Tag Archives: videogames

StarCraft 2: Who wants some?

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Whoa, there’s now video of this little tutorial! Check it out.

There are a thousand StarCraft 2 strategy guides out there. Why should you read this one? Certainly not because I’m an expert. It’s because I write better than a 15-year-old, don’t use mystifying abbreviations and haven’t forgotten what it’s like to be a total n00b.

Moving right along. First thing you should know is, I only know how to play the Terran race. If you’re looking for Zerg or Protoss tips, head somewhere else. Second thing you should know is, I’ve only been playing for a short time. I’m not an expert. But I’ve already learned a great deal–all of which I will share with you now.

If you’re still with me, let’s get busy.

I recommend playing single player against an AI opponent before starting the campaign or multiplayer against human opponents. The campaign can be fun, and if you choose to dabble in the first few assignments, fine. But trust me: You cannot survive multiplayer yet.

Furthermore, I recommend you play against an AI Zerg opponent set to “easy” difficulty level. I can guarantee that if you set it to normal you’ll be dead within ten minutes. You’re not ready. Learn your units, get your build orders down, then maybe. Continue reading →

In the pipe, five by five

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I can’t be the only nerd who noticed this. You ever see a movie called Aliens? You ever play a video game called StarCraft? Well in both of these titles there’s a female military pilot who has a distinctive voice. And it’s the same person. Gotta be.

I imagine someone developing the game saw Aliens and said “that’s what we want for the pilot voice!” and they called her agent or something. Problem is, IMDB doesn’t back me up on this theory. Am I imagining things?

IMDB says the StarCraft voice was done by Lani Minella. But Minella’s name doesn’t appear in the credits for Aliens. Instead, it says Cpl. Ferro was played by Colette Hiller.

You be the judge. Here’s a movie clip. And here’s a compilation of the pilot voice in the game.

Even more bizarre, while Minella’s filmography at IMDB doesn’t include the film Aliens, it does include the Alien Resurection video game in which she is credited for playing Ripley.

Video Games

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Aside from a couple of weeks with Twilight Princess when we got the Wii system, it’s been a long time since I let myself become engrossed in a great video game. Twilight, like all Zelda games, is fantastic. But it’s no Ocarina. I don’t even think it’s as fun as Wind Waker.

Ocarina was a near-perfect video game, certainly the best ever created in the “adventure” genre. The only criticisms I have for it is that occasionally the interface for using items became tedious (switching your boots back and forth in the water temple, for example) and the dialog was sometimes unintentionally quirky, having been originally written in Japanese. In any case, it’s dated now. New gamers will not likely have the same reaction to it that so many of us did ten years ago. Time to move on, I guess, and wait for a new gold standard.

Diablo III is on the distant horizon, so that’s something. It’s been a busy couple of years and nothing else has really captured my attention. Perhaps when the Lord of Terror finally reappears–a year from now?–I’ll jump back into gaming again for a bit.

What’s your favorite video game? Are you looking forward to a new game?