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I'm pretty sure Anders will be in it, since letting him live was a HUGE option in DA2. Sure, let's make the terrorist, gay, apostate, possessed mage a recurring character. Good role models are overrated in my opinion. Maybe Bio is actually trying to make a statement about how history portrays terrorists freedom fighter-types.

Yeah, that is what I thought. So long as they stay afloat (and avoid being bought out), I'm happy. I'd hate to see them go the way of Troika; putting all eggs in one basket is a terrible idea anyway, and the experience gained from making other kinds of games can be put to use in ways that may be difficult to see immediately. They are still making RPGs, the big RPG names are still on board, and they aren't making mobile games, so I think the only way this could be interpreted as a bad thing is if they have actually bitten off more than they can chew. But that's a concern for Feargus to worry about. It makes you appreciative of typical Obsidian luck. >Obsidian signs sweet deal with Russian publisher >WWIII is declared a nuclear apocalypse happens, deal falls through

Well, the Cold War mentality is alive and well, thank you. For some at least. You don't need Cold War thinking to be wary of Russian imperialism, however. Pushing Russia is a bad idea if you are in Europe (or central Asia, for that matter...), and it has been since Peter the Great back in the 18th century. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, we Europeans had forgotten this, and Putin figured it's high time we were reminded that Russia is nobody's bitch. And, as usual, it's the little people getting shafted.

Funny thing is, even if you are a decker yourself, the game doesn't detect it correctly as of 1.2.5, so you are forced to bring a decker NPC regardless. This stopped my second playthrough dead on its tracks. Strange, I played a decker and I didn't have an issue. Seems inconsistent. I've read about people not being able to choose contextual decking options during missions, even though I never experienced that myself. My problem was with runs that have a decker as a team composition requirement, in which case my PC wouldn't be recognized as such, despite having the best available deck and a higher decking rating than Blitz's. I suspect that this is derived from the fact that I chose rigger rather than decker at character creation, so my character wasn't properly flagged, or whatever.

Funny thing is, even if you are a decker yourself, the game doesn't detect it correctly as of 1.2.5, so you are forced to bring a decker NPC regardless. This stopped my second playthrough dead on its tracks.

Interesting read—a well-articulated piece in the bigger debate of whether games are art and their dependence of the (technological) circumstances surrounding their creation. Unfortunately, its basis seems to be that the author just couldn't get into BG2EE, which is, in my mind, a very weak starting proposition. Doesn't really say anything of substance about BG2EE, per se.

If you believe that evaluating economic health is as simple as taking a quick look at DJ, I think it's safe to say that you have learned nothing from the 2007 crisis. Not that I'm surprised that you are quick to underscore the "irrefutability" of data presented that doesn't directly contradict your exaggerations and oversimplifications—it very much fits in with your offhand dismissals of anything that doesn't support your misinformed preconceptions as "extremely biased" or "propaganda", while at the same time, you have no compunctions about using similarly biased sources if it suits your purposes. The mark of a closed mind. I'd suggest you begin by reading this and do some research on the points discussed in it, if you are interested in what goes on under the hood. But I doubt you are, because complex things are never really black or white, or easily summarized.

Right. If it's so easy, then why didn't you post relevant links instead of the ones you did? It's not spoon-feeding, rather it's you expecting me to do your homework. But hey, why the hell not. Googling "Russian Index loses 20%" returns this: "Russia’s Micex stock market falls 3.5% at open, RTS down 4.3%" So, yeah. Nowhere near your original claims. Problem with this sort of hyperbole is that oby is affirmed, i.e. "you can't into markets".

Though I agree that in today's economy sanctions are going to hit everyone and not only the recipient, the links you posted don't really support what you are saying. Private rating agencies have a proven track record of inaccuracy with regards to their predictions and their credit ratings are rather laughable. The other link just tells the story of travel bans and asset freezes of some of Putin's collaborators. No hard economic figures anywhere. Heavily financialized economies such as the US are going to be more vulnerable to geopolitical instability, too. "[...] the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country." — Hermann Göring, 1946 Unfortunately, the current climate of political apathy, devaluation of civic virtue and disappearance of critical thinking in the general populace only makes that sort of shepherding easier.

I had the same experience with the Misery Mod (it was 2.0 when I played) minus the stuttering. I like some of the changes, but other changes straight up ruin the game adding nothing but tedium and making enemies beyond insanely difficult (no human should survive multiple headshots from a Dragunov, I don't care if he's wearing 3 helmets layered on top of each other). The bullet "sponginess" has been fixed somewhat in 2.1, from what I've read. The deal breaker for me was stuff like mutants being in berserk mode 24/7 and the economy being all over the place ("sure, I'll give you 150 rubles for that AK-74. That piece of bread you kinda need to avoid ****ing starving? 6,000 and it's yours"). Also "Hardcore aim", which you apparently can't deactivate, allows noob bandits to snipe you with a PMM from 200 m. Again, it's a pity because the mod adds a ton of other interesting stuff, such as artifact containment, cooking your own food, player character classes and *pretty* things like a gazillion different weapon and outfit combinations for NPCs. It's one of those mods I'd really like to like. Am downloading SGM at the moment. But yeah, we really need a new Stalker game...

eh n/m

Oh, but that's not the argument I made, only the one you construed from amputating half my post. Pretty much in line with your tendency to mischaracterize the positions of others into black-or-white bull**** strawmen that you can then heroically ride in on your high horse and righteously put down. Try again! (protip: this time try making a rebuttal that is not a one-liner. You need to be witty and original for those to work, you are not quite there yet) Wouldn't it just be easier and more cordial just to say " no that's not the argument I made" ? Wouldn't it just be easier and more cordial not to misrepresent me in the first place? You know it's called passive-aggressive behavior for a reason, right?

Recently reinstalled Call of Pripyat. Figured I'd give Misery 2.1 a try. Stutter every twenty seconds or so and the overblown h4rdc0r3 "balance" decisions convinced me to delete the mod after a few hours. A pity, because the focus on survival and scavenging instead of gunplay is a good idea, but the execution is terrible. Need to find a better mod.

Actually, Ukraine pre-Maidan was a buffer zone. The likely product of this sad episode, to wit, an extremely anti-Russian Ukrainian remnant and territories annexed by Russia is the complete opposite.

Oh, but that's not the argument I made, only the one you construed from amputating half my post. Pretty much in line with your tendency to mischaracterize the positions of others into black-or-white bull**** strawmen that you can then heroically ride in on your high horse and righteously put down. Try again! (protip: this time try making a rebuttal that is not a one-liner. You need to be witty and original for those to work, you are not quite there yet)

What the hell. Another MMO?

Because the next attempt will finally produce the WoW-killer. Like, totally, guys. Also, I'm sure there's a market study there somewhere that shows microtransactions to be the ultimate nickle-and-dime scheme. I'm... ambivalent on this one. I have no interest whatsoever in a WoT clone, but if the scenario structure and strategic elements are expanded, I may change my mind.

+1 As I've said before, while Svobada certainly aren't the most agreeable folks the Russians who say, without irony, "Little Russia should be one with Big Russia again" or that "Europe is due to feel what it's like to have a Russian boot on their neck again" are no better. The Russian nationalists who are that quick to denounce the entire Euromaidan movement as "fascist" ought to look at themselves in the mirror sometime. It's also funny that people will soil themselves at the though of "Russian boots on their necks again", but the strategy of systematic encirclement of Russia by NATO is, on the other hand, just fine. I've mentioned this several times but it has been ignored by people, the real reason for the Crimean annexation is that Putin wants a buffer zone around the borders of Russia. I can understand this as there is perceived idealogical threat from EU and NATO. But then in this debate lets acknowledge this, these spurious justifications that Russia moved into the Crimea because of the illegal removal of Yanukovych and the threat from Fascists are moot. Lets discuss the real reason the Crimean annexation Because it's either/or, right? That is convenient as that way we can simply ignore everything else and focus on the Enemy Of The Week, as has been the official party line from day one. We do feel quite naked without our blindfolds. No, thanks. Let's not forget that Russia subscribed to the Feb 21 agreement. Putin has moved much faster (and with far greater boldness) than the US and EU anticipated, but he's still basically reacting. One of the Russian Ukrainians in the video Agiel posted hit the nail on the head: Russia has lost Ukraine as a partner nation, and annexing Crimea and south east Ukraine isn't going to change that. The hydrocarbons are a nice bonus, as is the large amount of arable land (agriculture is one of the main economic sectors of Ukraine), but for a country that's already the world's largest oil producer -and with huge untapped reserves in east Siberia- it's definitely not the motive. In the event that Putin may be trying to resurrect the Russian Empire, maybe that is a good reason to actually start promoting strong, stable and independent democratic regimes within the Russian sphere of influence, instead of propping up corrupt kleptocrats more receptive to western suggestion, hmm?

+1 As I've said before, while Svobada certainly aren't the most agreeable folks the Russians who say, without irony, "Little Russia should be one with Big Russia again" or that "Europe is due to feel what it's like to have a Russian boot on their neck again" are no better. The Russian nationalists who are that quick to denounce the entire Euromaidan movement as "fascist" ought to look at themselves in the mirror sometime. Not that I disagree in principle... but drawing a parallel between some nobody Soviet nostalgic "activist" on the street and the Minister of Defense of Ukraine is not the best way to make your point. No, Euromaidan wasn't necessarily a far-right movement as a whole, but they did effectively relinquish control to the neo-nazi minority element by standing behind them when things took a nosedive in the streets, after they decided to abrogate the Feb 21 agreement, and most importantly, by excluding more moderate political figures from it: It's a common element in the rise to power of fascist movements that, early on, they enjoy the support (or at least the acquiescence) of the generally more moderate majority sectors of society. It's also funny that people will soil themselves at the though of "Russian boots on their necks again", but the strategy of systematic encirclement of Russia by NATO is, on the other hand, just fine.

Even if he did give evidence, what would be the point - you wouldn't believe it anyway. Malc I'm hurt that you would suggest such a thing, you know me... I do change my mind and agree with people. Produce the evidence and I'll review it and then get back to you http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/18/ukranian-tv-beaten-up-far-right-parliament_n_4988366.html http://nsnbc.me/2014/03/19/kiev-inspects-russia-for-alleged-military-buildup-while-escalating-violence-crimea-snipers-kill-2/ (read the part about Alexander Mamaj) http://rt.com/news/ukraine-kharkov-radicals-attack-982/ Took me a full five minutes to dig that up. How's that blindfold working out for you? I think it's pretty cool how, now that it's no longer possible to dispute the fact that nazis are part of the Ukrainian gov't, it simply doesn't matter as long as they don't go on genocidal rampages. Reminder: the actual, real deal, German nazis didn't go on ethnic hatred-fueled rampages either... until they did. Kristallnacht didn't happen until '38, but ol' Adolf was appointed Chancellor in '33. Ah, but I guess history, much like constitutional law, isn't our forte, right guys? Enjoy your doublethink! Hi 2133 I reject anything from RT due to its profound bias, I also reject the link about the TV chief getting attacked because its not in English and you can't possibly expect me to comment on something I don't understand That just leaves your final link, before I comment who is http://nsnbc.me/ anyway? I have never heard of them...are they credible? I am worried about where you get information from 2133, I don't want you to be influenced and manipulated by websites that have a some sort of anti-western agenda Hmm. So, basically, you reject anything that isn't delivered by Beeb. Okay bro. But, see, the problem is that that sort of hand waving works for everyone—I can just as easily dismiss everything everyone else has posted ITT as "profoundly biased" and driven by "some sort of anti-Russian agenda". And the accusation would be true in both cases! Beautiful, don't you think? I don't expect you to believe anything I post. But I do expect you to read the links and do your own research. You know, as opposed to just coming up with flimsy reasons to convince yourself that they aren't valid so you can feel better. But don't kid yourself, there are no good guys in this; only bad guys and "our" bad guys.

Even if he did give evidence, what would be the point - you wouldn't believe it anyway. Malc I'm hurt that you would suggest such a thing, you know me... I do change my mind and agree with people. Produce the evidence and I'll review it and then get back to you http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/18/ukranian-tv-beaten-up-far-right-parliament_n_4988366.html http://nsnbc.me/2014/03/19/kiev-inspects-russia-for-alleged-military-buildup-while-escalating-violence-crimea-snipers-kill-2/ (read the part about Alexander Mamaj) http://rt.com/news/ukraine-kharkov-radicals-attack-982/ Took me a full five minutes to dig that up. How's that blindfold working out for you? I think it's pretty cool how, now that it's no longer possible to dispute the fact that nazis are part of the Ukrainian gov't, it simply doesn't matter as long as they don't go on genocidal rampages. Reminder: the actual, real deal, German nazis didn't go on ethnic hatred-fueled rampages either... until they did. Kristallnacht didn't happen until '38, but ol' Adolf was appointed Chancellor in '33. Ah, but I guess history, much like constitutional law, isn't our forte, right guys? Enjoy your doublethink!

Hmm, only it actually is a good argument. ... no? Please, learn from Volourn how to formulate a counterpoint, then come back.

Yep. For one, Putin's just a SM captain ? (it's not the Big E in that art work ). Because the Emperor of Soviet Russia is clearly Lenin, preserved within his sarcophagus, neither dead nor truly alive, for all of eternity:

Well, at least you are finally acknowledging your betters, Mor-on.

What happened to Königsberg is disgrace—still, it's Russians living there now, because the then-resident Germans either fled before the Red Army encircled the city, or were expelled or outright killed after it surrendered. The only thing you'd raise if you suggested that a referendum should be held on whether Kaliningrad is to rejoin Germany as East Prussia, is a few eyebrows. A more pertinent example, perhaps, would be South Sakhalin, though even there Russification mostly removed the presence of Japanese and Ainu ethnic groups. Err... I'm inclined to believe it, but the way it's presented in the article is a bit misleading. It's two different events: - the arrest of a Russian national close to Crimea that has been identified as a member of GRU on March 14 - the arrest of a bunch of unidentified gunmen in possession of explosives and "special technical means" in south east Ukraine on March 16 The men in the second group haven't been identified (or at least no info is given) and could be private contractors, Ukrainian "self defence" types, or more Russian operators. The guy arrested on March 14 apparently had some fake IDs on him, but the way the SSU press release is worded, it's unclear whether the "document" that identified him as a GRU operative was found on the man himself. Another bit of the article that left me scratching my head was this: Is there any evidence for this that I've missed or it's just the author suggesting possibilities?