Morrowind Your Skyrim into Oblivion

I think anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 of my 'gaming' time is actually spent NOT gaming, but experimenting with gaming technologies. Yes, it's a mad party up in my rig. Or some such thing.

Lately, it's been perfecting my stream-to-TV setup using the Steam Streaming beta, and modding some older Bethesda titles.

On the streaming front, things are going very well. I was pleased to discover that it streams non-Steam games, as well, which is a HUGE win for my newer BioWare titles. Also, I've been having a lot of fun impressing my son with how good I can get some of these games to look on PC. Skyrim, for example, despite being almost three years old, can still achieve an insane level of graphical fidelity, once the right mods are introduced.

Right now, I'm just sliding the Alienware laptop under the TV, jacking into the secondary HDMI, then connecting an old wireless mouse and keyboard I had the foresight to hold onto.

Problems: power and wireless keyboard and mouse. My power situation behind my TV is a bit ... unstable, and I have no desire to introduce anything else into it. This means I'm running my power cable across the room, into a 3-2 converter, then into an extension cord. Also, the range on the wireless keyboard and mouse kinda sucks, so I have to run the access point halfway to the recliner, which means that people and dogs are free to accidentally knock it down right and left.

Both of these are easily resolved via minor expenditures. What's great is that the proof-of-concept is increasingly successful. I'm now curious to see how low I can go in terms of specs for the streaming machine. I'd guess proc is the key component there, as well as having an HDMI out. I plan to rummage around the house soon, and see what I can throw together.

As stated before, I'd like to just set up a dock at each TV for a super-powerful gaming laptop, and have that act as my streaming machine, that I can also take on the road, much like my existing Alienware.

Modding Mods
On the modding side, I've been looking a lot at Morrowind and Fallout 3.

The number of mods for Morrowind is staggering. On one hand, you have the official add-ons, about which I knew nothing, and then you have super-mega-huge overhaul mods, like MGSO, which transform the game entirely, into something almost modern.

 

I'd installed MGSO a while ago, started tweaking some shit under the hood, broke it, and then also got frustrated, because I tend to game on three different PCs, depending on what's going on, and keeping the install and tweaks across three different devices was a huge headache.

This time around, I knocked it down to two devices, and did the install one after another, keeping the settings very simple. The game still came out absolutely beautiful, especially once you hit the wilderness. It's not just visuals, mind you, it's also the ambience of the environment. Everything from insects to little splashes of water to rustles of leaves makes the world, finally, feel totally alive.

I wish I'd reinstalled this mod from the beginning of this journey, but now I'm glad I did it at all.

Speaking of Elder Scrolls, it was fascinating turning my older boy loose on Skyrim, and observing a) how he reacted to various scripted events (for example, he just wanted to watch the sky for the dragon, rather than act on its impending arrival), and b) how he approached the actual 'game.' He decided he was fine with letting his NPC handle most of the combat, since he was busy picking locks and looting corpses. Then, he wanted to move in straight lines across terrain to an end point, rather than sticking to the roads. Watching it, I was marveling at how many of those tendencies are tendencies that we share. We also share a tendency to be a backseat player, and drive each other crazy in the process.

The next Elder Scrolls Online beta can't get here soon enough.

I've almost been making some minor tweaks to Fallout 3. Mainly, the game struggles a bit with multi-core procs and can even crash sometimes because of that. A few minor edits to the game's config file nipped that right in the bud, and it runs rather nicely now. I'm also looking at a handful of graphical mods. The game looks a bit long-in-the-tooth now, and it'd be nice to up the textures on some of the faces and environments.

Oh, and randomly, I grabbed a total conversion mod for Oblivion called Nehrim. I'm curious to try this one out at some point. It's a whole new world, totally separate from the Elder Scrolls, and I love shit like that. I'd love to something like that someday.

Yes, but you will be talking about actual games at some point in this gaming blog, yes?
Morrowind. Yup. Been playing more Morrowind.

As I've talked about before in here, I find that with Morrowind, more so than any other game I've ever played, I have to be very conscientious about keeping myself in the right frame of mind when I play it, otherwise I'll never come back. I fight, sometimes, to keep myself from being obsessive about making progress. Morrowind is antithetical to this concept, in both its structure and its themes. Morrowind asks, or rather insists, that you chill the fuck out and just immerse yourself in the world. I'm now trying to bust a green librarian out of a floating sky prison above Vivec. This shit is just awesome.

Meanwhile, I'm also all set for Thief tomorrow. I've got my preloads done, one on the main desktop, the other on the laptop.

Interesting. I just noted that Thief is unlocking tomorrow at 1PM central. Looks like it'll be a late lunch tomorrow, and I'll be lugging the Alienware to work. Which is fine.

I anticipate that I'll play quite a bit on Tuesday, barring any technical launch issues, and have some impressions on Wednesday. I may even get all crazy and put up a Tuesday night post, as well.

Here's some Thief reviews, by the way.
EGM
Game Informer
GameSpot
PC Gamer
Polygon
Rock Paper Shotgun

Take from those reviews what you will. In there is some sort of aggregate, but I always wonder how much things like predisposition based on rumors, wanting to fit in with other reviewers, and consideration of being able to make a living because ad revenues are still flowing in inform some of these guys. Historically, I find that there are some reviewers that I tend to match up with, while others seem to be existing in a world that is in total dissonance from my own. And that's okay. I tend to find more use for reviews after I've played the game to completion, as I often enjoy engaging some of these guys afterward to compare notes.

Anyway, if you had a mad Thief boner, don't get upset by other people not loving something you've already decided was the game to ever come out tomorrow. Unless you love it and want them to make another one ever again, it doesn't matter what other people think.

I still plan on seeing what's what, and I'm looking forward to it.

Thanks for reading, and lemme know what you think of Thief!

-Blaine

RPGs & Achievement Whoring

Back in the Day
I remember, in the days of yore, when Microsoft first showed off the Achievement system for Xbox 360 and Xbox Live, I was curious, but not overtly excited. I wasn't opposed to the idea, but I was interested in seeing how it was implemented, and what effect it would have on the way we game. As it turned out, some of my good buddies instantly became what's now affectionately known as 'achievement whores,' and as I watched their Gamerscore tick up and up, almost minute by minute, I became concerned about their overall Xbox/life balance. This became a very real concern as I started seeing games like King Kong and Kameo pop up on their games list.

I wasn't into Elder Scrolls when Oblivion came out, which resulted in this weird period in time in which I never had anyone to play PDZ with. It was very isolating. I felt so alone.

Therefore, the first RPG that I really sunk my teeth into that had achievements was my beloved Lost Odyssey. Man, I loved that game. I think I said at the time that it was like reconnecting with an old flame, falling in love all over again, only to have it come to its inevitable end, one last time. Once the game was over, my heart was shattered again, but I didn't regret the time we shared. Not one bit. That was the last JRPG I really loved. It was that one last hurrah from Sakaguchi-san, the final Final Fantasy, and it was a showcaseof everything that was great about his games.

But then, it had DLC and achievements.

I remember, as I played through it, whenever I'd get that nice little Achievement pop-up, I got a nice warm feeling of artificial validation, but it was really neat, because it was for a game that was one of 'my' games. It was kinda cool seeing 'their' system applied to 'my' game. Sure, I'd racked up a few Achievements in other games prior to this, but it had rarely mattered much to me.

Shortly after Xbox Achievements became a big thing, both Steam and Sony scrambled to implement their versions of the Achievement system. I remember being really bothered that I'd beaten Uncharted before Sony had implemented Achievements, er, Trophies, and actually going back and playing through the game AGAIN after they were put in place, just so motherfuckers would know I could beat a game on easy.

Now
Through the years, I've found that I actually care more about Achievements in non-RPG games, like Uncharted and Dead Space than I do my usual BioWare/CDPR stable of games. I remember very distinctly, while playing each game in both series, I'd always pop into my Trophies on PSN to see how awesome I was, and to get a rough idea of my overall progress through the game. Oh, and you had to do that, since it was impossible for Sony to have that automatically sync otherwise (/facepalm. I sure hope that's fixed on PS4.)

I think I care less about it in my 'core' games, but then, I've always wished that my PC Mass Effect and Dragon Age achievements were tied to a bigger system than the BioWare Social Network (yes, it still exists, and could've been a cool thing), so that people could celebrate my love for playing through those games. EA, you have a big opportunity here with Origin.

Hell, the one thing I loved about the hated Games for Windows Live was that it tied PC games into my Xbox Achievements, so people could see my awesomeness in games like Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War 2 and Fallout 3.

Throughout the years, one thing has never happened. I've never Achievement-whored a game, and I wonder why. Lost Odyssey is the EXACT kind of game I'd do it on, too. There are Achievements for optional bosses, max-leveling, and all the great stuff we all used to do 'back in the day.' I know for a fact that Tony and I both still have saves on old PS1 memory cards that we treasure because they're so bad-ass (mine have since been transferred to my PS3, many moons ago. That fucker better never die. And it's one of the original models, that still has the ability to play PS2 games.)

I wonder, at times, if the nature of RPGs discourages Achievement-whoring, since they tend to be big, huge semi-linear games, and aside from save-reloads, it's generally very difficult to get every Achievement on the first play-through.

Additionally, at least for me, RPGs provide repeated moments of immense payoff, whether it be taking down a difficult boss, getting to a great cut-scene, or just getting immersed in the world. Achievements are inherently immersion-breaking, so maybe I pay less attention to them while I'm playing a big, bad-ass RPG. I'm not sure.

Actually, there is one game in which I really pay attention to the Achievements, and I think it's because I've exhausted so much of the content. SWTOR. However, MMORPGs are an entirely different beast, and a bigger topic than I wanna get into right now.

I like Achievements in games. I think they provide a cool meta-game for the social scene that surrounds gaming culture. They can provide instant points of reference for a discussion between two people that both like a particular game, and there is something that's very cool about looking at my own Achievements, and comparing them with someone else's. I can get idea of how they approached the game, and maybe that's something about which we have a great discussion, or I use that data to refine my own approach the next time I play the game. Or, even better, I see they did something nigh impossible in the game, and I wanna hear all about it.

I do think, though, that Achievements in RPGs, perhaps moreso than any other genre, can evolve. Because RPGs tend to be so insanely detailed and stat-based, a developer could really have some fun when setting up the Achievements for the game. There are some rich opportunities for Achievements that are tied to leveling single attributes, crafting, or even wacky choice-based Achievements (or wackier than what's already in play in some of the choice-driven RPGs.)

I also like shame-based Achievements, as well, in which you're granted an Achievement for doing something stupid or being a weak player. I've seen a few of those. I wanna say Dead Space and Fallout 3 both have them.

In any case, I may try to finally 100% a game for the first time this year. We'll see. I'm curious to see how Achievements continue to evolve. I look forward to racking up more this year in the avalanche of RPGs that will start raining down on us next month.

An Idea
Something's been rattling around in my brain for a bit, and since I like to just give away good ideas before I have a chance to implement them myself, it would be interesting if an entity like Raptr started implementing a 'Retro Achievement' system, in which PC games that lack Achievements were set up with a Raptr-based system that analyzed game progress in saves and granted Achievements for titles like KotOR, or The Witcher, or even older games, like Baldur's Gate. That would be something I'd enjoy, and could build quite a community, since there's so much passion for those old RPGs right now.

Just sayin'.

In Conclusion
Achievements are here to stay, whether you like it or not. I've seen interesting arguments both for and against them, and I see the merit in both stances. I like them, and hate to admit, but I've occasionally been more inclined to play one game than another because it has Achievements.

But, Achievements that aren't easily and very visibly displayed to other community members are nearly worthless. If you're gonna go to the trouble of implementing an Achievement system, give the user some control over displaying them. It'd be cool to pick a few really rare Achievements, and have them displayed on my profile, or my forum sig. Make them visible outside of the game, if the user wants that. It provides more community and user engagement, and really maximizes the value of the system.

Side Quests
 - I mentioned the reviews for this game yesterday, but Lightning Returns is looking more and more divisive. I may need to see for myself sooner than I thought.
 - Pillars of Eternity is now set for a 'winter 2014' release. In my mind, at least, I'm now moving this to 2015. And I'm fine with that, if that's what the game needs. I have some high hopes riding on this one.

How do you feel about Achievements? How do you feel about them, as relates to RPGs?

As always, thanks for reading!

-Blaine

Pre-Orders and the Gaming Space

Because I'm a sad little man that is constantly trying to fill a void where once my soul resided, I finally caved and spent some cash on Steam. I bought 'early access' Wasteland 2 and Age of Decadence, bought The Banner Saga, then preordered Thief, South Park: The Stick of Truth, and Shadowrun Returns: Dragonfall. Dragonfall hadn't even been on my radar. I had completely forgotten that was coming, but luckily, I follow Harebrained Schemes on RSS, and caught a glimpse of it on my Windows Phone RSS Live Tile (yes, folks, sorry, but Live Tiles really are fantastic and useful.)

I poked around a bit at Age of Decadence, and came away from it with the certainty that I do not have any idea how to play it. This is one that will require a few hours, 2-3 monitors (game, research, video), and some patience from my wife. It's all good, though. I like complex games, and I really enjoyed the bits I understood. I'm really looking forward to trying more.

I also popped in to SWTOR briefly, and ... I mean, I still like the game, but every time I'm in there now, I just ... I dunno, I always get the itch like I should be doing ANYTHING else. I don't hate the game, I actually quite love it, but close to 2.5 years in, I feel like there should've been a proper expansion by now. Instead, it's just outfits and a space battle bit about which I give no fucks. Not even one.

Hurry up, ESO.

My play-through of Morrowind has slowed somewhat. I'll be honest. I'm losing motivation. I'm at the point in which Caius has told me that I might be the Nerevearereveeaerrine, and I'm to go talk at some Ashlander dudes about it. I decided to start blowing through some side quests, since this seems like a good time to grind some stats. I'm wondering if some of my fatigue relates to how dated Morrowind is, and the illusion of a living world just isn't holding up. I'm not sure. I'm gonna stick with it, but I'm itching to move onto Oblivion.

Meanwhile, Fallout 3 has been my fallback for when I'm just not feeling Morrowind. I've been enjoying the hell out of it, and recently had an episode with it that completely reinforced the fact that I love being a PC gamer. Fallout 3 is, by now, a bit of an older game, and is not properly configured to know how to handle multiple cores in a proc. This was causing repeated crashing when it was time to flee Vault 101. I poked around a bit, found the issue, added a couple lines to an .INI file, and I was good to go. I was playing a 'last-gen' game with no problems, moving between my desktop and laptop all weekend, with minimal effort. Were we talking about a console release, it would've been a whole other story. First, your locked to playing on that aged box, through a TV. Second, if you're experiencing a known bug, you're at the mercy of the developers, publisher, and platform holder to ever get it fixed. No thanks. Because I'm a PC gamer, I was able to find the known issue, see the fix, then implement it myself. Easy.

In any case, I'm now in Megaton, talking at folks, and I'm having a great time saving, trying something crazy, then reloading. For reference, I have played a fair amount of Fallout 3 in the past, but never all the way to completion. I aim to do so before the GFWL servers die July 1st.

I think part of what's constantly nagging at me about Morrowind and Fallout 3 is that the Bethesda approach to RPGs veers sharply into the uncanny valley (not literally, but thematically), and thus, because so many things seem 'alive' and 'true to life,' the things that aren't really fucking jump up and flick you in a single gonads (did that once to a buddy in high school, and he was almost squealing. Hilarious). People in Morrowind aren't on a schedule. They're wandering aimlessly in the streets for DAYS. The animal population is pitifully low. Guards can know I killed someone via the Force (I guess. Not sure how they know it otherwise.)

Also, for as real as some of these characters feel, they don't feel real at all. It's hard to explain, but it's that 'uncanny valley' thing.

I have a feeling that this is incrementally improved in each Bethesda release.

And don't get me wrong. I really like aspects of Morrowind. I'm eager to see where all of this leads. I just wish it had a stronger central narrative, and I wish it wasn't 13 or so years old.

All this should continue to make this my Year of Bethesda (and Witcher, and Dragon Age).

In closing, I have a question for all the 'Bethesda Veterans' out there. How do you all stay motivated in these games, as opposed to games that have a more linear approach, and more insistent main story thread? I'm doing it, but I'm finding that my motivation to keep playing is starting to diminish. I don't like that it's diminishing, but it is what it is.

I'm also thinking about starting to stream some random shit via Twitch. My Twitch channel is here. I can promise it won't be exciting, but it might be interesting. I'll probably stream some of the early access stuff, for those that wanna check it out.

Word. Thanks for reading!

-Blaine