Hurlshort

It took me awhile to realize caulity means quality. EA is simply running a business here, and they want quality products. They also want major sales. Bioware wants those same things.

Descartes

Obsidian and Bioware are both businesses, making money is their primary goal.

Rumors of Wow's death are greatly exaggerated. It sounds like you like TOR, I'm not sure what your complaints are. I have concerns with the Bioware/EA relationship. For example, the whole shift of Dragon Age to an ultra-violent action game seems geared towards appealing to the lowest common denominator. But TOR and ME are solid properties and I've enjoyed the heck out of them.

^and it was written by someone who didn't work at Bioware at any point. It's mostly speculation. The truth is TOR is a very good game. It is light years ahead of what Warhammer Online was when it was released. It also clearly is not going to be one of the greatest failures in MMO history. It remains to be seen what sort of long term success it will find, but it sold fantastic out of the gate and seems to be maintaining a healthy enough player base at this time. I'm very aware of the flaws of TOR, but I played WAR, and that game was a wreck.

I disagree, C&C makes a huge difference in the personal story that you are going through. It may not be as reactive as a single player game, that is unrealistic, but on a personal level I continue to be impressed at the tough choices my character has to make. Last night I played through the early levels with a Jedi, and decided to not rat out the two Jedi lovers. I was pleased to see that I could even refuse their bribe.

I know Phoenix has a pretty low point total in the West, but to me that speaks more to a competitive division than a weak one. You play your divisional rivals a lot, and in the Pacific that means a lot of games against tough teams. That is backed up by the entire divison being in the playoff picture until very late. I'm not sure about Florida, I don't get to see many games in the Eastern conference.

I started a new character on an RP-PVP server last night. It was a very active server, with what seems like a good community. It is still too early to tell, but I think this might help me stay more engaged in the game. I do think that buying the game and playing for a month just to experience the story is worth it. I recommend the Sith Inquisitor and the Republican Trooper, myself.

Rangers vs. Senators - Senators in 7, I think the Sens are a deep team, Lundquist will have to be phenomenal to shut them down. Bruins vs. Capitals - Capitals in 7, I see a Stanley Cup hangover and a Caps team that is finally starting to play well. Panthers vs. Devils - Devils in 6 Penguins vs. Flyers - Flyers in 6 - If Sid shows up, I might change this, but the Flyers are tougher. Canucks vs. Kings - Kings in 7. I like Quick and I'd love to see the nucks go out fast. Blues vs. Sharks - Sharks in 6. Sharks are looking better of late, they are dangerous and the Blues lack offense. Coyotes vs. Chicago - Chicago in 6. Tough draw for the Yotes. Nashville vs. Detroit - Nashville in 7. I really want the Preds to find a way to beat Detroit. A lot of possible close matchups here, and a lot of potential upsets. This could be another one of those years where the high seeds all go out in the first round!

Happy Easter as well. My kids will be searching for eggs tomorrow morning for sure. Although it doesn't really feel like spring yet, it is still very cold here in California. I still haven't found a church in my area that I'm comfortable attending, but we'll still make it a special day.

Anyone catch Ryan Clowe playing defense from the bench in last nights Sharks/Kings game?

Never let the details get in the way of a good moment folks, and Mordin sacrificing himself to cure the Krogan while singing a tune was golden. The only thing that bugged me about the story in ME3 was the ending. It was vague and incomplete. I've watched a ton of movies that left me feeling the same way, but then again a movie is only a 90 minute time commitment.

It's be cool if they can get the release date of December 21st this year. I'm not sold on this Kickstarter thing being ideal though, it's one thing to fund a very proven team, but what have these guys done to this point?

Actually that sounds like a fair assumption. Very few games managed a sustained MP community. Even games like Left 4 Dead and Gears of War experience sharp drop offs after the initial months. Call of Duty and Battlefield are exceptions, not the rule.

Crosby already can't stay healthy, do you think the Broad Street Bullies would let him skate around? Sure, you can put a bodyguard out there like Gretzky had, but that also limits the offensive potential.

40 years ago Crosby or Stamkos would have been murdered on the ice.

I watched a few flicks this weekend. Cedar Rapids - Pretty hilarious film about a very naive guy from a small town making his first trip to the city. The characters were really good, I enjoyed it. Hannah - Interesting film about an assassin girl. There was one big plot element that bothered me, but as an action flick it was very well done.

There were some big goalies in the 80's, they just weren't very flexible or cat-like. I don't think there are guys better than Hasek or Roy or Brodeur, I just think there are more guys around that can compete at their level. The average goalie today is much better than in the past. I will say that goalies of today still have problems with consistency, which is what separates the hall of famers. The difference is when your goalie pulls a Jim Carey, you can replace him with an excellent backup on many squads.

It's been this way for awhile, remember a few years ago we only had a couple guys that even made it to 40. I think it mostly has to do with the goaltending position being pretty insane right now, there are some very talented young guys in the league today. Plus it doesn't seem like you get that one dominant line on teams anymore. Maybe it's because the defense against the top line has gotten better, or the other three lines have been earning more minutes. But it seems pretty standard throughout the league.

It's hard to come across as a reasonable and unbiased source of information when you are throwing crude nicknames around.

Take care GD.

Typically when I daydream about poker or blackjack, I eventually drift back to the reality that it is a very easy way to lose a lot of money fast. The lottery is such a small risk for a very large reward. edit: Oh, lottery profits help education, so technically I benefit from the few dollars I might spend on tickets

Also when the jackpot is really large, a near miss is still a very sizable win. It's really just fun escapism to play the lottery though, for a few bucks you can daydream about what it would be like to be instantly rich.

A leaked beta seems like a terrible way to evaluate a product.

Just got back form a school trip to Yosemite. I'm exhausted, and now I need to go replace the microwave that broke while I was away. It was an interesting trip though. On day one a student disclocated her knee cross country skiing. We had to carry her on a stretcher through about 200 yards of knee deep snow. Her father was a chaperone, so he took her to the hospital. Then I lost another chaperone that day because a death in the family. It left us pretty short handed for the trip, but luckily the rest was smooth sailing.