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Sometimes games make me feel old. There are a lot of modern titles that have such complicated control schemes and character customizing that I feel lost and frustrated. It's times like that which make me consider giving up the 360 and PS3 and sticking with the Wii and with the previous generations of consoles. Ultimately I don't do that because I've been playing games for so long and I don't want to be left behind like that. So it's silly but whenever I get a game from this modern era that I'm able to fully understand and get good at, it's a relief to me. Maybe I have this deep down fear of becoming like those elderly people who can't even figure out how to use the debit readers at the store. Drake's Fortune is one of those games that I feel completely comfortable with.

That doesn't mean it's a superb game, though. The exploration and platforming is good, and the combat is okay. But the real issue is how it's broken up. You'll be running around all Prince of Persia like, always just a misstep away from death, taking out the occasional sneaky enemy and having a great time.

And then for no particular reason, the platforming stops and you'll be running through a highly tedious city or jungle, fighting off wave after wave after wave of very similar enemies with no relief in sight. The fact that combat is moderately challenging and the enemies show some intelligence keeps it from being a complete disaster. They're very good at peeking out from cover in unpredictable ways, diving and rolling, charging you when the situation is right, and just making quick movements so you can't just headshot them 1, 2, 3. But man, after 30 or 40 minutes of running and killing when all you want to do is do a little climbing and jumping, it really starts to suck.

I've just reached Chapter 10, having finished the Jet Ski sequence and some on foot shooting. The Jet Ski was actually very easy if you take it slow. The game makes it feel like you've got to rush but there's no reason to.


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PC progress. Because I have SigmaTel audio drivers, the Vista Service Pack 1 update was not available to me. It's been a long time now and I was getting a little tired of not having the update. As far as I know, I didn't need it, but I like to have everything current. Since Microsoft didn't seem to be anywhere close to a solution, I did a little research and found that if you simply uninstall the audio drivers, install the Service Pack, then reinstall your drivers, you're good to go. That's what I did.

I reached Chapter 13 after doing a variety of stuff, mostly gunfights and a Jet Ski section which was much more intense than usual. You're riding against the flow of the river while explosive barrels are inexplicably flowing towards you (so volatile that they explode on contact, mind you). It's not indicated that anyone is throwing them in there to kill you, just one of those videogame things. So you've got to stop and shoot those before they hit you, shoot any enemies that are around, and fight the current.

Made it to Chapter 14 of Drake's Fortune.

Chapter 13 broke the repetition a little bit by introducing snipers and increasing the number of enemies with rocket launchers. The snipers are easy to find because you can follow the red sight laser back to the source. But they're pretty quick to one hit kill you if you don't move quickly enough when you're exposed. The rocket launchers can be brutal, especially if there's more than one. It's much harder to tell where the attack is coming from and they launch those things at you pretty frequently.

Probably stupid, but I joined The ECA.

Well, I say it may be stupid because I don't know if they have any chance of being effective. However, the dues are only $20.00 annually and the offer some random discounts on game related things for being a member.

I've always found the attempted legal restrictions on videogames and the endless bashing of them in the media to be rather depressing, so anything that might help seems worthwhile.

The Entertainment Consumers Association (ECA) is a 501(c)(4) non-profit membership organization established to serve the needs of those who play computer and video games.

Today, more than ever before, gamers need to stand together to defend against political activity that is threatening the creation and publishing of video games. On behalf of the gaming community, the ECA lobbies legislators directly as well as launching grassroots digital initiatives to preserve our rights as gamers.

I think they tend to fight almost anything that would restrict game sales or treat them differently than other media (such as M rates games being classified as pornography).

One simple thing I saw mentioned was the issue of adding additional sales tax to videogames in one state.

They're part of the group "Gamers for Net Neutrality", also.

I'll freely admit that I didn't do a lot of research because there wasn't a huge financial commitment.

Well, I read enough to see that there's nothing in there I actively disagree with.

How was it? The movie, I mean. Of course the pizza was amazing.

I don't really get Iron Man. I've never read the comics and the trailers I've seen are boring.

I'm kind of unfocused right now. I tired Mario Kart Wii. It's okay, definitely better than Double Dash. The bikes are way more interesting than the karts. Using the Wii remote like a steering wheel is playable but I can't imagine people liking it much unless they're new to videogames. I use the remote+nunchuck combo which is pretty much the Wii standard. I'm sure Classic Controller or GCN controller would both be fine, though.