Choose your side - Jedi Knight or Bounty Hunter

Speaking of the Bounty Hunter, which was in the very run up of my class consideration for ToR, I saw that a new trailer has gone up from Bioware, showing off the Bounty Hunter and the Jedi Knight Class.

The trailer is set up as a face off between the two classes, and the community can decide who will win this confrontation by adding a tag on their tweets (get that viral PR going Bioware).

As a big Bounty Hunter fan and a not so big Jedi Knight fan, I will of course be rooting for the jet pack touting, flamethrower blazing and all round awesome Bounty Hunter.

Here's the trailer:

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - More fun than a mime on fire

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is right up there on my list of top sci-fi books.

It is also easily one of the funniest, and probably even the funniest, book that I have ever read.

It is actually the first in a 5 part trilogy (yeah, that is the style of humor that Douglas Adams goes for), but if you like this first one, you will also like the other books in the series, and I recommend simply picking up the complete series right from the get go.

Helpful advice indeed

With it's deadpan humor and outrageous story it never gets predictable and you rarely see the jokes coming until the punchline hits you right in the solar plexus.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy stars Arthur Dent, who leads a dull and mundane existence until he wakes up to one really really bad day.

First weeks of Light Speed in the rear view mirror

Although if you're going the speed of light you should probably not look in the rear view mirror..

Anyway, I've now been beavering away on Light Speed Gaming for a few weeks now.

I have really been blown away by the traction that the site seems to be getting already.
I want to thank every one of you guys that have dropped by and taken some time to read my incoherent ramblings.

A big and sincere thank you.
It is really awesome to see that the things that you dump so many hours into creating actually gets viewed by people out there and that some even come back for more.

One of my goals with Light Speed Gaming is to try to grow a community of enthusiasts like myself, who share an interest and passion for science fiction and video games.
I would love to get more feedback from you all about what you like and what you don't like about the site so far.

Do you think I should be trying to review more games?
Should there be more about books? Movies?

Do you primarily enjoy my more humorous posts?

Is there something else that you feel Light Speed Gaming should be writing about?

I'd like to encourage you all to leave comments on my posts and express your opinion.
Doesn't have to be feedback about the quality of the piece, but also just hearing your point of view on what I'm writing about is actually really interesting to me.

Finally, if you like my posts please do sign up for my feed or follow me on Twitter (I try to be active on Twitter, so it's not just a channel for letting you know when there is a new post)

That is all for me. I hope to hear more from all of you, and once again, thank you for spending time here at Light Speed Gaming.

Looking ahead into Q4 2011 -5 games that I can't wait to play

The fourth quarter (October to December) is traditionally the big release window for video games.

Like a large blob of ketchup suddenly dislodging, it hits me every year with equal measure of surprise and makes me go "oh crap, how the heck will I find time to play all of this stuff?".

Q4 of 2011 is no different.
Sporting mega titles such as Zelda, Gears of War, Skyrim and Rage it is enough to fill a hardcore gamers mind with equal amounts of jubilant glee and deep despair (empty wallet says hi).

For a more detailed overview of every big game coming out in Q4 you can check out this list IGN made

Skyrim alone could eat all your gaming time from November and out

As both time and money are resources that needs to be considered, I have tried boiling the games to get in the next three months down to just five.

This should hopefully let me actually complete all the games that I get, and also it means that I do not have to give my girlfriend a home made present for Christmas (you can only really give someone so many crappy clay ashtrays. Especially when they don't even smoke)

So without further ado here are the games that have made the "do want" list:

The Old Republic - The agonies of your first class choice

Christmas is going to be December 20 this year for me (or whenever the early access for The Old Republic preorders starts).

"Just hang tight for a couple of months more!"

I am looking immensely forward to this game and, like many other fans I'm sure, have already started thinking long and hard about what class I am going to play, when I finally get my grubby hands on it.

So far I have narrowed the choices down a bit by method of elimination:

Battlefield 3 Beta on PC opens for Caspian Border map (Vehicles!!!)

So if you remember back to my piece on my initial impressions on the Battlefield 3 multiplayer beta, then you know that the thing that I was really missing from the beta was vehicles.

It was therefore with great delight and gleeful schoolgirl screaming that I found out that this weekend Dice has opened up the Caspian Border map for PC players in the beta.

This map features a ton of vehicles, including jets, choppers, jeeps and tanks.

I've taken it for a spin and I can only say that *this* is the Battlefield I was looking for!

Got jets? Got f**king jets!

Climbing a rolling hill, watching a jet dogfight in the skies above.

Shouldering your RPG and taking a potshot at the passing enemy tank down on the road, praying it will not spot you and turn you into a red splotch on the grass.

This is the mayhem and large scale battle that I was looking for.

I grabbed a few mins of footage of me playing, sitting in the machine gun of a tank and also taking on an enemy APC on foot with an RPG.

The Old Republic Companions Update Part 2 -Almost as good as a real player

I've previously written about the "companion characters" of Star Wars: The Old Republic.

These are characters you meet and that can accompany you in your adventures through the game.

Today Bioware has released more info about companions in ToR.

It seems that they were initially quite autonomous and players had very little control over them in combat.
Since this was a problem for a lot of people, as the AI is not always smart enough to know that throwing a thermal detonator right into that pack of Rancors might not be the greatest idea, Bioware decided to put in some manual controls for the companions as well.

Time to practice those micro skills. You know what I'm saying?

This gives players the option of for example setting the companions to not use area of effect attacks, or gives the the chance to activate some of their special abilities in a pinch.

Forza 4 review round up

Aside from my sci-fi inclinations I also enjoy a bit of motor propelled entertaining in the form of racing games.

I play both arcade and sim racers, but I have really fallen in love with the Forza series for Xbox.

How can you not want one of these?!

Forza 4 is coming out next week, but the reviews are up now and they are generally positive, although it also looks like Turn 10 will have to really think hard about how they can breathe new life into the series, when they eventually go on to make the inevitable Forza 5 (maybe/hopefully on the next Xbox console?).

Here is the word on the interwebz about Forza 4:

Gamespot (8.5/10) Review

Joystiq (4.5/5 stars): Review

IGN (9.5/10): Review

And a lengthy Quick Look from my favorite guys at Giant Bomb

Enjoy and see you on the race track!

Now to get my hands on that demo...

10 clues that your boyfriend is a Jedi

You've seen the signs.

The blue glow and low humming noise coming from the living room, when your boyfriend thinks you're asleep.

The constant talk about inner peace and calm from emotions.

His best friend is a poorly dressed scoundrel that's always hanging around with a Wookie.

"This? No, this is just a big glowstick, hon"

These are subtle hints that might make you think; "Hang on, is my boyfriend a Jedi?!".

Well, here are 10 clues to help you determine if the Force is indeed strong with him.

Please dumb down my games for me, thanks

Raging on the internet about how games are being ”dumbed” down and simplified is all the… erm.. rage these days.

Hordes of “hardcore” gamers flock to gaming forums and mourn the death of games that don’t hold the players hand and cannot be completed in 7-10 hours of playing.

They say that the “console kids” of today, with their aversion for anything challenging has ruined game design and turned most modern games into;

“click this button to win. No, not that button, over here. Look, this button he… Nevermind, I’ll do it for you *click*”.



Some day this will be all the controls you need for your video game



I am going to confess something to you. I *like* that games have become more casual friendly and that they do a better job of introducing the player to game mechanics and how everything works in the game.

Orcs Must Die -Video look at the demo

I figured I should get my moneys worth out of Fraps, so I went ahead and made another video.

This time I've looked at the silly, but appropriately, titled "Orcs Must Die" demo, which is available on Steam.

It's a slightly zany 3rd person action tower defense game in the vein of "Trenched", tasking you with defending a castle from hordes of marauding orcses.

These guys. These guys must die!

The video shows me taking on the 3rd and last level of the demo and should give you a good indication of what the game is all about and if this is something for you:

(Note that I say the game is coming out tomorrow, that is actually only for Xbox. On PC the release date is the 12th of October)

Here's the video:

Video look at Dawn of War 2: Retribution multiplayer

I made good on my threat to fraps some game footage with comments.

The public demanded (or well, there was one guy) that I show you some Dawn of War 2: Retribution, so I have recorded and commented on a game I played of me facing off as the Eldar vs Chaos.

No one expects the Inquisition!

If you're interested in more info about the universe I have written a piece about why I love Warhammer 40k that you should totally check out

I hope you find the video entertaining and/or informative.

Preordering is up for the next installment of the Horus Heresy series

I am personally very fond of the "Horus Heresy" series of Warhammer 40k books.

Detailing the events around the heresy of Warmaster Horus in the 31st millennium (so really, it's a Warhammer 30k series), you get a lot of the background setup for how the 40k universe got to where it is (IE completely screwed up).

The quality in the series varies widely, but I think the last few books have been pretty decent.

This guy looks like he's about to be pretty dead indeed

I just saw that The Black Library website is now taking preorders for both e-book and physical copies of the next book in the series "The Outcast Dead", which takes place on Terra (AKA Earth).

The book is out in November, so there are still a few more weeks to go, but I know I will definitely be reading this as soon as it comes out.

You can read more about the book and preorder it here.

Rage review embargo ends. Internet goes "meh, not too bad"

The reviews for ID's new shooter "Rage", which is releasing this week, are now up on the internet.

It seems like my skepticism was mostly well founded.

The overall impression seems to be that Rage is a great looking game and a competent shooter.

However it is also rather shallow and the open world vibe that ID has been trying to push is pretty much only skin deep.

Rage: You shoot people and it's not terrible

I will try to get my hands on a rented copy of the game and check it out for myself.

Although, as I am not a very big FPS fan I don't expect I will be all too entertained.

In the mean time I've rounded up some of the reviews out there for your perusal:

Joystiq Rage review (3/5 stars)

Gamespot Rage review (8/10)

IGN Rage review (8.5/10)

Also there is a one hour long Quick Look up at Giant Bomb here

5 things I can't wait to see in Mass Effect 3

I am a huge fan of the Mass Effect series.

I played the first game on Xbox and then again on PC (because I wanted to play the sequel on PC and had to get a save set up).
I have completed all side quests in Mass Effect 2 and played through all the DLC (Lair of the Shadow Broker FTW).

In short, I like me some Mass Effect!

So close, yet so far away..

So it's no surprise that I am hugely excited about Mass Effect 3.
Sadly it got pushed out from it's expected 2011 release window and into 2012, but oh well, more time to play The Old Republic I guess.

The Mass Effect universe is incredibly deep and there are so many things that I am looking forward to learning more about in the final chapter of the trilogy.

Here are the 5 things that I am giddy with excitement to see in Mass Effect 3:

The Witcher 2 first hours impressions

"The Witcher 2" just had a major new patch released for it, patch 2.0.

This patch fixes a lot of the bugs that plagued The Witcher 2 at release.
Additionally it adds a whole new tutorial, which is a couple of small mini quests that sets up the basics for the game, reducing the risk of embarrassment from being killed by the first drunken hobo that swings a sword at you.

You know this guy means business. He's got two swords!

There's also a whole new "Arena" game mode included, which focuses on you fighting arena battles against progressively harder opponents.

The patch also makes some balance changes to combat and even adds some new items and quests as well as a whole new difficulty level!

The release of this patch, couple with Steam cleverly running a sale for The Witcher 2, made me finally get into this game, which I have longed for from a distance until now.

Read on and learn how I found the first few hours in the company of the white haired wolf.

Deus Wars? Star Ex? If only this was an upgrade to the elbow blades in Deus Ex

The Force Unleashed 3 maybe?

5 Deus Ex lessons for wannabe super agents

I've already expressed my opinion on Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

The game puts you in the role of Adam Jensen, badass extraordinaire. Ex-cop and head of security of one of the biggest and most influential companies in the world, Adam is a man that can get the job done.

If you wanna become as cool as Adam Jensen, you gotta know the tricks of the trade

Budding agents can take many key lessons to heart from Deus Ex. 

Like how crawling out from a ventilation shaft into someones office and reading their personal e-mails, while the inhabitant of said office is looking right at you, is perfectly fine behavior and will not cause any suspicion at all.

I have managed to narrow down the five points that I think are the most essential for any super agent in the making.

Fraps anyone?

Continuing my blind rush into the future, I have downloaded "Fraps".
A video capturing software for snagging game footage.

I am considering making some commented video showing off some games from my steam library, but I'm not sure what people would like to see.

Therefore I'd like to put it up to you guys and see if there is any interest for this.

Take a look at my Steam library here and let me know in the comments if there is any game you'd like to see me play (and fail horribly at, surely)?

10 mins of "Aliens: Colonial Marines" gameplay

I've never been the biggest fan of the Alien movies but they still rank pretty high on my personal cool wall.

An Aliens FPS is nothing new, but in Aliens: Colonial Marines the slimy black critters are not accompanied by Predators for a change.

Gearbox (of "Borderlands" fame) is making this game, which means that it could turn out to be rather cool.

This just released trailer shows the first in-depth actual gameplay that has been released to the public:

I don't know who did the voice over to this trailer but I think they should not have shot him up with horse tranquilizer before he did the speak.

He sounds about as excited for this game as I was about my last visit to the dentist.

The game itself looks alright, I think. A bit bland perhaps, but with some nice atmosphere.

If you're a big Alien geek then this could be something to really look forward to.

New and final Rage trailer online

For those of you foaming at the mouth to delve into "Rage" (the video game, not the feeling you get when someone takes the last blue M&M), the last trailer before the game is released on Tuesday the 4th, is now online.

I myself am still rather ambivalent about this game.

The graphics are definitely very impressive, but all the gameplay I've seen so far makes it look very generic.

There's nothing in this trailer that really makes me stop and go "holy shit, that was amazing" and so if I bother with this game at all I think it will be a rental.

1984 -Oldie but Goodie

Most people know what the book ”1984” is about in broad terms. A big brother society where the totalitarian government keeps an iron grip on the brain washed masses.

This was about all I knew about 1984, when I decided that I should pick up this old sci-fi classic (sci-fi because of course 1984 was way the heck in the future when this book was written).

I came into the book with the attitude that this was a book that I “should” read as a sci-fi fan, but I honestly did not have too high hopes of it being very gripping.

Fortunately I was very positively surprised. 



1984: And you thought Blade Runner presented a bleak view of the future



While the propaganda infested society is certainly the central theme of the book, it is actually a very personal story about a single mans rebellion against the system and a tale of growing hope in a soul crushing world (A lot like “Up” really, but with more torture and Gestapo-like secret police forces).

Syndicate trailer hits the web

A trailer for the new Syndicate FPS game is now online on YouTube:

Okay, so this actually does look kinda cool. 

Deus Ex may have prepped the market and left us all wanting a little more dystopian sci-fi FPS.

Let's just hope the shooting mechanics are better than Deus Ex, because I don't think the RPG part will be as prominent.

I still hope that someone will eventually make a real Syndicate remake, though.

Light Speed Gaming switching into into Warp speed -Twitter account online

Being a man of the 21st century I pride myself of keeping up with all things digital.

I hear there is this newfangled thing called "Twitter" (If you haven't heard about it don't worry. It's very cutting edge)

Anywho, Light Speed Gaming is now a part of this futuristic wonderland and you can follow by going to Twitter and follow LightSpeedGmng (Damn character limits!).

Or you can click on this snazzy button below!

5 Reasons not to invite Darth Vader to your dinner party

You may think that having the Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Vader, to your party is a great idea.

You’ll impress your friends with your connections to people with power and in case your kitchen appliances break down while you’re preparing dinner you’ll have someone around that’s good with his hands around (even if they are strictly speaking not *his* hands).

Do not sit him at the Younglings table

However, before you make this decision I  will give you 5 reasons why this is a bad idea.

Battlefield 3 beta impressions -"Shiny!"

The Battlefield 3 beta for multiplayer started up yesterday for people that have preordered the game.

As I happen to be one of these select few couple of million individuals with more money than sense, who were willing to put down money up front for a game that has not even been published yet, I am now part of this beta.

Commuters are getting more and more aggressive these days

I have only had time to play for a few hours but I think that I have a good feel of the basics of the game, within the confines that are set in the beta (i.e. only one map and one multiplayer mode)

Below I'll share the good and bad points that have stuck with me so far:

Deus Ex game director talks about designing the game

As you may have already seen in my earlier post, I am quite fond of the new Deus Ex and its elbow sword waving shenanigans.

Today I stumbled on a really interesting interview with the game director of Deus Ex, Jean Francois Dugas.

For those of you interested in what went on behind the curtain (you know, the curtain that all game developers sit behind when they are making a game), then I think there are some interesting questions answered in this piece.

Jean explains why making choices all the time became such an integral part of the game and why there is no "morality meter", like you see in so many other decision making games like Fallout or Mass Effect.

Hello, I am Sven. I am here to crush all the fun out of this game. Starting... Now!

He also touches on the, frankly kinda FUBAR, boss fights and while he offers some explanation for their design, it basically boils down to "yeah, we f*'d that up pretty bad"

You can read the full article at Giant Bomb here.

3 Star Wars moments that George Lucas ruined

With the new Star Wars Blu Ray double trilogy pack just out, a lot of people are buying (or re-buying, or re-re-buying...) the Star Wars movies.

Sadly, in his infinite descent into lala-land, Lucas has seen fit to once again grace us with changes to the movies, to bring them more in line with his vision (or oxygen deprived fever dream as the case may be)

"Actually I'm not crazy about the yellow anymore. Can we do lime green?"

Some of these changes you will maybe not even notice.
A few even make sense, like swapping out the hologram transmission in The Empire Strikes Back with Ian McDiarmid, the actor who played the Emperor in Return of the Jedi and the new trilogy (The original hologram was actually a woman with the eyes of a chimp superimposed on top. That's not a joke that's what they actually used).

However most of them are just unnecessary and awkward (Han Solo meeting a super bad looking Jabba the Hut in the Tatooine spaceport) and some straight up break the whole feel of the original scenes.

I have picked out what I consider to be the 3 worst offenders:

Keeping up with current events -Personal Top 5 gaming news sites

The world of video games is a fast moving one.

As a person that has a considerable interest in video games you need to keep up on what is going on, what new game did Blizzard just announce? How did Duke Nukem Forever actually turn out? What is the latest crazy game with scantily clad women that has come out of Japan?

All this is of utmost importance to impress fellow bespectacled gaming oracles at the water cooler/coke vending machine.

New DLC for Minesweeper?! Stop the press!

The information you need is out there (somewhere just to the right of the Truth. If you see David Duchovny you've gone too far and will need to make a u-turn).

Here is my personal top 5 of gaming sites that will both inform and entertain in your quest for ever more nuggets of video gaming enlightenment.

Battlefield 3 early beta access starting tomorrow. Start polishing your guns!

I do not normally play a lot of FPS games.

Although I have played first person shooters ever since Wolfenstein 3D, I must admit that as I have gotten older I find them less and less appealing, except for ones that feature heavy story and RPG elements (like Deus Ex).

But Battlefield 1942 really grabbed me when it came out, with its vehicular carnage that gave you a feeling of being in the middle of a scene from Saving Private Ryan (sans the silly brotherhood bonding parts, of course).

Don't look now, Johnny, but half of your torso is on fire again

Therefore I am actually really looking forward to Battlefield 3 in a way that I have not looked forward to a military FPS in a long time.
And I have even installed the misshapen abortion that is Origins onto my computer and placed a preorder.

That means that I will be able to start playing the multiplayer beta with a massive two (yes, 2!) day head start on the rest of the world. Schmocks!

Anyway, should you also be interested in trying out the multiplayer war glorifying phenomenon that is Battlefield 3, then you can place your preorder and start playing tomorrow.
Or, if you have near infinite amounts of patience, you can wait until Thursday and nab it without the obligation of such preorderingness.

For more info on the beta you can check out EA's official page on it here

See you in the warzone!

5 good sci-fi video games on Steam for under 5 euro each

The economic crisis is hitting us all, even us nerds have to hold back on our extravangaze.
Some of you out there may even still be using phones that you bought more than 12 months ago!

Video games are expensive but even during hard times we must be entertained!

If you don't have a tree like this, then you may need to think twice when choosing what games to buy

I have gone through the bargain bins of Steam and picked out 5 sci-fi games for under 5 euro each that I think should keep you entertained for many hours and take your mind off how you may not be able to afford that Iphone 5 at launch...

"I just like to watch" -Dawn of War 2 casting

You may already know that I like me some Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War 2 (DoW2), as it made it into my personal top 10 video game list.

However DoW2 is a demanding game when you're playing 1 versus 1 multiplayer.
You have to constantly be on top of your game, giving orders to your units all over the battlefield and keep track of when to build what units.

Too much stuff going on... can't... keep track

Sometimes I get the DoW2 cravings, but I really just want to sit back and relax, while someone else is doing all that hard work of actually playing the game.

Old Republic officially scheduled to hit in 2011 (barely)

Yesterday saw the long awaited announcement of the release date for Star Wars: The Old Republic.

December 20 will be "lightsaber on!" time for American jedi wannabes, while Europeans will have to keep their Yoda in their pants for two more days until December 22.
Thus fulfilling my previously stated hopes of being able to go on a Jawa killing spree before New Year.

"It was like that when I got here, I swear!"

Well, at least I know how I'll be spending Christmas this year!

You can find the official press release from Bioware here

3 Sci-fi movies you may not have seen but should consider

In the sci-fi movie universe there are the behemoths like Star Wars and Star Trek, or more recent mainstream smash hits like the Matrix (or well, the first one at least).

However there are a lot of cool sci-fi movies out there that went more under the radar but are still worth your time if you are a fan of the genre.

Okay, so maybe you've seen this already..

Here are 3 movies that I would gladly recommend to any sci-fi geek:

Punching people is quality entertainment!

Just wanted to share an amusing Deus Ex clip that has been put together by Gamespot.

Start your Saturday with a punch! (or like a hundred punches, as the case may be)

Besides the quality of the punching, you can find my complete opinion on Deus Ex here.

Old Repbulic companions -Pets with personality

Now that my hopes of Diablo 3 in 2011 have been crushed, I turn to my other hope of 2011, which is the MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic.

With a glowstick like that, he'd be the king of any techno party

Star Wars certainly does not hold the same magic to me that it once did and it's been a while since the last really good Star Wars game came around (Republic Commando maybe? Or even back to Knights of the Old Republic).

Nevertheless I get suckered right back in, when you show me lightsabers and big Star Destroyer-like capital ships, like an abused spouse coming right back for more (Really, it was my own fault for expecting too much. This time it will be different...).

On the official Old Republic website there is a weekly update every Friday giving you a brief glimpse of some aspect of the game.
This week it's companion characters.

It's weekend and time to get your Space Marine painted!

No, that is not some dirty euphemism.

This is for all those people out there, who take their nerdhood to the next level (this includes myself), and spend considerable amounts of time painting small plastic figurines.

These figurines are then used to stage dramatic battles between powerful factions of the galaxy, waged on your very own living room table (with or without impending risks from pets jumping on said table)

Now I have only been painting Warhammer 40k models for under a year and I will be the first to admit that I suck pretty bad at it.

An Ultramarine terminator. The very first Warhammer model I painted. I know it looks shit, but I was very happy!
Unpainted model to the left for reference of how it looks before some untalented noob mess it up

No Diablo 3 in 2011. A million voices cry out in pain

So Blizzard has now officially stated that we will not get our grubby hands on the finished version of Diablo 3 this year, dashing my previous hopes to the contrary.

My reaction to this is:

But since an official release date was never really announced I guess we cant really be too upset (So put those pitchforks away, people)

Oh well, good things are worth waiting for I guess..

You can check out the full story here at Blues News: Diablo 3 in early 2012

Need cheap sci-fi fun for the weekend?

If you're looking for some passable sci-fi action video gaming fix over the weekend for less than the price of a pint of beer at the pub (depending on how greedy your local pub owner is), then I have just noticed that Aliens vs Predator is on sale on Steam this weekend for 5 euro.

It's a first person shooter that lets you play as a Predator (shoot poor marines and rip their skulls off), an Alien (jump on poor marines and eat their faces) or marines (get shot by Predators or eaten by Aliens).

"All right kids, for the last time, stop fighting or I'm not taking you to Disneyland tomorrow!"

It didn't exactly set the world on fire when it was released and it's certainly not of the quality of something like Crysis 2, but for 5 euro it should keep you satisfied for long enough that you feel you got your moneys worth.

Farcasting my way through Hyperion

I recently stumbled on a sci-fi book called "Hyperion" while flicking aimlessly through the Kindle store.

The cover or synopsis did not really catch me, but I downloaded the sample first chapter and it looked alright enough for me to want to give the book a chance.

I must say that I was extremely positively surprised by the quality of the book.

The cover is very low key sci-fi, but you know what they say about judging books by their cover.
That you shouldn't

Diablo 3 closed beta begins

Okay, so it's not exactly a sci-fi videogame but as I do have the original Diablo on my all time top 10 video games list I will go ahead and make a post about it anyway, 'cause frankly I am looking forward to this the way Greece is looking forward to fiscal stability.

Starting yesterday the closed beta testing for Diablo 3 is now underway.
Sadly I am not one of those lucky enough to have gotten a beta invitation but here's to hoping I'll get one at some point.

If you *really* only like sci-fi themed games just squint at the screenshot and pretend the wizard is shooting a laser beam. *zzzap!*

The real reason I am excited about this is because it shows that the game is getting pretty close to release (probably 3-5 months if previous Blizzard beta periods are anything to go by).
With a little luck we might even get a diabolical little christmas present with release in 2011.

That would be awesome, although I am getting a little tired of using my planned christmas vacation to play Blizzard games, like I did with Cataclysm and Wrath of the Lich King before that...

Unlike most betas, but *like* most Blizzard betas, there is no NDA in effect for the Diablo 3 beta, so expect people everywhere flashing screens and videos on the internet and smothering us with the pixellated goodness of the game.

To anyone lucky enough to have already gotten a beta invite I wish you happy beta testing and to all the rest of us who are crossing our fingers I wish good luck. Mostly for myself of course.

The Spice must flow -The wonders of the Dune universe

Aside from the Warhammer 40k universe another big favorite of mine is the Dune.

Sand worms are a big part of the Dune mythos.  They'll happily gobble up the huge harvesters that collect the Spice. Nom nom nom!

Like 40k it presents a pretty bleak view of the future with lots of political scheming and maneuvering between different "Houses".

New X-wing game in the works?

In space no one can hear you go "Noooo!", but I'm sure George Lucas would like to fit it in there some way all the same...

One of my most fondest video game Star Wars moments is that of playing Tie Fighter for the PC.

I came slightly late to the party and so missed out on playing the original X-wing game, which was also hailed as very good game.

Tie Fighter presented a pretty deep "sim-like" experience of piloting the spaceships, leaving you to do stuff like energy management and diverting shields forward or aft to boost your defense.

It allowed you to zoom through an epic space battle between Rebel Mon Calarami Cruisers and Imperial Star Destroyers (or older Victory Class Star Destroyers or Nebulon-B Frigates or... well, you get the picture. I like Star Wars).

Racing at full throttle along the side of an Imperial Star Destroyer while blasting at the X-wing in front of you presented you with plenty of "Hell yeah!" moments for true Star Wars geeks like myself.

And the graphics were very good, which really helped to put you in the universe.

Honestly, I swear, at the time, this was good look graphics...

Now it seems that the X-wing series may get a long long long overdue revival.
LucasArts are hiring some new people, among them someone with experience in "aerial combat games", particularly "space-based shooters".

Now I don't want to get my hopes up too high but if there really is a new X-wing game on the way then I may experience full nerdgasm...

You can check out the story at GameSpot here: LucasArts hiring

Just...just don't be prequel era games...

Public service announcement: Don't watch Transfomers 3

Spoiler: I don't like this movie so much

Now I know that I am late to the party and most of you that were considering watching the hideous creation that is Transformers 3 will long ago have made your decision either way.

However, if I can save just one person from this 3D enchanced CGI pile of poo-poo then I will consider this as time well spent.

Warhammer 40k: Space Marine - number 1 Ork carving simulator

Having just gushed about my love for all things Warhammer 40k I think it only natural that I take a moment to talk about the just released 3rd person action game Warhammer 40k: Space Marine, which I have just played through this week.

The Dawn of War RTS series has been the premier Warhammer 40k video game presence for a long time, but I'm happy to say that Space Marine takes a decent stab (pun intended) at giving video gamers a more action oriented view into Warhammer 40k and the life of a Space Marine.

Simply put this game is a gory Ork snuff fest with the main Space Marine character slicing through thousands of Orks with his trusty chainsword, power axe or thunder hammer. The way you regain lost health is even by doing bloody "execution" finishing moves on your hapless and stunned opponents, which includes timeless classics such as lifting up your victim by the tip of your sword and revving it gleefully or throwing him to the ground and curb stomping his head with your heavily armored foot (and who said video games were full of meaningless violence?)

If you look at this picture and go "Awesome!" then Space Marine is for you

Personal top 10 games list

As all good humans I am fond of sorting things and making lists about how great they are; movies, video games, meals, My little Pony comic books and so on.

These lists say more about what we value as an individual than about the objective quality of the subject being judged.
So I think that maybe showing you a list of what I consider some of the most memorable and formative games for me can give you an idea about what makes me tick.

Deus Ex -More fun than you can wave an elbow sword at

So I have recently played through the multi-platform game Deus Ex Humand Revolution and I have to say that I found it to be a very enjoyable experience.

The protagonist Adam Jensen complete with augmentation mechanical arms

Deus Ex takes place in the near future, where science has developed the technology to replace limbs and organs with mechanical replacements, giving humans the possibility to get infrared vision, lungs impervious to poisonous gas or frigging blades that slide out of your elbows (for those melon slicing emergencies)