May 01, 2013
Eclipse for iOS!
If you don't follow me on the
DFW Nerd Night group, or listen to when I got to join their
podcast on youtube, then you may not know I really like the boardgame Eclipse: New Dawn for the Galaxy from lautapelit.fi. And now it is out for iOS devices. Actually, to be fair, it is out for the tabled devices only. And it is downright amazing. More after the break...
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Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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As a follow up note: Android possibilities? I wouldn't rule it out yet. Big Daddy's Creations hasn't said yes yet, but they have been able to carry Neuroshima Hex to the Android platform, so it isn't out of the question. I certainly hope that Eclipse continues to bring them a lot of attention and profits on iOS that would make Android possible.
Also, there are two mini expansions (Supernova and Pulsar), as well as a big box expansion (Eclipse: Rise of the Ancients) that might see the day later on as in app purchases. I certainly hope so, because Eclipse is even better with some of the new species and technologies those expansions add.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at May 01, 2013 03:13 PM (T5fuR)
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April 28, 2013
Ar-k an adveture game to avoid...
Ladies and gents, do not be swayed by the art on this one. Response time for just moving around or interacting with objects is hampered so much by loading screnes (even within the same scene) it will drive you nuts
The voice acting was clear, though the script was a little stilted. The art indicated that this Chapter 1 release had some polish behind it, but they really need to work on their code and interface. Cannot recommend even at free at this time.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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Mage knight solo conquest
I spent two hours this morning playing a solo conquest in Mage Knight the board game. I took Tovak into the world of Atlantea, and used Nighthawk as the dummy player. It was an interesting run overall.
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Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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April 27, 2013
The shortest horror story...
(Seen elsewhere on the net, not mine)
The last man in the world sits alone in a room.
There is a knock on the door.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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Chapter 1
The alarm went off at 7:00am. From the surface of his nightstand, a glow began to appear and then an animated image of a female appeared. It hovered over the surface of the nightstand, looked around for a second and began to take a deep breath.
"JEAN, WAKE UP!" she yelled, in a voice that actually shook the coffee cup sitting on his desk. She continued to yell this for several seconds until a hand snuck out from under the covers and began to randomly smack portions of the nightstand surface. The hand finally struck the top of the clock, causing the female image to wink in his direction.
"I knew that would get your attention. See you 'round the ship!"
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Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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You'll read a lot of warnings about starting a story with the protagonist waking up and starting their daily routine. It's a bit boring, isn't it? I mean, I've experienced doing that thousands of times. I don't want to read about it unless it's important, exciting, or somehow interesting.
Start somewhere exciting. Cut the dull stuff.
Make sure every scene has some sort of purpose.
Scenes don't have to be presented in chronological order.
What does "The words just sort of bubbled out" even mean?
Posted by: amandachen at May 02, 2013 09:46 AM (kP8LA)
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Good points, I'll have to look and see how it goes.
Give me some credit, at least I didn't play the amnesia card.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at May 02, 2013 10:46 AM (T5fuR)
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April 26, 2013
Post will be tomorrow morning...
I hadn't looked at some of this for a couple of months. So just in case I started reading it again and discovered why they say 'Show, don't tell.' when you write.
*makes liberal use of the backspace key*
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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April 25, 2013
Incoming fiction...
I'm going to set up a regular day, either Friday or Saturday, to have short sections of my work in progress posted here. Feel free to give feedback on this!
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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April 24, 2013
April 20, 2013
Bioshock Infinite - brief thoughts (non spoiler)
(Yes, I realized I had a blog today, so I'm doing some posting.)
Finished up Bioshock Infinite on Monday and wanted to let the game ending sink in before I said anything on the subject. This post might allude to events in the game, but should not contain any spoilers for the main plot.
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Hunters notes, Day thirty two...
I've finally mastered capturing a monster on the Bear Hunt mission, as well as managed to kill that same monster type for a reward later. I'm slowly working on building up supplies and armor bits for better armor as well as a better lance.
Trying to get the parts for the Ludroth Lance has proven to be a little annoying, as I can't get the small pieces to be able to upgrade my Bone Lance+. I'm also finding the skill system to be a bit of a pain, just because it can be hard to tell which armor is the best one to go for, so I'm still in Chainmail at this time.
Three Star missions now available to me, so slowly moving forward and still enjoying it. REally enjoying the play on the gamepad feature that just got added as well.
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Mage Knight: Practicing so I can teach it..
I've been playing the Walkthrough scenario of Mage Knight the Board Game several times this week as several of my friends want me to teach it to them. I'm still very impressed by this game. By using a deck of sixteen base cards, I'm expected to conquer a territory in just a few rounds (anywhere from four to six rounds, each round having multiple turns.) I explore new tiles, recruit units to help me, descend into dark dungeons and ruins, and if it suits me, sack monastaries, mage towers, and keeps for powerful artifacts and spells. To be honest, at this point I have not successfully defeated a power city yet, which defeating two of them is the goal of the basic conquest scenario. I've managed to learn how to get around, but learning what a great hand for attacking, or even a good hand, still eludes me at this point. The upside is that I want to keep learning. I've not even seen half of the advanced skills nor have I used a spell card once yet. There are still a lot of play options I haven't even attempted yet. Time to go explore Atlantea again!
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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April 04, 2013
Lungs, hy have you forsaken me?
Bronchitis sucks... that is all.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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Aye, that it does... if you're lucky. More often than not, you're too busy coughing for any inhaling to take place.
Posted by: Wonderduck at April 16, 2013 06:45 PM (9jITs)
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I would have just ridden it out as a cold that got into my lungs, but I started coughing so hard that I felt my heart skip a couple of beats... yeah.. went to the doctor.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at April 19, 2013 04:39 PM (T5fuR)
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March 27, 2013
Hunter's notes, day eight
I cant claim too much progress with the Hunter's Guild as of late, but I have been actively hunting Great Jaggi for practice. I don't completely understand it, but I hate to fail a hunt. The penalties for failing are basically you lose your deposit on the quest, which is 100 to 500z depending. So I shouldn't be worried too much. Equipment doesn't degrade, you don't lose inventory items. So why do I fear failure in this game while working on the kill and capture hunts?
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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March 24, 2013
Hunter's notes, day five...
I will post more explanation later, but in short, im still using the lance as my favored weapon while hunting. I have managed to down a Great Jaggi with only a little trouble. Learned to create potions today which should help in hunting monsters. Still struggling with the pacing of the game and controls, but enjoying it too.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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March 21, 2013
Sam and the dragon...
My seven year old daughter, Samantha continues to surprise me. I had pre-ordered Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate when I got our Wii-U, and it finally came in. After she first expressed a wish to hug the dragon portrayed on the cover, I explained what the game was about. She gave me her favorite 'Dad, stop pulling my leg' face for a minute then sat back and watched.
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Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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March 08, 2013
Bodacious Space Pirates Dub...
Hrmm, I'm not too bothered by the dub, but Ririka's voice actor doesn't fit well with how she was in the original language. Haven't heard Chiaki-chan yet...
Okay... not yet sold on Chiaki's VA... but it could still work. I do like that they left the Japanese honorifics in the dialog.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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December 27, 2012
Random 001
Huh, so my tactic for getting through the day is to listen to 8-bit Genesis video game music of games I liked. I can deal. Wait...was the Genesis considered 8-bit music?
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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December 17, 2012
RPG In A Box series: Warhammer Quest
Warhammer Quest was the first game I encountered that was a complete role playing game in a box. Released by Games Workshop in 1995, you took your adventuring party into randomized dungeons and complete a goal. Read on for more...
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Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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Ahh, something to discuss...
The next couple of posts are going to cover the various 'RPG in a box' games that have been released by Fantasy Flight, Games Workshop, Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro, and more.
Posted by: Tom Tjarks at
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December 12, 2012
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