Going back to Cyrodiil

I just started to play Oblivion the anniversary edition this week on my PS3. I hadn't played TES in a while and despite being 5 year old game, I still think it kicks ass. There really aren't too many games that are this open, while being manageable and fun. I wanted to see how the ps3 version compared to the PC version. Overall it's not too bad, I probably still prefer playing it on a PC because I think a mouse does the job better in this UI. I also wanted to level my character carefully this time to optimize it as much as I can. So far I've learned a few things. Firstly that apparently you can't cure vampirism in Oblivion GotY edition (PS3), and since this version is basically the GotY game I had to restart my first game which is annoying.

I also started my first game by picking major skills choosing one from each attribute since I read people recommending that for balanced builds. I also tried to pick mostly things I didn't use much so I had better control of my leveling. Well it didn't work very well because I was still using some of those skills even if it wasn't a lot. I ended up picking a fairly different class the second time around. This is what I chose:

Armorer, hand to hand, alteration, illusion, acrobatics, light armor, speech

The alchemy was a good choice for me since this skill is fairly easy to raise and very controllable. Acrobatics was also a clever pick I think since I just have to avoid jumping all the time and when I do want those point I just have to hop around for a few minutes. Armorer is also easy to control but can be a bit slow to go up at times.

For those that don't know how efficient leveling works, all it is is that you try to get a +5 to 3 attributes every time you level. This ensures you build a strong character. In a perfect world that's done by raising 10 skill points in 3 attribute related skills being 10 in major skills and 20 in minors. However, it's almost impossible to do this and have fun, so try to do this as closely as you can without loosing your hair. The most important things to remember is to not ding before you get all the minor skills you need for the level. Don't level too many minor skills that you won't upgrade attribute, there should be enough skills anyway in the game but it is still a finite number. Lastly, stamina goes up by a %age every level so if you get the most HP early you will end with more stamina in the end, hence +5 endurance early is a good thing.

My hints: Getting +5 luck to begin with is not a bad gig... Luck can only go up 1 at a time when you level so getting +5 is equivalent to 5 dings. You don't need to max out Luck because you can always use potions and other consumables. Also, since I mentioned luck, remember to use luck boosters before entering dungeons for the first time. That's when the game rolls the loot and having more luck can be useful in those cases.

More hints: I like to do the mages guild initiation fairly early in my games, I just really like having the benefits of enchants and so forth which can be very handy.

NHL11: BRB vs PIT

Series 2 of our 2010/2011 playoff season

Pittsburgh Penguins


OFFENSE
James Neal (83) / M. Koivu (87) / E. Artyukhin (81)
N. Hagman (82) / J. Pavelski (83) / G. Parros (81)
S. Regier (75) / M. Comrie (82) / P. Kaleta (79)
Z. Konopka (78) / M. Reasoner (78) / E. Lisin (78)

DEFENSE
R. Klesla (82) / B. Coburn (83)
K. Yandle (80) / A. Stralman (80)
V. Koistinen (77) / J. Ericsson (79)

GOALIE
H. Lundqvist (89)

Barrie Beavers

OFFENSE
S. Gagne (84) / H. Sedin (91) / D. Briere (85)
T. Hall (75) / R. Kesler (87) / M. Grabner (76)
M. Boedker (77) / M. Malhotra (81) / T. Bertuzzi (81)
J. Tlusty (77) / T. Seguin (74) / T. Lewis (74)

DEFENSE
Hall Gill (83) / D. Boyle (86)
A. Edler (81) / M. Greene (83)
A. Salmela (76) / A. Johnson (77)

GOALIE
Tim Thomas (85)
A. Salak (75)

Review: NHL11

After playing a lot of NHL09, I definitely got into EA's hockey series. The latest release is NHL11 which I was able to get used at a decent price recently. The game is fairly similar to NHL09 however they did change the engine enough that I had to relearn a few things. Dekes are a bit easier to do but overall playing I found to be a bit more difficult. The new faceoff is great, and in my opinion a vast improvement upon the old system. Everything else about the game was very similar to the 09 version, with a few small changes that didn't affect me that much. I'm not sure how much competition EA has for hockey video games, but they still managed to deliver a solid and fun game. I would give it a B, since the game is very good, but I still wish a few of the mechanics were a bit more clear, such as the trading system and scouting which to me marginally make sense.
Oh, also the players look nothing like their RL counterparts, even less so than on NHL09, so that's also a negative on the series. Oh and the uniform/helm customization seemed a bit slimmer too, not great for those who like to put together a custom team.

Review: FIFA11

I had not played any of the FIFA games on console for a little while, most of the games I was playing were for PC. So when I finally picked up FIFA11 I was pleasantly surprised, the engine was completely new, and I really liked the updates to the physics. The game seems much more physical than previous releases, and it felt a lot more difficult to move about and dribble the opposition without acquiring some skills first. I've heard FIFA12 will be even more realistic like that. Aside from that the career mode is still great fun and overall I don't have many complaints about the game. Perhaps one thing that wasn't clear to me right away was the fact that I don't need to worry about renewing contracts of my players before the end of it. The game does this somewhat automatically at a better salary that I probably would get doing it myself. The trading system works relatively well and I think it's more fun than some other games like the NHL series which I always find I can't propose deals that are fair, I always have to lose to get a deal through. Multiplayer is fun as well, except people playing there are really good, so I lose a lot. The biggest complaint I have, and this is not specific to FIFA but all EA, is that their customer service is pure shit. I have had trouble linking my ps3 account with my EA account since I got the game. EA's support is a waste of my time and every time I put the time into trying to resolve the issue, I have to wait for hours to get to someone and that person just wastes my time without ever really fixing my problem. EA may produce decent games, but sometimes I am hesitant in buying them because I absolutely hate their customer service. They might as well just not have it, since it would save people hours of trying at least. I give it a B+ for keeping the series so good.

NHL11: 10/11 playoffs - series #1

The first series of our playoff campaign is now over and the Beavers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning by 4-1

Tampa Bay 1 x 3 @Barrie
Tampa Bay 1 x 0 @Barrie
Barrie 2 x 0 @Tampa Bay
Barrie 3 x 0 @Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay 2 x 5 @Barrie


Our best players were:


Team Leaders
H. Sedin - 2 Goals
H. Gill - 3 Assists
J. Tlusty - 4 pts
J. Tlusty - 4 +/-

Playoff Leaders

T. Vanek - 5 goals
B. Wheeler - 3 goals
A. Frolov - 3 goals
M. Hossa - 3 goals
B. Gionta - 3 goals
K. Versteeg - 3 goals

T. Vanek - 7 pts
M. Hossa - 7 pts
S. Stamkos - 7 pts
W. Wolski - 6pts
A. Markov - 6 pts
J. Staal - 6 pts

A. Markov - 7 +/-
K. Letang - 7 +/-

T. Thomas - 94.6% SV
J. Quick - 94.6% SV
A. Niitymaki - 94.5% SV
S. Mason - 92.7% SV
N. Khabibulin - 92.7% SV

Have you looked in the cave, Seth....? No... it's very dark!

I've been meaning to pick up a copy of Red Dead Redemption for a while now, and I finally did it this week. I had read and heard good things about it, and I knew it was a sort of western version of GTA. After playing it for a couple of days, I think this description pretty much nails it down. It has a very similar feel to GTA and a lot of the good things about that series are conserved here. The western theme works very well, and the story line so far has been fun and engaging. The game is unique enough that I would recommend it to anyone that enjoys GTA or even just likes a game with a fun story line. So far I've done a lot of the main missions, and I've quite enjoyed it. There may be a few too many slow missions like herding cattle but they aren't slow to the point I get bored. The mini games have been a bit worst than what I'm used to in GTA, I also haven't played some of the card games since I don't know the rules, but in general I just find them a bit too slow. The other complain I have is that there is no way to know what kind of horse you are riding, aside from recognizing it's look. There are a few minor annoyances like that but overall the game is solid. The graphics seem improved from other Rockstar games and the gameplay is great like most of their games. So I would give this game a B, for being a unique twist to a familiar engine. There is nothing that makes this game stand out necessarily, but it is a load of fun.

NHL11: BRB vs TB

So here are the lineups for this first exciting series between the Barrie Beavers and the Tampa Bay Lightning

- Tampa Bay -
OFFESE
M. Lucic (83) / P. Marleau (89) / J. Langenbrunner (85)
C. Kunitz (82) / M. Richards (88) / J. Voracek (82)
D. Hordichuk (80) / J. Arnott (83) / T. Kopecky (79)
J. Smithson (79) / J. Bailey (80) / N. D'Agostini (77)

DEFENSE
B. Salvador (81) / D. Morris (83)
K. Timonen (83) / S. Hannan (82)
M. Eaton (79) / D. Quint (81)

GOALIE
K. Lehtonen (85)

- Barrie Beavers -

OFFESE
S. Gagne (84) / H. Sedin (91) / D. Briere (85)
J. Tlusty (77) / R. Kesler (87) / M. Grabner (76)
M. Boedker (77) / M. Malhotra (81) / T. Hall (75)
T. Spencer (74) / T. Seguin (74) / T. Lewis (74)

DEFENSE
Hall Gill (83) / D. Boyle (86)
M. Greene (83) / A. Edler (81)
A. Johnson (77) / A. Salmela (76)


GOALIE
Tim Thomas (85)
A. Salak (75)

NHL11: 10/11 playoffs

This is what the playoff tree looks like for my first NHL11 fantasy season. The Barrie Beavers will start with Tampa Bay Lightning.

This season we faced them 6 times, winning 4 and only losing 2 games.
Away vs Home
BRB 0 x 3 TB
TB 1 x 5 BRB
BRB 5 x 1 TB
TB 2 x 4 BRB
TB 1 x 4 BRB
BRB 3 x 4 TB

Opponent Leaders
P. Marleau - 29 Goals
P. Marleau  - 50 Assists
J. Langenbrunner - +/- 15
M. Lucic - +/- 14

NHL11: end of season 10/11

Point leaders
S. Crosby (CGY) - 100
K. Okposo (PHX) - 96
D. Penner (PHX) - 94
E. Malkin (PHX) - 92
R. Malone (BOS) - 89
P. Kessel (SJ) - 62

Goals
M. Gaborik (OTT) - 46
K. Okposo (PHX) - 43
S. Crosby (CGY) - 41
M. Samuelsson (CGY) - 40
J. Iginla (NJ) - 38
M. Raymond (BUF) - 38

+/-
H. Sedin (BRB) - 43
S. Gagne (BRB) - 42
D. Briere (BRB) - 40
P. Elias (DET) - 35
K. Quincey (WAS) - 33
R. Malone (BOS) - 32

Shutouts
Tim Thomas (BRB) - 12
Cam Ward (FLA) - 8
Semyon Varlamov (NSH) - 7
M. Kiprusoff (CAR) - 7
R. Luongo (BOS) - 6

Save%
B. Bishop (PIT) - 93.3%
Ilya Bryzgalov (NYI) - 92.2%
R. Luongo (BOS) - 91.9%
M. Kiprusoff (CAR) - 91.8%
C. Ward (FLA) - 91.6%
R. Miller (PHI) - 91.6%
J. Halak (DET) - 91.4%

GAA
T. Thomas (BRB) - 1.89
I. Bryzgalov (NYI) - 2.37
S. Mason (MIN) - 2.41
R. Luongo (BOS) - 2.47

Team Leaders
H. Sedin - 28 Goals
M. Greene - 34 Assists
H. Sedin - 43 +/-

Points
H. Sedin - 58
S. Gagne - 53
D. Briere - 51

Faceoff %
M. Malhotra - 86.4% (484/560)
H. Sedin - 69.6% (469/674)
R. Kesler - 65.6% (278/424)
T. Seguin - 52.1% (113/217)

Minutes played
M. Greene - 2168
D. Boyle - 1937
H. Gill - 1867
A. Edler - 1634
H. Sedin - 1493
D. Briere - 1446
A. Salmela - 1348
R. Kesler - 1303

NHL11: end of season 10/11 (east)

Eastern Conference

Barrie 114

Philadelphia 93

Boston 92

Florida 101

Pittsburgh 91

Montreal 89

NY Rangers 89

Tampa Bay 89

Buffalo 89

New Jersey 88

NY Islanders 88

Ottawa 85

Toronto 85

Washington 83

Carolina 78

NHL11: end of season 10/11 (west)

Western Conference

 

Minnesota 101

Columbus 96

Dallas 93

Calgary 92

Phoenix 88

Anaheim 87

Edmonton 87

Colorado 86

San Jose 85

St. Louis 85

Vancouver 85

Detroit 83

Nashville 81

Chicago 79

Los Angeles 79

NHL11: Penguins - team profile (April 2011)

43-33-5
OFF 86 / DEF 85 / GOA 92

OFFENSE
James Neal (83) / M. Koivu (87) / E. Artyukhin (81)
N. Hagman (82) / J. Pavelski (83) / G. Parros (81)
S. Regier (75) / M. Comrie (81) / P. Kaleta (79)
Z. Konopka (78) / M. Reasoner (78) / E. Lisin (78)

DEFENSE
R. Klesla (82) / B. Coburn (83)
K. Yandle (80) / A. Stralman (80)
V. Koistinen (77) / J. Ericsson (79)

GOALIE
H. Lundqvist (89)

Leaders
Goals - J. Neal - 25
Assists - J. Neal - 55
+/- - J. Neal - 15

NHL11: Salo trade for Matt Greene

On an offer from Washington I decided to trade out Sami Salo (80) for Matt Greene (83). This wasn't an easy decision since I do like Sami Salo quite a bit, he was a great offensive oriented D-man.

However, I felt adding another solid defensive player to the team would be more beneficial to keep the team well rounded. So here are the stats for Matt Greene at this point: