza place I've ever been to. Seriously, they had no seating, only two kinds of pizzas, and their floor was very dirty. Still they were the best 2am munchies game on the block.
Finally we returned to our hotel to find the cops had blocked off our street. Forunately we were able to get back into our hotel, but it seemed like there was always some sort of drama on that street every night of the weekend.
First off, it was fucking cold. Also, it was snowing. LOUSY SMARCH weather! I swung by Bauer's Wine and Spirits on Newbury St. to find that they were closed. BOO, I thought. I figured since I was there, I might as well check out the line. I'm so glad that I did, because thanks to this early venture in the cold New England morning, I was able to get me and my friends a spot close to the front of the line for the PAX Opening Ceremonies.
Speaking of my friends, I would not have tolerated the wait in line had it not been for them. It was a chance to do nothing but talk and hang out with these wonderful people. John, Jack, Casey, David, Jozef, Ian, and Travie: you guys made the wait in line, and the whole experience worth doing.
As it turns out, Friday was a day of contrasts. After doing nothing but waiting in line for hours in the morning for the keynote, you were suddenly hit with the entirety of the pax experience. All of a sudden, you had all options available to you, and it was almost overwhelming. I for one explored, caught up with the RoosterTeeth guys, found the D&D area, and played some Rock Band with friends!
Speaking of the Keynote, it was awesome. Wil Wheaton talked about how gaming builds friendships, and I could not agree more. What brought my core group of friends together in college was gaming, and it continues to be the thing that we like to do most when we get together. The crowd was phenomenal, and although I didn't get picked to be an Omeganaut, fun was had by all and tweeting from the front of the line has its moments.
After my first exhaust day PAX, we met up with a bunch of friends and headed to The Golden Leaf for karaoke and bento boxes. On the way, I grabbed a hot dog at a joint called Spike's, and subsequently had the best hot dog of my life. OM. NOM. NOM.
After gathering everyone and walking to Golden Leaf, sake and BAD singing ensued. Props to everyone who came and hung out! After hiking back to the hotel, a few of us ventured into the chilly Boston night, and got some cheap ass pizza from the most shrewd pizza place I've ever been to. Seriously, they had no seating, only two kinds of pizzas, and their floor was very dirty. Still they were the best 2am munchies game on the block.
Finally we returned to our hotel to find the cops had blocked off our street. Forunately we were able to get back into our hotel, but it seemed like there was always some sort of drama on that street every night of the weekend.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
PAX East run-up
PAX East is coming up, so keep it here for the latest news and info! I’ll be doing my best to cover new D&D products, board game releases, and any other geeky goings on. Don’t forget to follow my Twitter for the latest, and tune in Tuesday night to Late Nite Jengajam for our first PAX interview with Shota Nakama and Jeff Williams of The Video Game Orchestra.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Runewars
Last review I mentioned the value of learning a new game in terms of one you already know, and this seems to be a recurring theme in my gaming lately. Up for consideration this time is game that yet again takes place in the Runebound / Descent universe: Runewars. Runewars is very much like some of the other wargaming offerings that have come out of Fantasy Flight games, such as the Twilight Imperium expansion (which carried TI to a whole new level) and StarCraft, thanks to designer Corey Konieczka.
This means that a game as epic as Runewars was taught to a group of new player in just under 20 minutes. Explaining things in terms of Twilight Imperium made learning the game a snap. The concept of different races having different strengths, activations of hexes for combat, and determining initiative by the actions you take that round, all are familiar concepts for Twilight Imperium players.
There are some notable differences, starting with the gameboard. Gone are the individual terrain hexes, and now hexes are group together in different arrays. Terrain arrays are also numbered and determine what quests are available to your heroes. Also gone are the dice that determine the results of combat. New to the game is the Fate deck, a stack of cards that determine how successful your units are in a fight. The interesting thing about this is that it allows players to choose their battles based on the cards drawn from the Fate deck. Let’s my squad of archers are ready to attack an opponent, and we’ve just had a battle involving an opponents skeleton’s archers. Since their both the same class of unit, they’ll use the same successes on Fate cards. Now if that battle went badly for them, and they drew almost no successes or special abilities, I might be more inclined to attack knowing that the successes are coming. It’s an interesting new twist in choosing your battles.
The last difference is a big one. You now have the possibility of controlling one or more heroes, who quest for you and allow you to obtain more victory points on their own. Heroes work differently than other units, as their not actually units for you. They are mercenaries, and rarely even affect the clashing of armies that happen around them. It’s integrated surprisingly well into the game, and doesn’t feel like a distraction.
Overall, the game feels like it takes an appropriate spot in the Runebound series. Runewars is the macrocosm, Runebound is focused on the quest, and Descent focuses on the battles in the quest. Runewars plays very smoothly, and the bits are really awesome. Especially nice are the mountain parts of the map that give the playing board a nice visceral texture. This is an awesome game, with my only complaint being the presence of only four playable races. It screams for an expansion, and once we get that it’s sure to be one of our favorites for a long time to come.
Also, it gives us yet another opportunity to ogle Red Scorpion:
Ahhh, Red Scorpion…
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