Hurlshort

I'm dealing with high blood pressure as well, it's genetic for me. Although they tell me to monitor it and then don't explain how that even works. I can get pretty stressed out too, I comment regularly to my wife about how she is trying to collect on the life insurance by leaving her piles of clothes all over the bedroom

I think it is fairly reasonable to say it is more civilized to not have a death penalty.

Meier is in an ideal situation, he can develop anything he wants with Firaxis at this point. He's already remade Pirates, Civilization keeps humming along, and he got to modernize a classic franchise in Xcom. Not quite sure what anyone else wants. If he wanted a new Alpha Centaurie he'd probably just do it.

Geez, if I'm going to commit a crime, I need to do it in Norway. I've stayed at hotels worse than that.

That's really not what I said at all. I said they are getting nutritious meals and cable television. They get to join rodeos and boxing teams. Basically I'm saying the State and taxpayers foot the bill for a fairly comfortable existence. What they can't control is the other inmates, particularly given the overcrowding issues. You do realize that ultimately treating people better in prison means that there is a lower recidivism rate right? I think it's Norway that has their "prison" is actually a little village where all the inmates are monitored, but have their own homes with TV etc. And because they're respected and the prison has enough resources, the offenders don't re-offend. That sounds like some sort of fairy tale land. What is this 'Norway' you speak of?

Pretty sure the Leafs made you eat those words

That's funny, I was playing the original the other night using the OpenXcom mod, and I was having all sorts of trouble getting my troops in cover positions and lined up properly. Edit: I played the new one with the mouse and the only problems I had were with occasional camera glitches. I heard they were fixed, but I haven't checked it myself.

Xcom, like the original, has its flaws. But it is the best turn based game since JA2, and it scratches a gaming itch for me that rarely gets attention. I loved it and will probably replay it regularly for years to come. I still see people complaining about Civ 5, so I don't think Firaxis is immune to criticism. Not that I get it, I played the heck out of Civ 5. The Bureau game is loosely based on the Xcom mythos. It bothered me a lot more before we got a quality remake of the original, but now I don't mind if they do a spin off.

Thank goodness they got rid of those black blobs in that Xcom shooter. It looks decently interesting now.

Sens vs. Pens - Pens in 5, Vokoun is the answer in net. Bruins vs. Rangers - Boston in 7, should be a fun series. Sharks vs. Kings - Going with my hometown Sharks in 6. This really is the best matchup for them, the Kings are beatable. Red Wings vs. Hawks - Hawks in 5. I don't think this will be a big challenge for them.

Nope. They could very easily put a KotOR 3 in the big gap of time between KotOR2 and TOR, it's still a very big universe. They don't need to go anywhere near the Revan storyline.

My condolences TN, take care.

Their biggest issue was their goaltending. It would have fit in perfectly in the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia series last year. If Pittsburgh had stuck with Fleury I wouldn't have been surprised to see the Isles move on to the second round. I read a pretty funny comment about how both the Pens and the Islanders have first round pick goalies on their rosters, but both were starting guys chosen in the 9th round.

Skyrim - A decent Chinese restaurant, with all the decorations to show for it. Big complex plates full of chow mein and mongolian beef, but you will be hungry again 30 minutes later. BG2 - A nice italian restaurant that you would take a date to. Not a large chain, just a place with a few locations but very popular locally. The wait staff looks impeccable. Gothic 1 & 2 - Some place with its own brewery on site, like BJ's or Gordon Beirsch. Reasons speak for itself. Farcry 3 - A gourmet burger joint. Food is simple, but made with fresh ingredients and you can order the burger any way you want. The Five Guys of gaming.

Endless soup:

I would put casual games like what you find on facebook more in the fast food category. Mass Effect is like Olive Garden. Endless soup bowls and stuff.

That's really not what I said at all. I said they are getting nutritious meals and cable television. They get to join rodeos and boxing teams. Basically I'm saying the State and taxpayers foot the bill for a fairly comfortable existence. What they can't control is the other inmates, particularly given the overcrowding issues.

Felt a little odd to root for the Red Wings tonight, but I'm looking forward to a Sharks-Kings playoff matchup.

Especially when you consider there is a high chance of being raped and beaten frequently in prison. As I said, the most difficult thing is being around other prisoners. http://www.prisonhonorprogram.org/Docs/parade_jimwebb.pdf It's not "If it wasn't for the rapey parts, Prison would be good" I probably should have put it in my post, but earlier in the thread one of the first things I said was the prison system needs a massive overhaul. That article is a great explanation of why.

Especially when you consider there is a high chance of being raped and beaten frequently in prison. As I said, the most difficult thing is being around other prisoners.

I'm not sure about prisons in other countries, but in the US they've got it pretty good. Some of these guys have cable TV, internet, etc. Their meals even have to meet nutritional standards. The most difficult thing about being in prison is being around other prisoners, it seems.

There just isn't any evidence to support the idea that Bioware's brand name has declined. It isn't backed up by any sales numbers. We also live in a very different time, as Bruce already stated, and internet discussions are everywhere. But you've got to realize that forums like BSN represent a super tiny part of the actual customer base. It doesn't matter how much whining goes on there if people still line up to buy the games on day one. Plus many of their previous works have been disputed, NWN and Jade Empire got plenty of complaints. This whole profit versus creativity thing doesn't really work for me. Creativity is subjective, profit is not. If a game sells a lot of copies, then clearly it is appealing to a large audience.

There are plenty of games that get bad reviews. The trouble is you can usually tell that it's a bad game simply by looking at it. It's pretty rare for a AAA title to get a bad review because, once again, the reviews are written for general audience. Not us superior folks

Nah, Mass Effect will very likely be played quite a bit over the next decade. It might even have a bigger impact on gaming as a whole. When I wear my Commander Shephard N7 shirt, middle school students know what it is. They have no idea what Baldur's Gate is. After Dragon's Age 2 I said that I am clearly not in the Bioware Wheelhouse anymore. But I'm not equating that to mean they are making terrible games. They are making games for a different audience, one that is much larger than us crotchety old folks, Boo. You might have an argument if these games got terrible reviews, but that doesn't happen. They sell well, they score well, and they are heavily polished.

Isn't this an open beta? Doesn't that mean the characters will be wiped before release?