Muad'Dib

[quote name='Raiha'][FONT=Times New Roman][COLOR=darkorchid]posting in a randomly paced story based largely on your own self interest. [/COLOR][/FONT][/quote] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=indigo]... sounds like something that should normally be avoided. But this, I would think, would be the exception. Having no idea how your previous effort went, I can't say much, but the idea sounds immensely fun. I'm interested to know more about the actual plot, or lack thereof, if that's more the point. What exactly would be going on?[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='Magus'][SIZE=1][COLOR=navy]Instant healing. Wouldn't have to worry too much about anything.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/quote] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]But it would still hurt like a b****. The wounding, not the healing.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Invisibility would also be fun. Who wouldn't want to be able to roam around Harry Potter style? Perverts need not apply...[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='BBS'] With flight and underwater breathing I could explore like everywhere, which would be dandy.[/quote] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Technically, you'd need a super-dense body to survive the depths of the ocean, and lungs capable of breathing in the upper atmosphere. Just sayin'.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Flight is also one of my favorites. I'm fairly positive I would spend 90% of my free time flying and/or hovering if I had the ability.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='Nomurah!'][SIZE=1][COLOR=hotpink]On the contrary, the best band of all time is by far [B]the Beatles[/B]. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/quote] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Agreed. They seem to have appeared on several people's list, but I'm gonna say it again.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue][B]The Beatles[/B] = absolute favorite until the end of time.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Probably has something to do with the fact that my dad listened to them a lot. But as a friend of mine once said (and I'm paraphrasing this), "Everything the Beatles did they did better than everyone else. Even their worst album was freaking great."[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]As for more recent stuff, my general favorite would have to be [B]Tool[/B]. Pretentious? Certainly. Does it matter? Not in the least.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Just today got the new (ok, it's a year old now) Metallica album [I]Death Magnetic[/I]. Never been a huge Metallica fan, but I have to admit it's pretty ****ing awesome. Currently listening to the track [I]The Judas Kiss[/I]. Good solid metal.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Mass Effect definitely isn't your every day RPG, but if you're going to get into it then you should definitely play the first one. While I'm sure ME2 will have some sort of plot recap, it's just not the same as playing through it for yourself.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]I'm extremely excited for the second game. In particular, I can't wait to see the new species (and new examples of existing species) in action. From what I've seen, Bioware has taken steps to make the various species' physical traits more apparent. For example, one screenshot showed a Krogan with armor that showed his upper arms, suggesting that there actually is something underneath it other than a disembodied head. I'm hoping they will actually show more of the alien physique in this way. And for completely non-perverted reasons.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]I like that they've improved the combat as well, though if the videos I've seen are any indication, your teammates are still about as intelligent as trained rocks.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Woot! *happy dance*[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=#483d8b]I'll stop posting nonsense now...[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='Gavin'][FONT=Verdana][SIZE=1][COLOR=black]The only letter which does not appear on the Periodic Table is the letter ?J?.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/quote] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]That makes me feel left out, as someone who's name begins with 'J'. Or should I feel special?[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]In 2001 Mamoru Oshii, director of such anime classics as Ghost in the Shell and Patlabor, teamed up with a Polish film studio to create the live-action sci-fi film [I]Avalon[/I]. The original language of the film was of course Polish, and it won several awards in film festivals throughout Europe.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Maybe that wasn't obscure enough. Whatever. If you want to see it, you might find it at Blockbuster. It's quite good.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='Cloud Strife']I hate it when you're watching a subbed anime and the person who subbed it doesn't know how to speak real english. "You die shall!" and other such mistakes are irritating.[/quote] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Even worse is when they intentionally screw with the subs. I remember some jack*** thought he was being funny with the subs in a Code Geass episode. I still don't know what was actually said in that scene...[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='chibi-master']But it's taking my family forever to get one this year. Too lazy, it seems. And I can't do anything about it. Saving Christmas is only for the movies.[/quote] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=darkslateblue]Same situation here. Not enough time and not enough will to actually get the thing out of the garage. Seems every year we get a little less willing to bother.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy]At my house we've been using the same (fake) tree since I was a kid. It's pretty nice, but a pain in the rear to put up. I'm not sure how familiar everyone is with life-size fake trees, but once it's standing, you have to unfold just about every individual branch. Most years my mother makes a big deal out of decorating it, especially with our really old 'baby' ornaments. Maybe my family is just weird, but their are particular ornaments that have a lot of meaning to her.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy]In any case, my favorite tree-related family tradition is definitely the hiding of the pickle. My grandparents have a pickle-shaped ornament that blends in rather well with the tree, and each year the challenge is on to find it before everyone else. We are pretty weird.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy]After I finally obtained Photoshop again after a hard-drive crash, I felt compelled to make some new banner/avatar type things. And so I have. Three, in fact. Each is themed for a different anime and uses images exclusively from that anime. Most of the effects are done through simple layer blending, but I'm pretty satisfied with the results. What do you think?[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy][strike]EDIT: Ok, so only the first one will show as an image in the post. Perhaps because it's an external link? If anyone knows, let me know.[/strike][/COLOR][/FONT] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v460/Leto/EvaBanner-Shinji.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v460/Leto/EvaAvatar-Shinji.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v460/Leto/AkiraBanner-Yourself.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v460/Leto/AkiraAva01.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v460/Leto/BebopBanner01.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v460/Leto/BebopAva01.jpg[/IMG]

[FONT="Franklin Gothic Medium"][COLOR="Navy"][strike]Dear mysterious advertiser,[/strike] [strike]Dear writer of ad[/strike] [CENTER][I]?What?s that formal greeting? should I use ?dear? at all??[/I][/CENTER] Dear Sir or Ma?am, [CENTER][I]?Isn?t it ?madam?? Oh well.?[/I][/CENTER] My name is Conner Holt, and I am very interested in the position advertised on the first of this month. I do have some questions about the exact nature of the work, but I am sure that will be sorted out in due time. I have long been interested in the paranormal and I admit that I am rather excited at the prospect of an organization with the resources to put serious effort into paranormal research. [strike] Ever since a particular incident a number years ago, my[/strike] [CENTER][I]?Definitely don?t need to tell them about that...?[/I][/CENTER] I am twenty-eight years old and have a bachelor?s degree in Applied Arts and Sciences, minors in Computer Science and Psychology. [CENTER][I]?Fat lot of good it did me??[/I][/CENTER] I have extensive experience using computers and can type at 49 words per minute. I worked for a time as a technical support agent, and so also have experience with answering phones. [strike] I don?t have much experience with interviewing people.[/strike] I also maintain a web log and have had accounts on various social networking sites in the past. [CENTER][I]?Why do they need that kind of thing anyway? Never heard of ?strange phenomena online,? whatever that?s supposed to mean.?[/I][/CENTER] My interest in the occult has grown significantly in the past several years, and I like to think that I have become somewhat knowledgeable on the subject. I am perfectly willing to work long hours, including weekends and nights if required. As requested, I have attached a photo of myself as well as a brief resume if you wish to take a look at it. [CENTER][I]?God, I hope this isn?t another bulls*** job? did I just say ?God?? Christ? augh!?[/I] ~~~[/CENTER] By the way, is the photo actually required or is it optional? And if it is required, I assume we don't have to use a [i]real[/i] photo, right?[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy]In the same vein as Magus' comment, I'm tired of an epic fight turning into a "final strike" scenario... you know what I mean. Two master swordsman staring each other down, sizing each other up and... [I]woosh, slash[/I], they fly by each other as if they passed through thin air. Wait for it... one collapses while the other stares stoically ahead. What's most painful about it is that it used to be a cool concept, until it was over-done. The only series I can forgive for doing this is Rurouni Kenshin.[/COLOR][/FONT] [FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy]I also hate it when (and this might also sound similar to previous posts...) the main character's love interest just happens to walk in on him/her (ok, usually [I]him[/I]) in a situation that looks perverted but isn't. How many romantic comedy series have used this now? Absurd.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy]Well, it's nothing fancy, but if you feel so inclined, you may use these. I realize the avatar has a white background, and if you'd rather have a darker background I can whip up a new one relatively quickly. Hope you enjoy.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT=Franklin Gothic Medium][COLOR=navy]I always thought Saren from Mass Effect was pretty cool (and I don't think I need to hide his name, considering you know he's evil from the beginning). Even though his motives are eventually revealed to be rather cowardly, one must admit that his character just screams "badass". Turians in general seem to have that quality... but Saren especially.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][COLOR="Navy"]I would have to say the game that really [i]made[/i] me a gamer, in the sense that it kept me playing and made me want to play more games, was [B]Star Wars Episode One Racing[/B]. It was the first game I owned for the N64, and I played the $#@& out of it. I don't play many racing games these days (or any, really) but I'll always look back on Star Wars racing fondly. I would say the biggest milestone for me after that was [B]Perfect Dark[/B]. In many ways, I viewed it as the perfect game (at the time) and I'd still say it's one of my favorites. Yes, it was really just a clone of Goldeneye, but it had [i]aliens[/i], which makes it cooler by default. In any case, this was the game that got me into shooters. After that, well... there's not much to say. I could make honorable mentions of Unreal Tournament (GotY edition), Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the first Halo and many more. But that would be unnecessary.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='Korey'][FONT="Franklin Gothic Medium"] Anyways, more on topic, I've always loved the music from [b]The Legend of Zelda[/b] series. [B]Link to the Past[/B] has some of my most memorable tracks from it, but I also enjoyed the music on [B]Ocarina of Time[/B]. My favorite track was probably the little bit they played for the theme to go to the fire Dungeon on Goron Mountain..[/FONT][/QUOTE] [FONT="Book Antiqua"][COLOR="Navy"]Agreed. Whole-heartedly. [B]Ocarina of Time[/B] and [B]Majora's Mask[/B] have my personal favorites (mostly because the other Zelda games I've played have all been on the Game Boy). The ability of Ocarina of Time to turn simple, eight note melodies into really memorable tracks is, in my opinion, pretty remarkable. [B]Final Fantasy X[/B] is another of my all time favorites. I've even got a few tracks off of the soundtrack, which is four discs long in its entirety. As far as I know, it's also the only FF game to have a straight up metal track. You know the one I mean. As weird as it seems, I also dig the [B]Half-Life 2[/B] music. It's mostly just ambient, electric-sounding stuff... but it has a certain appeal.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][COLOR="Navy"][B]1.[/B] Ninjas should learn to keep there @$#%& mouths shut. - [I]Naruto[/I] [B]2.[/B] Having breasts larger than many people's heads is a perfectly normal, everyday thing. - [I]Various[/I] [B]3.[/B] Making animals fight each other is a perfectly acceptable way of solving your own petty differences. - [I]Pokemon[/I] [B]4.[/B] Giant, man-shaped robots are the prefered military tool of the future. - [I]Any Gundam or other Mecha series[/I] [B]5.[/B] Every school in japan makes it's female students wear mini-skirts. - [I]Various[/I][/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='Korey'][FONT="Franklin Gothic Medium"] 3rd party headsets are always breakable/ not as good.[/FONT][/QUOTE] [FONT="Book Antiqua"][COLOR="Navy"]Not so, actually. At least, not with the good brands. I've been using a Plantronics headset on my 360 for a long time, and it's way better than the standard Microsoft one, even though it costs about the same. Anyway, thanks for the advice guys. I guess I'll be going wired after all. :)[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][COLOR="Navy"]Well, since I've got my 2008 tax return, I can finally afford the PS3 I've been trying to save up for ever since Little Big Planet came out. Now, I'm a big online gamer, so a headset is going to be pretty essential if and when I actually purchase said console. I've been looking at various models, and opinions seem very divided as to which one is really the best. Bluetooth headsets seem like the way of the future, but they're so obscenely expensive. On the other hand, the only wired headset I've been able to find for the PS3 plugs into the console itself, rather than the controller, and apparently has a reputation for breaking. So the question I pose to you is this: Are the bluetooth headsets worth the money? If not, is there a particular headset that you can recommend? Thanks in advance for your help.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][COLOR="Navy"]1. "Gah, f***ing sandals!" Saw the ATHF movie with a friend of mine and damn near pissed myself when Dr. Weird tripped. 2. The Moonenites with the hypno-rims being chased by squirrels. 3. The end of the episode with the really nice monster guy... can't remember his name. All I remember is him suddenly ripping someone's arms off. 4. Tera Patrick licking a corndog. 5. "Hey man, anyone like rap?" "NO! WE ONLY LISTEN TO SPEED METAL DOWN HERE!!!"[/COLOR][/FONT]

[FONT="Book Antiqua"][COLOR="Navy"]My dad was a huge Monty Python fan, to the point where he had a collection of recorded tapes of an old Fox ( I think) marathon called Twenty Years of Monty Python. Those tapes were my first experience with the series, and despite having a soft spot for the spam sketch, my favorite is probably the 'How Not to be Seen' sketch. That and the lumberjack song. Holy Grail can never be dethroned as the absolute king of classic comedy movies. Ever. Unfortunately, I lost my special edition DVD some time ago... it makes me cry. The Life of Brian is also quite good, though not as completely random as Holy Grail. And I never want to see Graham Chapman naked ever again.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[quote name='silpheedpilot'][COLOR="SlateGray"][SIZE="1"]Granted, I want Jack Carver, the main hero of the previous games, to come back I'll settle for a new guy. As for the story I'm wondering if it'll have hideous experimental monsters and stuff like the previous games had.[/SIZE][/COLOR][/QUOTE] [COLOR="Navy"][FONT="Franklin Gothic Medium"]The developers have said that Far Cry 2 won't feature any out-of-the-ordinary enemies, like mutants or aliens. I believe I read in Game Informer that the story will be completely devoid of any sci-fi elements. It's kind of disappointing, but as long as the good old Far Cry gameplay is there it's just fine. Instincts focused a lot on stealth, and I'm hoping that the apparently open-world style of the new game will make it that much better. So sacrificing feral abilities and wacked-out mutant combatants is a small price to pay. And Korey, I'm with Desbreko and everyone else on this one. It's a Final Fantasy game, for crying out loud. It's play value will not be decreased by less pretty textures, and certainly not by the different capacities of two different formats. Hell, FF7 looks like crap by todays standards, but does that make it less fun? Whatever they end up doing, it's still Final Fantasy. They won't cut corners.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[COLOR="Navy"][FONT="Franklin Gothic Medium"]Sony presentation just ended, and man did it seem to drag on. Anyway, I'll start off with Nintendo too. I'll agree that as far as new games and big hits are concerned, Nintendo missed the mark big time. But I think this is just another sign that the company is changing its focus in a really (ironically) harcore way. Before seeing their presentation this year, I don't think I realized just how much they were starting to cater to 'casual' gamers (I don't think you can even call them gamers, really). The Wii is already supposed to attract people who don't normally play video games, but after seeing Wii music (a game that seems like it was designed for nine-year-olds) I have to say that it's starting to look more like a friends and family platform and even less like a good old Nintendo system meant for actual gamers. I feel like Nintendo is alienating most of their original fan base. And with that, it looks like Sony didn't do a lot either. The man's voice just seemed to keep going and going and going... I would say we got less than half the amount of actual game footage we got with Microsoft. But some of it was pretty cool. The Little Big World segment was refreshingly original, and I can't wait to see what happens when that comes out, even if I never play it myself. More stuff on Resistance 2, which was also cool but nothing spectacular. No new features or anything. One thing I thought was really interesting was the announcement of MAG, a new online shooter that will apparently feature over 200 people per game. That's awesome. It's what FPS fan's wet dreams are made out of. But again, we didn't get to see much of it. Not even any real game footage. I'm anxious to see what the rest of E3 is gonna look like.[/FONT][/COLOR]