Aleph Ersatz

When I first started League of Legends I thought it was great.  Hell, I made a big review like post about it claiming it to be fun and worth trying.  Well now, I am taking all that back.

LoL is crap, not because of the gameplay, but because people have destroyed it.  The forums are filled with trolls, assholes, and bigots.  Event the forum “Adjudicators” are racists and are verbal about it.  The game is filled with Elitist assholes, the updates cater only to those that have hundreds of hours to devote to unlocking the “Legendary” champions, while us causla plays get raped and blamed for all their failings.  It is not fun.  It is not enjoyable.  It is not worth the hassle.

The basic problem is this: to unlock the good champions, runes, and summoner level,  you need IP or RP.  IP you get by playing games, win or loss, but more for winning.  RP you can pay for.  However, to win a Normal game, you need a good champion and rune setup, which requires you to play.  IP and XP are reduced for practice games, and if you practice agaisnt bots, you get nothing.  So the only way to win is to either pay money, or have played practice games till you are sick of them just to stand a chance in norma games.

This hugely cuts into the fun factor because not only do you have to grind, but you also end up frustrated from all the trash talk.  And there is tons of trash talk.  LoL is filled with igrnorant trolls, which makes every PUG a huge hit-and-miss exercise.  Even pre-forming a team with friends is usually a 50-50 chance of winning at best.

Thus, the only way to enjoy this free game is to pay for the good content.  The best heros can be unlocked easily once paid for, making practice and low-level summoner games easy.  Once that is bought, then one can enjoy the game.  Otherwise, playing LoL is a gigantically frustrating waste of time.

PLEASE SEE MY OTHER POST ABOUT LoL AND IGNORE THIS ONE.

http://leagueoflegends.com/

League of Legends is the next version of Defence of the Ancients (DotA), a game which combines team play, soloing and other tactics in a Diablo-style tower defence game.  LOL has many aspects of Demigod combined with the art style of Warcraft 3, creating a smooth but deep gameplay.  It’s also a free-to-play game, with some items being unlocked by playing more, and others by purchasing online points to spend.

The gameplay itself is clean, functions well, does not lag much for me and is easy to work with.  However, the login and setup screens are a bit clunky, especially once entering a game, which can make it a pain.  Rounds themselves only last 20 - 40 minutes at most, but a huge kicker is that once in a game, you can’t quit out.  This is great of you get disconnected, but ultra shitty if you want to leave because the game is going down the tubes.  The offset, of course, is you game experience for winning or losing, and a decent amount for both.  So even sucking up a round isn’t a huge waste.

The other huge kicker is the game has a nasty learning curve.  There is the wonderful option to play pactice games with others, but learning exactly how to setup a champion takes a bit of work, and there are 20+ champtions to choose from!  The wekely rotation of unlocked champions is a good idea, though, so long as you don’t get too attached to one.  Gives you a chance to learn new champs and cycle the game play for a while.  Plus, you can buy any champ with game-play points, or buy the collector physical box to unlock them all!  Not bad for $30.

All in all, it’s a decent game with plenty of replay, multiplayer team based, and rewards for winning or loosing.  The single-game at a time and learning curves are going to be major turn offs for some people, but for others it is just part of the gameplay.  And being free to play the whole game, it is totally worth downloading and trying!

My account there is AlephErsatz, feel free to add me as a friend if you join.

Hey look, another three weeks and not a damn post.  I swear, I’m alwamost ready to try that stupid Twitter thing.

Finish Scribblenauts.  The puzzles were not as hard as I expected.  90% of them have a pretty basic solution once you know how to use things like ropes, tractor beams, helicopters, and the occasional velociraptor.  After that, it’s all just easy wins.

Still have to finish GTA4 now, and return to Fallout 3 now that the GotY edition and all the DLC is comng out.  After that I’m planning to try Bioshock or maybe Borderlands, depending on what I can run.

Left 4 Dead 2 is almost out, and I’m almost ready to get it.  Seriously, frying pans?  Who doesn’t want to try using that against a horde of brain-hungry living undeads???  But I mean, barely a year after L4D came out, another $50 seems a bit much.  Maybe steam will have a deal soon …. or I can find 3 other suck…I mean, friends yeah, friends….

Anime evolution 2010 will be on for August 13 - 15 at UBC!  It has been confirmed on the forums!  Prereg will start in november, and I will be there, in costume!

And yes, I’m being link-lazy today.  You can “google” the stuff I mentioned, I know you can.

Okay, I’m hooked on Scribblenauts.  Now that the novely of creating damn near everything I’ve ever wanted is done, ‘m not trying to sole the puzzles and levels.  They are HARD!  But, I found an awesome resource I have been helping with some: Scribblenauts Wiki!  Not alot of stuff yet, but very organized and setup nicely!

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In other news, GT5 looks amazing.  I wonder if it’s coming out for the PS3 or the PS4?  I mean seriously, when will it be done?  Even if your not into the game, or cars, the music is damn awesome for this video.  That’s supposedly in-game rendering only, too.

Or check out the song by London Elektricity.  It’s called Just One Minutee (Apex remix).

I got my hands on Scribblenaugts today!  Very very fun, even after spending my entire lunch on the title screen playing with objects.

XKCD does not lie, the LHC does work!  As does a ton of other stuff.  I am going to start documenting what I’ve tried, used, played with, etc and how I beat each level because there are so damn many choices.

More on this later, though, because the baby kept me from the comp most of the night, and I need sleep!

If you havne’t heard of it, Scribblenauts just came out and I got to try it today for a little while.  Long story short: I want it!  Thus, I endevoured to find it today after work.  While everyplace is sold out, the most homourous place to visit was London Drugs.  You have to love associates that have no fucking clue what they are doing or what they sell.

My coworker P and I entered London Drugs, found the games section and browsed the scant selection of DS and Wii titles, hidden behind the Wii accessories.  While their selection sucks, they do have DS and Wii stuff there.  So we went to find an associate for help.

P: “Excuse me, do you carry DS games?”

SA1: “Maybe, over there my know.”

P: “We’re looking for a specific DS game, can you look it up?”

SA1: “Let’s go ask them.

We wander ove to the games section where another associate is busy with a  customer.

SA1 (to SA2): “These guys are looking for Nintendo DS, er Nintendo DS games or DS games.”

SA2: “We don’t sell Nintendo stuff here.  Sony and Microsoft only.”

SA1: “Oh ok.  Sorry guys.”

We proceeded to look at each other, thank them both, and walk a littl ways away.  We got about 15 feet, then burst out laughing.  We joked about going back and pointing out the Wii and DS stuff in the store, but man, how bad can you be?  It’s your department, you should know what you sell!  Unless, of course, Sony makes the DS, then man have I been working for the wrong people!

If the bartender, or waitress, gives you one more than you wanted, just send it back.

But, man, those bands were good tonight.  More on this tomorrow, I’m surprised I can type at all right now…

So I didn’t even hold out six months before I’m back on the “no-posting” wagon.  For a while there, I actually contemplated switching to Twitter, but really, I don’t want to be a twit.  And the concept is stupid.  I hope it dies, just like that stupid AYBABTU.  That didn’t last long, right?  I mean, who even remebers it?

I have been up to alot, actually.  Working, tons, been doing 200+ hours a month again.  Reading tons and tons of manga.  The otaku list needs a major update as I’ve read at least 10 - 15 different books and novels in the last while.  Found a bunch of new good stuff, and some of the worst mangas in existence!

I’ve begun the long and arduous process of learing Japanese.  Not only am I horrible with spoken languages, but this one also involves re-learing how to read.  However, I’ve managed to nail down most of the Hiragana table, so all I need to do is learn Katakana, practice, and start learning the grammar structures.  Sounds so easy doesn’t it?  Been practicing my reading on vaious things around - maily mangas - and actually I’m doing pretty well.  Plus I’ve found a variety of very useful and informative websites.

• Grammar and Langauge: http://www.guidetojapanese.org/index.html
• Writing and tidbits: http://japanese.about.com/
• Writing: http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Shrine/7047/
• Hiragana Pracice: http://www.chipchat.com/NihonGo/protect/HiraganaDrill.html
• Katakana Practice: http://www.chipchat.com/NihonGo/protect/KatakanaDrill.html

I’m actually really enjoying being able to read it.  It seems like such a huge feat, but I know there is much more to come.

Lastly, I wrote a letter to a newspaper and got it printed.  While not hugely exciting, I’m kinda happy.  It’s in today’s Now Newspaper.  If you can read it.  I’m not readily posting a link because it lists my name on the letter.  But if you know me, send me an IM or email and I’ll send you a link.

Finally finished The Talisman.  Was a pretty good book, very interesting, and I can see how the styles of King and Straub converge, but generally had a  good idea of when King was he predominant writer.  His work just burrows under the skin of one’s imagination, creepy as hell, but absolutely fantastic.

With that is done, I’ve been pounding away and the local libraries’ manga collection.  Found a few interesting ones, and updated my otaku list to match waht I’ve read recently.  Insert sigh here. It grows, always growing…

Got my hands on The High End of Low.  Jesus fuck, was that ever a load of shit.  Not that I expect much from a Manson album, but that was pure, uninspired, crack induced crap. Not even worth a once-over listen too.  Couldn’t do more than three songs at a time, at most.

Gladly, though, a couple other good albums may be coming out soon from artists I enjoy alot more than Manson.  VNV nation has a new album on the 23rd, and are touring.  Now if I could only get to Seattle for July 1st!  30 Seconds to Mars may also have a new album soon, which will also be pleasing.  There are a couple more, too, I just cannot remeber whom!

Well I’ve had a busy month.  I’ve been working crazy hours due to a deadline, and a bunch of other stuff has been going on, so the few hours I do have to blog, I’ve been too damn tired.

I did managed to do alot of stuff in the last month though.

Saw Start Trek and Wolverine, but missed Terminator Salvation.  From what I know, Star Trek was the only one really worth watching.

Knowing more about Wolverine from the original Origins series, I was whole unimpressed with it.  They really twisted and diverged in ways that forced the script into lame-leaping jumps just to fix giant plot holes.  Had they stuck with the original, I would have been much happier.

Star Trek, however, I know little about, and actually thought was pretty good.  Using alternate universes was a good way to totally diverge and reinvent Star Trek, and yet keep the same rough feel.  However the overacting and constant borrowing of lines and plot devices was indeed cheesy, and somehow fitting for the film.  Not sure it was worth the $10 I paid for it, but was still pretty good.

Got my eye on The Hurt Locker, even if it came out a while ago.  Saw a preview in the theater, and looks damn good.

Also managed to see Lucky Number Slevin.  Fucking awesome, head trippy, witty, and the strangest role I’ve ever seen Lucy Lui in.  Brilliant, just brilliant!

Been reading alot.  Need to update the Otaku list a bit, but not much.  Managed to read Fullmetal Alchemist #18 and Kurosagi #9 recently, but that’s about it.  The rest of the time I’ve been plowing through The Talistman and The Zen of Zombie.  The Zen, of course, is an excelent self-help book with some actually real and good ideas for improving your life.  The rest of it is just good old fasioned, brain-eating humour.  Go try it for fourself! Braaiiiiinnnsssss…..

Also have the new Red Dward 3-part mini-series to watch.  Yay!

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On the other side of things, I’ve been working alot lately.  Did a 6-day, 65-hour week last week, and looks like I have another one ahead.  Damn deadlines are killer, especially so when you are two weeks past.

Going to be missing Anime Evolution again this year, and for the second year in a row too!  But will be at the Thunder Rally fund-raiser dance on saturday instead.  Still going to that this September at least.

Have been trying to help and update the Thunder Rally website while the main webmaster is off in Germany, but all I have is read-only access to a SFTP site.  Such a pissoff too, because if I had shell access I could easily fix what I needed.  Now I have to try and contact the webhost, via the webmaster, to get the access I need.

Not sure what else to write, but that’s what I’ve bene up to lately.  Been a lot more I’ve wanted to write on, but been so busy and tired, I always forget.  Hope to get back to it, though.  I hate abandoning projects half way through!